"I don’t think that there can be any future for heaven or hell." Did you hear me, "I don’t think that there can be any future for heaven or hell" at least that’s what Gordon Kaufman a theologian from Harvard Divinity School believes. It would appear that mainstream Christianity has lost sight of eternal life. This is the 1990’s where liberal Christianity has embraced a God without an afterlife, and the new age movement with their belief in reincarnation has captured an afterlife without a god. But what about it? Is heaven just some quaint pie in the sky myth?
In recent years, as a knowledge of the death process has advanced through research, concern about heaven has receded. Part of that is our affluent society. It is slaves not freemen, the hungry not the well fed who find Heaven an appealing prospect. But does the fact that people don’t believe in heaven make it cease to exist? Because people could not comprehend an Australia 300 years ago did that mean there was no Australia. Just because as Australians you can’t comprehend what 50 below zero is like doesn’t change that fact that was the wind chill factor in eastern Canada last week. Just because the afterlife is not preached like it used to be doesn’t change it’s reality.
The problem exists in the fact that there’s nobody here who has seen heaven. And so when we ask what will heaven be like everyone has a different point of view. Rev. Sam Geli, a Chaplain at the Santa Monica Hospital medical centre says that for many paediatric cancer patients, heaven "is a place where they will no longer have to listen to Mom and Dad cry and fight, a place where they won’t have to come to the hospital for chemotherapy treatments." I would suspect that for the believer in Somalia it is a place where there is no hunger, for the believer in Croatia it is a place with no war, and for the old saint who is tired of fighting for life that it is a place of rest.
1) Heaven will be different then earth. We often seek to define and describe new things in old and familiar terms that is why north American Indians called the steam train the iron horse, why the first car was called a horseless carriage. Twenty years ago if somebody sat you down in front of a personal computer and asked you what it was how would you have described it? As a television with a typewriter plugged into a bread box. Heaven is the eternal dwelling place of God, it is self produced and uncreated. In the beginning the Bible says God created the heavens and the earth. But that is not the dwelling place of God that Moses is writing about, that’s the skies, the atmosphere and the stratosphere and all the other spheres. And while the Bible contains descriptions of streets of Gold and gates of pearl, they are an attempt by finite man to describe something infinite. Try to get you average grade three to explain calculus and you get an idea of the difficulty of the chore of defining heaven. We live in a world governed by the second law of thermo dynamics which says that everything moves toward disorder. Our world and everything in our world ages and deteriorates. That is why as you get older you need glasses, a hearing aid, a cane. Heaven on the other hand is as perfect as it has always been. People wouldn’t age, so if they won’t age what age will they be stuck at, the age they died? That may be alright for Elaine MacKenzie who died when she was 19 but what about Percy Lyons who died when he was 81? No, no, no pastor, you see everyone will be a perfect age. What is a perfect age, I kind of liked 15, but maybe it will be 8.
If you had the opportunity to explain our world to a pre-born child still in the womb how would you do it? Let’s get into the picture, you are one of a pair of twins, and you have been given this special knowledge of what’s outside, don’t ask how you got that knowledge just trust me. And as the holder of that knowledge you need to convince your womb mate that the outside world is a much better and desirable place to exist then inside the womb. You Ok. You still with me. I am sure that he would object that the idea of an earth outside the womb as being ridiculous, after all the womb is the only earth that he knows.
How would you explain that there would come a day that he would live in a greatly expanded environment and breathe air. Hah he would be even more sceptical. Air, the pre-born child lives in and breathes water. How could he imagine being able to live in air. To the pre born child the transition to this world would seem an impossibility. It would take birth to prove the earths existence to the pre-born child. A little pain, a big shove, a gasp of air and, and the whole wide world. Green grass, blue skies, laps, lakes, the ocean, horses, (Can you imagine explaining a horse to a foetus?), rainbows, walking, running, surfing. With enough room that you don’t have to shove and an entire universe beside.
However if we spend our time focusing on what we don’t know about heaven we will miss the ultimate truths that the Bible records concerning Heaven.
2) Heaven is a place. Have you ever heard "Heaven is simply a state of being"? Some scholars feel that all reality will just dissolve into a haze. I only have one word for them, WRONG. The Biblical concept of heaven consistently uses terms and descriptions which denote place as well as condition. It’s not just wonderful it is a wonderful place. Remember the Scripture that Phil read this morning, John 14:2-3 2 There are many rooms in my Father’s house. I wouldn’t tell you this, unless it was true. I am going there to prepare a place for each of you. 3 After I have done this, I will come back and take you with me. Then we will be together.
