Will Heaven be Worth it All?
Census in heaven story – "You didn’t get one?"
Sermon not to add new information but we need to be reassured. My purpose as a minister is not only to condemn sin but also to build up lives.
Mt. 19:27-29
a. Peter’s question, "Is it worth it?" Jesus’ answer.
b. We can sympathize with Peter. Often feel discouraged. "What’s the use?" Pressures are great to give up; tempted to not hold out.
Phil. 3:14
Title of lesson
Think about what kind of place heaven will be.
A place of beauty (Rev. 21:2, 10-11,18-19,21).
Of course, human language cannot fully describe.
A little girl looked at a starry night sky, "If this is what the wrong side of heaven looks, what does the right side look like?"
Yes, "There is a beautiful place called heaven, it is hidden above the bright blue, where the good, who from earth-ties are riven, live and love an eternity through. Above the bright blue, the beautiful blue, Jesus is waiting for me and for you; heaven is there, not far from our sight, beautiful city of light."
A place of satisfaction (Rev. 7:15-16).
A place of great reward (Mt. 5:12).
II Tim. 4:6-8
I Pet. 1:4
Mt. 19:21
I Jn. 2:25
A place where nothing can make us sad (Rev. 21:4).
Not from pain or sickness.
Not from seeing hurt in others.
Not from vile and evil men (Rev. 21:27).
Not from separation or bereavement.
a. Lk. 20:36
"Good-bye" never spoken.
With these promises in mind, will heaven be worth it all?
A lifetime of faithfulness (Rev. 2:10)?
Attend worship, put Christ first, seek the lost, grow spiritually, etc.
Not just now, but always. Not just a year, but 10, 20, 50 years.
Never forgetting, never quitting.
When the Lord calls your name and puts the crown on your head, will it be worth it all?
Resisting the pressures of temptation?
Jas. 1:12
Not the occasional thought of sin, but temptation that tears at our being; the devil saying "just this once"; and the whole world seems to be saying, "Why not?"
Will the crown of life be worth it?
Admitting wrong, changing life? Religion?
Almost all conversions in the New Testament involved a change of religion.
Saul of Tarsus
a. Forsook accomplishments.
Lost his friends
Persecuted.
2000 years have passed, "Paul, was it worth?" (II Tim. 1:12)
Seeking the truth in the midst of a confused world (Acts 17:11)?
What is right? Wrong? True? False? Authorized? Not authorized?
Tempted to drift with the tide.
Jn. 8:32
Much study, searching and researching but heaven will be worth the effort.
I want to go to heaven:
a. Sit down with the great men of the Bible past.
b. Run up and embrace loved ones and be reunited (my grandparents).
c. Be part of a chorus of 10,000 X 10,000 singing "Worthy is the Lamb."
d. Walk by the living waters and taste the sweet fruit of the tree of life.
e. Never be bothered or afraid.
f. Never have a worry, no pain, and no tears.
g. Wear a crown.
h. Hear the reading of the will of the Son of God, Jesus Christ, and know I am one of the heirs.
i. To be like Christ in His glory.
Mt. 13:43
Jim Pharr
Lenoir, NC