I will begin by asking “What earthly characteristics
would be least missed in heaven?”
Consider this from Revelation:
Then I saw
“a new heaven and a new earth,” for the first heaven and the first earth had
passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming
down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her
husband. And I heard a loud voice from
the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he
will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with
them and be their God. ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be
no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has
passed away” 21:1-4 (NIV).
Consider the implications: in heaven the brokenness of earth will have
been left behind. Certainly I will miss this aspect of earth the least. We will have our
existence in the midst of God’s holy light—in unadulterated love. Adulterated love is tragically a main
component of earth as we know it. When
we find a pure heart here, we know that we are witnessing a rare and precious jewel.
But in heaven we will not miss these
jewels for they are characteristic there rather than exceptional.
Yet on earth we have many products of love. There can be beauty and integrity in many
creations of man. These creations were
born from the disciplines of love and become the products of generosity, skill,
and sacrifice. I will miss these most;
partly because they were created from courage in the midst of adversity—whether
beautiful music, art, architecture, industrial processes, government arrangements,
family nurturing, scientific objectivity, economic entrepreneurship, creative
insight, quiet philanthropy, or ennobling labor and its ingenious products—all enlisted
for the betterment of life. These are a
tribute to and foreshadowing of the productivity of heaven. In heaven I will have nostalgia for these
things and plead with God to let me indulge such memories by helping further productions
of love on earth.
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