What does it mean that we have eternity in our hearts?
Ecclesiastes 3:11
ESV - 11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also, he has put eternity into man's heart, yet so that he cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end.
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Asked September 23 2015
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Anonymous (via GotQuestions)
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S. Michael Houdmann
Supporter
Ecclesiastes 3:11 states God has "set eternity in the human heart." In every human soul is a God-given awareness that there is "something more" than this transient world. And with that awareness of...
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Grant Abbott
Supporter
God created human beings with a body, soul and spirit. The bible often uses the word "heart" to describe the inner non-physical person which is our soul and spirit combined. Our spirit was created in the image of God. He is an eternal spiritual being and made us to be like him. Our soul was created in the image of God. He has an eternal mind, will and emotions and made us to be like him. Our body was created in the image of God. He created a physical dwelling for our souls and spirits to live forever in the perfect world he created. We forfeited that eternal bodily life and perfect world when our first human beings fell into sin. Now human beings are born spiritually dead. Our bodies are filled with the cancer of sin and quickly die. Our souls are corrupted by the culture of our world under the dominion of evil authorities. I believe God placed eternity in our hearts as a magnet to draw us to himself. If we come to understand that this corrupt and dying world is not the place God intended us to live then we will search for something else. That search will lead us to the gospel of Jesus Christ revealed in the bible. Through the human life, ministry, suffering, death and resurrection of Jesus, God is making everything new. When we accept Jesus as our personal saviour, our spirit is born again, by the Holy Spirit coming to live within us. God begins the process of renewing our minds through the truth of the bible. We gradually understand and surrender to God's good, pleasing and perfect will. God broke the power of evil in our lives through the death of Jesus. The evil desires of our flesh are gradually broken and crucified each time we choose to obey the will of God. The Holy Spirit moulds and shapes our emotional natures to produce the fruit of the Spirit - love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. When Jesus comes again we will receive our new resurrection bodies, created eternally perfect for life on the New Earth that God will create. God created us with this eternal desire to know him and be in a personal relationship with him. We begin that relationship by accepting his salvation. As we surrender our lives to him, we experience eternity in our hearts and our God created desires are fulfilled - even though the world around us is still corrupt and dying.
Jack Gutknecht
Supporter
Ecclesiastes 3:11 (ESV, one of my favorite translations to memorize from) says: "He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also, he has put eternity into man’s heart, yet so that he cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end." This verse spotlights two profound truths: 1. God’s Sovereign Timing and Beauty "He has made everything beautiful in its time." This means that God orchestrates all events in life according to His perfect plan. Even when things seem chaotic or painful, they are ultimately being woven into something beautiful in God's timing. We may not always understand why things happen the way they do, but God sees the full picture. What may seem broken now will reveal its purpose in time. Singer Rebecca St. James wrote this song released in 2024 called "You Make Everything Beautiful" Song by FOR KING + COUNTRY and Rebecca St. James ‧ 2024 and it's woven superbly into the movie "Unsung Hero" which I am pleasantly watching. See it. 2. The Eternity in Our Hearts "He has put eternity into man’s heart." This speaks to our deep, God-given longing for something beyond this world—something infinite, eternal, and divine. Unlike animals, we humans are aware of time, the future, and the idea of something greater than ourselves. This longing is why people seek meaning, purpose, and God Himself. However, the second part of the verse reminds us that while we have this eternal longing, we cannot fully comprehend God’s ways. What This Means for Us We can trust that God is working everything out in His perfect timing, even when we don’t see it yet. Our longing for eternity should lead us to seek God, because only He can fulfill that desire. Though we can’t fully grasp God’s plan, we can rest in His wisdom and sovereignty. This verse encourages us to trust in God’s timing and to set our hearts on eternity, rather than just the temporary things of this world.
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