With all the writing I have been doing for Turbo Follow and House On Fire it has been a while since I visited the Heaven posts. This group of blogs was created as a word study using the word “heaven” through the Bible.
When last we spoke in this vein we were in the midst of the Book of Job. You can find other Heaven posts at
Here are my thoughts on Heaven today:
The foundations of heaven tremble;
they shudder at his rebuke. Job 26:11 NLT
It is fascinating to me and more than a little sad that when God is angered the heavens themselves shudder but mankind for the most part remains unrepentant and shuttered against God. The fact that all men have this uncanny ability to harden their hearts and wink at sin is a disaster of unmitigated proportions. It’s bigger than a tsunami. It’s more deadly than global climate change or the loss of the ozone.
Of all creation it seems that men are the one species native to Earth able to circumnavigate the displeasure of God and ignore it. God is angered and the birds flee the sky. God shakes with fury and the hills and the mountains melt like wax. The sky itself grows dark and the moon glows red to reflect and respond to the anger of the Lord. Mankind alone in the midst of creation does not bow. This is a fact echoed in history…in current events…and in prophecy.
Everyone was burned by this blast of heat, and they cursed the name of God, who had control over all these plagues. They did not repent of their sins and turn to God and give him glory. Rev. 16:9
Now that may sound truly disheartening but it makes the miracle of salvation all the more miraculous. If the hearts of men are so shuttered and hardened against God by the power of sin the question is not why aren’t more people coming to Jesus and getting saved but like the disciples asked “Then who in the world can be saved?” Mark 10:26
Jesus answer is the same today as it was then “Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But not with God. Everything is possible with God.” Mark 10:27
The power of sin is mighty and it has wrought inestimable damage on the history of our race; But the power of God is greater still and He is about the business of undoing the works of the devil. So for a moment I join the heavens in shuddering that I may someday join the New Heaven and the New Earth in rejoicing over the miraculous redemptive power of my God! In fact my rejoicing starts today! His grace has saved me!
Have you ever experienced a time when you felt the weight of sin you had done? How did you move past that?
Lillie-Put 
Experiencing the weight of my sin is an extremely unpleasant place to be in. God is ready and willing to help us in our times of trouble even with only a moments notice. Moving past the sin is a battle the enemy does not want you to win so he will try anything from causing you to have a victory, like playing an old record in your head over and over! Praying and having more mature Christians pray for you helps more than you can ever know!
Yes it does help. One thing many new Christians struggle with is getting involved in a Bible believing church. As new believers in Christ we need the help of more mature believers to walk continually in the grace of the Lord.
Yes, the weight of sin can become heavy and unbearable. To move past this weight my mind is fixed on that fact that God loves me. I often reflect on my earthly fathers love which is beyond immeasurable that gives me a clear sight and the understanding that my Heavenly Father loves me 109x’s more. I cannot allow guilt to placed a wedge between myself and God. I press harder and draw closer to God. The enemy uses guilt and Shane to separate us from God. Once we realize this we are able to consciously push pass that and focus our minds on the fact that we serve a forgiving God!
This is so true! The enemy majors in guilt and shame. It is only in understanding that we are truly made into new creations by the blood and presence of Christ in our lives that we are able to let go of our past.
Yes, I have experienced the weight of my own sin many times. So much, that at one point I was deceived into thinking that the weight of my sin was too great for the Lord to help me with. That because I felt so distant from the Lord, I should just give up on trying to serve Him all together. But, that is the total opposite of what the truth is. I was reminded that God is ALWAYS good, and ALWAYS faithful no matter what my actions or my sins were. The Lord reached His loving hand right down into my mess and picked me up as if nothing had ever happened. He showed me through those things, that he is not some angry guy sitting on the throne ready to beat on us when we fail. The reality is, that Jesus went to the cross full-well knowing about any sin we could ever imagine doing, and willingly took the punishment in our place.
I have even had co-workers who know about some of my sin tell me that “Ya know, others are much better at being a Christian than you!” “They don’t mess up nearly as many times as you do.” “You ought to consider whether you’re really a Christian or not.” This, coming from a so-called atheist. What puzzles me, is that the people who refuse to accept forgiveness for their sins, are seemingly so knowledgable about what being a Christian is supposed to look like. That being said, I am so grateful that I know who the author and finisher of my faith is, and am confident when He promises me that He will finish the good work that He has begun. I move past guilt and condemnation by remembering who the accuser of the bretheren is. That is Satan, period. The Lord wants us to acknowledge our sin, ask forgiveness, and move forward. I remind myself that although falling is never enjoyable, its whether we get back up, repent, and continue to walk with Jesus that really matters.
Amen Eric. Though s righteous man fall seven times he will get back up. The weight of our sin is removed when we give it all to Jesus. It is not removed by our doing better or by our many works of righteousness but only by the blood of JEsus.
Poweful food for thought. Crazy that we live in a world where people spend their entire lives seeking material things, the approval of others, or their perceived version of happiness. We’re pumped full of the idea that happiness comes from a relationship with someone, or material success. The only REAL happiness comes from one simple thing. The day we get a tiny bit of revelation that we have freedom from sin through the blood of Christ. That kind of happiness is the only kind I know of that isn’t affected by circumstance, or any other outside variables.
Amen! Eric. I couldn’t agree more. That is why Solomon said everything in this world was “vanity”