1 00:00:02,240 --> 00:00:07,440 Christianity, if it's false, doesn't matter. 2 00:00:07,520 --> 00:00:08,760 It's of no importance. 3 00:00:08,760 --> 00:00:12,880 But if it's true, it's of infinite importance. 4 00:00:13,840 --> 00:00:17,440 The only thing it can't be is moderately important. 5 00:00:18,320 --> 00:00:23,520 And that's what we're focusing on this semester, the things of why 6 00:00:23,600 --> 00:00:27,570 Christianity is so critically important to us. 7 00:00:27,570 --> 00:00:32,130 So today we're going to get into the second of these messages, 8 00:00:33,570 --> 00:00:37,010 and this one's called Read the last chapter Heaven. 9 00:00:37,570 --> 00:00:39,810 Last week we talked about the main thing, goodness. 10 00:00:40,050 --> 00:00:42,650 Today, read the last chapter, heaven. 11 00:00:42,650 --> 00:00:47,250 Now, this is a little bit audacious to try to take on in 25 12 00:00:47,250 --> 00:00:50,290 minutes to explain to you Heaven. 13 00:00:51,090 --> 00:00:54,730 So I'm going to really fly over a lot of things here, but I 14 00:00:54,730 --> 00:00:58,960 hope it will trigger you to want to know more about heaven and 15 00:00:58,960 --> 00:01:04,240 understand and really do read the last chapter, because that's 16 00:01:04,240 --> 00:01:07,720 where we've got to be, is to understand that this life is not 17 00:01:07,720 --> 00:01:08,480 all of life. 18 00:01:08,640 --> 00:01:12,800 This life is a preparation for eternal life yet to come. 19 00:01:14,160 --> 00:01:18,720 Heaven is our promise, but we know so little about it. 20 00:01:19,680 --> 00:01:24,080 And I think the reasons we know so little about are probably 21 00:01:24,080 --> 00:01:24,720 one of four. 22 00:01:25,780 --> 00:01:26,060 Probably. 23 00:01:26,060 --> 00:01:28,100 We don't like to think about death, do we? 24 00:01:28,420 --> 00:01:29,860 You don't like to think about death. 25 00:01:30,660 --> 00:01:33,860 I don't like to think about will happen. 26 00:01:35,140 --> 00:01:39,700 Everybody in this room is going to die unless Jesus comes first, 27 00:01:40,180 --> 00:01:43,020 but everybody in this room is going to die. 28 00:01:43,020 --> 00:01:44,500 That will happen. 29 00:01:44,820 --> 00:01:46,420 You can't get out of that one. 30 00:01:47,060 --> 00:01:48,260 That will happen. 31 00:01:48,340 --> 00:01:51,540 So we don't like to think about what happens after that. 32 00:01:52,320 --> 00:01:55,360 Well, another reason is maybe we don't think about heaven because 33 00:01:55,360 --> 00:01:57,120 we really like this life. 34 00:01:57,120 --> 00:01:58,480 Yeah, it's got a lot of faults. 35 00:01:58,480 --> 00:01:59,560 It's got a lot of challenges. 36 00:01:59,560 --> 00:02:00,560 It's tough sometimes. 37 00:02:00,560 --> 00:02:02,000 But I love life. 38 00:02:02,800 --> 00:02:08,320 I love all the aspects of what our life is, even though it's tough 39 00:02:08,320 --> 00:02:08,880 at times. 40 00:02:09,280 --> 00:02:11,680 And so we don't want to think too much about heaven. 41 00:02:12,400 --> 00:02:13,120 Maybe it's. 42 00:02:13,120 --> 00:02:15,040 We have a skewed view of heaven. 43 00:02:15,520 --> 00:02:18,560 Somehow we think heaven is somewhere going someplace and sitting 44 00:02:18,560 --> 00:02:20,250 on a cloud and strumming a harp. 45 00:02:20,250 --> 00:02:23,090 And if that's what you think heaven is, you're not even close. 46 00:02:23,410 --> 00:02:27,170 You're not even at a ballpark of what heaven is understanding is 47 00:02:27,170 --> 00:02:27,490 about. 48 00:02:27,730 --> 00:02:29,090 I'm going to show you that today. 49 00:02:29,890 --> 00:02:32,850 Or maybe the fourth reason we don't like to think about heaven 50 00:02:33,570 --> 00:02:36,770 is we're fearful that hell is for real. 51 00:02:39,170 --> 00:02:40,210 And that's scary. 52 00:02:41,410 --> 00:02:46,050 But we need to understand the last chapter if we're going to understand 53 00:02:46,370 --> 00:02:46,630 the last. 54 00:02:46,780 --> 00:02:47,580 The book of life. 55 00:02:48,940 --> 00:02:51,860 Sometimes when I'm reading a book and I get all the way to the 56 00:02:51,860 --> 00:02:55,620 end of the last chapter, I go, oh, that's why this happened. 57 00:02:55,620 --> 00:02:57,620 And that happened and that happened and that happened. 58 00:02:57,620 --> 00:02:58,540 I do that with series. 59 00:02:58,620 --> 00:03:02,380 Sometimes I stream a series and I get to the end and I go, oh, 60 00:03:02,380 --> 00:03:03,980 now I see how the pieces fit together. 61 00:03:03,980 --> 00:03:05,420 And I go back and watch the whole thing again. 62 00:03:05,420 --> 00:03:08,380 And the second time around, it all makes a lot more sense to me 63 00:03:08,540 --> 00:03:10,180 because I see how it ends. 64 00:03:10,180 --> 00:03:15,080 Well, that's what we need to understand about our lives, that 65 00:03:15,080 --> 00:03:17,160 the end is not the end we think it is. 66 00:03:17,160 --> 00:03:20,320 The end is a new beginning of what's ahead. 67 00:03:21,360 --> 00:03:25,560 And so I want to talk to you today about heaven, because heaven 68 00:03:25,560 --> 00:03:28,640 is for real and so is hell. 69 00:03:30,400 --> 00:03:33,760 And if we had time, which we don't have time, in 25 minutes, I 70 00:03:33,760 --> 00:03:36,400 would give you so many scriptures to prove everything I'm 71 00:03:36,400 --> 00:03:37,160 going to talk to you about. 72 00:03:37,160 --> 00:03:39,120 And I don't have time for that today. 73 00:03:39,120 --> 00:03:42,330 So if you're interested in this topic of heaven, I want to recommend 74 00:03:42,330 --> 00:03:44,930 a book to you by Randy Alcorn. 75 00:03:45,490 --> 00:03:49,930 It will tell you lots of detail about heaven based on scripture. 