You and I live in a fallen creation. Sin and death have entered the world. Everyone is born with a rebellious sin nature. No one can see God face-to-face as Adam and Eve did and live. Sometimes the storms of life seem overwhelming. We ask ‘where is Jesus’?  Does He really know and care about our hurts? In this study we will examine what the Bible says Jesus is doing, even when life hurts.

When you receive Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, He creates you new and you begin a personal journey that will end when you cross your finish line into His physical presence.

In this session, let’s examine the preparations Jesus Christ is making for your future. Jesus Christ is preparing a place for you to dwell with Him forever when you cross your finish line!

His words the night He was betrayed are recorded in John. You remember He told the disciples He was going away and they could not come with Him right now. They wanted to know where He was going. He gave this promise recorded in chapter 14:

¹ Let not your heart be troubled: ye 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 unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.

The word translated ‘mansion’ is the Greek word moné which Strong’s Concordance defines as ‘an abiding, an abode, an abiding dwelling-place’. Jesus Christ is preparing a special place for you to dwell with Him forever and that special place is within His Father’s house.

The location of your new, eternal home is in the Father’s house and where Jesus Christ is!

Your time living with Jesus is forever to be with Him without end!

Jesus Christ will come to receive you and me as recorded in 1 Thessalonians 4:

¹⁶For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:

¹⁷ Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

¹⁸ Wherefore comfort one another with these words.

What will be in your new home and what won’t be there? Revelation 20:

¹ And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.

² And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.

³ And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.

⁴ And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.

⁵ And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.

⁶ And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.

⁷ He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.

God will be there

There will be no tears, no death, no sorrow, no crying, no pain

Revelation 20:

²¹ And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; every several gate was of one pearl: and the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass.

²² And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it.

²³ And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.

²⁴ And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it.

²⁵ And the gates of it shall not be shut at all by day: for there shall be no night there.

²⁶ And they shall bring the glory and honour of the nations into it.

²⁷ And there shall in no wise enter into it anything that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb’s book of life.

The glory of God and the Lamb will light your home. Everyone written on the Lamb’s Book of Life will live the with you

There will be no temple, no sun, no moon, no night, nothing that defiles, no lies, no abominations

Revelation 22:

¹ And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.

² In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.

³ And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him:

⁴ And they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads.

⁵ And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever.

⁶ And he said unto me, These sayings are faithful and true: and the Lord God of the holy prophets sent his angel to shew unto his servants the things which must shortly be done.

⁷ Behold, I come quickly: blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book.

The tree of Life will be in your new home. The throne of God and the Lamb will be in your new home. You will have light from the Lord God. You will reign in your new home forever and forever. There will be no candle, no night, no sun, no curse

Revelation 22:

²⁰ He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus.

²¹ The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.

You will be faultless and without blemish when Jesus Christ presents you to Himself in your new home

Ephesians 5:

²⁵Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it;

²⁶ That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word,

²⁷ That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.

Jude 1:

²⁴ Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy,

²⁵ To the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen.

Questions for reflection

1) What difference does knowing your hurtful circumstances are temporary mean to you?

2) How can you give thanks to Jesus for the future He has planned for you to be with Him?

3) What things about your new home matter most to you?

4) How will you first greet Jesus Christ when you come into His physical presence? Hug Him? Fall at His feet? Weep for joy? Look on His face? Examine His hands and side?

Face to Face with Christ, My Savior | Carrie E. Breck

Face to face with Christ, my Savior, Face to face—what will it be,
When with rapture I behold Him, Jesus Christ who died for me?

Refrain:
Face to face I shall behold Him, Far beyond the starry sky;
Face to face in all His glory, I shall see Him by and by!

Only faintly now I see Him, With the darkened veil between,
But a blessed day is coming, When His glory shall be seen.

What rejoicing in His presence, When are banished grief and pain;
Death is swallowed up in vict’ry, And the dark things shall be plain.

Face to face—oh, blissful moment! Face to face—to see and know;
Face to face with my Redeemer, Jesus Christ who loves me so.

I Want To Be There – John Peterson, 1967

Some day when the toils of life are over-And the saints are caught away

We will gather ’round the throne of Jesus-For His coronation day.

Chorus:

I want to be there when we crown him King of kings

I want to be there when the court of heaven rings

With the happy song the angel chorus sings

I want to be there when we crown him King of kings.

All the universe will be assembled-Numberless the gathering there

Angel hosts and all the ransomed army-Glorious sight beyond compare.

Only those who put their faith in Jesus-Trust the work of Calvary

Will behold that crowning day in heaven- Day of final victory

No More Night

The timeless theme, earth and heaven will pass away

It’s not a dream, God will make all things new that day
Gone is the curse from which I stumbled and fell, Evil is banished to eternal hell
No more night-No more pain, No more tears-Never crying again
And praises to the great I Am, We will live in the light Of the risen Lamb

See all around, all the nations bow down to see -The only sound is the praises to Christ, our King
Slowly the names from the book are read-I know the King, so there’s no need, no need to dread

No more night-No more pain, No more tears-Never crying again
And praises to the great I Am, We will live in the light Of the risen Lamb

See over there There’s a mansion that’s prepared just for me
Where I will live with my Savior eternally
And there will be no more night

No more night-No more pain, No more tears-Never crying again
And praises to the great I Am, We will live in the light Of the risen lamb

Hebrews 12:

¹ Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us,

² Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Dearly Beloved,

Run with your eyes on Jesus alone!

Run in faith that Jesus loves you, has uniquely designed and created only one you, has a good plan for your life, runs with you and will accomplish His purposes for you and through you!

Run in His strength alone!

Run with your eyes on the prize!

Run with your focus on His mission: to conform you to the image of Jesus Christ!

Run with the desire to finish strong!

Run with the desire to finish with your lamp burning!

Run with the expectation of being in His physical presence when you cross your finish line!

Run to His glory alone!

Run and keep on running!

Coach Patti