The Kingdom of God, The Inheritance of the Saints

by ValarPrime98

Heaven. The Kingdom of God, and the eternal inheritance which God has promised to those who love Him and are faithful to Him. What joys and wonders await in Heaven? Read on to find out!

Heaven

- An intuitive, unmediated and unprecedented apprehension of the beauty of God (Matthew 5:8, Revelation 22:4)

- The vision of God will be completely & absolutely transcendent; I can imagine God Himself covered in absolute light of incomprehensibly immeasurable brilliance & intensity (1 Timothy 6:16, 1 John 1:5), with blazing fire of unimaginably infinite proportions of spectacle & majesty, all with God's endlessly immeasurable beauty & handsomeness, & His endlessly infinite majesty & glory that fills our hearts & souls with unadulterated, never-ending joy & delight. We will never tire or grow bored with looking at God, but will always be captivated and enthralled by Him (Psalm 27:4, Isaiah 33:17)

- We have unlimited fellowship & intimacy with God the Father, the incarnate King Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit. Sam Storms writes that 'we will be constantly amazed by God, more in love with God and ever relishing and enjoying our relationship with Him.'

- Jonathan Edwards writes "They (the saints) have true and infinite riches. They are the possessors and heirs of something real and substantial, and that is worthy to be called by the name of riches. The things they possess are excellent, more precious than gold and than rubies; all the desirable things of this world cannot equal them, and they have enough of it. The riches that they have given them of God are inexhaustible. It is sufficient for them; there is no end of it. They have a fountain of infinite good for their comfort, and contentment, and joy; for God has given himself to them to be their portion, and he is a God of infinite glory. There is glory in him to engage their contemplation for ever and ever, without ever being satiated."

"And he is also an infinite fountain of love; for God is love, yea, an ocean of love without shore or bottom! The glorious Son of God is theirs; that lovely one, who was from all eternity God's delight, rejoicing always before him. All his beauty is their portion, and his dying love is theirs, his very heart is theirs, and his glory and happiness in heaven are theirs, so far as their capacity will allow them to partake of it; for he has promised it to them, and has taken possession of it in their name. And the saints are also rich in the principle that is in them. They have inward riches which they carry about with them in their own hearts. They are rich in faith."

- One of the most frequented questions that even I ask is, "Is there sex in heaven?" Well, there is sex in terms of gender; God created humans to be either male or female, so it would be senseless & illogical to discard that when we go to Heaven. But since Death no longer exists, there will no longer be a need to procreate, so, the answer is 'No' in the sense that there will most likely be no physical copulation between people. (Mark 12:25)

- ...However, that does not mean that the act of sexual intercourse is lost forever. Sex was created by God as an intimate act of bonding between husband & wife. It is meant to give intense pleasure, not simply because of the pleasure of the act in itself, but because it is, in a sense a spiritual union between husband & wife. The primary reason why sex between husband & wife brings significantly much more pleasure than others who simply satiate their sexual lust is because it communicates, through the act of sex, the mutual feelings of love & delight that husband and wife have in each other.

- ...In the same way, perhaps in Heaven there will be a form of spiritual intercourse between us and God that functions the same way as sexual intercourse, in that through it we communicate our heartfelt thoughts & feelings of love & affection to each other & Him, and intensify & strengthen & expand our intimacy & affections for God. How this happens? . . But I do know, from the Songs of Solomon, that sexual intercourse is definitely not something that God hates, but loves, and that He will almost certainly bring it back in Heaven in its redeemed form.

- Heaven is an endlessly vast & spacious kingdom, and it will be there where we can see Cherubim and Seraphim covered in incalculably brilliant light and flaming fire (Isaiah 33:17). It will be a place where we can interact and make lasting friendships with billions of sinless angels (Hebrews 12: 22-23)

- We will have a resurrected, glorified body with an unimaginably vast capacity for joy. (1 Corinthians 15: 42-44) The Bible says you will have a resurrected body far better than anything you knew on earth. Paul, in 1 Corinthians 15, says that your body will be stronger, fuller, more spiritual, more glorious, and everlasting. Your delight, your knowledge, your intellect, and all your affections will be renewed and restored so that you might enjoy Christ with perfected bodies. Jonathan Edwards states: "[Our earthly soul] had only a little spark of divine love in it, in heaven shall be, as it were, turned into a bright and ardent flame, like the sun in its fullest brightness, when it has no spot upon it."

