Category: Heaven

This refers to my new home in glory with my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!

A Glimpse of Heaven!

On By Ed AlgreenIn Bible Believing, Born Again, Eternal Life, Forgiveness, HeavenLeave a comment

SCRIPTURE

Studied: Revelation 4

OBSERVATION

Revelation 4:8-11 ~ … Day after day and night after night they keep on saying, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God, the Almighty — the one who always was, who is, and who is still to come.” Whenever the living beings give glory and honor and thanks to the one sitting on the throne (the one who lives forever and ever), the twenty-four elders fall down and worship the one sitting on the throne (the one who lives forever and ever). And they lay their crowns before the throne and say, “You are worthy, O Lord our God, to receive glory and honor and power. For you created all things, and they exist because you created what you pleased.”

APPLICATION

In the Revelation given to John that is described in this chapter, a description is given of what things look like around the throne of God, and among the descriptions, in verse three it was described as “The one sitting on the throne was as brilliant as gemstones—like jasper and carnelian. And the glow of an emerald circled his throne like a rainbow”. Additionally there is an image of living beings constantly worshipping the King of Kings and chanting as described at the beginning of the passage above. With this the 24 elders humbly laid their crowns at the foot of the throne and simply worshipped the King. I don’t know about anyone else, but as a child of the King, and as one saved by His grace, and as one who feels very watched-over/protected and loved by my Lord and my King, this excites me beyond words, as this is exactly what I look forward to whenever Jesus calls me home to be with Him. However, while here on this earth this thought is almost bitter sweet, because even though I can look forward to this day, I know that I have loved ones who have rejected my Savior, and will be turned away from this wonderful experience in the world to come, for Jesus will no longer deal in convicting hearts to follow Him then, for we would have ‘arrived’ (praise be to God!). Therefore my challenge today is to do my part in representing Christ well in all that I do and say, so that others may be influenced by the Christ that lives within me, for my aim is to never be a stumbling block to any work of Christ as He deals with the unsaved, but instead to be a living witness and reinforce the love of Jesus that others need, God being my helper.

PRAYER

Father I am reminded today of the wonderful place that You have gone to prepare for me and other Christians. With this reminder, I am also made very aware that time could be very short for my loved ones who have not yet accepted You, for You have taught throughout Your Word that TODAY is the day of salvation. You know my relatives and friends in a very personal way, as You know me. Please tender their hearts again today and speak warmly, but sternly to them about the condition of their soul and where their life is headed. Selfishly I am asking that they join me in heaven at the foot of Your throne. Personally I know that this seems impossible at this time for some, as I know their stubborn personality and the grip that Satan has on them, but Father I know that I serve the God Almighty, who specializes in what appears to be impossibilities for Your kids like me. Thank You for always hearing my prayer. Thank You for wisely wading through my wishes and answering those that You see fit, and that is in accordance with Your will. Based on Your Word, I believe that Your wish is that all may be saved, so I believe that I am asking this within the confines of Your will. Thank You for answered prayer and thank You for listening to my cry today. Please show me what I might do to help my brother or my sister to make this life-changing decision. Thank You for providing a way for us to one day transition from this world of sin, to a home briefly described by John in this passage today!

Know that You Have Life Eternal

On By Ed AlgreenIn Born Again, Christian, Eternal Life, Faith, Forgiveness, Heaven, Humility, Love, Obedience, SinLeave a comment

SCRIPTURE

Studied: 1 John 5

 

OBSERVATION

1 John 5:13-15 ~ I write this letter to you who believe in the Son of God so you will know you have eternal life. And this is the boldness we have in God’s presence: that if we ask God for anything that agrees with what he wants, he hears us. If we know he hears us every time we ask him, we know we have what we ask from him.

APPLICATION

Here are some words of encouragement for us today, some key points on which we can build our faith in Jesus Christ and reassurance for us as Christians to know that our living, powerful Savior is actively involved in our lives, as we give Him room and permission to. Here are the key points that really encouraged me:

