“Not Only for This Life!”
In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy
Spirit. Amen. Some years ago Time magazine had a cover story entitled “Is Heaven
Real?” It described the declining interest in heaven, even among some
ministers and theologians, because they have a hard time relating the doctrine
of heaven to everyday, PRACTICAL concerns of people like you in our modern
world. It seems many people want to hear sermons ONLY about PRACTICAL
subjects, like time-management and personal finances, not about something as
abstract and other-worldly as heaven. What a sharp contrast to Paul’s attitude in today’s Epistle Reading:
“If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all
men.” Is our faith, our hope, only for this life? Do we look to
Jesus Christ only for help on this side of the grave? Paul says, if that’s
the case, if it’s only for this life that we have hope in Christ, it is very
sad. We are to be pitied more than anyone else. Of course we DO have hope in Christ for this life. And what a
blessing it is for us to be able to count on God to be there in times of
trouble. As he promises in the Psalms, “Call upon me in the day of
trouble, and I will deliver you”; “God is our refuge and strength, a very
present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear . . . The Lord
Almighty is with us.” Yes, your heavenly Father DOES care about your everyday, practical
concerns and problems, even to the point that Jesus amazingly declares, “Even
the very hairs of your head are all numbered.” It is good to know that if
you are sick, if you would lose your job, or have tough family problems to deal
with, even if no one else seems to care, God will never leave you or forsake
you. For, God is your refuge and strength in times of trouble, as Jesus
promised, “Surely I am with you always, even to the end of the age. Yes,
we DO have hope in Christ for this life. But, if that’s all the farther our faith can take us, if it’s ONLY
about mundane things like time-management and personal finances, if our faith is
ONLY about getting through THIS life successfully, Paul says, it is very sad.
We are to be pitied more than anyone else. Why? Because, the reason
for our faith as Christians is so much MORE than just getting through this life.
The reason for our faith as Christians is to have hope for the NEXT life. “If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more
than all men.” The everlasting hope that is yours in Christ is not a momentary
hope that is lost when this life is over. It is a hope that extends beyond
this life, beyond the grave, a hope that is fulfilled in glory and victory, as
you depart this earthly life and enter eternal life. For, in Christ YOU have the
hope of forgiveness, the hope of resurrection, the hope of eternal life, the
hope of reunion in heaven. Paul writes in Romans, “He was delivered over to death for our sins and
was raised to life for our justification. Therefore, since we have been
justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Because of our sin we deserved God’s wrath, we deserved the punishment of death
and damnation. But God’s own Son suffered God’s wrath for you. God’s own
Son suffered the punishment of death and damnation for you, on the cross. John says, “This is how God showed his love toward us: He sent his
only-begotten Son into the world, that we may live through him. . . he
loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.” Your sins
are all forgiven because of Jesus’ atoning sacrifice for you. Hebrews puts
it this way, “We have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus
Christ once for all.” In Christ you have the hope of FORGIVENESS. Paul says in 2nd Corinthians, “We know that the one who raised the Lord
Jesus from the dead will also raise us with Jesus.” Because Jesus Christ
rose from the dead, you and all who trust in him will also rise to eternal life
in the resurrection at the last day. Jesus says, “For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son
and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last
day. . . Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are
in their graves will hear [my] voice and come out.” The same body you have
now will be raised up, reassembled, and restored to life. How is this
possible? Paul says in 1st Corinthians, “By his power God raised the Lord
from the dead, and he will raise us also.” And in Romans, “If the Spirit
of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ
from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who
lives in you.” In Christ you have the hope of RESURRECTION. Jesus says, “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in me
shall live even if he dies.” Death is not the ultimate end but the
ultimate beginning. Even though you die, you will live forever in the
paradise of heaven. “For God so loved the world that he gave his
only-begotten Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have
eternal life.” “I tell you the truth,” Jesus says, “whoever hears my word and
believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has
crossed over from death to life.” In Christ you have the hope of ETERNAL
LIFE. Paul says in 1st Thessalonians, “Brothers, we do not want you to be
ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who
have no hope. We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe
that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him.” What
peace we have in the hope of reunion in heaven! There we shall find our
loved ones again. The separation of death is only temporary.
Someday, some blessed day, all who have died in the Lord will be together again.
What a wonderful celebration that will be! What sweet comfort to know that
we will see our loved ones again. “Do not let your hearts be troubled,” Jesus says. “Trust in God;
trust also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so,
I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if
I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and take you to be with me.”
Paul says in 1st Thessalonians, “We believe that Jesus died and rose again and
so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in
him. And so we shall be forever with the Lord. Therefore comfort one
another with these words.” In Christ you have the hope of REUNION IN
HEAVEN. “If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more
than all men.” Is our faith, our hope, only for this life? Do we
look to Jesus Christ only for help on this side of the grave? We DO have hope in Christ for this life. And what a blessing it
is. But, the reason for our faith as Christians is so much MORE than just
getting through this life. The reason for our faith as Christians is to have
hope for the NEXT life. In Christ you have the hope of FORGIVENESS: “He was delivered over to
death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification.” In Christ you have the hope of RESURRECTION: “Everyone who looks to the
Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the
last day.” In Christ you have the hope of ETERNAL LIFE: “I am the resurrection and
the life; he who believes in me shall live even if he dies.” In Christ you have the hope of REUNION IN HEAVEN: “We believe that
Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those
who have fallen asleep in him. And so we shall be forever with the Lord.
Therefore comfort one another with these words.” Forgiveness, resurrection, eternal life, reunion in heaven, that is
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