Core Beliefs - The Future - Mark Ralf

Core Beliefs: The Future

Reading:

Acts 1:11

1 In my former book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach 2 until the day he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen. 3 After his suffering, he showed himself to these men and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God. 4 On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. 5 For John baptised with water, but in a few days you will be baptised with the Holy Spirit.”

6 So when they met together, they asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?”

7 He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

9 After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.

10 They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. 11 “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.”

Revelation 22:12-16

12 “Behold, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done. 13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.

14 “Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city. 15 Outside are the dogs, those who practise magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practises falsehood.

16 “I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star.”

17 The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let him who hears say, “Come!” Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life.

The future

We have arrived at the end of our series on the core beliefs of CCE. I can’t speak for everyone else but it has been wonderful for me to work through what we believe, what we mean by it. It is always hard to put down in a few words what we can know about God and his relationship with us but at the same time this is what other people will want to know about us – what do you believe? And why do you do the things you do?

So over the last 7 weeks we have looked at:

God

Jesus Christ

The Holy Spirit

The Bible

People

Salvation

The Church

This week we come to the last section about the future. This is what our core beliefs says:

The Future

God will bring the world to an end at his appointed time and Jesus will return in person.

Everyone who has ever lived will experience bodily resurrection and all will be judged.

Those who have rejected Jesus as their saviour will suffer eternal separation from God. Only those who have been saved by Christ will enjoy eternal fellowship with God in heaven.

Promises

In our reading you heard Jesus talk about coming back. “I’ll be back!” he is saying to us.

When did you last promise something? I try my very best to keep my promises but as Claire will tell you I am sometimes very poor at getting home when I say I will.

How many times have you promised you’d do something and then never actually done it? With all our best intentions, why don’t we manage to do what we promise?

So the number one question to ask ourselves is: Can I trust the promises of Jesus and this promise in the bible? ”This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven” Acts 1:11

Throughout his life, Jesus proved to his disciples that he was faithful and true. If we believe that Jesus is God, that he lived a sinless life, died in our place and rose again, he can be trusted to do what he has promised. “I’ll be back!” Not a general promise, not nearly completing his promise on time, absolutely guaranteed. “Behold I am coming soon” “I’ll be back!”

Jesus is promising to come again soon, bringing his reward. Notice that he will also decide who will receive his reward (v.12)? Yes there will be rewards in heaven, not just being allowed into heaven to be with God forever. That would be enough but Jesus in his generosity also wants to reward us as well. Do you remember our sessions on generous living and generous giving? We know there are rewards, we cannot take our riches with us to heaven but we can send them on ahead – using what we have to help others, showing the compassion of Christ because of what he has done for us. Jesus is deeply concerned about how we respond in love to the needs of others.

Judgement

Everyone who has ever lived will experience bodily resurrection and all will be judged.

Those who have rejected Jesus as their saviour will suffer eternal separation from God.

Those who wash their robes are allowed to go into the gates of the city while those who don’t stay are kept outside. Let’s clear up a few points here. The clean robes are the robes of those who have been cleaned by the blood of Christ – the blood of the lamb – the perfect sacrifice. Only by washing ourselves in that sacrifice can we be cleaned, forgiven and fit for heaven. By immersing ourselves in the blood of Jesus we are associating ourselves with him. We are seen to be one of his. And we are told to rejoice about this.

In Luke 10:20 when the disciples were so happy that even demons submitted to them in Jesus’ name, Jesus told them to “rejoice because their names are written in heaven”.

The new Jerusalem, the city being described is heaven. It is NOT current day Jerusalem – restored to former glory. God is not doing a “changing rooms” job on the old Jerusalem. He is going to create a New Jerusalem just as he created a perfect garden for his creation. God’s people in God’s place under God’s rule.

Compare it to those who are left outside the city? What are they missing?

Look at Rev 22:1-5:

“Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2 down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. 3 No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. 4 They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. 5 There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever.

We have the water of life. The tree of life from the original garden. Healing of nations. The curse of Genesis 3 is gone. Jesus is there and we will serve him, we will see him and we will be marked as his. No darkness for God is light. God’s people are restored to him.

God’s people in God’s place under God’s rule.

