There is an interesting Q&A Interview in this week's Time Magazine with N. T. Wright, a respected New Testament scholar. He recently came out with a book on Heaven called Surprised By Hope that critiques the modern view of Heaven that sees the afterlife as a permanent escape from this depraved and decaying planet called Earth. He is specifically critical of the children's book written by Maria Shriver (Arnold Schwarzenegger's wife, First Lady of California) that describes Heaven as:"a beautiful place where you can sit on soft clouds and talk... If you're good throughout your life, then you get to go [there]... When your life is finished here on earth, God sends angels down to take you heaven to be with him."
This contemporary notion of cherubs strumming harps and sitting on clouds is not the Heaven that the Bible depicts. In fact, many people forget that Heaven is not even the final destination for Christians. It has always been part of God's plan to create a new Heaven and a new Earth in His eternal kingdom (2 Peter 3:10-13; Isaiah 65:17-22; Revelation 21:1-5). In fact, not only will the heavens and the earth be recreated, but our physical bodies will be recreated as well (1 Corinthians 15:40-58; 2 Corinthians 5:1-4; ).
I should point out that I haven't read the book so I can't offer a wholesale endorsement of what's in it. I don't agree with N. T. Wright on every issue, but I do agree with what he says in the Time interview. We need to let go of this idea that we we need to somehow escape the Earth and live at everlasting leisure in the clouds with our fellow angels. The truth is that our physical bodies will be "glorified" and eternal. We will live in the newly "glorified" world that God recreated and it is there that we will worship Him and enjoy Him forever. Sounds like a place I might like!
=MV=
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