Checking we are on our way to heaven is a little like checking we are on the right flight at an airport.
Getting to the right departure lounge is a start, having the right paperwork is a help, but nothing beats actually sitting on the plane bound for your destination.
Some people look back at their "departure lounge moment" when they finally decided to leave their old lives behind and follow Jesus. Some spend a lot of time double-checking the check-in mechanism when it comes to their faith; how they actually become a Christian. But nothing can beat the knowledge that you are on your way and headed in the right direction.
In Revelation 21 we see a rich and powerful set of images that portray something of the final destination of the universe. It is an unusual picture, intended to be symbolic, rather than an exact blueprint for the life that is to come.
"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" (Revelation 21:1-4).
Three observations offer three simple tests to see if we are headed in the right direction.
1. Heaven comes down
Ask a little child where heaven is and they will instinctively point upwards. Perhaps we think heaven is up because we remember the story of Jesus ascending up to heaven after his resurrection. But things get tricky when we start asking how far up we need to go to find it. Past the moon, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn, beyond our solar system? Beyond our Milky Way? Beyond the next galaxy?
Another way of thinking about it is in terms of dimensions. Sometimes in the book of Revelation the imagery of pulling back a curtain is used. So thinking of the heavenly realm as an intersecting dimension with our reality, like CS Lewis' Narnia, might be more helpful. God is everywhere but we can't see Him although we understand that in God we live and move and have our being. We recognise that the Queen rules over our nation, but we can't see her rule. You can only see her realm on a political map; a satellite image won't show those boundaries. It is another layer of reality, invisible yet real.
The image in Revelation 21 of the heavenly Jerusalem coming down to earth helps us see how the two realms overlap and become one. It isn't that Jerusalem has beamed down from another galaxy, but rather that the two dimensions of heaven and earth become one.
Too often we think that the Church's job is to rescue as many souls off the planet as possible. The reality is just as the Lord's prayer intimates: "Your Kingdom come, on earth as it is in heaven." So John sees "the Holy City... coming down out of heaven from God". Too many of the ways we think about the gospel envisage the salvation of our souls as an escape from the physical world, like passengers jumping off the sinking Titanic. But John's vision sees salvation differently – the whole of creation being restored, reordered and redeemed. Is this where we are headed? Do our lives engage now with this hope of restoration?
2. Heaven is busy
Did you notice it was a heavenly city? Not an ethereal cloud, or a private cubicle. Eternity is not you alone staring into the eyes of Jesus. Revelation's picture of eternal life involves all the believers through time and space gathered together. Cities connote community, people, and culture. There's a hubbub, not silent tranquility.
Too often our picture of salvation is too individualised. It's a personal emergency plan of escape rather than a corporate coming together. The fact that the consummation of God's plans for the world is shown here as a heavenly city where God dwells with his people helps us to understand why Jesus explained the two greatest commands as loving God and loving neighbour. This is our hope and destination. Is this the trajectory of our lives? It's not saying that we have to move to the nearest metropolis, but are we involving ourselves in the communities around us, and seeking to bless, help and care?
3. Heaven is relief
It is one of the most powerful promises in the Bible, especially if you or someone you know is suffering through sickness. "There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away" (Revelation 21:4). The promise of the end of sickness, the ceasing of suffering and victory over death is not for now, but for then.
No matter how hard we pray, no matter how much we give, no matter where we go to receive a blessing, the promise of the end of sickness is only promised when the end comes. Yes, we can expect to see a taste of what is to come in our lives now. But that taste is not to be confused with the final article. We live in a tension between what has been done and what is yet to be done. Are we looking forward to the relief that heaven will bring? Are we doing what we can now to give a taste of that relief to those around us?
I hope these three tests of whether our lives are aligned with God's plan for our eternity are helpful to you. Jesus perfectly modelled them for us – he gave people a taste of the relief of heaven through feeding, caring and healing the sick, he spent much of his life involved with the hustle and bustle of the lives of other people, but most importantly he gave the world a taste of the coming kingdom of God.
And Jesus is the way, the truth and the life. We can have entry to the new heavens and the new earth because of what Jesus did on the cross if we have put our faith in him.
Dr Krish Kandiah is a theologian, author and the founding director of Home for Good, a charity seeking to find loving homes for children in the care system. Follow him on Twitter @krishk.
