Advent-ure Day 22: Eternal Life in Heaven

In 1st Peter chapter 1, we can read about what God has in store for us in the future - He has provided
a glorious future for us in eternity, with Him in heaven. Here's a passage:
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
4 to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you,
5 who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

Because we know Jesus, we have been brought into eternal life - and that life in eternity with Him actually begins when we come to know Him as Lord and Savior.  We are transferred from the kingdom of darkness into His Kingdom of light.  And, He desires for us to seek to experience Him in His fullness here on earth, but even moreso in heaven - there we will see Him face to face.  We have that promise that He is preparing a place for us, and we will live with Him there forever.

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We have nearly arrived at the end of our 25-day Advent guide, 25: A Christmas Advent-ure.  This week, we're continuing to reflect on what Jesus has done for us.  We've talked about salvation, hope, and His Word.  I want to actually cover today's and tomorrow's agenda items, beginning the promise of eternal life in heaven.  Jesus said in John 14:
1 "Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me.
2 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.
3 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.

Christians have the assurance of eternal life because Christ defeated sin and death for us, and that is the gist of the Day 23 reading, from 1st Corinthians 15:
57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.

Jesus has called us into eternal life and promised us new and eternal life with Him.

I want to share with you an exchange about heaven from a rather well-known movie.  Theologically, it's lacking, but it's relevant to a story I want to share today.  In the movie, Field of Dreams, the Kevin Costner character, Ray, has built a baseball field in rural Iowa, in a cornfield.  From an alternate reality, players from a baseball team from days gone by appear and begin to play.  One of the players who shows is apparently Ray's father.  

Here's the exchange, from Wikiquote:

John Kinsella: Is this heaven?

Ray Kinsella: It's — it's Iowa.

John Kinsella: I could have sworn it was heaven.

Ray: Is there a heaven?

John Kinsella: Oh, yeah. It's the place where dreams come true.

Well, it's not heaven, but it is a place where dreams come true - the outgrowth of the Christian faith of a baseball star, who is dedicated to providing heaven on earth.  And, yes, NBC's Today Show went there with the Field of Dreams analogy:

Texas Rangers pitcher Cole Hamels and his wife Heidi have ensured that their $9.4 million mansion and 104-acre property will become a field of dreams for people with special needs.

The couple has announced through their charitable foundation that they are donating their 32,000-square-foot home on Table Rock Lake in Branson, Missouri, to Camp Barnabas, a Missouri-based organization that provides camp experiences for people with special needs and chronic illnesses.

The NBC story also said:

"Seeing the faces, hearing the laughter, reading the stories of the kids they serve; there is truly nothing like it," Cole Hamels said in a statement. "Barnabas makes dreams come true, and we felt called to help them in a big way."

The Camp Barnabas website states:

At our two locations, we meet the needs of people with disabilities so they can have an incredible camp experience and learn more about Christ. To make camp possible, we team up with groups and individuals all across the nation to match up each person one-on-one with our campers. Camp is more than an experience. Lives are changed for everyone involved.

So, the kids from Camp Barnabas will experience heaven on earth, thanks to the willingness of a high-profile baseball star to donate his high-priced home to a charity that ministers to special needs kids.   I couldn't really find a whole lot about the spiritual background of this family or can completely endorse all the activities of the foundation, but there was a sensitivity to this ministry, a "call," which was referred to in Cole's statement.

And, thanks to Cole and Heidi, more people know about the camp than ever before - this is huge news.  One of the takeaways of this story is that being charitable can still make news.  If we want to enhance our testimony for Christ, we can become known for our giving, for our willingness to sacrifice.  That can draw people to His love.

But, I point out this story because of two concepts: the Hamels had an earthly mansion that, in a sense, they had prepared for the special needs kids.  Also, they will, in a sense, provide some "heaven on earth" for children who need encouragement.

We can be motivated to think about our heavenly home - Jesus said He has gone to prepare a place for us; there are many mansions in heaven, we are told.  While the Hamels' home is no doubt beyond belief, what God has in store for us is way, way more.  We can be thinking about God's special provision for us, for those who have come into a saving knowledge of Christ, who brings us eternal life with Him in heaven.

There's also an element of the Kingdom on earth.  We can evaluate what resources God has given to each of us as representatives of heaven here in this world.  I would hope that as people taste a bit of heaven through our testimony, they would want to experience what we have and become citizens of that Kingdom.  We are called, I believe, to spread heaven on earth.  Yes, it's a real place - not a fantasy world - and it's reserved for the people of God who have called upon the name of Jesus.