Heaven

If Christians actually understood the prize at the end of the road, if we could comprehend just how great heaven is going to be, maybe we would get so enthused that we actually tell someone!

My Dad used to ask me to mow the lawn, typically once a week, especially during the summer. Me, being a cocky little kid would think, "what's in it for me." It didn't take long before my Dad had to bribe me if he wanted the lawn mowed. $10 would usually get it done. Suddenly, a boring chore like mowing the lawn became exciting, because I had 10 bucks to look forward to.

It wasn't until recently that my view on heaven took on a similar transformation. I've spent many nights awake in bed, thinking about eternity. This is odd behavior I'm pretty sure, but I know others who have done the same. Thinking about something that has no end is creepy. It's like, wow, heaven just keeps on going, and going, and going. I figured it's probably better than hell, because that's what people tell you, but a never ending church service didn't sound too appealing. This picture kinda sums up how heaven sounded to me.

My Mom mentioned a book called Heaven by Randy Alcorn. I read it, and everything I thought about heaven changed. Now, I'm excited about eternity, and while I'd prefer it not start tomorrow, when the day comes, I know it's going to be great. I don't know if Alcorn is accurate on everything he has to say about heaven, but his main stance seems logical. Ultimately, heaven is going to be earth the way it was intended. It is going to be what we have today, MINUS SIN. This is called "the new earth." Prior to the last judgment, or the great battle, when God beats the crap out of Satan, we will be in a pre-resurrected state, assuming we are dead. This intermediate state is a temporary spot, and while it sounds like a big time upgrade over earth, it's only a glimpse of what the new earth is going to entail.

What's surprising is just how few Christians understand this concept. I sure didn't know what any of those terms meant, and I went to a 4 year Christian college. The reason for this, in my opinion, is because our picture of heaven is shaped by society, just like everything else. We remember movies, song lyrics, and everything else that is beat into our brains all week long, and the Bible's truths take a back seat. We forget what the Bible says about heaven. And apparently, there's a lot of good stuff in there about heaven. In the Heaven book, Alcorn tells this story:

"A pastor once confessed to me, 'Whenever I think about Heaven, it makes me
depressed. I’d rather just cease to exist when I die.'
'Why?' I asked.
'I can’t stand the thought of that endless tedium. To float around in the clouds with
nothing to do but strum a harp . . . it’s all so terribly boring. Heaven doesn’t sound much
better than Hell. I’d rather be annihilated than spend eternity in a place like that.'

Whether they confess it or not, I think a lot of Christians have this same thought in the back of their brain...

As a golfer, I used to wonder if every shot would be a hole-in-one in heaven. Alcorn addresses this question, and many more, in his book. He basically says, "what's sinful about a bogey, or hitting a bad shot?" Sin would be letting golf consume you to where it becomes an idol. It would be dropping an F bomb after that bogey, or getting drunk out on the course. But a bad golf shot? Nothing sinful about that. So ya, there's going to be golf, and because God loves seeing us develop, I'm sure the struggle to improve my game will continue in heaven. This is good news, because it means heaven is going to emphasize the things we love doing now. I'm not going to be married to my wife in heaven (see Matt. 22:30), but not only will I be able to recognize her, I'll bet she's my best friend. The idea of a new earth has been a relief to me, because as crappy as earth can be, I still like a bunch of places, like the ocean, and golf courses. It only makes sense that God won't take that from us. He's going to take marriage away, sure, but it is replaced by a marriage with him, which sounds weird, but it will be perfect. As a side note, I think that marriage, when it functions correctly, may be the closest glimpse to heaven that we have.

Finally, Alcorn shares this story in his book, and I really think it's a perfect illustration of how ridiculous it is that we, as Christians, don't study eternity a little more. After all, we have maybe 85 years or so on this earth, and then it's all eternity. On a timeline, our stay on earth is a small speck, so why not study what the eternity part is going to be like?

"Imagine you’re part of a NASA team preparing for a five-year mission to Mars.
After a period of extensive training, the launch date finally arrives. As the rocket lifts off,
one of your fellow astronauts says to you, “What do you know about Mars?”
Imagine shrugging your shoulders and saying, “Nothing. We never talked about it. I
guess we’ll find out when we get there."