Eternity

Beyond Time

To say eternity is a long time is true, but inaccurate. Simply because eternity is outside the realm of time. Eternity transcends time and space. Time is limited. Eternity is not. We see things in a finite way. We see beginnings and we see endings. We see flowers come and we see them go. We see people born and we see them die - beginnings and endings. All this happens while the clock ticks and we fully grasp that.

Can we truly understand eternity?

Possibly from a few metaphors.

The Brothers Grimm

Bird of Eternity

The Shepherd Boy

This tale included the "bird of eternity" parable in their tale. The story defines eternity through a bird sharpening its beak on a diamond mountain.

The King said: "The third question is, how many seconds of time are there in eternity." Then said the shepherd boy: "In Lower Pomerania is the Diamond Mountain, which is two miles and a half high, two miles and a half wide, and two miles and a half in depth; every hundred years a little bird comes and sharpens its beak on it, and when the whole mountain is worn away by this, then the first second of eternity will be over."

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Count the Grains

Sahara Desert​

The Sahara Desert is 3.6 Million Square Miles

Some researchers estimate that the Sahara Desert contains 8 octillion grains of sand. A thousand trillion trillion.

8 followed by 27 zeros.

8,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000

If one were to count all of the grains of sand in the Sahara Desert, one grain at a time, after the last grain is counted, one second of eternity has yet to pass.

These are just two metaphors about the reality of eternity.

Eternity is infinite.

Eternity is beyond time.

Eternity has no end.

Forever is the ongoing reality of eternity.

For the Believer in Christ

And so we will be with the Lord forever.

1 Thessalonians ​4:17

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