Have you ever had one of those “glimpse of heaven” moments? The trigger may have been something as simple as clouds parting to reveal a patch of clear blue sky, or light streaming through an open window, and for a split second, you’ve ached for heaven.
Those moments can be brief and unexpected, and characterized by something close to pure joy, and then maybe there’s a small catch in your throat, and you’re left with an ache for more. I think that’s what C.S. Lewis was referring to when he said, "Our best havings are wantings".
The Bible gives us glimpses of eternity in word pictures, using things we already know and love, to give us a glimpse of the unknown. Let’s consider a few of them:
BROAD VISTAS
Your eyes will see the King in His beauty, and view a land that stretches afar.
Isaiah 33:17
WATER
...the Lord will rule there as our mighty King.
Rivers and wide streams will flow through it...
Isaiah 33:21
"I am the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the End.
To the thirsty I will give water without cost from the springs of the water of life."
Revelation 21:6
Isaiah 33:21
"I am the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the End.
To the thirsty I will give water without cost from the springs of the water of life."
Revelation 21:6
LIGHT
There will be no more night.
They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun,
for the Lord God will give them light.
Revelation 22:5
TREES
On each side of the river stood the tree of life,
bearing twelve crops of fruit,
yielding its fruit every month.
And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.
Revelation 22:2
PEACE
"The wolf and the lamb will feed together,
and the lion will eat straw like the ox, and dust will be the serpent's food.
They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain," says the Lord.
Isaiah 65:25
Though heaven may be mysterious, God never intended the way to heaven to be a mystery. On one of Jesus' last days on earth, He had a conversation with His disciples about heaven, and Thomas voiced what a lot of people wonder about:
"Lord, we don't know where You are going, so how can we know the way?"
Jesus answered:
"I am the way and the truth and the life.
No one comes to the Father except through Me."
John 14:5, 6
I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God,
so that you may know that you have eternal life.
1 John 5:13
so that you may know that you have eternal life.
1 John 5:13
Then will the eyes of the blind be opened
and the ears of the deaf unstopped.
Then will the lame leap like a deer,
and the mute tongue shout for joy.
Water will gush forth in the wilderness
and streams in the desert.
Isaiah 35:5, 6
Isaiah 35:5, 6
