I have another question I like to ask my audiences: “What are you taking to heaven with you?” Most initially respond by saying, “Nothing!” That’s almost right. You certainly can’t take your bank account, or your car, home, or boat, but you can take your children with you. If you are willing and committed, God can use you as a vehicle to help transport your children to heaven . . . but you have to take it seriously. Look at the following picture and then answer yet another question: Which one of these will last forever?
We know that the car, boat, television, house, and money will all perish. What about the poodle? Sometimes children ask me if their pet dog or cat will be in heaven. I usually say, “Well, if your pet is needed in heaven, I’m sure God will make sure it is there.” I know that’s dodging the issue, but it’s the nicest way I can think of to tell people that I don’t believe animals continue to live on after death. Ecclesiastes 3:21seems to hint that animals do not have immortal souls when it asks, “Who knows if the spirit of man rises upward and if the spirit of the animal goes down into the earth?” On top of that, animals were not made in the image of God, whereas humans were. So, of all the things in the picture, only the soul of the child is going to last forever.
Now observe the next picture and answer this question. Which one of these can you take with you to heaven?
The answer is obvious—only the child can be taken to heaven.
Parents, think about this: Every child conceived in a mother’s womb is a conscious being who is going to live forever and ever and ever and ever and ever and ever—in either heaven or hell. Does that tell you something about what your priorities should be in regard to time and money? Consider this as you read Philippians 3:7–8:
The most important thing for anyone is that they know Christ. Nothing else ultimately matters in the big picture of things. Our lives on this earth are so short—in fact they add up to nothing compared to eternity. The car, the house, the career . . . all will vanish with time, but the soul of your child will live forever. Doesn’t that make you want to take a serious look at how you are bringing up your children? Jeremiah 9:23–24reminds us:
Once while visiting Israel, we observed the ruins of temples built by Herod I at Caesarea-Philippi, Masada, and Jerusalem. In their prime, the buildings were magnificent. Herod invested his wealth and time to leave a legacy of great buildings . . . but he wasn’t at all interested in the eternal state of his soul or others. What is the result of his priorities? Herod has been dead almost 2,000 years—and now there is hardly anything left of his palaces. They are basically just a pile of weathered stones. He lived in luxury on earth, but all these material things have basically disappeared—yet Herod’s soul lives on in eternity! Jesus, in Mark 8:36–37 puts the issue in perspective with these words:
Mum and Dad were more interested in eternal matters rather than the materialism of this world. They committed their time and finances to leaving a legacy that would last forever—children who trusted Christ for salvation, who married Christian mates to produce godly offspring for the Lord. I could never thank them enough for the impact that their efforts had on me. It was an impact that was direct and eternal. Matthew 6:19–21 really sums up the difference between my parents and Herod I:
Are you striving for earthly position and riches that are meaningless compared to the importance of knowing the Lord? When you are dead and your children and their children look back at your life, what kind of priorities will they see?
