I didn't want to go to heaven. That is, if heaven was what I thought it was going to be. Please let me explain, as a boy, I remember attending church and singing the hymn "Mansion Over the Hilltop." Maybe you've sung it also. The words were, "I want a mansion, a harp and a crown. The hymn goes on to say of that heavenly mansion, "I want a gold one that's silver lined." When I sang it, I couldn't help but think some problems I had with the words of that song! First, I didn't like harp music. Second, I never wear a hat, I'm vain about my hair, so a crown seemed out of the question . And last but not least, presently, I enjoy living here in South Carolina, in the center of God's Creation. Living in a house of gold that is silver lined doesn't sound all that appealing. Think about it, if you have hiked our nearby mountains or enjoyed a glorious sunset at Charleston, don't you find a metal mansion to be kind of a cold and impersonal place?

Why would anyone want to leave all of this to strum a harp on a cloud? I ask, if heaven isn't better than this, why would anyone want to go there? And then one day, a friend helped me clear up what the Bible really said about where the redeemed of all ages would live. It turns out I had it all wrong. My friend referred me to a statement of Jesus, Matthew 5:5 states: "Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth."

Who will inherit the earth? The people who are the followers of Jesus. The earth is our inheritance? I was shocked! Was my friend trying to tell me there was no heaven? "No," he said, "Not at all, but it does mean that this planet earth will still be home base. He continued, "After all, aren't we made of the elements of this earth? We are part and parcel of this planet. Why would we want to move off somewhere?" He reminded me that the Bible says God created man from the dust of the ground. Or as we would say today, God used the elements of this planet to form man.

But I still wasn't satisfied. Finding out that I could continue to live on this planet raised many questions. I asked, "What about pollution?" What about nuclear waste, poison gas, landmines and old ICBM's buried in the earth. I wondered about things like junkyards and burned out trailer homes. I remembered that the history of mankind is mostly the grizzly story of wars. So I pondered, "Who would want to live forever on this planet with all of the relics of our bloody past?" The ocean bottoms are littered with ships full of dead men. Our towns and cities are surrounded with huge trash heaps. Furthermore, the world is overrun with graveyards which are full of people who suffered and died from terrible diseases. And what about the empty beer cans and plastic trash that clutters our land.

Next week we'll look at what the Bible says about the biggest recycling project ever undertaken on this planet.

Blessings in your study of God's Word!

Marvin Hunt

There is never a charge for my articles, and if you have a good reason, there is no limit to how many you may request. However, if you find them valuable you may want to order my latest book, History, Mystery and Facts About the Bible. Order at 1-800-845-7618 (ext. 301). You may also order from Amazon.com. Proceeds from the book go to support this ministry.

Blessings!
Marvin Hunt

Http://www.biblehistory.com

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