Six Things That Will Surprise You About Heaven - Part A

There are urban myths about heaven, for instance, when you die you turn into an angel or your relatives will die before you become your guardian angels were your luck on your or you'll be sitting on a cloud. When a heart for millions of years that bored out of your mind. Another one is that you don't go to heaven first first habitable place to burn off all of your sins and after period of time than you are released to get into heaven.

All of these are legends in all of these are the product of our imagination is all made up fairytales and the Bible actually have a lot of similarities in one major difference fairytales in the Bible book of the story Breedlove a great evil trying to destroy that love old hero sacrifices all to protect and say that love. So one day everyone will live happily ever after.

The major difference between fairytales in the Bible is that the story the Bible tells is all true, it's a fact, not fiction and Skip Heitzig talks about that more today here and connect with Skip weekend division refers to something from the connect with Skip resource Center look like if God party of the Old Testament shows that the Jewish calendar anchored with regular mandatory holidays and celebrations in the book of Esther says that God wants his variance, light and gladness joy and honor at such time sound like your family celebrations.

Listen to this insight from Skip Heitzig sake about one of our own regular holidays. Valentine's Day or God so love that's the essence of his nature. The Bible says God is love, for that is so simple to say so hard for some of us to believe happiness, holiness, and holidays is a four DVD collection of celebration messages from Pastor Stan suggests that could be a game changer for your family. Take holidays from toxic stress to celebrations of light and joy. Here's a sample you are loved by God, not because you deserve it but because Jessica that is his nature. It is his decision.

Imagine that foundation for the next holiday on family calendar for selection of some of Pastor step holiday teaching.

I think $25 or more, connect more people to God's word visit connectwithskip.com/offer to give online securely or call 819 to 1888 and request your copy of happiness, holiness, and holidays with skip. I think going immovable. Further in the Revelation today. So open your Bibles to chapter 21. Let's join Skip Heitzig procedures some urban legends, you probably by now know what it urban legend is urban legend is modern story's folklore parts of it may be true, but much of it is completely false or partially false because it's been retold so many times, and these come in the form all sorts of different form. Some of them are photographs.

For instance, this picture which will show is the picture of leader that I would like to be that guy is huge shark jumping out of the water to get this British naval officer in minutes training exercises. That's false. That never happened circulated on the Internet with the words. This is real do check it out.

It's not real. That is an urban legend, or like this next picture you look at this and that's a moose up on a powerful pretty good mood sonic climaxing 50 feet in the air now.

That happens to be true actually what happened is they were laying the power cables they do it on the ground. The most got the Adler stuck in the power cables. These huge machines lift up the cables for miles. That moose was partially ruptured in the process so they had to get it down besides pictures there are stories that are urban myths false information, false claims that go out often by email. For instance, I came across one recently the claim that an egg can be cooked by placing it in between two active cell phones. That's a myth can happen has never happened. It's an urban legend videos or no videos. The ideas that if microwave radiation emitted by cell phones can cook in a matching like in your brain. It's a mess urban legend. Another one is that Bill Gates is giving money away.

Trust me, that's a myth. The story says that Internet users will be given cash if they forward messages to test Microsoft email tracking system. Listen, Bill Gates is going to give money randomly to people who forward email messages to people back. His response to this whole fiasco is this.

This is more annoying than spam. Now people, here's my point. People have misconceptions about life on earth. Imagine what kind of misconceptions they have about life in heaven. Urban legends about heaven, we seen a few of those it's actually estimated that 40% of the people in one poll believe that heaven is a real place, while 47% leave that heaven is simply a state of being of those who believe in heaven. 25% say that those who are good get into heaven. 10% say everyone gets into heaven, and we've even discovered that among those who are born-again Christians who trust that you have to believe in Jesus Christ in order to get into heaven even among them there are urban myths about heaven, for instance, when you die you turn into an angel or your relatives who have died before you become your guardian angels while your left on the earth or you'll be sitting on a cloud playing the harp for millions of years we covered that we bored out of your mind. Another one is that you don't go to heaven. First, you first have to go to a place to burn off all of your sins and after period of time than you are released to get into heaven.

