This week, I’m sharing a devo from my buddy, Steve Timmons.  Enjoy!  -Dave

“Do you think you’re good enough to go to Heaven?”

This is a question people hear a lot when being witnessed to. However can it be possible to focus too much on where we’re going and not on who we’re going to see?

The Bible is all about being close and intimate with God. He is holy and sovereign and good. He is also relational, as it is even shown in the three separate persons whom He is composed of. They are all individuals, but all work and commune harmoniously together.

God desires a relationship with us. And it is not because God needs a relationship with us. He doesn’t need us at all, and really wouldn’t want us after we have sinned and screwed up so many times against Him. However for some strange reason, God chose to desire us. That is one of the reasons why He sent His Son to die for us.

Nahum 1:2 says, “The LORD is a jealous and avenging God.” This does not mean that God is an obsessive, abusive control freak. What this verse is saying is that God is jealous for our affection and will do absolutely anything to obtain it. This is almost like a man seeking the affection for another woman as his bride. He will do absolutely anything he can to win her affection: buy her dinner, get her flowers, buy a $3,000 engagement ring, etc. The same goes with God. His jealousy also went as far as sending His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, to provide that way for us to freely seek Him. Jesus Christ died a brutal death and bore the wrath of God. He took that vengeance that God should rightly have against us. He took it and through Him we are set free from our sins.

Remember, there is more to Christ’s selfless sacrifice than just our sins being wiped away. We are now free to seek God no matter where we are. We could be in a church service lifting our hands, or we could be at home eating breakfast in a bathrobe with morning breath and bed-head hair. God meets us where we are. He hangs out with us; He encourages us; and He just plain shows affection to us, not because we deserve it, but because we don’t! Our God is good!

Have you ever felt the warm embrace of God? There was one time a few weeks ago when I woke up in the middle of the night feeling really distressed. I was worried about a lot of issues concerning money and what was going to happen to me in the next few months. I broke down confessing my sin to God in tears. I felt so insufficient because I knew this anxiety was wrong, but I couldn’t let it go. As I was weeping, I felt God’s warm embrace and His peace all around me. I felt warmth like no blanket or heating system has ever given me before. All my muscles relaxed and I felt peace. This was God’s peace. I believe He was holding me close and comforting me with His love.

So will Heaven be nice? Absolutely. But Heaven won’t be nice because of tricked out streets of gold, seeing old friends long gone and not having to deal with the burdens of this sinful world. Heaven will be nice because of Jesus Christ! I’ll be able to see Him face to face! I’ll be able to walk with Him, talk with Him, ask Him questions, and did I mention WORSHIP HIM?! I’ll be seeing that beautiful throne like what John describes in Revelation as Jesus sits upon it. Not only that but I can freely approach that throne without fear of rejection or punishment because Jesus Christ has washed me clean of my filthy sin.

Heaven is not just about comfort. It is about Jesus Christ. If you think Jesus Christ is not in Heaven, then you are not thinking about Heaven.

“Whom have I in Heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. My heart and my flesh may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.”
-Psalm 73:25-26