“Imagine there’s no heaven…it’s easy if you try. No hell below us, above us only sky. Imagine all the people living for today.”
Perhaps the words I just read sound familiar to you. They were the opening lyric to one of the most influential songs in pop history. The young people of the 1960’s & 70’s embraced John Lennon’s song “Imagine” and chased the idea of a world that lives and dies with no consequences – a world that has no one to cling to but one another. An altar of peace was proposed instead of war. Belief in nothing was suggested – in replacement of faith.
Three generations later there is no peace. We are still battling wars, fighting terrorism, dispelling racism and grappling with tragedy. Has anything changed? The only thing that seems that have changed decades later is that our young people are mostly indifferent when it comes to consequences for wrongdoing. Tolerance and permissiveness have paved the way for an over-indulgent way of life. Back in the 1960’s it was the church’s goal to reach young people before they graduated high school. Today, the chance of a child giving their heart to Christ after elementary school are no greater than four percent. Why is this? Is this because those who’ve gone before us bought into the lie of Lennon’s song that there was no heaven – or because they focused more on peace instead of faith in Christ.
In the Bible, Joshua faced tribes that fell away even after God blessed them in many ways. He said in Joshua 22, “How could you break faith with the God of Israel like this? How could you turn away from the LORD and build yourselves an altar in rebellion against him now?” (Vs.16)
We are greatly blessed but often blind.
Think of the ways God has given us so many amazing things in this life alone – are we really going to throw this all to the way side by building our own alters of rebellion? We cannot come to a point in our life where we start to think of heaven as nothing more than an illusion or inclination. The second we do, we will begin to lose our focus on Him and go lazy in our pursuit of holiness. Let’s not ever forget the reward of being with God and all His goodness for all of eternity!
John Lennon may have written a beautiful song, but it lost its beauty with its misleading lyrics. Don’t live life without stopping to remember there is a heaven – a true place we at one time will go if we keep our eyes fixed on the prize. Take my courage my friend…the temporary pains and wars of this world with be replaced for eternal joys and peace once we are in His presence.
