Where will you spend eternity?
everyone dies with a destination of either heaven or hell.
by Robert McCurley
Children often sprint from one adventure to the next, asking incessantly, “What’s next?” This relentless curiosity drives us into adulthood as we chase experiences and milestones. Yet, as life’s end draws near, the same questions linger: “What now? What’s next?”
That thought stirs trepidation, and understandably so. We’ve never experienced death or spoken with someone who has crossed its threshold. What will it be like? What lies beyond? Can anyone truly know? Science offers no answers—meteorologists and market analysts fail abysmally at predicting even tomorrow’s weather or stock performance. Only One who has seen the future—or rather, sovereignly ordained it—can tell us. That One is the eternal God, and with him, we find the answers we seek.
god: the eternal one
Before time began, God was. The Bible declares, “Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God” (Ps. 90:2). This truth sets Christianity apart. God has no beginning or end. He exists outside of time altogether. God, as the Creator of time and space, holds all of history in his hands. God’s eternal nature includes being unchanging and utterly reliable. While everything in our world shifts—fashions fade, seasons pass, people come and go—God remains the same. He’s described as “the Alpha and the Omega” (Rev. 1:8), the beginning and the end, yet always present. He is eternally wise, eternally powerful, eternally holy, eternally just, eternally good, and eternally true. The eternal God gives us a foundation we can trust, a rock to stand on when life feels like quicksand. He alone can tell us what lies on the other side of death in eternity.
you: made for eternity
Unlike God, you are a created, temporal creature. Before you were conceived, you did not exist. But when you die—then what? Death sobers us. Everyone who came before you died. You will also die—and you can’t deny it. But the Bible tells us that death brings both an end and a beginning. We don’t crash into a wall; we pass through a door. We cross over the threshold, leaving this world and entering the next. If your sense of destiny only extends to the end of this life, then you have set your sights too low. You were made for another world.
God created you to live forever. While you have a beginning, you will have no end. The Bible says God created man in his own image (Gen. 1:27) and planted a sense of eternity in our hearts. Our nature consists of both a body and a soul. At death, our soul goes to either heaven or hell while our bodies rest in the grave. On the Last Day, God will resurrect our bodies from the dust of the ground and reunite them with our souls for all of eternity (1 Cor. 15).
We speak of yesterday, today, and tomorrow, a succession of days strung like pearls from creation through the present to the months and years that follow us. All of these days lead to the Last Day, the final day of human history in this world. The Last Day will be Judgment Day. God will render a final verdict on that day, which will determine our eternal destination, whether in heaven or hell. The reality of judgment brings a serious dilemma to the forefront of our minds.
the problem: sin
Death presents a problem—but not our biggest problem. Behind death lies our sin, which separates us from God. The Bible puts it starkly: “For the wages of sin is death” (Rom. 6:23). This includes more than physical death; it’s eternal separation from God in hell, cut off from the source of all love, joy, and goodness and confined to the terrible, eternal torments of body and soul. Left to ourselves, physical death gives way to eternal death. We must confront the problem of sin. Sin isn’t just major crimes like murder or theft—it’s anything that goes against the perfect standard of God’s holy law, whether in our thoughts, attitudes, or actions. A harsh word, a selfish choice, or living for ourselves instead of for his glory—all of it is sin. Because God is eternally holy and just, he can’t ignore it; he must punish it in his righteous indignation. That penalty reflects equity. We have earned it. We deserve it. Our sin demolished all favorable access to God, cutting us off from life and peace. In its place, sin erects barriers that we cannot tear down on our own. Left to ourselves, our eternal destiny would be inevitable and hopeless.
the solution: christ
God provides salvation from sin through the person of his Son. Unlike any other figure in history, Jesus Christ is both God and man, having both a human nature and a divine nature in one person. He alone can reconcile sinners and a holy God as the only Mediator between God and man (1 Tim. 2:5). This is good news—the best news. Out of his immense love, God sent his Son to solve what we couldn’t. Jesus lived a perfect life—something none of us could achieve—to secure a record of perfect righteousness to be credited to the account of those who believe. Then, he died on a cross, taking the punishment for our sins. Three days later, he rose from the dead, demonstrating he has power over sin, Satan, hell, and death itself.
The Bible sums it up beautifully: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16). This is the heart of Christianity. Salvation isn’t something we earn—it’s a gift. We cannot work our way to God; he came to us. Salvation is all God’s doing. He lovingly pursues sinners and draws them to himself by his grace (Eph. 2:8–9). He calls us to look to Christ, come to Christ, receive Christ, and rest in Christ—all words depicting trust in Jesus alone. We must find all our hope in him—who he is and what he has done. He is life and the source of life.
the promise: life forever
Jesus said, “I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly” (John 10:10). Eternal life starts now and continues forever. While death appears as an unvanquished conqueror, swallowing up all before it, life in Christ defeats this enemy. When you trust in him, you begin to experience his peace and presence immediately, a taste of eternity amid this broken world. God comes to souls spiritually dead in trespasses and sins and brings them to life. He resurrects their dead bodies, raising them to exquisite honor. And both their bodies and souls enjoy eternal life in the glory of heaven forever. The Bible paints a stunning picture of heaven: “God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away” (Rev. 21:4). But the surpassing heights of heaven involve the redeemed beholding the glory of God in Christ, where every moment overflows with endless joy. As we sing in Psalm 16:11, “In thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.”
the consequences: eternity
After years of arduous study, students receive diplomas at graduation. We call that ceremony the “commencement,” which means “beginning.” It marks the end of their studies and the start of a new season of employment. The Last Day represents the commencement of eternity. This life constitutes only the beginning of the beginning. It serves as the staging ground, as preparation for the endless shores of eternity. Eternity is a reality awaiting all of us. Beyond your final breath lies a reality far more real than anything you’ve experienced on earth.
The consequences of what we do now last forever. The gospel sets before us life and death, compelling us to choose life. This crossroad will prove the most important one you’ll ever face, as your response determines where you will spend eternity. The Bible is clear: There are only two paths. Receiving Christ by faith yields reconciliation to God and life with him in glory. Refusing Christ in unbelief results in alienation from God and eternal death in the fires of hell.
In a world where everything feels temporary—jobs, relationships, even our own bodies—the truth of eternity reveals that there’s more to life than just the here and now, something that lasts beyond our fleeting days. It forces us to face reality: We are immortal. “For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Matt. 16:26). ❦
The Rev. Robert McCurley is the pastor of Greenville Presbyterian Church in Greenville, South Carolina.