Your Convictions About Heaven

God didn’t put us on this earth to stay here forever. If this world is not our final destination, then what is? In this message, Dr. Stanley whets our appetite for the place we’ll call our forever home: heaven. Find out what God has in store for those who trust in His Son Jesus Christ. For more messages from Charles Stanley, including this week’s broadcast, go to www.intouch.org/watch

God’s Messages

Dear Lord,
Today…….I am asking all my prayer warriors to say a prayer that may help others. So many people are hurting right now. Many are struggling with finances and need jobs. Some are facing foreclosure and don’t even know how they are going to make it from week to week..

Many are lonely. . Many are heartbroken. . Many are facing sickness and health is fading. . Some are dealing with difficult family members. Many have lost HOPE.. Tonight, let us put our prayers and faith together decree and declare breakthrough over our families. Financial miracles WILL take place. Jobs WILL be found. Our Bodies WILL be made whole & sickness WILL flee. Marriages and relationships WILL be restored. Family members WILL find Jesus. Heartbreaks WILL be healed. JOY WILL be restored and HOPE WILL be found. In Jesus Name. Amen!!!!!! Keep God First…….

What is your conviction about heaven? Have you thought about it?
Now, a conviction is the belief that you hold, but which you are willing to take a strong stand for.
What do you believe about heaven? You say?
Well, I hadn’t really thought about it much but the truth is, most people don’t think about it much.
When’s the last time you’ve heard a sermon on heaven?
When’s the last time you’ve given it any serious thought?
Unless you were in the hospital and thought you were dying. When do you think about heaven?
Not many folks think about it. Many people are very, very ignorant about it.
And most people have a very, very unbiblical view of what heaven is going to be like.
And so somebody says, well, uh I don’t have a conviction about some things that I don’t know much about.
I understand that. Well, the purpose of this message is to introduce you to heaven, not to give you a complete explanation of what it’s all about.
Number one, you couldn’t do that in one sermon or a whole book, but at least I can introduce you to heaven in such a fashion that if you’re interested in going, I’ll tell you how to get there and maybe give you some insights to help you to start living more like you’re going there than that.
You intend to stay here forever.
And the first thing I wanna say is about heaven, our heavenly father is there.
And it’s interesting in Matthew, in the sermon on the mount, you’ll notice that uh Jesus talked about the Heavenly Father and he mentioned it six times in the, the attitudes.
And then of course, uh I think about 14 times in the rest of the gospel of Matthew.
So somebody says, well, well, where is heaven? This is the simplest answer.
Wherever God is, wherever God is, because somebody says, they see up there out there, that’s not even the issue wherever God is.
That’s where heaven is even today. So Heavenly Father is there. Secondly, our savior, the Lord Jesus is there.
You remember when uh Jesus was about to ascend in that uh first chapter of acts and as they were gazing and into the sky, while he was going behold, two men in white clothing stood by him.
They also said, men of Galilee, why do you send looking up into the sky?
This Jesus who has been taken up from you into heaven will come in just the same way as you have watched him go into heaven.
So the scripture says that Jesus who was physical and human and uh heavenly, that uh He ascended into heaven and they watched him ascend into heaven.
So when you say, well, who’s gonna be in heaven? God’s in heaven? And the Lord Jesus Christ is there?
And the question is, are you gonna be there?
And I wonder if you can say this morning for sure.
When I die, I’m going to heaven where God is, where Jesus is and all to the scriptures.
God makes it very clear. And if you’ll notice also in the third chapter of Colossians verse four says, therefore, if any of you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things that are above where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.
So wherever God is, Jesus is, and then you’ll remember in uh Romans chapter eight and the 34th verse, he says that he’s making in a session for us.
And he also says that in the book of Hebrews. And so where is heaven where God is?
Where God is? That’s where Jesus is. Also.
The third thing I would say about heaven is that heaven is a prepared place.
And if you’ll notice in John this 14 chapter and 2nd, 2nd verse there, he says, in my Father’s house are many dwelling places if they were not.
So I would have told you before I go to prepare a place for you.
