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Why Will Heaven Be Safe?

Why Will Heaven Be Safe?

Have you ever considered what heaven will be like? What life on the New Earth will be like?

Surely, it will be a safe place, a place where a child can walk alone without any fear of assault—but what will make it a safe place?

Will it be safe because God will have angels with flaming swords on every corner?

Will it be safe because God has a better surveillance system than the CIA or NSA?

Will it be safe because God can immediately send lightning bolts down to destroy any wrongdoer on the spot?

Or will it be safe because it will be populated only by people who are safe to live next door to, that the only people in heaven are the ones in whom all sin and selfishness have been removed and within whom God’s law of love has been restored? Because the people who live upon the Earth made new are people who love God and others more than self and would rather die than hurt another?

If this is what makes heaven safe, then how is it that self-centered sinners become such good and trustworthy neighbors? Can God achieve such healing of hearts and minds through the use of physical might and intimidation? Can God make it happen by inserting Himself into their minds and choosing for them? Will people in heaven be mere robots controlled by God and that is why it will be safe? Or will people be free—and every single person there chooses to live trustworthy lives of love?

 

Making Heaven Safe

But how does such love get restored into our hearts and minds? It cannot be legally declared; it cannot be forced into an unwilling heart; it cannot be obtained through hard work or creative discovery. So then how?

It is through faith, through having our fear of God removed and being won to genuine trust in Him by the revelation of Jesus Christ. It is the kindness of God that leads us to repentance (Romans 2:4). It is not by might, nor by power, but by how the Spirit works (Zechariah 4:6)—and the Spirit works by truth and love.

The truth of who God is, His character and methods of love as revealed by Jesus, destroys the lies of Satan and wins us to trust. And when we surrender to Him, the Spirit enters our hearts with the power of truth and love that cleanses, renews, and transforms. Guilt and shame are taken away, and new motives and desires are instilled. And when we respond to the gentle movements of the Spirit by choosing the truth, acting in love, and refusing the wrong, we are transformed by a living, active faith and grow in godliness with new hearts and right spirits—hearts that love and trust.

The plan of salvation has always been God’s plan to remove sinfulness from human beings and restore His living law, His character, and methods of love into our hearts and minds as the motive for all action and, thereby, heal us and make us safe people to populate heaven.

It is a law that we become like the God we admire and worship. If we worship God in the truth that Jesus revealed, we become more like Jesus. But if we present God as a legal magistrate who makes up rules and inflicts punishment for rule-breaking, we don’t grow to be safe neighbors; instead, we become intolerant critics and judgmental religionists who will condemn and coerce others.

It is only by experiencing God’s grace and then living out that grace in how we treat others that we are transformed, but also, in so doing, we simultaneously spread the grace of God to others.

 

From Saul to Paul

Saul of Tarsus worshiped the dictator god and thought it right to use force of arms to evangelize, to turn back from heresy all who were following Jesus. But what impact do such methods have, not just on those who use them, but also on the converts gained by such methods? A person “converted” by threat, by fear of punishment, is not responding to love and truth but to fear and how best to survive. The law of God is not restored in them; instead, the law of sin and death, the survival drives, are merely reinforced, and all such converts become like their controlling and punishing god via the law of worship (by beholding we become changed) and by the law of exertion when the methods and motives of fear and selfishness are the basis of the conversion.

It is only the grace of God, the truth and love of God, that truly frees us from sin. So, when Saul met Jesus on the road to Damascus and was convicted of how wrong he had been, he did not experience the judgmental punishing god he had been advancing, but he met Jesus and experienced instead His grace. And he left as Paul, a changed man. From that moment on, he evangelized with a new heart using new methods; he presented the truth in love while leaving others free. He advanced the gospel of grace, graciously, and not only did Paul grow in grace, but the true kingdom of God spread.

We can never advance God’s kingdom using Satan’s methods, and one of the traps in many religious circles is to evangelize through fear that appeals to selfishness, to advance a dogma, doctrinal list, or creed, legally, from an authoritarian god that will punish rule-breaking, which usually means some ritual or dogma unique to the one evangelizing. But even if the summary doctrinal point is technically correct—e.g., “Jesus died to save us from sin”—if the picture of God is authoritarian and the methods employed are not gracious, then the kingdom advanced is not God’s but His enemy’s. If we evangelize through fear, appealing not to God’s grace, to God’s love and character, but appeal instead to the motives of selfishness, we may very well hear Jesus say to us, like He did to Jewish leaders two thousand years ago, “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are” (Matthew 23:15 NIV84).