For years and years heaven was thought of as up there. In 1994 people laugh at that concept "how quaint" they say "we know there’s no heaven up there now because we have seen the utter most reaches of space and it wasn’t there." But to think that we have seen all there is to see in space is an ignorance that borders on arrogance. Since the last shuttle trip which repaired the Hubble space telescope scientist are seeing more of space than they ever imagined. And that is only a small portion of what lies out there. We may not know where heaven is, but the Bible leaves no doubt that it is somewhere and it is a some place.
3) We can go to that place. The next question has to be "well if it is a some place and it is somewhere how do we find it?" Good question. But not real original, you see Thomas asked that very question of Jesus in John 14:5 Thomas said, "Lord, we don’t even know where you are going! How can we know the way?"
And the answer that Jesus gave Thomas is the answer that Jesus gives you and everybody like you because he responds by saying in John 14:6 "I am the way, the truth, and the life!" Jesus answered. "Without me, no one can go to the Father.
Jesus is saying at that point that there is only one path that leads to heaven. He says I am the way, the way where? the way to God, and where is God? In heaven. And so That one Scripture is all the Biblical evidence that we need when confronted by universalist who say "But surely everybody is going to heaven". Guess again. The Scriptures are very clear that well heaven is a reality, and heaven is a place, not everybody is going to that place. For example John tells us in chapter 3:36 Everyone who has faith in the Son has eternal life. But no one who rejects him will ever share in that life, and God will be angry with them forever.
Now the truth of the matter is that we are all going to live forever, but not at the same address. You see heaven is not the only place that Jesus talked about, He tells us in Matthew 25:41
41 Then the king will say to those on his left, "Get away from me! You are under God’s curse. Go into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels!
So you might say that heaven is going to be exclusive, Jesus confirms that when he says in Matthew 7:13-14 Go in through the narrow gate. The gate to destruction is wide, and the road that leads there is easy to follow. A lot of people go through that gate. 14 But the gate to life is very narrow. The road that leads there is so hard to follow that only a few people find it.
When Christ spoke to Nicodemus who was a righteous Jew, a good religious man, He indicated that those things alone, being a good religious man were not enough to get Nicodemus into heaven. John records the conversation that took place in John 3:3 Jesus replied, "I tell you for certain that you must be born from above before you can see God’s kingdom!"
You see the Prophet Isaiah could have been writing about Nicodemus when he said in Isaiah Isaiah 64:6 6 We are unfit to worship you; each of our good deeds is merely a filthy rag.
We dry up like leaves; our sins are storm winds sweeping us away. You say that isn’t a very nice thing to say about Nicodemus, maybe not but there’s worse to come because Nicodemus was probably a lot more religious and a lot more righteous then us, and Jesus said that Nicodemus wasn’t going to get to heaven all by himself, so what type of chance do you think you have. None. but Jesus makes the difference because Paul writes in Ephesians 2:8-9 You were saved by faith in God, who treats us much better than we deserve. This is God’s gift to you, and not anything you have done on your own. 9 It isn’t something you have earned, so there is nothing you can brag about. You see works aint gonna do it, not for you and not for Nicodemus. But Paul says they don’t have to because it is the grace of God that saves you. But only when you repent and accept the forgiveness that Jesus gives. He is the way, and He is the truth, and He is the light, and unless you go His way you won’t get to heaven.
4) There are some things that won’t be there! Now some of these are positive things and some are negative things. Some of the things that won’t be there we need to rejoice about. For example Revelation 21:4 He will wipe all tears from their eyes, and there will be no more death, suffering, crying, or pain. These things of the past are gone forever.
