There is an earthly world, with its own rules, order, and laws; there is a spiritual world, with its own influence; and there is also the Heavenly world, where the Eternal law of love, joy, and happiness operates. And this Heaven greatly desires to prepare us to move into the Heavenly dwellings. So that this will not be something dreadful for us, preparation for Eternity is already taking place; God is already working in us to make us fit for this event.
And what will Eternity be like? What do I imagine? What will be there? What will I live in forever? All people dream of going there, and when someone dies, they say, “May the Kingdom of Heaven be his.” And they do not think about what would happen if these people actually went there.
And let us briefly imagine sinners who go there by God’s mercy. For example, God might decide to take all the inhabitants of the quietest and cleanest city here on Earth. But its inhabitants did not know God and were not interested in Him. They worshiped anyone and anything, and completely rejected the light that was sent to them. Yet they were very cultured, disciplined, and hardworking, and were admired by the whole world. And now they find themselves in Heaven.
The first thing they will realize and ask is, “Why were we brought here? Why were we not asked whether we wanted to live here?” But since they are there, they must live there. They will quickly appreciate the advantages and prospects of the new world. Only God’s shining throne, and Those sitting upon it, will constantly make them uneasy. People are accustomed to believing what they were taught in childhood and at school, but here is an unfamiliar God to Whom everyone sings and bows. Yet betraying the faith of their ancestors will be impossible. In order not to trouble anyone and not to come under the influence of those saved from sin, many of them will decide to move farther away from the place of God’s presence and live far from the New Jerusalem. The very awareness that they will live forever will give them the opportunity to reconsider all their plans and build their lives so as to gain comfort from this new life. Other inhabitants of Heaven, dressed in white, will continually come and fly to them, become acquainted with them, and try to befriend them. Some will even succeed in establishing friendly relationships with someone and gaining some benefit from them. But sinful hearts are incapable of appreciating the purity of Heaven. And these people will continue to sin, taking pleasure in their relationships. Sin will be perpetuated. Although Satan will no longer exist, the carnal nature will remain and will constantly suggest new ways to satisfy the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life.
All the homes in Heaven will be open, and naive people will live in them who can be “led by the nose” in order to achieve one’s own purposes.
And how many beautiful people will tempt our eternal sinners by their outward appearance and the tenderness of their relationships.
But the saved will be steadfast in their purity; they know the danger of sin and have learned to recognize it instantly. And they will immediately have many questions for God: “What are these sinful people doing here? Why did they come here? Why only they? And how are we to understand Your justice, impartiality, and hatred of sin? Did Christ die in vain? Do You want us to come under the influence of evil again?”
I do not wish to continue this story, for it would end in the destruction of everything and everyone. What we are experiencing now is enough. A sinner will not live forever. Sin will have no chance of entering Heaven. The spirit of Satan will have no place in the holy place.
But it is possible to imagine a piece of Eternity already here on Earth. In His love and mercy, God has slightly opened the veil of Eternity to us and grants everyone who desires it the opportunity to experience this joy of Eternal Life. It begins here and now through the fact of being born of the Holy Spirit and through faith in Jesus Christ. And we are born again not for the sinful world, but for God. We do not have the most ideal conditions for development, but God allows what will serve for our good and help us appreciate the advantages of a holy and blameless life with Christ already here. And in order to inscribe the laws of Eternity in our hearts, we are given the opportunity to know and study them here already, and to ask God to establish us in this and not abandon us to the mercy of this world.
And Heaven’s greatest treasure, called Love, is given to us as the most delicious and choice piece of Heaven, so that already here, amid sin, it may reveal to us the beauty of Heavenly relationships.
By receiving love and living by it, I begin to know the law of Heaven, expressed in the most proper attitude toward my neighbor.
In 2018, friends invited me to come to Belarus and conduct a seminar about love, friendship, and happiness. During this meeting, we prepared our own food. It happened that some porridge was left over, and we decided to throw it away because the next day it would no longer be fresh or tasty. But one sister asked us to leave it and made a cream from this porridge, adding halva and something else to it. Everything was eaten with great pleasure.
So it is in life: there are truths that have grown old in my mind and have become ordinary and tasteless. I try to revive them, but they remain ordinary and familiar. Then I begin to put on a performance and play the part of a happy person who rejoices in everything, and I begin to believe that everything tastes good to me, because otherwise I risk losing Eternity. I come to worship services thirsting for the bread of life and leave without receiving it; but, thinking that something is wrong with me, I convince myself that it tasted good, because I have to eat something, and besides, what will others who admire what is happening think? Yet I am missing something.
But then someone appears from whom power proceeds; he shines with life, and it is so interesting to listen to this person and learn the secret of his happiness. It turns out that he simply loves. Is that all? Is it that simple?
And so I make up my mind and ask for love for myself as well, so that I might at least somehow add variety to my everyday life. But nothing happens. I live as I lived, and nothing has changed. I continue asking. Again, nothing. But it is nothing only in my eyes; something was sown in my heart and began to take root and grow.
Love has the characteristic that it cannot be known instantly, just as a child cannot be born an adult. There is a process of conception, development, birth, growth, maturation, and bearing fruit. Therefore, if you decide to take this path, be patient and do not become disappointed because you expected rapid growth and victories. Someone quickly grasps this science; for someone it is difficult; and someone considers it unnecessary and goes away into darkness. But love exists.
In order for me to write what you are now reading, God had to work on me, preparing me through sixteen years of life with Christ to understand that I needed agape love and simply could not do without it, and then for another eleven years to reveal the laws of this love that we are studying together. And this is only the beginning. What will come next? It will become even more interesting, for love lives forever; it never ceases to amaze with its qualities and new revelations. It develops in my thoughts and changes my heart. Will God ever grow weary of being God? In the same way, love never grows weary. It is a piece of Heaven for us, making our journey delightful, living, and beautiful.
What could be more beautiful and delightful than love? Only greater love, which has not yet revealed itself but is already standing at the door, knocking and waiting to be discovered.
Homework 203
Please read Isaiah 26:10; Revelation 21:10, 27; Psalm 1:5; 5:6; 9:17; Matthew 13:44–46; 13:33; Hebrews 10:36; 11:6; John 12:24–25; 3:5–8; 1 John 5:18; John 17:3; Matthew 7:7–11; John 7:38; Luke 18:7–8; and Revelation 21:6–8 in the light of our lesson. What did you understand from this lesson? Why can sinners not be taken to Heaven? What will happen to a person who thinks that his good deeds are sufficient for salvation? Do you believe that, as I comprehend and come to know love, I touch Heaven and live by its laws here on Earth? What would Eternity be like without love? Do you expect that, immediately after praying and asking for your heart to be endowed with love, your heart will become different and love will fill your feelings to overflowing? Do you have the love about which we speak so much?