Two Heavens? 2 October 2016
02 10 16 Filed in: Sermons | What Happens to You When You Die?
Two Heavens?
What Happens To You When You Die?
Revelation 21:22-27
Series Overview
Heaven is for real and the Bible says more—and less—about it than we might recognize.
Big Idea
Heaven is for real…and there's more than one!
Introduction
After years of avoiding it, I recently finished a sermon series on the book of Revelation. Actually, we only covered the beginning of Revelation, Jesus’ letters to the seven churches. I learned a lot about the historical roots of our faith and life 2000 years ago.
In our new series “What Happens to You When You Die?” we’re jumping to the end of the book. Last Sunday we talked about how we’ll have new bodies in the next life, bodies like that of Jesus after the resurrection. The Bible seems clear we will have physical bodies, recognize one another, be able to hug each other, and eat. We will not become ghosts, but rather live forever in new and improved bodies. I can’t wait!
Heaven is a big deal. The Bible mentions “heaven” or “heavens’ over six hundred times! But before we dive into the Bible’s descriptions of heaven, let’s look at some creative ideas of heaven from the world of humor.
Humor
A pastor found himself wondering whether there were any golf courses in Heaven. He even began to ask the question in his prayers. One day, in answer to his prayers, he received a direct answer from on high.
"Yes," said the Heavenly messenger, "There are many excellent golf courses in Heaven. The greens are always in first class condition, the weather is always perfect and you always get to play with the very nicest people."
"Oh, thank you," said the cleric, "That really is marvelous news."
"Yes, isn't it?" replied the messenger, "And we've got you down for a foursome next Saturday."
C.S. Lewis said, “Aim at heaven and you will get earth ‘thrown in.’ Aim at earth and you will get neither.” You’re not ready to live until you’re ready to die. Heaven is where God is. If you love spending time with God now, you’ll love eternity. If you reject God now, He’ll honor your choice for eternity. Our greatest desire should not be for new bodies or a cool mansion but for God. Do you desire God?
One of my favorite books is A.W. Tozer’s classic The Pursuit of God. In it he wrote,
“Millions call themselves by His name, it is true, and pay some token homage to Him, but a simple test will show how little He is really honored among them. Let the average man be put to the proof on the question of who or what is ABOVE, and his true position will be exposed. Let him be forced into making a choice between God and money, between God and men, between God and personal ambition, God and self, God and human love, and God will take second place every time. Those other things will be exalted above. However, the man may protest, the proof is in the choice he makes day after day throughout his life.”
Do you desire God? I hesitate to talk about heaven because I’m afraid you might find heaven acceptable if God wasn’t there, basking in its beauty with little regard for its Creator.
This is true for many of us today, as Tozer noted. God created this beautiful planet for us to enjoy, but some have worshipped nature rather than God, the creation rather than the Creator.
“The critical question for our generation—and for every generation—is this: If you could have Heaven, with no sickness, and with all the friends you ever had on earth, and all the food you ever liked, and all the leisure activities you ever enjoyed, and all the natural beauties you ever saw, all the physical pleasures you ever tasted, and no human conflict or any natural disasters, could you be satisfied with Heaven, if Christ was not there?” – John Piper, “God Is the Gospel”
Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. (Colossians 3:1-2)
As Randy Alcorn puts it, “We cannot set our eyes on Christ without setting our eyes on Heaven, and we cannot set our eyes on Heaven without setting our eyes on Christ.
The Bible
The Bible is our authority. I do my best to preach it, but regardless of what I say, the Bible is our final authority. The problem, of course, is it’s a large book. Actually, it’s 66 books from multiple writers in several countries over hundreds of years…yet it’s one, consistent story of God…of love. Nevertheless, mysteries remain. Sometimes our understanding is flawed.
For example, the Jewish people read the Old Testament and expected the Messiah to come, rule, and reign over the earth. Imagine their disappointment when he entered Jerusalem not on a white horse but a donkey. They shouted, “Save us now” in hopes he would free them from the oppression of the Roman Empire. When he allowed himself to be crucified without barely saying a word in his defense they became even more convinced a mistake had been made. Surely this can’t be the prophesied One!
