This group of student leaders meets Saturdays at 3 PM. We are committed to serving True North, the high school ministry of Compass Bible Church. We serve by setting up, encouraging others, and leading in worship.

INTRO: 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

Imagine there's no countries/ It isn't hard to do/ Nothing to kill or die for/And no religion too/ Imagine all the people living life in peace

You, you may say/ I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one/ I hope some day you'll join us/ And the world will be as one

This is a song by John Lennon from the Beatles. He wrote it in 1971. Unfortunately, Lennon was shot and killed in 1980. His vision for world peace was never realized.

Ironically, the Bible says that this place of peace is actually heaven itself.

TEXT: Revelation 21:4 - "He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away."

It is hard to imagine that here in the world we could eliminate crying or death. The truth is there is so much pain in our world today. And even the toughest guys here in the room cry. And the statistics are clear: 1 out of 1 people die. So the promise of a place where there is no crying or death sounds too good to be true. But what if it is true like the Bible says? Isn't this a place worth checking out? Isn't this a place you would want to go?

Think about the main reasons we cry. Maybe because our parents are getting divorced. Maybe because a relationship we were in broke up. Maybe someone who used to be our friend betrayed us and backstabbed us. In this world we cannot deny that there is evil. We all feel it, especially when relationships go wrong. Perhaps the worst thing that can happen is when someone you love dies. Maybe you've been to the funeral for someone you truly cared for and suddenly they were gone. You feel such a strong sense of loneliness and loss and like you are never going to see them again. (This would be a great place to share a personal story if you know someone who died and how that was sad and painful in your life) And yet the Bible says there is a source of hope even in the hurt of death:

1 Thessalonians 4:13-14 - "But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep."

The word "asleep" here means to have died. These people were wondering what happened to their loved ones who died. And they are given a great and precious promise. They will see them again. But this isn't just wishful thinking or a dream. It says in this verse that it is based on believing that Jesus died and rose again. This is something we call the gospel. We believe that Jesus is God who left heaven and was born as a man. He dies on the cross for our sins and rose again so we could have a new life. Because these people all believed in Jesus, this verse says that they will be together after they die.

All of our problems here on this planet come from sin and lead to death. The awesome thing about the gospel or good news of Jesus Christ is that he takes care of these two problems for us. The reason Jesus died on the cross was to take the place of our sin. It is like God judged him for everything we have ever done on that cross. Because of this all of our sins can be forgiven and we don't have to live in them anymore. But Jesus didn't just die for us. 3 days later he rose from the dead. Because of this we can have life after death too. Jesus promises eternal life with him and his father in heaven forever.

1 Corinthians 15:55-57 - "O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?" The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ."

Imagine if you are in a car with your family and all of a sudden there is a bee flying around. Everyone would probably freak out because they don't want it to sting them. But what if the driver of the car just held out their hand and caught the bee. Then they would let the bee go only this time no one is afraid because the bee alreayd stung the driver and can't sting anyone else. This is what we believe in Christianity. Jesus has already taken death's sting for us by dying in our place. He has already paid for our sins by shedding his own blood. Now you and I can look forward to a life after death. I knows no sting for us. We are going to be in a sinless environment of eternal life. That's what heaven is all about. This is the truth that the Bible teaches.

However, the Bible does say one thing about heaven and I want to be honest to share this with you today. Jesus himself says it. He says that he is the only way to get there.

John 14:6 - "Jesus said to him, 'I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."

(This is where we talk about how awesome it is to be saved by Jesus and know you are going to heaven to be with him forever. Either share your testimony of how you got saved or preach the gospel of putting your faith in Jesus with serious passion!!!)

OUTRO: I'm really excited to go to heaven and I want as many people as possible to go there with me. That's why we are having this lunch today. I pray that you will consider it. And if you want to learn more about heaven and what it is going to be like and how to get there you should come to my church this Wednesday night from 6:30 to 8:30. We have flyers so make sure you get one as you leave. I really hope you will come. You can talk to me or any of these other friendly people (point out the other Teen Ministers or True Northers in the room). What you think about Jesus really is the most important thing in your life. Let me pray...

If you are doing this lunch after Wednesday night's True North United then feel free to incorporate anything about heaven from the sermon there into your campus lunch and invite them to True North

If you are doing this lunch at a Christian school I would use this as a foundation instead of the gospel or testimony go off on why you have a Maranatha Mindset and can't wait to meet Jesus!

HERE'S THE SCHEDULE: Tuesday ~ Tyler Logan @ OCHSA/ Jackson Dahl @ Laguna/ Anita Schmidt @ Uni/ Ian Heisler @ SCA

Wednesday ~ Keegan Wilson @ Capo/ Bobbie Gene Litz @ Aliso/ Murphy Danahy @ Trabuco/ Spencer Revely @ Tesoro/ Emily Manning @ El Toro/ Alyssa Smith @ San Juan Hills/ Jacob Upton @ CVCS/ Peggy Palsgaard @ JSERRA

Thursday ~ Nolan Alberti @ Mission

Friday ~ Jeremy Watkins @ Dana/ Spencer Camp @ SC/ Bryan Sonksen @ SVCS

By Pastor Bobby Blakey on January 09, 2012. Comments (3)

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