76 00:03:49,930 --> 00:03:53,730 Very well researched book, very theologically solid. 77 00:03:53,890 --> 00:03:54,690 And it's a book. 78 00:03:54,690 --> 00:03:55,490 It's easy to find. 79 00:03:55,490 --> 00:03:58,010 If you just go to Amazon, put it in heaven, it'll pop up right 80 00:03:58,010 --> 00:03:58,290 away. 81 00:03:58,530 --> 00:04:01,130 But it is a great book to understand heaven. 82 00:04:01,130 --> 00:04:04,210 And in that he will tell you, will your family be in heaven? 83 00:04:04,770 --> 00:04:08,050 Randy will tell you, will you have a profession in heaven? 84 00:04:08,270 --> 00:04:09,390 Randy will tell you in the book. 85 00:04:09,950 --> 00:04:10,790 Here's a good question. 86 00:04:10,790 --> 00:04:12,910 Will your dogs be in heaven that you love? 87 00:04:14,030 --> 00:04:15,230 Well, spoiler alert. 88 00:04:15,870 --> 00:04:16,750 Lion says. 89 00:04:17,150 --> 00:04:19,870 The scripture says the lion will lay down with the lamb in heaven. 90 00:04:19,870 --> 00:04:22,350 So why wouldn't God give us the dogs that we love? 91 00:04:23,070 --> 00:04:26,430 I believe there are dogs in heaven, the ones we love. 92 00:04:27,790 --> 00:04:30,270 So we don't have time to get into all the scriptures today. 93 00:04:30,350 --> 00:04:34,270 But what I'm going to share with you is based on scriptural evidence 94 00:04:34,270 --> 00:04:38,220 that we have all the way through the Bible, not just Revelation, 95 00:04:38,540 --> 00:04:42,820 but all through the Bible we have descriptions of heaven out of 96 00:04:42,820 --> 00:04:46,420 which we can get an understanding to a level of what 97 00:04:46,420 --> 00:04:47,180 heaven is about. 98 00:04:48,220 --> 00:04:52,140 Then secondly, Jesus talked more about heaven than about any 99 00:04:52,140 --> 00:04:52,860 other topic. 100 00:04:53,420 --> 00:04:57,660 And Jesus was very descriptive when he told us all about heaven. 101 00:04:57,740 --> 00:05:03,260 And then we have in Revelation John, who had on the Isle of Patmos 102 00:05:03,260 --> 00:05:10,460 a vision of heaven and wrote it down, of heaven and a new earth. 103 00:05:11,420 --> 00:05:15,060 So I'm going to pull just that one scripture today to get us focused 104 00:05:15,060 --> 00:05:18,380 on heaven from Revelation 21. 105 00:05:18,540 --> 00:05:20,100 Excuse me, Revelation 22. 106 00:05:20,100 --> 00:05:21,820 This is the next last chapter of the Bible. 107 00:05:22,060 --> 00:05:26,580 So we're looking at how the story ends, but really it's how the 108 00:05:26,580 --> 00:05:27,500 story begins. 109 00:05:28,220 --> 00:05:30,460 So here's what John said. 110 00:05:30,460 --> 00:05:34,280 Excuse me, let me just go back to preface a couple things of this, 111 00:05:34,280 --> 00:05:36,040 because you won't understand it if you don't. 112 00:05:36,680 --> 00:05:42,360 John, when he wrote this, was writing to seven young churches in 113 00:05:42,680 --> 00:05:44,200 Asia Minor, okay? 114 00:05:44,440 --> 00:05:48,800 These were young Christians, first generation after Jesus had 115 00:05:48,800 --> 00:05:53,120 been ascended and gone into heaven, transformed and had the crucifixion 116 00:05:53,120 --> 00:05:57,480 on first young church. 117 00:05:58,360 --> 00:06:03,010 And these people were under horrible, horrible, horrible persecution. 118 00:06:03,810 --> 00:06:05,890 The worst that anybody had ever had. 119 00:06:06,290 --> 00:06:11,650 The emperor at the time of the first century decided this Christian 120 00:06:11,650 --> 00:06:14,130 thing was going to ruin the Roman Empire. 121 00:06:14,130 --> 00:06:17,890 And so he was going to put it out before it had a chance to catch 122 00:06:17,890 --> 00:06:18,210 fire. 123 00:06:20,690 --> 00:06:22,930 And so he had their homes taken from them. 124 00:06:23,570 --> 00:06:26,650 He had Christians impaled on stakes and. 125 00:06:26,720 --> 00:06:29,040 And left alive until they died. 126 00:06:30,160 --> 00:06:32,120 He brought Christians into the arena. 127 00:06:32,120 --> 00:06:34,960 This is where we have Christians with the lions and other 128 00:06:34,960 --> 00:06:36,360 wild beasts attacking them. 129 00:06:36,360 --> 00:06:37,600 They would get these wild beasts. 130 00:06:37,600 --> 00:06:40,240 It was a huge thing in Rome, these entertainments. 131 00:06:40,240 --> 00:06:44,240 They'd have thousands of people come together for the gladiators 132 00:06:44,240 --> 00:06:47,800 to fight or then the Christians to come in and let the 133 00:06:47,800 --> 00:06:49,080 wild beasts tear them apart. 134 00:06:49,080 --> 00:06:52,560 And there was betting and sport, and they thought it was hilarious 135 00:06:53,130 --> 00:06:55,850 that these Christians would die as they watched. 136 00:06:56,970 --> 00:07:00,450 They were crucified along the highway, not by the tens, but by 137 00:07:00,450 --> 00:07:02,250 the hundreds and the thousands. 138 00:07:02,330 --> 00:07:06,570 They would put them on crosses and crucifixion and let them be there 139 00:07:06,570 --> 00:07:08,890 for three, four days before they would die. 140 00:07:09,530 --> 00:07:14,130 During this time, these Christians that John was writing 141 00:07:14,130 --> 00:07:20,500 to with his vision of what heaven is like is not just a theoretical 142 00:07:20,500 --> 00:07:20,780 thing. 143 00:07:20,780 --> 00:07:25,100 He's writing to people who are facing the worst turmoil and the 144 00:07:25,100 --> 00:07:27,620 worst pain ever. 145 00:07:28,500 --> 00:07:32,740 And he's telling them about a place where there'll be no more death, 146 00:07:33,540 --> 00:07:37,460 there'll be no more crying, there'll be no more pain. 147 00:07:38,900 --> 00:07:43,780 This is John, who's the disciple who was closest with Jesus. 