Martin Luther said, “Everything that is done in the world is done by future hope.” Helen Keller, that courageous champion born blind, said, “Nothing can be achieved without hope.” Hope makes people not only bear anything with joy but overcome any obstacle.
But today, we live in an instant gratification world; “I want what I want, and I want it now.” Consequently, many never learn to live with hope. That is why many fall prey to false ideas and false teachers and destroy their lives. These teachers falsely promise health and prosperity now. However, the Bible calls us to live with hope. For a believer, the best is not now. It is in the future, and so he lives a grand life with hope. A believer is not happy because everything is good for him now; it may be the worst, or terrible, and he may feel like weeping sometimes, but what fills his heart with joy is his hope.
In our series, Looking Unto Jesus, we started from pre-creation, and last, we saw Jesus at His second coming. The first act of His second coming is the resurrection from the dead. He will raise His people with glorious, deathless bodies and unite them with sinless souls. Then, in the Great Judgment, when He judges the whole world for all their sins, He will eternally reject them, condemn all as criminals against God’s law, and damn them with eternal punishment in hellfire. At that same terrible scene, we saw five thrilling judgment blessings for His people: The 5 A’s.
- Acknowledgment and Welcome
- Acquittal
- Amazing Rewards
- Assisting in Judgment
- Acceptance into Glory
Now imagine the scene: He has judged all sinners and sent them to hell along with Satan and his demons, and He has raised His people from the dead. What will He do next? We cannot clearly state all that in chronological order, but as I understand it, the eternal state begins after the judgment. I know it is an indescribably glorious state. God has revealed glimpses of that in His word, and we can look at those glimpses so that they strengthen our hope and create eager expectation. This is our future hope. The more we know about our hope, the more it will fill us with strength and joy in this present life—a journey often filled with troubles. We shall reach that shore of bliss and rejoice with the heavenly hosts; our troublesome pilgrimage will end, and we shall wear the crown of heaven. See in the providence of God how this is connected to what we are studying in Ephesians: the hope of our calling. Our hope is a blessed hope.
Now, who can describe the glory which is yet to be revealed? Words fail; language falls short. The mind cannot conceive fully, and the tongue cannot express perfectly. One man kept irritating John Bunyan with many questions about what heaven will be like—what about this and what about that? After a point, John Bunyan couldn’t answer, so he said, “Look… trust in Christ and live a holy life, and go and find out the answers to all your questions yourself.” Truly, the Bible doesn’t give all the answers to our questions and details about heaven, but it gives us enough to trust in Christ and live a holy life in hope of heaven. So let us see what we know.
To give a structure to all that the Bible reveals about eternal heaven, I have always imagined the glorious Temple of Solomon. The Bible states the tabernacle was a model of heaven. Imagine there is a vast garden outside the temple; then there are three sections: the Outer Court, the Inner Court (the Holy Place), and then the Most Holy Place. As we study heaven, I want you to use your imagination as if you are traveling through this great temple. First, we enter this vast garden… climb some steps, enter the Outer Court, then the Inner Court, and finally the Most Holy Place. This is just a structure for our study. Today, all we are going to do is start to see the Garden of Heaven.
Whatever big things I say today and in the coming weeks, when you go to heaven, you will have only one complaint: “How pitiably poorly I said it; you didn’t teach even one percent properly!” Because all that I say is a blurred sight, just as Moses could not enter the Promised Land but could climb a mount called Nebo and see all the glory of that land flowing with milk and honey. We are, with the Holy Spirit’s help, trying to get a glimpse of our eternal home. May the Spirit of wisdom and revelation enlighten our eyes to see the hope of our calling and the riches of our eternal inheritance, giving us such views that we yearn with burning hope for it now. Are you ready for the tour of heaven? Today, we look only at the outside garden.
This is not a literal garden, but a structure to organize Bible truths. Heaven is like a palace, but is there a vast surrounding garden to that glorious heaven? What is that garden? I tell you, the garden of heaven is this redeemed earth and skies—the whole universe. This is a very important but widely neglected teaching.
Let me teach this with a question: What will happen to this world and its universe when Christ comes back? The answer is: At the return of Christ, the present earth and universe will undergo a radical renovation—a complete, fundamental renewal and a cataclysmic, apocalyptic transformation by purifying fire. That burning fire will remove every trace of the curse and the effects of sin from this earth, redeem it fully, and fill it with God’s glory, thereby making it a fit place for the enjoyment of glorified believers. So, for all eternity, the redeemed will enjoy a new earth and new skies as the garden of their palace of heaven. This “new heaven and new earth” teaching is plain and simple in scripture, but it is often neglected and twisted.
See, God’s predestination plan is to glorify Himself through three phases: Creation, Fall, and Redemption. We know God created everything good; not only man in His own image perfectly, but even the world and universe were very good—no sorrow, no pain, no death. But what happened in the Fall? Not only did man fall and become depraved, but even the whole earth was cursed. In Genesis 3:17, God said to Adam, “Cursed is the ground for your sake; both thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you.”
