Heaven, Day 2

Excerpted from the book, “Heaven: A Comprehensive Guide to Everything the Bible Says About Our Eternal Home (Clear Answers to 44 Real Questions About the Afterlife, Angels, Resurrection, and the Kingdom of God)”

Day Two: Heavenly-minded and of earthly good.

Colossians 3 says, “Set your heart on things above where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on earthly things.”

C.S. Lewis wrote, “It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this one.” Over the years, a number of people have told me, “We shouldn’t think about Heaven. We should just think about Jesus.” This viewpoint sounds spiritual, doesn’t it? But it’s based on wrong assumptions, and it’s clearly contradicted by Scripture. Colossians 3 is a direct command to set our hearts and minds on Heaven. We set our minds on Heaven because we love Jesus Christ, and Heaven is where He now resides. To long for Heaven is to long for Christ. To long for Christ is to long for Heaven, for that’s where we’ll be with Him. That’s why God’s people are longing for a better country, as Hebrews 11 tells us.

In Colossians 3:1, the Greek word translated “set your hearts on” is zeteo, which denotes man’s general philosophical search or quest. The same word is used in the Gospels to describe how the Son of Man came to seek and to save that which was lost. Zeteo was also used to describe how a shepherd looks for his lost sheep in Matthew 18, and how a woman searches for a lost coin in Luke 15, and also how a merchant searches for fine pearls in Matthew 13. It’s a diligent act of single-minded pursuit. So we can understand Paul’s admonition in Colossians 3:1 as follows: Diligently, actively, single-mindedly pursue the things above. In a word, Heaven. The verb zeteo is in the present tense, suggesting an ongoing process. Keep seeking Heaven. Don’t just have a conversation, read a book, or listen to a sermon and feel as if you fulfilled the command. If you’re going to spend the next lifetime living in Heaven, why not spend this lifetime seeking Heaven so you can eagerly anticipate and prepare for it? The command and its restatement implies that there is nothing automatic about setting our minds on Heaven. In fact, most commands assume a resistance to obeying them, which sets up the necessity for the command in the first place. We’re told to avoid sexual immorality because it’s our tendency. We are not told to avoid jumping off buildings because normally we don’t battle such a temptation. Every day, the command to think about Heaven is under attack in 100 different ways. Everything militates against thinking about Heaven. Our minds are set so resolutely on Earth that we’re unaccustomed to Heavenly thinking, so we have to work at it. What have you been doing daily to set your mind on things above, to seek Heaven? What should you be doing differently? Perhaps you’re afraid of becoming so Heavenly-minded that you’re of no earthly good. Relax, you have nothing to worry about. On the contrary, many of us are so earthly minded we’re of no Heavenly or Earthly good.

C.S. Lewis observed, “If you read history, you will find that the Christians who did most for the present world were just those who thought most of the next. The Apostles themselves who set on foot the conversion of the Roman Empire, the great men who built up the Middle Ages, the English evangelicals who abolished the slave trade all left their mark on Earth precisely because their minds were occupied with Heaven. It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this one. Aim at Heaven, and you will get Earth thrown in; aim at Earth, and you will get neither.” We need a generation of Heavenly-minded people who see human beings and the Earth itself not simply as they are, but as God intends them to be. Such people will pass on a heritage to their children far more valuable than any inheritance. We must begin by reasoning from God’s revealed truth, but such reasoning will require us to use our Scripture-enhanced imaginations.

As a non-fiction writer and Bible teacher, I start by seeing what Scripture actually says. As a novelist, I take that revelation and add to it the vital ingredient of imagination. In the words of Francis Schaeffer, “The Christian is the really free man. He is free to have imagination.” This too is our heritage. The Christian is the one whose imagination should fly beyond the stars. Schaeffer always started with God’s revealed truth, but he exhorted us to let that truth fuel our imaginations. Imagination should not fly away from the truth, but upon it. You may be dealing with great pain and loss, yet in John 16:33, Jesus says, “Be of good cheer.” Why? Because the new house is nearly ready for you. Moving day is coming. The dark winter is about to be magically transformed into spring. One day soon, you will be home for the first time. Until then, I encourage you to find joy and hope as you meditate on the truth about Heaven revealed in the Bible.

Why not ask God to make your imagination soar and your heart rejoice? Thank you, God, for the gift of imagination. In a world where ideas are so often grounded in quicksand and are contrary to sound doctrine, help us to be firmly based in your word. Help us to be saturated in its teaching. Thank you for promising us immeasurably more than all that we ask or imagine in your eternal kingdom.

– Randy Alcorn

++++++++

MY WORDS

Get this book!

If you have a question or a comment, email me here and let’s talk.

Roy