148 00:07:44,910 --> 00:07:48,990 This is the disciple, he said, the one I love, who was so close 149 00:07:49,070 --> 00:07:50,510 as a friend of Jesus. 150 00:07:50,910 --> 00:07:56,430 He gave perspective to these young Christians on what heaven was 151 00:07:56,430 --> 00:07:56,750 like. 152 00:07:58,190 --> 00:08:03,750 And in that perspective, those Christians of the first century didn't 153 00:08:03,750 --> 00:08:05,790 fight against the Roman Empire. 154 00:08:07,150 --> 00:08:11,940 They took the horrible things that were coming to them with poise 155 00:08:12,100 --> 00:08:14,820 and grace and with peace. 156 00:08:15,460 --> 00:08:19,300 And they even forgave those who were doing this to them. 157 00:08:19,860 --> 00:08:23,940 And when they did, the gospel took root. 158 00:08:24,180 --> 00:08:30,780 And that's what upended the cruel Roman Empire, because the gospel 159 00:08:30,780 --> 00:08:36,420 of love overwhelmed them when the people had the hope of heaven, 160 00:08:38,670 --> 00:08:40,030 hope of heaven. 161 00:08:40,270 --> 00:08:45,310 We often talk about, but it really is a reality of heaven. 162 00:08:45,390 --> 00:08:46,990 So let's look at the scripture. 163 00:08:47,790 --> 00:08:48,830 It reads like this. 164 00:08:50,750 --> 00:08:53,830 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth for the old heaven. 165 00:08:53,830 --> 00:08:57,150 And the old earth had disappeared, and the sea was also 166 00:08:57,150 --> 00:08:57,630 gone. 167 00:08:58,270 --> 00:09:02,270 And I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God 168 00:09:03,240 --> 00:09:06,520 out of heaven like a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. 169 00:09:07,320 --> 00:09:11,720 I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, look, God's home 170 00:09:11,880 --> 00:09:14,280 is now among his people. 171 00:09:15,240 --> 00:09:18,040 He will live with them, and they will be his people. 172 00:09:18,040 --> 00:09:19,960 God himself will be with them. 173 00:09:20,440 --> 00:09:23,640 He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no 174 00:09:23,640 --> 00:09:27,000 more death or sorrow or crying or pain. 175 00:09:27,720 --> 00:09:31,500 All those things are gone forever. 176 00:09:32,940 --> 00:09:37,180 And the one sitting on the throne said, look, I'm making everything 177 00:09:37,740 --> 00:09:38,140 new. 178 00:09:39,100 --> 00:09:43,460 And then he said to me, write this down, for what I tell you is 179 00:09:43,460 --> 00:09:44,620 trustworthy and true. 180 00:09:45,420 --> 00:09:47,580 And he also said, it is finished. 181 00:09:47,980 --> 00:09:50,780 I'm the alpha and omega, the beginning and the end. 182 00:09:50,780 --> 00:09:55,100 All who are thirsty, I will give freely from the springs of the 183 00:09:55,100 --> 00:09:55,820 water of life. 184 00:09:57,170 --> 00:10:00,370 All who are victorious will inherit all these blessings. 185 00:10:00,930 --> 00:10:05,650 And I will be their God, and they will be my children. 186 00:10:09,010 --> 00:10:15,410 The last chapter it was 17 years ago next month. 187 00:10:15,570 --> 00:10:16,610 My dad died. 188 00:10:23,340 --> 00:10:26,980 My dad had a disease that began to slowly take the energy from 189 00:10:26,980 --> 00:10:27,340 him. 190 00:10:28,300 --> 00:10:32,460 And so, firstly, in that last week or so of his life, as often 191 00:10:32,460 --> 00:10:36,260 happens when the body's shutting down, he didn't say too 192 00:10:36,260 --> 00:10:36,540 much. 193 00:10:40,060 --> 00:10:44,700 But a few minutes before he died, my mother was there with him, 194 00:10:44,780 --> 00:10:47,340 just the two of them in his bedroom. 195 00:10:49,990 --> 00:10:56,390 And he looked at her and he said, I've got to go now. 196 00:10:59,510 --> 00:11:01,270 She said, what do you mean you have to go? 197 00:11:02,470 --> 00:11:06,950 He said, that man has come for me and I've got to go. 198 00:11:10,150 --> 00:11:11,350 She says, what man? 199 00:11:11,750 --> 00:11:12,950 I don't see any man. 200 00:11:13,980 --> 00:11:17,420 He said, that man right there, he's taking me. 201 00:11:19,580 --> 00:11:25,420 In that moment when a person passes from this life into eternity, 202 00:11:26,380 --> 00:11:30,380 we need to understand what happens when we die. 203 00:11:30,380 --> 00:11:36,860 Because how we live now will be completely controlled by how you 204 00:11:36,860 --> 00:11:37,580 view the future. 205 00:11:38,380 --> 00:11:42,030 If you don't read the last chapter, you're not going to live 206 00:11:42,030 --> 00:11:43,310 this life to the fullest. 207 00:11:43,390 --> 00:11:46,750 If you don't read the last chapter, you won't understand this 208 00:11:46,750 --> 00:11:47,150 life. 209 00:11:48,190 --> 00:11:52,270 If you don't understand what happens when you die, you won't understand 210 00:11:52,830 --> 00:11:53,630 how to live. 211 00:11:55,390 --> 00:11:57,470 So that's what I want to talk to you about this morning. 212 00:11:58,270 --> 00:12:01,150 Four events that happen when we die. 213 00:12:01,790 --> 00:12:04,670 Four things we know very clearly from Scripture. 214 00:12:04,670 --> 00:12:07,570 And again, I don't have time to show them all to you very clear 215 00:12:07,570 --> 00:12:10,770 from Scripture, what happens when we die. 216 00:12:11,250 --> 00:12:12,370 Just like my dad. 217 00:12:13,170 --> 00:12:18,290 The first is we are immediately taken immediately before 218 00:12:18,290 --> 00:12:18,770 God. 219 00:12:19,650 --> 00:12:21,810 Immediately taken before God. 220 00:12:22,050 --> 00:12:26,290 The thief on the cross next to Jesus, who asked for forgiveness. 221 00:12:26,530 --> 00:12:30,410 Jesus said to him, today you will be with me in paradise. 222 00:12:30,410 --> 00:12:34,740 Not someday, but today, you will be in paradise. 