The Lord Jesus Christ offers you a future and a hope beyond this present life. He instructs you to pray, "Our Father which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven" (Matthew 6:9–10). It's plain to see from this Scripture passage that God wants you to get in on heaven now. Therefore, He urges you to pray for His heavenly kingdom to come on earth. The destiny that God offers is heaven, for here as well as the hereafter.
In Christ, you have a new destiny! If you have invited Jesus Christ the King of kings and Lord of lords to come and take up residence in you, then heaven is your destiny, and it begins now! You can realize this by allowing Him to reign supreme in you here on earth, just as He reigns supreme in heaven.
It sounds good to me! Heaven—that's my kind of place, both now and forevermore. The difference is one of perspective. Whether in the body, or out of the body—either way it's grounds for rejoicing. It's all a matter of how you look at it. The truth is that because you are in Christ, you already are there—in heaven, that is. You just can't see it yet. Remember, according to Ephesians 2:6, you are seated with Him in the heavenly realm now. Therefore, heaven is not an escape from, but rather an extension of the life we have right now, right here on planet earth.
What most of us fail to realize is that the One we are going to be with when we die, is the same One who is with us now while we are alive. You need to understand that heaven is here—as well as there—because heaven is where the Lord is. It is the exclusive abode of God. Exclusive? Absolutely! Heaven is His space—His and His alone.
However, since you are one with Christ, and Christ is in the heavenly realm, that means you are with Him in heaven now, even as He is here within you now. Christ expressed His desire for us to abide in the heavenly realm in John 14:2–3. "I go to prepare a place for you. . . . That where I am, there ye may be also." Since Christ is in you, then heaven has come down, and glory has filled your soul. You have heaven in your heart!
For those of us who are in Christ, heaven is both a future residence and a present reality. At the moment, we have dual citizenship. As long as we remain alive, we are citizens of our country here on planet earth. Although we are still in the world, we are no longer of it (John 17:16). Therefore, because we are now in Christ, we are also citizens of God's heavenly kingdom. "Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints, and of the household of God" (Ephesians 2:19). Heaven is your dwelling place too!
Excerpt from Introducing The New You © 2005 by Dr. Lewis Gregory
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