Digging Deeper LIVE with Andi and Brian Hale

We have another great show lined up with our special CO host talking about heavy metal detox, Then it's open mic time on our 2nd segment then faith matters the book of signs chapter 15... 9pm CST!

Heaven on Earth (Part 2)

Revelation 21 and 22 are packed with details about the new heaven and the new earth, but one striking feature is the repeated notation of things that are not present. The absence of things with which we are familiar in this world helps us better understand the wonder of existence in the renewed creation.

One of the first things that is mentioned as missing is the sea (21:1). In Hebrew poetry, the sea is consistently used as a metaphor for trouble and distress. Whether or not there will be oceans and beaches in the new earth is unclear, but there is no doubt that all dangers and trials will be banished. Also missing will be tears, death, sorrow, crying, and pain. God will soothe away our heartaches, comfort us in our sorrows, gently dry our tears, and ease away our hurts. The joy of dwelling in His presence will far outweigh the distant memories of hard circumstances. There will be no temple there either (21:22); none will be needed, for the ancient temple symbolized the presence of God with His people, and now God actually will be with them, and He and the Lamb will be the temple.

John also tells us “the city had no need of the sun or the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it” (21:23), a fulfillment of Isaiah 60:19–20. Indeed, even if the sun and moon still exist, the glory of God will outshine them. With the refulgence of God glowing everlastingly, there will be no night (21:25). And there will be nothing there “that defiles, or causes an abomination or a lie” (21:27). This will be a place of truth, beauty, and goodness. Finally, there will be no curse (22:3). With spirits and bodies renewed and at last made unable to sin and provoke God’s wrath, His people will exist in a state of perpetual blessedness.

What will be there? These rich chapters list far more features than can be discussed in this limited space, but one thing bears mentioning: the tree of life (22:2). It originally grew in the midst of Eden, but following the fall God expelled man from the garden and placed cherubim there to prevent him from eating its fruit. Now the tree stands beside the river of water of life and “in the middle of [the city’s] street,” where it is easily accessible to all the inhabitants. The abundant life experienced by Adam and Eve before their fall will be known for all eternity by all of God’s people.

CORAM DEO Living before the face of God

Has today’s study whetted your appetite for heaven? What are you looking forward to leaving behind in this life? Looking to God for help, make use of all His means of grace to resist temptation to sin and to experience the abundant life to the fullest extent possible even now. Ask God to make you increasingly fit for your heavenly home.

Heaven on Earth (Part 1)

At the conclusion of the book of Revelation, John relates an awesome vision. He gazes upon “a new heaven and a new earth,” which, he says, replace the original of each, which have passed away. Other passages in Scripture indicate that this heaven and earth are not entirely new but are renovations of the originals (Isa. 65:17–25; Rom. 8:21–23), renewed much as believers’ bodies will be transformed.

Coming down from the new heaven into this new earth, John sees “the holy city, New Jerusalem.” It is, he tells us, “prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.” Later in this chapter John mentions this city again, telling of an angel who refers to it as “ ‘the bride, the Lamb’s wife’ ” (21:9–10). Scripture elsewhere makes clear that the bride of Christ (the Lamb) is the church, the people of God (Isa. 54:5–8; Eph. 5:25–27; Rev. 19:7). Thus, John is seeing the entire body of believers from every time and place, made new in the consummation of all things, being placed back on the physical earth to live for eternity in their physical bodies.

There are many features to this new earth to elicit our wonder and praise, and we will look at a number of them in tomorrow’s study. Today, however, we will focus on one, the most wonderful feature of all. John tells us that he hears a voice declaring, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God.”

During the time of Israel’s desert wandering, the sign of God’s presence with His people was the tabernacle pitched in the center of the camp. There, in the holy of holies, the presence of God was said to reside. Much later, the apostle John began his gospel by noting that Christ “dwelt [literally “tabernacled”] among us” (John 1:14). Those, however, were essentially “temporary stays.” What John sees is the establishment of God’s permanent residence among His people. In fulfillment of His covenant with Abraham and his descendants (Gen. 17:7–8), as well as the new covenant prophesied by Jeremiah (Jer. 31:33), God settles with His people, to be God to them. As in Eden of old, men and women walk with God in the cool of the day. Here we find the highest blessing man can know—intimate fellowship between creature and Creator. This is truly heaven on earth.

CORAM DEO Living before the face of God

The hints in Genesis about life in the Garden of Eden before the fall are heartbreakingly poignant, especially compared with Scripture’s accounts of the terror that fallen man experiences when he encounters God. By God’s renewing work, we shall be able to live as Adam and Eve did. Praise God for the beauty of His unfolding redemptive plan.

The Final State of Man

Christians sometimes imagine themselves spending eternity in an ethereal, spiritual place where they will exist as disembodied souls. Heaven may indeed be like this, but we will not be spending eternity there. Rather, we will live in a place that resembles the earth in bodies that will have significant identification with those we possess now.

The Bible makes clear that a separation occurs at death. The body dies, is placed in the grave, and decays. However, the spirit of the person continues to exist. The spirit of a believer goes immediately to the presence of God in heaven: to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord (2 Cor. 5:8). However, the spirit of an unbeliever is immediately cast into hell (Luke 16:22–23). But this is not the final state; instead, it is what theologians call “the intermediate state.” For a believer, being present in spirit in heaven is simply an advancement in the new life he or she began to live at the time of regeneration (John 5:24). In a very real sense, a Christian begins to live the life of heaven even before dying (Eph. 2:5–6). When death does come, his soul is made perfect in holiness, fitting him for the presence of God. Later in time, however, when Christ returns to earth, He will cause the bodies of all those who have died to be raised and reunited with their souls. Then will come the final judgment, when the unrighteous will be cast, soul and body, back into hell (John 5:28–29; Acts 24:15), while the righteous will be placed in the new earth, their souls reunited to their now-perfected bodies (Phil. 3:21).