So this leaves us with two questions:

1. Since Jesus will return one day, as he promised - “are we ready?”

2. Since we don’t know exactly when Jesus is going to return (all we know is that it will be “soon”) how should we be living our lives?

So, are we ready?

Have you ever been to a surprise party where everyone knew about it but not you? You may have had an idea but you are so thrilled when the door opens and there are all your friends and loved ones there to celebrate with you.

You may have no idea what awaits you, but all your friends do! They have put up the decorations, seen the cake, poured the drinks, smelled the food – all waiting for the celebration.

Jesus does the same for us. He knows about THE PARTY – HEAVEN!.

In Luke 15, he tells three stories. Each story speaks of something lost and of something found. A lost sheep. A lost coin. And a lost son. And at the end of each one, Jesus describes a party, a celebration. The shepherd throws the party for the lost-now-found sheep. The housewife throws a party because of the lost-now-found coin. And the father throws a party in honour of his lost-now-found son.

Three parables, each with a party. Three stories, each with the appearance of the same word: happy. Regarding the shepherd who found the lost sheep, Jesus says: “And when he finds it, he happily puts it on his shoulders and goes home” (vv. 5–6, italics mine). When the housewife finds her lost coin, she announces, “Be happy with me because I have found the coin that I lost” (v. 9, italics mine). And the father of the prodigal son explains to the reluctant older brother, “We had to celebrate and be happy because your brother was dead, but now he is alive. He was lost, but now he is found” (v. 32, italics mine).

Jesus is happiest when the lost are found. For him, no moment compares to the moment of salvation. For our family and friends the celebration has started when they are on the way to the party. The same occurs in heaven. Let one child consent to be dressed in righteousness and begin the journey home and heaven pours the punch, strings the streamers, and throws the confetti. “In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” Luke 15:10

Isaac Air Freight sketch:

How do we explain such joy? It is a bit curious. We aren’t talking about a nation of people or even an army of converts; we’re talking about rejoicing “when one sinner repents.” How could one person create that much excitement?

Did you imagine that our actions have such an impact on heaven? We can live and die and leave no more than an obituary. Most of our lives go largely unnoticed and unrecorded. But according to this verse, when a sinner repents, everything in heaven stops, and every heavenly being celebrates.

Heaven doesn’t throw a party over our other achievements. When we are born, take our first steps, grow up, finish school, graduate, get a job, get promoted, get married, have a baby, retire. When any of these things happen the celestial bubbly seems to stay in the refrigerator. But when someone is converted… it’s different.

Do we share God’s enthusiasm. When you hear of a someone becoming a Christian, being saved, do we celebrate? Is our day made unstoppably fantastic at the news. We may be pleased—but excited? When someone is saved, Jesus has a party – it is the best news possible.

Why do Jesus and his angels rejoice over one repenting person? What can they see that we can’t? Do they know something we don’t? YES. They know what heaven holds. They’ve seen the cake and they’ve heard the music, they have smelled the food and poured the drinks - and they can’t wait to see your face when you arrive.

And better still, when we arrive and enter the party, something wonderful will happen. A final transformation will occur. We will be just like Jesus. 1 John 3:2 Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears,a we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.

We know that when Christ comes again, we will be like him”

An anonymous poet described heaven this way:

Heaven

The light of heaven is the face of Jesus.

The joy of heaven is the presence of Jesus.

The melody of heaven is the Name of Jesus.

The employment of heaven is the service of Jesus.

The harmony of heaven is the praise of Jesus.

The theme of heaven is the work of Jesus.

Heaven is being with Jesus

We will love with a perfect love.

We will worship with a radiant face.

We will hear each word God speaks.

Our hearts will be pure. We will be just like Jesus.

No wonder the angels rejoice when one sinner repents – they know what a wonderful treat is in store.

There is yet another reason for the celebration. Yes we are on our way to the party – we are headed to heaven but we are also saved from something else.

One phrase summarizes the horror of hell. “God isn’t there.”

What if God weren’t here on earth?

You think people can be cruel now, imagine us without the presence of God.

You think we are brutal to each other now, imagine the world without the Holy Spirit.

You think there is loneliness and despair and guilt now, imagine life without the touch of Jesus.

