Hi Everyone!
I've been working so hard to finish up my quarter and haven't had a lot of time to post, but I wanted to upload a paper that I wrote on heaven. I read Rob Bell's new book Love Wins and N.T. Wright's book Surprised by Hope and compared the two. The second half of the paper is work that I put in from the personal study I did looking at some different biblical texts. I hope you enjoy and would love to hear your imput! As we talked in class this quarter, the working out of theology is to be done WITHIN the context of community, and not just by some brilliant minds off by themselves in dusty libraries. Merry Christmas!!!
Heaven is a subject of great intrigue and fascination by many, and has led me to further study on the issue. I hope to provide a short and helpful resource to those who are searching for a better understanding on the topic. I will be using Rob Bell’s new book, Love Wins, and comparing it with N.T. Wright’s, Surprised by Hope, as it pertains to heaven. The third component will be the use of scripture to outline and then formulate a helpful working definition of heaven. Finally, I hope to offer a theology of heaven (and the future to come) that will help define the practices of our Christian faith in the here and now.
Love Wins
Rob Bell’s work Love Wins, is not meant to be a theological work or doctrine, but offers up questions that lead to assumptions on the topics of heaven, hell, and finally to what Bell believes to be the good news of the gospel. His chapter “Here Is the New There” is his main section on the topic of heaven. Bell begins by writing about widely held assumptions of heaven.
Heaven is firstly, somewhere else.[1] It is a realm beyond our physical world, it is understood as a place where people will be floating in the clouds wearing white and being in the presence of God. Secondly, it is understood as a place where some people will not be.[2] Heaven is seen as “the excluded place”, where people who are deemed to have lived good lives are given access and all others are excluded. Heaven is a place reserved for a select group of people, where God will dwell, and can be found in a different place than our physical world.
Bell’s primary text is the story found in Luke 18 of a rich young ruler who approached Jesus.[3] He wanted to inherit eternal life, and so Jesus told him to sell all his possessions and he would. In verse thirty, Jesus uses the phrase; “age, and age to come.” “Aion” is the term for age and can mean a period of time with a beginning and an end.[4] Therefore, the present age has a beginning and an end. Jesus saw the present as an age to end and therefore a new one would begin at some point in time. The beginning of the next age was the beginning of eternal life.
The age to come as Jesus would expand upon was one the prophets spoke about. The famous “Day of the Lord”, which is referenced throughout the New and Old testaments would be the event ushering in the next age. Bell makes the important distinction that the next age is very earth like in nature. Eternal life is therefore, when God makes everything right here on earth. Heaven is not a place people will go, but heaven is here now.[5] The Jewish thought would have been on a renewal of the present world, and not a transportation of our bodies to another place.
Therefore, as Jesus spoke to the rich young ruler in Luke 18, Jesus was inviting the man to begin living like heaven was here now. He had to give up his greed and idolatry of money and then he would be free. To support the argument, Revelation 21 states that God is coming down to dwell with humanity, and Jesus’ prayer, that God’s will would be done on earth as in heaven implied that earth and heaven would one day meet.[6]
To Bell, Jesus blurred the lines between this age and the age to come, eternal life. He writes, “To say again, eternal life is less about a kind of time that starts when we die, and more about a quality and vitality of life lived now in connection to God.”[7] Heaven and earth are to become one, and Jesus invited the rich young ruler to experience heaven in the present moment. If he had laid down his idolatry he could have experienced what life would be like in the age to come. Heaven, for Bell, is not some other realm, but a reality that can be realized now, and will come in fullness with the next age. Renewal of the current world is the goal for people as they wait for the full renewal when God comes. Heaven is close to everyone, and everyone comes closer to it as they get rid of the idols they hold that keep themselves from worshipping God.