223 00:12:34,740 --> 00:12:37,860 There are a lot of people who have assumed through the years that 224 00:12:37,860 --> 00:12:41,660 when we die, we sleep in a grave for thousands of years until 225 00:12:41,660 --> 00:12:44,980 God comes back, and then life comes back anew. 226 00:12:44,980 --> 00:12:47,700 Like going to sleep last night and you woke up this morning, you 227 00:12:47,700 --> 00:12:51,020 thought it was a few minutes later, and it really was hours later. 228 00:12:51,500 --> 00:12:52,940 No, that's not it at all. 229 00:12:53,260 --> 00:12:54,540 Scripture's very clear. 230 00:12:54,860 --> 00:12:59,620 Immediately when you die, you are taken into the presence of. 231 00:12:59,850 --> 00:13:00,490 Of God. 232 00:13:01,050 --> 00:13:04,410 You're taken to a place that, for the lack of a better term, is 233 00:13:04,410 --> 00:13:06,090 called intermediate heaven. 234 00:13:06,410 --> 00:13:09,530 It's not the final heaven, it's the intermediate heaven. 235 00:13:09,690 --> 00:13:14,050 And the interesting thing that we saw from John in the intermediate 236 00:13:14,050 --> 00:13:18,730 heaven is that it is so fulfilling because the thirst of 237 00:13:18,730 --> 00:13:21,370 our life is finally quenched. 238 00:13:22,730 --> 00:13:23,290 Verse 6. 239 00:13:23,290 --> 00:13:27,370 He said, all who are thirsty, I will give freely of the springs 240 00:13:27,370 --> 00:13:27,770 of life. 241 00:13:27,770 --> 00:13:28,060 And. 242 00:13:28,130 --> 00:13:30,050 And that happens immediately when we die. 243 00:13:31,730 --> 00:13:32,690 What's that mean? 244 00:13:33,330 --> 00:13:35,810 Well, again, if you don't know the last chapter, you don't understand 245 00:13:36,130 --> 00:13:37,490 the other parts of the chapter. 246 00:13:37,490 --> 00:13:42,090 Do you remember when the woman at the well came and she wanted Jesus 247 00:13:42,090 --> 00:13:43,330 to help her get her some water? 248 00:13:43,330 --> 00:13:45,410 And he said, I'll not just get you water. 249 00:13:45,490 --> 00:13:48,130 I will give you springs of life. 250 00:13:48,450 --> 00:13:53,090 I'll give you the water of life, which is the transformation 251 00:13:53,090 --> 00:13:54,210 of spiritual life. 252 00:13:55,960 --> 00:13:57,640 That's what Jesus came to the world to do. 253 00:13:57,640 --> 00:14:02,000 Do you remember when Jesus was on the cross, he said seven different 254 00:14:02,000 --> 00:14:02,320 things. 255 00:14:02,320 --> 00:14:04,360 One of the things he said was, I thirst. 256 00:14:05,880 --> 00:14:07,000 Why did he thirst? 257 00:14:08,760 --> 00:14:11,160 Of course, there was a physical thing, but that wasn't it. 258 00:14:11,560 --> 00:14:15,000 He thirsts because he took on the sins of the world. 259 00:14:15,240 --> 00:14:19,320 And when he took on the sins of the world, all the glory of God 260 00:14:19,320 --> 00:14:20,280 was gone from him. 261 00:14:20,280 --> 00:14:21,640 And God shut him out. 262 00:14:22,080 --> 00:14:24,320 Because God can't be in the presence of sin. 263 00:14:24,400 --> 00:14:25,760 And he said, I thirst. 264 00:14:25,840 --> 00:14:27,400 He wasn't thirsty for water. 265 00:14:27,400 --> 00:14:30,720 He was thirsty for the water, the springs of life. 266 00:14:32,000 --> 00:14:35,320 And then we get to heaven, and that's the first thing he offers 267 00:14:35,320 --> 00:14:38,720 us where nothing is lacking. 268 00:14:40,960 --> 00:14:47,840 This intermediate heaven where we go will be more than we could 269 00:14:47,840 --> 00:14:48,160 hope. 270 00:14:48,400 --> 00:14:52,840 We don't have a lot in scripture that explains all the details 271 00:14:52,840 --> 00:14:57,740 of that as much as we do about the permanent heaven, but it'll be 272 00:14:57,740 --> 00:15:00,260 greater than anything we can imagine. 273 00:15:01,220 --> 00:15:06,900 The second thing we find when we die is that there is an eternal 274 00:15:07,380 --> 00:15:12,180 Judgment and a pure justice when we die. 275 00:15:13,540 --> 00:15:14,980 Scripture is very clear. 276 00:15:15,220 --> 00:15:18,660 You will come into heaven if your name is written in the book 277 00:15:18,660 --> 00:15:19,140 of life. 278 00:15:20,160 --> 00:15:23,440 And if your name is not in the book, you're not coming in. 279 00:15:25,760 --> 00:15:29,520 Could you imagine going to the most fabulous concert there ever 280 00:15:29,520 --> 00:15:29,760 is? 281 00:15:29,760 --> 00:15:32,960 And you think you're going to the backstage and you go up and you 282 00:15:32,960 --> 00:15:34,240 say, my name's on the list. 283 00:15:34,560 --> 00:15:35,200 Let me in. 284 00:15:35,200 --> 00:15:37,760 And if your name's on the list, it doesn't matter who you are, 285 00:15:37,760 --> 00:15:38,720 you're not getting in. 286 00:15:40,560 --> 00:15:44,800 Well, that's just a weak example of the book of life. 287 00:15:45,290 --> 00:15:48,170 Because Jesus says, if your name is not written in the book of 288 00:15:48,170 --> 00:15:54,170 Life, then you are not saved and you're not coming into that heaven. 289 00:15:54,250 --> 00:15:56,010 We are saved by grace. 290 00:15:56,330 --> 00:15:58,930 There is no amount of works, there's no amount of effort. 291 00:15:58,930 --> 00:16:00,250 There's no amount of being good. 292 00:16:00,330 --> 00:16:02,970 There's no amount of I intended to do good. 293 00:16:03,290 --> 00:16:05,050 That doesn't matter at all. 294 00:16:05,050 --> 00:16:08,810 Either you have asked Christ into your life to forgive your sins 295 00:16:09,130 --> 00:16:11,450 and to cleanse you and to forgive you. 296 00:16:12,210 --> 00:16:15,490 And your name is in the book of life because those sins are forgotten. 