7 Hopeful Reasons to Live with Eternity in Mind

“So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:18).

We are on this planet for such a short time in comparison to eternity. We may live our lives believing we have years to do all that we want, but the reality is none of us knows how long we have left. Our life is fleeting, so like the psalmist our prayer might be to ask the Lord to “teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom” (Psalm 90:12).

We must consider the brevity of life, not knowing what will happen tomorrow, as our life is but “a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes” (James 4:14). For Christians, we are pilgrims passing through this world; it is not our home, nor our final destination. It helps us to keep that perspective, having the confidence that our momentary troubles will pass. It should also remind us to not become attached to the things of this world.

2. People Are Facing Life and Death without Hope 

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile” (Romans 1:16).

Death is inevitable for all of us, and many in our community and around the world are living and dying without knowing the good news of Jesus. Eternity should propel us and drive us with an urgent desire to share the gospel. We know that the gospel is the power of God for salvation to all who believe (Romans 1:16).

Death is not the end of the story for any of us as there will be an eternal outcome, whether in the presence of God or out from His presence for eternity (2 Thessalonians 1:9). Jesus has made a way for all people to come into His Kingdom through the cross on which He died for our sins. We must share this truth with others, for their eternal future depends on it. 

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“For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands’’ (2 Corinthians 5:1).

Believers have a secure hope that they will one day be with God in heaven. The death and resurrection of Jesus has made a way for sinful mankind to be reconciled to a holy God. When someone declares with their mouth that Jesus is Lord and believes in their heart that God raised Him from the dead, they will be saved (Romans 10:9) and they have eternal life. We can live boldly, having full assurance in where we are going after death. We also have the promise that Jesus will return, and we will be with Him forever (1 Thessalonians 4:17). 

The gospel also provides hope in suffering with the eternal promises found in Scripture. We know that we will suffer in this life and that the very call of following Jesus is a call to deny ourselves and take up our cross (Matthew 16:24). However, our suffering is never for nothing and there is purpose in the pain which Jesus can use for our good and His glory. When suffering comes, we must remember that He is the Savior of the world who suffered for all of us because of our sin, yet by His wounds, we are healed (Isaiah 53:5; 1 Peter 2:24).

Even if we are not physically healed in this life, we will be healed in the life to come where there is no more suffering or pain (Revelation 21:4). We have hope both now and for eternity that Jesus will never leave us, nor forsake us as we go through struggles and suffering here on earth. 

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“And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should. Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone” (Colossians 4:3-60).

If we fail to understand the gospel ourselves, it can have eternal consequences as it shapes our view of eternity. There are ramifications for not proclaiming the gospel with clarity to others or omitting core truths because we fear what others will say. Having an eternal view should keep the gospel at the forefront of our mind and direct our conversations with others.

This is the greatest news for a broken world desperately hungry for hope; we shouldn’t keep it to ourselves. There is a need for urgency - do others know Jesus? How can we daily live our lives with fervor for the souls of those we encounter? Our minds can be filled with God’s Word which shapes our understanding of who He is and the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ as we seek to faithfully proclaim it to others.

5. Jesus Is Eternal and He Spoke of the Eternal

“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).

Our chief aim is to glorify God who is worthy of all praise. He is the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last. God has always been and He will always be. In Isaiah 46:11, it says “What I have said, that I will bring about; what I have planned, that I will do.” God brings about His plans and purposes for all things, for all time and He has revealed this to us through His Word.  

When Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who had always been with the Father entered our world as a human, He had a purpose. This was planned from before the beginning of the world. He could see what His death and resurrection would accomplish. Jesus declared that He was “the way and the truth and the life” and that no one could come to the Father except through Him (John 14:6). He also said that “whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life” (John 5:24).

We should take the words of Jesus seriously as He spoke about the eternal frequently including heaven and hell. We need to remember the eternal reality that we will all encounter and not be fearful to speak of these truths.

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“For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad” (2 Corinthians 5:10).

Our world is passing away with its desires, but those who do the will of God will abide forever (1 John 2:17). The things that this world holds dear such as money, possessions, power, status and security cannot be taken into eternity. However, we are told to store up treasures in heaven (Matthew 6:20). We do this when we faithfully and obediently follow Jesus. If He is our greatest treasure, our heart will be with Him, for where our treasure is, there our heart will be (Matthew 6:21). 

We will all have to come face to face with God who will judge everyone at the appointed time. Psalm 45:6-7 says, “a scepter of justice will be the scepter of your kingdom” and “you love righteousness and hate wickedness.” This foreshadows what is written about Jesus in Hebrews 1:8-9: “But about the Son he says, ‘Your throne, O God, will last for ever and ever; a scepter of justice will be the scepter of your kingdom. You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness; therefore God, your God, has set you above your companions by anointing you with the oil of joy.’” Justice and righteousness are part of God’s character and He cares about what is going on in our world. He hates wickedness and will one day bring forth His justice. “He commands all people everywhere to repent” and “he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice” (Acts 17:30-31). 

The greatest commandments are to love God and to love others, yet how much time do we spend thinking about our own lives and individual pursuits rather than obeying God and serving others? How much time do we think about eternal things in comparison to the things of this world? Are we storing up for ourselves everlasting treasures in the kingdom of God or do we ignore Him? If Jesus is rejected in this life, the next life will be an eternity without Him and that is an irreversible consequence.

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“Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:12-14).

We must keep running the race in our faith daily, and the motivation that we need to succeed is to keep our eyes on Jesus. Our life and eternal salvation was bought at a price; the precious blood of Jesus. No matter what happens in this life, whether good or bad, we must never lose sight of the cross of Christ and how it opened up the way for us to come before our holy Father forever.

We must take hold of this truth with confidence knowing that Jesus will one day return. There will be a new heaven and a new earth where we will enjoy being in the presence of the eternal God forever. He alone is worthy of our praise and He loves us immeasurably more than we can fathom. He will never leave our side and we can trust Him as we continue to put one foot in front of the other daily, in obedience to the One who calls us (John 10:3). 

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