How to Live in Light of Eternity

In 2 Peter 1:3 I read, “For as you know him better, he will give you, through his great power, everything you need for living a truly good life: he even shares his own glory and his own goodness with us!” (TLB)

A vast majority of people pay no attention to eternity, including myself at times. They’re living for the here and now, which is a waste. What we have to keep in mind is that everything that’s “here and now” isn’t going to matter in five minutes, much less 50 years—and certainly not for eternity. 

In order to get a picture of scale, If we stretched a rope from California to Tokyo, and that represented all of eternity, life on Earth would be represented by less than one millimeter of that rope.

So how do we live in light of eternity? What I’m learning is that we live for God’s glory, because he’s going to share his glory with us in heaven.

The Bible says in 2 Peter 1:3, “For as you know him better, he will give you, through his great power, everything you need for living a truly good life: he even shares his own glory and his own goodness with us!” (TLB).

We don’t get to choose what’s going to happen to us the rest of your life. But we do get to choose how we respond to it. 

I can face the future as a cynic, as a critic, as a pessimist, or as a doubter. I can face the future expecting the worst and experiencing the worst. I can face my future being ungracious to other people, and I can live for my own glory.

Or I can face the future with gratitude, generosity, and graciousness and live for God’s glory. 

Which one do you think will make us happier? Which one do you think will make us more successful? Which one do we think will bring a smile to God and rewards in heaven?

Matthew 5:16 says, “Let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven” (ESV).

We were created because God wants a family. He wants to spend eternity with his family. He wants to spend eternity with you and me! Heaven is one of the main reasons I can have joy—God has given us eternal life, and living in heaven with him will be amazing!

In summary it is by his divine power that God has given me everything I need for living a godly life. The power to live a godly life doesn't come from within me, but rather from God. God allows me to "share his divine nature" in order to keep me from sin and help me live for him. In order for me to live in light of eternity, I need to live for God's glory.