Surprised by Hope
The work of N.T. Wright’s Surprised By Hope, is a deeper development of eschatology. Wright spends a large amount of time working through the importance of the resurrection of Jesus to develop his theology of the future. Like Bell, but in further detail, Wright details the misguided views of heaven and climaxes with a story written by Maria Shriver that states; when a person dies, their body will be no more, and their spirit goes to be with God in heaven. Along with the misconceptions, he goes so far to state there is little in the Bible that speaks about a future heaven or hell at all.[8]
For Wright, the future begins with the resurrection of Jesus. The importance of that event shapes the beginning of a Christian’s hope. Jesus was resurrected not only in spirit, but in body. Jesus was raised from the dead and given a new body. The women close to Jesus were the first to see and then many others were witness to seeing Jesus in physical form after death. Therefore, Jesus is now in heaven, a different place than what we can see now, and still continues in his physical body. This idea of two physical dimensions can be hard to grasp for many with post-enlightenment minds.[9] Jesus did not cease being physical at his ascension, but went to another heaven, which is another physical place.
The implications of the resurrection lead into the ideas of heaven for Wright. Jesus in his physical form is waiting to come and restore the earth and make it new. He argues for eschatological dualism, which is a contrast between this age and the age to come, the same distinction made by Bell, and not ontological dualism, an evil world and a good heaven.[10] The problems lie in this world being twisted because of evil. Evil has put the world out of order and so hope lies in God coming and once again restoring order.
Wright uses a number of verses from the New Testament to support his argument about what heaven really is and at the same time denounces the current views held by many. He begins with Philippians chapter three. The term, “citizens of heaven” refers not to one day entrance into another state and place, but implies the position people hold now. Citizenship simply means our identity resides with God and in him. One day, God will come to visit and transform our bodies, not transporting us, but transforming us.
Secondly, the phrase, “all in all”, from 1 Corinthians 15 is the Christians future hope that God will one day fill everything with his presence. The prophet Isaiah references a new creation coming in chapters 65 and 66, highlighting that God is going to pour out his presence over all he has already created.[11] His presence will fill and restore everything.
One of the words for presence in the New Testament is “parousia.” The first century believers would have understood the usage of the word, which can be developed into two meanings.[12] The first meaning was the mysterious presence of a god, and was linked to divine healing.[13] The second meaning held the idea of “a royal presence”, such as when a king or president would visit a place. So in 1 Thessalonians 4:15 where it states believers will rise to meet Jesus in the air, at his coming (parousia), would mean Jesus is coming to meet us in his second coming, not us leaving to meet him. The meaning leads more to the presence of the divine in the moment, and also a future hope for a visit from the divine.[14] Therefore, when Jesus comes on the clouds in 4:15, he is coming to stay, not to take people away. Believers will meet Jesus in the air, and then return to restore the earth.
The climax for Wright comes in Revelation 21. The picture of a new earth coming down out of heaven supports the earlier arguments about citizenship and relates directly to the spirit of God dwelling on earth. Earth is the final destination for the city of God and it is the place his presence will dwell. He writes,
“What I am proposing is that the New Testament image of the future hope of the whole cosmos, grounded in the resurrection of Jesus, gives as coherent a picture as we need or could have of the future that is promised to the whole world, a future in which under the sovereign and wise rule of the creator God, decay and death will be done away with and a new creation born, to which the present one will stand as mother to child.”[15]
Both Wright and Bell agree that many Christians have wrong ideas about heaven as portrayed in the Bible. They both agree that heaven is not the believer’s future hope, but the world renewed. Wright places weight on the resurrection as the catalyst for the future hope whereas Bell places the greater actions and stories of Jesus as hints to the age to come. Bell softens the judgment to come (the day of the Lord) when Jesus returns and focuses on renewal of all things and all people. Wright disagrees and believes judgment is part of the initiation into the age to come.
Heaven Defined
While both Bell and Wright offer great broader views on the future hope of humanity, both their focuses were larger than the specific topic of heaven. Therefore a look at more specifics is needed to gain a definition of heaven. In the Bible, a number of words were used to describe heaven.
“Shamayam” and “maal” are two dominant Hebrew words in the Old Testament used by the writers to describe heaven. “Shamayam” has two definitions. One is the sky above including the atmosphere and stars, and the other was is the dwelling place of God. So the word has a double meaning. The word “maal” is similar and can mean above, or the higher part, but also can mean the higher place where God dwells.