All of these are legends in all of these are the product of our imagination. It's all made up. That's life you want to get the scoop on heaven. You have to turn I have to turn to God's revelation about heaven, not our imagination. God's revelation because in the Bible over 500 times the word heaven appears over 700 times when you add the plural of the usage of heaven today. I want to look with me at eight versus in Revelation 21 and the message that I'm calling six things that will surprise you about heaven. Maybe I should read state that six things that may surprise you about heaven regarding seen a few surprises one surprise, perhaps, that some of you have encountered so far is that heaven is not a one stop shopping experience that there are different phases in different stages to your eternal dwelling if you were to die today, your spirit would immediately going to the presence of God you'd be there in his presence to behold his throne you would await your bodily resurrection that happens at the rapture of the church at that point you receive a resurrected body. After that at some point you will come back to this earth with Jesus Christ at his second coming and for a thousand years rule and reign with him in the millennial kingdom and then after that comes the eternal state. The eternal dwelling place of all of God's people will that's what were dealing with here in chapter 21 chapter 21 the raptors past the tribulation is past the second coming is past, the millennium is passed, and now we enter to that final eternal phase called the new heaven and the new earth. As some of you will remember Star Trek fact I'm looking at a few people who are hard-core Trekkies. Maybe so you arty know I'm going with this. But how does every episode or how did it open up space yeah and it's not heaven. The new heaven and the new earth is the final frontier. This is eternity after the millennial kingdom.

So let's go to chapter 21 and here's the first surprise that some of you may get regarding heaven. Number one, it's going to require destruction verse one and I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. To keep in mind where we are at. After 1000 years raining with Jesus Christ on an Earth that is been made over.

That's the millennium after all that is done then the entire universe will be destroyed everything in the created order as we know it will be gone go back to chapter 20. Look at verse 11. This is now after the millennium. 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. The earth gets on the created he created totally obliterated and there's a lot of references throughout the Bible about this for example in Hebrews chapter 1 uses a very colorful description, God will hold them up like a cloak to discard them and things will be changed in Matthew 24 Jesus said heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away other words, this present universe will have an end.

It's sort of interesting. Up until this last century, the prevailing cosmology among many in the scientific community was called the steady state theory that basically said the universe is eternal never had a beginning, never had a nanny just continues then we made discoveries.

For instance, the sun, the radiation from our son is produced by the loss of mass the sun loses 4,200,000 tons of mass every second.

What is that mean eventually is not to be any mass left. Eventually it's going to wear out run out run down if it had an and that it must've had a beginning and so it is with all of the universe in this earth is designed to be temporary was made, it will end and it will end when God wants it to hand it will end at the end of the thousand year reign of Christ, so what are the questions is what holds it all together. Will Paul answers it in Colossians chapter 1 says look Jesus Christ is the creator of everything in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible goes on to say this. Colossians 117 key Jesus is before all things, he's eternal, and in him in Jesus all things that are created in heaven and earth, all things consist were consist means there held tightly together, there they cohere, because in Christ, everything is held together so Jesus Christ took the chaos. The unformed mass and made it into a Cosmas ordered systems that we now enjoy and he holds it all together. We know that matter is made up of rapidly moving particles with opposite charges, however, listen to Dr. Lee Chesnutt, who wrote a little piece called the Adam speaks where he says consider the dilemma of the nuclear physicist when he finally looks in utter amazement at the pattern he is now drawn up the oxygen nucleus for here are a positively charged protons closely associated together within the confines of this tiny nucleus with them are eight neutrons total of 16 particles a positively charged and eight with no charge earlier physicist had discovered that like charges of electricity and like magnetic poles repel each other. And unlike charges are magnetic poles attract each other and the entire history of electrical phenomenon and electrical equipment had been built upon these principles known as:'s law of electrostatic force in the law of magnetism.

So what was wrong.

What holds the nucleus together. Why doesn't it fly apart and therefore why do not all atoms fly part for the short answer. Paul would say is I know that Jesus Christ created it and he holds it all together. It consists in him question. What if you let's go answer. He will and when he does everything will collapse, everything will be destroyed. Everything will be destroyed.

Some of you might ask.

