Praying For Our Protection (Hope in Theology Series 6 of 6)

Introduction

After Jesus instructs us to ask our heavenly Father for our daily physical needs and for our forgiveness of sins, he instructs us to pray for our third basic need in life–our protection. “Pray then like this, Our Father … lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil’” (Matt. 6:13).[1]

This last petition expresses one primary concept: life is a battle that involves dangerous spiritual warfare that we cannot overcome by ourselves, so we must trust our heavenly Father to protect us.

What does it mean to ask our heavenly Father not to lead us into temptation? Will God purposefully lead us into situations that will tempt us to sin? The idea that God would lead us into temptation has confused and troubled many followers of Jesus throughout history.[2]

The Greek word translated “temptation” (πειρασμόν) in this verse conveys the idea of an experiment, a trial, or a test that proves or gives evidence of something. The words temptation, trial, and test are used synonymously in the Bible for hardships we experience that help our faith mature. (Jas. 1:2-4)

In all forms of good education, teachers give students tests that are designed to help students learn and give evidence of their progress. Students don’t normally like taking tests, but they usually understand why tests are necessary.

Similarly, the Scriptures teach that God gives us tests, also translated “trials,” to help us flourish in our relationship with him and in our fulfillment of his kingdom purposes for our lives. However, like most students, we don’t enjoy taking God’s tests because they are often hard and painful.

God Leads Us Into Temptation

So does God lead us into temptation? The biblical answer depends on the meaning of the word temptation. The problem is that the same Greek word used for temptation (πειρασμόν) in the New Testament can have different meanings.

The Bible is filled with examples of God purposefully leading his people into times of temptation and testing.[3] So, in this sense, our Father allows us to be “tempted” in that he allows us to be “tested” by leading us into difficult circumstances to help us grow. This is how Jesus uses the word “temptation” when he teaches the Lord’s Prayer.

James uses the same Greek word for temptation that Jesus uses, but with a different meaning.[4] James writes, “Let no one say when he is tempted, ‘I am being tempted by God,’ for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one.” (Jas. 1:13)[5] So, when God brings “times of testing” into our lives, he never tempts us in the sense of “enticing” or “luring” us to sin.

God leads us into circumstances in which we will be subjected to temptation. But God never leads us into the power and control of temptation to be subdued by it.[6] James teaches that the origin of that kind of lure and enticement to temptation is not from God, but from our own sinful hearts. “Each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire.” (Jas. 1:14)[7]

Luke uses this same word to describe Jesus’ experience during his forty days in the wilderness before his public ministry. “When the devil had ended every temptation (πειρασμὸν) he departed from him until an opportune time” (Luke 4:12-13).[8] In Hebrews 4:15, Jesus is described as “one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.”[9]

Therefore, just as God led Adam, Abraham, Israel, and Jesus into temptations for their good and his glory, God also leads us into temptations. Paul sees these times of temptation and suffering as essential, continuing, normal experiences for all true followers of Jesus.[10] Peter writes, “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you” (1 Pet. 4:12).

In our Father’s great love for us, he brings trials into our lives. We should not be surprised by them but learn to accept them as a vital part of God’s normal plan to transform us into the image of his Son.

Asking God Not To Lead Us Into Temptation

Since God leads us into times of temptation for our good and his glory, then why does Jesus instruct us to ask our Father in heaven not to lead us into temptation? Why should we ask God to spare us these temptations if they are necessary for us to grow and flourish spiritually?

J.I. Packer writes, “Temptation may be our lot, but only a fool will make it his preference.”[11] Peter and Paul did not ask God to lead them into temptation, and neither should we. Instead, they learned the opposite from Jesus–to ask God “not to lead them into temptation.”

In the garden of Gethsemane, when Jesus contemplated God’s will for him to take the fullness of God’s wrath on himself on the cross for our forgiveness, his first response was to cry out, “My “Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me” (Matt. 26:39). Jesus is praying in essence, “Father, if it is possible, do not lead me into this temptation.”[12]

However, Jesus soon realized that his Father’s will was to lead him to the cross, even though he would be tempted to turn away from his Father's plan. Only by resisting this temptation and enduring the cross could he remain faithful and secure salvation for his people.

Only by overcoming this temptation could Jesus come to know “the joy set before him” and become "the founder and perfecter of our faith” (Heb. 12:2). So he submits to this trial and prays, “yet not my will but yours be done” (Matt. 26:39).

While Jesus was experiencing his temptation in the garden, he reminds his disciples to pray that they will not enter into temptation. “Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” (Matt. 26:41)[13]

His disciples were especially vulnerable to temptation because they were so tired that they kept falling asleep. (Matt. 26:43) Jesus knew that although their “spirit” was willing to obey his instruction to watch and pray, the physical tiredness and weakness of their “flesh” (body) could easily lead them to disobey him.

The reason we ask our Father not to lead us into temptation is because we know how weak and vulnerable we are and how easy it is for us to fail God’s tests. And we know how horrible the consequences of our failure could be to ourselves, others, and God’s name.[14]

However, when it is our Father’s will to lead us into temptation, we join with Jesus, in reliance on the power of his Holy Spirit and cry out to our Father for his grace and mercy to endure the temptation as we pray, “yet not my will but yours be done” (Matt. 26:39).[15]

Asking God to Deliver Us From Evil

When God leads us into temptation, Jesus instructs us to plead with our heavenly Father to “deliver us from evil,” or we will almost certainly fail the test.[16] The word translated “deliver” (ῥῦσαι) is a strong word that conveys the idea of our desperate need to be “rescued” from great danger when being tempted.[17]

The Greek word translated evil can refer to evil in general or to the “evil one,” Satan, in particular.[18] Jesus is most likely referring to both here. There are three sources of evil that are the enemy of our soul: the world, the flesh, and the devil.[19]

But our primary foe is the devil, Satan, who is the personification and instigator of all evil.[20] The Scriptures teach that Satan is a fallen angel who terrorizes the world through through all kinds of evil. He causes great havoc throughout God’s redemptive story, starting with Adam and continuing with Job, Abraham, Moses, David, Jesus, and the Apostles.[21]

Satan uses two main strategies of attack to entice us to sin: 1) an outward attack using the world and 2) an inward attack using our flesh (our sinful human nature).

Satan’s outward attack is by means of the lure of a sinful world with all of its false promises of lasting satisfaction and joy. When Paul writes, “You once walked, following the course of this world” (Eph. 2:2), he’s referring to ungodly societal beliefs, values, and behaviors that Satan uses to tempt followers of Jesus to disobey God.[22]

Satan’s inward attack includes appealing to our sinful human nature with all its lusts, greed, and pride so that we look for true happiness and fulfillment in anything other than God.

Jesus taught that all our external sins of the body come from the internal sins of our morally corrupt heart. (Mark 7:20-23)[23]

Although our deliverance from evil must be the work of God’s Holy Spirit, the Bible teaches that we’re always to be active in this process.[24] Lying behind our every human exertion is the Holy Spirit's life transforming power. (Phil. 2:12-13)

So when we ask our heavenly Father to “deliver us from evil” in all its forms, we’re putting on our spiritual armor (Eph. 6:10-18), humbling ourselves and resisting the devil (Jas. 4:7), and drawing near to God (Jas. 4:8) for his grace and mercy to protect us so we will “remain steadfast under trial” (Jas. 1:12).

God graciously gives us two invaluable promises in Scripture to help us overcome temptation.

His first promise is that he will not tempt us beyond what we can handle. Paul writes, “No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability” (1 Cor. 10:13a). [25] And God’s second promise is to provide us everything we need to overcome temptation. Paul writes, “But with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it” (1 Cor. 10:13b).

As we learn to endure temptation and draw near to God for help, we learn to trust in his promises never to tempt us beyond our ability and always provide for us a way of escape.

Conclusion

James writes, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you” (James 4:6-7)[26] Although Satan is fierce,[27] God promises he will flee us when we resist him and draw near to God.[28]

We should respect Satan but not fear him. Satan and God are not equal opposites. Satan is a false god. He is a creature in rebellion against his Creator.

It’s only in the context of our fighting against temptations that God leads us to new levels of dependence on him and in turn leads us to newer and deeper levels of joy, love, peace, and power. John Bunyan writes, "Temptation provokes me to look upward to God."

Temptation itself is not sin. Temptation is the temptation to sin. Jesus was tempted (Matt. 4:1), but he never sinned (Heb 4:15-16). Temptation only becomes sin when we give into it.[29] Sin occurs when we fail to resist temptation and allow it to lead us to disobey God in our thoughts, words, or deeds.[30]

Martin Luther once said, “You cannot keep birds from flying over your head, but you can keep them from building a nest in your hair.”

It is good for us to be without vices, but it is not good for us to be without temptations. Why? Without temptations we do not need God and will not be drawn into the riches of his love for us. When our Father leads us into temptation, he calls us into battle, shows us our desperate need for his Son, and empowers us by his Spirit to run to Christ to save us. In him alone will we find the grace and mercy to overcome our temptations and be delivered from evil.[31]

Footnotes:

[1] This is one petition that consists of two parts. These two clauses are linked by the Greek conjunction ἀλλὰ. The first clause, “Lead us not into temptation,” is amplified and applied by the second clause, “but (ἀλλὰ) deliver us from evil.” Luke’s record of the Lord’s Prayer does not include the second clause. (Luke 11:4)

[2] If this petition only means, “Do not allow us to enter into temptation” or “Do not let us yield to temptation,” why did Jesus instruct us to ask our heavenly Father not to lead us into temptation?

