Perspectives
Gtcotr/ss021107
Our text for today will come from the book of Revelation, Chapters 20 & 21.
Revelation 20 NKJV
10 The devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
11 ¶ Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away. And there was found no place for them.
12 And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books.
13 The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works.
14 Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.
15 And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.
Revelation 21
1 ¶ Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea.
2 Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
3 And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, "Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God.
4 "And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away."
5 Then He who sat on the throne said, "Behold, I make all things new."
What a liberating experience it is to see through the eyes of eternity and realize that God has a plan and that He has it all under control.
Corrie Ten Boom said:
“Every experience God gives us, every person He puts in our lives, is the perfect preparation for the future that only He can see.” (Corrie Ten Boom)
Every person we meet, each encounter is designed by God either for our benefit or for the benefit of others. Oh to glean from the eternal mindedness of God and shower this temporal realm with everlasting sprinkles of life.
C S Lewis, in his classic sermon Weight and Glory, reminded us that “…we are seated next to immortal beings. We eat with, work with, disagree with and live with immortal beings.” (Weight and Glory, a sermon by C.S. Lewis)
David Shibley says in his book, Heavenly Incentives for Earthly Living, “Every person you have ever known will live forever - somewhere.” “His or her destiny is either eternity with Christ or eternity without Him. So we should wrap arms of love around people. We should extend evangelistic warmth and compassion to non-Christians, and nonpartisan fellowship and love to fellow Christians.”
Somewhere a Spirit of Evangelism must again be planted and take precious root in our churches and in the everyday lives of common Christians.
Who will look past the present pressures of life and position themselves to impact eternity?
Who will deny themselves, take up their own cross and follow Jesus?
Who will obey the Great Commission out of a passion for the Great Commandment?
Let me tell you who …
* Who will leave the pursuit of success and rather seek significance
* Who will discover their purpose and pursue their destiny
* Who will uncover satan’s lies that riches satisfy and that power and position bring pleasure and security
* Who will enter heaven with a “well done good and faithful servant” welcome from God Almighty.
Who? Those who dare to:
1. See the Invisible (The servant of Elisha 2 Kings 6:17)
2. Hear the Inaudible (Sheep John 10:27)
3. Embrace the Imperishable (Eternity 1 Peter 1:4 & Matthew 6:20)
4. Can do the Impossible (Destiny Luke 18:27 possible with God)
We were created with an eternal purpose in mind. (Jeremiah 1:5)
We were created for something we cannot possibly do. (John 14:12)
Often if all we are doing is all we can do, then God is doing nothing in our life.
A precious lady named Pearl Goode began to read and hear in the early 1950’s that God was raising up a national evangelist. This Methodist laywoman was impressed by God to assist a young preacher, not so much with money, although she did give, but mostly by prayer. Perhaps she saw the invisible, maybe she heard the inaudible and embraced the imperishable in her attempt to accomplish what might have seemed to some as impossible.
Pearl Goode wrote to Billy Graham’s office in
Pearl Goode was committed to an eternal perspective.
What is a life committed to an eternal perspective?
A life committed to an eternal perspective is a life:
1. Committed to Prayer
Without prayer one may never see the invisible and hear the inaudible.
2. Committed to Praise
Without praise one might never sense the awaiting imperishable mansions, streets of gold, angels singing and immortal saints gathering. Heaven awaiting us!
3. Committed to People
Without a commitment to others what would be the motivation, inspiration or reward of attempting impossible dreams
One seldom serves Jesus in this life without serving people.
Allow me encourage you this morning to:
* Look for the invisible hand of God which others do not see
* Listen for the inaudible voice of God which do not readily hear
* Envision the imperishable things of God which others cannot imagine
* Endeavor to accomplish impossible things for God which others will seldom attempt
Let’s pray for us.
