In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will — to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.

Ephesians 1:4-6 (NIV)

It is amazing to think what Jesus has accomplished for us at the Cross: unhindered access to heaven for all eternity. As the above scripture makes clear, he has done so because of his love for us alone. When the Bible says, “In love . . . in accordance with his pleasure and will,” it means he did it for no other reason than he loves us and it made him happy to do it. Jesus went to the Cross and died in our place that we might be with him for all eternity, because it made him happy.

This is what Scripture means when it says, “For the joy set before him, he endured the Cross.”¹ The joy was us. It wasn’t the fact he was going back to be with The Father, for this he already had. It wasn’t that the nightmare he was about to endure would be over, for he willingly chose to endure the nightmare. It was because the thing he and The Father desired to achieve would finally be achieved: our salvation. Unhindered access to his goodness. Being with him for all eternity.

Think for a moment what it will be like when you step into eternity. The Word of God says no eye has seen nor has ear heard all that God has prepared for those who love him.² The apostle Paul describes being caught up to heaven and hearing inexpressible things.³ Revelation speaks of streets of gold so pure it looks transparent, of city walls adorned with precious jewels, and a river as clear as crystal flowing from the throne of heaven bearing fruit and giving healing and life to the nations.⁴ There will be no more tears or sorrow or sickness and disease, no more poverty or brokenness and sin. And all of this will be ours to experience based on Jesus alone and what he has accomplished for us, for no other reason that he loves us and it was his pleasure to do so.

So I must ask: if this is so, what keeps us from experiencing all of these things now? If the eternal life that awaits us is not dependent on our own merit but his merit alone, and he has done all that is necessary for us to experience these things based on his love and good pleasure alone, what prevents us from stepping into these things now?

I would suggest nothing. I challenge you this day to dare to believe there is no telling what Jesus might do for you in the next moment. After all, he loves you that much.

Photo by Danilo Batista on Unsplash

1. Hebrews 12:2 ↩︎
2. 1 Corinthians 2:9 ↩︎
3. 2 Corinthians 12:4 ↩︎
4. Revelations 21 and 22 ↩︎