[3] Soon after God created Adam and Eve and placed them in the garden paradise, he tested them. (Gen. 3) In Genesis 22:1 we read that “God tested Abraham.” After God delivered the first generation of Israelites from bondage in Egypt, he tested them in the wilderness. (Num. 14, Ps. 95) The same Greek word translated “temptation” (πειρασμόν) in Matthew 6:13 is also used in the Greek translation of the Hebrew Old Testament (Septuagint) in passages like Numbers 14 and Psalm 95. God called Israel to be fruitful and multiply (Gen 1:27-28; 35:11) and to obey all his commands in order to have life. (Lev 18:5) But like Adam, Israel failed God’s tests. God’s commands for Israel to make sacrifices for sin were reminders of their failure of God’s tests to keep his demands and their need to look ahead for God’s promised Redeemer.

[4] Similarly, the same Greek word for justification (δικαιοῦται) in the New Testament has different nuances according to the context in which it is found. It means "declared righteousness," but our works are proof, according to James, that our faith is genuine, that it is a true, living faith. James's point is that we are justified, not by a dead faith, but by a faith that works. So God "declares" us righteous on the basis of that faith that works. The works do "prove" our faith, but the way they do this is by showing that our faith is real. So justification is by faith and NOT by works; but works serve as evidence that the faith is authentic. Paul writes, “We know that a person is not justified (δικαιοῦται) by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ” (Gal. 2:16). James writes, “You see that a person is justified (δικαιοῦται) by works and not by faith alone” (Jas. 2:24).

[5] James tells us that “God cannot be tempted with evil.” God’s nature is "untemptable" (ἀπείραστός). Just as the Scriptures teach that God is not capable of changing, lying, or breaking a promise, God is not capable of being tempted or seduced by things that are evil. Therefore, God is not capable of tempting (evil luring) anyone to sin.

[6] In his Confessions, Augustine helps us distinguish between the two different meanings of the same word for temptation when he writes, “All men must be tempted; but to be brought into temptation is to be brought into the power and the control of temptation; it is to not only be subjected to temptation but to be subdued by temptation.”

[7] Our sinful human nature (flesh) by itself has the power to entice us to sin. However, Satan often tempts us through our sinful human nature. We’ll study how Satan tempts us through our “flesh” and the “world” later in this chapter.

[8] Paul presents Jesus as the second man and the last Adam. (1 Cor. 15: 45-47) When the first man, Adam, was tempted in the garden, he failed to obey God resulting in eternal death for humanity. (Rom. 5:12-14) But when the second man, Jesus, was similarly tempted throughout his life, he perfectly obeyed God resulting in eternal life for humanity. (Rom 5:18-19)

[9] The question is raised, “If God cannot be tempted and Jesus is God, how can Jesus be tempted?” The Bible teaches that Jesus is a divine person with a divine nature and a human nature. As the divine, eternal Son of God, Jesus cannot be tempted. However, in his humanity Jesus experienced real human limitations and temptations. (Luke 2:52, Mark 12:32, Heb. 2:17-18, 4:14-16)

[10] When Paul reflects on his many temptations, he writes, “We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies” (2 Cor. 4:8-10).

[11] Packer, J. I.. Growing in Christ, p. 196, Crossway

[12] This is not a serene or stoic prayer, but a prayer made “in agony and his sweat became like drops of blood falling to the ground” (Luke 22:44).

[13] The Greek words that Jesus uses here are “spirit” (πνεῦμα) and “flesh” (σὰρξ). Jesus’ statement “the flesh is weak” in this context is primarily a reference to the weak physical bodies of his disciples. But Paul uses the same Greek word “flesh” (σὰρξ) to mean our “sinful desires.” (See Rom. 7:18, Rom. 13:14, Gal. 5:13, 16-25.) Although the Bible refers to our physical bodies as being weak and susceptible to evil influence, it does not characterize the physical body as evil in itself. The physical world and our bodies were created by God as good and will be recreated good when Jesus returns to make all things new.

[14] Paul warns us, “Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall” (1 Cor. 10:12).

[15] When our Father leads us into temptation, we are not thankful for the temptation itself, but for how God will use it for our ultimate good and the fulfillment his kingdom purposes though us. After James writes, “Count it all joy … when you meet trials of various kinds” (Jas. 1:2), he then tells us the reason we count it all joy: “for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.” (Jas. 1:3-4) Believers should grieve and mourn tragedies, terminal illnesses, and death. When Jesus’ friend Lazarus died, Jesus was not joyful and thankful to God for his death. He saw death, like Satan, as his enemy that he hates and that he came to conquer. So he wept when he learned that Lazarus died. But Jesus gave thanks to his Father at the tomb of Lazarus for how he was going to use his death to display the Father’s glory by raising him from the dead. (John 11:38-44)

[16] Calvin writes, “We conclude from this petition, that we have no strength for living a holy life, except so far as we obtain it from God. Whoever implores the assistance of God to overcome temptations, acknowledges that, unless God deliver him, he will be constantly falling.” Commentary on the Gospel of  Matthew.

[17] At the crucifixion of Jesus, the religious leaders mocked him saying, “He trusts in God; let God deliver (ῥῦσαι) him now” (Matt. 27:43). In Paul’s struggle with the temptations of his sinful nature, he cries out to be rescued using this same word. “Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver (ῥῦσαι) me from this body of death?” (Rom. 7:24)

[18] There is debate among New Testament scholars regarding the meaning of τοῦ πονηροῦ. The use of the definite article (τοῦ) can refer to evil in general (neuter gender), the evil one (masculine gender), or both.

[19] The world, the flesh, and the devil are sometimes called the “Unholy Trinity.” Paul refers to all three sources of evil in Ephesians 2:1-3: “And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air [devil], the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh.” To invoke a threefold pattern found elsewhere in this book and series, Satan is “normative,” the would-be ruler of this world; the world itself is “situational,” the configuration of evil in historical events, and the flesh is “existential,” within ourselves as our fallen nature. A similar pattern appears in the temptation of Eve in Gen. 3:6, when she accepts the serpent’s view that the forbidden fruit brings wisdom (normative), is good for food (existential), and is pleasant to the eye (situational). But when Jesus was tempted, he rejected Satan’s claims: he would not obey Satan to satisfy his hunger (existential), to display his power to the world (situational), or to engage in false worship (normative).

[20] In the Old Testament, the Hebrew word for Satan (שָּׂטָן‎) is a generic noun meaning "accuser" or "adversary.” In the New Testament, the Greek word devil (διάβολος), meaning slanderer, is used with Satan interchangeably as a synonym. Matthew calls Satan “the tempter.” (Matt. 4:3) John calls him “the ruler of this world.” (Jn. 12:31, 14:30) Paul calls him “the prince of the power of the air” (Eph. 2:2) and “the god of this world.” (2 Cor. 4:4) In Scripture, both good and evil are fundamentally personal, not abstractions or inanimate forces. God is personal goodness, Satan personal evil.

[21] When our Father, by the power of his Holy Spirit, led Jesus into temptation to prepare him for his public ministry, Matthew writes, “Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil” (Matt. 4:1).

[22] Church historian Richard Lovelace writes, “When ‘world’ is used in a negative sense in Scripture, what is meant is the total system of corporate flesh operating on earth under satanic control. Included are dehumanizing social, economic and political systems; business operations and foreign policy based on local interest at the expense of general human welfare; and culturally pervasive institutionalized sin such as racism. Much of the Christian community today is deeply penetrated by these worldly patterns of thinking, motivation and behaviour, and thus its spiritual life is deadened and its witness rendered ineffectual.” Dynamics of Spiritual Life: An Evangelical Theology of Renewal.

[23] At its core, sin is more than disobeying God’s laws. It is a deep-seated, invisible, terminal disease. Paul describes the actions of our sinful hearts as the works of the flesh. (Gal 5:19-21) He writes, “Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires” (Gal. 5:24).

[24] The Scriptures teach that we overcome temptation by learning how to turn away from sin in repentance and turn to Jesus Christ in faith. Paul presents repentance as “putting off” the old self and faith as “putting on” the new self. (Rom. 6, Col. 3) In repentance, we pull our heart’s affections away from idols that can never satisfy so that we can place our affections on to the ascended Jesus Christ who alone can satisfy. Then we experience what the Puritans called “the expulsive power of a new affection.”

[25] God graciously limits the specific temptations we experience so that they are within our ability to resist and overcome. Calvin writes, “God alleviates temptations, that they may not overpower us by their weight. For he knows the measure of our power, which he has himself conferred. According to that, he regulates our temptations.”  Commentary on the Sermon on the Mount

[26] Paul writes, “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm” (Eph. 6:10-13).

[27] Peter writes, “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world” (1 Pet. 5: 8-9).

