He Set Eternity in Our Hearts

“He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men, yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end.”

Ecclesiastes 3:11

There are some preachers, when they speak, who are so convincing that in one moment you can feel the breath of heaven and in the next moment feel the flames of hell. There are some authors who can write so vividly that you can almost see the streets of gold that pave the heavens and subsequently hear the “troubled screams” of those confined to the deepest parts of hell. There are some singers whose voices and lyrics can move us to experience tremendous joy at the prospect of seeing Jesus face to face and then bring us to tears as we consider being separated from God for all eternity.

But even with the amazing gifts and talents that God has given us to use to communicate eternal life to those around us, I have found that “death” is far greater at causing men to stop and consider eternal life than any preacher, author or singer. Death has an uncanny way of getting people’s attention. Even those who have managed to steer clear of church, religion and the Bible can’t seem to escape the message that death brings to the table.

God has set eternity in our hearts! We have been hard-wired by God to look beyond the grave. The writer of Hebrews describes it this way:

“All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth. People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. Instead, they were longing for a better country- a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.”
Hebrews 11:13-16

It is because we have been hard-wired by God for eternity that so many people believe in life after death. Life beyond the grave is universal among cultures and religions. As Christians we may not believe in a paradise with 70 virgins, a happy hunting ground, or reincarnation, but each of these differing cultures and religions has embraced the fact that there is more beyond the veil of death. Which according to scripture is a good thing:

“It is better to go to a house of mourning than to go to a house of feasting, for death is the destiny of every man, to living should take this to heart.”

Ecclesiastes 7:2

Consider these words of wisdom for a moment. How often do we consider eternity when we are “splashing around at the water park with our family”, or “enjoying a night out with friends”. However, how often is eternity considered when we are seated in the house of mourning. Death stirs us to consider our eternity!

I can’t tell you how often, at or after a funeral, I will hear someone ask… “Do you think they are in heaven?” Sometimes it is out of a genuine concern for the soul of the loved one who passed, but most often it is asked out of the uncertainty of their own hearts. It is a good thing to be troubled by death, to have “eternity” stirred up in our hearts. However, we do not have to live uncertain or leave our loved one languishing over our eternal destination. Jesus said:

“I tell you the truth, whoever hears my Word and believes Him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned, he has crossed over from death to life.”

John 5:24

If death is troubling you, maybe God is trying to stir up the “eternity”, that has been set in your heart, so that you can make a decision for Christ that will give you the eternal peace that your soul is longing to receive.




Pastor Scott Burr http://faithandworshipseries.blogspot.com