Eternal but Where?

“Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.” (Psalm 90:2 ESV)

From everlasting to everlasting, the concept of eternity is profound. We, too, are eternal beings. The crucial question is: where will we spend our eternity? God, existing in eternal time, has always been and will always be. He is the creator of all, including the miracle of creation and the birth of His elect as children of God. We fervently pray for this miracle to touch those who have yet to know Christ.

Humans are different because we are created and live in spatial time, which is not everlasting. The reality is that God has always been there. If nothing existed before creation, something had to exist before creation. You can get something from nothing, so something had to be there in order for creation to occur; something had to exist to make it. Not only creation but creation with intelligent design and order. When I look at people, I see a creature of knowledge, self-awareness, and the ability to reason and know that they cannot be an accident. God is the only way for creation to exist from nothing. If there was a big bang, what went bang if nothing existed? God existed and exists eternally backwards and forwards.

We exist, and our time on this planet is limited, but we are eternal. The question is, where will you be eternal? Paul wrote in Acts 24:15, “believing everything laid down by the Law and written in the Prophets,  having a hope in God, which these men themselves accept, that there will be a resurrection of both the just and the unjust.”  At the time of the second coming, everyone, both the just and the unjust, will be resurrected. Both will stand before God and be judged. The righteous will become part of heaven, living eternally with God, the unjust an eternal sentence in hell, cut off from God.

By cut-off, I mean there is no relationship with God. God rules over heaven and hell so for those who despise God, there is no escape from Him in hell. In this society today, I imagine a vast majority of people do not believe in hell, although Scripture tells us it does exist. Jesus, of all people, tells us the most about hell. It is not pleasant Christ’s description of hell, and it is not something I want to roll the dice to determine if it truly exists or not.

Yes, everyone is eternal, in either everlasting life or everlasting justice. This is a question one must ask themselves. I have heard people say, “I am going to hell,” truly mean it, and laugh about it. It is no laughing matter. The writer of Hebrews wrote, “And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment, so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.” (9:27-28). Do you eagerly await the second coming, or do you foolishly joke about spending time in hell for eternity? There is no party in hell, there is no fun in hell, it is not where the “fun” people are, only an awareness of the everlasting punishment you will receive forever, and you will know you placed yourself there.

Knowing that you are eternal, with it being explained to you, you are now even more responsible for your own eternity. Have you ever looked at a river, I mean a big river, the Mississippi, the lower Potomac, the Nile, and consider the thousands and thousands of gallons of water that flow in these rivers? They never stop, sometimes overflowing their banks, but the water flow never stops. Such is the love of God; it never ends, and if you are in a relationship with God, it is flowing to you, through you, in you. Imagine now the middle of the Sahara desert, Death Valley, or the Atacama desert. Without water, the human body would not exist. Your skin dries and cracks, causing pain and bleeding; it is difficult to breathe as your mouth and throat dry out. Your body becomes dehydrated, cramping and seizing up in pain. You are burning in the sun. Such is your life without God: scorched, isolated, burning, painful, and everlasting.

What do you desire for your eternity? You are eternal, and the choice is yours. Will you choose life or judgment? The decision is in your hands. Choose Christ and find salvation in His finished work. Through His grace, find faith in Him. As He said Himself, “Anyone who is thirsty may come to me! Anyone who believes in me may come and drink! For the Scriptures declare, ‘Rivers of living water will flow from his heart.’”(John 7:37-39). Drink from the cup of living water, not the cup of the wrath of God. Christ already drank that cup for you. Call on Him and have faith; find eternal life, not the eternal wrath of God.

Grace and peace.