[28] “God is strong enough to free you from everything and can do you more good than all the devils can do you harm. All that God decrees is that you confide in him, that you draw near him, that you trust him and distrust yourself, and so be helped; and with this help you will defeat whatever hell brings against you. Never lose hold of this firm hope even if the demons are legion and all kinds of severe temptations harass you. Lean upon Him, because if the Lord is not your support and your strength, then you will fall and you will be afraid of everything.” Saint John of Avila, Sermons, 9, First Sunday of Lent

[29] John Owen, the Puritan theologian, writes, “"Sin will not die unless it be constantly weakened. Spare it, and it will heal its wounds, and recover its strength. We must continually watch against the operations of this principle of (indwelling) sin...in all that we do! … Let no man think to kill sin with a few gentle strokes.  He, who has once smitten the serpent, if he does not follow his blow until it is killed, may repent that he ever began the quarrel in the first place; and so will he who undertakes to deal with sin, if he does not pursue it constantly to death; sin will revive, and the man must die." On Mortification of Sin

[30] The Bible gives three practical directives we must learn regarding how to overcome temptation: 1) Starve it out: We must learn to starve our sinful nature of those things which nourish and feed it. Paul writes, "make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires” (Rom. 13:14). 2) Cut it out: We must learn to take radical action against indwelling sin. Jesus teaches, “If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away” (Matt. 5:27-30). The Puritans called this our “mortification” of sin. 3) Crowd it out: We must learn to crowd out temptations by replacing them with things that are true, good, and beautiful. After Paul writes, “flee youthful passions,” he writes, “and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace” (2 Tim. 2:22). A well-cultivated, flourishing garden has much less room for weeds. The Puritans called this our “vivification” in holiness.

[31] Augustine writes, “When we say, deliver us from evil, there remains nothing further which ought to be asked. When we have once asked for God's protection against evil, and have obtained it, then against everything which the devil and the world work against us we stand secure and safe. For what fear is there in this life, to the man whose guardian in this life is God?” Sermon on the Mount, 2.10, pp. 36-37

Praying the Benediction (Hope in Theology Series Conclusion)

The traditional ending of the Lord’s Prayer includes the benediction “For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever. Amen” (Matt. 6:13). It’s not included in many modern Bible translations because it’s not in the earliest Greek manuscripts of the New Testament.[1]

Church leaders probably added this benediction to the end of the Lord’s Prayer as a part of a public worship liturgy.[2] It seems to be based on King David’s temple prayer in 1 Chronicles 29:11-13.

Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, O Lord, and you are exalted as head above all. Both riches and honor come from you, and you rule over all. In your hand are power and might, and in your hand it is to make great and to give strength to all. And now we thank you, our God, and praise your glorious name.

David shows the God-centered nature of his temple prayer by his repeated use of the second person pronouns “yours” and “you.” David repeatedly prays phrases like, “Yours, O Lord is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty … Yours is the kingdom, O Lord, and you are exalted …” We see echoes of David’s prayer in the benediction, “For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever. Amen”

The ultimate goal of the three horizontal petitions in the Lord’s Prayer–for our daily bread, our forgiveness, and our protection–is to see our Father’s answers to the three vertical petitions for his name to be honored, his kingdom to come, and his will to be done on earth as it is in heaven.

Our Father uses our daily needs, sinful failures, and temptations to keep drawing us near to himself so that through his ongoing provisions of our daily bread, forgiveness, and protection, he sweeps us up into his higher purposes for the world to see his name honored, his kingdom come, and his will be done on earth as it is in heaven–through us.

God’s primary purpose for creating the world is so that all the nations would glorify, worship and find their joy in Him. This is why we exist–to glorify God by enjoying Him and helping to extend the worship and enjoyment of God to all nations.

The Christian hope is that when Jesus returns he will make all things new so that God the Father will be honored and glorified in everything forever. (1 Cor. 15:24-25, 28) In the meantime, Jesus calls us to join with him and pray the Lord’s Prayer.

Footnotes:

[1] The traditional doxology is found in the majority of New Testament Greek manuscripts (Textus Receptus and Majority Text) including the Greek uncials dating from the 5th-10th century and the Greek minuscules dating from the 9th-12th century. This is why the doxology is included in the English KJV and NKJV versions. But the doxology is not found in the earlier and best Greek manuscripts, including א, B, D, f1, various Latin and Coptic versions, and numerous church fathers. It’s also not found in Luke’s account of the Lord’s Prayer in Luke 11:2-4. So, most modern English Bible translations do not include it or it’s placed in a margin or footnote, e.g. RSV and NIV.

[2] So, it’s fine for believers to use this doxology to conclude the prayer, but it should not be seen as belonging to Jesus’ teaching.

Why Look Forward to Your Resurrection and Life to Come Pt. 2 (Faith in Theology Series Appendix B)

The highest blessing in the world to come is the restoration of our “face to face” relationship with God through which will flow the restoration of all our other relationships that God ordains for human flourishing – including our relationships with ourselves, others, and our work. 

Restored Relationship with Ourselves

Most of us do not think of having a relationship with ourselves.[1]  Whether we realize it or not, we talk to ourselves constantly. Often it’s subconscious. Our self-talk is a reflection of being an image bearer designed by a triune God, who at creation revealed his self-talk saying, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness” (Gen 1:26a).

In the world to come our horribly broken relationship with ourselves will finally be healed. There will be no more mental illness, self-destructive thoughts, feelings, or behaviors. There will be no more sadness, fear, anxiety, anger, and doubt. Instead, believers will experience the full array of their God-given senses including singing, rejoicing, dancing, feasting and laughter. “He (Christ) will wipe away every tear from their eyes” (Rev. 21:4).

In the world to come, believers will have no more sinful temptations. We will not even be able to sin in thought, word, or deed. Adam and Eve’s souls never reached this glorified state that all redeemed and restored believers will reach in the world to come. This is another reason why the celestial city in the world to come will be far better than the garden paradise in Eden.[2]

In this perfect but still finite world to come, believers will have a perfect love for God and others that will be growing and deepening forever. The Scriptures teach that God’s love is both perfect and complete, meaning that God cannot grow in his perfect love, he can never be more loving. But the love of glorified believers for God and others will be perfect and incomplete – meaning that our perfect love will not be static, but always growing.[3]

Restored Relationship with Others

In this age our alienation from God flows into our alienation from others, resulting in a loss of transparency and intimacy in all our relationships. (Gen. 3:10, 11-13) But in the age to come, the restoration of our broken relationship with God will restore our broken relationships with others – especially as God unites us by his Spirit in a new community, his Church. Deeply satisfying human relationships are among God’s greatest gifts now and forever.

In the new world, there will be no more conflict between our love for God and our love for others. We will not be able to love others and not God, nor will we be able to love God and not love others. And our glorified love for both God and others will deepen and grow forever.[4]

God means for us to find a great source of comfort and joy in our anticipation of not only our future relationship with him but also our future relationships with others.[5] Puritan Richard Baxter shares how this thought of our future joy with others we love brings him comfort.

I know that Christ is all in all; and that it is the presence of God that makes Heaven to be heaven. But yet it much sweetens the thoughts of that place to me that there are there such a multitude of my most dear and precious friends in Christ.[6]

Restored Relationship with Work

The restoration of our relationship with God will also restore our broken relationship with our vocational calling, our “work,” in the world to come. In the beginning, God ordained work to be a good and vital means for his people to flourish on the earth as he carries out his will for the world through them. (Gen. 1:26-28)

But when sin entered the world not only was our relationship with God, ourselves, and others broken but also our relationship with our work. God’s original design for how we are to flourish in the world through our work is now corrupt and broken. Work is good. It’s the curse on work that is bad and what makes it so hard and painful. (Gen. 3:17-19)

Our broken relationship with work results in us deifying or demonizing our work. Those who deify their work, make it their primary source of happiness over God. And those who demonize their work see it as only a necessary evil until they can go to heaven for an eternal vacation where there is no more work – just constant rest and leisure.

In the new earth, God will restore our relationship with work to his original design for us to be his “sub-creators” in paradise. (Gen. 1:28; 2:15) God designed his new community, the Church, to be a living display of his kingdom on the earth and the primary instrument he uses to carry out his purposes for his glory, not only on this earth now, but on the new earth forever.

In the age to come, God’s Spirit and presence will not only be gloriously with us, he will also be powerfully working in us and through us using all the unique passions, gifts, and skills he’s given to us – to cause his will to be done on earth as it is in heaven forever.

Those who sinfully deify their work now will still find great pleasure in work, but their love for their work will no longer be at the expense of their love for God and others. And those who demonize their work now will deeply love work in the age to come as they experience the power of God’s presence working in and through their God-given passions, gifts, and skills to accomplish his purposes on a new earth forever.

Through our work we will all serve God in the world to come (Rev. 7:15, 22:3) using all our gifts, passions, and skills to help him rule over the earth according to his original design in creation. (Gen. 1:26-28; 2:15) Our work will include what we do the best and enjoy the most. It will never be boring, frustrating, or fruitless. Instead, it will always be new, marvelous, and done with enthusiasm.[7]

All the great works that are accomplished in this world by the nations for the glory and honor of God will be brought into the world to come. In Revelation 21:24-26, we learn that “The kings of the earth will bring their glory into it [the holy city] … they will bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations.” Theologian Anthony Hoekema writes:

One could also say that whatever people have done on this earth which glorified God will be remembered in the life to come (see Rev. 14:13). But more must be said. Is it too much to say that, according to these verses, the unique contributions of each nation to the life of the present earth will enrich the life of the new earth? Shall we then perhaps inherit the best products of culture and art which this earth has produced?[8]

Abraham Kuyper suggests that whatever has been accomplished by the nations of the earth that brings glory and honor to God in this world, will somehow be retained and glorified by God in the world to come. And all these great accomplishments will be the result of the faithful work of both famous kings and unknown servants.[9] 

Conclusion

At the beginning of history, God the Father created the heavens and the earth and put his image bearers on it to accomplish his purposes for the world through them. Before sin entered the world, we see a glimpse of true human flourishing according to God’s creative order and design.