  • Through God’s leading, with His direction, and through His grace, I accepted Jesus as my Savior back in 1976. God, through John is assuring me here that I have eternal life, therefore one day when life shall leave my earthly body, I will be taken away to forever be with my Savior in heaven! Although I already knew this, every time I am reminded of this it bring such a peace, reassurance and excitement to me. I can’t imagine why the Master of this universe would consider even me to one day join Him in glory, but I am satisfied that it will happen, praise be to God! As a side note, what is also exciting is that while this is an exclusive group that will get to join Jesus Christ at His right hand, the invitation to join the group is open to ALL who will accept Jesus as Lord and Savior of their life. This is something that no one should refuse. I constantly pray that I will see all of my family and loved ones there, so I am praying that they will accept Jesus today, while they are still able to. Why don’t you consider doing the same thing friend?
  • As a child of the King, we have the boldness while in God’s presence to ask for anything, that He agrees with, and we can be assured that He hears us. As the last sentence in theses verses says, if God hears our prayer and it is in accordance with His will for our lives, then we can consider it done. The verse actually says that we know that we already have it! While this is super exciting, one might ask well how will I know if it is God’s will for me? For those that ask arbitrarily without any type of relationship with God, this will probably be extremely difficult. After all, think about a marriage relationship – if after leaving the altar where you said your vows, the husband goes one way and the wife another, not only is there a lack of relationship between them (although they are ‘married’), but one of them will have no idea what pleases the other in three months when they get together for dinner! Likewise, to know God’s will we must be constant in prayer and Bible Study so that we may learn His heart’s desire for us. There is a group study called ‘The Mind of Christ’. This is something that you cannot discern from a distance, this requires an intimate relationship with Christ. One of the huge ways that one can be helped with this is by connecting with a body of believers (a bible believing/teaching church). Not only will you hear the Word of God preached and taught, but to network with others of like faith brings an enormous sense of love, accountability, boldness and strength that could help both you and them through daily challenges with life here in this wicked world in which we now live. If you are not connected already friend, I encourage you to give this a try. Believe me, it works!

PRAYER

  1. Lord Jesus, You are so awesome. You have provided the means for us to have eternal life. You hear our prayers, even though we tend to stray away from Your teaching so much. I often feel so undeserved of such love, but again today I want to thank You for that love. I feel especially blessed, loved and cared for by You and can easily say thank You for all that You do in my life. Forgive me for sometimes asking for things that may not fit within your will for my life at the present time, but thank you for redirecting me towards a right path pleasing to You. Please be my guide each and every day, for

Born Again?

On By Ed AlgreenIn Bible Believing, Born Again, Christian, Eternal Life, Faith, Heaven, Humility, RighteousnessLeave a comment

SCRIPTURE

Studied: John 3

OBSERVATION

John 3:3-7 ~ Jesus replied, “I tell you for certain that you must be born from above before you can see God’s kingdom!” Nicodemus asked, “How can a grown man ever be born a second time?” Jesus answered: I tell you for certain that before you can get into God’s kingdom, you must be born not only by water, but by the Spirit. Humans give life to their children. Yet only God’s Spirit can change you into a child of God. Don’t be surprised when I say that you must be born from above.

APPLICATION

We often hear the terminology “You must be born again” or “You must accept Jesus as Lord” in order to enter into heaven one day. To those that are unfamiliar with the Word of God, it must be difficult to understand this terminology, and it must sound to you like it did to Nicodemus in these verses. However, Jesus explained that just as in our natural birth we are born from the womb through water into a new birth – a true transformation, the second birth is from a natural sinful life through the Spirit of God that will give us a brand new birth in Christ, another transformation. It is as easy as A, B, C to do this. Be ready by ADMITting that you are a sinner in need of a Savior (Jesus). BELIEVE that Jesus is Lord and that only He can save you and give you access into heaven. Then CONFESS your sin to Jesus and ask His forgiveness. It’s as simple as that, Admit, Believe and Confess. Do this and you will be saved, friend! Go then and tell your friends about the change/transformation that has occurred in your life!

PRAYER

Father I thank You for saving me, and for forgiving me of my sin, and giving me life eternal. Please speak to anyone reading this today and convince them of any decisions that they need to make. Please tender the hearts of my family and loved ones that still need to surrender their lives to You. May this be a day of decision for them. May they go to bed tonight with the assurance of knowing that they have made the most important decision of their life and that it is a positive decision towards knowing You as their personal Savior. As this is read, decisions will be made. One decision will be to accept Jesus as Lord or the alternative is to continue a life without Christ that could be into eternal damnation (Hell) before the sun sets tonight. I love my family and friends too much to know that any of them will make the latter decision, so please soften their hearts even now dear Jesus.

