I’m just contemplating today those things that will not be in Heaven that we face daily on earth. What I write will be of no surprise, at least to those who long for our eternal home. Obviously, I could never mention everything that will be absent in Heaven, so I’ll just jot down a few things that come to mind.

The greatest tragedy though is all the billions of people who will not be in Heaven because they did not take the “narrow road” of life, the road that identifies Jesus Christ as the only way to the Father.

“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” (Matthew 7:13-14 NIV)

First of all, we won’t have to worry about ourselves and those we love being afflicted with any kind of disease or illness. Everything from bad colds to cancer will not exist. There will be no broken bones, bruises and cuts. There will be no failing eyesight and hearing. There will be no wheel chairs, prosthetics, and canes. There will be no ambulances, hospitals, or nursing homes. There will be no cemeteries since no one will die.

There will be no police force, courts and prisons since there will be no crime. No Cain will rise up to murder his brother. There will be no locks since no one will covet and steal. There will be no lies and deception, no scams from ‘snake oil salesmen.’

Broken homes, hunger and loneliness will not inhabit our eternal state. There will be no drug-induced children, alcoholic mothers or abusive fathers. There will be no shortage of love; love from our God, and Godly love among all His children. There will be no jealousy, bitterness, or boasting, unless it is boasting in Christ. There will be no reprobate minds, egotism, or pride.

There will be no trash on the highway, graffiti on the wall, deadly cold of the Artic or blistering heat of the desert. There will be no junkyards, weeds or smelly swamps. There will be no burned forests, flooded coastal lands or damage from winds.

The Bible even pinpoints a non-inclusive list of those things that will not be in Heaven.

“Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God.” (1 Corinthians 6:9-10 NASB) (emphasis mine)

It is important that I pause here and emphasize verse eleven of this same passage.

“Such WERE (emphasis mine) some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.” (1 Corinthians 6:11 NASB)

One or more of these sins may be attributable to someone now, but they can be permanently removed by the blood of Jesus Christ by simply calling upon Him to be saved. Put your trust in Him, and He will wash you, sanctify (consecrate) you, and justify (render righteous) you in His name and Spirit. They can, through the power of Jesus, no longer be a part of your life if you are willing to trust Him and allow Him to live in you.

Moving on, there will be no Satan and none of his demonic followers. There will be no temptation and no sin. There will be nothing unholy or unclean. There will be no false prophets, no tears, and no anxieties. There will be no one breaking any of God’s commands. We will all …

“…Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind…Love your neighbor as yourself.” (Matthew 22:37, 39 NIV)

Because of Jesus placing His cloak of righteousness upon us, we will be able to live in truth and righteousness with sin no longer impeding our walk with Him.

“At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.” (John 14:20)

“Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. (John 15:4)

By Him living in us, we can live for Him as we were meant to in the beginning, not as robots, but as free agents.

I have only listed a few things that come to mind of the things that will not be in Heaven. Read the Word and think on these thinks and you will see many more. For the Christian, Heaven is our true home, but what really makes it a ‘home’ is because we will be with our Creator, God, Savior and Lord, fellowshipping with Him, enjoying His love in worship and praise.

Grant Phillips
Email: grantphillips@windstream.net

From January 1st to December 31st our calendars encompass holidays, birthdays, anniversaries, church events, vacations, doctor appointments, business meetings, school days, athletic events, work days, week-ends, parties, celebrations, funerals, weddings, and much, much more.

From the sound of the morning alarm clock until the time it’s heard again the next morning, our calendar days are divided up into time segments. Regardless where we live on this globe we call earth, we are all affixed to ‘time.’

It’s time to go to school. It’s ‘quitten’ time! It’s time for your medicine. It’s time to eat. It’s time for your test. It’s time to go on vacation. It’s time to go home. How about this one; it’s time to think about eternity, where there is no time, or is there?

“In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.” (Revelation 22:2)

Time is not bad. Most of the verses of Genesis chapter one speak of ‘time’ and the days, consisting of time, were declared by God to be “good.” Time was here before the Fall (Adam and Eve’s original sin), and will be here from now on.

Someone may mention that Revelation 10:6 says, “… that there should be time no longer,” but this should have been translated “that there will be delay no longer.”

“Time” is not our problem. “How we handle time” is our problem.

