Heaven is My Home

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There was a saying that with money we can buy a house, but not a home. Home is not something that simply we can buy. Building and preparing a home will involve our whole heart, our understanding, our vision, even most of our time. However, Jesus introduced heaven as our new home and He wanted us, as believers, getting used to that brand-new concept! We are going to live in heaven forevermore. Normally, we will only spend about 70-80 years in this world Ps.90:10, but in heaven we will spend all of the eternity. Having heaven in our mind as our future home will definitely brings us closer to God, helps us to fulfil our calling, even we can have a correct yet eternal purpose driven life!

²⁰ For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ, ²¹ who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself. Philippians 3:20-21 NKJV

CITIZENSHIP OF HEAVEN

Throughout the Bible, God always likes to emphasize that our citizenship is no longer at this vanishing world!

The Levites had no portion nor inheritance with their brethren; the Lord is their inheritance Deut.10:9.

Therefore, Levi has no portion nor inheritance with his brethren; the Lord is his inheritance, just as the Lord your God promised him. Deuteronomy 10:9

Moses left Egypt and persevered because he saw Him who is invisible Heb.11:27. Moses did not bother himself with all glamorous life he had in Egypt since he believed at his heavenly citizenship.

By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king; for he endured as seeing Him who is invisible. Hebrews 11:27

Apostle Paul reckoned all his achievements in this world as rubbish because he got something far better than this world can offer for him. He was forgetting all things behind and reaching forward the new citizenship in heaven!

Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:13-14

Apostle Peter liked to call his life as a camping trip, just only for a short moment compared to the eternity. He reminded all believers that we will shortly put off our tent. Peter was already in more modern civilization that no longer use tent for permanent living, however he reckoned himself as a camper! In the days of prophet Jeremiah, there were a group of people called the house of the Rechabites. Jeremiah was asked to visit this people and learned why they decide not to build houses but keep staying in the tents as sojourners.

Yes, I think it is right, as long as I am in this tent, to stir you up by reminding you, knowing that shortly I must put off my tent, just as our Lord Jesus Christ showed me. 2Peter 1:3-4

Jesus Christ told us how He will prepare a place for us in His Father’s house! Whatever will be happened in this world should not trouble us since this is only our transit time. Our final destination will be in heaven, accepted by God, and abide forever with Him!

“Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. And where I go you know, and the way you know.” John 14:1-4

UNDERSTANDING OUR NEW HOME

Transitioning from the old system to the new one sometimes will take lot of time before we can get settled with it. Understanding our new home while we still in this old house will also need time. The Bible is available for us so that we can understand our new home better and helps us to get prepared with the new life style!

The kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit Rom.14:17.
Our new home will be filled with something that long lasting, higher quality. It’s important for us to getting familiar with that stuff from now on.
There will be NO tears, no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away Rev.21:4.
Nothing going to ruin our joy in the heaven! There will be no pain, no tears, no death, even God said that the former thing shall not be remembered or come to mind Isa.65:17. Our joy will be whole and complete!
There shall by no means enter to heaven anything that defiles, or causes an abomination or a lie, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life Rev.21:27.
He who called us is holy, we also be holy in all our conduct, because it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy 1Pet.1:15-16.” Holiness is the keyword in heaven. Living a holiness life is a must for those who want to stay in this new home.
People in heaven neither marry nor are given in marriage but are like angels in heaven Mark.12:25.
The Sadducees asked Jesus about the continuity of marriage in heaven and Jesus explained that marriage only lasting in this world. People in heaven will be like angels which not marry nor given in marriage. We indeed will still recognize each other just like in the earth but the marriage relation will be concluded. Husband and wife in the earth will be heirs together of the grace of life 1Pet.3:7.
In heaven neither moth nor rust destroy and where thieves do not break in and steal Mat.6:20.

THE PROOF OF HEAVEN CITIZENSHIP

Being the citizenship of heaven will bring lot of meaning and will bring big impact to our life style as well.

Citizenship also translated as conversation.
In Philippians 3:20, the word citizenship also translated as conversation, our conversation is in heaven. Today we simply understand conversation as a talk between two or more people, in which news and ideas are exchanged. Believers should have heaven in their conversation, the ideas which exchanged in our daily life should be coloured with the value of heavenly life. And to make it better we need to have a good club as well that we can find in our local church. Our conversation in the new language will get better and better if we always try to practise with it, specially within the club! Having heaven as our citizenship means that we will push ourselves to attend to the church meeting and not giving up in doing that Heb.10:25, even we need to commit doing it much more as we see the Day approaching.
Heavenly citizenship is the act of faith.
By faith Moses, when he became of age, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin, esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt; for he looked to the reward. By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king; for he endured as seeing Him who is invisible Heb.11:24-27. Moses gave us a very good example about the act of faith as he had the heavenly citizenship. The act of faith will involve: not fearing with the wrath of the king of this world since we have the King of all kings; be brave to refuse all glamorous things offered by this world since we have something better that is heavenly country; also, be brave to choose to suffer for the sake of Christ rather than enjoy the pleasures of sin.
Having heavenly citizenship is like something between what is far better (having a desire to depart and be with Christ) AND what is more needful (to remain in the flesh and have a fruitful life).
Paul felt that he was hard-pressed between that two Phil.1:21-26. The same pressure will be felt as well by those who have heavenly citizenship! We may have a desire to just leave this world and go to our brand-new home. Somehow, the citizen of heaven will also be able to see their life in this world as a very good opportunity to bear more fruit for the glory of God. Being fruitful will only be happened in this world where we can do a lot of pain and suffering for the glory of God. When we arrive in heaven, we will get another kind of joy by enjoying all heavenly reward and being together with Christ literally. That’s why we need to see our life as a very good opportunity for doing something that will bring glory in the eternal life!

CONCLUSION & CHALLENGE

What it’s all about?

It is about homesick! The God’s promise in the entire Bible will make us feel homesick. We must understand heaven as our citizenship and our brand-new home. And we need to get ourselves familiar with the new life style in heaven.

Insights and impressions:

Do we ever have a longing to see heaven? Or we just don’t want to leave this world? Loving this world will means being pass away as this world with its desires pass away 1John.2:17. The real love to God will also make us to have a desire to stay with Him. It will be a nonsense if someone say that he loves God, but he does not or ever want to stay together with God. In this beginning of 2019, let’s look into our heart and see if we really love Jesus or not, how deep is our love, do we already let the love of God to change the way of our conversation in our daily life. Do we really ready to move in to the heaven, or maybe we feel a bit awkward to move there because we reckon ourselves as a stranger?

Next steps:

During this week, let’s challenge ourselves to do these things:

Fix our conversation and set it high to the heaven. Whatever issues we will face this week let’s think it twice about how Jesus teach us to react! Try to find a good moment to infiltrate any conversation with anyone about the heavenly value that we are believe.
Every single morning, when we wake up, let’s push ourselves to say hello and make a good conversation with our Heavenly Father before we do anything else. The Lord’s prayer may be a good idea to start this new routine. You may set an alarm in your mobile and give a quick note about doing this.
Declare it with your mouth during your day: “I am the citizen of heaven and I must push myself to be familiar with it!”

The Heavenly Hope Hebrews 11:13-16

These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. For those who say such things declare plainly that they seek a homeland. And truly if they had called to mind that country from which they had come out, they would have had opportunity to return. But now they desire a better, that is, a heavenly country. Therefore, God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them.

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