Thinking About Heaven

I have been thinking a lot about heaven lately.  Three different events have kept my mind spinning on the subject. The first was a funeral I officiated this morning for a non-church member.  The funeral home called and needed a pastor for a family. They did not have a church but at one time she was a Methodist. When I asked the family about her faith background, they said it really was not important to her. She believed in God and in an afterlife.  I realized that most of my resources for funerals used very "churchy" language. It refers constantly to the hope we have in Jesus Christ. How do I remain authentic with someone who does not share in that hope? The second event is a class on Islam we are hosting at our church. A Muslim presenter is teaching a four week class on the basics of Islam. His belief is that God has sent prophets throughout history (ending with Muhammad) with one simple message. Submit totally to God through worship. If you do this, then you will go to heaven. I do not claim to be an expert on Islam so I am paraphrasing what I heard, but it made me wonder if this is the same message we find in Christianity. Finally, I have been intrigued by the discussion from my post on Evangelism. Is the purpose of evangelism to get people to heaven or does Jesus have a broader purpose for humanity?

So here is my question, when did Christianity become so focused on heaven and the after life as the ultimate goal for a relationship with God? In the modern world we have often narrowed our faith to a four step process that ultimately leads to life after death. We use the fear of death as a tool for inviting people into a relationship with God through Christ, but is that the primary message of our faith? If we seriously study the Bible, what do we find about heaven and eternal life. In the Hebrew Bible, the concept of heaven is barely developed. The heavens are mentioned often, but more often as a place for the stars, the sun and the moon. In fact the word is almost always used in its plural form, the heavens, to indicate that which is above the earth. There is the idea that God dwells in the heavens, but little talk about an after-life. By the time of Jesus, the Jews did have a concept of a general resurrection, but it was not universally accepted. The Pharisees believed that they would be resurrected at the end of time, but the Saducees thought when life ended, that was it.

But what about Jesus, didn't he come to show us the way to heaven, to eternal life? Yes, but was that his primary purpose. In Matthew's gospel, Jesus is constantly talking about the Kingdom of Heaven, but it is synonymous with the Kingdom of God in the other Gospels. As a good Jew, Matthew did not like to use the word for God, so he probably changed it. When asked when we could expect the coming of the Kingdom, Jesus responded by saying the Kingdom is already here, it among you (Luke 17:20-21). The word kingdom could also be translated as Empire of God and can easily be held in comparison to the Roman Empire at the time. Jesus came with the message that God's kingdom is not Rome's kingdom, but he also made it clear that God's kingdom is not just some other worldly place but is present among us.

Jesus also talked about eternal life, but I am not sure that he was just speaking about life after death. Greek has two words for life.  Bios as in biology talks about ordinary life, but Zoe is that life that is not ordinary. It is not transient or temporary but instead is that which transcends the ordinary and makes life worth living.  The word Zoe is often translated eternal life in the Gospel of John, but not always.  Sometimes it is just used to describe the kind of life that Jesus offers here on earth. When Jesus says, I am the way, and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me (John 14:6), the emphasis may not be on life after death. I believe it speaks to what Jesus offers to us today.

Don't misunderstand, I believe in life after death. I live with the hope that this world is not the end, but I also believe that God has greater purposes than a game of whose in and whose out. I don't think life is just a test and if I pass I get to go on to the next level. I believe that the eternal life God has to offer is a present reality. The Kingdom of God is here among us, around us, in us. We don't have to spend all of our time thinking about heaven, for the kingdom of Heaven is already here.

Comments

[shelly]

I've always been concerned when our relationship with Jesus Christ is offered like "fire insurance" from the firey pits of hell. I think that limits the vision of what God had planned in the gift of his son. It seems to me that God's vision was to open wide the concept of a fully connected and committed life to our creator.

[Ed]

A central preoccupation with the afterlife seems to be more common among conservative than progressive Christians. It is also more common among those living in misery, under injustice, or living a seemingly unfulfilled present life. There is the idea that "it has to be better in heaven, if I only hang on."

I believe there are several problems with a central interest in the afterlife. First, it is a self-centered paradigm. Personal salvation becomes more important than love (agape), service, etc. It becomes a matter of "what to do or believe to be saved." Christianity becomes reduced to works based on requirements and rewards. This is really inadequate motivation, not authentic Christianity.

A vision of the future is very important. However, life in the present should enhance the realization of the vision. We should bring the vision to reality and not wait for someone else to do it.

Finally, it promotes an image of God as a judge, not a compasionate source of abundent grace.

We should live a life of virtuous integrity based on central precepts of Christianity along with developing a close personal relationship with God. This is really the most we can do and should minimize the concern about a final judgment.

[Bruce]

The country band Diamond Rio had a song several years ago, titled "It's All in Your Head". One line from that song has stuck with me though the years: "Heaven's more than a place, it's a state of mind."

Now I know Diamond Rio will never be in anyone's top ten theologians list, but that one line, I think, shows great insight. I have friends who insist that heaven is a real, concrete place somewhere "out there", yet it is not a present reality to them. I think they are missing something.

You mentioned one of Jesus' statements from John. Another is this: "I come that they may have life, and have it abundandtly."

When we make the kingdom of heaven our state of mind, that's when we have abundant life.

Recently I took my 2-year-old son for a walk on a nature trail. The trail wound along beside a stream, and at one point I looked across to the other side, and saw a deer looking back at me. I pointed it out to Iain, and he got excited. "Deer! Deer! Hi, deer!" he said, as he alternated pointing and waving at it. The deer, for its part, stood motionless, as if that would render it invisible.

Somehow, in that scene, I think I caught a glimpse of heaven. I'm not saying heaven is going to be a woodland trail with a creek and wildlife. But God did make the deer, and the stream, and the woods, just as he made everything. And to see the sense of wonder and joy as a toddler discovers something new -- I don't think I am speaking metaphorically by calling it heaven on earth.

I've also seen heaven on earth while working on mission projects in Costa Rica, Mexico, and Guatemala. The work is physically more difficult than sitting in an office all day, yet it's also more joyful.

One of my favorite memories is from a worship service in San Juan Cotzal, Guatemala. Our team was there to help rebuild the church after it had been destroyed in Guatemala's civil war. On the evening of our last full day there, we attended a worship service in the still unfinished church. Our team had learned the Central American hymn "Lord, You Have Come to the Lakeshore", and we sang it for the congregation. As soon as they recognized the melody, they joined us. So we sang, in English, Spanish, and Ixil, making a joyful noise to God.

Indeed, the kingdom of heaven is already here.

[Shannon]

I saw in a movie once "Satan" being played by actor Viggo Mortenson (one of my favorites). He said that Hell was not the dark depths of the earth. Hell is having to dwell for eternity outside the love of God. Just a thought.