An Eternal Perspective

Become more like God Himself? Really? Is this even possible? Yes, in fact it is possible and not only possible, but life-giving. It’s true, the bar is high, in fact, very high. But it’s also a bar that is completely accessible and attainable… to EVERYONE. First, and most importantly, there’s this: Eternal Life – Jesus accomplished all that is needed for us to spend eternity in paradise in the presence of God when He (Jesus) paid the penalty for our sins on the cross and then rose again three days later conquering death for good. All we need to do is believe in Him and accept His free gift of eternal “life”. Period. This stands on its own.

Second, but also very important, there is this: living today with eternity in mind – living today for the things that matter most, the things that impact us today and continue into eternity: love, joy, wisdom, patience, kindness, generosity, gentleness, peace, self-control, etc. In other words, the things that are contrary to those that do not continue into eternity: fame, power, money, greed, self-indulgence, etc.

Finally, there is this amazing bonus: when we accept Jesus into our lives, we also receive the gift of the Holy Spirit working in us to mold us into the image of God every day we walk on this earth… someone who experiences love, joy, wisdom, patience, peace, etc. on a regular basis. We, of course, need to work with the Holy Spirit through our desire and obedience to His promptings, but it is the Holy Spirit Himself who works growth in us, who gives us the ‘power’ to change and become more like our Creator, the wisest and most loving One who ever existed. So yes, reach for the bar – reach for Jesus… the accessible high bar that is life-giving, today and into eternity.

I love this message I found on a daily Christian calendar:

To make the most of your time on earth, you must maintain an eternal perspective… Paul said, “We fix our eyes not on what is seen but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:18 NIV). So much of what we waste our energy on will not matter even a year from now, much less for eternity. Don’t trade your life for temporary things.

Temporary things simply mean they won’t last beyond our lifetime on this earth. They seem important today but, in the view of eternity, they are miniscule. Inconsequential. Not only that, but many of the things we strive for today (promotion, material possessions, the best entertainment and vacations, popularity [including social media ‘likes’], having our say, being right, etc.) can be, and often are, a detriment to the things that truly matter: love and respect for others, listening (I mean truly listening), unity, peace, and true joy, (which is not the same as sporadic happiness), not to mention the most important loss which is an eternal void within our soul. Yes, eternal. We are all appointed to physically die once but our souls will live on into eternity. We will either live eternity in paradise (yes, paradise) with God or we will live eternity alone, separated from God. I can’t stress enough the importance of this distinction.

We have two choices: 1) Live for, focus on, and invest in the here and now, which yields temporary benefits but long-term anguish and regret or 2) Live for, focus on, and invest in eternity which has both temporary and long term (eternal) benefits and no regret. Now, just for a moment, close your eyes and imagine eternity. Really imagine it. It’s FOREVER. Not 80 to 100 years but hundreds upon hundreds upon thousands upon millions of years and when that time is up, eternity will still go on. Do you really want to trade eternity in paradise for 80 to 100 years of ignoring the God who created you and the beautiful purpose He has for your life to live your own way chasing after… (you fill in the blank)? I don’t.