Further Thought: Read Ellen G. White, “The Controversy Ended,”
pp. 674–678, in The Great Controversy; “The Earth Made New,” pp.
133–145; “Heaven Is a School,” pp. 146–158; “It Will Not Be Long,”
pp. 159–166; “Heaven Can Begin Now,” pp. 167–176; “The Music of
Heaven,” pp. 177–184; “A Call for Us to Be There,” pp. 185–192, in
Heaven.
“The cross of Christ will be the science and the song of the redeemed
through all eternity. In Christ glorified they will behold Christ cruci-
fied. Never will it be forgotten that He whose power created and upheld
the unnumbered worlds through the vast realms of space, the Beloved
of God, the Majesty of heaven, He whom cherub and shining seraph
delighted to adore—humbled Himself to uplift fallen man; that He
bore the guilt and shame of sin, and the hiding of His Father’s face, till
the woes of a lost world broke His heart and crushed out His life on
Calvary’s cross. That the Maker of all worlds, the Arbiter of all desti-
nies, should lay aside His glory and humiliate Himself from love to
man will ever excite the wonder and adoration of the universe.”—Ellen
G. White, The Great Controversy, p. 651.
“The great controversy is ended. Sin and sinners are no more. The
entire universe is clean. One pulse of harmony and gladness beats
through the vast creation. From Him who created all, flow life and
light and gladness, throughout the realms of illimitable space. From
the minutest atom to the greatest world, all things, animate and inani-
mate, in their unshadowed beauty and perfect joy, declare that God is
love.”—Ellen G. White, The Great Controversy, p. 678.
Discussion Questions:
Ê Many secularized Christians live their lives as if this world will
last forever (Luke 12:16–21). How can we balance our earthly ide-
als with our heavenly priorities? How can we guard against what
Jesus has warned us about in Luke 12?
Ë If heaven begins here, what should we do to transform our
homes and our personal lives into little expressions of heavenly
principles?
Ì Dwell on the question asked at the end of Sunday’s study. What
is the logic behind the pessimism of those who don’t believe in
eternal life? At the same time, too, some of these people neverthe-
less seem to live fairly “happy” lives, even without expressing any
future hope. How do you think they do that? That is, how might
they rationalize living, even contentedly, without the promise of
something beyond this life?
