Heaven's above?

Can we get past the cartoon pictures?

Do you think much about heaven? Or don't you give it a second thought? I ask this question in the light of the church year. We have just farewelled another year (Year B – Gospel of Mark), and we are moving into Year C (Gospel of Luke).

We are ahead of the world in entering the new year before it does. And we do so with a time of reflection and repentance, rather than overindulgence and over-consumption, as the world marks the lead-up to Christmas.

In secular terms, the New Year provides an opportunity to look back on the events of the past year, and to plan for the year ahead. New Year's resolutions are made and usually abandoned shortly thereafter. Christians adopt a similar focus at the end of the church year, and the beginning of the new. But instead of simply looking at our own history and our own plans, we take in the big picture: God's purpose for the entire universe. We find this sum­marised in Ephesians, where Paul writes: "God made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfilment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ." (Ephesians 1: 9,10)

Crystal ball

The readings over these weeks lift our gaze from the here and now to the future that God has planned for his creation. It's a future that's far beyond anything that we can possibly imagine. Truth be told, not many of us, even in the church, think much about the world to come and the hope contained in God's promise to 'create a new heaven and a new earth'. Perhaps we are concerned that speaking of the promise of heaven would leave us open to the accusation that Christians are 'so heavenly minded that they are of no earthly use.' But the turn of the year comes around again, and we are led to consider how the end of all things and the hope of heaven shapes the way we live the here and now.

In recent editions of Inside Story, I've shared with you some excerpts from a challenging book entitled The Trouble with Paris. The author is Mark Sayers, a pastor who lives in Box Hill, and who leads a congregation of young adults. His work sees him as the guest speaker at many youth events. One of the questions he likes to ask concerns what young people think about heaven. The answers fall into three main categories. Heaven will be a place where there will be:

• Eternal worship singing – people will spend their time in heaven singing praise songs to God.
• Clouds and harps – this view of heaven is based more on Hollywood films rather than the Bible. Heaven consists of clouds and winged angels playing harps.
• An eternal amusement park – heaven is a spiritual place where God gives us everything that we have ever hoped for: an amusement park, a tropical island. God is like a heavenly butler who waits on us ready to meet our every need.

Boring

But there was one thing on which they all agreed: that heaven would be boring. And this really shocked Mark. "No matter where I speak, no matter what background or denomination the group, the word boring comes up again and again. This deeply shocks me."

I have three children who often tell me they're bored. I tell them how lucky they are. I'd love to have nothing to do, just to say I was bored. But I understand that for the younger generation, boredom means the worst thing imaginable, because it means there's nothing to entertain us. This is how Generation Y thinks (Gen-Y includes those born between 1981 and 1995).

But is heaven really boring? Mark goes on to say: "I think back to the accounts of Christian martyrs throughout history and in many countries today who would undergo torture and then death, steeled by their beliefs in the splendour of heaven and the life to come." Why would people die, just to live forever in complete boredom? There must be something much more powerful going on.

What does the Bible say?

One thing we can say with abso­lute clarity is that 'heaven is, first and foremost, the presence of God.' "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." Heaven is where God rules and where his will is done in full. Clearly things are very different on earth. Although God created the earth and "saw that is was very good", sin soon put an end to that. Because of our human rebellion, we are separated from God and we face the consequences of human sin: pain, loneliness, violence, suffering, and death.

God couldn't abide this separation and set about bringing heaven and earth together. He sent his Son to bridge the gap between heaven and earth by defeating the power of sin, death, and Satan. The final act of this victory will be played out when Jesus returns at the end of time.

So what will this heaven be like? In one sense, this is a difficult question. We are talking about something that is beyond our senses and experience. But, on the other hand, the Bible gives us some clear pointers about the nature of heaven.

It's not just about heaven!

Something many Christians forget is that God promises, at the end of time, to "create a new heaven and a new earth" (Isaiah 65:17). God isn't just going to transport us to heaven when we die, but he will reunite heaven and earth. Heaven and earth are separated now, but they will be united. The other thing that may surprise us is that this new heaven will come down to earth, as God reveals to the Apostle John. "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.' He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."

These words have provided deep comfort to Christians over countless generations. We long for an existence in which pain, grief, and death are not the order of the day. These words enable us to face the bitter reality of these things: a chronic disease, the death of a loved one, the burden that we feel over a dysfunctional creation.

But the thing we need to guard against is that the Christian faith must not become all about 'pie in the sky when you die.' That relegates the Christian faith to the distant future, rather than asserting the role faith has to play in the present. God has promised to be with us now. God continues to come down to us and meet us where we find ourselves. We are earthbound people who receive God's gifts of grace through down-to-earth, tangible means: the spoken word, water, bread and wine. These gifts are a slice of heaven, and they enable us to share God's holy love in concrete ways.

Don't opt out

You may have heard people say that 'the world is going to hell in a handbasket'. I've heard Christians argue that because this world is running down, we shouldn't pay any attention to the care of God's creation, and even the needs of the poor. This attitude is an appalling cop out; it ignores the fact that God continues to preserve his creation, and asks his people to 'love their neighbour.' In caring for those in need, the church shares a 'slice of heaven' with other people.

Things are pretty hard in the 'real world,' and so we work hard to alleviate suffering and help people in practical ways. That's why we have run a food bank for many years now, and also why we conduct Speak English, Make Friends.

What we are doing is bringing a bit of heaven, a bit of God, into this world. We do this because the church stands for the kingdom of God, and for doing things God's way. And the best way we can show what God is like is by acting the way he does: with love and compassion.

The ministry year, and Aldi

2009 is almost over. The year has flown past like no other in my memory. The year began with Greg and I in team ministry, and will end up with the anticipation of a new pastoral partnership with Pastor Aldis' arrival at the end of January 2010. (Pastor Aldis' installation will take place on Saturday January 30 at 2.00pm — please mark this date in your diaries.)

In some ways it has been a difficult and disjointed year. Some matters have not been addressed as I would have hoped. I greatly appreciate your patience with me if I have taken some time to get back to you. I thank you also for your prayers, which have kept me going when the relentless demands of ministry threatened to overwhelm me. I have seen the hand of God in so many ways this year, and especially in the manner that the St Paul's community has pulled together and cared for one another. That's what true Christian community looks like. Thanks to the staff who have shouldered an increased burden this year, and also to the Church Council, who have overseen some significant ministry planning.

Finally, let me thank each one of you. Serving as your pastor is an immense privilege. I look forward to continuing the task of overseeing the mission and ministry of this congregation, rejoicing that each of you is a precious gift of God to me and the St Paul's community.