What they failed to understand was Messianic prophecy involved two different visits to our planet. He came the first time as the Lamb of God to die for us on the cross. His next visit will be radically different. The Lion of Judah will rule and reign for eternity. Hallelujah!
But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Suffice it to say sometimes we read a word in the Bible and think it has one meaning when, in fact, it might refer to different circumstances. Such may be the case with heaven.
We all have questions about heaven, and some of them are clearly answered in the Bible. That’s our focus for this series. For a variety of reasons, I used to think heaven was a place up in the sky (which would actually be down if I lived in Australia!). I would leave this planet and go up to heaven and live forever, playing a harp on a cloud or whatever.
That reminds me, when I was a young boy I remember lying in my bed, unable to sleep. I finally went downstairs where my mom was in the study and said, “I don’t want to go to heaven.” Needless to say, she was surprised! “I don’t want to go to hell, but heaven is forever. I can’t comprehend forever.” Mom wisely asked, “What are we doing Friday?” I replied, “Going to grandma’s.” “And what are we doing next winter?” “Going to Disney World!” I added. She concluded, “Heaven will be like that, full of exciting things we’ll enjoy forever.” I’m totally convinced you will not want to leave heaven. It will not be boring!
Where is Heaven?
Heaven is the special dwelling place. But it will change. It will be relocated. If this is news to you, it was news to me when I researched this topic. Two heavens? Simply, heaven is where God is now, the place where Jesus ascended to, the intermediate heaven. The Holy Spirit lives here on earth in the hearts of followers of Jesus, but they physical Jesus and God the Father are in the intermediate or first heaven.
After the return of Christ—which he said would be soon—and the resurrection of the dead, followers of Jesus will live in the eternal heaven called the New Earth. There’s a lot of controversy about whether or not there will be a literal thousand-year reign of Christ on the old Earth, but we do know there will be a New Earth.
New Testament scholar N.T. Wright wrote, “Heaven is not a place in our space-time continuum, but a different sphere of reality that overlaps and interlocks with our sphere…One day the curtain will be pulled back.” (Surprised by Scripture)
Jesus is in the first heaven, but there will be a new heaven, the final kingdom of God. We cannot see the first heaven now, but the final or new heaven will be on a renewed, new earth.
But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells. (2 Peter 3:13)
One question I received is, “Where is my deceased loved one who followed Jesus?” Jesus said to the believing thief on the cross,
“Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.” (Luke 23:43b)
This is not soul sleep. The man was taken to the intermediate heaven to be with Jesus. That’s where the saints of days gone by are…in the intermediate heaven.
Perhaps one way to think of it is like an airport layover. Last year I was a part of a team that traveled to the Dominican Republic to partner with our sister churches in Santiago. We flew from Detroit to Miami. We spent several hours in Miami before boarding our flight to the island. Miami was part of our journey, but not our final destination. It was a place to wait. My understanding of the intermediate heaven is a great place when we die…but not our final home.
Scot McKnight compares and contrasts the three phases of our existence:
Life Now (Present): Earthly tent, in body; Away from the Lord
First heaven (at death): Unclothed; With the Lord in heaven
Final Heaven (resurrection): Eternal house, clothed, physical; With the Lord in new Heavens, new earth
For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. Meanwhile we groan, longing to be clothed instead with our heavenly dwelling, because when we are clothed, we will not be found naked. For while we are in this tent, we groan and are burdened, because we do not wish to be unclothed but to be clothed instead with our heavenly dwelling, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. Now the one who has fashioned us for this very purpose is God, who has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come. (2 Corinthians 5:1-5)
Therefore, we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. For we live by faith, not by sight. We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord. So we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad. (2 Corinthians 5:6-10)
Paul wrote to the church in Philippi,
But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body. (Philippians 3:20-21)
Last Sunday we said we’ll get new bodies like Jesus’ resurrected body. But our citizenship is in heaven. We are citizens of a place we’ve never been! We are homesick for Eden.
