Last week, we discussed what happens when we die.  This week we continue our questions series with a glimpse of the afterlife.  When Ronald Reagan was running for Governor of California, a woman confronted him by his car one day and berated him severely.  Finally she said, "I wouldn't vote for you if you were St. Peter."  He smiled and replied, "No problem.  If I were St. Peter, you wouldn't be living in my district."

What do we know about "St. Peter's district"?  We're all fascinated with the subject of heaven.  Every one of us has loved ones there; I assume we all would like to spend eternity there ourselves.  So let's learn from God's word about his home.

What does our Father tell us about our eternal destiny?  First, he tells us that heaven is real.  It is certain—no figment of religious imagination, no superstition, no "opiate of the people" (Karl Marx).  He revealed it to John: "I saw a new heaven and a new earth" (Revelation 21:1).  According to God himself, heaven is real.

Second, heaven is a place (vs. 1-2).  John "saw" it.  He didn't feel it, or dream of it, or hear about it.  He saw it, and we only see things which are.  Heaven is a place.  Jesus said, "In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you.  I am going there to prepare a place for you" (John 14:2; emphasis mine).

Third, heaven is where God is (v. 3).  John reveals, "Now the dwelling of God is with men."  When we get to heaven, we get to God.  Psalm 11:4 is clear: "The Lord is in his holy temple; the Lord is on his heavenly throne."  Jesus taught us to pray to "Our Father in heaven" (Matthew 6:9).  Heaven is a real place, where God is.  It's being with God.

Fourth, heaven is a blessed place (v. 4).  Because God is there, all that is perfect is there as well.  There will be no death in heaven, thus no mourning or crying or pain.  Our greatest enemy will trouble us no more.  It's a place of incredible joy: "You will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand" (Psalm 16:11).  It's a place of reward: "Store up for yourselves treasures in heaven" (Matthew 6:20).  And this reward is eternal: "An inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade—kept in heaven for you" (1 Peter 1:4).

Such a glorious place is celebration, a party: "Blessed is the man who will eat at the feast in the kingdom of God" (Luke 14:15).  We reign in heaven: "To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne" (Revelation 3:21).  In heaven, we're royalty.  We'll have perfect understanding there: "Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face.  Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known" (1 Corinthians 13:12).

To sum up, in heaven God makes all things new (Revelation 21:5).  No more Fall, or sin, or death, or disease, or disaster; no more earthquakes or fears or tests or grades.  Everything is new.  No wonder Jesus called heaven "paradise" (Luke 23:43).  It is a place of blessing beyond all description: "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what the Lord has prepared for those who love him" (1 Corinthians 2:9; cf. Isaiah 64.4).

Tomorrow we will discuss what we will be like in heaven.  Will we know each other?

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