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Come And See
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The following lesson was taken from a tape of a gospel meeting with Brian
Anderson. I was so touched by the message that I wanted to share it with others,
so it has been modified and reprinted here for your benefit. Hope you enjoy...
The Blessings Of Heaven.
INTRODUCTION.
1.This morning we had discussed a place in
the Bible called hell, and many reasons why we did not want to end up there.
2. Lessons on negative topics like hell can
be discouraging at times seeing such a horrible place even exists for the souls
of man.
3. Tonight though, I trust that you will be
encouraged and edified to know that our God has made a beautiful place for the
souls of man to dwell when this life is over.
4. Tonight we will discuss “The Blessings Of
Heaven.”
I. HEAVEN IS A
PREPARED PLACE OF GOD.
A. Heaven is a place
-One fact that sets our minds at peace is
that heaven is really a place.
1. Jesus came from heaven.
-John
6:38 (Jesus said “For I have come down from heaven...”)
2. Jesus went back to heaven.
-I Peter 3:22 “Who
is gone into heaven”
3. Jesus will come again from heaven.
-I
Thessalonians 4:16. “For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven...”
-There is no doubt in my mind that heaven is
a real place, but even a greater blessing that that, it is a prepared place.
B. Heaven is a prepared place.
1. The Bible affirms its prepared state.
-Matthew 25:34
“...Come ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you”.
2. Man longs to be in this prepared place.
- Hebrews 11:9-10.
-Abraham was in search of this great city,
and yearned for such a place.
-Hebrews 11:16.
-God has prepared a city for those that
strive to be there.
-John 14:1-3.
-Jesus left us this comfort when He left the
earth.
-Heaven is a place, and the God of heaven
has prepared it, and there can be no other city like it.
-This gives me great hope, knowing that this
life and this aging earth isn’t all that there is.
-Hebrews 6:17-18.
-No matter what happens in this life, what
trials I face, what burdens I have to bear, or how many others turn away from
the Lord, I can have a hope in heaven
-Colossians 1:3-6;
(Notice also Romans 8:24-25)
-Friends would you agree that God has made a
place for you and me...I think you would.
SONG # 227 (verse 1) There Is A
Habitation.
II. HEAVEN IS
PROMISED BY GOD.
-Man breaks his promise. Sometimes we
forsake all for the promises of man; contracts are omitted; hearts are broken;
lives are ruined.
-When we forsake all to follow the Lord and
hope in His promise, it will never be broken, nor will our hearts, and our
spiritual life will be at peace with the Lord.
-We are talking about a place that has been
prepared and promised by God.
A. There is no heartaches with the promises
of God.
1. Remember that Jesus made a promise of a
home in heaven and has said “Let not your hearts be troubled.”
(No heartbreaking with God.)
-John
14:1-3
2. Also remember that God cannot lie.
-Hebrews 6:18 “That
by two immutable things in which it is impossible for God to lie...”
-Titus 1:1-2
-God has promised a home to those that are
faithful and He cannot lie.
-I Peter 1:3-5.
-Heaven is there and it will not fade away,
perish, or be defiled, but is reserved for us.
-I don’t know about you, but I am standing
on His promise waiting for that day when I can enter that home above.
SONG # 360 (verse 2) Standing on the
promises.
III.
HEAVEN IS A PLACE OF REST
-Too many are tired, weak, weary, and
discouraged, and are on the verge of giving up.
-Labors are hard
(Genesis 3:17-19) “...cursed is the
ground for thy sake. In sorrow thou shalt eat of it all the days of
thy life; Thorns and thistles shall it bring forth to thee, and thou shalt eat
the herb of the field; in the sweat of thy face shou shalt eat it...”
-God never promised an easy life, on the
earth, but He has offered us a home that is a wonderful place of rest.
-Man longs for such a rest that frees him
from all his labors and sorrows, and he can find it in heaven.
A. This rest is available to the souls of
man even today.
1. This rest is for the people of God
-Hebrews 4:9, 11
2. This rest is for the troubled.
-II Thessalonians
1:5-10.
3. This rest will come to them that die in
the Lord.
-Revelation 14:13
“Blessed are the dead, which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea saith the
Spirit, that they may have rest from their labours; and their works do follow
them.”
-Are you tired, in need of rest, weary and
need some reassurance...
4. Jesus said he can give you rest.
-Matthew 11:28 “Come
unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”
-Jesus bids us come to Him for rest.
-Friends, the Bible tells us of a place of
rest, that is available for the souls of man, but we must be in the Lord to
receive this rest.
-Have you ever been able to take a good
rest, and relax from your labourous days... you have only had a foretaste of the
eternal rest that is to come.
-Heaven is a place of rest... I know you
want to be there as much as I do.
SONG # 192 (verse 1) Won’t It Be
Wonderful There
IV. HEAVEN IS A
PLACE OF JOY AND LIFE
A. Heaven is life full of joy and nothing
more.
1. Jesus described it as a place of joy and
eternal life, to those that are faithful.
-Matthew 25:23
“enter thou into the joy of thy Lord.”