So listen to that Jesus said to his disciples and to us that heaven is a prepared place.
And that is, you don’t die and just float out yo somewhere.
And I hear people talking about what’s gonna happen to them when they die.
They have no earth of the idea. But the scripture says that he has prepared a place for his Children.
He says, I’m going to prepare a place for you.
And then if you look in the 21st chapter of um look at the 21st chapter of the revelation.
And um if you’ll notice in the 27th verse and nothing unclean and no one who practices abomination and lying, she’ll ever come into it.
Speaking of heaven, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.
And so it’s very clear what he’s talking about. And then of course, listen, what the scripture says.
And I saw the holy city of Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride a dawn for her husband.
And so heaven is a prepared place.
Not only do we have a prepared place, but that our citizenship is there.
Now, what does he mean by that? Turn to Philippians chapter three verse 20 and 21.
Listen to what he says, Paul speaking, he says for our citizenship is in heaven from which also we eagerly wait for a savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform the body of our humble state into conformity with the body of His glory.
But the power that he has even to subject all things to himself. And so what is he saying?
He’s saying these bodies will not be fit for heaven.
So what he says is these bodies are gonna be transformed to conform to the body of His glory that is God is going to change these bodies of ours to fit heaven.
We are, our bodies are fit for earth in order to live in heaven, we’re gonna have a body that’s fit for that.
And so when you think about how you look and how you feel and you think, well, am I gonna be this way in heaven?
No, you’re not. You’re gonna be better than that. It’s gonna be a body that will be so transformed.
It will fit perfectly in this heaven that he’s prepared for us.
And so you and I can say, well, how are we gonna get that Jesus is our passport to awesome heaven that we read about.
And uh I think about a song that I grew up singing. This world is not my home.
I’m just passing through. My treasures are laid up somewhere beyond the blue and on and on that.
That song goes many of you remember that some of you do. At least this.
In other words, this earth is not our home.
We’re here temporarily, but God’s prepared a place for all of his Children.
So I would say that being true.
Uh We’re not to get too attached to things if this is not our home.
Why should we be become so attached to stuff?
Have you ever looked in one of your closets and said, what am I gonna do with all of that?
All of this, all of the other, this world is not my home. I’m just passing through.
My treasures are laid up somewhere beyond the blue as the song goes.
What’s, what, what real treasures do you have? What do you, what do you own?
You’re gonna take with you to heaven. Not one single thing.
It can be on your finger worth thousands of dollars or in your pocket worth a million.
But you’re not gonna take any of that with you.
And when I think about people who spend their life accumulating, gotta get this, you gotta have that gotta have the other and recognize that when the moment comes and the heart beats the last time, forget it because you’re not gonna take it with you.
And many people spend their life, invest their life accumulating and stuff, things that are very valuable earthly wise, but that last moment it’s all over.
And so our perspective about life and death changes when we understand what heaven is going to be like.
And the fact that we listen, our citizenship is already there. So what does that mean?
That means the names of the saved are recorded there.
You remember when uh Jesus sent his disciples out and they came back, what were they talking about, they said even the devils are subject to us and they were praising the Lord Jesus for the power he had given them to heal people and all the wondrous things that were going on.
And you remember what Jesus said after they gave their testimony of all that had happened.
He said, you rejoice over this, that, that’s good.
But rejoice over this, that your name is written in the Book of Life.
And uh I remember till this day for some reason, I went to see this gentleman many times when I was pastoring a little church in Danville just for the summer.
And uh there was a fellow that everybody loved. He was sick. He’d been sick.
A long, long time, couldn’t get out of bed. I went to see him probably about three times a week.
Wonderful guy, but he was lost.
And I remember the day he got saved and he and I were talking and he accepted Christ as his savior.
I still remember for some reason, walking out of his yard starting to sing this song.
What’s the name of the song? There’s a new name written down in glory.
And I remember singing that song and praising God because I prayed over him, prayed for him.
He rejected and rejected and rejected. And finally he accepted Christ as his savior.
There’s a new name written down the glory and down in glory and it’s mine. It’s mine.