Heaven is where God is. Heaven is where Jesus is. Right now, that’s not here. It’s the intermediate heaven. It’s where believers go where they die…but they won’t stay there. There will be a new earth, a resurrected earth, a new and improved version of earth as we know it.
Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,” for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. (Revelation 21:1-3)
Randy Alcorn notes, “God never gave up on His original plan for human beings to dwell on earth. In fact, the climax of history will be the creation of new heavens and a new earth, a resurrected universe inhabited by resurrected people living with the resurrected Jesus.” (Rev. 21:1-4)
Imagine this:
I saw no temple in the city, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. And the city has no need of sun or moon, for the glory of God illuminates the city, and the Lamb is its light. The nations will walk in its light, and the kings of the world will enter the city in all their glory. Its gates will never be closed at the end of day because there is no night there. And all the nations will bring their glory and honor into the city. Nothing evil will be allowed to enter, nor anyone who practices shameful idolatry and dishonesty—but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life. (Revelation 21:22-27, NLT)
Are You Ready?
Heaven will be amazing, but its most amazing feature will be the presence of God. If you passionately pursue Jesus now, you’ll enjoy him forever. If he’s just your “get out of hell free” card, you might be surprised on Judgment Day.
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’ (Matthew 7:21-23)
Communion
The good news—the great news—is that Jesus is LORD. He died to offer himself as a gift, as a sacrifice, as the Lamb of God to take away your sins and mine—if we will confess our sins and make Jesus our Savior and LORD. You can’t earn salvation. You’re not good enough (you have to be perfect). You can, however, surrender your life to Jesus, welcome him into your life, and pursue him and his will for your life. It’s radical. It’s not politically correct. It can get you in trouble. It might even cost you your life…but you’ll have eternity to reap the benefits of the presence of God.
Today we celebrate communion. We remember the sacrifice Jesus made, putting action behind God’s words of love.
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. (John 3:16-17)
He died so you might live. He lives so you might live with him forever.
Credits
Some ideas from The Heaven Promise by Scot McKnight and Heaven by Randy Alcorn.
You can listen to this message and others at the First Alliance Church podcast here.
What Happens To You When You Die?
Revelation 21:22-27
Series Overview
Heaven is for real and the Bible says more—and less—about it than we might recognize.
Big Idea
Heaven is for real…and there's more than one!
Introduction
After years of avoiding it, I recently finished a sermon series on the book of Revelation. Actually, we only covered the beginning of Revelation, Jesus’ letters to the seven churches. I learned a lot about the historical roots of our faith and life 2000 years ago.
In our new series “What Happens to You When You Die?” we’re jumping to the end of the book. Last Sunday we talked about how we’ll have new bodies in the next life, bodies like that of Jesus after the resurrection. The Bible seems clear we will have physical bodies, recognize one another, be able to hug each other, and eat. We will not become ghosts, but rather live forever in new and improved bodies. I can’t wait!
Heaven is a big deal. The Bible mentions “heaven” or “heavens’ over six hundred times! But before we dive into the Bible’s descriptions of heaven, let’s look at some creative ideas of heaven from the world of humor.
Humor
A pastor found himself wondering whether there were any golf courses in Heaven. He even began to ask the question in his prayers. One day, in answer to his prayers, he received a direct answer from on high.
"Yes," said the Heavenly messenger, "There are many excellent golf courses in Heaven. The greens are always in first class condition, the weather is always perfect and you always get to play with the very nicest people."
"Oh, thank you," said the cleric, "That really is marvelous news."
"Yes, isn't it?" replied the messenger, "And we've got you down for a foursome next Saturday."
C.S. Lewis said, “Aim at heaven and you will get earth ‘thrown in.’ Aim at earth and you will get neither.” You’re not ready to live until you’re ready to die. Heaven is where God is. If you love spending time with God now, you’ll love eternity. If you reject God now, He’ll honor your choice for eternity. Our greatest desire should not be for new bodies or a cool mansion but for God. Do you desire God?