Such legal-based evangelism as the Jews did two thousand years ago did not free hearts and minds from sin, and such converts were not made into safe neighbors for heaven.

I long for heaven, for the Earth made new. I know that it will be safe, but not because of God enforcing a list of rules. No, it will be safe because the only people who live there are like Jesus, because every single person there would give their life so that others may live. I pray that Jesus will finish His work in me and make me ready to live in that place. And I pray that I might graciously represent His gospel of grace.

 

 

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Testimony 7

Ok, so last night I listened to “The Law of Liberty” and “How to Achieve Victory: Freedom, Truth and Spirtual Warfare.” These are both MY ABSOLUTE FAVORITES so far! The logic is just soooooo beautiful. I had to re-listen to them a couple of times. I just want to EXPLODE! (<< we assume with joy and happiness)

N. B., Canada

 

Testimony 11

I would love to have a copy of “Healing the Mind” DVDs to have in my therapy office. I enjoy having clients check out materials to enhance their therapy experience. I have sat under Dr. Jennings’ teaching at an American Association of Christian Counselors convention and respect his work greatly.

K.B., LA, USA

 

Testimony 35

I am so pleased with the response your message is receiving at my church from the middle-aged to the young adults. I have given out 100 copies of the first two seminars and there are more request every week. One of my [class members] came to me after viewing the series, grateful and impressed with how easy the message was retained. He had been a Seventh-day Adventist in fear all his life, and felt like the scales were removed from his eyes after viewing the seminars. I am so impressed by the change I see in members who have received this message, we are in one accord. However, I am sadden by the negative response of the older people. I am verbally attacked anytime I talk about imposed laws, but I believe my mission is to enlightened everyone I can. I watch your Bible Study Class on YouTube every Friday night and I feel like I am apart of the class. All of you are in one accord and I am so blessed to have found you. I pray that all of you continue to spread this message and I am committed to doing my part.

Clara S., Westfield, MA, USA

 

Testimony 8

Thank you for the ministry you are sharing with us, it is a real blessing to us and especially to my husband and myself! You are encouraging us to think for ourselves and not just to except everything, without thinking it through, with God’s word!

M.K., USA

 

Testimony 64

I’ve been reading the bible and walking with Jesus since I was around 16. I’m 42 now. I’ve mostly been alone in my walk although I went to several churches in different denominations. For the past 3 years God has been showing me His character of agape. It’s been a blessing and changed how I view God and my walk with Jesus. About a year ago I came across the power of love and the principles of design law. These teachings changed how I read scripture and have been such a beautiful blessing. I’m very excited and grateful for these truths. We share these truths of agape, design law and the reality of the principles of the two trees in the garden of Eden with people on Facebook and YouTube. People all over are learning to trust God and His agape design law which makes life possible. Thank you for everything you shared with me. May God continue to bless your ministry and lives.

Bradley M., Hinsdale, NY, USA

 

Testimony 57

You have helped make sense of thirty two years of confusion. The material you freely provide reorganized so much of my life into such a beautiful pattern that has always been hinted at from within, but misguided with my training and what I was experiencing externally. My filipno parents, who were converted from Catholicism to SDA, were sincere and did their best to raise me the right way and I have deep respect for them. However, being immigrants and not understanding the language made for a difficult transition as I was growing up, which also applied to my spiritual growth as I learned the patterns of religion. I have been listening to as many bible study classes and reading blog posts as my time in a work truck will allow, searching for the practical applications of where spirituality and reality meet, and I thank you for helping me find that. You have helped me reach a point in which I can truly say that I love God, that I believe He loves me, and, like David, I delight in His law. God bless.

Emmanuel V., Calgary, AB Canada

Testimony 69

After reading your book, ‘Could It Be This Simple,’ someone was explaining Christianity in a way that made sense to me for the first time in my life. One morning, I simply prayed “I’m sorry and I love you.” As soon as I silently said that, I could literally feel God’s presence and light flood down on me from above and fill me up with love and joy. I sat there crying my eyes out, because I was so overpowered with this feeling of love and joy. It was just so incredible. I hope that more people can read this book and get a blessing from it. It’s really amazing.