And you know, the rest of that song.
So when you think about that and you think about that, your name is recorded in heaven or how is it recorded?
I don’t think it’s recorded on a computer. I don’t think it is.
You say, what is it record on God’s books, whatever that might be.
So we can picture our names written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.
The issue is, are you sure when your heart beats the last time when you’re gone and nobody can do anything about it that you’re going to heaven absent, watch this, absent from the body present where with the Lord, if you are saved, so our names are there.
And uh the truth is that spiritually watch this spiritually, you’re already there.
Now, I want you to turn to Ephesians chapter two for a moment and uh I want you to look at this passage scripture.
Ephesians chapter two. When we say that uh we’re already there spiritually beginning in verse four.
Listen to what Paul says for us in chapter two.
But God being look at this rich in mercy, not skimpy, rich in mercy because of his great love with which he loved us.
That is the only way we’re gonna get there is his love.
Now, listen, even when we were dead spiritually in our transgressions, in our sins, in our unbelief, he made us alive spiritually speaking together with Christ.
It is through Christ that our life has been changed. For by grace, you’ve been saved.
And he listen to this. We still down here.
But he says he raised us up spiritually seated us with him with Jesus in the heavenly places in Christ.
So that in the ages to come, he might show the surpassing riches of his grace and kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.
And then that familiar verse for by grace, you’ve been saved through faith that not of yourselves.
It’s a gift of God, not of as a result of our works that we may boast of raise us up with Him.
See us in the heavenly places here.
What he saying in the mind of God as a place for us in the mind of God.
It’s as if we were seated with Him in heavenly places that is once you trusted Jesus Christ as your savior, listen carefully settled.
No one’s ever been saved and been lost.
Because when, when we are saved, he says this is how sure it is raise this up with Him, see us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.
So that in the ages to come, he might show the surpassing riches of his grace and kindness toward us.
In Christ Jesus. He said, what’s God done?
He’s given you eternal security that you can live with all the rest of your life.
I was safe when I was 12 and listen, seated in the heaven is in Christ Jesus.
And the problem is we don’t realize what God has in store for us.
We don’t even realize what He has in store for us here in our relationship with Him.
It’s a relationship with Him that makes all of these things that he states very clearly in the scripture reality.
That is when you were saved, you didn’t just get saved.
And God say, well, one of these days you’re gonna die. Here’s what he said.
He says, even when we were dead in our trespasses and our sins, he made us alive together with Christ by grace, you’ve been saved, raised us up, spiritually raised us up with Christ, seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ, Jesus that is in the mind of God, in reality, it’s as good as we are there.
Anyway, you look at those verses, that’s what it means in the mind of God.
He’s already said this in heaven. We talk about our names being written in the lamb’s book of life.
It’s better than just having your name there. He says spiritually you’re there.
God sees you there because He sees us in the light of our relationship to his son Jesus.
So when things get tough and you get down and you know everything’s wrong, you have to remember this.
Where am I from? God’s perspective, seated in the presence of the living God provided by Jesus himself.
So we have nothing to fear. You may have desires in your life.
But remember this, you may have some desires in your life.
They’ll never be fulfilled down here, but you won’t have any desire.
That’s a sanctified desire approved of the Lord Jesus Christ that you will be needing in heaven.
He listen to this. You think about this.
He not only saved us but he in the mind of God.
We are seated with Christ in heavenly places in Christ, Jesus that is we are eternally secure and listen, the better you understand that the more you understand it, there’s gonna be an increasing desire for you to live a holy life because that’s what he’s getting us ready for.
When he transcends us from this life to the next to an absolute holy life.
The battle for holiness is over, you will be absolutely totally holy.
And for him to put it in those terms that we’re sitting with him, with Christ, with Christ Jesus for all eternity.
That’s his way of picturing our eternal security. And so when we talk about spiritually, we are already there.
Go back again to Ephesians chapter one because I think we, we, we don’t realize what we have, listen to what he says.
And Paul, in this wonderful book of Ephesians in the 13th verse, he says in him, that is in Christ, which means in our, because of our relationship to him, because of our relationship to Jesus, having trusted him as our savior in him.