At the center of history, God the Son enters our broken world to redeem fallen humanity and creation from the curse and corruption of sin and to inaugurated the return of God’s kingdom on earth, according to God’s original design for his people and creation.

At the end of history, God the Son will return and, by the power of his Spirit, restore his redeemed humanity and creation to the Father’s original creative order.

The Hebrew prophets use the word shalom to describe this ultimate state of full peace, completeness, wholeness, and blessedness. In the garden paradise, Adam and Eve experienced the blessedness of shalom—the fullness of happiness, love, joy, and peace.

Although the paradise in Eden was perfect, it was still an incomplete foretaste of the far greater blessing to come if Adam and Eve had obeyed God. Only in the resurrection of the dead and the life in the world to come will believers experience the ultimate shalom of our redeemed and restored relationships with God, ourselves, each other, and work.

These interwoven relationships reflect God’s highly relational triune image and are the building blocks for all of life in this world and the world to come. Only when these relationships are redeemed and restored by Christ can people experience the fullness of God’s blessings in life.

In the last two books of the Bible (Revelation 21-22), we find detailed descriptions of the holy city, the center of the new earth. This is where we find details like streets of gold and pearly gates that are probably not to be taken literally but meant to evoke in us far greater images of reality that stagger our finite imaginations regarding what ultimate happiness can be like.[10]

Our belief in the coming resurrection of our body and our life in the world to come is meant to capture our imagination and shape our lives. Puritan pastor Richard Baxter marveled at how Christians can profess their belief in the world to come but not have it greatly affect their lives.

If there be so certain and glorious a rest for the saints, why is there no more industrious seeking after it? One would think, if a man did but once hear of such unspeakable glory to be obtained, and believed what he heard to be true, he should be transported with the vehemency of his desire after it, and should almost forget to eat and drink, and should care for nothing else, and speak of and inquire after nothing else, but how to get this treasure. And yet people who hear of it daily, and profess to believe it as a fundamental article of their faith, do as little mind it, or labor for it, as if they had never heard of any such thing, or did not believe one word they hear.[11]

Jonathan Edwards often spoke of God’s command and our need to spend our whole lives as a “journey toward heaven” as our ultimate source of happiness on earth.

It becomes us to spend this life only as a journey toward heaven . . . to which we should subordinate all other concerns of life. Why should we labor for or set our hearts on anything else, but that which is our proper end and true happiness?[12]

Footnotes:

[1] On many occasions, the authors of Scripture write words to themselves. The Psalmists frequently speak to themselves. In Psalm 42 and 43 David talks to himself when he is experiencing fear, saying things like “Why are you cast down, my soul?” In the first sentence of John Calvin’s Institutes of the Christian Religion, he writes: “Our wisdom, in so far as it ought to be deemed true and solid wisdom, consists almost entirely of two parts: the knowledge of God and of ourselves.” Calvin’s thesis is that our knowledge of God and of ourselves is so “bound together by a mutual tie” that one cannot be separated from the other. Only through knowing God can we truly know ourselves. And only by knowing ourselves can we truly know God.

[2] Theologians often refer to the “fourfold estate of humanity”: 1) In the beginning, God created Adam and Eve with the “ability to sin” (posse peccare), 2) After the Fall, humanity became “unable to not sin” (non posse non peccare), 3) At conversion, the Holy Spirit’s regeneration (new birth) puts believers in the state of being “able to not sin” (posse non peccare), and 4) In the world to come, believers will be “unable to sin” (non posse peccare). In Thomas Boston’s 17th century work, “Human Nature and Its Fourfold State”, he called Adam’s pre-fall state “Primitive Integrity” in contrast with the final state of believers as “Consummate Happiness” (and the final state of unbelievers as  “Consummate Misery”).

[3] Similarly, God cannot grow in his perfect knowledge, but glorified believers will be growing in their knowledge of God and his world forever.

[4] Jonathan Edwards helps us look forward to the full restoration of not only our relationship with God, but also our relationship with others in the age to come: “Every Christian friend that goes before us from this world is a ransomed spirit waiting to welcome us in heaven. There will be the infant of days that we have lost below, through grace to be found above. There the Christian father, and mother, and wife, and child, and friend, with whom we shall renew the holy fellowship of the saints, which was interrupted by death here, but shall be commenced again in the upper sanctuary, and then shall never end. There we shall have companionship with the patriarchs and fathers and saints of the Old and New Testaments, and those of whom the world was not worthy. . . . And there, above all, we shall enjoy and dwell with God the Father, whom we have loved with all our hearts on earth; and with Jesus Christ, our beloved Savior, who has always been to us the chief among ten thousands, and altogether lovely; and with the Holy Spirit, our Sanctifier, and Guide, and Comforter; and shall be filled with all the fullness of the Godhead forever!” Jonathan Edwards, Heaven: A World of Love (Amityville, N.Y.: Calvary Press, 1999), 18.

[5] The relationship between a husband and wife in marriage is often the closest and most meaningful relationship that many people have on earth. However, Jesus teaches that in the world to come there will no longer be marriage. (Luke 20:34-36, Mark 12:18-27, 22:23-32) Paul teaches in Ephesians 5:31-32 that marital union on earth is to be seen as a mirror and signpost pointing to the ultimate relationship of Christ and his Church, as the groom and bride. Once the ultimate marriage of Christ and his church is consummated, including the Lamb’s wedding feast in the world to come, human marriages will have served their redemptive purpose and then be assimilated into the ultimate union with Christ and his Church that they foreshadow. The absence of marriage in heaven, and in the new heaven and new earth, has often raised the concern that believers will experience less meaningful relationships in heaven with their believing marriage partners, family members, or close friends, than they had on earth. A lot of what we’ll experience in heaven, including our relationships with our family members and friends, is mysterious to us down here, but we know for sure that it cannot possibly mean less human intimacy.

[6] Richard Baxter, The Practical Works of Richard Baxter (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1981), 97.

[7] Because of the continuity of God’s purposes in redemption, it’s possible we’ll continue some of the work we started on the old earth or always dreamed of doing before we died. Those whose work involves using their gifts to help relieve suffering, will no longer have the exact same kind of work on the new earth because there will be no more sickness, violence, poverty, and injustice. The work of physicians, police officers, pastors, relief workers, et. al. will change, but they will still use their gifts, passions, and skills to love and serve people with great joy forever.

[8] Hoekema, Anthony A. The Bible and the Future (p. 286). Eerdmans

[9] Kuyper writes: “If an endless field of human knowledge and of human ability is now being formed by all that takes place in order to make the visible world and material nature subject to us, and if we know that this dominion of ours over nature will be complete in eternity, we may conclude that the knowledge and dominion we have gained over nature here can and will be of continued significance, even in the kingdom of glory.” De Gemeene Gratie (Amsterdam: Hoveker & Wormser, 1902) I, 482-83 (See also 454-94)

[10] In his book, Miracles, C.S. Lewis addresses the difficulty of imagining what our lives will be like in the world to come with one of his typically insightful metaphors. “The letter and spirit of Scripture, and of all Christianity, forbid us to suppose that life in the New Creation will be a sexual life; and this reduces our imagination to the withering alternatives either of bodies which are hardly recognizable as human bodies at all or else of a perpetual fast. As regards the fast, I think our present outlook might be like that of a small boy who, on being told that the sexual act was the highest bodily pleasure, should immediately ask whether you ate chocolates at the same time. On receiving the answer ‘No,’ he might regard absence of chocolates as the chief characteristic of sexuality. In vain would you tell him that the reason why lovers in their raptures don’t bother about chocolates is that they have something better to think of. The boy knows chocolate: he does not know the positive thing that excludes it. We are in the same position. We know the sexual life; we do not know, except in glimpses, the other thing which, in Heaven, will leave no room for it.” C. S. Lewis, Miracles (New York: Collier Books, 1960), 159–60.

[11] Baxter, Richard. The Saints’ Everlasting Rest, in The Practical Works of Richard Baxter. Grand Rapids: Baker, 1981. In this book, considered to be the most influential book on heaven ever written, Baxter  shares how when our imaginations are captured by biblical thoughts about our lives in heaven to come, the inevitable result will be the transformation of our lives on earth now. “Our liveliness in all duties, our enduring of tribulation, our honoring of God, the vigor of our love, thankfulness, and all our graces, yea, the very being of our religion and Christianity, depend on the believing, serious thoughts of our rest [new heaven and new earth].”

[12] Ola Elizabeth Winslow, Jonathan Edwards: Basic Writings (New York: New American Library, 1966), 142.

Why Look Forward to Your Resurrection and Life to Come Pt. 1 (Faith in Theology Series Appendix A)

The historic Nicene Creed ends with the statement, “We look forward to the resurrection of the dead, and the life in the world to come.” It’s easy to affirm these words with our mouths, but it’s often hard to experience the reality of these words in our hearts. Most Christians today don’t seem to be looking forward to their resurrection and the life to come described in Scripture.

