Hope is for us today, not in eternity. Hope is to help us hang on here through the tough times, knowing that there is something better waiting for us on the other side. In Heaven, we will not need hope, because our hope will be a reality.
Our hope is the expectation of what is waiting there for us. In our last post, we talked about how joyful eternal life will be. How “Heaven is better than this”. That the best day on earth is boring compared to the worse day in Heaven. It is better than the best paradise we have ever imagined!
So, what else is waiting for us there besides the joy we talked about last time?
**John to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace be unto you, and peace, from him which is, and which was, and which is to come; …** Revelation 1:4
** Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. ** John 14:27
Peace. Jesus left us with peace of heart before He went back to Heaven. The apostle John recorded it in his gospel and then reminds us of it here in Revelation. I imagine he understood it much better by the time he was in prison and writing again about it.
Before we talk more about the Peace of Heaven, how are we doing with the peace that Jesus gave us 2000+ years ago? Do we live in peace today? Are we at peace in our hearts?
When I was a young Mom and a not so young Mom, no one would accuse me of being peaceful. I was more of a worry wart. I worried about EVERYTHING!! …
Do we have enough money to pay for all of our bills? Are our kids safe at school or at their friends? Will the bus crash on the way to school because the driver is drunk or speeding? (remember, my kids did not grow up in America, this was a real concern) Have my kids chosen good friends? What ungodly things are they learning at school or with their friends that will lead them into sin or away from their faith?
I worried all the time. I feared for them all the time. Peace was NOT my middle name.
I am more peaceful today, but more because I have less in front of me to worry about. I have learned to leave things more in the Lord’s hands but worry is still an issue for me. I hide it better, but worry and fear are still strongholds in my life. They are weaker but still evident.
But in Heaven, that will all be gone. There will be nothing to worry about and being in the eye to eye presence of Jesus will fill us with overwhelming and divine peace. I can retire from my career as a worry wart.
** But the meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace. ** Psalm 37:11
Abundant peace. How much can we expect of it here in this life?
** Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord ** 2 Peter 1:2
Someone once told me, the answer to your problem, to any problem is ….Jesus. He is the answer to our lack of peace. Peter tells us that grace and peace are multiplied in our lives and hearts by the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord.
If we lack peace, we need to get to know Jesus better. We need to read about Him, listen to others teach us about Him, we need to dig deeper into what the Bible tells us about Him. Not just the words, but the heart of it. The essence of his thoughts, words, actions, reactions. His grace, kindness, mercy, love, gentleness, goodness, and patience. His forgiveness. His surrender.
The more we know about Him and the more we KNOW HIM, the more peace will fill our hearts. We will be focused on Him and not our day to day problems and worries. He is our earthly and heavenly Hope. We will be in love with Him, not in love with worry and fear.
Jesus knows everything about us, it’s time we knew more about Him. He knows us inside and out. Do we know that about Him?
** …Mercy unto you, and peace, and love, be multiplied.** Jude 1:2