The People God is Pleased With

On By Ed AlgreenIn Bible Believing, Faith, Heaven, Humility, Righteousness, WorksLeave a comment

SCRIPTURE

Studied: Isaiah 66

OBSERVATION

Isaiah 66:1-2 ~ This is what the Lord says: “Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. So do you think you can build a house for me? Do I need a place to rest? My hand made all things. All things are here because I made them,” says the Lord. “These are the people I am pleased with: those who are not proud or stubborn and who fear my word.

APPLICATION

The first part of these verses really caught my attention, because I feel like we are so busy having church, doing things for the church, keeping up the buildings and grounds, and doing, doing, doing, until we often leave out the time that is necessary to study God’s Word and draw close to Him in our personal relationship. While I love the verse in James that speak of faith without works, I believe that God reminded me through His prophet Isaiah in these verses that there is nothing more important than my personal relationship with Him and living my life in a manner that pleases Him. To put this in perspective, I believe that we should surrender our lives to Christ and allow Him to be Lord of our lives. We should then stay in God’s Word so that we may get to know Him better and seek after what it takes to please Him every day. God is the only one that did it right, for He lived a perfect life, therefore we should seek to model our lives after Him. As we come to know Him better, we will automatically be of service to and help others, like He did when He was here in human form. But I believe that we must be extra careful to not let our desire to help others overshadow our constant need for growing more like Jesus every day. His Word is filled with ‘nuggets’ that will show us our human weaknesses and teach us His ways.

PRAYER

Teach me Your ways oh God, so that I may live in harmony with Your will for my life. I pray that while here on this earth You will give me strength and wisdom to live my life in a manner pleasing to You. From Your Word this morning, I realize that I need to be certain that I am humble and therefore not proud or stubborn, and that I will live in the fear of God and in the knowledge and subsequent obedience to Your Word. You are my God, please help me to live like Your son.

My New Home

On By Ed AlgreenIn Bible Believing, Faith, Heaven, RighteousnessLeave a comment

SCRIPTURE

Studied: Isaiah 65

OBSERVATION

Isaiah 65:17-25 ~ “Look! I am creating new heavens and a new earth, and no one will even think about the old ones anymore. Be glad; rejoice forever in my creation! And look! I will create Jerusalem as a place of happiness. Her people will be a source of joy. I will rejoice over Jerusalem and delight in my people. And the sound of weeping and crying will be heard in it no more. “No longer will babies die when only a few days old. No longer will adults die before they have lived a full life. No longer will people be considered old at one hundred! Only the cursed will die that young! In those days people will live in the houses they build and eat the fruit of their own vineyards. Unlike the past, invaders will not take their houses and confiscate their vineyards. For my people will live as long as trees, and my chosen ones will have time to enjoy their hard-won gains. They will not work in vain, and their children will not be doomed to misfortune. For they are people blessed by the Lord, and their children, too, will be blessed. I will answer them before they even call to me. While they are still talking about their needs, I will go ahead and answer their prayers! The wolf and the lamb will feed together. The lion will eat hay like a cow. But the snakes will eat dust. In those days no one will be hurt or destroyed on my holy mountain. I, the Lord, have spoken!”

APPLICATION

Normally I wouldn’t use such a large chunk of scripture at one time, but this was so good until it was really too difficult choosing just a short piece of it. Anytime I read about, or think about or reflect on my new home in glory with my Savior, it gives me a super charge! This is so exciting! Here on this old earth I thank God for all that He blesses me with each day, for I truly feel blessed in so many ways. But there is sin here, and where there is sin the old Devil has freedom to rant and rave and use his warriors to interfere with the joy that I would otherwise have in enjoying the peace and comfort of all that God gives to me. In the new heaven that He has gone to prepare for me there will be no interfering by anyone, especially old Satan, for he will be banned from there, praise be to God! Another scripture says that we should think on these things, instead of all the evil around us. This is a wonderful thought that can compare to nothing on this old earth. What A Day That Will Be, When my Jesus I shall see, When I look upon His face……

PRAYER

Lord Jesus, thank You for preparing a home where, one day, I will be with You for evermore! What A Day That Will Be! While here on this old earth, may I be found worthy to share Your Word and the joy that You bring into my life each day. You have done so much for me and have done so much to prepare even my future that I want to serve You in any way that I can while here in this earth. I pray that You will guide me and lead me each day in the path that You would have me follow so that Your work may be accomplished. Oh I want to see Him, Look upon His face!