Experiencing The New Earth

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Well, tonight we are shutting down our series entitled “Heaven Bound” and we will be moving on to an Old Testament prophet in the weeks to come.
What is one thing you’ve learned that has given you hope for Heaven from this series?
Pray

1. Will Our Bodies Shine On The New Earth?

Do you remember the last verse in the old hymn “Amazing Grace”?
“When we’ve been there 10,000 years, bright shining as the sun...” apparently John Newton believed that in Heaven on the New Earth we would shine with the brilliance and glory of God.
To find our answer we must look to the Bible:
Matthew 13:43 ESV
Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear.
Or, take :
Daniel 12:3 ESV
And those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky above; and those who turn many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever.
These are the two most popular passages to quote when discussing the idea that we may shine or glow on the New Earth. On the other hand, remember when Jesus was resurrected He appeared so earthly and normal that on the road to Emmaus () the disciples didn’t even notice that He was the resurrected Jesus. AKA he wasn’t shiny. However, we must remember Jesus had not been glorified yet.
Let’s think about what Jesus looked like in glory:
Luke 9:28-
Luke 9:28–31 ESV
28 Now about eight days after these sayings he took with him Peter and John and James and went up on the mountain to pray. 29 And as he was praying, the appearance of his face was altered, and his clothing became dazzling white. 30 And behold, two men were talking with him, Moses and Elijah, 31 who appeared in glory and spoke of his departure, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem.
Here Luke seems to indicate that Jesus is shining in His preincarnate glory - his clothes became dazzling white and His face was altered. It’s not hard to believe that Jesus will shine in His kingdom on the New Earth - I mean John even says in that “the Lamb is its lamp.” That means Jesus is the one who puts off light on the New Earth.
Even here in the passage Moses and Elijah appeared in glory since they’d been in the presence of Christ. Look what happened to Moses when he received the 10 commandments:
Exodus 34:29–30 ESV
29 When Moses came down from Mount Sinai, with the two tablets of the testimony in his hand as he came down from the mountain, Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone because he had been talking with God. 30 Aaron and all the people of Israel saw Moses, and behold, the skin of his face shone, and they were afraid to come near him.
Why did Moses’ face shine?
He had been in the presence of the glory of God and it altered his appearance. All this to say, I believe as resurrected beings we have good evidence to conclude that we will indeed bear this physical evidence of being God’s image bearers who live in God’s presence. To be glorified with the Lord on the New Earth will mean that we may literally shine.
Have you ever said, mans she is radiant - she shines - you ever said something like that?
Or, maybe you’ve said - that person is so unhealthy and drab - anyone?
Well, we know the difference from someone who is beautiful and radiant to someone who is sickly and malnourished. Think on the New Earth we will be in the very presence of God, so righteous, so beautiful, so devoid of any sin and darkness, and so permeated by the very goodness of God, that we have a literal physical radiance.
Is that so hard to imagine?
So, yes I do believe that we will shine out with God’s glory on the New Earth.

2. Will We Eat Meat On The New Earth?

So, last week we discussed how we will experience hunger and thirst - for food and water - and those are our natural bodily stimulants for eating and drinking that God created us with - but on the New Earth we will always be satisfied.
Remember, hunger is only bad when it is not freely and fully satisfied. On the New Earth it will be - which means - we will look forward to meals! We will anticipate and long for our next meal or snack! This is a good thing!
Which lead Mason Sullivan to send in the question “Will we all be vegans on the New Earth?” I’m going to simplify that to “Will we eat meat on the New Earth?”
According to God provided plants for humans and animals to eat. It appears that we didn’t eat animals until after the flood:
Genesis 9:1–3 ESV
1 And God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth. 2 The fear of you and the dread of you shall be upon every beast of the earth and upon every bird of the heavens, upon everything that creeps on the ground and all the fish of the sea. Into your hand they are delivered. 3 Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you. And as I gave you the green plants, I give you everything.
Genesis 9
Genesis 9:3 ESV
3 Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you. And as I gave you the green plants, I give you everything.
It makes sense that people and animals wouldn’t eat meat before the Fall, when living beings didn’t die.
But why weren’t animals eaten between the Fall and the flood?
Well, think about this Noah’s father, Lamech, was actually born before Adam even died (check )! So maybe that close to Eden it was still unthinkable to eat the creatures that God had given Adam and Eve to take care of. IDK.
There are actual theologians that think animals died before the flood - but this is based, mostly, on Science and carbon dating and not on Scripture.
For instance says:
Romans 5:12 ESV
12 Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned—
In this passage Scripture clearly ties death to Adam’s sin. I believe is what we can expect on the New Earth:
Romans 8:20–21 ESV
20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope 21 that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.
Romans 8:
That’s a then and now. After the Fall creation was subjected to futility, but after the resurrection they will obtain freedom of the glory of the children of God. They will experience life the way it is supposed to be!
On this Earth we hunt for pleasure and food - both can be good things - and we enjoy steak, chicken, fish, and bacon. On the New Earth likely, God will create a meat substitute that tastes better, looks better, and has better nutrients than any steak you’ve ever eaten, but it won’t have come from dead animals.
The food chain may seem natural to us - we eat animals, animals eat each other, etc. - but I think it is in violation of God’s original design. No more curse and no more death means no more food chain involving living creatures. As radical as that sounds, it will likely be a return to God’s original intention.

