There are probably many of us that at least intellectually ascribe to the idea that there is more to this life than what meets the eye. I’ve been working through the 70 resolutions of Jonathan Edwards and resolution 55 says…

Resolved, To endeavour, to my utmost, so to act, as I can think I should do, if I had already seen the happiness of heaven and hell torments.

This is a hard resolution for me to wrap my mind around. Without going into a long explanation of what I believe the afterlife is like, I believe that our choices have ramifications. I don’t believe that God forces people to follow him and that if people choose to reject him continually throughout this life, they will experience an eternity without him afterwards. I also believe that if people choose to open their arms to God in this life, they will experience eternity with him afterwards. These two fates are vastly different. 

If God is the epitome of love and relationship, we should anticipate that heaven is nothing but unadulterated love and acceptance. If hell is the antithesis of love and relationship, we should expect for it to be a very lonely place. If we saw these two places for what they really are, it would probably dramatically impact how we live. I anticipate it would make us more grateful for the acceptance that God extends to us and more focused in our concern for those who have not experienced it.

There is definitely more that could be said about this resolution but I know that I find it to be very challenging. There is more to this life than what meets the eye and I believe that God has given us some sneak peeks into what the next life will be like. We would do well to focus on the truth that he’s revealed to us and thus allow it to instruct how we live in the present. Whether we like it or not…eternity hangs in the balance.