In Light of Eternity
Life on earth is not meant to be saved, but used well in light of eternity. While we can and should enjoy our time here, our easiest mistake as Christians is to believe that this life is all there is. That there is nothing to look forward to.
We must keep eternity in the front of our glasses. It’s not just for the glory of God that we live our lives, but also for the communion of God that we experience now and will experience in greater depths beyond death. Hear Jesus’ words on this:
“The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. Whoever serves me must follow me, and where I am, my servant will be also. My Father will honor the one who serves me.” (John 12:25–26)
Life is not an accumulation of riches, possessions, or fame — it is to honor and serve God. It’s so hard to think of this life this way when we are trapped in the present day, where everything is demanding our attention and we seem like there can’t be anything more. But there is, and whether we feel in the moment, the Scriptures affirm this over and over. We must see beyond our life here — it’s God’s will for us. To think of it another way, consider a well-known quote from C.S. Lewis on eternity:
“If you read history you will find that the Christians who did most for the present world were precisely those who thought most of the next. It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this.”
We must constantly consider the next world, yet sometimes, we get too caught up in what is in front of us now. In his book, Imagine Heaven, John Burke analyzes hundreds of near-death experiences and wonders why so many of us have difficulty being excited about the afterlife. One reason for this is that we often imagine heaven to be a long boring, church service. And if that’s what we are picturing — which I’m certainly guilty of — there’s not as much to look forward to! But if it’s a life larger than our dreams and greater than what our senses can experience, then it is absolutely worth anticipating. If we know and desire everything in light of eternity, everything here becomes a bit more sweet and whole lot more meaningful.