297 00:16:15,570 --> 00:16:18,130 And now you can have fellowship with the holy God, or 298 00:16:18,130 --> 00:16:18,930 you haven't. 299 00:16:20,050 --> 00:16:21,250 It's one or the other. 300 00:16:22,690 --> 00:16:26,450 But it's not just an eternal judgment. 301 00:16:26,450 --> 00:16:28,690 It's a pure justice. 302 00:16:29,490 --> 00:16:31,010 You know life is not fair. 303 00:16:31,890 --> 00:16:32,690 You know that. 304 00:16:33,890 --> 00:16:35,010 I'm a lot older. 305 00:16:35,010 --> 00:16:38,460 I really know that life is not fair. 306 00:16:39,900 --> 00:16:49,980 But when we die, our judge is Christ, who is completely fair and 307 00:16:50,220 --> 00:16:51,740 completely just. 308 00:16:52,940 --> 00:16:54,060 And here's the deal. 309 00:16:55,580 --> 00:16:59,340 Nobody is going to get away with anything. 310 00:17:00,860 --> 00:17:02,620 They think they've manipulated you. 311 00:17:02,620 --> 00:17:06,300 They think they've gotten the best of you, or you think you have. 312 00:17:07,060 --> 00:17:11,820 No, you're not going to get away with one thing because the justice 313 00:17:11,820 --> 00:17:13,940 of God is pure. 314 00:17:14,260 --> 00:17:17,820 He says, I'm going to divide the people into the sheep and the 315 00:17:17,820 --> 00:17:18,260 goats. 316 00:17:19,620 --> 00:17:21,220 Well, you can't be both. 317 00:17:22,739 --> 00:17:23,780 There's no in between. 318 00:17:23,780 --> 00:17:25,540 I'm sort of a sheep, but I'm sort of a goat. 319 00:17:25,540 --> 00:17:27,940 I'm sort of a good person, but I'm not always a good person. 320 00:17:28,100 --> 00:17:30,740 I'm sort of a believer, but I'm really not a believer. 321 00:17:33,150 --> 00:17:36,190 You're either going to be a sheep or a goat when you die. 322 00:17:37,550 --> 00:17:43,150 At that moment, and at that moment, the thing we long for the 323 00:17:43,150 --> 00:17:46,030 most in this life is justice. 324 00:17:46,990 --> 00:17:52,750 Because there's so little of it, we want justice, and that is 325 00:17:52,750 --> 00:17:53,790 what will happen. 326 00:17:54,110 --> 00:17:57,310 Because justice is the character of God. 327 00:17:57,960 --> 00:17:59,880 He is good and just. 328 00:18:00,680 --> 00:18:05,240 And so when we die, that eternal judgment will come. 329 00:18:06,520 --> 00:18:11,720 Third thing will happen is we will eventually return to this earth. 330 00:18:13,639 --> 00:18:16,120 Heaven is not out there someplace. 331 00:18:16,840 --> 00:18:20,840 God designed this world in a perfect state. 332 00:18:21,960 --> 00:18:28,360 And Adam and Eve broke the relationship with God and sin corrupted 333 00:18:28,360 --> 00:18:28,880 the world. 334 00:18:28,880 --> 00:18:32,720 And so we live in a world that's corrupted by sin. 335 00:18:33,840 --> 00:18:36,960 But Jesus and God doesn't say, well, we're just going to discard 336 00:18:36,960 --> 00:18:39,120 that because they messed it up, and we'll create another. 337 00:18:39,280 --> 00:18:44,440 No, he's going to restore this earth in the way he originally intended 338 00:18:44,440 --> 00:18:45,200 it to be. 339 00:18:46,960 --> 00:18:48,320 And he's going to do that. 340 00:18:49,530 --> 00:18:52,970 So we live here on earth forever. 341 00:18:53,290 --> 00:18:55,850 So we go to the immediate heaven till we die. 342 00:18:55,930 --> 00:19:00,330 And after Jesus returns to earth and restores the earth, then 343 00:19:00,330 --> 00:19:00,970 we come. 344 00:19:00,970 --> 00:19:05,409 That's why he says, coming down from heaven, Jerusalem, coming 345 00:19:05,409 --> 00:19:06,570 down from heaven. 346 00:19:06,810 --> 00:19:08,890 He's coming down to earth. 347 00:19:09,130 --> 00:19:13,570 So God lives on the earth with his people, just like he did in the 348 00:19:13,570 --> 00:19:17,700 garden where God was with Adam and Eve in the garden. 349 00:19:17,700 --> 00:19:18,900 That's what God intended. 350 00:19:19,620 --> 00:19:22,340 So he's putting that back in place. 351 00:19:22,660 --> 00:19:28,100 And heaven is a renewed earth, a new earth. 352 00:19:28,500 --> 00:19:31,780 As we talk about it, how does that work? 353 00:19:33,220 --> 00:19:35,620 Well, there's a lot of questions about that. 354 00:19:35,860 --> 00:19:37,060 Here's what I do know. 355 00:19:37,220 --> 00:19:43,470 God is bigger than you think and bigger than you can think. 356 00:19:44,190 --> 00:19:45,470 So we can't put it all together. 357 00:19:45,470 --> 00:19:48,550 But I will tell you real quickly eight characteristics of 358 00:19:48,550 --> 00:19:49,230 the new earth. 359 00:19:50,510 --> 00:19:52,670 The first is it's a real place. 360 00:19:53,550 --> 00:19:54,350 This is it. 361 00:19:54,430 --> 00:19:55,710 This is the new earth. 362 00:19:56,029 --> 00:20:01,230 It is a very real place in which we will have a restored body. 363 00:20:01,550 --> 00:20:02,390 Now, there's a question. 364 00:20:02,390 --> 00:20:05,630 In the intermediate heaven, is your body restored or is that just 365 00:20:05,630 --> 00:20:06,270 your spirit? 366 00:20:06,720 --> 00:20:10,840 And we don't really have clear evidence one way or the other on 367 00:20:10,840 --> 00:20:11,200 that. 368 00:20:11,760 --> 00:20:16,480 You know, when Jesus rose from the grave, they could recognize him. 369 00:20:16,480 --> 00:20:17,280 They could see him. 370 00:20:17,280 --> 00:20:21,520 Although his body was somewhat different, he wasn't quickly recognized. 371 00:20:22,080 --> 00:20:24,720 And he could appear in rooms and then be gone. 372 00:20:25,280 --> 00:20:27,400 But he also said, I'm hungry. 373 00:20:27,400 --> 00:20:28,160 Give me a fish. 374 00:20:28,640 --> 00:20:29,840 So he wanted to eat. 375 00:20:30,000 --> 00:20:32,880 So do we have a body like that or do we have. 376 00:20:33,530 --> 00:20:38,810 You know, Elijah and Moses came down on the Mount Transfiguration 377 00:20:38,810 --> 00:20:39,690 with the disciples. 