In the Greek, “ouranos” is the dominant word and means the vaulted expanse, sky above, and also includes the double meaning; where God dwells. So, for the numerous authors, the Bible treats the heavens as the sky and stars and universe as one heaven and yet with the same word gives meaning to another place where God dwells. Heaven therefore can mean simply the stars and sky but also mean the place where God lives. Along with the words for heaven, Jesus referenced heaven in his statements.
In the gospel of Matthew, Jesus uses the term “kingdom of heaven” which is Matthew’s way of respecting the Jewish tradition by not using the name of God. Therefore, Matthew was saying the same thing when the other gospel writers were writing “kingdom of God”. So the kingdom of God and the kingdom of heaven were synonymous to Matthew. When Jesus came to earth, heaven broke through and became a present reality.[16] Jesus was bringing the kingdom of God with him.
In further defining heaven in 2 Peter 3:10-13, the current world will have to be judged, and therefore purified. The purification goes so far that Jesus states in Matthew 5:18, “the heavens and earth will pass away”. This will happen not as a finale, but as a beginning. In Revelation 21, both Bell and Wright rely on the fact that God’s ultimate plan is to descend into our world. God’s space called heaven will invade completely and become one with the current earth and universe. One day the two worlds will be integrated completely and be fully visible to one another, producing that transformation of which Paul, John (and Peter) speak.[17] The two worlds will not only meet, but 2 Peter 3:12 states, humanity gets to help hasten its coming. Humanity is given the opportunity to participate in God’s new world coming. Following with the rest of the Bible’s narrative, God shares the story with his people.
Furthermore, an important picture of heaven is that of a bank. Jesus said in Matthew 6:20 that believers who began to obey him would store up treasures in heaven. Following the thinking developed by Wright as citizens of heaven, storing up treasures would not mean Christians are to have their treasure stored in heaven without implications of one day dwelling there for eternity. When Jesus spoke about preparing a place for believers in heaven, the words are terms of temporary residence, not permanent.[18] The metaphor of a bank might be helpful at this point. Heaven is like a bank because the actions of people store up increasing treasure. The bank is a place people go for a short while to make deposits, to invest, but not to stay permanently. Many people understand storing up treasure in heaven to that of a retirement community. The new earth is meant to be our permanent home, and the place where God dwells now, heaven, is the storehouse for the spiritual reality of believer’s faith and action on the earth. The Lord’s Prayer begins to make sense in this light. Let the reality of heaven be experienced now on earth.
So what happens when a person dies? What role does heaven have in life after death? A number of passages speak to the topic. Beginning with the end goal, Paul writes that believers will experience the same kind of resurrection of Jesus (1 Cor. 15:23-24). Jesus was the first to rise, and so believers will come after to firstly be judged, and then to reign with Christ. Again, in Romans 8:11, Paul writes that God will give life to our bodies.[19] So, the future goal is to have new bodies that are like Jesus’ body (Phil. 3:21). Until the Day of Judgment, many scriptures reference the body being at rest, asleep, and as Jesus said to the thief on the cross, in paradise. Paul wrote that to be with Christ would be much better than continuing to live, and so Wright argues that the “sleep state” written about, means the body is “asleep” in the sense of “dead”, while the real person – however we want to describe him or her – continues.[20] This state is where the dead are held firmly within the conscious love of God and presence of Jesus while they await the day they will receive their new bodies.[21]
To bring together all these ideas, heaven beyond its earthly meaning describes the place where God is. Heaven is where God’s presence dwells, and in another way to understand it, is where God’s purposes for the future are stored up.[22] Heaven is another dimension that is beyond what people can sense or experience now. Heaven, because of the resurrection of Jesus, is also physical. Lastly, heaven is a temporary place of dwelling for humanity, where believers are surrounded by the love and embrace of God, until he ushers in the age to come.