Wait a minute didn't God promised Noah that he would never again destroy the earth. Nope. You never promised that read the fine print. God said he would never again destroy the earth with a flood as the fine print. Never again with a flood, but he will destroy with fire soaked turn with me. From Revelation 21. Go back to second Peter chapter 3 just turn left. Go a few blocks you'll see second Peter chapter 3. Boy I wish we had time to really talk about the relationship of second Peter three and Revelation 20 and 21 we just don't. I want to show you a few verses of verse seven second Peter three but the heavens and the earth which now exist are kept in store by the same word reserved for fire, until the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men. So just got through saying in the first part of the chapter.

The earth was destroyed by water.

Now fire verse 10 but the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up.

Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness.

Boy, that's a great question and then pay for everything material is going to burn up. What kind of a person ought you to be. Certainly not materialistic right you should have an eternal focus. Since everything in this world will have an end looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved. Being on fire and the elements will melt with fervent heat. Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for a new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. So whereas the first earth was destroyed by water during Noah's time and the millennial earth will then be destroyed by fire. That's the re-created original or it will be destroyed never to come back again so that may surprise some in heaven, that it will require destruction, number two, this might surprise you heaven. At this point will take on a whole new fresh design is not a renovation is not a re-creation its brand-new verse one and I saw a new heaven and new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea. Then I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband's. We got new heaven and new earth. Now we got new Jerusalem. Now look at verse five. It's a summary statement of all this. Then he sat on the throne said, behold, or check it out. I make all things new. And he said to me right for these words are true and faithful so you get the scope of things the entire universe as we know it will be obliterated and at that point God make something brand-new totally different word for new, by the way his kine's in Greek, not Neos. Neos would mean new chronologically kind us means it's totally different than the other one totally different.

A new kind of fresh, new, totally brand-new design, not land improvement, not renovation. Completely new materials, new atmosphere.

I heard about a scientist to was very arrogant and he looked up to the sky and he said okay God, I know that you made life but you must feel very outdated by now because we've made so many advancements and we can like run the universe without you. We really don't need you anymore. We can do everything you can do so, God spoke to him and said I challenge you to a contest scientist that done. God reaches down, takes a handful of dirt blows on it exotic bird is created flies away magnificent scientist closes Isaacson a deep breath realizing okay.

I've mastered all the principles of soil manipulation and biological cloning. Here goes, reaches down to handful of dirt dog goes not so fast jet your own dirt you can manipulate what I've made, but I've made it it's my stuff and all of God's original stuff will be de-created and in its place will come something new and totally different new all things new. We love new things kids love new toys we grow up we still like new toys new homes new cars new close, but the problem is everything we get now that's new becomes unmoved very quickly right because we live in this universe that has the law of entropy and things lose their luster lose their shine breakdown decay is a.

In my early Christian walk on. Never forget it. It was a couple months, it seemed that every single thing that I got that was new got scratched or deigned or broken. I was like a losing streak about a new camera.

I'd saved up for first day home out of the car.

I get up the falls on the driveway endings. The prison still work damaged goods get a new surfboard. A week later. First time I paddled out another surfboard headed hole right in the middle of couple weeks later get a new guitar scratch the first week. It's like God was saying. See, that's the future of this earth. It's all going to burn it's all gonna wear out. This is a fresh design. Isaiah 66 verse 22 the Lord says I will make new heavens and a new earth which will last for ever. By the way, this may surprise some new heaven and the new earth, the new Jerusalem. It's real it's physical it SIs texture color dimension is not wispy, ethereal spiritual, where you run around in a disembodied spirit will have a body physical body. New capabilities in a real physical world called the new heaven and the new work.

So I guess the real question is, are you going to get your piece of heaven. The only way to do that is through Jesus Christ. Hope you're starting to see that there's so much more to heaven than most urban legends have led us to believe heaven is going to be far more wonderful and spectacular than anything you can imagine now would be a good time to get dibs on your piece of it. Through Jesus Christ. If you'd like a copy of today's teaching it's available on CD for just six dollars plus shipping.

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We be happy to send a copy for you or for you to share with someone you know you can also order online and connectwithskip.com talk more about the surprising elements of heaven. So I hope will set aside some time to enjoy the experience correctly skipped weekend division of presentation of connection so connecting you to God's ever-changing true and ever-changing time