Like that should even cause a Wesleyan to shout, no death, no mourning, no crying, no tears. None of those things will be in Heaven. We won’t have to wear glasses or hearing aids, when we get up in the morning our backs won’t ache, we won’t need to sleep. I hate sleep, I figure that sleep is the biggest waste of eight hours ever thought of. That is heaven, if heaven was nothing else that would be heaven to be free of all those things that make us human. Philippians 3:21 talks about Jesus when Paul writes, has power over everything, and he will make these poor bodies of ours like his own glorious body. The thought is that when we get to heaven we will all have glorious bodies. Fair enough but what is a glorious body. Well you know pastor it’s like, forget it. In 1998 we know what a glorious body is, right Elle MacPherson or Mel Gibson but to people of two hundred years ago a 1998 glorious body would look like it verging on starvation. And do you really think that what we think is a glorious body, tall slender and blond would appeal to a short dark race like the Inuit for the unenlightened that is the politically correct term for Eskimos. They would think that Elle was a freak. Won’t it be a hoot if we get to heaven and a glorified body looks like Danny Davito and Rhea Pearlman. Maybe God has a sense of humour, maybe when bigots get to heaven they’ll be black. The fact is that we don’t know what a glorified body will be like but we do know that in God’s sight it will be perfect, and because we are told that the imperfect will disappear all of our imperfect concepts of beauty.
Along with there being no pain, and no despair in heaven there’ll be no sin. John describes heaven in Rev 21:27 when he says But nothing unworthy will be allowed to enter. No one who is dirty-minded or who tells lies will be there. Only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life will be in the city. nothing unpure will enter it, no sins nor immorality, no blasphemy. But Rev. 21 :27 has a bittersweet taste about it and you have to view it with mixed emotions. You all know what mixed emotions are right, the feeling you have as you watch your mother in law go over a cliff in your brand new Mercedes. The reason that Revelation 21:27 is bitter sweet is because of the last part of the passage, But nothing unworthy will be allowed to enter. No one who is dirty-minded or who tells lies will be there. Only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life will be in the city. nothing unpure will enter it, no sins nor immorality, no blasphemy. You see the bottom line is that only those who have accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour will be in heaven. That means that some of you aren’t going to make it. It means that every one of us are going to have friends and family, maybe parents or children that won’t be in heaven, and there is only one other alternative and that is hell, and once you are in hell there is no getting out.
What that ought to do is give you a real burden for the souls of those people, when was the last time you wept over the fact that someone you cared for was unsaved. There’s two reasons people share the gospel, the first is out of guilt, you know you get a bad case of the ought-tos, but then you are sharing the Gospel so that you will feel better not so they’ll get to heaven. The second reason is the valid one and you share the gospel because you love and care for someone and it breaks your heart that they might end up in a Christless eternity.
Some Christians seem almost tickled at the thought of sinners in hell. But it broke Jesus’ heart, and I’m not sure that he’d be particularly impressed knowing that some people are gloating over the fact.
2) There are other things that will be there. God’s throne will be there, and so shall Jesus. Listen to what John writes in Revelation 22:3-5 God’s curse will no longer be on the people of that city. He and the Lamb will be seated there on their thrones, and its people will worship God 4 and will see him face to face. God’s name will be written on the foreheads of the people. 5 Never again will night appear, and no one who lives there will ever need a lamp or the sun. The Lord God will be their light, and they will rule forever.
Along with seeing God and Christ our relationships will be perfect and we’ll see each other in perfection instead of through the sin stained eyes. Paul wrote in 1 Thessalonians 2:19 After all, when the Lord Jesus appears, who else but you will give us hope and joy and be like a glorious crown for us? Will there be anyone in heaven because of you? When you get to heaven think of how neat it will be when someone rushes up and says "do you know the only reason I am here is because of you? Because of your life, or your actions or your words I gave my life to the Lord. " Wow! Bet that will blow you away.
Hey preacher will we know each other in Heaven, sure you will Jesus said in Matthew 8:11
11 Many people will come from everywhere to enjoy the feast in the kingdom of heaven with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Hey if we know Abraham, Isaac and Jacob we’ll know each other. There will be perfect knowledge, you won’t get a name tag when you arrive, "Hello, my name is Denn". Instead you will be known by everyone and everyone will know you. You will know Phil Manley from Truro as well as you know your best friend from here.
The Biblical descriptions of heaven are of a place of great beauty. John talks about walls of precious stones, streets of gold and gates of pearl. I don’t know how gold will stand up for road construction but the concept is that in heaven something as valuable as gold is as commonplace as bitumen is on earth. We will never in our wildest dreams be able to conceive of the beauty of heaven. Our finite minds just aren’t capable of seeing heaven, but there will come a day that we shall see it, or at least I know I will, I hope you will too.
If I was going to give a theological definition of heaven I would have to say that "the eternal pre existent domain of God manifests itself in a manner of stupefaction. It is suffused with the resplendence and unmerited compassion exhibited through the redemptive provision of Christ." In English that means, Heaven is a wonderful place, it’s filled with glory and grace.
