Guest Post: The Most Rewarding Life

By Abigail Heigley

Being a Christian

is the most

rewarding life.

Imagine the most breathtaking visual of earth you have ever seen. Whether that be a beautiful sunset on a beach, a view on top of a high mountain, or the frosted trees glistening in the sunlight. Better than this world, Heaven is beyond anything that you have and will ever see in our lives here on earth. Heaven is described in my Schofield Reference Bible in Revelation 21:4, 21 as a place where “there will be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain…the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass.”

Additionally, the Bible describes Heaven in Isaiah 40:31 as a place where “they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary, and they shall walk, and not faint.” This is what Christians have to look forward to beyond their earthly life.

However, this is not the eternal destination for many.

Now, I want you to imagine a time when you have burned yourself from touching a hot brownie pan or a pot of boiling water. Imagine having the most painful burning sensation throughout your entire body, and that feeling to never leave you. Sadly, this is the reality that many people face when they leave earth.

A few years ago, I went to Camp Victory in Somerset, KY, with my youth group, and we were attending our evening church service. The pastor asked the audience to close their eyes. He then asked all of the 14-year-old teens to come up on the stage and scream as LOUD as they could. They began screaming, and I, and many others were frightened from this. The pastor began preaching intensely over the screams the many 14-year-olds on the stage were producing. He said, “All that people in Hell see is everlasting darkness, and all that they hear is the continuous screams of agony from the other people in Hell.”

A 2020 article by Angeliki Lymberopoulou, with The Open University, titled “The Five Senses in Hell,” states that “The outer darkness, usually visualised as a black square, deprives the sinners of sight.”

After hearing about this everlasting torture I just described to you, I think we can all agree that this is a major problem. No one should have to endure this type of pain forever and ever. Initially, it wasn’t God’s plan to have anyone go to Hell. Hell is a result of the sin that came into this world so long ago when Adam and Eve took a fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. According to Romans 5:12, “Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned.”

The “one man” reference in this verse is referring to Adam. As a result of sin entering the world, as this verse describes, now everyone is a sinner, whether that be your nice kindergarten teacher, or whether that be the next Adolf Hitler, everyone is faced with the same reality of sin reigning in their mortal bodies, which results in an eternal Hell. The Bible repeatedly refers to Hell as the place “Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.” (Mark 9:44, 46, 48) When this verse says “their worm,” it is referring to the souls of the people in Hell. This means that souls never ever die in Hell, and the fire will never stop.

Ray Comfort, the CEO of Living Waters Publications and an evangelist that travels and preaches at many college campuses, said in 2013, “This life is the only hell believers will ever know. But for those who die in their sins, this is their only heaven.”

Temporary Heaven; Eternal Hell

There’s a story in the Bible in Luke 16 of a rich man and a sick man who was a beggar, named Lazarus. Lazarus spent his days sitting outside of the palace gates, eating the crumbs left from the rich man’s table. Lazarus continuously fought for these crumbs with dogs, and these same dogs licked the sores on his body. On the other hand, the rich man lived a happy and content life with the best food and most expensive clothing, many exciting parties with friends, and many other riches and pleasures of life. Both Lazarus and the rich man died. Most likely, the rich man had the most glorious funeral with many people attending with a speaker who talked about how good of a person he was. On the other hand, Lazarus probably didn’t have a funeral at all, he might have even just been thrown into a ditch somewhere.

However, their funerals did not match their eternal destiny.

While Lazarus’ body was being thrown into a ditch, his soul was in Heaven with God, rejoicing. Simultaneously, the rich man’s body was being laid in the most beautiful casket, with many flowers, friends, and family surrounding him, while the rich man’s soul was burning in Hell. The Bible states that the rich man called up to Heaven and asked Abraham to send Lazarus to dip his finger in the Heavenly water to cool the burning of his tongue in Hell. This describes the agony that the rich man was feeling in Hell. As you have heard, these two people lived very different lives on earth. The rich man lived a comfortable and happy life, while Lazarus lived a life full of suffering and pain. Abraham responds to the rich man in Luke 16:25 and says, “Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented.”

I want you all to think about this. Which is better?

Which is BEST?

Living a comfortable life, but spending eternity suffering, or living a life of temporary persecution and discomfort, but spending eternity in Heaven? According to 1 John 2:15-17, “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof.” These verses explain that earth is only temporary, and enjoying our life on earth is not a bad thing, but we should never love the world more than we love God. The story of Lazarus and the rich man is a perfect example of this. The rich man loved everything that this world had to offer him, but when he died, his riches and possessions died along with him.

After hearing that burning in Hell for eternity is a problem, I hope it is comforting to each one of us to know that there is one solution. Being saved from your sins is the ONLY way to escape an eternal Hell. You may be wondering; how do I get saved? The plan of salvation is extremely simple.

The first thing you must do is admit to God that you are a sinner who is deserving of Hell. Romans 6:23 states, “The wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” This verse means that because we are sinners, the wages, or the payment of our sin is death.
Later, the Bible states in 1 John 1:9 that “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Confessing you are a sinner is a very important aspect of the plan of salvation because you need to let go of your pride and humble yourself before God enough to admit that you don’t deserve Heaven.
Next, you want to say aloud that you believe that Jesus Christ was sent down to earth to die on the cross for your sins, and that you believe that He rose again on the 3^rd day. Romans 10:9 states, “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.”
Lastly, you want to ask God to save you from your sins, and to come into your heart and be your personal Lord and Saviour.

