John Lloyd - Eternity: What's Going to Happen in the Future?
/Strengthen Your Core Series
Eternity: What’s going to happen in the future?
February 16, 2020
Pastor John Lloyd
Our physical bodies are made up of several core muscles. If kept in shape through exercise, they will function properly. God’s goal for followers is to make us more like Jesus. This happens when we think like Jesus, CORE beliefs, act like Jesus, CORE practices, and be like Jesus, CORE virtues. We need to exercise our CORE in order to glorify God. The journey of becoming like Jesus begins by thinking like Jesus. When we start thinking like Jesus, we are well on our way to becoming like Jesus. In light of Christ’s forgiveness of us and his provision of all his resources and qualities to us in the present, what should we then believe about the days to come. Today we will focus on eternity and the belief that every person will live somewhere after death. This belief of eternity truly fuels all the other beliefs we have covered.
Beliefs covered so far: God, Personal God, Salvation, The Bible, Identity in Christ, Church, Humanity, Compassion and Stewardship
Key Question: What is going to happen in the future?
Memory Verses: John 14:1 “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. 2 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?”
John 14:3 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. 4 And you know the way to where I am going.” 5 Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” 6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. 7 If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.”
John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.
Key Idea: There is a heaven and a hell. Jesus will return to judge all people and establish his eternal kingdom.
Eternity- A duration of time that cannot be measured. It is a belief that we live on beyond this life.
I. God is ________________.
Isaiah 40:28 Have you not known? Have you not heard? The Lord is
the everlasting God. the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable. (Genesis 21:33, Rev.1:8)
Genesis 1:27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.
Ecclesiastes 3:11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also, he has put eternity into man's heart, yet so that he cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end.
There have been times when I think we do not desire heaven, but more often I find myself wondering whether in our heart of hearts, we have ever desired anything else.… It is the secret signature of each soul, the incommunicable and unappeasable want, the thing we desired before we met our wives or made our friends or chose our work, and which we shall still desire on our deathbeds when the mind no longer knows wife or friend or work[1] C.S. Lewis
Islam, Hinduism and Buddhism all believe in some form of afterlife.
Why do we die? Death is not a punishment. It is the final outcome of living in a fallen world. Wayne Grudem
Genesis 3:4 But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die.
Romans 5:12. Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned—
Death means separation. (Isaiah 59:2)
John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.
Every person was made to live forever. Every person matters to God.
II. ______________ and __________ are the only two options for eternity.
Hell is mentioned almost 3 times as much as heaven in the Bible.
Luke 16:23 and in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side. 24 And he called out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame.’
(for further study: Daniel 12:2-3, weeping-Mt. 8:12, wailing, Mt.13:42, 13:50 gnashing of teeth, darkness Mt. 25:30, everlasting punishment 25:46
All these verses make clear that there are two elements to the punishment of unbelievers. It is a punishment without end, eternal. It is severe.
Ezekiel 33:11 Say to them, As I live, declares the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live; turn back, turn back from your evil ways, for why will you die, O house of Israel? 2 Peter 3:9, Ezekiel 18:23
God’s heart is grieved and broken for those who die without Him.
III. Jesus is preparing a place for those who _____________ Him for eternal life.
John 14:1 “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God] believe also in me. 2 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? 3 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.
John 14:6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. John 14:23
2 Corinthians 5:7 for we walk by faith, not by sight. 8 Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord.
Philippians 1:23 I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. (Hebrews 12:23, Luke 23:43, Rev.6:10)
If we truly believe God has prepared an eternal home for us-a house with many rooms, as Jesus explained in John 14—then we can and will.
· Live with hope every day, regardless of the circumstances around us; life may or may not get better here, but we can know God’s home awaits us.
· Love people with freedom and boldness because our future is secure in him.
· Lead more people into a relationship with Christ, because we want to share this great hope with others.
I ask you to prayerfully take a moment to do an inventory of your relationships. How many non- Christians are currently in your circle of influence? And of these non-Christians in your circle, how many are you actively sharing God’s love with? On the lines below, write their names.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
BLESS Principle: Begin with prayer, Listen with empathy, Eat together, Serve sacrificially, Share your story.
When we die our bodies go into the ground and our spirits go to be with the Lord as we await the return of Christ. When he comes to establish the new heaven and the new earth, our spirits will receive the tent of a new, imperishable, resurrected body just as Jesus did. In these bodies we will live forever in the new garden with God and all those who believed in Jesus. And it is with this exciting reality that we conclude our journey through the ten key beliefs of the Christian life. As followers of God we are invited to ponder and understand these profound concepts in our minds. Yet, to really think like Jesus and experience the full life Christ has given us, we must embrace these beliefs in our hearts — where real decisions are made. Frazee, Randy
May God break our hearts with the things that break His heart!
Spiritual Growth Questions for February 16, 2020
(take one question each day and grow deeper in Bible study)
Use a scale of 1-6 to rate how strongly you believe the statements listed below: (1 = no belief , 6 = complete confidence)
___ I believe it is important to share the gospel with my neighbor because
Christ has commanded me to do so.
___ I believe that who deliberately reject Jesus Christ will not inherit eternal
life.
___ I believe that every person is subject to the judgment of God.
___ I I believe all people who place their trust in Jesus Christ will spend
eternity in heaven.
1. Read Luke 16:19-31. Write down as many truths as you can from this passage. Which truth stands out to you? What applications could you make in your own life from these truths?
2. Read I Corinthians 15:1-11. What stands out to you from this passage? Why do you think Paul is sharing it with the Corinthians?
Consider Jesus words in Luke 16:30 if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent. Read Luke 16:31 again and discuss.
3. Read I Corinthians 15:12-19 two times. What stands out to you from this passage? Why did he share it with the Corinthians? How can we apply it to our own lives?
4. Read I Corinthians 15:20-28 two times. What stands out to you from this passage? What words are important? Why did he share it with the Corinthians? How is it helpful to us?
5. Read I Corinthians 15:35-58. How will our resurrected bodies be different from our earthly bodies? How does what the Bible says compare with some of our culture’s popular notions of what we’ll be like in heaven?
6. What if anything hinders you from believing in the afterlife?
7. Describe the moment you became aware of your mortality and pondered what would happen after your death.
8. Read and memorize John 14:1-2. Write down what is helpful in this passage for you to remember.
Memory Verses: John 14:1 “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God] believe also in me. 2 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?