The only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known. John 1:18
1. No one stands beside Jesus Christ
About who else could it ever be said that he or she is the eternal, personal, divine, creating, life-giving, incarnate, Son of God?
Who else could ever say, “I am the way, the truth and the life, no one comes to the Father except by me’ (14:6)? You will not find a higher way than you find in him. You will not find more reliable truth than you find in him. You will not find a better life than you find in him.
2. No one will ever go beyond Jesus Christ
We live in a world of upgrades, where we move on to the next model. No one has ever or will ever go beyond Jesus Christ! H. R. Mackintosh said, “Never in any experience of God, here or hereafter, will you or I ever find anything that is not already there for us in Jesus Christ…”
When John saw a vision of the people of God gathered in heaven with great joy in the presence of the Lord he said, “The Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them into springs of living water” (Rev. 7:17). When families go to Disneyland™, the kids’ natural instinct is to run off and explore the park. Heaven will not be like that.
When God’s people are in his presence, they won’t be welcomed by Jesus and then go running off to explore the celestial playground. Jesus Christ is the joy of his people in heaven. Everything that God’s people enjoy forever comes from him, and no joy is theirs without him.
Do you think there will need to be a rule for God’s people against running off to explore heaven? Why or why not?
