What's coming is better than what's now.

My relationship with God is sort of like an online dating relationship. We talk all of the time and we have both voiced our love for each other but we have yet to meet in person.

Don't get me wrong, God is present in my life. He is the one I run to when life gets difficult or when I experience blessing.

He meets with me when I open his word or when I spend time in prayer, but as great as those things are they are not a face-to-face meeting.

And so I woke up this morning missing God. I woke up with this intense longing to wake up in his kingdom and to meet with him face-to-face.

And so of all the chapters I read this morning in my Bible time Isaiah 2 stood out to me the most because it spoke of the kingdom to come and the time when I will enjoy my God in a better way.

So, I thought that I would post four things that Isaiah 2 promises me about heaven that have me feeling very excited and homesick this morning.

1) Heaven will be a place where the gospel of God is finally vindicated against all other truth claims.

It shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the house of the Lord shall be established as the highest of the mountains, and shall be lifted above the hills. (2:2)

I don't take this to literally mean that the mountain (the place of OT worship) of the Lord will be physically higher than all other mountains, but rather that the truth of God (which is what was celebrated on that mountain) will be elevated above all other truth claims here on earth.

The mountains of Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Taoism, Judaism, Scientology, Mormonism, Jehovah Witnesses, Roman Catholicism, etc... will shrink in the presence of the gospel of Jesus Christ because the gospel will be proven true once and for all.

Do you get tired of the assaults the world puts on you for standing for the truth of the gospel? Do you get tired of the sarcastic comments? Do you get tired of the rejection?

In our kingdom to come, the gospel will be embraced by all the inhabitants of heaven. It will be place where the truth is celebrated.

2) Heaven will be a place where people from every tribe, tongue, and nation celebrate the glory of Jesus Christ.

And all the nations shall flow to it. (2:2)

One of the greatest realities of heaven is that black, white, brown, tan, yellow, etc... people will gather to worship the same God.

Religion has historically been a regional thing. In the Middle East, they worship Allah. In the Far East, they worship the gods of Hinduism. In Africa, they worship the spirits of animism.

But the kingdom of Jesus Christ has never been a regional one. It is a kingdom that transcends racial, social, economic, and geographic boundaries.

Why? Because the glory of Jesus Christ is too intense to be celebrated only by one people group and in heaven this will be manifested by the presence of people from all over the world gathering for the same reason.

3. Heaven will be a place where we will all worship Jesus Christ perfectly.

And many people shall come, and say: "Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob, that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths. (2:3)

In our kingdom to come, this will be the cry of our hearts to be taught the ways of God and to walk in his paths.

I don't know about you but my inability to perfectly follow Jesus is often a source of frustration for me here on earth, but there is a day coming when I will obey him perfectly all the time.

4. Heaven will be a place of real and lasting peace.

He shall judge between the nations, and shall decide disputes for many peoples; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore. (2:4)

Newsflash to the Democrats and Republicans (and also to you Ralph Nader), you will never succeed in bringing us world peace.

World peace will be accomplished when the rightful ruler of the world (Jesus) is sitting on the throne of earth and leading the nations to abandon conflict and war in favor of real and lasting peace.

I probably haven't said much here that is earth shattering or new for you, but I enjoyed being reminded that the kingdom that is coming is so much better than what is now.

Today my heart is aching for that kingdom.