Jesus will come back for me and take me to Himself.
JESUS: Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. And you know the way to where I am going…I am the way, and the truth, and the life. NO ONE COMES TO THE FATHER EXCEPT THROUGH ME. – John 14:1-4&6
Lord, thank You for making Yourself known to us through Jesus Christ. And thank You for the assurance that You have prepared a place for us and will come back for us. This is more than enough to feel safe and secure in Your hands. You hold our future. There is no greater comfort in life and in death than this.
One of the most beguiling paradoxes in life is that we try hard to live in the moment and yet keep our eyes on what is yet to come. Maybe for some people life is all there is, this is it; so they would busy themselves chasing for big dreams, ambitions…and measure their lives to that. But what comes after? Where do these all go?
Everything will pass away.
Whether we believe it or not, all these will come to an end. Everything will pass away. The Bible says “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal. . .” – (Matthew 6:19). Isn’t it an awful thought that everything you have worked for in this world will just crash before your eyes sooner or later. Then if you think that those achievements (top-of-the-line cars, condominiums or a mansion, super stable and high paying job, and you know what else) are what everything that makes up your life, then you’ll find yourself doomed in the end.
The verse says that everything you see in this world is temporal. But, something will remain: His words (Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. – Matthew 24:35). And what does that mean? It means that whatever promises or statements or judgments God has made, they will stay the same. So if God says He will prepare a place for us in heaven, then it is true forever (John 14:3). If He says that He will throw some to a blazing furnace where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, then hell is true and will remain (Matthew 13:42).
Maybe, if this is something you ponder deeply on, maybe you’ll take a moment not thinking of your ambitions and dreams and ask yourself, “So where am I headed?” Then again, Jesus said “I am the way, the truth and the life. NO ONE COMES TO THE FATHER EXCEPT THROUGH ME.” (John 14:6) Surrender it all to Him. Repent and ask forgiveness for your sins. Here’s the thing: we all are originally headed for hell BUT (and yes, there is a “but” there), He made salvation available by sending His only Son Jesus to pay the penalty for our sins which is DEATH (Romans 6:23). He died on the cross. And there, all of God’s wrath to men’s sins (mine, yours) were laid on Christ. Then after three days, He rose again to prove that His sacrifice was perfect, to justify our faith (1 Corinthians 15:17) and for us to know that eternal life with Him is made possible.
And for those who surrendered their lives to God, we are not ought to live on our own will. Let me get you back to the first verse I’ve mentioned in this article. Jesus went on to say “. . .but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Then on verse 24 He said, “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.” Treasures in heaven. They may be things that have eternal value. Let’s indulge ourselves to reading the word of God (bible), grow in spirit with others by evangelizing. If God has blessed you a good job or high position in your work, use that influence to draw people close to God. Be involved in the church, in ministries, in charity. These are just ways of expressing gratitude to God’s saving plan. We do it by giving Him back all the glory by letting our lives be used by Him as He wants (not as how we want).
This is not so easy to understand at first. But I pray that God will grant us the grace to appreciate what His eternal plans are. I remember what our pastor would always reiterate in his sermons “This world is not all there is. This life is not all there is.” We are for eternity.
Notes from Moon 