Eternity Matters

1. Read: Isaiah 57:15

2. About the Text:

1) The text says that God inhabits eternity.

2) What does that mean?

3. What is eternity?

1) That which is without beginning or end, infinite.

2) Could apply to time, existence, or mortality.

3) It is that into which a person passes when he dies.

4. In the Bible, eternity is . . .

1) The place where God exists (Isaiah 57:15).

2) A concept that God has placed in the heart (Ecclesiastes 3:11).

3) The depth of God’s knowledge (Acts 15:18).

5. Ref. to S, T, P, O, and A.

1. We can know that God is real.

1) Something cannot come from nothing.

2) The design that we see in the universe.

3) The existence of real moral standards.

4) The presence and purpose of the Bible.

5) Genesis 1:1

2. Atheism lies at the root of society’s problems.

1) Entails the ridiculous notion that everything came from nothing.

2) Affirms that there is no absolute purpose or meaning in life.

3) Says that there is no objective morality or standard of behavior.

4) Seeks to take control of government through communism.

5) Psalm 14:1 – “The fool has said in his heart…”

3. If God is real and atheism is false, then eternity matters.

1) Psalm 19:1-4.

2) Acts 17:24-31.

1. The Bible teaches the brevity of life.

1) “The voice said, ‘Cry out!’ And he said, ‘What shall I cry?’ ‘All flesh is grass, And all its loveliness is like the flower of the field’” (Isaiah 40:6).

2) James 4:13-14

2. The Bible teaches a limit to the number of years we have on the earth.

1) “The days of our lives are seventy years; And if by reason of strength they are eighty years, Yet their boast is only labor and sorrow; For it is soon cut off, and we fly away” (Psalm 90:10).

2) “So teach us to number our days, That we may gain a heart of wisdom” (Psalm 90:12).

3. We should act wisely and responsibly with these years that we have.

1) Ecclesiastes 12

2) James 4:15-16

4. If life is short, then eternity matters.

1. Jesus sets this reality forth in Matthew 25:31-46.

2. “There shall be no night there: They need no lamp nor light of the sun, for the Lord God gives them light. And they shall reign forever and ever” (Revelation 22:5).

3. “The devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever” (Revelation 20:10).

4. “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it” (Matthew 7:13-14).

5. If heaven and hell are forever, then eternity matters.

1. Eternity matters because . . .

1) God is Real

2) Life is Short

3) Heaven and Hell are Forever

2. Invitation