Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.
From this description, you can see why everyone would want to go to heaven.
I can think of some reasons why some people (notice I didn't write 'everyone' because I truly believe some do not wish to go to heaven - they'd rather cease to exist or go to hell and spend eternity away from God):
1. Some people don't want to die because they will leave their loved ones behind. Of course, this is a reality each one of us will have to face. As Christians, it is also the motivation to spread the gospel to as many of our friends and family as possible. So when we die, we will do so knowing that our loved ones will eventually join us in the perfect community of heaven.
2. Some people are not afraid of dying and going to heaven. Rather, they are afraid of the way in which they will die.
3. Some people like the IDEA of heaven (i.e. "a better place"), but in their hearts, they believe that their life on Earth IS HEAVEN. Perhaps they are healthy, rich and powerful and do not wish to leave all of that behind. Sadly, many people in our culture believe this. They want to earn lots of money, build a good career, have a great family and save up for an early retirement. Yet they forget that life is short, fragile and does not end with physical death. It continues forever. Where they spend forever, however, depends upon their relationship with Jesus in this present life. See Luke 12:13-21.
[Answered by Pastor HM]
