The Revelation
From the Series—Creed
May 4, 2004This evotional concludes the Creed series. We’ve explored the Bible, the Creation, the Cross, the Resurrection, and the Trinity. This evotional focuses on the Revelation. One of the unique things about Christianity is the fact that we know how human history, as we know it, will end. That sneak preview is called the book of Revelation.
Revelation 21:1 says, “Then I saw ‘a new heaven and a new earth,’ for the first heaven and 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.’ He who was seated on the throne said, ‘I am making everything new!’”
Fieldtrip
This week I went on a fieldtrip with my daughter, Summer. I don’t know if you’re ever been around twenty-five first graders on a fieldtrip, but if you could somehow bottle the energy I think you could power a small country! I looked back at one point and all I saw was twenty-five heads bouncing up and down—it was like ping pong balls in a lottery machine. The kids were yelling and laughing and jumping up and down in their seats.
We ended up going to the Navy Memorial. The funny thing is that everybody, including the teacher, thought we were going to the Navy Yard. So we didn’t know where we were going or what we were doing once we got there. But these kids could care less. We could have stayed on that bus for four hours and the kids would have loved it.
And at one point I had this thought: if these kids are this excited about a fieldtrip and they don’t even know where they’re going or what they’re doing once they get there, we ought to be bouncing in our seats at the thought of heaven. You want to talk about a fieldtrip. It ought to consume our thoughts. It ought to make our hearts skip a beat. It ought to fill us with unadulterated, unbridled anticipation. But I don’t think it does. I think the average first-grader gets more excited about a fieldtrip to nowhere than we get about heaven. And my question is why? I think the answer is pretty simple. We don’t talk about heaven. We don’t think about heaven. So we don’t have a vision of heaven.
You’ve probably heard the statement that some people are “too heavenly minded to be any earthly good.” I understand the thinking behind that aphorism, but I think the more heavenly minded we are the more earthly good we’ll be!
Peter Kreeft makes a profound observation. “Our pictures of Heaven simply do not move us; they are not moving pictures. It is this aesthetic failure rather than intellectual or moral failures in our pictures of Heaven and of God that threatens faith most potently today. Our pictures of Heaven are dull, platitudinous and syrupy; therefore, so is our faith, our hope, and our love of Heaven. It doesn’t matter whether it’s a dull life or a dull truth. Dullness, not doubt, is the strongest enemy of faith.”
Beatific Vision
We have it so easy as 21st century Christians living in the United States of America. But we stand on the shoulders of martyrs—people who died to preserve their faith and our faith and the faith. And if you want to know what inspired martyrs to die such courageous deaths in defense of the faith you don’t have to look very far. They were inspired by their visions of heaven.
Acts 7 records the stoning of Stephen—the first martyr. Verse 55 says, “But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. ‘Look,’ he said, ‘I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.’ At this they covered their ears and, yelling at the top of their voices; they all rushed at him, dragged him out of the city and began to stone him to death.”
Death
This evotional is going to take you on a fieldtrip. It begins the day you die. II Corinthians 5:7 says that to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. In other words, the moment you die your body returns to dust but your spirit returns to God.
Scripture doesn’t give us a detailed description of how this happens because I don’t think we could begin to understand what it’ll be like for the human spirit to exit time and space and return to God. I don’t know exactly what that disembodied state will be like, but I know a couple things for sure. It will be the ultimate out-of-body experience! And, we will have a heightened consciousness.
For centuries, theologians have tried to describe what heaven will be like—that first moment we see God face to face. It is going to be the most joyful and most exciting and most satisfying experience you’ve ever had. I think your entire life will make sense in that one moment. I Corinthians 13:12 says, “Now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.”
Theologians have a name for what I Corinthians 13:12 is describing—beatific vision. That first glimpse of God will make your greatest experiences in this life pale by comparison. Revelation 21 says there won’t be any more mourning or crying or pain. Here’s why: it will be impossible to mourn or cry or experience pain once we’ve seen God face-to-face.
Wake Up Call
Here is a way of thinking about this translation from the temporal to the eternal. I imagine it won’t be unlike falling asleep and waking up. But when you wake up you’ll be someplace you’ve never been and you’ll be very different. Let me describe it this way.
