I read Matt Elliot’s blog earlier today and then I read the following in Our Father Abraham:
Unlike the ancient Greeks, the Hebrews viewed the world as good. Though fallen and unredeemed, it was created by a God who designed it with humanity’s best interests at heart. So instead of fleeing from the world, human beings experienced God’s fellowship, love, and saving activity in the historical order within the world. According to Hebrew thought there was neither cosmological dualism (the belief that the created world was evil, set apart from and opposed to the spiritual world) nor anthropological dualism (soul versus body). To the Hebrew mind a human being was a dynamic body-soul unity, called to serve God his Creator passionately, with his whole being, within the physical world. Certainly, the godly of the Old Testament could never have brought themselves to sing such patently foreign and heterodox words as the following, which may be heard in certain churches today: “This world is not my home, I’m just a-passin’ through,” or “Some glad morning when this life is o’er, I’ll fly away,” or “When all my labors and trials are o’er, and I am safe on the beautiful shore.” To any Hebrew of Bible times this kind of language would be unrealistic and irresponsible, a cop-out–seeking to abandon the present, material world, while focusing on the joys of the “truly” spiritual world to come.
Page 169-170
Telling Stories, Asking Questions, Learning Lessons
I find that I agree with the first portion of the paragraph regarding the Hebrews view of the world and the “dynamic body-soul unity” and that we should live wholly and totally for God in this physical world.
I find that I disagree with “patently foreign and heterodox words..’This world is not my home, I’m just a-passin’ through'”. What does Heb 11:13 mean: “And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth.” or 11:16: “…they were longing for a better country-a heavenly one.” if not “This world is not my home”?
interesting quote. That book has been on my “To Buy” list.
Interesting that these posts appear on a day when I’ll be teaching a class on the second coming tonight, focusing on Old Testament passages describing the “day of the Lord” and other prophecy from which Jesus and the New Testament writers drew much imagery and language.
Nothing I’ve read so far indicates that anyone will go to heaven.
Instead, there seems to be a consensus that, at some point, heaven and earth will be renewed and God will descend from heaven join his creation – also renewed with incorruptible bodies – on the new earth.
It may be purely figurative language, I admit, but it does seem that we’re not destined to make a free-flying break to pure spirituality, devoid of any physicality. Rather, there seems to be perfected physicality.
Then there’s Justin’s take (over at Radical Congruency) on the ramifications of buying into the “bad-old-earth-and-good-riddance-to-it” view. Not sure I buy all of it, but he makes some interesting points.
David–given the general trajectory of the OT, Jesus, and Paul, all of whom seem to have a transformed version of this world in mind when they talk about the age to come, I’m hesitant to let a couple of verses from Hebrews that seem to say the opposite change my thinking. I need to do some in-depth study of Hebrews in order to understand a bit more about where the writer is coming from and what kind of “world” he’s imagining.
Wade-Admittedly this is not an area I have studied extensively. My comment was a first reaction to the quote. Perhaps I am interpreting Hebrews 11 through “Stamps-Baxter” glasses. However, I still believe, even if this earth is renewed and becomes our eternal home, the imagery of “this world is not my home” (the current fallen world) still has validity. I’m willing to study and learn more and be open to the possibilities. Thanks.