In 1 Corinthians 15, Paul’s concern is not for his readers to believe in Jesus’ resurrection. They already believed that. His concern is that they were not looking forward to the resurrection of their bodies in the world to come. Like most adherents to pagan religions and philosophies, they were only looking forward to being liberated from their corrupt bodies after death so they could live forever in an eternal state that is free from everything physical.

Most pagan views of immortality affirm the continued existence of an immaterial soul but not the immortality of the physical body.[1] In contrast, the Scriptures teach that human immortality includes both the survival of the soul in heaven after death and the restoration of the whole person, soul and body together, on a new physical earth when Jesus returns.[2]

The Apostles’ Creed affirms the centrality of the physical realm in the Triune God’s plan of salvation by describing God the Father as creator of heaven and earth, God the Son as born of the virgin Mary and resurrected from the dead, and God the Spirit as the restorer of both the resurrection body and all physical creation in the world to come.

The Bible teaches that our souls must first be resurrected from spiritual death at our new birth, then our bodies must be resurrected from physical death at our resurrection. When Jesus returns, all the glorified souls of believers in heaven will be reunited with their glorified bodies on earth so they will all flourish in both their bodies and souls on a glorified earth forever.

God’s ultimate purpose for fallen humanity and the world is not only the rebirth of human souls but also the rebirth of all fallen creation. As is stated in the hymn Joy to the World, the fullness of God’s redemptive blessings in Christ will flow “as far as the curse is found” – and that includes all things God has created visible and invisible.

The Christian hope is not just that one day, when we die, we will go up to heaven and worship God forever. Our ultimate hope is in another day, when Jesus returns and brings heaven back down to earth. Our hope is not merely life after death in heaven, but life after heaven in a new heaven and a new earth.[3]

What lies ahead for us at our resurrection and the coming new earth is far better than what Adam and Eve experienced in the garden of Eden, and even better than what the disembodied souls of believers experience in heaven after death.

The New Testament suggests, though it’s debatable, that believers may have some kind of physical embodiment in their intermediate state in heaven.[4] However, even if we are given “intermediate bodies” in heaven, these physical forms will only be temporary and will wane in comparison to the fullness of our future resurrection bodies in the world to come.[5] Heaven is glorious, but it is not the ultimate destination of Jesus and his followers.[6]

When Jesus returns, God will finally and fully answer the prayer that he taught us to pray – that the Father’s name would be honored, that his kingdom would come, and that his will would be done on earth as it is in heaven. (Matt. 6:9-10) Heaven and earth will no longer be separated with God “up in heaven,” where his will is done perfectly, and man “down on earth” where God’s revealed will is not done perfectly.

Look again at the Apostle John’s description of what it will be like when God’s kingdom comes down from heaven to the new earth in the world to come. 

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more.[7] And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.[8] And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. (Rev. 21:1-3)

On that day, God’s dwelling place and perfect will in the heavenly realm will come down to earth fulfilling God’s ancient covenant promise that “He will dwell with them, and they shall be his people.” (Gen. 17:7; Exod. 19:5-6; Jer. 31:33; Ezek. 34:30; 2 Cor. 6:16; Heb. 8:10; 1 Pet. 2:9-10). The concept of heaven in the Bible is the place where we find the presence of God.[9]

In the beginning, the garden of Eden gives us a vivid picture of “heaven on earth” before sin entered the world. In this original paradise, God’s presence is not described as “up in heaven” but “down on the earth” in a garden, where God was with Adam and Eve carrying out his perfect will for creation in and through them as his image bearers. (Gen. 1:26-28, 2:15)

In Genesis 3:8 we read that Adam and Eve “heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden.”[10]

God’s original design for creation and humanity to flourish includes being present with his people as they rule over his creation. God’s plan of salvation is to restore our broken union with him by bringing us back into the full experience of his transforming “face-to-face presence” through our union with him in Christ.[11]

From God’s throne on that day, Jesus will announce the consummation of God’s plan of salvation[12] by proclaiming, “Behold, I am making all things new” (Rev. 21:5).

Peter describes the “passing away” of the “old world” and its transformation into the “new world” (1 Pet. 3:5-13). John tells us, “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away.” The Greek word Peter and John uses to designate the “newness” of the new earth is not neos (νέος), meaning new in time or origin, but kainos (καινὸς) meaning new in nature or in quality.

When Paul says in Romans 8:20-21 that creation waits with eager longing to be set free from its bondage, he’s referring to how the present corrupt creation will be delivered from all its corruption when Christ returns to make all things new – not become a totally different creation.[13]

Similarly, when Paul describes the resurrected Christ as the “first born from the dead” (Rom 8:29), he’s referring to our future resurrection from the dead when our bodies will be delivered from all their corruption and made new ­– not become a totally different body, but a body like the resurrected body of Jesus.[14]

After making all things new, Jesus will say to his followers, “Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world” (Matt. 25:34).[15]

It’s hard to imagine what the fullness of a redeemed and restored humanity and earth will be like. Words like paradise, utopia, and bliss always fall short. The Apostle John gives us some wonderful glimpses into the new world to come when he writes, “He [Christ] will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” (Rev. 21:4)

John tells us there will be no more suffering on the new earth. Jesus will wipe away all the tears and sorrow of the poor, the oppressed, the widows, the orphans, the sick, and the persecuted. All the anguish over pain and injustice will belong to the former things which have passed away. And there will be no more death – no more terminal diseases, no more fatal accidents, no more funerals, and no more final goodbyes.

In the world to come, all our God-ordained relationships for human flourishing, broken by sin, will be completely restored, including first and foremost our relationship with God.

Restored Relationship with God

The highest blessing in the world to come is the restoration of our relationship with God through which we’ll experience of the fullness of God’s presence in unbroken fellowship with him. Since the inhabitants of the new earth will have direct fellowship with God, John tells us there will be no temple there, “I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb” (Rev. 21:22).

God’s presence in heaven now is full of beings who are glorifying him by praying and singing his praises. Angels and the souls of those who died in Christ are proclaiming, “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing” (Rev. 5:12). All believers who die before Jesus returns will join in this heavenly chorus with a multitude of believers that “no one [can] count, from every nation, tribe, people, and language” (Rev. 5:9).[16]

The greatest blessing of our life in heaven and on the new earth will be the joy of seeing God “face to face” (1 Cor. 13:12). Jesus teaches, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God” (Matt. 6:8). John writes, “When he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is” ( 1 John 3:2). In Exodus 33:20, God told Moses that he could not see his face and live, so he granted Moses only a limited vision of himself. But in the world to come, when all the remnants of human sin are gone, we will indeed be able to see God’s face and live.

What does it mean for us to see God in this way? The thought of such a heightened experience of God tempts us to speculate. Some theologians have ventured far beyond the biblical data in trying to express this promise. Some have drawn on philosophical mysticism—the notion that in the consummation we shall “behold pure being”, perhaps even be absorbed into it. Others have concluded that in heaven we will no longer engage in work, but we will be totally caught up in always contemplating the vision of God—hence the phrase “beatific vision.”

 However, the Bible never says that our heavenly experience will be limited to contemplation. Our whole life in heaven will be worship, but worship in the Bible is not mere contemplation. Biblical words for worship, like עָבַד (abad) in the Old Testament and λατρεύω (latreuo) in the New Testament, often designate the work of priests in the tabernacle and temple.  

In Romans 12:1, Paul writes, “present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.” In Romans 12:2, he describes spiritual worship as not being “conformed to this world” and being “transformed by the renewal of your mind.” Then, in Romans 12:3-8, Paul illustrates what “spiritual worship” looks like as each member of the body of Christ fully uses their God-given gifts in their love for and service to God and others.[17]

In the world to come, God’s presence now in heaven will become so enmeshed with us on the new earth that his presence will become tangible in all things visible and invisible. Our experience of God’s presence in worship will far exceed our prayers and singing to include everything we think, feel, and do.

“Seeing God face to face,” therefore, is not easy to define, since it is greater than anything we have known on earth. Indeed, greater than we can imagine, far greater than anything we can conceptualize through philosophy or theology.

God’s presence with us on the new earth will be so inescapable that whatever we see, hear, touch, taste, and smell with our resurrected bodies will point us to the one who created these senses in us. Our worship will no longer be seen as a “spiritual” activity that is separated from our normal lives, but a vital part of everything we think, feel, and do, including what we see now as mundane activities.

In the new world our every thought, feeling, and action will be held captive for God’s honor and praise in and through everything we do. So Paul admonishes us to begin now. “Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God” (1 Cor. 10:31).

Footnotes:

[1] Greek philosophers made use of a metaphysical argument to prove the indestructibility of the soul by teaching that the soul is immortal in the sense of having no beginning and no end. Pagan views of the “immortality of the soul” usually present the spiritual part of humans as not affected by death because it is indestructible and imperishable. This is not a biblical doctrine. The Scriptures teach that the human soul is created by God at conception.