No forgiveness. No hope. No acts of kindness. No words of love.

What would the world be like without God - In a word, hell.

No one to comfort you and no music to soothe you. No love, no hope. You’ve probably heard the phrase: the “weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Matt. 22:13). From hell comes a cries and moan of those who did not make the only choice that was important.

That’s why the angels rejoice when one sinner repents. Jesus knows what awaits the saved. He also knows what the eternal separation from God that awaits those who reject him.

When the Titanic sank, 2200 people ended up in the Atlantic. On shore the names of the passengers were posted in two simple columns — saved and lost. God’s list is equally simple.

All the things we care about won’t matter. Is he rich? Is she pretty? What work does he do? What colour is her skin? Does she have a degree? Does he have children? Did she do something very bad? Did he do something shameful?

All this doesn’t matter – the only thing that counts is have you been saved by Christ?

And so the challenge is simple. We ought to ask God to help us have his eternal view of the world. Every person you meet has been given an invitation to dinner. When one says yes, celebrate! And when one acts sluggish we need to encourage them to come to the party. We know it’s almost time for the party, and you don’t want them to miss it.

So what is your answer to:

Since Jesus will return one day, as he promised - “are you ready?”

And the second question was:

Since we don’t know exactly when Jesus is going to return (all we know is that it will be “soon”) how should we be living our lives?

Hebrews 12:1 says “let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us”

We have a healthrider exercise machine, it gathers dust and Claire and I put things on top of it every so often. If we used it we might get a lot fitter. I had a rowing machine. I eventually sold it because I wasn’t using it – it was just taking up space.

I have some CDs that promised to teach me Spanish. They are very good – at least the first 2 were and then I stopped. If I practiced they would probably work.

Not everything in my life is half finished. But I don’t always finish what I start.

Do you have unfinished things in your life? Things you started in all good faith but well….

And let’s not even talk about dieting!

It’s one thing to start something. It’s something else to finish it.

Now I am not going to pile on the guilt and get you to finish everything you start.

To be honest, I don’t think we should finish everything we start although my children would like to hear me say that about their homework.

Some things are best left undone, some projects wisely abandoned.

My point is to encourage us to finish the right thing.

Getting fit, doing the gym, learning Spanish are all worthy but optional.

Other things are essential—like the race of faith.

“Let us run the race that is before us and never give up” (Heb. 12:1).

THE RACE

The word race is from the Greek agon, from which we get the word agony. The Christian’s race is not a jog, it’s a demanding, grueling, sometimes agonizing race. It takes a massive effort to finish strong.

Lots of people don’t finish strongly. Do you remember Paula Radcliffe at the Olympics? She was heartbroken because she couldn’t go on. And she stopped. She was at the front. She was on the pace. But then weariness set in. She didn’t imagine the race would be that tough.

Sometimes runners are discouraged by a bump and daunted by a fellow runner. Whatever the reason, they don’t run anymore. They may be Christians. They may come to church. They may put money into the collection and warm a seat for a while, but their hearts aren’t in the race. They retired before their time. They don’t finish the race.

By contrast, Jesus’ best work was his final work, and his strongest step was his last step. Jesus is our example of one who endured. Jesus endured the horrible agony of his death on the cross in our place. Why?

Look at Hebrews 12v2:

² Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

In his final moments, Jesus focused on the joy God put before him. He focused on the prize of heaven – rescuing us for heaven. By focusing on the prize, he was able not only to finish the race but to finish it strongly.

So regardless of whether I have a flat stomach, have learned Spanish or have been to the gym, we need to finish the only race that matters.

Then we can take our place at the party table.

Where we will be invited to take our rest with God - because the work is finally finished.

Jesus and his people will be together, in the place he has prepared for us, living under his rule.

The Future

God will bring the world to an end at his appointed time and Jesus will return in person.

Everyone who has ever lived will experience bodily resurrection and all will be judged.

Those who have rejected Jesus as their saviour will suffer eternal separation from God. Only those who have been saved by Christ will enjoy eternal fellowship with God in heaven.

We will be seated, and Christ will christen the meal with these words from Matthew 25:23, “Well done, good and faithful servant”.

And in that moment, the race will have been worth it.

Amen