Relationship First, Location Later

"If you die tonight, do you know for sure that you will go to heaven?"  That's a standard opening question for a lot of evangelicals when they want to talk with someone about God, Jesus and salvation.  For some people, that's an engaging question.  The problem is, that's really not the center of what salvation is.

It's true that Jesus said "There is more than enough room in my Father’s home...I am going to prepare a place for you...I will come and get you...you will always be with me where I am" (John 14:2-3).  But there is a lot more to salvation than mere location.  John's gospel uses a lot of space talking about how our own being -- how it is we exist -- is caught up in Christ, knowing who he is and relating to him, and through him, being caught up in the Father. See for example John chapters 5 (eternal life is to know the Father and the Son), 6 (feeding on Jesus, not just on physical bread, in order to remain 'in him'), 7 (come to Jesus and drink spiritually of him), 10 (entering life through the Messiah), 14-17 (beginning to open up the inner workings of the triune life of God) and so forth.  Being "in Christ" or "united with Christ" (Phil. 2:1) is about inner change and growth, not moving from one place to another.  (And if we only change locations, we always end up taking ourselves -- including all our old habits -- with us anyway!)

By way of analogy, would I have said to The Amazing Joanne, "let's get married, so that when we die, we can be buried side by side!"  No, marriage -- like salvation -- is moving from one state of relationship to another, and growing in intimacy.  Not that God does not know us, but that we didn't know God, and we come to know him better as we walk together for the rest of our lives.  So then, what will it be like to be "always be with him where he is?"  It will mean being able to know God perfectly rather than in the limited way we do now.  To love him perfectly -- and to love others perfectly -- not in the limited way we do as humans.

So why do we focus on the 'heaven' bit?  Probably because we can imagine it as better than this physical life.  We want to have that new body (see this post for more) and feel nothing but joy forever.  Well, what's true is that life everlasting, in the presence of the Father through the Son by the Spirit, enjoying that relationship perfectly, will be more fulfilling than we can know or imagine.  Let's not reduce it to merely walking on the beach or eating good food without gaining weight, forever and ever. 

Do you have that connection with God?  Knowing him and being sure that he loves and accepts you through his Son?  If not, let's get started so you can begin enjoying it now -- and then, forever!