by shieldoffaith
Heaven is a place we ALL want to see and live for eternity! Our eyes, minds and imaginations could NEVER, in a million years, quite comprehend nor grasp it’s encompassing beauty and glory! One day, those of us who are born again Christians, will know this beauty, where all pain, suffering and tears will be absent!
Revelation 21:4 tells us, “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 are passed away.”
There is a constant chant of holy angels that are continually proclaiming Holy, Holy, Holy over the throne of God. The Mercy Seat in heaven where God sits is surrounded by magnificent angels full of glory and power that proclaim and bless the holy name of God without ceasing. Some of these are described as beasts, full of eyes, with six wings and neither rest day or night in their proclaiming the holiness of God as found in Revelation 4:8-11. So, what will heaven be like? What will WE be like when we get there? The Bible really doesn’t go into specific details about heaven. Why? Because “eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him” (1 Cor 2:9).
More important than anything else is the fact that we will be with our Lord forever. The River of Life flows from His Throne! It will be perfect! It will be clear! When we see Christ face to face His presence will dominate heaven the same way the sun dominates the hot summer sky. Just as the sun illuminates the summer sky, so will the glory of Christ illuminate all of heaven. We’ll get to talk to Him, ask Him questions, and listen to Him speak. Imagine hearing His voice! The Bible says it will be “like the voice of many waters, and like the voice of loud thunder.” (Revelation 14:2). Imagine the stories He’ll tell us, the lessons He’ll teach, the love He’ll share!
After the Kingdom of Heaven begins on earth, after Christ’s return, the New Jerusalem descends out of heaven and heaven, in the New Jerusalem, will then be on earth. Revelation 21:1-2 describes this: “And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.”
The very tabernacle of God will be with humans then and heaven is any place where God is. Rev. 21:3, “And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.” John was carried away to heaven in Revelation 21 and this chapter is perhaps the best description of heaven that we know of; at least the heaven that will be seen by those who belong to Christ today.
John describes heaven in Revelation 21:10-27:
10 And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God,
11 Having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal;
12 And had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel:
13 On the east three gates; on the north three gates; on the south three gates; and on the west three gates.
14 And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
15 And he that talked with me had a golden reed to measure the city, and the gates thereof, and the wall thereof.
16 And the city lieth foursquare, and the length is as large as the breadth: and he measured the city with the reed, twelve thousand furlongs. The length and the breadth and the height of it are equal.
17 And he measured the wall thereof, an hundred and forty and four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of the angel.
18 And the building of the wall of it was of jasper: and the city was pure gold, like unto clear glass.
19 And the foundations of the wall of the city were garnished with all manner of precious stones. The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, a chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald;
20 The fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolyte; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, a topaz; the tenth, a chrysoprasus; the eleventh, a jacinth; the twelfth, an amethyst.
21 And the twelve gates were twelve pearls: every several gate was of one pearl: and the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass.
22 And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it.
23 And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.
24 And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it.
25 And the gates of it shall not be shut at all by day: for there shall be no night there.
26 And they shall bring the glory and honour of the nations into it.
27 And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb’s book of life.
What a description, wouldn’t you say?!? I mean, think about just those verses above and still not having the FULL understanding of the truest form of its beauty! There are times when I gaze up into the heavenlies and try to imagine what beautiful landscape lies beyond what our eyes can see! I know that heaven is part of our inheritance and we are to be anxiously awaiting His return. No matter how poor one is, no matter where they have been raised, no matter what country they are from, if you are a born again Christian and a true believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, then you belong to ROYALTY! God is the ultimate King! He reigns on High and He has our inheritance waiting for us!
But there is only one way for you to see heaven and Jesus Christ is the one and only access to it (John 6:44, Acts 4:12, 16:30-31). There is no other way possible to get to heaven but by the Son of God. So please do not be fooled into believing that “all paths lead to God” because they DO NOT! Getting to heaven is a one-way trip. If you die before Jesus Christ’s Second Advent, otherwise known as His return, you will go directly to heaven and be in the presence of God. If you never see heaven, you will certainly see hell and that is also a one-way trip from which there is no return.
Revelation 21:7-8 shows the fate of those not going to heaven: “Those who are victorious will inherit all this, and I will be their God and they will be my children. But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—they will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.” These are the unbelievers, the ones who have rejected Jesus as their personal savior and who have chosen to continue to live a life of sin over His free gift of salvation and eternal life! Just like the story of the rich man and Lazarus, the rich man who died without Christ is forever denied access to heaven and to God. It’s an everlasting location from which no one can depart. My prayer is that no one would ever go there!
There is one simple way that you can go to heaven. Jesus died after living a perfect life. He spilled His blood to take the Holy Father’s wrath upon Himself. This is what bridged the gap from heaven to hell. It’s a free gift. Not choosing to accept it, is to seal your fate forever. But to accept it is to be with God in heaven for eternity, in joyful, glorious bliss. Right now if you ask Jesus Christ to be your Savior, ask for the forgiveness of your sins, admit you are a sinner in need of saving, and place your faith and trust in Him, He promises to never, ever forsake you. He will keep you in His own hand and never caste you away, even when you die (John 6:37, 10:28-29). If you do this right now you will see heaven for yourself. And you will be with the Lord our God forever and ever when you leave this earth.
http://shieldoffaith62.blogspot.com/2012/11/the-biblical-description-of-heaven.html