The Eternal “AHHH!”

Photo Credit

Do you remember when you wanted a bike for Christmas but your parents wouldn't say if you would get it or not?  You were in suspense…and then Christmas morning arrived. There under the tree was your bright, shiny bike, and you gasped, “AHHH!”

Or think of your graduation day, wedding day, promotion…or getting a clean bill of health from your Doctor after a cancer diagnosis.  What if every hour of every day you experienced the glory and joy of all these events at once in their fullest intensity? 

I liken this to the eternal “Ahhh!” of a believer who steps into eternity and stands before the Master.  Jesus is preparing us to hear, “Well done, good and faithful servant!  You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things.  Come and share your master’s happiness!” (Matthew 25:21 NIV).
 

Have you ever thought about what it will mean to “share your master’s happiness”?  It will be joy without measure, like all of your favorite life events unending, with a trillion times the intensity!

If you are a believer, the greatest “Ahhh!” experience of your life is ahead.  The Lord is closely watching and intends to reward you.  To keep in mind what’s in store, memorize Ephesians 6:7,8:  “Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does” (NIV).

Envision the scene as believers ascend into heaven and stand before Christ.  To one husband He says, “Well done. You’ve put on love toward your disrespectful wife.  You are about to receive back every act of love you did toward her.” To a wife He says, “Well done.  You’ve put on respect toward your unloving husband.  I watched.  You are about to be rewarded for every act of respect.”

Next, Jesus directs you to enter the place called Paradise (see Luke 23:43).  As you enter with Jesus, you experience a holy rush. At that moment, unexpectedly, you behold a gift of such great value you gasp a holy “Ahhh!”  What you behold is beyond anything you could imagine.  Suddenly, instantly, you are enveloped by love and glory.  But to try to describe heaven is to describe the indescribable!

Let’s go back to Matthew 25:21:  “You were faithful with a few things.”  What would some of those “few things” be?  Surely they include what Paul describes so clearly in Ephesians 5:  “love (your) wife…respect (your husband” (vs. 33).  When you make a decision to love or respect your spouse, the dividends are without end.

Jesus is offering you a bargain.  Do a few things on earth in this life and get many things forever in heaven.

Do you want to hear “Well done, good and faithful servant”?  Come and share your master’s happiness!

~Emerson

Excerpts taken from Love and Respect by Dr. Emerson Eggerichs.