So the Fall not only affected man but even this universe and cosmos. But at His second coming, Christ will redeem this world and everything in it and make them into a new heaven and a new earth—not a brand-new creation from scratch, but a redemption of the old one. That new earth and universe will become, in my mind, the enjoyable garden to the glorious heaven.
Let me show you from a few verses. In Matthew 19:28, Christ speaks of “regeneration” when the Son of Man sits on the throne of His glory. The word “regeneration” almost means a “Second Genesis.” It is not the regeneration of man here, but of the universe. Acts 3:21 speaks of Jesus Christ, whom heaven must receive until the times of “restoration of all things.” They are going to be restored and renewed. This earth in which we now live is going to be gloriously transformed. It is called the regeneration and restoration age. Just as when our bodies are glorified—though it is the same body, the change is vast—so this world will be transformed into a glorious earth and universe.
Another important passage is 2 Peter 3:10: “But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up.” You see, he talks about what Christ will do at His coming—a fervent, burning heat. Knowing this, he brings a practical application in verses 11 and 12: “Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God…”
Yes, all heaven and earth will go through a purifying process by fire. There is going to be a complete transformation, a cataclysmic apocalyptic renewal. This will lead to verse 13: “Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.” He says believers are waiting for a new heaven and a new earth. What is its trait? Righteousness dwells there. The word implies “settling down”—not a temporary stay in a hotel, but a permanent settlement. A cosmos full of righteousness. All traces of unrighteousness and sin will be removed. Such new heavens and earth are made fit for glorified believers—a place where resurrected saints can enjoy it fully without any stain of sin. Aren’t you happy this is God’s plan for this earth?
Even the Old Testament has prophecies about this. Isaiah 65:17 says, “Behold, I create new heavens and a new earth.” In Greek, “new” means new in quality or kind. Just like with resurrection bodies, there is continuity; it is going to be the same body, but new in quality. The basic identity is retained. So God’s glory is going to return in fullness to this planet. Earth will be an extension of heaven—a garden for the palace of heaven. Both will be bright with the fullness of God’s glory.
This is the glorious redemptive work of God that many prophecies and Psalms talk about, but people take them and twist them for dispensation teaching, claiming it refers to a 1,000-year golden age before the second coming. Others spiritualize them completely, but there is a literal fulfillment for this earth. The wolf will lie down with the lamb; the leopard and the goat, the calf and the lion will be together. Every creature will be reconciled without conflict, sin, or uncleanness. The earth will be full of the knowledge of God as the waters cover the sea. The desert will rejoice and blossom as a rose. That is going to literally happen to this world in which we live.
Now, what is the cause for all this? On what basis will God redeem this universe? Today, we have come to remember the Lord’s work on the cross. We always tend to think of it narrowly for our personal salvation. But this truth helps us see the universal glory and magnitude of our Lord’s work. Do you know that Paul many times, as he thinks of our salvation, brings in this redemption of the universe?
Let us see Romans 8:18: “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.” He is talking about the work of Christ and its implications—justification and adoption—and he explains how Christ also purchased a future glory for us. He says it is so big it cannot be compared with our present suffering. The future is full of glory; not only will He glorify our souls by making them perfectly holy and joining them with glorified, deathless bodies, but we see in the next verse what He will do to our surroundings for the enjoyment of these glorified beings.
Verse 19: “For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God.” Wow! The whole creation is waiting for the revelation of the sons of God. What creation? We always think of this tiny earth. But creation is vast and limitless. Our galaxy, the Milky Way, has roughly 400 billion stars and 400 billion planets. If we wanted to cover our galaxy traveling at 300,000 km per second, it would take 950,000 light-years to reach the end. And there are trillions of galaxies outside, all spiraling in endless space. Did God create all this just so students could read about it in textbooks? No, God has a glorious, greater purpose for all this creation.
Notice verse 19: all this cosmos is in “earnest expectation.” The word means “stretching out the neck eagerly.” All the galaxies, planets, and the earth are waiting. Did you know every tree in the park, every mountain, sea, and river is stretching out and waiting for something? You must learn to see the world around you like Paul. What is it waiting for? The revelation of the sons of God at the second coming. Why? Verse 20: “For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope.” This whole cosmos was subjected to vanity by God at the Fall when He cursed the creation. “Futility” means it runs uselessly. The Fall affected the divine purpose of the entire creation. It is not operating at its full potential. It was designed for monumental purposes, but it is currently limited to run in vanity.
Since this happened because of the Fall of man, when the redemption of man happens, this creation will also be redeemed. Verse 21 says: “because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.” The whole creation will partake in and enjoy the glorious liberty of the children of God. When we are delivered from every effect of sin, the world also will be released to express itself in full potential. It will become a fit world for glorified saints to dwell in. Something marvelous is going to happen to this universe.
