learning

The Negations of Heaven

Ryan Essay , , ,

What will heaven be like? We know only partial answers to this question from the Bible, but this doesn’t stop many from speculating. This is something Christians dearly want to know.

Some of what we know of heaven is stated positively. God will dwell with his people; he will be their God; he will make all things new.

But, curiously, some of what we learn about heaven is stated negatively. Why is that?

I have two main passages in mind. In Revelation 21:4, we learn the following about heaven.

  • God will wipe away every tear.
  • Death will be no more.
  • There will be no more mourning, crying, or pain.
  • The former things will have passed away.

In addition, we read in Revelation 22:3 that there will be nothing cursed in the new creation.

In 1 Peter 1:4, the apostle writes about our inheritance with negative language. We have been born again “to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading.”

Perhaps the reason for this is obvious, but it’s worth saying out loud. The Bible is teaching us what heaven will be like by contrast. Our current life is full of tears, death, mourning, crying, and pain. All of the inheritances we know about perish, get defiled, and fade away. What is heaven like? It is the opposite of all of the cursed parts of our current experience.

From when we’re very young, this is how we learn. We acquire new information by making a bridge from the known to the unknown. We are familiar with pain; we understand physical, emotional, and mental anguish. The new heavens and the new earth will have absolutely none of that.

This short observation is not groundbreaking, but it is an invitation. This week, when you feel the curse of sin scratching its thorns against your shins, or when you feel nearly crushed by the weight of sin and suffering, think of the contrast the Lord has promised you. Look to the future with hope, for one day the earth will be remade and sin will be no more.

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Children: A Blessed Interruption

Ryan Essay ,

child-eating-watermelon-1I started a recent Saturday morning with a sigh. It was time for one of my least favorite tasks: grading.

Grading for a professor is like sweeping the floor for a barber. It’s necessary, tedious, and often a hairy mess.

I was hoping to finish in an hour. I sat down with a red pen and braced myself. Then, the barrage began.

Daddy, can you watch me dance?
Daddy, can you make me breakfast?
Daddy, will you help me with this puzzle?
Daddy, my sister is bothering me!

Abundant tears. Disappointment galore. (My children had a rough time, too.)

One hour stretched into two. As with so much of parenting, this was not what I planned.

Children Are Interrupters

Interruptions and parenting go hand in hand. Every parent-to-be hears this, but it’s hard to grasp the new reality until it arrives.

For mothers, disruptions begin early as the child takes over her body during pregnancy. Unplanned clothing, cravings, emotions, pains, and trips to the bathroom mark those nine months.

During their first years of life, children survive through interruptions. They broadcast their needs at all hours and volumes.

While those early-year disturbances don’t disappear, they gradually change. Feedings, diaper changes, and 3am lullabyes give way to snack requests, scraped knees, and 3am counseling.

This isn’t unusual; this is parenting.

God is an Interrupter

I often brush aside these intrusions as meaningless accidents. Surely (I say to myself) the important parts of life lie elsewhere: adult conversations, work, community service, prayer, reading, church.

But God is an interrupter. Just ask Noah, Abraham, Moses, David, Paul, or anyone that encountered Jesus.

Because he is sovereign, none of our interruptions come by chance. Some people use the term “divine appointment,” but that’s too tame. God disrupts our lives more like a rock through the window than a polite meeting request.

Learning Through Interruptions

God’s interruptions are more than a detour. His diversions don’t just lead to the correct path, they are the path. God teaches through disruption.

Consider Moses. God used Moses’ curiosity about the burning bush (Exodus 3:3) to reveal his name (Exodus 3:6,14–15), give Moses his mission (Exodus 3:10), and pledge his presence (Exodus 3:12). God didn’t just end Moses’ shepherding career, he gave Moses spiritual supplies for his new, enormous task.

We must embrace not only the result of God’s interventions but the interventions themselves. We need to see the opportunity, not the annoyance.

Which brings me back to my children.

Learning With My Children

I need these parenting interruptions. I need to be shaken from self-centeredness and reminded of how important my children are. I have only a finite number of dances to watch, breakfasts to prepare, and puzzles to build.

Yes, life with children is harder. But it is better, too.

God teaches me though my children’s requests, their needs, their disagreements, and even their disobedience. He shines a light on my heart, my requests, and my disobedience. He graciously shapes my character as I learn how to respond and how to love.

I’m grateful for God’s instructions. The question is: Will I listen?

Photo Credit: Petr Kratochvil, Public Domain