Heaven 1 - Vision of Heaven ...

Wednesday, May 26, 2010. The idea of an ideal world has always moved mankind. We need goals. We need visions. We need some idea about what we want, what we desire, what we search for. The bible takes up this human longing. In various passages it speaks about the world to come, sometimes directly, sometimes in a more indirect way.

Isaiah 11

One of the best known passages about the world to come has been written in Isaiah, chapter 11. The coming kingdom of peace will reconcile both mankind and the world of animals. Let us move into the future:

The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearlinga together; and a little child will lead them. 7 The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox. 8 The infant will play near the hole of the cobra, and the young child put his hand into the viper’s nest. 9 They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.

Neither harm nor destroy. The coming world is a secure world, a world of trust and a world of life. The reason named here is “the knowledge of the Lord”. This image of heaven reflects character features of the eternal God.

Your idea of heaven

What is your idea of heaven? What do you think about your life and the life of the people around you? Where do you want to go? Do you have ideas or goals, which go beyond your immediate environment? Are you able to think the impossible, to believe the unbelievable?

The bible tries to teach us visionary thinking. But it is not just any visionary thinking, but a thinking which centers around the Lord. When we know him, we can get an idea about the future. His character will reign, when heaven takes over. His truth and solidarity will be everywhere. Open your mind to heaven! ... more texts