3. Will We Remember on the New Earth?

Jarrod Adams asked this question - and, he had good reason. The short answer is yes, yes indeed we will remember our life on Earth on the New Earth.
Here’s why Jarrod Adams asked this question. Pick up your bibles and go to .
Isaiah 65:17 ESV
17 “For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth, and the former things shall not be remembered or come into mind.
Isaiah 65:17
So it seems to say we will not remember our life on earth. But, when we put it into it’s context - here’s what we see. Look at (v.16).
See, this passage is about God, and him not remembering by choice, in that he won’t bring up the former things that were bad and sinful.
But remember we get the principle of remembering (even bad things) on the New Earth from :
Luke 16:25 ESV
25 But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that you in your lifetime received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner bad things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in anguish.
The comfort implies that we have memory of what happened to us on this earth - including the bad.
If we had no memory of the bad things, why would we need comfort? How would comfort feel if we couldn’t remember bad?
Our minds, students, will be clearer on the New Earth, not foggier. Memory is basic to personality. The principle of same and renewal requires that we will remember our past lives.
Listen to what Father Boudreau said about this concept (he was on the money), “For the sins which so often made us tremble, are washed away in the blood of Jesus, and are, therefore, no longer a source of trouble. The remembrance of them rather intensifies our love for the God of mercy, and therefore increases our happiness.”
So yes we will remember - God will wipe away tears - but He will not wipe away our memories (even the martyred saints in the Present Heaven know how they were martyred).

4. Will We Continually Learn on the New Earth?

God alone is all-knowing (omniscient). Even after death, if you are a believer in Christ, you will not know everything even though you will see things much more clearly.
Some people think we can’t continually learn in Heaven on the New Earth because of :
1 Corinthians 13:12 ESV
12 For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.
This seems to say that we will know fully - much like God - but in the Greek this word (epiginoskow) means to know or learn. Whenever it is used of people in the Bible it never means absolute knowledge. Listen to what Wayne Grudem says about this verse, “ does not say that we will be omniscient or know everything, Paul could have said we will know all things ta panta in Greek, if he had wished to do so, but, rightly translated, it simply says that we will know in a fuller or more intensive way, even as we have be known, that is, without any error or misconceptions in our knowledge.”
So since we won’t know everything - that means we will actually learn on the New Earth. It was God, not Satan that made us learners. Jonathan Edwards believed that “in Heaven the saints will be progressive in knowledge to all eternity.”
Will our knowledge and skills vary? Will some people in Heaven have greater knowledge and specialized abilities than others? Why not? Scripture never teaches sameness in Heaven. We will be individuals, each with our own memories and God-given gifts. Some of our knowledge will overlap, but not all. I’m not a mechanic or gardener, as you may be. I may or may not learn those skills on the New Earth. But even if I do, that doesn’t mean I’ll ever be as skilled a gardener or mechanic as you will be. After all, you had a head start on learning. Remember the doctrine of continuity: What we learn here carries over after death.
Don’t you love to discover something new? On the New Earth, some of our greatest discoveries may relate to the lives we’re living right now. Columnist and commentator Paul Harvey made a career of telling “the rest of the story.” That’s exactly what we’ll discover in Heaven again and again—the rest of the story. We’ll be stunned to learn how God orchestrated the events of our lives to influence people we may have forgotten about.
Listen to this story by Randy Alcorn: “Occasionally we hear stories that provide us a small taste of what we’ll learn in eternity. One morning after I spoke at a church, a young woman came up to me and asked, “Do you remember a young man sitting next to you on a plane headed to college? You gave him your novel Deadline.” I give away a lot of my books on planes, but after some prompting, I remembered him. He was an unbeliever. We talked about Jesus, and I gave him the book and prayed for him as we got off the plane.
I was amazed when the young woman said to me, “He told me he never contacted you, so you wouldn’t know what happened. He got to college, checked into the dorm, sat down, and read your book. When he was done, he confessed his sins and gave his life to Jesus. And I can honestly tell you, he’s the most dynamic Christian I’ve ever met.”
All I did was talk a little, give him a book, and pray for him. But if the young woman hadn’t told me, I wouldn’t have had a clue what had happened. That story reminded me how many great stories await us in Heaven and how many we may not hear until we’ve been there a long time. We won’t ever know everything, and even what we will know, we won’t know all at once. We’ll be learners, forever. Few things excite me more than that.”

