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When people talk about heaven they often think of it as some distant corner of interstellar space or as some future state where everyone will be happy floating on clouds and playing harps.
Both those views are unhelpful, as they make heaven appear something remote, far from us in space or distant from us in time. But heaven is much nearer to us than that. It can begin here and now, because quite simply heaven is where God is. And God is everywhere and more particularly he is in the hearts and lives of those who love him.
When we become Christians, the Bible tells us that if we are in Christ, that we are a new creation, “ the old has gone, and the new has come.” (2 Corinthians 5:17).
Heaven is not about going to a new spatial or geographical location, it is about having a relationship with God through Jesus Christ. And that is something that begins in this life. When this is understood, we come to realise that although death may mark the close of our life on earth, our life with God continues, but in a wonderful, new and different way.
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