Heaven

Sunday I will begin a series on heaven. In all my years of going to church (many of them as the preacher), this is a subject that we mention a lot -- but I don't remember hearing a sermon totally dedicated to heaven. I did, however, heard many sermons on hell when I was younger.

Interesting tidbit: I heard Randy Gallaway yesterday on ESPN radio say that in Buffalo it is "cold as hell." Is that not the ultimate oxymoron?

I fear that heaven is kind of like our default setting. We prefer it to the alternative. But if we had a choice, we would stay right here on terra firma.

How often do you think about heaven? I am convinced we do not rival the Thessalonian Christians. If Paul were among us today, would he need to write a letter telling us to quit waiting for heaven and to get on with life? I don't think so. We would need the opposite instruction. We need to fix our gaze on eternity. As C. S. Lewis once observed (I paraphrase), it is those whose eyes are fixed on heaven who are of the most benefit here on earth.

Again, perhaps our songs have outpreached our preaching. Just think of how many songs talk about heaven.

So, what am I going to say? There is so much, I am still not sure how deeply to delve into it. And the more I read, the more I realize that to hold a doctrinal position on heaven is pretty difficult. I hope this series doesn't bog down into that. Rather, I hope to ignite an excitement in us as we all journey home.