Short answer: YES

Here’s why…

Eternity is a difficult word to grasp and fully understand, and I’m not sure we can in this bodily form. The word eternal means perpetual or everlasting, i.e. never-ending. God Himself is eternal, having always existed and who has no end.

The truth is that whilst we never eternally existed from time past, we will live forever when we leave this earth – It’s our state that will matter. We have the choice to experience eternal punishment or eternal life with God in Heaven. The following verse in Matthew says: Matthew 25:46 “And these (ungodly) shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous (i.e. Born-again Christians) into life eternal.”

Revelation chapter 21 describes in part what believers can expect in the not so distant future when God himself will dwell with us. Revelation 21:3 “And I heard a great voice out of Heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God Himself shall be with them, and be their God. (4) And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be anymore pain: for the former things are passed away.”

In Revelation 21 we also read a description of the new Heavenly city of Jerusalem. This is a literal place that is beyond our comprehension in beauty and grandeur. It’s a city created entirely from transparent gold and adorned with precious stones. Its twelve massive gates are made from a single pearl each (hence the saying “pearly gates”). The holy city is unimaginably huge, being 1500miles cubed. The following chapter goes on to describe this ‘Heavenly realm’ in even more detail.

What an honour and privilege for those who love God to be able to dwell with Him for eternity. But those who reject God and His offer of salvation in Jesus Christ will be given exactly what they want – an eternity without God or His abundant blessings: Revelation 21:8 “But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone.”