One of my most memorable vacations was a family vacation to Colorado several years ago. We flew into Denver and drove to Frisco, Colorado. I had never been to Colorado and by the time we got there it was pitch dark so we didn’t get to see any of the scenery. We unpacked and went to bed. I’ll never forget the next morning. I got up and looked out the window and right outside was the most majestic mountain you’ve ever seen. I woke up in the middle of God’s creation.
When we die it’ll be like falling asleep and waking up someplace else. And that someplace else will be beyond beautiful. I think we’ll also wake up very different.
Some mornings I get up and I feel like an old man. There is sleep in my eyes. I’ve got a sore back. Sometimes I’m grumpy. But we’ll wake up in heaven without any aches or pains. We’ll wake up without any sleep in our eyes. We’ll wake up without morning breath.
I don’t have time to do into great detail, but our spirits will be with God. Our bodies don’t catch up with us until the second coming and that’s where we’re headed next.
The Second Coming
I’m not going to get into a detailed timeline of the end times, but I believe in a pre-wrath rapture. I Thessalonians 5:9 says, “God did not appoint us to suffer wrath.” So I believed we’re raptured before the wrath of God is poured out during the tribulation. I think it happens somewhere between the sixth and seventh seal in Revelation 7.
I Thessalonians 5:13 describes the second coming this way. “Brothers, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest, who have no hope. We believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. According to the Lord’s own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and wit the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage each other with these words.”
I’ve always dreamed of cliff jumping and skydiving and bungee jumping. I can only imagine the adrenaline rush. But can you imagine the second coming? I’m not sure anything will compare with the gravity-defying rapture!
The Great White Throne
The next stop is The Great While Throne Judgment. Revelation 20:11 describes it this way. “Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. Earth and sky fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and the books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what he had done. If anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.”
This evotional is about heaven so I’m not going to take the time to talk about hell. But let me make an important observation: you decide your eternal destiny. I like the way C.S. Lewis said it in The Great Divorce. “There are only two kinds of people in the end: those who say to God, ‘Thy will be done,’ and those to whom God says, in the end, ‘Thy will be done. All that are in Hell choose it.”
Reservations
When it comes to heaven: reservations are required. You can’t make a decision when you get to the gate. You need a boarding pass. The way you make reservations is by putting your faith in Christ. And when you do, your reservation is guaranteed.
Ephesians 1:13 says, “And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in Him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—the praise of His glory.”
There is this Seinfeld episode that I love where Jerry makes a car reservation and when he gets there they don’t have a car. Jerry says, “You know how to make a reservation. You don’t know how to keep a reservation. And really keeping is the key part.”
I’m not sure why, but when it comes to hotel reservations I’ve got no luck. Last fall we went down to the Catalyst Conference in Atlanta and we got to our hotel around midnight. We had checked and doubled checked our reservation. And they didn’t keep our reservation. We had to stay in another hotel that night. But what’s even funnier is that they gave us some complimentary baskets for messing up. One of the girls was eating the cookies and discovered they were full of maggots. Thank you very little.
So a few weeks ago we were in Arizona doing a workshop at the Futuregen Conference. We went to check in and they told us they only had one room with one king bed. That is the last thing you want to hear when you’re traveling with four guys! I said, “We reserved a room with two double beds.” The hostess said and I quote, “A reservation isn’t a guarantee. It just means we’ll try.” You’ve got to be kidding me! Call me crazy, but then what’s the point of making the reservations? I wanted to say, “I promise to pay on the way out, but that isn’t a guarantee.”
All of that is to say this: my confidence in reservations is way down. But our heavenly reservation is guaranteed by God himself. You can know that you know that you know. And we don’t even have to make a deposit to hold the reservation. God has made a deposit in us—the Holy Spirit. He is “a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance.”
Let me talk about one more stop.
The New Heavens and The New Earth
After the judgment, God is going to make everything new. There will be a new heaven and a new earth. And there will be a new you.
Let me put it in theological terms. When you put your faith in Christ you experience something called justification. You are justified—just as if you had never sinned. Your sin is forgiven and forgotten. Justification begins a lifelong process called sanctification which is the process of becoming like Christ. And the final stop in the journey is glorification. You can see all three dimensions in Romans 8:29. It says, “For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of His Son.” That is the process of sanctification. “And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.”