Scarlett O’Hara, in “Gone With The Wind,” would say, “I’ll think (or worry) about that tomorrow.” Some folks like to say, “Put off today what you can do tomorrow.”

A lot can happen in a day’s time. How many times have lives been irretrievably changed in one second? God warns us about that.

“Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring.” (Proverbs 27:1 NIV)

“Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.” (James 4:14 NIV)

The difference between “time” on earth, in our fallen state, and time in eternity is that there are good times and bad times in the here and now, in our fallen state on earth. In eternity with the Lord, all time is good.

For example, on earth in our fallen state:

• It’s Bible study and prayer time. (Good time)
• It’s almost time for my date with the woman I’m going to marry. (Good time)
• It’s time for church service to start. (Good time)

• It’s almost time for my root canal. (Bad Time)
• It’s almost time for the test I didn’t study for. (Bad time)
• It’s time to sentence the prisoner. (Bad time)

Literally, from hour to hour, day to day, week to week, month to month, year to year, we all live on a time schedule here on earth. God knows exactly, to the second, how much time we each have to live in this body. We do not know from second to second, minute to minute, etc. how much time we have left. Therefore, we should all spend our time wisely.

Some folks live by the seat of their pants when it comes to arranging their time. To the other extreme, some have a schedule for everything. The best plan is whatever works for you. Just make sure that it works. Are we forgetting to do things? Maybe we should write them down.

What do we consider important enough in our lives that we wouldn’t want to forget it; the job interview, the exam, date night with our spouse? Normally, those things we consider to be important in our lives, we remember and we make time for them.

Have we set aside time for Jesus Christ, the Son of God? How many appointments have we broken with Him? He stands at our heart’s door and knocks (Revelation 3:20). Have we answered? If we have, have we spent time dining with Him, or have we allowed other matters to interfere? There are so many exciting things He wants to share with us. What a pity, if we allow those other matters to hinder our time with Him.

The greatest news He wants to share with us is His willingness to save any who will put their trust in Him. He wants to give us eternal life, where all those times in eternity will be ‘good times.’ He wants to adopt us into union with God. He wants us to rule with Him, and that’s not all. He wants us to be looking for Him.

Jesus said in John 14:1-3 that He will come back from Heaven and take all who are His back to Heaven. He had the prophets and the Apostles tell us what the ‘times’ would be like prior to and when His wrath is poured out on earth. According to His own Word, the Bible, that time is fast approaching.

He first will come and retrieve all who are His, those who have died and those who are still living. This is called the Rapture. Afterwards, seven years of Tribulation will be poured out on earth as His wrath consumes the nations and as He cleanses and draws His people Israel to Himself.

Time is running out. The people of earth have always lived in a time that provided a Savior (Jesus), who they could call on to be saved and be with after death, with the added bonus of avoiding hell. Today, that is still true, but there is something else to consider also. One can live without Christ and miss the Rapture and then be thrust into hell on earth (Tribulation). If you think life is bad now, it’s a cake walk compared to the time of the Tribulation.

Anyone who has seriously studied prophecy should be keenly aware of the approaching time of God’s judgment upon this earth. Yes, Jesus will snatch out (Rapture) His own before His wrath falls, but if you have not come to Him by faith alone, you will be left to suffer during that terrible time (Tribulation). Many will be saved during the Tribulation, but millions more will not. Many will be saved and lose everything they own, including their life, in the process.

God has set a time for all these things to happen. When will that be? I do not know, but I believe with all my being that time is fast approaching. I base this belief not on feelings, or what someone else says, but strictly upon God’s Word, the Bible.

The world is running out of time, and most of those who belong to the world are letting time slip through their fingers like water running through a sieve. Even many true Christians are oblivious to the tick-tock of God’s clock running down. He has a timer set for us, and it could ring at any moment. At any moment the Father could say to the Son, “Go get your bride.” (Rapture) After that, the gloves are off.

Time is an awesome thing. Not so if you are in prison of course “doing your time,” but even there, if you belong to Jesus Christ, it doesn’t matter where you are, only who you are. If you belong to Jesus Christ, you are a child of God and the bars will not hold you when He comes for us (Rapture).

If you are not a child of God, thank God for every minute He has given you, and by all means, do not waste another second in getting your life right before Him. Call upon Him to forgive you and save you from your sins, and He has promised to do so. Listen to the soft knocking at your heart’s door and let Him in. Time is running out.