- We will get to reign with God the Father & with our King & God Jesus Christ! One of His most thrilling promises is that in the new ages, God will grant us all the power, all the authority & all the wisdom & moral excellence to rule & reign over the new heavens and new earth! (Psalm 8: 5-8, Revelation 2: 26-27, Revelation 3:21, Revelation 22:5)

- God will completely heal all of our hurts, losses and sorrows when we get to Heaven. Notice how Revelation 7:17 states that 'God will wipe away every tear from our eyes'. Not just that 'there will be no more tears', but God will personally 'wipe away every tear'. He will personally comfort us and use His sovereign wisdom & infinite power to heal all of our emotional and spiritual hurts and griefs, turning them into reasons for glory and joy!

- One of the secular arguments to Heaven is where we get our food from. They argue that Heaven is actually Hell because of the fact that in order that we may eat, animals like cows & chickens & fish will have to be slaughtered or something. This is a naturalist argument that undermines the sovereign omnipotence of God, who is able to make manna fall from Heaven so that the Israelites could eat. From God and to God are all things; all things, including all kinds of meat and poultry. So, we can definitely trust that if we do eat meat & poultry in Heaven, there will be absolutely no need for killing, because all things are possible through God, including creating meat and poultry out of nothing.

- We will have perfect relationships with all the other saints in Heaven! I have often wondered if somehow I won't be able to have friendships and loving relationships with other saints in Heaven if I'm so fixated on God. However, what I failed to realize is that, in having loving relationships with other saints, I am loving God! Because we express our love for God by obeying His commands gladly and joyfully. And what is the second greatest commandment? "Love your neighbor as yourself."

- ...In Heaven, everyone will no longer be hindered by sin, and will be morally perfect and holy. Therefore, they all have the divine grace of God that enables them to obey His commands perfectly. Consequently, I will be able to love my fellow brothers & sisters – love them with infinite abundance, love them sincerely, love them lavishly and generously, love them unconditionally, and they will love me back with the same generosity & sincerity & immense abundance! How amazing is that!

- ...I've always wanted to meet C. , John Owen, Jonathan Edwards, John Piper and John MacArthur & Sam Storms in Heaven, as well as King David, Esther, Isaac & Rebekah, Leah & Rachel, Paul, Peter & John (the Apostle). (Why are there so many Johns?)

- Jonathan Edwards had this to say about the relationship between the saints: "It is a comfort to think of that heavenly state where there is fullness of joy, where reigns heavenly, calm, and delightful love without alloy, where there are continually the dearest expressions of this love, where is the enjoyment of the persons loved without ever parting, where those persons who appear so lovely in this world, will really be inexpressibly more lovely, and full of love to us. And how sweetly will the mutual lovers join together, to sing the praises of God and the Lamb!" (I love Jonathan Edwards; what a godly and spiritual man. Praise God for His powerful work in his life.)

- We will have all our desires fully satisfied in Heaven. Sam Storms writes "there will never be a time when we are denied what we desire. Happiness consists in part in the satisfaction of desire. In heaven, with each desire there is fulfillment. We will desire only what is good and righteous and honoring to God, and it would be hell if such desire were left unsatisfied. Each new desire is but a fitting prelude to the delight that comes with its satisfaction."