One of my favorite books is A.W. Tozer’s classic The Pursuit of God. In it he wrote,
“Millions call themselves by His name, it is true, and pay some token homage to Him, but a simple test will show how little He is really honored among them. Let the average man be put to the proof on the question of who or what is ABOVE, and his true position will be exposed. Let him be forced into making a choice between God and money, between God and men, between God and personal ambition, God and self, God and human love, and God will take second place every time. Those other things will be exalted above. However, the man may protest, the proof is in the choice he makes day after day throughout his life.”
Do you desire God? I hesitate to talk about heaven because I’m afraid you might find heaven acceptable if God wasn’t there, basking in its beauty with little regard for its Creator.
This is true for many of us today, as Tozer noted. God created this beautiful planet for us to enjoy, but some have worshipped nature rather than God, the creation rather than the Creator.
“The critical question for our generation—and for every generation—is this: If you could have Heaven, with no sickness, and with all the friends you ever had on earth, and all the food you ever liked, and all the leisure activities you ever enjoyed, and all the natural beauties you ever saw, all the physical pleasures you ever tasted, and no human conflict or any natural disasters, could you be satisfied with Heaven, if Christ was not there?” – John Piper, “God Is the Gospel”
Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. (Colossians 3:1-2)
As Randy Alcorn puts it, “We cannot set our eyes on Christ without setting our eyes on Heaven, and we cannot set our eyes on Heaven without setting our eyes on Christ.
The Bible
The Bible is our authority. I do my best to preach it, but regardless of what I say, the Bible is our final authority. The problem, of course, is it’s a large book. Actually, it’s 66 books from multiple writers in several countries over hundreds of years…yet it’s one, consistent story of God…of love. Nevertheless, mysteries remain. Sometimes our understanding is flawed.
For example, the Jewish people read the Old Testament and expected the Messiah to come, rule, and reign over the earth. Imagine their disappointment when he entered Jerusalem not on a white horse but a donkey. They shouted, “Save us now” in hopes he would free them from the oppression of the Roman Empire. When he allowed himself to be crucified without barely saying a word in his defense they became even more convinced a mistake had been made. Surely this can’t be the prophesied One!
What they failed to understand was Messianic prophecy involved two different visits to our planet. He came the first time as the Lamb of God to die for us on the cross. His next visit will be radically different. The Lion of Judah will rule and reign for eternity. Hallelujah!
But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Suffice it to say sometimes we read a word in the Bible and think it has one meaning when, in fact, it might refer to different circumstances. Such may be the case with heaven.
We all have questions about heaven, and some of them are clearly answered in the Bible. That’s our focus for this series. For a variety of reasons, I used to think heaven was a place up in the sky (which would actually be down if I lived in Australia!). I would leave this planet and go up to heaven and live forever, playing a harp on a cloud or whatever.
That reminds me, when I was a young boy I remember lying in my bed, unable to sleep. I finally went downstairs where my mom was in the study and said, “I don’t want to go to heaven.” Needless to say, she was surprised! “I don’t want to go to hell, but heaven is forever. I can’t comprehend forever.” Mom wisely asked, “What are we doing Friday?” I replied, “Going to grandma’s.” “And what are we doing next winter?” “Going to Disney World!” I added. She concluded, “Heaven will be like that, full of exciting things we’ll enjoy forever.” I’m totally convinced you will not want to leave heaven. It will not be boring!
Where is Heaven?
Heaven is the special dwelling place. But it will change. It will be relocated. If this is news to you, it was news to me when I researched this topic. Two heavens? Simply, heaven is where God is now, the place where Jesus ascended to, the intermediate heaven. The Holy Spirit lives here on earth in the hearts of followers of Jesus, but they physical Jesus and God the Father are in the intermediate or first heaven.
After the return of Christ—which he said would be soon—and the resurrection of the dead, followers of Jesus will live in the eternal heaven called the New Earth. There’s a lot of controversy about whether or not there will be a literal thousand-year reign of Christ on the old Earth, but we do know there will be a New Earth.
