Over the past week, I was blessed with the opportunity to attend Passion 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia. Passion is an amazing conference for 18-25 year olds to grow in their Christian faith. Every year thousands of young adults attend Passion and hear wonderful speakers challenging them in their faith and musicians who write and lead worship sessions. Levi Lusko gave a powerful sermon about focusing on heaven and not this world. I was so impacted by his sermon, I wanted to share what I learned from his sermon.
The main point of his sermon is “The more you look forward to the next world (eternity in heaven) the less you’ll need from this one”. This is a reminder that we as Christians need to be focused on things that matter in eternity and not get consumed by the things of this present world that don’t matter in the next life. In 2 Corinthians 4: 18 it says, “as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal”. Paul is the writer of this verse and he faced immense persecution for sharing the gospel. After everything he went through, Paul shows us in this verse that the solution to life’s problems is to focus on the next life, not this temporary one because the next life is forever. What really matters is sharing the good news that Jesus died for our sins to everyone we meet. This doesn’t mean you have to travel to a foreign country, it simply means doing what God has called you to do, whether that means being a teacher, doctor, businessman, etc.…, you do it to the best of your ability to glorify him in everything you do.
The more you focus on the next world and the less you’ll need this world:
1. The more you can do for it
You are the hands and feet of God. If you focus on this temporary world, it is hard to follow the will of God with all of the distractions of our society today. We are God’s plan A to bring the gospel to the world and there is no plan B.
2. The more you can withstand pain in it
Romans 8:18 says, “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us”. During our present problems, when we remain faithful to God and continually seek His kingdom, we can look forward to the promised prize of eternity in Heaven. When relying on God during our hard times, we have more strength to push through because we know the ultimate prize is in Heaven with Him.
3. The more you can actually enjoy it
When you focus your life on God and His mission to share the gospel with people in this world, you no longer face the pressures to have a perfect life here on earth. You can simply be faithful to God and what He has called you to do. You can just excel at what God has called you to do to glorify him in everything.
As Christians, we have a relaxed confidence knowing that death is not the end! Remember to remain focused on Heaven and not on the present problems of this life because God is always in control.