- ...We will never feel frustrated, or anxious, or disappointed, because we will always get whatever we desire. If we want more knowledge, we'll learn. If we want more power to do God's will, we will get it. If we want more enjoyment and pleasure, we get it. "With each new desire comes a corresponding satisfaction. And with each new satisfaction, with each new discovery, yet unseen and unexperienced possibilities of enjoying and knowing God will emerge to which our hearts will reach in desire, which desire will in turn be fulfilled, which in turn will open up new vistas not yet attained, which when desired will then be fulfilled and satisfied, and on and on forever and ever." (Sam Storms, Joy's Eternal Increase)

- We will witness the just and righteous judgement of God. One particularly gratifying aspect of Heaven is that we will bear witness to the final judgement that Jesus Christ metes out to those who did not accept the grace of His salvation, and who continually defiled the earth with moral deformity and evils. All who have despised and rejected Jesus, including Satan and his demons, will be stripped bare of all their possessions and revealed for who they are: evil sinners that are absolutely and totally depraved. We, along with all the angels, will bear witness to God condemning sinners to Hell, where they will bear the complete ferocity of God's righteous fury and wrath without compassion or mercy, where they will be punished with inconceivable, immeasurable, never-ending omnipotent destruction, misery, humiliation and damnation. (Revelation 14: 10-11, Romans 9:22, Isaiah 66: 23-24)

- ...Also, instead of God punishing sinners being a cause to question His goodness and love, they are a key reason for worshipping and adoring Him. When we are conformed to the image of Christ, we will also be able to see how loathsome, how infinitely abominable & horrifying & despicable & evil the iniquities, transgressions and sinful corruption of such humans (& Satan) were. It highlights how passionately and uncompromisingly just & righteous God is all the more, because of how zealously and how ferociously He unleashes His unimaginably immeasurable omnipotence on them, afflicting them with His infinitely terrible, endlessly powerful wrath of fire.

- Jonathan Edwards describes it this way "Thus it will be with you that are in an unconverted state, if you continue in it; the infinite might, and majesty, and terribleness of the omnipotent God shall be magnified upon you, in the ineffable strength of your torments. You shall be tormented in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb; and when you shall be in this state of suffering, the glorious inhabitants of heaven shall go forth and look on the awful spectacle, that they may see what the wrath and fierceness of the Almighty is; and when they have seen it, they will fall down and adore that great power and majesty."

- In Heaven, our capacity for joy will always continue growing and expanding. Sam Storms argues that our capacity for love, knowledge, understanding and joy are "ever-expansive, progressive, incremental".

- ...If our ability to enjoy God and His gifts are always expanding, our perception of heaven will always be fuller, deeper, and richer. We will never look upon the same reality twice without some new way in which to enjoy it. We will look at each day through some new lens, where we see more clearly, understand more fully, and feel more deeply the truest joy — ever-increasing, ever-full joy for all eternity. And we will never run out of things to enjoy, because...

- ...Our God is an infinite God. Imagine the scope of the entire universe, with trillions of shining stars, burning brighter than the sun; magnificent constellations; billions of spinning galaxies, all magnificent and vast, colorful and mysterious. Yet, they are finite. They fall completely short of the inexhaustible, unsearchable and endlessly deep riches of the character of Jesus Christ.

- ...And that's what I believe that spiritual intercourse with God is designed for; to know & love & delight in, through God's thoughts and feelings, His love, kindness, grace, beauty, majesty, power, wisdom, competence, knowledge, holiness – each one that stands as never-ending, endlessly infinite universes for all our affections and capacities to delight in for all eternity. That's staggering, to say the least.

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Author's Note: Much of this FFN was taken from source material from the 'Desiring God' articles - 'Heaven will never be boring' and 'Joy's Eternal Increase'. I do not make any profit of this whatsoever, other than the joy of spreading these so that any believers reading this have an increased faith, joy and hope in God. I would also highly recommend you to read the aforementioned articles.

All credit goes to God, for inspiring me to write out those parts that were not taken from the articles. As for the source material taken from the above articles, all credit goes to their respective authors, who were also inspired by God to write them... so correspondingly, all credit also goes to God.

Lastly, this FFN in NO WAY encompasses all the aspects of Heaven. This is all that I know so far in my walk with God, and knowing how infinite God is, the content of this FFN barely even makes a scratch on the surface of the blessedness of Heaven. So please, do not ever think that what I stated above is all there is to Heaven. Thank you, and God bless.