378 00:20:39,850 --> 00:20:40,890 They saw them. 379 00:20:41,530 --> 00:20:42,930 So we don't know that. 380 00:20:42,930 --> 00:20:47,930 But we do know for sure that in the new earth our bodies are restored. 381 00:20:48,490 --> 00:20:49,609 They are healthy. 382 00:20:49,850 --> 00:20:52,650 They are the body God intended us to have. 383 00:20:52,810 --> 00:20:57,970 He didn't make a flawed creation sin flawed the creation. 384 00:20:57,970 --> 00:21:01,880 And he's going to put it back how it should have been so we know 385 00:21:01,880 --> 00:21:02,600 it's a real place. 386 00:21:02,600 --> 00:21:04,720 Second thing we know is a holy place. 387 00:21:05,280 --> 00:21:07,440 There will be no sin in heaven. 388 00:21:08,880 --> 00:21:11,360 It'll be completely safe. 389 00:21:12,480 --> 00:21:20,280 No locksmiths no police, no medical, because there's no sin that 390 00:21:20,280 --> 00:21:21,040 corrupts the body. 391 00:21:22,560 --> 00:21:24,000 There'll be no armies. 392 00:21:24,160 --> 00:21:25,360 There's no need for them. 393 00:21:26,880 --> 00:21:31,480 A lot of the things that are central to our culture now are because 394 00:21:31,480 --> 00:21:32,080 of sin. 395 00:21:32,080 --> 00:21:36,560 And all those things go away in the new earth because it's a holy 396 00:21:36,560 --> 00:21:36,880 place. 397 00:21:37,200 --> 00:21:39,440 It's also a relationship place. 398 00:21:40,080 --> 00:21:44,200 We will be renewed with Jesus in fellowship with him. 399 00:21:44,200 --> 00:21:48,800 That's why we sang today about his glory, because that's the renewed 400 00:21:48,800 --> 00:21:49,840 fellowship with him. 401 00:21:49,840 --> 00:21:53,280 But we'll also be renewed with those we knew in this earth. 402 00:21:53,640 --> 00:21:58,080 And tons and tons and tons of new people we're yet to know, because 403 00:21:58,080 --> 00:21:59,920 it is about our relationships. 404 00:21:59,920 --> 00:22:03,400 And those relationships will be very real and very significant 405 00:22:03,560 --> 00:22:06,360 something to be a whole different depth than what we're ever 406 00:22:06,360 --> 00:22:12,120 able to do on earth when sin so often creeps into relationships. 407 00:22:12,840 --> 00:22:14,320 It'll be a joyful place. 408 00:22:14,320 --> 00:22:15,120 The scripture says. 409 00:22:15,120 --> 00:22:18,040 There'll be no sorrow, no crying, no pain. 410 00:22:18,360 --> 00:22:19,640 There'll be no gossip. 411 00:22:20,600 --> 00:22:21,720 There will be no abuse. 412 00:22:22,280 --> 00:22:23,720 There will be no manipulation. 413 00:22:25,720 --> 00:22:26,760 There will be no lust. 414 00:22:28,280 --> 00:22:31,240 All the things that destroy life will be gone. 415 00:22:31,240 --> 00:22:33,280 Because it will be a joyful place. 416 00:22:33,280 --> 00:22:35,160 It will be an undivided place. 417 00:22:35,480 --> 00:22:36,920 We know this in scripture. 418 00:22:37,640 --> 00:22:39,400 It said, the waters come together. 419 00:22:39,640 --> 00:22:42,120 The divisions among the nations go away. 420 00:22:42,360 --> 00:22:46,080 The divisions among economic classes go away. 421 00:22:46,080 --> 00:22:48,200 The divisions among races go away. 422 00:22:48,720 --> 00:22:51,200 It's a place where people are brought together. 423 00:22:51,600 --> 00:22:56,560 There's no more division because everyone is there as an accepted 424 00:22:56,960 --> 00:22:58,000 child of God. 425 00:22:58,240 --> 00:22:59,760 It's a fulfilling place. 426 00:23:01,120 --> 00:23:03,520 In heaven, we will have work to do. 427 00:23:03,840 --> 00:23:08,240 It's not sitting around on a harp playing all day long and just 428 00:23:08,320 --> 00:23:09,720 singing praise songs. 429 00:23:09,720 --> 00:23:11,920 I'd get pretty bored in a hurry if that's what it is. 430 00:23:12,000 --> 00:23:13,080 That's not it at all. 431 00:23:13,080 --> 00:23:14,145 We'll have work to do. 432 00:23:14,145 --> 00:23:14,290 We. 433 00:23:14,440 --> 00:23:15,560 We'll have responsibilities. 434 00:23:15,960 --> 00:23:18,120 We'll have arts, we'll have sports. 435 00:23:18,360 --> 00:23:20,680 We'll have all kinds of wonderful things. 436 00:23:21,240 --> 00:23:25,160 It's an active place, A place where there'll be cities and there'll 437 00:23:25,160 --> 00:23:28,200 be culture and there'll be purpose for what we do. 438 00:23:30,280 --> 00:23:31,640 It's a permanent place. 439 00:23:32,360 --> 00:23:34,920 It's forever and ever. 440 00:23:35,000 --> 00:23:38,280 Forever is really hard to get your mind around. 441 00:23:39,080 --> 00:23:40,300 But it is forever. 442 00:23:40,450 --> 00:23:41,650 Forever. 443 00:23:44,770 --> 00:23:47,850 Think of the longest forever you could think of and you haven't 444 00:23:47,850 --> 00:23:48,290 even started. 445 00:23:49,490 --> 00:23:51,650 It's that far ahead. 446 00:23:52,530 --> 00:23:53,810 That's the new earth. 447 00:23:54,370 --> 00:23:58,010 That's where heaven will be permanently is on the new earth. 448 00:23:58,010 --> 00:24:00,530 We go to the intermediate heaven now. 449 00:24:00,690 --> 00:24:05,010 The judgment comes there, and the believers stay there. 450 00:24:05,170 --> 00:24:07,170 The non believers are sent to hell. 451 00:24:07,810 --> 00:24:12,410 And then when Jesus restores the earth, we all come back to the 452 00:24:12,410 --> 00:24:14,930 earth for permanent heaven as our home. 453 00:24:15,730 --> 00:24:20,250 And then we see the fourth thing that happens is that believers 454 00:24:20,250 --> 00:24:23,410 are rewarded for their life on earth. 455 00:24:24,530 --> 00:24:29,650 There is a second judgment that comes to all people, believers 456 00:24:29,650 --> 00:24:30,530 and nonbelievers. 