Nearing Home - Billy Graham [64]
The Bible tells us a final truth about Heaven’s perfection: in Heaven we will be perfect—and someday so will all creation. Sin will no longer have any power over anything—for sin and Satan will be bound forever, and we will become like Christ. More than that, in God’s time we will be given new bodies—perfect bodies like that of Jesus Christ after His resurrection, free from all the limitations and frailties of our present bodies. The Bible says, “Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is” (1 John 3:2).
This is true not only for us but also for all creation. Sin has affected everything—not just us but the whole created world. Don’t ever take sin lightly; its destructive power extends to every creature and every object in the universe. This is a staggering thought. But the story doesn’t end there, for the Bible promises that someday the whole creation will come to an end, and it “will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God” (Romans 8:21). I can’t help but wonder if one of the things God will have us do in Heaven is explore the limitless treasures that will be part of His new creation.
When will this happen? When will Christ appear again? Devout Bible scholars don’t always agree on the details, but one fact is clear: someday Christ will come again to defeat all the forces of sin and evil and establish His supreme authority over the entire creation. Jesus Himself warned us against trying to set an exact timetable for His return: “No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father” (Mark 13:32). In God’s time this present world order will come to an end, and Christ will return to rule in power and glory and justice: “In keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness” (2 Peter 3:13).
The fact of Christ’s return should fill us with hope and joy and expectation. But Christ’s return also should remind us of another truth: when Christ comes again, He will judge the world with perfect justice. On that day, the Bible says, those who have rebelled against God and rejected His offer of salvation in Christ “will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life” (Matthew 25:46). These are sobering words, and if you have never turned from your sins and opened your heart and life to Jesus Christ, I pray you will do so now, before it is too late. Don’t gamble with your eternal soul!
Heaven Is Joyous
Not only will Heaven be glorious and perfect, but it also will be joyous. How could it be anything less? Its glory, its perfection—these alone would be enough to bring us unimaginable joy. But Heaven will be joyous for other reasons also. King David declared, “You will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand” (Psalm 16:11).
Heaven will be a place of joyous reunion with all those who have gone to Heaven before us. I am often asked if we will recognize each other in Heaven—and my answer is always a resounding yes! Someday soon I know I will be reunited with all those in my family who are already in Heaven—and especially my dear wife, Ruth. King David confidently expressed this hope; after the death of his infant son, he declared, “Can I bring him back again? I will go to him” (2 Samuel 12:23). When Christ was transfigured and His Heavenly glory overwhelmed His earthly appearance, Moses and Elijah appeared from Heaven with Him in recognizable form (Matthew 17:1–3). The Bible tells us that in Heaven we won’t be isolated spirits, separated from each other and floating aimlessly around the clouds (as cartoons sometimes suggest). Instead we will be united together in Heaven: “We who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so