You also after well watch this after listening to the message of truth, very important part.
After listening to the message of truth, which is the gospel of your salvation.
Having also believed in Christ Jesus, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise.
Now think about this, the next time you get down in the dumps, you think about this, the Bible says your sins have been forgiven.
Name has been written in the Lamb’s book of Life in the Mind of God.
It’s as good as if you were seated there.
And not only that you have been sealed by the Holy Spirit of Promise.
And he has given us a pledge as he says in the next verse.
So think about this, sometimes we may get discouraged about this.
That and the other, we need to think about what’s reality, reality is and names are there from God’s point of view.
It’s as good as already done.
We’ve been sealed by the Holy Spirit and we have become the saints of God in the presence of Almighty God for all eternity.
You see He doesn’t see us the way we see ourselves.
We see ourselves in this life, struggling for this and struggling for that.
And we all go through difficulty, hardship and pain, but we need to be ever reminded of the fact.
What’s the reality from God’s viewpoint? God says this is, this is the truth about you.
Now, you don’t feel it right now.
You don’t see it right now, understand that this is the truth.
And so he wants to remind us of the truth, not because it’s gonna change my circumstances today, but it’s a reminder that this is not gonna last, I’m gonna get through this.
It does not mean that I’m gonna be here and God’s gonna be there.
We’re gonna be in the presence of Almighty God in such a way. There’s not gonna be space and time.
Like we think of it in the mind of God.
When you trusted Jesus Christ as your personal savior, all that became a reality.
And that is when we say we are already there, the more I understand my position with Him, the clearer everything is I may hurt, I may be having a hard time.
But you know what, when I think about what God says, I don’t think about that.
I think about what he says in his presence, it’s gonna be perfect.
And when we grasp what God has already said has already happened to us, then what happens?
Then I can look at the future and realize that whatever is going on now is gonna be fantastic.
One of these days watch this because listen, God didn’t put us on this earth to stay here.
He didn’t put you on this earth to stay here.
Now, some of us live a little longer than others at times. But that’s not the issue.
The issue is that one of these days He’s gonna call our name.
And people talk about God calling your number. I don’t think you’re not numbered. You are named, not numbered.
What number? 36? What does that say? That doesn’t say anything but Charles Frazier.
Stanley says a whole lot very clearly.
So then of course, the, the scripture says that heaven is where our treasure is.
Now, you may think your treasure is in your property in the bank, your gold, your silver, all these things.
But listen to what Jesus said in the sixth chapter, Matthew. Store up for yourselves treasures in heaven.
Not on earth where neither moth nor rust destroy where thieves do not break in or steal for your treasure is where it is there.
Will your heart be also? Where’s your treasure? You hoarding this and hoarding that and hoarding the other.
Do you think your security is based on how much money you have or how much property you have or gold or civil or whatever it might be?
Our treasure? Listen to this. Our treasure cannot be bought and watch this. Anything you’ve bought.
You can lose anything you can touch, you can lose.
Our treasure is our relationship to him and all the works that we do.
The right spirit and attitude and so forth. That is God is He has our rewards coming.
That’s where our treasure is not here, store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, things that man can’t touch.
So how do you store them up by your good deeds, by your obedience, by your holy life, by your actions of love and kindness and forgiveness and so forth.
Then of course, he says, our inheritance and rewards are there.
And if you go back to Matthew chapter five, in the sermon on the mount and listen to what um he says in this fifth, in this fifth chapter and the 12th verse after he’s given us the attitudes, listen to what he says 12 verse, rejoice and be glad for your reward.
Listen to this, for your reward in heaven is great. Your reward in heaven is great.
What is that reward? It’s not what I’ve done to be saved.
And there are people who think and that all of us should have good works but not to get ourselves to heaven.
We do good works because we’re sons and daughters of Almighty God and we’re not doing them.
So things will be better in heaven if I do this.
And so no is the natural life of a, of a Godly person who does what the Lord Jesus Christ commanded us to do we to be Godly and holy.
Help, love, forgive and so forth, all of those things.
