So, here’s a question that deserves serious consideration and a logical, biblical answer: What is the point and purpose of the resurrection of Jesus Christ if believers go immediately to heaven when they die?
Why would “He is risen!” hold any special meaning if the faithful are already dancing and singing, alive and well in heaven from the moment of their own death?
If the immortality of the soul is true, then there is no reason for God to raise Jesus from the dead, because death would hold no power or sting over us. Easter Sunday becomes meaningless if the resurrection isn’t a once‑in‑human‑history, glorious, miraculous event that announces to creation that death does not have the final say.
If all believers are immediately and individually transferred to heaven after they breathe their last breath, then Jesus being made alive again after three days isn’t just ho‑hum—it’s three days of being unnecessarily dead.
He walked and talked in His resurrected body with two, just two, of His followers on the Road to Emmaus. Probably the most remarkable and intimate Scripture teaching ever.
Just take a few minutes to read the account from Luke 24:12-35 and meditate on it.
The Road to Emmaus
“But Peter arose and ran to the tomb; and stooping down, he saw the linen cloths lying by themselves; and he departed, marveling to himself at what had happened.
Now behold, two of them were traveling that same day to a village called Emmaus, which was seven miles from Jerusalem. And they talked together of all these things which had happened. So it was, while they conversed and reasoned, that Jesus Himself drew near and went with them. But their eyes were restrained, so that they did not know Him.
And He said to them, “What kind of conversation is this that you have with one another as you walk and are sad?”
Then the one whose name was Cleopas answered and said to Him, “Are You the only stranger in Jerusalem, and have You not known the things which happened there in these days?”
And He said to them, “What things?”
So they said to Him, “The things concerning Jesus of Nazareth, who was a Prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, and how the chief priests and our rulers delivered Him to be condemned to death, and crucified Him. But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel. Indeed, besides all this, today is the third day since these things happened. Yes, and certain women of our company, who arrived at the tomb early, astonished us. When they did not find His body, they came saying that they had also seen a vision of angels who said He was alive. And certain of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said; but Him they did not see.”
Then He said to them, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken! Ought not the Christ to have suffered these things and to enter into His glory?” And beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself.
Then they drew near to the village where they were going, and He indicated that He would have gone farther. But they constrained Him, saying, “Abide with us, for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent.” And He went in to stay with them.
Now it came to pass, as He sat at the table with them, that He took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they knew Him; and He vanished from their sight.
And they said to one another, “Did not our heart burn within us while He talked with us on the road, and while He opened the Scriptures to us?”
So they rose up that very hour and returned to Jerusalem, and found the eleven and those who were with them gathered together, saying, “The Lord is risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!” And they told about the things that had happened on the road, and how He was known to them in the breaking of bread.”
There are several versions of this extended metaphor, but here’s one I saw recently that I really like.
In a mother’s womb, there are two babies and one turns to the other and says, “Do you believe in life after delivery?”
The other replies, “Of course there has to be something after delivery. Maybe we’re here to prepare ourselves for what will be later. This can’t be the end.”
“Nonsense”, says the first baby, “There’s no life after delivery. We are here to enjoy ourselves. That’s it. Life after delivery? What kind of life would that be?”
“I don’t know”, said the second, “but maybe there’ll be more light than here. Maybe we’ll walk with our legs and eat with our mouths. Maybe we’ll have other senses we can’t understand now. Maybe it’s beyond our comprehension.”
“That’s ridiculous. Walking is impossible and eating with our mouths? That’s absurd. The umbilical cord is what scientifically supplies nutrition and all that we need, but it’s far too short. Life after delivery is to be logically excluded.”
The other baby says, “What if it’s just different than it is here? Maybe we don’t need that physical cord anymore.”
The first replies, “Okay, if there were life after delivery, then tell me, why has no one ever come back from there?Delivery is the end of life. And in the after delivery is nothing but darkness and silence and oblivion. It takes us nowhere.”
The second says, “But certainly we’ll meet mother and she’ll take care of us. She loves us. She made us.”
The first says, “You actually believe in mother? If mother exists, where is she now?”
“She’s all around us. We are of her. It is in her that we live. Without her, this world would not and could not exist.”
“I don’t see her. It’s only logical that she’s not here.”
“Sometimes when you’re in silence and you really listen, you can perceive her presence. You can hear her loving voice calling down from above.”
The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the focal point of history and the assurance that eternal life with God and God’s people in a restored creation is coming.
The Resurrection is a historical fact, not a myth. The resurrected Messiah was seen by hundreds of people, and the tiny group of followers who committed their lives to spreading the truth of that resurrection grew the faith into one that changed the world and is now the largest faith in the world.
God raised Jesus Christ from the dead—literally, not figuratively. Myths don’t have the kind of impact on empires, history, and individuals that the power of the resurrected Christ has had on the universe ever since the day “He is risen” was declared in triumph.
The Resurrection is the heart of my faith and the rock upon which I stand.
Here is the crux of the matter as I see it: Jesus Christ will return on a day certain, literally not figuratively, as King of kings and Lord of lords.
So, if you don’t know Yeshua the Messiah—you will.
So, what have we discovered from our look at Your Life and What Comes After: Plugging Into God’s Forever Plan Now?
God has a grand plan and purpose for His creation and you have an important part to play in it. You get to choose how you will live in light of God’s forever plan; it hasn’t been decided for you.
The road you walk in this world, in this life, comes to an end, but there’s an eternity of glorious life waiting for each of us, and all of us together. Each new day is important not only for this life but also for what comes next because the way you live now will echo into forever.
Jesus Said It Best
In the Book of Matthew, when Jesus taught His followers how to pray, He said this:
Matthew 6:9-10 Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.
Remember that heaven isn’t in outer space or in the clouds somewhere, it’s the realm where God lives, invisible to our eyeballs now. His will is being done in heaven perfectly and His grand plan is working in us, through us, and around us so that one day it will be done perfectly on earth as well.
Until then we can also pray:
Thy will be done in my home, as it is in heaven.
Thy will be done in my heart, as it is in heaven.
Thy will be done at work and at school, as it is in heaven.
Thy will be done in my words, as it is in heaven.
Thy will be done in my relationships, as it is in heaven.
Thy will be done in my daily life, here and now, as it is in heaven.
That is how we plug into God’s forever plan now. When we walk with eternity in mind and keep our minds focused on God’s purposes, He will guide us into a life that is meaningful—though not always easy. A life that is fulfilling because we give and love as God gives and loves.
A life that will have challenges, victories, disappointments, and wonder—but that will always lead us to our Heavenly Father and the incredible and awesome things He has in store for us, now and forever.
Matthew 6:13b For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.