5. Will there be Books on the New Earth?

Psalm 119:89 ESV
89 Forever, O Lord, your word is firmly fixed in the heavens.
Or:
Matthew 24:35 ESV
35 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.
So I think it is safe to assume that God’s Word - the Bible - will be on the New Earth. But other books will be there too:
Revelation 20:12 ESV
12 And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done.
What are these books? It seems to contain documentation of everything ever done by anyone on earth. They are probably pretty long.
There is another book:
Revelation 3:5 ESV
5 The one who conquers will be clothed thus in white garments, and I will never blot his name out of the book of life. I will confess his name before my Father and before his angels.
So we also have the book of life. Which has the names of God’s children in them. And there is no hint, whatsoever, that these books will be destroyed - there are also lots of scrolls in Heaven.
Okay, but will there be other books?
I believe that on the New Earth we will read books, both new and old, written by people. Because we’ll have strong intellects, great curiosity, and unlimited time, it’s likely that books will have a greater role in our lives in Heaven than they do now. The libraries of the New Earth, I imagine, will be fantastic.
Will we search for information and do research on the New Earth? Why not?
Unlike the histories we read on Earth, Heaven’s books will be objective and accurate. No exaggeration or overstatement, no spinning to make certain people look better and others worse. We will be able to handle the failings of our ancestors, just as they’ll have the right perspective on ours.
Every biblical genealogy is a testimony to God’s interest in history, heritage, and the unfolding of events on Earth.
Will God lose interest in Earth? Will we?
No. The New Earth’s history includes that of the old Earth. But a new history will be built and recorded, a new civilization, wondrous beyond imagination. And we who know the King will all be part of it.
Books are part of culture. I expect many new books, great books, will be written on the New Earth. But I also believe that some books will endure from the old Earth. Any book that contains falsehood and dishonors God will have no place in Heaven. But what about great books, nonfiction and fiction? Will we find A. W. Tozer’s The Knowledge of the Holy, J. I. Packer’s Knowing God, John Piper’s Desiring God, John Bunyan’s Pilgrim's Progress, and Charles Sheldon’s In His Steps on the New Earth? I’ll be amazed if we don’t find them there, just as I’ll be amazed if no one sings John Newton’s “Amazing Grace” in Heaven.
So will they - I think yes - listen to what CS Lewis says about this in his book God in the Dock:
“My friend said, “I don’t see why there shouldn’t be books in Heaven. But you will find that your library in Heaven contains only some of the books you had on earth.” “Which?” I asked. “The ones you gave away or lent.” “I hope the lent ones won’t still have all the borrowers’ dirty thumb marks,” said I. “Oh yes they will,” said he. “But just as the wounds of the martyrs will have turned into beauties, so you will find that the thumb-marks have turned into beautiful illuminated capitals or exquisite marginal woodcuts.”
So I expect to see LOTR, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, Chronicles of Narnia, etc. on the New Earth - and we will treasure them!