And so Jesus said our inheritance, he said rejoice that your inheritance is in heaven, not here.
And I think about people who are really striving and I meet people once in a while who are really, really working at being good enough to get to heaven.
It’s an endless future attempt because that is not what God said for by grace, you’ve been saved.
That’s the forgiving love of God based on the death of Jesus Christ, his son by grace.
So, uh look in first Peter for a moment. First Peter.
And uh the, and the, and this first chapter I want you to notice something uh that Peter says here that I think is applies to all of this first Peter first chapter.
And um the uh 3rd and 4th verses, he says, blessed be the God and father of our Lord Jesus Christ, watch this.
Who according to his great mercy, not just mercy, his great mercy has caused us to be born again.
Listen to what he said, you know how you got born again with the mercy of God according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
That is what’s the basis of our hope, not how good we are.
The basis of our hope is in his resurrection.
His resurrection justified, declared, assured everything he taught according to the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable, undefiled, will not fade away, reserved in heaven for whom you look at those, look at those verses, verse three, blessed be the God and father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Who according to his, what kind of mercy.
Great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope.
How do we know it’s living through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead?
And thus, we have obtained an inheritance which is imperishable, cannot be destroyed.
Undefiled, cannot be contaminated, will not fade away. Reserved in heaven for you.
Listen, if you’re saved, look what you’ve got.
You don’t, you don’t have anything physical to match those two verses.
And then the last thing I would say is uh our, our save, the loved ones and friends are there.
And if you remember what Paul said in second Corinthians chapter five, and that he said, absent from the body and what present with the Lord.
And then in first Thessalonians chapter four.
And if you look there for just a moment, very, very familiar passage that we all like to quote.
And um you’ll notice what the scripture says. He says in the 13th verse.
Don’t be uninformed about those who are asleep, those who passed on so that you will not grieve as do the rest you have to hope for.
If we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with him when Jesus returns, those who have fallen asleep in Jesus for this, we said to you by the word of the Lord that we who are alive and remain to the coming of the Lord shall not proceed.
Those who have fallen asleep who passed on before, for the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a shout with the voice of the arch angel with the trumpet of God.
And the dead in Christ will rise first. That is the bodies of these who pass on.
Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air.
So shall we always be with the Lord?
So what there’s gonna be a big reunion and our loved ones who passed on before us, who’ve gone to heaven?
And Jesus says, when he comes, there’s gonna be a big celebration in heaven.
Now, the question is this and the, and the question is not so much, what does the Bible teach about heaven?
But the question is this, are you going there?
Because many people think they are and they can tell you why and they list all these things that they’ve done, how good they are, how accepted they are, how much money they’ve given, how many times they’ve been to church, maybe they’ve been baptized two or three times and they think that’s gonna get them to heaven.
No way. It’s by grace. You save through faith that not of yourselves.
It is the gift of God, not of anything we do but by his awesome love.
So that’s just a little idea to get you started thinking about heaven.
And the most important question is this, how are you going there?
You say, well, uh what do I have to do to, to get there at least know what the scripture says.
I go to a prepared place for you and come again to receive you to myself that where I am that you may be also, I am the way the truth and the life.
No one comes to the father.
But through me, there’s only one way to get to heaven by accepting Jesus Christ believing that he’s the son of God, that his death was payment for your sin.
And when you place your faith in Him is the savior.
And Lord, your name is written in the lamb’s book of Life.
And all the things we’ve talked about happen instantly automatically.
That’s my prayer for you, father, we love you and praise you that you didn’t give us a list of things that we had to do to get saved.
We thank you that you planned it and they turn it to pass and made it possible for us to be saved through the death of your son.
Make this message so simple and plain to go all over this world for all religions and all beliefs or whatever it might be.
And then may the Holy Spirit take your word and interpret it clearly to people everywhere, whatever their language, whatever their background so that they too may know what Jesus meant when he said I am the way the truth and the life.
No one comes to the Father.
But by me and Lord give them understanding when Jesus said, for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have the gift of eternal life.
And we pray this in Jesus name. Amen.