Bible Poetry Reading Plan: Proverbs 5-6
The End or the Beginning
2 Peter 3:11-14 11 Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of people ought you
to be in lives of holiness and godliness, 12 waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God,
because of which the Heavens will be set on fire and dissolved, and the Heavenly bodies will melt
as they burn! 13 But according to His promise we are waiting for new Heavens and a new earth in
which righteousness dwells. (ESV)
Just before he was hanged by the Nazi’s, Dietrich Bonhoeffer prayed aloud, “Oh, God, this is the
end; but for me it is just the beginning.” Death should not be romanticized. Death is painful and
it’s an enemy but for those who know Jesus, death is the final pain, the final enemy. As Christians,
we must not fear death but rather crave God’s perspective on the death that awaits us. Death
cannot separate us from Christ; in fact, it actually unites believers with Christ. Believers should
not cling desperately to this life but rather anticipate the life that is to come. So what do we do in
the meantime, what do we do as we live our 70-80 years here on earth? We build for eternity! We
have a brief opportunity now to build into the next life by serving God now and loving Him with all
your heart, soul, mind and strength. We must use the resources of time, money and energy to build
into His Kingdom. Once we realize that there are only two destinations – Heaven or Hell – we are
much more prone to make sure that we are living in such a way as to make the most of the time that
we have. Our choices today matter! Knowing that death is not the end but rather the beginning
changes everything. It gives shape and meaning to our present lives, it keeps us from becoming
trapped in Satan’s lies and distractions. Anticipating Heaven motivates us to live spotless lives
here and now. Focusing on Heaven should affect our activities and ambitions, our recreation and
friendships, and the way we spend our time and money.
PRAYER and MEDITATION
1. What are some of the ways that focusing on Heaven has affected your life?
2. Do you have God’s perspective on death? How can you grow in seeing death the way that
God sees it? Pray that you would grow in seeing death as the beginning and not as the end.
3. Pray that as a church, our anticipation of Heaven would motivate everything that we do. Pray
that those around us would see that we are living for another age and that this would motivate
them to take their faith seriously.