[2] The “eternal life” that belongs to all believers in Christ, both now and in the world to come, includes “temporal life”, the experience of time. Only God is truly eternal, meaning supra-temporal, the only one who transcends time by existing in a realm that is above and beyond time. However, everything that God created is temporal because he created it in time. This means everything that exists in the realm of God’s invisible and visible creation is temporal, including the heavens, the earth, angelic beings, and human beings. So our life in heaven, and even more our life in the new heaven and new earth, will still include the experience of time. But our sensation of time will probably be different from our sensation of it now on earth. Sometimes people say things like “time flies when you’re having fun”. That sensation of time may be multiplied many times by all our enjoyable, and “fun”, activities in heaven after we die and on the new earth after we’re resurrected.

[3] Our hope is not going back to a garden in Eden or up to heaven where our soul has no body, but going forward to the new earth that God promises will one day come down from heaven to earth as our eternal home. The tree of life in the garden of Eden (Gen. 2:9) held out the promise of a far better life to Adam and Eve if they obeyed. In the world to come, the tree of life will provide believers with the ultimate blessings on earth that were never experienced by Adam and Eve because of their sin. The coming new earth will be the “better Eden,” the “greater Eden,” and the “garden-city” where believers will experience the ultimate blessings of fully redeemed and restored relationships with God, themselves, others, and creation forever – all according to God’s original design in creation. Everyone who goes to heaven is making a round trip because they’re eventually returning with Jesus to a new earth where they’ll receive a new resurrection body forever.    

[4] Biblical arguments can be made for believers having some type of physical form or “intermediate body” in heaven. Paul writes, For in this tent we groan, longing to put on our heavenly dwelling, if indeed by putting it on we may not be found naked. For while we are still in this tent, we groan, being burdened—not that we would be unclothed, but that we would be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life” (2 Cor. 5:2-4). Some argue that Paul is only longing for the heavenly, intermediate state when our souls will be disembodied. Others believe that Paul is not longing for his soul to experience a state of invisible, Platonic, disembodied nakedness. Instead, he is longing for his soul to be immediately clothed at death by a “heavenly dwelling” which is some kind of intermediate, temporary physical form in which believers wait for their resurrection bodies.

[5] Biblical support for physical embodiment in heaven before the final resurrection includes the New Testament teaching that the resurrected Jesus now dwells in heaven in the same physical, resurrected body he had on earth. (Acts 1:11) So there is at least one physical body in heaven now – Christ’s resurrection body. Some argue that since Enoch and Elijah were taken to heaven, without dying and leaving their bodies behind (Gen 5:24, 2 Kings 2:11-12, Heb. 11:5), God allowed their bodies into heaven. And when Moses and Elijah appeared physically with Jesus at the Transfiguration (Luke 9:28-36), they were displaying their temporary bodies in heaven. When the Apostle John records his visit to heaven in Revelation 10:9-10, he describes himself physically holding a scroll, eating, and tasting it. Of course, many believe that these physical descriptions are purely figurative and symbolic. However, they could also be descriptions of real physical forms and activities that also have symbolic meaning.  Even if we are given “intermediate bodies” in heaven, these physical forms will only be temporary and will wane in comparison to the fullness of our future resurrection bodies in the world to come.

[6] Jesus refers to heaven as paradise when he says to the believing thief on the cross, “Today you will be with me in paradise” (Luke 23:43). Paul presents life in heaven as far better than life now on earth. “ For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain … I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better” (Phil. 1:21-23). But heaven is a temporary, “intermediate state,” after the believer’s death, that awaits Jesus’ return and the final resurrection when we’ll have renewed bodies on a renewed earth forever. In the New Testament, death is a temporary separation of the soul from the body. The physical body deteriorates, while the believer’s soul is in conscious fellowship and bliss in God’s presence awaiting the return of Christ and the resurrection when the soul will be reunited with the resurrected body. (Luke 23:43, Rom. 8:18-23, 2 Cor. 5:3-8, Phil. 1:23-24, 1 Thess. 4:14-17) When Paul refers to believers who’ve died as those who have “fallen asleep” (1 Thess. 4:13), he’s using a common euphemism in his day for death, describing the the outward appearance of the dead body. Our body “sleeps” until the resurrection, while our soul relocates to a conscious existence in heaven (Dan. 12:2-3; 2 Cor. 5:8). There is no such thing as “soul sleep” or a long period of unconsciousness in heaven after our death and before our resurrection. Instead, the New Testament reveals that we will be fully conscious, engaging and enjoying God and others, and joyfully active. It will not be boring.

[7] Having no sea in the new world does not mean that we will be denied the experiences of beauty and recreation with bodies of water that the sea represents. Those experiences will be enhanced beyond what we can imagine, and will include bodies of water in the new earth. The new earth will have a river running through it with life-giving streams. In first century Jewish thought, the sea was a negative symbol in contrast with the positive symbol of  a river (Ps. 46:1-4). The sea often represented something ominous and threatening to the ancient Hebrews. The Mediterranean sea was the origin of violent storms and the place from which foreign enemies would arise to conquer them. In Revelation 13, the Beast emerges from the sea. Hoekema writes,  “Since the sea in the rest of the Bible, particularly in the book of Revelation (cf. 13:1; 17:15), often stands for that which threatens the harmony of the universe, the absence of the sea from the new earth means the absence of whatever would interfere with that harmony.” Hoekema, Anthony A. The Bible and the Future (p. 284). Eerdmans

[8] The glorified church, that is made up of all believers who died in Christ, will be in the “dwelling place of God” in heaven until the return of Jesus when the “dwelling place of God” will no longer be in heaven but it will come down to earth forever.

[9] The word heaven in Scripture has several meanings. Paul reflects his Hebrew view of heaven when he describes being “caught up to the third heaven.” (2 Cor. 12:3) The Old Testament view of the “first heaven” is the earth’s atmosphere where clouds form and birds fly. (Deut. 11:11; 28:12, 1 Kings 8:35, Isa. 55:10) The “second heaven” describes the physical universe that consists of the sun, moon, and stars as far as we can see. (Gen. 15:5, Ps. 8:3: Ps. 19:4,6, Isa. 13:10) The “third heaven”, where Paul was briefly caught up, is God’s dwelling place in a realm that is above all other “heavens.” In 1 Kings 8:27, we read, “The heavens, even the highest heavens, cannot contain you.” In the Revelation 21:1-3 account of “heaven coming down to earth,” heaven refers to this third realm where the fullness of God’s presence and will is displayed.

[10] The picture of God “walking” in the garden is a theophany – a revelation of God in a physical, tangible form. Before Jesus, God revealed himself in physical forms in several ways, including God’s appearance as one of three heavenly beings in human bodies to Abraham in Genesis 18, God’s appearance in the form of a man who wrestles with Jacob in Genesis 32, and God’s appearance as a fourth man “walking about in the midst of the fire without harm” in Daniel 3:25.

[11] Experiencing the glory of the Lord’s presence transforms us because it reveals God’s face to us. Throughout the Bible we learn that when people experience God’s presence it’s normally transforming – positive or negative. The Aaronic benediction in Numbers 6:24-26 presents the highest, transformative blessing of God: “The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.”

[12] The essence of the Triune God’s plan of salvation is transformation: seeing the Father’s creation as formation, the fall of humanity as deformation, and the redemption of Christ and restoration of the Spirit as reformation.[12] In the new world, the paradise of the garden of Eden will not merely be restored, but “taken to its highest pinnacle” (Bavinck) as “the holy city, the new Jerusalem” where God dwells and rules over all his new creation with his people.

[13] Most descriptions of heaven in the Bible include references to earthly things, including a city with streets and gates, trees, fruits, water, eating, music, and animals.

[14] The believer’s resurrection body will be a new creation, but not a totally new creation. We’ll still recognize each others physical bodies, like the disciples recognized Jesus’ resurrection body. Paul refers to our resurrected body as a “spiritual body.” (1 Cor. 15:42-44) Although it will still be physical, it will somehow mysteriously transcend the material realm. Parallels are often drawn with Jesus’ resurrected body in which he would sometimes appear physically to his disciples in unexpected ways behind closed doors. Yet he was not a ghost. The resurrected Jesus ate fish and had nail holes in his hands and a wound in his side the disciples could actually touch. Does this mean that the body of resurrected believers will forever bear the marks of their physical sufferings on earth? Will the person who dies at age ninety appear to be nineteen on the new earth? Will the child who dies in infancy appear to be the same age? These kinds of questions provoke lots of fanciful speculation, including the belief that everyone will be a young adult, in their twenties and thirties, because that’s the peak physical period for humans (Augustine, Aquinas). Regardless of our physical form or the age we will appear, our bodies will be fully redeemed, restored, and glorified to flourish according to God’s design.

[15] The kingdom God promised Israel, the kingdom Jesus proclaimed and inaugurated on earth, the kingdom the Church advanced by proclaiming the gospel to all nations, the kingdom God prepared for his followers from the foundation of the world, this kingdom will finally come to earth in all its fullness when Jesus returns.

[16] This is a description of heaven now, not a description of the new heaven and new earth to come. But there will still be this kind of adoration and praise to God and to the Lamb on the new earth forever.

[17] See Paul’s similar admonitions: “Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not people” (Eph. 6:7), and “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters” (Col. 3:23).

Do You Believe in God? The Nature of Biblical Belief (Faith in Theology Series Conclusion)

I believe in God are the first words of the Apostles’ Creed.

Do you believe in God?