Now that you know all of the steps to how to get saved, you need to know how to execute these steps. Salvation is an individual decision that is simply a heart-felt, sincere prayer to God, and it goes something like this:

“Dear God, I know that I am a sinner who is deserving of Hell. I believe that you sent your son, Jesus Christ to die on the cross, and I believe that he rose from the dead on the 3^rd day. I ask that you forgive me of my sins, and that you come into my heart today and become my personal Lord and Savior. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.”

The Bible in 2 Corinthians 6:2 states, “behold, now is the day of salvation.” God doesn’t want you to wait any longer. He wants you to be saved right now! 1 Thessalonians 5:2 states that “the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.” This verse is explaining that we don’t know when Jesus is coming again, and we need to be ready to meet God face to face. Very recently, on November 14, 2024, my Grandma passed away due to stage 4 cancer and many other complications with her health. She died 3 days away from her 86^th Birthday, and today, she is in Heaven with the Lord. I know that she was saved and was a woman of God. Her earthly presence is missed, but someday, I know that I will see her again in Heaven.

Heaven is only the Beginning

In 2017, Joe Price, an author for Truth Magazine, stated in his article “God blesses His children” that “God hears and answers the prayers of His children, and He does so in ways that are best for us.” Not only does being a Christian give you everlasting life in Heaven, but being a Christian also brings blessings in your earthly life. God hears you when you pray to him. If you become a Christian, he will help guide your life so that you may follow his will for your life. God has big plans for his followers’ lives. In addition to attaining eternal life and receiving earthly blessings if you become a Christian and remain faithful, you will also receive heavenly rewards.

The 2009 article entitled “The Testing by Fire of the Builders’ Works: 1 Corinthians 3:10–15” by Harm Hollander, with the University of Leiden, claims that Christians “will be recompensed according to their labours at the end of time.” Heavenly rewards come as a result of good works, which includes witnessing to people who are not Christians, reading your Bible, and always doing what God wants you to be doing.”

Emma Griffith, with Liberty University, states in her 2024 article “An Exegetical Evaluation: Believers’ Differential, Works-Based Heavenly Rewards in the New Testament” that Christians are able to receive multiple crowns in Heaven, which “refers to different gifts awarded to those outstandingly remarkable in a specific area of the Christian life. Therefore, the believer ought to strive in earning each of these crowns, proving himself extraordinarily faithful.” Griffith gives one example of one of these crowns, the “Crown of Rejoicing” in 1 Thessalonians 2:19. Griffith states that this crown is a gift given to Christians who “remain faithful and perseverant in the gospel” and is given to Christians with “exceptionally fruitful ministries.”

Bill Korver, with Liberty University, states in his 2011 article “Biblical Use of Rewards as a Motivation for Christian Service” that the 5 crowns you can receive are, “the crown of life… rejoicing… righteousness… glory and the incorruptible crown.” Korver claims that the crown of life is for the Christians who display “faithful endurance in trials.” Along with crowns, mansions will also be rewarded to faithful Christians. William Featherson sang this truth in his hymn, My Jesus, I Love Thee.

“In mansions of glory and endless delight,
I'll ever adore Thee in heaven so bright, 
I’ll sing with the glittering crown on my brow, 
If ever I loved Thee, my Jesus, ‘tis now.”

Although many people believe that Jesus isn’t required to live a happy and fulfilling life, being a Christian provides a much more rewarding life than if you are living in this world without Jesus. It is so easy to become consumed with the world we are currently living in– the excitement, the parties, the traveling, and the pleasures and comforts of our life. However, it is so, so important to realize that this life is not the end, this life on earth is not all there is. As stated earlier, the Bible says in 1 John 2:17 that “the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.” This means that one day God will destroy the earth and all of the sin that is currently reigning in this world.

The Bible also says in Hebrews 9:27 that “it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment.” Believe it or not, one day you will die, and one day you will stand before God and He’ll judge you for the way you decided to live your life. You don’t know when you are going to die do you? You could get in a car wreck on your way home from school today and die. It’s our human nature to think that we will live a full life of 80+ years, but not everyone lives this long. Furthermore, we need to look towards life after our earthly death, and determine what our personal eternity will look like. If we look towards Heaven, and live our life for Jesus, God will reward us. The Bible gives Jesus’ promise in John 14:2, “In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.” This verse means that if Heaven wasn’t real, God would have told us. Right now, God is building Heaven and preparing it for his believers. Will you be there to experience Heaven?

To sum up everything so far, we are all born with sin, the payment for our sin is Hell; however, Jesus can save you, and as a result, you will receive eternal life in Heaven, earthly blessings, and Heavenly rewards. As a believer, I can definitely say that being a Christian is the most rewarding life you can live. I have felt God’s guidance upon my life, as He has helped me make many important decisions, answered prayers, and revealed His will for my life. I hope that after hearing this, you will begin to think more about eternity and the intense power that God has.

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him, should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
John 3:16