#27.

When we pray, we practice on earth what we will spend eternity doing in

heaven.

Psalm 145:1-2 I will extol You, my God, O King, and I will bless Your name forever and ever.
Every day I will bless You, and I will praise Your name forever and ever.

It is hard for us to imagine what heaven will be like. God tells us some things about it in the
Bible, but also makes it clear that no eye has seen or ear has heard exactly what He has prepared
for His children. We know it will be glorious. We know sin will have no part in it. We know it
will be eternal and that our happiness will be complete and incapable of enhancement, because
we will be in the presence of our God and Savior.

Sometimes we take our experiences on earth and assume (if they are good) that these things will
continue into heaven. Avid fishermen foresee rivers full of fish to occupy their time. Some think
of seeing loved ones again and resuming in heaven the relationships they enjoyed so much on
earth. While it is tempting to think this way of heaven, and to project our physical, earthly joys
forward into an eternal situation, the Bible tells us that this is an erroneous view. For example, Jesus
told the Sadducees on one occasion that there would be no giving and taking in marriage there - that
the transformation we would undergo in being glorified with Christ would render such earthly
relationships unnecessary. It is not that something good has been taken away in heaven, but that it is
replaced by something that is "better by far".

On the other hand, we know with certainty some things about heaven and these should thrill our
souls here on earth. First, our Heavenly Father and our Lord Jesus are there and we will enjoy
fellowship with them as never before. Second, there will be no sin within us to impede our love and
our worship of God, as is always true here. Third, as our text indicates, we will worship Him and
praise Him forever and ever. We will join our hearts and voices with the heavenly chorus and lift up
an anthem of resounding and enduring praise and thanksgiving to God. Our communion with Christ
and with our God through Christ will be intimate and everlasting.

The question for us this week is this: what are the things we can do on earth that are most like the
things we shall do in heaven? The answer is quite obvious - our worship on the Lord's Day, our
communion with the people of God and our seasons of prayer individually and together.

Since the Lord in His grace has given us these ways to experience a foretaste of heaven while still
here on earth, why would we not want to be present and take full advantage of these opportunities?

Let's gather together for worship and for prayer in this coming week, and practice on every
opportunity what will joyfully occupy our time in heaven!

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