And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”
–Revelation 21:3-4
As a speaker, I have to travel quite often. But when I come home from a trip and I haven’t seen my family for several days, I don’t come in and kiss the refrigerator. I kiss my wife! It’s not the house itself that I miss; it’s the people who are there.
When it comes to heaven, many people talk about the mansions, the streets of gold, and the gates of pearl. Now, that’s going to be wonderful and I don’t want to take anything away from the splendor of heaven. But the thing that really makes heaven, heaven is that Jesus is there!
I realize that today, heaven may seem so far away to you. But when John spoke of heaven in today’s passage, he described it as the “dwelling of God” with man. It’s the Lord’s house, and that house stands for security, companionship, and love. That’s what we’ll get to experience in heaven.
And that’s just the beginning! The goodness and mercy of God will be forever with us as we dwell in his very presence. There will be no more tears, mourning, or pain. Heaven isn’t some ethereal hope. It’s a reality, and I, for one, can’t wait for it!
WHAT MAKES HEAVEN WONDERFUL IS THAT ITS TRUE REWARD IS BEING IN THE PRESENCE OF GOD FOREVER!