-Jesus knows the joy of eternal life and He
reveals to us this great attribute of the place called heaven.
2. When we are in Gods presence we will be
full of joy.
-Psalms 16:11 “Thou
wilt shew me the path of life:in thy presence is the fulness of joy; at thy
right hand there are pleasures forever more.”
3. Joy is the dominating emotion in heaven.
-Revelation 21:4
“And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes and there shall be no more
death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain; for the
former things have passed away.”
-What about tears of joy?
-There are many times that we shed tears not
because we are upset, but because we are happy and joyous.
-Did you ever think about why we have tears
of joy?
-When a loved one leaves and returns safely
we embrace them and become joyous because of their safe return. We shed tears of
joy because of all the bad things that could have happened to them while they
were away.
-All of those fears of death, pain and
sorrow will not be found in heaven, and neither will their be tears in heaven,
but rather joy and eternal life.
-I John 5:11 “And
this the record that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in His
Son.
SONG # 214 (verses 1+2 Then the chorus)
No Tears in Heaven.
V. HEAVEN IS A
PLACE OF BEAUTY
A. The Bible affirms the beauty of heaven.
1. Jesus affirms the beauty there.
-John 14:1-3 “ ...
In my Father’s house there are many mansions”
-Do you know of any place where there are
many mansions, and if you do are they going to last forever.? In heaven there
will be.
2. The Holy Spirit reveals the beauty of
heaven.
-Revelation 21:18-24
-What a wonderful glimpse of what we have to
look forward to.
- There are many beautiful places on this
earth, Washington DC, Hawaii (glimpse of heaven), even the view from some of
these hills in southeastern Ohio, but what will happen to all of these beautiful
things.
II Peter 3:10.
-If God has made this world so beautiful and
all that the earth is destined for is destruction, how beautiful is that eternal
habitation that God has made for his people.
SONG # 261 (verse 1) Beautiful
VI. HEAVEN IS A
PLACE OF IMMORTALITY (No Death)
A. There will be a change.
1. Our body will be changed from mortal to
immortal, and from a corruptible body to an incorruptible.
-I
Corinthians 15:51 “Behold I show you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we
shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye at the last trump;
for the trumpet shall sound and the dead shall be raised incorruptible and we
shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal
must put on immortality.”
-Our bodies will be changes from a body that
dies to a body that will never die.
-If we will live a faithful life in service
to the Lord we will be with God forevermore.
-Philippians 3:20
“For our conversation (citizenship) is in heaven from hence we look for the
Savior the Lord Jesus Christ who shall change our vile body, that it may be
fashioned unto his glorious body...”
-Not only will our soul be with the Lord,
but will be like Him (beyond our comprehension).
-I John 3:2
“Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall
be: but we know that, when He shall appear, we shall be like Him, for we shall
see Him as He is.
-The souls of those who die in the Lord will
be with Him eternally, fashioned unto His glorious body, never to die again, but
have eternal life.
-We are striving for a place where the soul
never dies.
SONG # 245 (verse 4) Where The Soul
Never Dies.
VII. HEAVEN IS A
PLACE OF REUNION.
A. We will be with all of the righteous.
1. We will be with our Savior Jesus Christ
and God our Creator.
-John 14:1-3
“I will come again, and receive you unto Myself; that
where I am there you may be also.”
- When the Lord returns the saved will be
with the Lord and will go to that home of heaven.
2. We will meet our saved loved ones that
have gone on before us.
-II Samuel 12:23
-David realized there was nothing he could
change about the death of his son, but make a change in his life that he could
meet him one day.
-We have that same hope today.
3. We will spend eternity with all of those
that have died in the Lord.
-I Thessalonians
4:13-18.
-We long to see the Lord who made the
heavens and the earth, who died for our sins and gave us a hope of heaven.
-We long to see those loved ones who set for
us an example and showed us the way of salvation.
-The question that is commonly asked is
“Will we actually know everybody there.”
-What a disappointment it would be not to
know those that are there
-Consider Matthew
17:1-5.
-If we are not able to know the souls of
man, how was Peter able to discern who these men were there with the Lord?
-Consider Luke
16:23-24.
-The rich man could not only see that
Lazarus was in Abraham’s bosom, but he called out his very name saying “Father
Abraham”
-There will be a great reunion some
day...Are you going to be there?
CONCLUSION
1. Heaven is a place prepared and promised
by God to all those that will obey Him and continue in His will, until that
coming day of judgment.
2. Heaven is a place of rest from our
labours, a place to have joy forevermore with the Lord.
3. Heaven is a beautiful place incomparable
to any other, that all who dwell in it will be fashioned unto the Lord’s
glorious body, and will dwell there throughout eternity.
4. Heaven is a place I want to be...What
about you...?
SONG # 208 (verse 1) Sing To Me Of
Heaven
1. Hear the Gospel
Romans 10:17
2. Believe in Christ
John 3:16
3. Repent of your sins
Luke 13:3,5
4.Confess the name of Christ
Matthew 10:32-33
5.Be
baptized for the remission of sins
Acts 2:38; Mark 16:16
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