2nd Quarter, 2026
Lesson 13 (June 20 - June 26, 2026)
Into Eternity
Memory Verse: "Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is" (1 John 3:2, NKJV).
Lesson 13, Into Eternity, brings the quarter to its destination. Every lesson has been building toward this one -- knowing God, humbling ourselves, studying His Word, praying, having faith, facing sin, repenting, enduring setbacks, and sharing Jesus -- all of it pointing toward the day when we will finally see Him face-to-face. That day is coming. And nothing in this life or the next will ever be the same.
Sunday opens with the honest acknowledgment that life is a vapor (James 4:14) -- yet most of us live as though time is infinite. The signs of Matthew 24 are not distant; they are present and intensifying. Psalm 80 gives us the language for the tension of waiting -- a people crying How long? to a God who seems silent yet never stops being sovereign. Its refrain becomes the quarter's closing prayer: Restore us, O God; cause Your face to shine, and we shall be saved. Monday lifts our eyes to the Second Coming itself -- the small black cloud in the eastern sky that grows until every eye sees Him, the trumpet, the tombs opening, the living and the dead caught up together to meet the Lord in the air (1 Thess. 4:16, 17). Tuesday takes us into John's vision on Patmos -- the New Jerusalem descending as a bride adorned for her husband, a city so glorious that EGW writes human language is simply inadequate to describe it. Wednesday asks what we are most looking forward to in eternity and arrives at the answer: not the absence of pain or the reunion with loved ones, but Jesus Himself -- to follow the Lamb wherever He goes (Rev. 14:4), to have His name on our foreheads forever (Rev. 22:4). Thursday closes with one of the most theologically rich insights of the whole quarter -- Jacob's experience at Peniel, where he wrestled with God, saw His face, and then saw that same face reflected in his estranged brother Esau. The vertical and the horizontal are inseparable.
Living Today With Eternity in View
Our citizenship is in heaven (Phil. 3:20). We are pilgrims here. The end of all things is at hand, and Peter calls us to be serious and watchful in prayer. Letting eternity shape our daily priorities is not escapism -- it is the most grounded way to live.
The Day He Appears
We will see Jesus. Not as a concept. Not as a theology. We will see His face, hear His voice, and know that every prayer was heard, every trial was worth it, every moment of faithfulness was seen.
The Bride and the Holy City
God gives us John's vision not so we can map the architecture of heaven but so our hearts burn with anticipation rather than grow cold with waiting. Both the city and the people are called the bride -- an intimate, permanent, unbreakable union between God and His redeemed.
The Greatest Blessing of Heaven
The greatest blessing is not the absence of pain or the beauty of the new earth. It is Jesus Himself -- to follow the Lamb, to have His name written on our foreheads, to think of Him always. The Shepherd who leads us here will lead us there to living fountains of waters (Rev. 7:17).
Jacob and the Face of God
Jacob wrestled with God at Peniel and named the place God's face. Then he saw that same face in his estranged brother Esau. The lesson is clear: we cannot truly long for heaven while treating our brothers and sisters with contempt. Love for God and love for one another are not two separate commands -- they are one.
Come!
The last invitation of the Bible is Come -- the Spirit, the bride, and every hearer joining the call. The last promise is Surely I am coming quickly. From our perspective, as soon as we close our eyes in death, the next thing we know will be His return. Even so, come, Lord Jesus.
Christ Connection
He who began a good work in you will complete it (Phil. 1:6). God initiated this relationship, sustained it through every lesson of this quarter, and He will complete it. We rest not in our own record but in His righteousness, credited to us by faith.
Applications
1. Live today as a citizen of heaven -- let eternity shape your priorities, patience, and compassion.
2. Pray the prayer of Psalm 80 as your daily longing: Restore us, cause Your face to shine, and we shall be saved.
3. Ask God to help you see His face in the people around you -- especially those who are difficult to love.
4. Share the hope of heaven with someone this week -- you cannot give what you do not personally have.
5. End every day with the prayer of the early church: Even so, come, Lord Jesus.
Discussion / Reflection Questions
- Psalm 80 pictures God's people crying How long? to a God who seems silent -- yet its refrain still calls for restoration and trust. What does that tension between lament and faith reveal about what a mature relationship with God actually looks like?
- Jacob wrestled with God at Peniel and then saw that same face reflected in his brother Esau. What does this connection between our vertical relationship with God and our horizontal relationships with others say about the nature of genuine spiritual growth?
- The lesson says the greatest blessing of heaven is not the absence of pain or even reunion with loved ones -- it is Jesus Himself. Why do we so often default to secondary blessings when we think about eternity, and what does that reveal about where our hearts actually are?
- EGW writes that human language is inadequate to describe the reward of the righteous -- no finite mind can comprehend it. Given that we cannot fully imagine what God has prepared, how does hope in something we cannot picture actually function in our daily lives?
- The last word of Scripture is essentially a two-way Come -- Jesus says I am coming quickly, and the church answers Come, Lord Jesus. What does it mean for the church's mission between now and His return that both sides of that exchange are calling to one another?