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What Will Eternity Be Like?
Knowing what heaven
will be like will give us a positive outlook in this life. Where do you
hope to spend eternity? Most of us would probably not be surprised to know
that the Bible teaches that unbelievers will spend eternity in the lake
of fire (Revelation 20:14-15). However, did you know that the Bible
doesn't teach that believers are going to spend eternity in heaven?
Rather, Christians will spend eternity on the "new earth" (Revelation
21-22). The old earth and heavens that we know will be destroyed, and
God will create a new heaven and a new earth.
This new earth will contain cities with streets of gold and pearly
gates. The new earth will be a glorious place where all curses are
removed. We won't have pollution, and we won't be afraid of
wild animals. Nobody will sin,
and there will be no criminals. It will be paradise. There will be no
death, sorrow, crying, pain, or suffering (Revelation 21:4), although we will
have likes and dislikes, as well as surprises and disappointments.
What do you expect to look like in eternity? We will look
much like we look now, and others will be able to recognize us, just as
people were able to recognize Jesus after His resurrection, as well as
Abraham and Lazarus after their deaths (Luke 16). However,
all of the problems of our physical bodies will be eliminated,
including disease, deformities, and blemishes. We will have
glorified bodies, and they will be unique. We will probably have
variety then as now. Some will be taller, shorter, heavier, or lighter
than others. We will probably remain in an ageless state in
the prime of life, just as Adam and Eve were created in the prime of
life. We can think of it as being 25 or 30 years old or so.
Ours will be a physical existence on a physical planet, forever.
What do you expect to do in eternity? You probably won't be
singing in a big choir forever. Rather, eternity will have
distinct features that might be foreign to us today. However,
in terms of what we do know today, I believe we will work, create and
produce things, and participate in an economy, much as we do
now. After all, didn't God give Adam and Eve things to do
even before they sinned? Our work then will be much more enjoyable than
it is now because we will be working in a perfect environment with
perfect bodies. Our jobs will be challenging and rewarding, and never
boring or tiring, and we'll love serving God through our jobs. We may
have many of the same jobs we have today, with some being eliminated to
adjust to our new economy. For example, we'll need no police because there will be no crime, no
doctors because there will be no disease, and no funeral parlors since
there will be no death. However, I think we'll have
musicians, writers, teachers, and computer programmers. We will
continue to invent things that improve our lot, and eternity will just get better and better.
We will also worship God in eternity. Maybe we'll be taught
by the prophets of old. We'll enjoy fellowship and recreation
as well. Eternity will be fun and enjoyable, like the
millennium extended. I think eternity will be what God had planned for Adam and Eve had they
not sinned. I think we will take our spiritual maturity to
heaven. We will all grow in spiritual maturity, but we won't
be at the same level. God won't just zap us with all truth
and knowledge. We'll continue to learn and teach as we do
now. That's why it's so important that we study
and learn the Bible in this life, because we'll retain that knowledge in heaven. We
need to keep on preparing for eternity. Though we'll all be happy in
heaven, some may enjoy special rewards from God, and others may be
somewhat disappointed.
Owen Weber2008 |
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