457 00:24:31,810 --> 00:24:33,650 A second judgment will come. 458 00:24:33,650 --> 00:24:36,880 Now, we don't know if that happens in the intermediate heaven 459 00:24:36,880 --> 00:24:41,000 or at the time that the heaven is restored on earth. 460 00:24:41,000 --> 00:24:44,320 But at some point, there is a second judgment that will come to 461 00:24:44,320 --> 00:24:50,520 each one of us, where every action, every thought, every motive, 462 00:24:52,200 --> 00:24:56,440 everything you have ever done will be laid bare. 463 00:24:58,360 --> 00:25:01,160 And that is terrifying. 464 00:25:05,090 --> 00:25:06,050 Think of it right now. 465 00:25:07,650 --> 00:25:12,850 Everything that is in your hidden life was laid bare before 466 00:25:12,850 --> 00:25:15,650 all of us, before your family. 467 00:25:17,490 --> 00:25:19,570 That is terrifying. 468 00:25:21,490 --> 00:25:23,570 But Christians are forgiven. 469 00:25:24,770 --> 00:25:26,130 Christians are forgiven. 470 00:25:26,690 --> 00:25:31,090 And we're told God no longer holds those sins against us and he 471 00:25:31,090 --> 00:25:31,890 forgets them. 472 00:25:33,070 --> 00:25:34,190 So we don't really know. 473 00:25:34,190 --> 00:25:38,030 For Christians, when that second judgment comes, do we hear 474 00:25:38,030 --> 00:25:39,950 all those sins we committed? 475 00:25:40,990 --> 00:25:41,710 We might. 476 00:25:41,870 --> 00:25:42,750 We don't know. 477 00:25:43,470 --> 00:25:48,510 But if we did, God's not doing that to shame us, because there is 478 00:25:48,510 --> 00:25:49,790 no sorrow in heaven. 479 00:25:50,590 --> 00:25:54,510 Maybe he would do that in order to help us understand the depth 480 00:25:54,510 --> 00:25:55,390 of his grace. 481 00:25:55,790 --> 00:25:57,350 Or maybe they're just forgotten. 482 00:25:57,350 --> 00:26:00,310 Maybe he goes, let's get all the bad stuff up on Roger Perrott. 483 00:26:00,310 --> 00:26:01,710 And he hits a button and it's deleted. 484 00:26:01,710 --> 00:26:06,130 There's nothing there because he forgot it all, because he forgave 485 00:26:06,130 --> 00:26:06,570 it all. 486 00:26:07,690 --> 00:26:08,970 So that's one option. 487 00:26:09,610 --> 00:26:15,210 It could be that way when it comes to Christians and their sin. 488 00:26:15,770 --> 00:26:20,370 But what we do know for sure is that we are rewarded in heaven 489 00:26:20,370 --> 00:26:22,330 for our works on earth. 490 00:26:22,570 --> 00:26:24,730 Now listen to this very carefully. 491 00:26:24,890 --> 00:26:27,450 We are not saved by works. 492 00:26:27,690 --> 00:26:28,810 It is impossible. 493 00:26:30,160 --> 00:26:31,160 It is impossible. 494 00:26:31,160 --> 00:26:32,480 The Scripture is very clear. 495 00:26:32,560 --> 00:26:35,040 You are never saved by works. 496 00:26:35,040 --> 00:26:38,240 You're only saved by the grace of God who forgives us. 497 00:26:38,560 --> 00:26:45,119 But our works on earth will determine the value of our Christian 498 00:26:45,119 --> 00:26:49,520 life lived out on this earth, and that will determine our rewards 499 00:26:49,680 --> 00:26:50,560 in heaven. 500 00:26:50,960 --> 00:26:56,200 So your responsibility in heaven, your position, your place 501 00:26:56,200 --> 00:26:56,560 of. 502 00:26:56,920 --> 00:27:01,320 Of service in heaven will be dependent on what you have done on 503 00:27:01,320 --> 00:27:02,000 this earth. 504 00:27:02,000 --> 00:27:04,600 Now we've got the stakes really raised. 505 00:27:05,160 --> 00:27:07,400 This is why you got to read the last chapter. 506 00:27:08,360 --> 00:27:11,560 And in the Parable of the Talents, Jesus is very specific about 507 00:27:11,560 --> 00:27:11,840 this. 508 00:27:11,840 --> 00:27:13,039 You know the parable of talents. 509 00:27:13,039 --> 00:27:17,200 He gave one talent, 13 and 1 5, and they were supposed to go do 510 00:27:17,200 --> 00:27:20,320 something, and he came back, and one had made money and the other 511 00:27:20,320 --> 00:27:23,000 had done well, and the other just buried it in the ground. 512 00:27:23,510 --> 00:27:25,590 And the one buried in the ground, he sent him to hell. 513 00:27:25,750 --> 00:27:29,350 And the other two, he gave different responsibilities depending 514 00:27:29,350 --> 00:27:30,550 on how they did. 515 00:27:30,550 --> 00:27:33,590 This is a clear teaching of Jesus. 516 00:27:33,990 --> 00:27:39,470 Jesus is saying, do I see the fruit of our relationship in your 517 00:27:39,470 --> 00:27:39,830 life? 518 00:27:41,430 --> 00:27:43,470 And he measures that by what we do. 519 00:27:43,470 --> 00:27:46,110 And he measures that by our spirit of who we are. 520 00:27:46,110 --> 00:27:50,470 And we see that in the fruits of the spirit in our Christian life. 521 00:27:51,110 --> 00:27:52,630 And then he gets very specific. 522 00:27:52,630 --> 00:27:54,950 These are the words of Jesus he talks about. 523 00:27:54,950 --> 00:27:59,750 What you do to the least of these will determine where you stand 524 00:27:59,910 --> 00:28:04,630 after that second judgment, how you treated those that he loves. 525 00:28:04,949 --> 00:28:06,390 Scripture reads like this. 526 00:28:07,190 --> 00:28:12,150 Then the king will say to those on his right, come, who are 527 00:28:12,390 --> 00:28:16,230 blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from 528 00:28:16,230 --> 00:28:17,630 the creation of the world. 529 00:28:18,110 --> 00:28:19,950 For I was hungry and you fed me. 530 00:28:19,950 --> 00:28:22,710 I was thirsty and you gave me to drink. 531 00:28:22,710 --> 00:28:25,270 I was a stranger and you invited me in your home. 532 00:28:25,270 --> 00:28:27,150 I was naked and you gave me clothing. 