Solparvus
Puritan Board Senior
Forgive the scattered thoughts here. Heaven is a subject where I need more study. A few years ago I thought that heaven would basically be a restored creation. So, we would continue doing all we've been doing for 6,000 years, but we would do it better, with greater capacities, and no sin to prevent us from doing it fully to the glory of God. In short, "Like earth, only better."
Seemed to make sense... we were made to take dominion, so why not do it in a greatly improved earth and all across the cosmos? Wouldn't God get incredible glory out of man making the best possible uses of earthly skills that he's given? Why all this about work like accounting, engineering, construction, architecture, mathematics, etc., if it's not going to be something we continue to do in heaven? Why would it just drop off? And wouldn't the parable of the talents indicate that what we do in heaven has something to do with the world to come? Charge over small things, charge over many things.
I was interested to learn from a friend that such a view is really quite recent, and you don't see it in any Puritan literature. As another had said to me, "Theology is the queen of sciences. In heaven we won't be studying sciences, but God Himself." Which, frankly, I like better. As for the usefulness of learning trades which I'll no longer apply (I happily know for sure one thing will not continue in heaven... the US Internal Revenue Code!), such things would not appear without God replacing them with something far superior, and that is fuller communion with Himself that makes such occupations impossible. I know I'm happy to leave my accounting work each week and take a Sabbath break and try to scale Mt. Zion, so I'm far more than happy to do that once for all
I just want some insight on where the Earth-Only-Better idea came from. Thank you all!
Seemed to make sense... we were made to take dominion, so why not do it in a greatly improved earth and all across the cosmos? Wouldn't God get incredible glory out of man making the best possible uses of earthly skills that he's given? Why all this about work like accounting, engineering, construction, architecture, mathematics, etc., if it's not going to be something we continue to do in heaven? Why would it just drop off? And wouldn't the parable of the talents indicate that what we do in heaven has something to do with the world to come? Charge over small things, charge over many things.
I was interested to learn from a friend that such a view is really quite recent, and you don't see it in any Puritan literature. As another had said to me, "Theology is the queen of sciences. In heaven we won't be studying sciences, but God Himself." Which, frankly, I like better. As for the usefulness of learning trades which I'll no longer apply (I happily know for sure one thing will not continue in heaven... the US Internal Revenue Code!), such things would not appear without God replacing them with something far superior, and that is fuller communion with Himself that makes such occupations impossible. I know I'm happy to leave my accounting work each week and take a Sabbath break and try to scale Mt. Zion, so I'm far more than happy to do that once for all
I just want some insight on where the Earth-Only-Better idea came from. Thank you all!