. . . AND WHY YOU SHOULD BE TOO.
BY LUIS PALAU
My son Andrew and I were preaching the Gospel and encouraging believers in England when I got what I thought was a cold. After returning home, I didn’t get better. I visited a doctor, then got a second opinion, and a third doctor took a look and said, “I don’t like what I see.” It’s not great to hear a doctor say that. He insisted on x-rays and they confirmed his suspicion: Lung Cancer. Stage IV. Incurable, he said. Four months to live without treatment. If I was lucky, maybe—maybe—I could live 12 months with treatment.
I felt like I was being declared dead right there. As I think back to that moment, it still surprises me.
I’ve lived a long, healthy life. It’s hard to believe that it was only three summers ago when our team was in New York City having a great campaign—long days of evangelistic outreaches to nearly every sector of society. I felt like a young boy —full of energy.
Today, I can hardly make it a couple hours without a nap, and I’m planning for my final trip.
While it’s been hard to think about leaving my family, there’s been immense joy and excitement as I prepare for heaven. I cry sometimes because I don’t want to leave my wife, and I don’t want to stop calling the boys just to hear about their day. But, I don’t cry in despair.
And I’m not afraid . . . It seems like that’s what people expect me to be. But no.
Charles Spurgeon wrote, “When the time comes for you to die, you need not be afraid, because death cannot separate you from God’s love.”
Death is the one fear common to all people. Greater than all other fears. It is a fear which paralyzes most people all their lives. Paul wrote in Hebrews:
“Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might break the power of him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil—and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death” (Hebrews 2:14-15).
Boys and girls all want to talk about heaven. Teenagers are wondering. Old timers—well, you better get ready. In each of the 75 countries I’ve visited, there have been questions specifically about death and heaven. Heaven is of interest—and is around the corner—for all of us. We all eventually face death.
We can’t be afraid. More so, we can look forward to it with enthusiasm. Death, for those of us who have trusted Jesus, results in the immediate entrance into the presence of our Lord—and the greatness of heaven. Here are some details about heaven I don’t want you to forget:
1. Heaven is the throne of the Almighty God.
Revelation chapter 4 expands on what this will be like. God is the judge and the creator, and we will see this in its fullness in heaven.
2. Heaven is filled with millions of believers.
In heaven, millions of people who have been rescued by the Lord are united and worshiping together. There’s a place for every single person in heaven. We must not forget that God is “not wanting anyone to perish” (2 Peter 3:9). God has a place for everybody who believes. For you.
3. Heaven is a place where the death of Jesus Christ is honored.
In heaven, the cross of Jesus Christ and His blood, given to heal the ultimate division between humanity in its sin and God’s perfect holiness, is honored again and again. The theme of heaven is the Lamb of God. The cross is central to Christian theology and central to the correct view of heaven. It’s through the cross of Christ that all your sins are forgiven. The people of heaven never forget. When you come to Christ, no matter what you have done (even the most awful of mistakes), you are forgiven. I know it’s a bit of a mystery, but you’ll know it yourself when you become a Christian. He will come into your life and change you forever. “I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand” (John 10:28).
4. Heaven is a happy place.
God is fun. Let me tell you again: God is a blast. Instead of enjoying the good stuff we’re given, we often moan, groan, and complain. Let me tell you this — heaven is a party that never quits. Don’t let anybody tell you different. “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no human mind has conceived the things God has prepared for those who love him” (1 Corinthians 2:9).
5. There is no sin in heaven.
What a gift. Because of Christ, we are free and will be forever free in heaven from the sin that often trips us up and locks us in a pattern of bad behavior.
6. Heaven is perfect.
Heaven will be perfect because “we shall see him as he is” (1 John 3). Additionally, we’ll have a perfect body that we’ll love. Nothing will seem out of order, too little, or too much. We’ll finally be satisfied.
I wasn’t expecting to be told of my death last year. I was 83 years old and I had never been sick in the hospital. I hardly ever had a headache. But even though I wasn’t expecting to be told I’d soon be dying, I was ready for it. I have claimed my space in heaven.
When it’s suddenly your turn to die, you need to have your mind made up.
The Bible I’ve used my whole life is the Bible my mother gave me after Dad went to heaven. I was 10, he was only 35. He was a young businessman who rebuilt homes and developed neighborhoods. He was always wonderful but when he became a Christian, life had new meaning for him. I was in boarding school when Grandma called me to say Dad had gotten sick and I needed to rush home on the next train.