13/JESUS
13/2 HEAVEN
HEAVEN, A NEW HOME. During the Last Supper, Jesus told his
disciples that he was going away to prepare a place for them in his father's
house. He would return to take them back with him. This place we call heaven.
While dying on the cross, one of the criminals condemned to death asked Jesus
to remember him in the afterlife. Jesus promised him that he would be with him
in paradise which is another name for heaven. We believe that after death there
is a place we will be with God forever called heaven.
THE GOOD WILL BE REWARDED. Jesus taught us the way to heaven
during his talk about the last judgment. He will gather all peoples and divide
the good from the bad as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. Those
deserving of heaven were those who during their lives gave food to the hungry,
water to the thirsty, welcomed a stranger, clothed the naked, cared for the
sick, and visited the prisoner. Those not deserving of heaven were those who
only cared for themselves and offered no help to the needy. Jesus judges one on
his actions in his life.
ETERNAL LIFE. St. Paul informed his Christians what God had
revealed to him. He wrote, "What eye has not seen, and ear has not heard,
and what has not entered the human heart, what God has prepared for those who
love him." has been revealed to him. This is a description of eternal
life. We believe that we will live a most glorious and joyful life forever with
God in heaven.