6. Will we always agree on the New Earth?

The short answer is no. Because we are finite and unique we’ll never know everything (hence, we will have books and learn) and we may not always agree with each other on the New Earth. Let me be clear, we will agree on thousands of things, but we will likely have different tastes in food and clothes and music and thousands of other things.
We will have discussions and perhaps even civil debates, about things we do not yet understand. Of course, there will be no personal attacks, no ill-formed biases, and no prideful refusal to grant a valid point.
Some will have insights others won’t. Some will have a better understanding in one area, and others in a different area. Our beliefs can be accurate but incomplete, since we are not omniscient. Think of Adam, he was without sin, yet he needed more than himself. Even before sin, surely he and Eve brought different perspectives. Not all disagreement is rooted in sin.
Think of this we could be talking about something and say - hey let’s go get Paul’s opinion of this - and then he enlightens us and then we say - hey let’s go hear what the King has to say.
Look the Bible is clear that on the New Earth there will be judges and rulers. So if we all always understand and automatically see things alike, why would we need them?
In a perfect world why would there be a need for authority?
Because that’s the way God has made us. He’s the ultimate authority, but he delegates authority to mankind. It’s not sin that necessitates authority, it’s simply God’s design, existing first within his triune being ().
John 8:28 ESV
28 So Jesus said to them, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am he, and that I do nothing on my own authority, but speak just as the Father taught me.
Even Jesus, during His earthly life, came under the authority of the Father. Therefore, we should expect some differences in perspective, but we should also expect an ability to resolve them without being rude or having hurt egos.

7. Will there be sports on the New Earth?

Audio Adrenaline once sang, “It’s a big, big house with lots and lots of rooms. A big, big table with lots and lots of food. A big, big yard where we can play football - touchdown. A big, big house that’s my Father’s house.”
It’s a song about the New Earth. What it will be like. And Audio Adrenaline seems to think we will play football - God’s game - on the New Earth.
So will we? Will there be football and other sports on the New Earth?
According to the principle of similarity and renewal we can expect to play sports on the New Earth. I mean even the Bible compares the Christian life to sports:
1 Corinthians 9:24 ESV
24 Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it.
Or:
2 Timothy 2:5 ESV
5 An athlete is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules.
Because sports aren’t inherently sinful we have every reason to believe that the same activities, games, skills, and interests we enjoy here will be available on the New Earth, alongside of many sports we haven’t even invented.
Think about it - your favorite sport in Heaven may be one that you haven’t even thought up yet! How cool is that! Sports and enjoyment are not a part of the fall - I have no doubt that we would have them if sin would not have entered into the world.
What type of games may we play on the New Earth?
Maybe, Quidditch? Maybe, something with animals as teammates? Maybe, something with the Angels? Maybe a sport that was too risky to play here? The possibilities are endless!
And the best part is no sin will spill out during competition.
Why do you think some theologians say that there will not be sports in Heaven on the New Earth?
Because someone has to lose - and in Heaven you can’t lose. Right? Who says so? Losing isn’t evil. I don’t think it is a part of the curse. To say everyone has to win in Heaven is underestimating the power of the resurrection - I believe.
Eric Liddell a famous missionary and olympic gold medal winner once said, “He made me fast, and when I run I feel God’s pleasure…to give up running would be to hold him in contempt.”
Wow.

7. What role will Mary Jane (Marijuana) play on the New Earth?

Let’s talk about pot. Here’s my judgment. Marijuana for some uses in the medical field is helpful and good. I believe that it pleases God. So, some patients should use it - seizures, cancers, pain relief, etc.
Recreational use of marijuana is sinful and I believe it displeases God. 20 somethings’ wanting to get high by smoking or eating cannibus is rebellion against God.
I have an article in the back if you’d like more info on that - we just don’t have the time for me to spend teasing that out. But suffice it to say - we are to be filled with the Holy Spirit, not with another substance (like Alcohol or marijuana).
Okay, so God made it though, right? He created weed?
Okay, so God made it though, right? He created weed?
Yes.
So it will be on the New Earth?
Yes, according to the similarity and renewal principle.
So we will get high for God on the New Earth?
No. Perhaps it will have other uses we’ve never known about it, but you can bet your bottom dollar that it will not be used to altar our state of mind.
Caffeine makes us more alert; more helpful; more able; pot makes us less; drunkeness makes us less.
So, perhaps we will use it for something we have never known, but we won’t get high on the New Earth. Just like we won’t get drunk on the New Earth.
Any final questions?
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