Heirs of Heaven

"Joint heirs with Christ." --Romans 8:17

The boundless realms of His Father's universe are Christ's by prescriptive right. As "heir of all things," He is the sole proprietor of the vast creation of God, and He has admitted us to claim the whole as ours, by virtue of that deed of joint-heir-ship which the Lord hath ratified with His chosen people. The golden streets of paradise, the pearly gates, the river of life, the transcendent bliss, and the unutterable glory, are, by our blessed Lord, made over to us for our everlasting possession.

All that He has He shares with His people. The crown royal He has placed upon the head of His Church, appointing her a kingdom, and calling her sons a royal priesthood, a generation of priests and kings. He uncrowned Himself that we might have a coronation of glory; He would not sit upon His own throne until He had procured a place upon it for all who overcome by His blood. Crown the head and the whole body shares the honour.

Behold here the reward of every Christian conqueror! Christ's throne, crown, sceptre, palace, treasure, robes, heritage, are yours. Far superior to the jealousy, selfishness, and greed, which admit of no participation of their advantages, Christ deems His happiness completed by His people sharing it. "The glory which thou gavest me have I given them." "These things have I spoken unto you, that My joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full." The smiles of His Father are all the sweeter to Him, because His people share them. The honours of His kingdom are more pleasing, because His people appear with Him in glory. More valuable to Him are His conquests, since they have taught His people to overcome. He delights in His throne, because on it there is a place for them. He rejoices in His royal robes, since over them His skirts are spread. He delights the more in His joy, because He calls them to enter into it.

Our Home In Heaven

In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told. I go to prepare a place for you. John 14:2

The best place to rest and relax is home. We enjoy family and good meals at home. We spend a large portion of our income making it comfortable and pleasant. It is the largest purchase most people make in a lifetime. Yet, I am eagerly waiting to go to a new home I have not seen. Along with salvation, Jesus says I was given a mansion. I presume that each person who accepts Jesus Christ as Saviour and Lord will have his or her own mansion.

The vivid description of this new home comes from Revelation, chapters 21 and 22, in the Bible. The pure, crystal river will be the first thing we see. Trees growing on both sides bearing fruit for the fun of eating, not sustaining life. The throne of God will be there and we shall see His face. There will be no night as the Lord God gives light. There will be no sun or moon or other light. The city and streets are pure transparent gold. There are 12 gates and each is of one pearl. The foundations of the mansions are of precious stones, jasper, opaque green quartz; sapphire of deep blue; chalcedony, opaque white; emerald, the green sapphire; sardonyx, white onyx with red; jacinth, a solid yellow stone; sardius, a deep blood red stone; chrysolite, transparent light green; beryl, light green; topaz, the yellow sapphire; chrysoprasis, apple green stone; and amethyst, the violet sapphire. In this life we strive to own stones to hang on delicate chains and rings for our fingers, but the very foundations of our mansions will have huge stones of precious rating.

And we only have to accept Jesus Christ to have such a perfect life forever.

Lord, thank you for life that we can prepare for another life with You. Give us understanding of Your Word as we read it. Guide our daily activities that they may glorify You.

In the Secret Place of the Most High

Psalm 91:1-10 says,


1 He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.

2 I will say of the LORD, "He is my refuge and my fortress; My God, in Him I will trust."

3 Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the perilous pestilence.

4 He shall cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you shall take refuge; His truth shall be your shield and buckler.

5 You shall not be afraid of the terror by night, nor of the arrow that flies by day,

6 Nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness, nor of the destruction that lays waste at noonday.

7 A thousand may fall at your side, and ten thousand at your right hand; but it shall not come near you.

8 Only with your eyes shall you look, and see the reward of the wicked.

9 Because you have made the LORD, who is my refuge, even the Most High, your dwelling place,

10 No evil shall befall you, nor shall any plague come near your dwelling;


This means sickness and disease will not come near your house, provided you dwell in the secret place of the Most High, and abide under the shadow of the Almighty.

This passage goes on to say in verse 11: For He shall give His angels charge over you, to keep you in all your ways.

You may be afraid of flying on an airplane, of going outside at night, or of any number of other things. Fear is a terrible thing; there is nothing worse than being afraid. But you do not need to be afraid because your Heavenly Father has given "His angels charge over you, to keep you in all your ways."

Every one of us has a guardian angel. That angel has been keeping you from getting your head blown off many times over. He will keep you alive when you are a sinner, so that you can be saved. Notice that verse 11 says you have angels, plural. Not only do you have angels, but the Bible says God will give His angels charge over you. This means He commissions them to mount guard over you.

However, the angels cannot do anything for you to the fullest extent possible unless you are willing to believe they are there, count on them and expect them to work for you. You have to dare to believe it, dare to take God at His Word, and dare to confess it. Once you do this, amazing things will happen.

Psalm 91:12-13 continues:

12 In their hands they shall bear you up, lest you dash your foot against a stone.


13 You shall tread upon the lion and the cobra, the young lion and the serpent you shall trample underfoot.

These verses let us know that the devil and every demon are under our feet.

Psalm 91:14-16:

14 "Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver him; I will set him on high, because he has known My name.