Practical Implications
Beginning with a warped understanding that has plagued the church since its inception, the reality of a physical resurrection, and a new heavens and earth, Gnosticism (which is the elevation of spirit over matter), is defeated. Christian believers can embrace the creation. What God created in the beginning was good, and continues to be good. Heaven is not a place of spirit only, but of creation filled with the spirit entirely. Creation becomes what it was supposed to be and the natural world can connect us to God. Enjoyment of what God has given us can be embraced. Sex within marriage, a hike up a mountain peak, a Thanksgiving dinner made with hours of care, can all become things that bring us into the presence of God. Heaven is not only a place for our spirits, but it is a place for our bodies to become new again. The hope of eternity is placed within the greater story of a God who is redeeming and restoring what he created.
This restoration that God has in store is different from both Wright’s and Bell’s perspective. Both argue for a restoration theology.[23] Wright writes, “But when the New Testament strikes the great Easter bell, the main resonances it set up are not simply about ourselves and about whatever future world God is ultimately going to make, when heaven and earth are joined together and renewed at last from top to bottom.”[24] Bell writes, “Central to their vision of human flourishing in God’s renewed world, then, was the prophets’ announcement that a number of things that can survive in this world will not be able to survive in the world to come.”[25] Again, Bell writes, “they did not talk about a future life somewhere else, because they anticipated a coming day when the world would be restored, renewed, and redeemed and there would be peace on earth.”[26]
In contrast, the wording in a number of verses leads to a different conclusion starting in 2 Peter 3:10. Peter writes, the current heavens and earth “shall pass away” by burning up. Twice in Matthew and also once in Mark and Luke, Jesus says that heaven and earth “shall pass away”, but the word will endure forever. Again, in Revelation 21, John saw a new heaven and earth, but not until the old had “passed away”. The word for pass away is the Greek word “parerchomai”. It means to come to an end, as in a log in a stream passing by and being gone; ceasing to exist. The world as Jesus, Peter, and John stated, must pass away before the new age could come. The Day of Judgment must come as all the prophets attest to. Finally, Paul uses the same word in 2 Corinthians as he wrote about our new creation in Christ. He wrote, the old has “passed away, parerchomai” and the new has come. The wording is very clear. The heavens and earth, the present age, must fully come to an end before God can usher in the age to come, eternity. Until then, believers hope and wait patiently and faithfully
Believers have yet another tool as they wait. Peter writes in 3:11-12 that “You ought to live holy and Godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming”. Believers are given the opportunity to help bring the day closer. The first clause is connected to the second. Believers can hasten the day by living holy lives. Even within an event that only God the father knows in regards to timing, he allows people of faith to participate and be involved in the story. Heaven is nearer to becoming a reality as the people of God live holy and blameless lives.
Another practical application to living with God in new bodies on a new earth is the joy that believers can have now. No matter what is going on in the present, the future hope of humanity is exciting and all of creation is anticipating the day. The current suffering will one day give way to a time where God’s love will surround believers in a state and place that is preparing for the new age. The new age will be exciting primarily because God’s presence and our very being will be closer than in all of history. Secondarily, the age to come is exciting because it will include a physical world. The creation known today will only be enhanced and put in order. Believers get to look forward to reigning with Jesus and enjoying the many things that were here on earth.
Because of this enjoyment, the church is called to proclaim the story of Easter. Wright concludes that the church should begin week long celebrations on Easter to demonstrate the joy that is being realized and that is to come. He concludes that the joy of our future hope is hard to live and realize when it is not participated in and celebrated more often.[27] The good news is much more than a life insurance policy, it is to become part of God’s master plan. The great redemption plan of God is in motion and there is an opportunity for believers to participate and celebrate.[28]
The participation of believers becomes not a chore to be done, or a work that leads to salvation, but a deposit into the age to come’s bank. The direct link between faith and works becomes part of the hope of heaven and all that is done will not go unrewarded. The sacrifices made in this life will become reality and multiplied in the next as Jesus said, “if you love me, you will obey my commands.” The future is bright because God has a plan of redemption for humanity, and the great and amazing wonders on earth will only be multiplied as creation is fully ordered and redeemed.