It seems like a simple question that requests a simple yes or no answer. Yet generation after generation, the ancient question of humanity’s transcendent belief surfaces, and the answers depend on what people mean by saying they believe in God.[1]

But when self-identified believers in God are asked to describe their understanding of God, they often do not believe in the God of the Bible. Their views of God range from a powerful deity who is not always loving, to a loving deity who is not always powerful. Tragically many people do not believe in the God of the Bible because they have misunderstood what the Bible really teaches about God.

The Nature of Belief

There are several kinds of beliefs that can be easily confused with what the Scriptures teach is true belief or true faith in God. There are three essential components in a biblical view of true faith. The first component is understanding. To believe in God we must first understand some things about God, such as he is personal and not merely a higher power. But merely understanding affirmations about God is not true faith.

Many people understand the biblical affirmations listed in the Apostles’ Creed, but they don’t really believe they’re true. True faith requires this second component that believes the biblical affirmations about God are true. But only understanding and believing what the bible teaches about God is still not true faith.

True faith in God also involves personal trust in him. True faith is not just understanding and believing a set of biblical affirmations about God. The Bible teaches that even the demons understand and believe what the bible teaches about Jesus.[2]

The Scriptures teach that true faith is a deeply personal and vibrant clinging to, relying on, and trusting in God the Father as your Creator, God the Son as your Redeemer, and God the Spirit as your Restorer to deliver you from all of sin’s consequences.[3] When someone comes to true personal faith in God, it’s a supernatural event when the Holy Spirit opens the unbeliever’s heart to respond to the gospel.

When Paul was preaching the gospel at Philippi, there was an unbelieving woman named Lydia listening to him. When she came to true faith in God, Luke describes how this happened:  “The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message” (Acts 16:14). After her conversion and baptism, Lydia said to Paul and his companions, “If you consider me a believer in the Lord … come and stay at my house.” Luke writes, “And she persuaded us” (Acts 16:15).

The Problem of Unbelief

Although many say they don’t believe in God, the Apostle Paul teaches that God so clearly reveals himself in the created world that at some level everyone believes in God. Paul writes that everybody not only believes that God exists, they so “clearly perceive” God’s “eternal power and divine nature” that “they are without excuse.” (Rom. 1:20)

According to Paul, everyone’s knowledge of God is not just a knowledge of facts about God; it’s a knowledge of God as a person; “they knew God.” (Rom. 1:21) So the problem of unbelief is not people’s ignorance of the truth about God, but their rebellious suppression of this truth (Rom. 1:18) and their refusal to honor him as God.

People who say they don’t believe in God, understand at some level that God exists, but they don’t have personal trust in him. Paul says this is because their hearts are darkened and their thinking is foolish (Rom. 1:22).

We should learn arguments and communicate well with those who say they don’t believe in God, but more than anything we should ask God to open their hearts to the gospel, love them well, listen to them, and proclaim the gospel to them with both our lives and our words.

Footnotes:

[1] Although many say they don’t believe in God, the Apostle Paul teaches that God so clearly reveals himself in the created world that at some level everyone believes in God. (Rom. 1:19-21) See Why and How Unbelievers Believe in the Appendix.

[2] When demons came into Jesus’ presence, they affirmed their belief in his deity when they cried out, “What have you to do with us, O Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the time? (Matt 8:29).”

[3] The Heidelberg Catechism (1563) describes how the Holy Spirit brings about this true faith in our hearts by leading us to believe in all that God promises us in the gospel that is summarized in the affirmations of the Apostles’ Creed. Q21: What is true faith? Answer: True faith is a sure knowledge whereby I accept as true all that God has revealed to us in his Word. At the same time it is a firm confidence that not only to others, but also to me, God has granted forgiveness of sins, everlasting righteousness, and salvation, out of mere grace, only for the sake of Christ's merits. This faith the Holy Spirit works in my heart by the gospel. Q22: What, then, must a Christian believe? Answer: All that is promised us in the gospel, which the articles of our catholic (universal) and undoubted Christian faith teach us in a summary. Q23: What are those articles? Answer: The twelve articles in the Apostles’ Creed are then listed. J. I. Packer writes, “It is not too much to say that the gospel, which tells of the Son coming to earth, dying to redeem us, sending the Spirit to us, and finally coming in judgment, all at the Father’s will, cannot be stated at all without speaking in an implicitly trinitarian way. “I believe in God the Father... and in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord... and... in the Holy Ghost [Spirit]” gives the Creed a trinitarian shape for all its particular affirmations.” Packer, J. I. Affirming the Apostles' Creed . Crossway.

Knowing the Spirit as Future Restorer (Faith in Theology Series 6 of 6)

Christians believe that there is a new world coming when Jesus returns,[1] in the power of his Holy Spirit, to restore fallen humanity and creation by establishing God’s kingdom on earth forever. The Apostles’ Creed affirms three biblical beliefs regarding the age to come when Christ returns: 1) the resurrection of the dead, 2) the judgment of the living and the dead, and 3) the life everlasting in the world to come.[2]

The Resurrection of the Dead

The concluding affirmation of the Apostles’ Creed is, “[I believe in] the resurrection of the body.” The Nicene Creed added these words to strengthen it: ”We look forward to the resurrection of the dead.” On that final day, Christ, by his Spirit, will resurrect from the dead every person who has ever lived – beginning with all those who have believed in him.

For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. (1 Thess. 4:16)[3]

All believers will be raised from the dead, except for those alive at his return, and restored to God’s original purpose by reuniting their glorified souls, that were in heaven, with their glorified bodies, that were in the earth. Paul writes,

Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep (die), but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. (1 Cor. 15:51-53)

What will happen to believers who are still alive at Jesus’ return? Paul tells us, “Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord” (1 Thess. 4:17).[4]

When Jesus returns, all believers who are dead will be raised and given glorified bodies, and all believers who are alive will also be given glorified bodies. Then all of them will be miraculously and spectacularly joined with Christ forever.[5]

On that day, Jesus will also raise from the dead all who have not believed in him.[6] He calls the coming resurrection of believers “the resurrection of life,” and the coming resurrection of unbelievers as “the resurrection of judgment.” (John 5:28-29)[7]

The Judgment of the Living and the Dead

Earlier in the Creed, we find the ancient Christian affirmation that the ascended Jesus, who now rules at the right hand of God, “will come to judge the living and the dead.” The Scriptures teach that following the resurrection of the dead at Jesus’ return, there will be a final day of judgment. Paul writes, “He (the Father) has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man (Christ) whom he has appointed” (Acts 17:31).[8]

In the parable of the weeds, Jesus taught that “The field is the world, and the good seed is the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one, and the enemy who sowed them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels” (Matt. 13:39).

On that day, Jesus promises he will send his angels to separate the wheat (the righteous) from the weeds (the wicked).[9] “The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all law-breakers.” (Matt. 13:41) All nations will be gathered before him as the Son of Man judges the whole world. (Matt. 25:32, Rom. 3:6)[10]

Humans will not be the only ones judged on that final day. Satan and his fallen angels (demons) must also appear before Christ’s final judgment seat. (1 Cor. 6:2-3, 2 Pet. 2:4, Jude 6)[11] And the final judgment will include both unbelievers and believers. Paul writes, “We will all stand before the judgment seat of God” (Rom. 14:10).[12]

Although believers must all appear before Christ on the Day of Judgment, they should not fear because God promises them that “there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Rom. 8:1). John writes, “By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment” (1 John 4:17).[13]

To the unbelievers on that day Jesus will say, “Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels” (Matt. 25:41).[14] But to his followers, Jesus will say, “Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world” (Matt. 25:34).

The Life Everlasting in the World to Come

When Jesus returns, he will not only restore fallen and corrupt humanity, in body and soul, to the Father’s original design for their flourishing. He will also restore fallen and corrupt creation. Paul writes, “The creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God” (Rom. 8:21).

Jesus describes this coming restored creation, over which he will rule, the “new world” (Matt. 19:28). The Greek term for “new world,” palingenesia (παλινγενεσίᾳ), means regeneration and rebirth. Paul uses this same Greek word to describe the Holy Spirit’s regeneration and rebirth of all believers at their conversion. (Titus 3:5) Just as all believers experience regeneration and rebirth by the power of God’s Spirit, so will all creation experience regeneration and rebirth at Christ’s return.

This regeneration of our fallen world will include a purging and cleansing of all forms of evil and corruption. On that final day, when Jesus sends his angels to separate all the righteous and the wicked, he teaches that they will gather out of his kingdom “all causes of sin” and all law-breakers. (Matt. 13:41) The Greek term for “causes of sin” is scandala (Σκάνδαλα), meaning “stumbling blocks.” Not only will God’s Spirit purge the world of “all lawbreakers,” but he will also purge the world of all the stumbling blocks to believers that the disobedient have created.[15]

When Jesus returns, the kingdom paradise that the Father prepared for his children before his creation, the kingdom that was thwarted by Satan and sin in the garden, and the kingdom that the Son inaugurated on earth by his death and resurrection, will finally come to earth in all its fullness forever. John describes it like this:

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away,[16] and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away. And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new. (Rev. 21:1-5)[17]

Paul describes the blessedness of this eternal “world to come” as the believer’s “inheritance” that God guarantees will one day be ours by giving us his Holy Spirit when we believe. “In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory” (Eph 1:13-14).