New Testament scholar N.T. Wright wrote, “Heaven is not a place in our space-time continuum, but a different sphere of reality that overlaps and interlocks with our sphere…One day the curtain will be pulled back.” (Surprised by Scripture)
Jesus is in the first heaven, but there will be a new heaven, the final kingdom of God. We cannot see the first heaven now, but the final or new heaven will be on a renewed, new earth.
But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells. (2 Peter 3:13)
One question I received is, “Where is my deceased loved one who followed Jesus?” Jesus said to the believing thief on the cross,
“Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.” (Luke 23:43b)
This is not soul sleep. The man was taken to the intermediate heaven to be with Jesus. That’s where the saints of days gone by are…in the intermediate heaven.
Perhaps one way to think of it is like an airport layover. Last year I was a part of a team that traveled to the Dominican Republic to partner with our sister churches in Santiago. We flew from Detroit to Miami. We spent several hours in Miami before boarding our flight to the island. Miami was part of our journey, but not our final destination. It was a place to wait. My understanding of the intermediate heaven is a great place when we die…but not our final home.
Scot McKnight compares and contrasts the three phases of our existence:
Life Now (Present): Earthly tent, in body; Away from the Lord
First heaven (at death): Unclothed; With the Lord in heaven
Final Heaven (resurrection): Eternal house, clothed, physical; With the Lord in new Heavens, new earth
For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. Meanwhile we groan, longing to be clothed instead with our heavenly dwelling, because when we are clothed, we will not be found naked. For while we are in this tent, we groan and are burdened, because we do not wish to be unclothed but to be clothed instead with our heavenly dwelling, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. Now the one who has fashioned us for this very purpose is God, who has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come. (2 Corinthians 5:1-5)
Therefore, we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. For we live by faith, not by sight. We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord. So we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad. (2 Corinthians 5:6-10)
Paul wrote to the church in Philippi,
But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body. (Philippians 3:20-21)
Last Sunday we said we’ll get new bodies like Jesus’ resurrected body. But our citizenship is in heaven. We are citizens of a place we’ve never been! We are homesick for Eden.
Heaven is where God is. Heaven is where Jesus is. Right now, that’s not here. It’s the intermediate heaven. It’s where believers go where they die…but they won’t stay there. There will be a new earth, a resurrected earth, a new and improved version of earth as we know it.
Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,” for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. (Revelation 21:1-3)
Randy Alcorn notes, “God never gave up on His original plan for human beings to dwell on earth. In fact, the climax of history will be the creation of new heavens and a new earth, a resurrected universe inhabited by resurrected people living with the resurrected Jesus.” (Rev. 21:1-4)
Imagine this:
I saw no temple in the city, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. And the city has no need of sun or moon, for the glory of God illuminates the city, and the Lamb is its light. The nations will walk in its light, and the kings of the world will enter the city in all their glory. Its gates will never be closed at the end of day because there is no night there. And all the nations will bring their glory and honor into the city. Nothing evil will be allowed to enter, nor anyone who practices shameful idolatry and dishonesty—but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life. (Revelation 21:22-27, NLT)
Are You Ready?
Heaven will be amazing, but its most amazing feature will be the presence of God. If you passionately pursue Jesus now, you’ll enjoy him forever. If he’s just your “get out of hell free” card, you might be surprised on Judgment Day.
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’ (Matthew 7:21-23)
Communion
The good news—the great news—is that Jesus is LORD. He died to offer himself as a gift, as a sacrifice, as the Lamb of God to take away your sins and mine—if we will confess our sins and make Jesus our Savior and LORD. You can’t earn salvation. You’re not good enough (you have to be perfect). You can, however, surrender your life to Jesus, welcome him into your life, and pursue him and his will for your life. It’s radical. It’s not politically correct. It can get you in trouble. It might even cost you your life…but you’ll have eternity to reap the benefits of the presence of God.
Today we celebrate communion. We remember the sacrifice Jesus made, putting action behind God’s words of love.
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. (John 3:16-17)
He died so you might live. He lives so you might live with him forever.
Credits
Some ideas from The Heaven Promise by Scot McKnight and Heaven by Randy Alcorn.