Habits of Highly Effective Christ-Followers
Begin with the End in Mind – Part VII
Scripture Reading: Revelation 21:1-27 NLT
Key Verses: Revelation 21:3-4 NLT
I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, “Look, God’s home is now among His people! He will live with them, and they will be His people. God Himself will be with them. He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.”
It is far more important to know that you are going to be a part of God’s eternal rewards rather than totally understanding what eternal life looks like.
Let’s review what the Bible says about preparing to be accepted into all the wonderful eternal experiences. Jesus made this very clear:
“I tell you the truth, those who listen to my message and believe in God who sent me have eternal life. They will never be condemned for their sins, but they have already passed from death into life.” (John 5:24 NLT)
The first question to ask ourselves is: Do we believe in Jesus’s message and in the God that He describes to us? This question presumes that you have read the lessons that Jesus taught in the New Testament.
Do not depend on what others have told us about these truths because this can open the door to false beliefs. When we are talking about our eternal destinations, we cannot depend on any other source other than the Bible itself. A Bible that has Jesus’s words in red letters helps focus on Jesus’s teachings.
John 3:36 NLT is another scripture to know and follow:
And anyone who believes in God’s Son has eternal life. Anyone who doesn’t obey the Son will never experience eternal life but remains under God’s angry judgment.
Do you believe that Jesus is God’s Son and have you asked Him to live in you and help you obey His teachings?
Notice that these two scriptures give us instructions on how to spend eternity with God, but do not require perfect performance on our part. They require faith in God and His Son.
We are going to fail in our efforts at times, but that does not mean we do not believe in how the Bible tells us to live. We must spend our entire lives learning and practicing the lessons Jesus taught.
Finally, never forget the Apostle Paul’s words on this subject:
God saved you by His grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. (Ephesians 2:8 NLT)
We must daily praise God for our salvation. Our best efforts fall far short of earning a place in God’s eternal Kingdom. We are debtors to God’s unmerited favor!
Father, I praise You for forgiving me of my sins and writing my name in the Book of Life. With Your help, I will give my best to You today, In Jesus’s name I pray, amen.