Martin Luther beautifully summarizes the meaning of our belief in God the Spirit as Restorer in these five statements:

• I believe that I cannot by my own understanding or effort believe in Jesus Christ my Lord, or come to him. But the Holy Spirit has called me through the Gospel, enlightened me with his gifts, and sanctified and kept me in true faith.

• In the same way he calls, gathers, enlightens, and sanctifies the whole Christian church on earth, and keeps it united with Jesus Christ in the one true faith.

• In this Christian church day after day he fully forgives my sins and the sins of all believers.

• On the last day he will raise me and all the dead and give me and all believers in Christ eternal life.

• This is most certainly true.[18]

Footnotes:

[1] The Scriptures teach that there will be certain “signs of the times” preceding the return of Christ and the end of the age. Theologian Anthony Hoekema gives us a helpful description of these signs as being grouped in three categories: 1) Signs of God’s grace, e.g. the proclamation of the gospel to all nations and the salvation of the fullness of Israel (Rom. 11), 2) Signs of opposition, e.g. the tribulation, apostasy, and the Antichrist, and 3) Signs of God’s judgment, e.g. wars, earthquakes, and famines. Although some of these signs will be dramatic in nature, Jesus warns us not to see them as only spectacular and catastrophic events. (Luke 17:20-21) Jesus also warns us not to use these signs as a way of trying to determine the time of his return. (Mark 13:32; Matt. 24:36) He told his disciples that he didn’t know the time, “But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only” (Matt. 24:36). Since the Bible does not give us an exact sequence and order of these signs, we must not try to create a detailed, specific timetable of future events as some Christian traditions have done (Dispensationalism). But Christians should learn how to “see the signs” when they appear and think about how they could be signs of Jesus’ imminent return. Hoekema give us several practical examples of how God means for these signs to help us grow spiritually by thinking more about the return of Jesus. See Hoekema, A. A. (1994). The Bible and the Future, Eerdmans, chapters 11-12.

[2] For a deeper look at the Bible’s teaching on the resurrection of believers and our future life on the new earth, see the Appendix: Why Look Forward to Your Resurrection and Life in the World to Come.

[3] Paul writes, “But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, (have died) that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope” (1 Thess. 4:13). Paul does not want his readers to lose hope about their future with the Lord, simply because other believers have died. Some Thessalonians seem to have believed that Christians would not die before Jesus returned. Paul is reassuring them that those who have died in Christ will be raised from the dead and united with all believers who are living when Jesus returns.

[4] It’s a mistake to interpret this passage as giving us any more specific details about this event and what follows. Paul is not teaching that Jesus will miraculously scoop up all his followers to snatch (rapture) them out of this corrupt world before his final judgment on all who are “left behind.” When he writes, “and so we will always be with the Lord,” he’s not teaching that all the believers who are caught up with the Lord and each other “in the clouds” will be staying up in the clouds forever. Instead, Rev. 21:1-3 shows us the opposite, that heaven (holy city, new Jerusalem) will come down to earth in all its fullness.

[5] The terms that Paul uses in 1Thessalonians 4 for Jesus' "coming" (parousia, Παρουσίαν in verse 15) and our “meeting” (ἀπάντησιν in verse 17), reflect the political rhetoric of the Roman Empire used to describe military or political dignitaries making official visits. Paul’s words imply that believers will meet the Lord "in the air,” not as an act of departing from fallen creation, but as a majestic act of welcoming their victorious, conquering Lord and King back to the world he created. Paul’s emphasis is on the majestic, final union when Christ’s purified bride is fully united to the groom forever. Apparently, when that final union first takes place, it will not be on the surface of the earth, but above it “in the clouds.”

[6] While the Bible describes much detail about the resurrection body of believers, there is nothing said about the resurrection body of unbelievers. In 1 Cor. 15, Paul says nothing about the resurrection of unbelievers, he is only speaking of the resurrection of believers. So we can only speculate about what the bodies of unbelievers will look like for all eternity and the nature of the “place” of the unbelievers before they’re judged and cast into hell forever.

[7] The Scriptures present a general resurrection of believers and unbelievers as occurring together. (Dan. 12:2, John 5:25-29, Acts 24:14-15, Rev. 20:11-15) Some Christian traditions, e.g. Historic and Dispensational Premillennialists, believe that the resurrection of unbelievers will take place one thousand years (millennium) after the believers' resurrection.

[8] The final judgment will take place at the end of the present age (2 Pet. 3:7), the time of Christ’s return (Matt. 13:40-43, 2 Thess. 1:7-10), and following the general resurrection (Rev. 20). What the Bible teaches about the general resurrection for the saved and lost implies that there will also be only one final judgment for the saved and lost, since the final judgment is presented as following the resurrection. Dispensationalists believe there will be several judgments, including: 1) the rapture and judgment of believers at Jesus’ return (Parousia), 2) the judgment of gentiles before a one thousand year rule, 3) the judgment of ethnic Israel just before the millennium, and 4) the judgment of unbelievers after a one thousand year rule.

[9] In this parable, Jesus teaches that “the enemy (Satan) came and sowed weeds (the wicked) among the wheat (his Church)” (Matt. 13:25) Then Jesus says, “Let both grow together until the harvest (the end of the age), and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, ‘Gather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.’” (Matt. 13:30) Prior to the final judgment day, there will be many professing Christians within the church who are not true believers. But when Jesus returns, his visible Church (the wheat) will finally be purged of all unbelievers (the weeds).

[10] John records this remarkable vision God gave him of the final judgment day, “Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it … And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne … and the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done” (Rev. 20: 11-12).

[11] Glorified believers will also participate in the judgment of Christ on the world and the angels. (Matt. 19:28) Paul writes to the Corinthians, “Do you not know that the saints will judge the world?” (1 Cor. 6:2)

[12] Paul also writes, “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.” (2 Cor. 5:10) See Heb. 10:30; James 3:1; I Peter. 4:17. The Bible teaches that everything a believer has done, including thoughts, words, and deeds, will be taken into account on the Judgment Day. (Matt. 25:35-40, 1 Cor. 3:8, Eph. 6:8, 1 Pet. 1:17, Rev. 20:12; 22:12) Paul describes the believer’s judgment with this imagery: “Now if anyone builds on the foundation (Christ) with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw—each one's work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. If anyone's work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.” (1 Cor. 3:12-15) The loss referred to here is not a loss of salvation but the loss of eternal rewards. Leon Morris writes, “Here and now the man who gives himself wholeheartedly to the service of Christ knows more of the joy of the Lord than the half-hearted. We have no warrant from the New Testament for thinking that it will be otherwise in heaven.” Biblical Doctrine of Judgment, p. 67.

[13] See how Answer 52 of the Heidelberg Catechism reflects this: “In all my distress and persecution  I turn my eyes to the heavens  and confidently await as judge the very One  who has already stood trial in my place before God  and so has removed the whole curse from me. All his enemies and mine  he will condemn to everlasting punishment:  but me and all his chosen ones  he will take along with him  into the joy and the glory of heaven.”

[14] John writes, “Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire … and if anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire” (Rev. 20:11-15). Similar to how believers will receive degrees of eternal rewards (1 Cor. 3:12-15), Jesus seems to indicate that unbelievers will receive degrees of eternal punishment. (Luke 12:47-48)

[15] The Apostle Peter describes the coming day of the Lord as a time when “the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed.” (2 Pet. 3:10) The Greek word heurethēsetai (εὑρεθήσεται), translated “exposed,” is used in the earliest Greek manuscripts and can be translated “found, revealed, and discovered,” possibly conveying the exposure and revelation of the righteous and unrighteous works that have been done on the earth. Peter is teaching that God’s final judgment of the whole earth with fire, will be like God’s earlier judgment of the whole earth with water during the times of Noah (2 Pet. 3:5-7). During the flood, the earth was not completely annihilated but purged of all its wickedness. So, when Peter writes that “we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells” (2 Pet. 3:13), he’s not referring to a totally new earth that is completely different than the present one. Instead, he’s referring to a gloriously renewed and restored earth that remains in continuity with the present one – but is completely without any form of corruption. In the same way that God will make us recreated bodies from our dust, God will also make a new, recreated world after being “burned up” and “dissolved”. The world will be a new creation, but not a totally new creation. We’ll still recognize the earth and the world as we know it, but it will be fully redeemed, restored, and glorified to flourish according to God’s design – just like our new bodies.

[16] Heaven and earth will no longer be separated with God “up in heaven,” where his will is done perfectly, and man “down on earth” where God’s revealed will is not done perfectly. When Jesus returns, the “first heaven and the first earth will pass away.” In 1 Peter 3:5-13, the Apostle Peter describes the “passing away” of the “old world” and its transformation into the “new world.” When Jesus returns, heaven will come “back down” to earth like it was in creation before the Fall, when God’s presence was with his people (Immanuel) on earth. But it will be far better than Eden.

[17] The Greek word John and Peter use to designate the “newness” of the new earth is not neos (νέος), meaning new in time or origin, but kainos (καινὸς) meaning new in nature or in quality. Similarly, when Paul says in Romans 8:20-21 that creation waits with eager longing to be set free from its bondage, he’s referring to how the present corrupt creation will be delivered from all its corruption when Christ returns to make all things new – not become a totally different creation.

[18] Martin Luther’s Small Catechism: The Creed, The Third Article.