We take birthdays so seriously at GPCC that even when members are ill and unable to be present with us, that’s no excuse to miss out on an opportunity to sing ‘Happy Birthday’ to them! Thanks to the wonders of technology, we were able to sing to Lorraine, who entered into the spirit of things by wearing a hat!

We also had another birthday to celebrate:

If we take God seriously, then we have to take His words on heaven and hell seriously. Jesus said, ‘Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them.’ (John 3:36) He says that God’s will is that whoever believes in the Son will not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16), that God’s will is not condemnation and punishment, but salvation and restoration. Our salvation has to consist of more than mere words (see Matt 7:21-23); there needs to be a new way of living which takes seriously our call to be Christ’s ambassadors (2 Cor 5:20) whose role is to seek to witness to others of God’s life-changing love.

In 2 Cor 5, Paul talks about the tension we feel between the ‘now’ and the ‘not yet’, how we long to be with God and yet also desire to serve Him on earth. He talks about how we long to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling (2 Cor 5:2-4) so that ‘what is mortal may be swallowed up by life.’ (2 Cor 5:4) We have a longing for the perfect, for the completeness and wholeness that comes from being in God’s direct presence, but in the meantime, he says, ‘we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it.’ (2 Cor 5:9) We realise we are ‘foreigners and exiles’ on earth (1 Pet 2:11), that this is not our ultimate destination. But at the same time, if God has not yet taken us to be with Him, then that is because He has plans for our lives here on earth and He wants us to be His light to this world.

A right view of heaven will comfort us, reassure us and help us through the trials of life. It motivates us also in our life here on earth to take the words of Jesus seriously and to do our utmost to live lives that are worthy of Him. Our most important task on earth is living as Christ’s ambassadors and seeking to introduce others to Him. Contrary to being about escaping this world, the Christian view of heaven is that we would be the kinds of people, doing the kinds of things that brings more of heaven, more of the will of God, to the area of the world we are in. Christians have started hospitals, libraries, orphanages, schools and have worked to bring justice and hope on earth because we take seriously the view that God’s rule and reign will bring good things to each one of us. Heaven is God’s rule and reign, now and in the age to come. Hell is being separated from God, now and in the age to come. Let’s choose to live in God’s presence and to be His ambassadors, those light-emitting disciples whose hearts are set on pilgrimage, because we know we’re just passing through this time-limited life but have already started out on that journey to everlasting life which can never end.

Some envisage heaven and hell as the ‘ultimate destiny’ of humanity and think of these as simply being in the future and of no relevance to daily living. Christians are sometimes accused of being ‘so heavenly minded that they are no earthly good.’ C. S. Lewis said, ‘A continual looking forward to the eternal world is not (as some modern people think) a form of escapism or wishful thinking, but one of the things a Christian is meant to do. It does not mean that we are to leave the present world as it is. If you read history, you will find that the Christians who did most for the present world were just those who thought most of the next. The Apostles themselves, who set on foot the conversion of the Roman Empire, the great men who built up the Middle Ages, the English Evangelicals who abolished the Slave Trade, all left their mark on Earth, precisely because their minds were occupied with Heaven. It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this.’ (‘The Hope Of Heaven’, C. S. Lewis)

There is indeed a future element to heaven, but at the same time, Jesus, on being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, replied, “The coming of the kingdom of God is not something that can be observed, nor will people say, ‘Here it is,’ or ‘There it is,’ because the kingdom of God is in your midst.”’ (Luke 17:20-21) God’s presence can be known here on earth, right now, for Christ lives in us, just as God will dwell with His people. (Rev 21:3)

The picture we have of heaven in the Bible is one of life, fertility and light, and all these things exist because God is all these things. In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth (Gen 1:1). In Revelation 21, we are told John sees a ‘new heaven and a new earth.’ (Rev 21:1) ‘The sin-ruined creation of Genesis is restored in the sacrifice-renewed creation of Revelation.’ (Eugene Peterson, ‘Reversed Thunder’, P 169) There are elements of the Garden of Eden in this vision: ‘the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb’ (Rev 22:1) with a ‘tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.’ (Rev 22:2) But this is not a garden; instead, it’s described as a ‘holy city, the new Jerusalem.’ (Rev 21:2) It’s described in terms of precious jewels and gold and in terms of symmetry, echoing the perfect symmetry of the original Temple. In this holy city, no light is needed: neither the sun (created by God in the beginning) nor any lamp, for God is the light source. (Rev 22:5)

Clearly, heaven is seen as being wonderful, because God is there. But the symbolism used is used to help us to connect with what we already know. ‘The vision of heaven is not the promise of anything other than what we have already received by faith; it does, though, promise more, namely its completion.’ (Eugene Peterson, ‘Reversed Thunder’, P 172) It also makes clear that the offer of being with God, the offer of salvation, is made to us in the here and now. ‘We are already “new creatures” and in our life of faith are presently being transformed into God’s likeness. We are, therefore, in one sense “in heaven” – part of and participant in the new creation – the holy city in which God is ruling and having his way.’ (ibid., P 183) Only those who have bowed the knee to Jesus in this life will have access to the fullness of God’s presence in the life to come.

Tonight’s ‘A-Z of Christian Faith’ had reached the letter H, where we looked at two subjects for the price of one! Heaven and hell might not be mentioned as much nowadays as in the past, but it would be foolish to believe they are not crucially important for everyone. We may feel the popular images of heaven and hell are irrelevant nowadays, but actually despite the fact there are many questions we cannot answer about heaven and hell, the fact remains that we need to be sure we don’t ignore their relevance to our daily lives as well as our eternal destinies.

Heaven is best understood as being where God is and where God rules: it’s not just about fluffy clouds and celestial gates.

