ETERNITY
WHAT IS IT?
WHAT IS IT?
Time exists in eternity. Eternity is always in the now. To get a better picture of this we
need to see it in a light that is easy to understand. Eternity existed long before time began.
Somewhere in eternity God spoke the worlds into existence and time began. When this
world passes away time will cease, but eternity will continue on. To Illustrate simply:
Eternity Time Eternity
Notice in the graph above that eternity comes before and after time while still existing in
time. The line below the words represents eternity, and time just dropped in for a while.
This is simplistic but should be effective for the purpose of illustration.
need to see it in a light that is easy to understand. Eternity existed long before time began.
Somewhere in eternity God spoke the worlds into existence and time began. When this
world passes away time will cease, but eternity will continue on. To Illustrate simply:
Eternity Time Eternity
Notice in the graph above that eternity comes before and after time while still existing in
time. The line below the words represents eternity, and time just dropped in for a while.
This is simplistic but should be effective for the purpose of illustration.
Consider the following: Imagine that the earth was composed of nothing but millions and
perhaps billions of tiny grains of sand from the core to the surface. Now imagine that a little
bird took one grain of that sand and flew out into space as far as possible and dropped off the
grain of sand and returned for another one. Let's imagine that trip took 30 billion light years
round trip. Consider that if that bird made the same trip with 20 grains of sand it would take
600 billion light years, and the sand he removed would be a drop in the bucket compared to
what was left to remove. Now try to calculate, ( if you can ), how long it would take to move
100, 200, 1,000 or even 10,000 grains of sand over the same distance. It is incomprehensible
to the average mind, and seems inconceivable that such a time exists. 100 grains would take
3,000 billion, and 1,000 grains would take 30,000 billion light years. To attempt to calculate
all the time involved in removing the earth completely defies logic and imagination, yet this
is he amount of time every human soul will spend in eternity. We are speaking here of
time out of mind. It is no longer time, but unending existence that cannot fit into the finite
hemisphere of our brain. The terrible thing about all this is that people somehow believe in
the theory that they have all the time in the world to prepare for this existence and go on
living as if eternity isn't ahead of them! They must understand that this is very real and must
be addressed while they still have life in their bodies. To ignore this is the height of folly!
Many today in and out of the church live carelessly as if God doesn't mean what he says in
his word, the Bible, about Heaven and Hell. They argue that God is too loving to prepare a
place of eternal punishment for anyone, in spite of all the warnings found in the books both
in the Old and New Testaments. We do not realize the depth of sin, and we do not see the
depth of sin as God does, and we try to make sin to be less wicked than it really is. God is
not impressed by our imaginations and his word will stand long after all of us pass into the
realm from which there is no return. Is it really wise for us to be careless concerning this?
What if God really is serious about Heaven and Hell, and what if the time we will be there
is time without end. Would you rather be in a place of eternal torment and eventually in a
Lake of Fire and Brimstone or a place where you are surrounded with love, joy and peace
and where there will never again be any sickness, sorrow, pain or death? Isn't it about time
that you settle it once and for all before you find out too late?
What Then?
By J. Whitfield Green
(John 3:16; Malachi 4:1- Mercy or Judgment?)
When the plants of our mighty cities
Have turned out their last finished work;
When our merchants have sold their last yardage
And dismissed the last tired clerk;
When our banks have raked in their last dollar
And paid out their last dividend;
When the Judge of the earth says, "Closed for the night,"
And asks for a balance - WHAT THEN?
When the choir has sung its last anthem,
And the preacher has made his last prayer;
When the people have heard their last sermon,
And the sound has died out on the air;
When the Bible lies closed on the altar,
And the pews are all empty of men;
And each one stands facing his record,
And the great Book is opened - WHAT THEN?
When the actors have played their last drama,
And the mimic has made his last pun;
When the film has flashed its last picture,
And the billboard displayed its last run;
When the crowds seeking pleasure have vanished
And gone out in the darkness again;
When the trumpet of ages is sounded,
And we bow down before Him - WHAT THEN?
When the bugle's call sinks into silence,
And the long marching columns stand still;
When the captain repeats his last orders,
And they've captured the last fort and hill;
And the flag has been hauled from the masthead,
And the wounded afield have checked in;
And a world that rejected its Savior,
Is asked for a reason - WHAT THEN?
The question to the left has been asked countless times. Some people purposely evade it because
none of us likes to consider death because it makes us deal with our mortality. There are also things or people that we don't want to give up including our lives. Yet Eternity is very real for the unbelieving person who refuses to face it as well as those who are preparing for it. This page is designed to help those who want to be ready to step out into eternity.
none of us likes to consider death because it makes us deal with our mortality. There are also things or people that we don't want to give up including our lives. Yet Eternity is very real for the unbelieving person who refuses to face it as well as those who are preparing for it. This page is designed to help those who want to be ready to step out into eternity.
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A thought came to me today that has never crossed my mind before. It was so simple and yet, seemed profound at the same time. I thought of how very carefully the morticians are when preparing a body for burial. They clean it up and dress it carefully to look as good as it can possibly look for a dead person before presenting it for viewing by the family and friends of the dead person. Even though it is well done and looks as good as it possibly could, the body never looks quite like the person we remember when they were alive.
It occurred to me that with all that effort that morticians put forth to present a dead person in the best way possible for them, I wondered how much work they put into preparing their own spirits for eternal life. Being around death so much either has them thinking day after day of their own mortality or hardened them to it. God forbid, they should be hardened!
Then, I thought, while writing this for the web site, about how much time we use in life preening and primping ourselves in order to look good for those we encounter this side of eternity and how little time we invest in preparing for the day when we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. I have no doubt that by comparison to the time we spend fixing up the outward appearance we have deceived ourselves by thinking it to be far more important than it really is. What if we should actually place the priority that we should place on preparing ourselves to stand in the presence of a holy God whose piercing gaze and purity will cause all mankind to fall on their faces before him in awe or in terror depending on the condition of our immortal soul when we pass on into eternity? What if we allowed God to clean up the inside so that the beauty within became the focal point of those who know us? Wouldn't the world be better off for it? Wouldn't we?
It occurred to me that with all that effort that morticians put forth to present a dead person in the best way possible for them, I wondered how much work they put into preparing their own spirits for eternal life. Being around death so much either has them thinking day after day of their own mortality or hardened them to it. God forbid, they should be hardened!
Then, I thought, while writing this for the web site, about how much time we use in life preening and primping ourselves in order to look good for those we encounter this side of eternity and how little time we invest in preparing for the day when we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. I have no doubt that by comparison to the time we spend fixing up the outward appearance we have deceived ourselves by thinking it to be far more important than it really is. What if we should actually place the priority that we should place on preparing ourselves to stand in the presence of a holy God whose piercing gaze and purity will cause all mankind to fall on their faces before him in awe or in terror depending on the condition of our immortal soul when we pass on into eternity? What if we allowed God to clean up the inside so that the beauty within became the focal point of those who know us? Wouldn't the world be better off for it? Wouldn't we?