15 He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him and honor him.


16 With long life I will satisfy him, and show him My salvation."

My advice to you, friend, is to get this Word in you. Then confess it, and dare to make it personal. Say out loud, "I dwell in the secret place of the Most High, and I abide under the shadow of the Almighty. A thousand can fall at my side, and 10,000 at my right hand, but no evil shall come near me, because I dwell in the secret place of the Most High."

It is this kind of faith confession that makes God's Word work and puts the power into operation in your life.

What is the New Birth?

Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. (John 3:3).

Jesus made this statement to a man named Nicodemus who was a ruler of the Jews. Nicodemus had heard Jesus preaching about a new kind of kingdom, and he came to ask Jesus questions about it. Jesus told him that the way to enter this new kingdom was to be born again.

Nicodemus asked Him the same question you or I might ask: How can a man be born again? Can he enter into his mother’s womb again? Jesus explained to Nicodemus that the new birth He was talking about was not physical but spiritual. It was the beginning of a new life in a new kingdom.

Jesus answered, Verily, Verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, ye must be born again (John 3:5-7).

When Jesus was talking to Nicodemus, He used an illustration Nicodemus could easily understand. A newborn baby entering its life was a perfect illustration of a person beginning a new life with God.

Jesus called it being born again—a new birth. He also called it being saved. These terms all mean the same thing. What we call this remarkable experience isn’t as important as understanding the God made a way to bring us back to Him and give us new life!

They that are whole need not a physician: but they that are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance (Luke 5:32).

The way back to God is to acknowledge our need of a Savior and to accept what Jesus Christ did on our behalf. God saw us in our state of spiritual death, and through Jesus Christ provided a way back into relationship with Him.

God’s love for us is not based upon our ability to come to Him on our own merits. It is based on our acceptance that Jesus Christ paid the price for our sins…and there is nothing more for us to do.

For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved (Romans 10:13).

Salvation has been freely offered to everyone. Anyone who will acknowledge their need of a Savior and accept Jesus Christ as that Savior can be saved.

These three steps are essential to salvation:

REPENT: to repent means to turn around, to go in a new direction.

What do we need to turn from? We need to turn form our life-style of sin and separation from God. We need to turn from living our lives our own way and from being our own god.

What do we turn to? We turn to God who loves and cares for us. We turn to faith in Jesus Christ as our Savior.

BELIEVE: What is it that we must believe? We are told in the Bible we must believe that not only did Jesus shed His blood and die for us, but that he rose again from the dead and is alive today.

That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God have raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is mad unto salvation (Romans 10:9-10)

CONFESS: With the mouth confession is made unto salvation. What is it that we say? We must say what we believe—that Jesus is our Savior. We must say what the Bible says about us—that God is our Father and we have become His children.

But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name (John 1:12).

Throughout the ages mankind has sought eternal life, never understanding that we are already eternal beings, destined to live forever somewhere. To live forever in a state of separation from God is a frightening thought. You can make sure that you are right with God by turning to Him and praying this prayer:

"God, I am a sinner in need of a Savior. I REPENT, and I ask you to forgive me of all my sin.

"I BELIEVE that Jesus Christ is your Son, that He shed His blood so I might be forgiven, that He rose again from the dead, and He is coming back again.

"I CONFESS Him now as my Savior. I will live for you as you show me how. Amen."

By believing in Jesus Christ and receiving Him as your Savior, you will turn your life in a new direction. You can be at peace with God knowing you will live forever with Him.

Honoring Your Parents

Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right. Honour thy father and mother; (which is the first commandment with promise...) Ephesians 6:1-2 (KJV)

What is the promise that comes along with honoring your father and mother? It will be well with you, and you will live long on the earth. The Amplified translation says it this way: "Children, obey your parents in the Lord [as his representatives], for this is just and right. Honor (esteem, and value as precious) your father and mother..."

He did not say to honor them if they were right. Nor did it say to honor, esteem, and value your parents if they were perfect. God said, honor, esteem and value as precious your father and your mother. This is the first commandment with a promise.

To honor your parents is to love them. And God's love is unconditional. The kind of love He expects us to exhibit as His children, as believers, is unconditional love even if we had parents who were terrible. Why is this? It is for your own preservation. Verse 3 says, "That it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth." In other words, your prosperity in the earth is tied to how you treat your parents.

When your parents need help, and when they get old, they should not be thrown away like an old shoe in case they get in the way of your life. This is one reason why God expects you not to get into debt. When your parents get old you should be willing to assist them. The Bible said, as a man sows that shall he also reap. You do not know, if Jesus tarries, that you will be old one day and you may need assistance from your children.

People wonder why they do what the Bible says, and do not get the blessing. It is because they have not accepted all of the Bible. They picked up certain portions they wanted to pick up. They liked the mo ney cometh part, but not the take care of the parents' part. You have to accept all of God's word.

If you will live godly, God will bless your seed and your seed's seed. It says to honor your parents. Obey your parents. If you are a young person, it does not matter whether or not mama understands, do what she tells you to do. Do what your parents tell you to do and honor them, and you will live long and see good days on the earth.

Scripture References: Psalm 103:17; Proverbs 13:22; Galatians 6:7