Rachael H.

Testimony 36

Thank you and may God continue to bless you as you share with others the intricacies of how we are all “fearfully and wonderfully made”. I must share that you have opened a whole new world to me, and I have found tremendous healing through what you have shared in two of your books, “Could It Be This Simple?” and “The God Shaped Brain.” I praise God for what you shared, what I have learned, and how I have grown and healed! My prayer is that My Precious Jesus will be seen by others in the way I live, act, talk, etc. and they may be encouraged to know He is truly a GREAT God of LOVE, desiring that no one should perish! God Bless you in your continued endeavors to present Him as He really is!

Joleen H. GA, USA

 

Testimony 66

I am incredibly grateful for the transformative impact you’ve had on my life, and words cannot fully express my appreciation. Over the years, I have been an avid listener and follower of C&R and extend my heartfelt thanks for creating the C&R mobile app. It has allowed me to immerse myself in your lessons repeatedly, enabling me to grasp the profound significance about the Character of God, Design Law, the protocols for life, the reasons behind the current chaos, and Christ’s mission to restore everything. They have deeply touched me. Having studied with various churches, I came away with the perception that God is no different from the deities of ancient Greek or Roman mythology—demanding sacrifices and taking pleasure in bloodshed. Thanks to your transformative teachings, I have experienced a profound awakening to the true nature of God and the immense power of His love. It is truly a remarkable and liberating sensation to finally grasp the truth and embrace the empowering nature of God’s laws. My self-perception has become brighter and more infused with love. My journey of growth continues on a daily basis.

Chris P., Lake Mary, FL, USA

 

Testimony 59

I’m a native Ghanan, but am currently in France for my master’s degree. Prior to this, during my final years at undergraduate studies in Ghana, I was introduced to your ministry and I’ve been immensely blessed by what you share, especially about the Design and Imposed Laws. God richly bless you for that.

One of the first things I did when I arrived in France was to buy all four of your books. They not only helped me, but those I shared them with. I shared the message with an atheist student and I marveled at how God worked mightily in his life. Today this person shares the Love of God with others and debunks theories of who God is not. I want to share what you present in your “Heavenly Sanctuary and Investigative Judgment” pamphlet, because the message brought rest to my soul and I live today as a healthy person.

God bless you so much and your ministry.

Michael A., Ghana

 

Testimony 44

We were given a gift of the DVD set, “God and Your Brain,” and we just finished watching it. The truths in this are so powerful and truly an answer to a prayer. We’re seeing hope where once we thought God wasn’t answering our prayers to be free of certain mindsets. He answered with these DVDs and we are hungry for more. Thank you!

Daniel T., Easley, SC, USA

 

Testimony 23

I would just like to add my voice to the many people who, I believe, must have contacted you to express their appreciation for the “Healing the Mind” DVDs. I’ve been listening to your Bible study class discussions for many years and I’ve been personally blessed by your research and teaching about the character of God.

L. G., Oakland, MI, USA

 

Testimony 30

God lead me to your book “The God-Shaped Brain” while I was searching for another book about the brain and then to your interview about your book on HeartWise Ministries [where] I found out about [Come And Reason Ministries]. I’m now devouring the webcasts of your Bible studies. I have been so greatly blessed and I thank God so much for your courage to speak the Truth in love no matter what. Listening to you contrast the two opposing systems (laws) and digging deep to unearth the hidden treasures in the Bible makes me so incredibly happy and I feel very blessed to be part of your Bible Study Group although I live far away. I am just so excited that there is a group of people that is spreading the Truth about the character of God and it saddens me how few realize what our Father in Heaven is really like.

Kessy B., Australia

 

Testimony 10

I personally download and listen to each of Come And Reason Ministries Bible study class lessons and PDF study notes to use when teaching my class. Really appreciate the class especially when Dr. Jennings is teaching. Thank God there are persons like him doing His work and traveling to share His beliefs.

B. L.M., North Plains, OR, USA

 

Testimony 16

Your seminars are still inspiring and changing our lives and we continue to share the principles we have learned from you. Your ministry has changed our lives!

E.W.