Last Sunday, we looked at Paul’s imagery that Jesus is the “New Adam” ushering in the New Creation. I want to continue to highlight some of the biblical imagery that is being invoked and the overall biblical themes that are being carried through the whole of Scripture.
- When we talk about heaven, we are referring to the reality of the presence of God.
- Going to heaven is to go into the presence of God.
- The Temple is the thin space where heaven and earth come meet.
- The end goal of the Bible is to restore God’s presence fully to his creation.
o One of my favorite quotes on this subject is from a scholar named N.T. Wright, “Heaven is great but it’s not the end of the world!”
- The Jews were so concerned with a worldly kingdom that they were of no good to the world around them.
- Sometimes we are so concerned with an other-worldly kingdom that we are of little or no good to the world around us.
- Jesus taught us to pray for the Kingdom to come here on earth as in heaven.
When we talk about the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, we have to ask, “What was resurrected?” We’ve been on this journey for a few weeks now as we prepare for Easter, the celebration of the Resurrection of Christ. Paul goes to great lengths in 1 Cor 15 to advocate for the bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ. This is the hope we have! When we think about the afterlife, we often think about our bodies staying in the ground and our souls drifting off to an other-worldly, disembodied existence. Most of these thoughts come from Plato’s teaching and read into the bible rather than being pulled from the bible. In preparation for this week’s sermon, I want to just provide some passages for you to reflect on without me providing much commentary. God created the world, called it good, and made his dwelling among us.
- Isaiah 2:2-5
- Isaiah 65:17-25
- 1 Corinthians 15:50-58
- 2 Peter 3:8-18
- Revelation 21:1-5, 9-11, 22-26
- Revelation 22:1-5