Jesus often spoke of the ‘kingdom of heaven’ and the ‘kingdom of God’, indicating that heaven is synonymous with God’s reign. The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, Jesus said (Matt 13:31-32): outwardly small, but growing into something much bigger. It’s like yeast (Matt 13:33): you only need a small amount of yeast to make a large loaf of bread! It’s like hidden treasure or a pearl that’s valuable but may not look much to the outsider (Matt 13:45-50). Other images are developed much more: the kingdom of heaven is like a wedding banquet, Jesus said (Matt 22:1-14), and this image of a marriage between the Lamb and the Bride of Christ and a wedding feast is taken up by John in his great Revelation (Revelation 21:2-5, 9). A wedding feast conjures up pictures of joy, feasting, pleasure, celebration, and all of these are ideas that show us it’s a good thing when God is ruling and reigning. There is satisfaction and wholeness; a place without tears, where ‘there is no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.’ (Rev 21:4)

Hell, by contrast, speaks of separation from God, absence from God. It’s described as a place of torment, and whilst the imagery of fire and burning may be metaphorical, the anguish of hell is real.

Jesus repeatedly issued warnings that if we turn away from God in this life, we will be alienated from God eternally. Hell was prepared for the devil and his demons (Matt 25:41), but those who persistently refuse to acknowledge God and accept His offer of eternal life through Jesus Christ will end up being separated from God for ever. One of the most vivid descriptions of hell is given in Luke 16:19-31, where we see the rich man in hell, a ‘place of torment.’ (Luke 16:28) There are many different words translated as hell in our Bibles: Gehenna (the valley of Hinnom), Hades, Sheol, but the overall picture we have is of torment, ‘weeping and gnashing of teeth’ (Matt 8:12).

Many question how a God of love can ‘send’ people to hell, but ultimately because God has given us free will, because He wants us to serve Him faithfully but freely, He will not force us to accept His offer of salvation. He tells us that the wages of sin is death and offers us the free gift of salvation through Jesus Christ (Rom 6:23). It is up to us whether we believe Him or not, whether we accept this free gift or not. C. S. Lewis said, ‘the damned are, in one sense, successful, rebels to the end; the doors of hell are locked on the inside. All that are in Hell choose it. Without that self-choice there could be no Hell. No soul that seriously and constantly desires joy will ever miss it. Those who seek find. To those who knock it is opened.’ (‘The Problem of Pain’) We have to trust that God’s love, mercy and justice will ultimately ensure that He does what is right.

Mark continued his sermons on Jacob’s last words this morning, looking at his prophetic words to Simeon and Levi (Gen 49:5-7). Here, Jacob condemns his two sons as being ‘instruments of cruelty’, referring back to their excessive violence against not only the man who raped their sister Dinah but the whole city (see Gen 34:1-35:1).

This incident of rape must have shaken all Jacob’s sons, but whilst the desire for revenge is understandable, Simeon and Levi used deception and apparent affability to lull the people into a false sense of security before unleashing a murderous rage which destroyed all the men in the city, taking the women and children captive and looting the city of all its wealth. Their anger may have been justified in some respects, but their revenge was excessive and Jacob now reveals his shame at their actions. Clearly, these two brothers had anger issues (which may have been responsible for Joseph’s initial troubles) and had not learned to let God be their defender.

The incident in Genesis 34 shows us that God is willing to get involved in our troubles, even when He is not the cause of them. God gets involved in the messiness of our mistakes; He prepared a way out for Israel so they could escape to Bethel and provided supernatural protection for His people (Gen 35:5). God gets involved, gives guidance and gives protection, taking Jacob back to the place of his first encounter with God.

Jacob’s words at the end of his life proved prophetic. At the first census (Num 1:23), Simeon’s warriors numbered 59,300, but by the time of the second census, Simeon’s was the smallest of the tribes (22,200 warriors) and had to share part of the land allocated to Judah. Jacob’s words about dividing and scattering came true. We should not associate ourselves with violence and hatred, but must learn not to sin in our anger (see Eph 4:26), being peacemakers as Jesus told us. Nonetheless, in the fact that Levi eventually became the priestly line, we see God’s amazing capacity for forgiveness when we sin.

The song ‘Reasons to be cheerful (Pt 3)‘ was a hit in 1979 and was inspired by a near fatal accident involving a lighting roadie. Roadie Charley almost got electrocuted in Italy by a microphone stand while leaning over a mixing desk; he was saved by another roadie, and Ian Dury wrote the song to remind us of the many, many reasons we have to be cheerful and thankful. In it, he thinks about lots of reasons to be cheerful, many of which might seem trivial to us – ‘the juice of a carrot, the smile of a parrot…cheddar cheese and pickle… something nice to study, phoning up a buddy.’ (Ian Dury & The Blockheads) We might think we’ve got nothing to be thankful about, but as the song points out, there’s always something we can be thankful for.

Eph 1:3 reminds us that God has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. The old hymn reminds us to ‘count our blessings’ and ‘name them one by one.’ There is a lot to be gained from listing things for which we are thankful and reminding ourselves of the myriad ways in which God blesses us day by day.

Jesus once told a story about ten lepers He healed. (Luke 17:11-19) He said that only one of them came back to say ‘Thank You’ to Him. What about the other nine? Why didn’t they come back? Why was it left to the foreigner, to the Samaritan, to come back and give thanks for his healing? I suspect that the ratio of nine to one is sadly true of us today – it’s so much easier to forget to be thankful and to simply carry on with our lives without stopping to thank God for all His blessings, love and help.But if we take heed and dig deep for the ‘10,000 reasons for my heart to find’ (Matt Redman), we’ll feel better in ourselves, bless other people and please God. Win, win!