533 00:28:27,310 --> 00:28:29,150 I was sick and you cared for me. 534 00:28:29,310 --> 00:28:31,630 I was in prison and you visited me. 535 00:28:32,750 --> 00:28:36,350 Then the righteous ones will reply, lord, when did we ever see 536 00:28:36,350 --> 00:28:38,950 you hungry and feed you or thirsty and give you something to 537 00:28:38,950 --> 00:28:39,310 drink? 538 00:28:39,470 --> 00:28:41,990 Or stranger and show you hospitality again? 539 00:28:41,990 --> 00:28:43,390 Remember, these are the words of Jesus. 540 00:28:43,790 --> 00:28:45,310 Or naked and give you clothing. 541 00:28:45,310 --> 00:28:47,790 When did we ever see you sick or in prison? 542 00:28:47,950 --> 00:28:54,150 And the king will say, I tell you the truth, when you did it for 543 00:28:54,150 --> 00:28:58,830 the least of these brothers and sisters, you were doing it to 544 00:28:58,830 --> 00:28:59,150 me. 545 00:29:00,830 --> 00:29:05,350 And then he goes on, but away with you, you cursed ones, into the 546 00:29:05,350 --> 00:29:08,750 eternal fire prepared for the devil and his demons. 547 00:29:09,240 --> 00:29:11,560 For I was hungry and you didn't feed me. 548 00:29:11,560 --> 00:29:13,960 I was thirsty and you didn't give me a drink. 549 00:29:14,040 --> 00:29:16,920 I was a stranger and you didn't invite me into your home. 550 00:29:17,080 --> 00:29:19,480 I was naked and you didn't give me clothing. 551 00:29:19,480 --> 00:29:22,760 I was sick in prison and you didn't visit me. 552 00:29:24,120 --> 00:29:27,200 And they will reply, lord, when do we ever see you hungry or 553 00:29:27,200 --> 00:29:30,400 thirsty or stranger or naked or sick in prison and not help you? 554 00:29:30,400 --> 00:29:32,440 And he will answer, I tell you the truth. 555 00:29:32,600 --> 00:29:36,200 You refuse to help the least of these brothers and sisters. 556 00:29:36,540 --> 00:29:38,460 You were refusing to help me. 557 00:29:39,580 --> 00:29:45,660 And they will go away into the eternal punishment, but the righteous 558 00:29:45,900 --> 00:29:49,100 will go into eternal life. 559 00:29:50,380 --> 00:29:53,980 You want to know why Connor's going to spend 25 years to go reach 560 00:29:53,980 --> 00:29:57,580 a group of unpeached people who don't know the gospel? 561 00:29:58,940 --> 00:29:59,740 Because of that. 562 00:30:01,420 --> 00:30:02,140 Because of that. 563 00:30:02,920 --> 00:30:04,400 What you do for the least of these. 564 00:30:04,400 --> 00:30:07,920 Now, the least of these can be any part of your life in any way. 565 00:30:07,920 --> 00:30:11,120 But when we do the right things for the least of these, we 566 00:30:11,120 --> 00:30:12,480 are doing it for Jesus. 567 00:30:12,480 --> 00:30:17,800 And that determines our place in heaven, our responsibility, and 568 00:30:17,800 --> 00:30:22,120 our place in heaven is dependent on how our Christian life 569 00:30:22,360 --> 00:30:23,880 is lived out on earth. 570 00:30:25,080 --> 00:30:29,850 What we do now matters for eternity. 571 00:30:29,850 --> 00:30:31,170 Don't play around with it. 572 00:30:31,330 --> 00:30:32,970 Yes, you are saved by grace. 573 00:30:32,970 --> 00:30:35,650 You'll get in if you're saved by grace. 574 00:30:36,370 --> 00:30:45,010 But your responsibility in heaven, your eternal life, is dependent 575 00:30:45,010 --> 00:30:51,090 on what you do in living out that faith in Christ now on earth. 576 00:30:51,890 --> 00:30:57,020 The least of these how the fruits of the Spirit get lived out. 577 00:30:57,020 --> 00:30:59,660 Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, self control, 578 00:31:00,140 --> 00:31:01,340 faithfulness, gentleness. 579 00:31:01,340 --> 00:31:03,660 How do those get lived out in your life? 580 00:31:04,780 --> 00:31:10,540 The evidence of faith is the centerpiece of the second judgment, 581 00:31:10,700 --> 00:31:12,060 not the first judgment. 582 00:31:13,260 --> 00:31:14,620 Revelation 22. 583 00:31:16,060 --> 00:31:20,660 Again, John wrote, then I saw a new heaven and earth, for the old 584 00:31:20,660 --> 00:31:23,100 heaven and the earth had disappeared. 585 00:31:23,600 --> 00:31:29,120 But that vision from John continues to the next verses. 586 00:31:29,200 --> 00:31:32,720 And here's the next verses real quick before we're done. 587 00:31:33,680 --> 00:31:38,320 But cowards, unbelievers, the corrupt, murderers, the immoral, 588 00:31:38,960 --> 00:31:43,600 those who practice witchcraft, idol worshipers and all liars. 589 00:31:44,640 --> 00:31:48,000 Their fate is in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. 590 00:31:49,290 --> 00:31:52,250 This is the second death. 591 00:31:53,850 --> 00:31:57,210 And that leads into what we're going to talk about next week. 592 00:31:58,090 --> 00:32:01,530 Because next week, as this series continues, we're going to 593 00:32:01,530 --> 00:32:06,490 talk about the high paying, the high cost of sin. 594 00:32:07,530 --> 00:32:08,970 Sin in eternity. 595 00:32:09,050 --> 00:32:13,690 But yes, there's a high cost to pay for sin in this life as well. 596 00:32:15,060 --> 00:32:16,260 These are the essentials. 597 00:32:16,500 --> 00:32:24,180 Read the last chapter, because if you understand how it is, then 598 00:32:24,180 --> 00:32:26,580 it begins a new life in Christ. 599 00:32:27,300 --> 00:32:30,900 For how we live today, let's pray. 600 00:32:36,340 --> 00:32:37,300 Lord, we thank youk. 601 00:32:37,540 --> 00:32:43,560 Heaven is not just a hope, but you are very, very clear. 602 00:32:43,640 --> 00:32:45,320 Heaven is for real. 603 00:32:48,040 --> 00:32:49,640 Help us to live like it is. 604 00:32:50,920 --> 00:32:52,280 In your name we ask it. 605 00:32:52,440 --> 00:32:53,000 Amen. 606 00:32:53,800 --> 00:33:00,010 God bless.