And this is where it gets good.
New Body
I think most of you know that I’ve got some physical issues! I have two reconstructed knees. I have a foot less intestines than the average person because my intestines ruptured a few years ago. And I have asthma so I have less than 25% of the lung capacity of the normal person. I can’t wait for a glorified body!
People who are blind will see their family for the first time. People who are paralyzed will jump for joy. I was thinking this week about those who have loved ones who have suffered with Alzheimer’s disease. I think it may be the most inhumane disease because when you take away memories you take away identity. But God will give back those memories in heaven! Isn’t that an awesome thought?
In fact, I think that God won’t just give back the memories. I think we won’t just get to remember. I think God will fulfill the desire in all of us to relive certain days.
I have lots of days I’d love to relive. Several years ago I was in Los Angeles for a conference and I had a free day. I decided to hop a boat and head out to Catalina Island about twenty-five miles off the coast. There is something enchanting about islands. In the 1920’s some buffalo were brought to the island for the filming of the movie and they still roam the island. The little coastal towns are almost out of a storybook. I relaxed on the beach. I walked the city streets. I even went parasailing. It was one of those days when time stood still. I’ve always wanted to relive that day with my wife.
I think we’ll get to relive those moments in heaven. But we’ll also experience new moments that will make even the greatest moments in this life pale in comparison.
So we’ll receive a glorified body. We don’t know exactly how that body will differ from our present bodies. Theologians have historically said that our glorified bodies will have four characteristics: subtlety, luminosity, agility, and incorruptibility. I don’t have time to talk about those four characteristics, but let me give you one hint as to what our bodies will be like.
Philippians 3:20 says, “Our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savoir 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.”
So somehow our bodies will resemble Christ’s glorified body. The risen Christ is the prototype God will use to recreate us. There aren’t a lot of post-resurrection references to Jesus’ body but we know a couple things for sure. He could walk through walls. He seemed to have the ability to teleport. He defied the laws of gravity at his ascension. But he still had a body. He invited Thomas to touch his nail-pierced hands. And he ate with the disciples.
I think we’ll eat. There will be a marriage supper of the Lamb. I think Ruth Chris steakhouse will be on every street corner! But here is the difference. Our bodies won’t be subservient to our human cravings and needs.
Extra-Sensory
I think one of the most exciting things about heaven is that we won’t be limited by our five senses. The nose can distinguish between 10,000 distinct odors which is pretty amazing. But I think we’ll smell new smells. I think we’ll see new colors and hear new sounds and taste new flavors.
So you’ll get a new body that is super-natural and extra-sensory in some form or fashion. You’ll also get a new name.
New Name
I think you will still be you in heaven—you’ll have your memories and your personality and your relationships. I don’t think God will take those away. But I think you will become who you were meant to be in the truest and fullest sense. One of my favorite passages in Scripture is Revelation 2:17. It says, “To him who overcomes I will give a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to him who receives it.” God will reveal our true name and true identity.
My name is Mark Batterson. But that isn’t my real identity. That is just a label given to me by my parents. My real name is the new name I’ll be given by God. John Eldredge says, “The history of a man’s relationship with God is the story of how God calls him out, takes him on a journey and gives him his true name.”
Question
Let me ask you a question. I haven’t even scratched the surface, but how much would you pay for a ticket to a place like this?
Jesus said it outweighs all the pleasures, all the riches, all the experiences offered by this planet. He said, “What does it profit a man if he gains the whole world, but forfeits his own soul?”
C.S. Lewis said, “Any man who reaches Heaven will find that what he abandoned (even plucking out his right eye) was precisely nothing: that the kernel of what he was really seeking even in his most depraved wishes will be there, beyond expectation.”
How much would you pay for a ticket to a place like this? The bad news is that you can’t purchase a ticket. The good news is that someone has already purchased a ticket for you. It doesn’t matter how old you are or how bad you’ve been or where you were born or what you do for a living. Tickets have been purchased for you. All you have to do is put your faith in Christ—the one who died for you, was raised from the dead, and will return to this planet in power and glory someday!
God wants to spend eternity with you. The question is: do you want to spend eternity with God?
Jude 24 is my prayer for you. “To Him who is able to keep you from stumbling and present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy—to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore. Amen!”