5 Ways Heaven Bound People Should Live Now

Here are five ways that heaven bound people should be living today on earth.

Things are Passing Away

Only the Word of God abides forever and God Himself is eternal, however for those who abide in Christ, they too will abide forever by receiving eternal life by repentance and faith in belief in Jesus Christ. Everything else you set your eyes on, save for the saints of God, will all be gone someday. This present world and all of its evil and suffering will vanish forever when the King of the kingdom of God arrives. The Apostle John wrote that “the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever” (1st John 2:17) and the Apostle Paul writes “those who deal with the world as though they had no dealings with it. For the present form of this world is passing away” (1st Cor 7:31).

Death is a Beginning not an End

Since Jesus conquered the grave and defeated death and the Devil, a beloved saint that passes away is not really gone but they have entered into the presence of the Lord. Jesus reminded His listeners “I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is not God of the dead, but of the living” (Matt 22:32), so it’s not really goodbye but it’s see you later, when I get there. It changes our outlook on death for they’re not dead. In fact, they’re more alive than ever before.

Lives of Holiness

We should love God by all our means possible and that means that we obey God. It is just as Jesus said, “Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him” (John 14:21). Obedience is how love is expressed to God, just as John writes; “For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome” (1st John 5:3). There is no sin in heaven and we should strive to live in sinless-ness is this life. Never being sinless of course but surely we should be sinning less over time.

Building up the Body

Church members can do one of two things; they can build up the church and one another or they can tear down one another. We should be living in love, servitude, and humility before others since that’s the way it is in heaven right now. The Apostle Paul admonishes us to “encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing” (1st Thess 5:11) and Jude adds, “But you, beloved, building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit” (Jude 1:20).

Boundless Joy

There is joy in heaven and not just when one sinner repents (Luke 15:7, 10), but the joy of the Lord is a joy because of what the Lord has done in Christ. Our music worship leader is perhaps the most joyful of all saints that I know. Sometimes he simply shouts for joy during the worship songs. He is so full of joy you can’t possibly miss it! Joy is one of the fruits of the Spirit of God (Gal 5:22) but the joy I am writing about is the indescribable joy we feel after we have been saved and now we await the kingdom of heaven with the appearance of Christ. The psalmist wrote “You have put more joy in my heart than they have when their grain and wine abound” (Psalm 4:7), therefore “My lips will shout for joy, when I sing praises to you; my soul also, which you have redeemed” (Psalm 71:23).

Conclusion

Since we who have repented and trusted in Christ are heaven bound and heaven bought, shouldn’t we live like it and shouldn’t we look like it? Is there any reason for us to not be the most joyful people on the planet? Don’t we have every reason to shout for joy to God in thanks for redeeming us? Yes, on all accounts. We live today in such a way that nothing that happens in our lives can even be worthy in comparison to the glory that’s coming (Rom 8:18).