It is the resurrection of the righteous that Paul is addressing in 1 Corinthians 15. To explain it, he uses the analogy of a seed. In order to produce a plant, we place a seed in the ground and apply water to make it rot. In effect, we kill the seed that a new life might come forth. So it is with our bodies, which go into the ground and decay. When they are renewed by God, they will become like the plant that sprouts from the seed. They will be the same bodies we once inhabited, similar in many ways. But they will be incorruptible. They will be like the body of Christ following His resurrection; perfected and glorified, fitting us for existence in the new earth.

What will that existence be like? We will examine that question in our next two studies.

CORAM DEO Living before the face of God

Is the idea that you will spend eternity in a physical world in a physical body strange to you? If this seems undesirable, remember that it will differ from your present existence in one monumental way—your spirit and body will be perfect and sin will be gone. As you finish this study, ask God to give you understanding of these things.

Good Versus Far Better

Jonathan Edwards once commented that no pilgrim en route to a glorious and exotic place will take up permanent residence at an inn along the way. Yes, the pilgrim is glad to have a resting place during his journey, but as soon as possible he is on his way again, drawn by eager anticipation of the joys that await him at his destination. Edwards’ point, of course, is that Christians are to emulate this pilgrim. Sadly, however, believers tend to take too much pleasure in their temporary accommodations and allow themselves to be distracted from pressing on toward their final destination (heaven). The solution, as Edwards suggests, is for Christians to keep in mind that while the accommodations may be good, the destination is far better.

Paul displays this outlook. Writing to the Philippians from prison, he confides that he is unsure of what is going to happen to him. It very well may be, he says, that he will be put to death. On the other hand, he might be set free. But this uncertainty really means nothing, he says, because either outcome will represent a “deliverance” and will magnify Christ. Thus, he is absolutely serene about his future. For Paul, to live on “is Christ.” In other words, Christ is his one consuming idea, his one passion in life. He is focused on Christ and on serving Him to the full. But he has no fear that death will spell the end of that passionate pursuit. Indeed, his fellowship with Christ will be enhanced by death. “To die is gain,” he proclaims. His only ambivalence has to do with the Philippians. It is “needful” that he continue ministering among them; he truly wants to be there for them. But death would be “far better” for him, for it would usher him into the presence of Christ, where he most wants to be.

Obviously it was a good thing for Paul to live and minister among the Philippians. But going on to heaven, he said, would be “far better.” By comparison, there was no comparison. Nothing in the world could entice him to stay if heaven beckoned. This is the attitude that every Christian should have. Instead of seeing death as a loss, as the loss, we should understand that it would be boundlessly better to exchange the temporal, limited glories of this world for the ageless, boundless glories of heaven, where dwells the lover of our souls, the Triune God. The inn is just an inn; the Celestial City lies ahead.

CORAM DEO Living before the face of God

If you were told that you would die without pain tonight, would you be excited? Obviously you would have pangs at the thought of leaving your loved ones and of the sorrow your death would bring them. But you would be about to see heaven! As we study the joys that await believers, pray that God will help you see heaven as “far better.”

A Needful Reality

In his magnificent summary of God’s faithfulness in Joshua 21:43–45, the unknown author of the book lists three indications of God’s favor toward Israel. First, He has given the Israelites the land He promised them. Second, He has brought a cessation of their long labors. And third, He has caused them to triumph over their enemies. In short, God has given them a home, rest, and victory. And in His benevolence to Israel, we see a picture of God’s kind intention toward His people in all times and places. The Bible tells us that we, too, will have a home, sweet rest, and ultimate victory. But it is clear that these things will not be ours in this life; we will experience them in full only in heaven.

Through the centuries, Christians have drawn great encouragement from knowing that these things awaited them beyond the grave. Not so today. Many contemporary believers, especially Westerners, being blessed with freedom of religion, good health, and abundant material goods, are at ease in Zion. Thus, we tend to fix our eyes on the here and now, not the prize that awaits us. But in doing so, we deny ourselves the kind of hope that sustained the Israelites. To combat this tendency, we will spend the next few days looking at what awaits believers after death.

Jesus clearly asserts the existence of heaven, and promises that believers will have a place there. In John 14, speaking to His disciples in the Upper Room on the night before His crucifixion, HeJesus urges them not to let their hearts be troubled. This is a call to faith, to trust. He notes that they believe in God; therefore, they ought to have faith in Jesus, too, because God has declared who He is by speaking from heaven and empowering Him to do wonders. Then, having called them to faith in Him, He gives the disciples some of His most magnificent promises about heaven. It truly exists, He says, and He is about to go there to prepare a place for them. In time, He will come back to take them there. They can and should believe these things, He says, for He, their God-attested Lord and Savior, would not mislead them.

CORAM DEO Living before the face of God

Do you think much about heaven? Why or why not? If your answer is no, is it because your life here is so comfortable that you have little desire to experience the riches of glory? Give thanks for God’s blessings to you in the here and now, but begin today to ask Him to help you look forward to dwelling in His heavenly courts.