How do we know this, Paul? Is this just a dream? Verse 22: “For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now.” We see it; “groaning” is the inarticulate language of pain and frustration. There is so much power and glory, but it cannot be expressed. Global warming, climate change, tsunamis, volcanoes, and earthquakes are signs of its groaning. Scientists say this earth and universe are going toward destruction. When God created the universe, it did not groan; it sang and shouted and danced. But now it groans.
But praise God, the creative order is not groaning in death but in birth pangs. It is groaning to give birth to new heavens and a new earth. That’s why Jesus said when you hear of wars and earthquakes, do not be troubled; these are birth pangs. So, when Paul thinks of future glory, he cannot avoid thinking of how this fallen world will be glorified. Future glory cannot be compared to anything now, for not only will our beings be filled with glory, but our surroundings will be as well.
In Colossians 1:19-20, Paul says it pleased the Father “by Him to reconcile all things to Himself… whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross.” Ephesians 1:10 says that “He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth.” Not just humans—all things. At the end, Revelation 21:1 says: “Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away.”
What a prospect! This is the full scale of the Father’s purpose. Redemption purchased by Christ on the cross not only redeems our souls and bodies but also redeems the universe we lost by our Fall. The cross has such magnitude! It has the power to remove all the curses in the universe. This world was damaged by human sin, and Paul says this same world will benefit from human salvation.
This is the pattern of redemption. When the human race sinned, God didn’t scrap the race and start again; He redeemed the fallen race. In the resurrection, God is not going to throw away our present bodies; He is going to glorify these same bodies. In the same way, God is not going to toss this world into the dustbin; He will restore and renew the world in which we live.
Our God never gives up. He never admits defeat. God never says to Satan, “Well, you destroyed World A, so I will move to World B.” No, He takes World A and gets all the glory by redeeming it. He will snatch it back. The Glorious King will come and transform this sin-cursed world. Satan will not have the last word.
This gives so much force to the promises of scripture. Today, people may fight and grab land through injustice. Let them grab as much as they want! God promises, “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.” We will inherit this earth. This is part of our inheritance—the mountains, the parks, the cities, and the beautiful places of the world. It gives force to our prayers: “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” Do you believe a day is coming when God’s will will be done all over this earth in perfection? It is certain.
I find this truth very attractive. Even the garden of heaven is so glorious, and we haven’t even stepped inside yet. We know heaven should be attractive to us, but honestly, sometimes it feels elusive or intangible. One preacher said that when he was small, he hated the idea of heaven because he thought it was a never-ending church service where you had to sit on a marble stone forever. We need a glorious grasp of heaven!
The eternal heavenly state will be so glorious that all the good pleasures of this world will be a hundred times greater there. We will enjoy the world with glorified bodies. All the enjoyment of this world is just the “outside garden” of the real heaven. I love this beautiful planet. There are places that fill me with rapture and joy. If the creation, even while spoiled by sin, is so beautiful, what will it be when God removes the vanity?
There are special places we love—our hometowns, trip spots we never wanted to leave. I remember my honeymoon in Munnar; it was so wonderful. I love traveling to see what my Father has created. Think of the Himalayas, the Grand Canyon, Niagara Falls, or the Caribbean Islands. We don’t have enough money or time to see them all in our short seventy years. But child of God, don’t worry! We will have all eternity to see the mountain ranges and the depths of the ocean. If a world subjected to vanity is this glorious, what will it be when God restores its pristine splendor?
And I only spoke about this tiny earth. Why do you think He created a vast universe with billions of planets? That beauty isn’t a waste. Eternity is not floating on a cloud plucking a harp while half-asleep. The Bible says we will rule, we will serve Him, and we will enjoy bliss. There is going to be pleasurable service using all our heightened, glorified capacities. I suspect those galaxies aren’t just for show; with glorified bodies, we will be able to travel the vast universe with superhuman strength.
What will it be like to have a glorified body and mind that can expand through the ages of eternity with an ever-growing compass of knowledge? Because our God is infinite, He can disclose more and more of Himself and His ways to us. There will not be a single second of boredom or monotony. Every second will be a thrilling excitement, from the beginning to all eternity.
The Garden of Our Heavenly Home
Let us see it now. This is the garden of our home, heaven. God says this earth will be united with heaven—an extension of heaven as a glorified earth. We will spend eternity enjoying its beauty and exploring its resources, using its treasures for the glory of God. Imagine now: whatever world tour we take, we get tired, sick, and weak; we are so drained after a trip. But there, with a tireless body and a deathless body, we will enjoy it fully. Behold our glorious redemption! God will make these places a thousand times more glorious, without any corruption or the effects of sin. He will make me more glorious and sinlessly perfect, and He will make this world a garden for His glory and my enjoyment.
In a real sense, when God restores everything, we don’t have to say goodbye to those places; instead, they will be transformed gloriously and united to heaven as a garden to that glorious palace. This earth, which God made and over which He gave us dominion, is right for us to love and enjoy. This is not the “world” John is talking about when he says, “Do not love the world or the things of the world.” He means the evil world order, the sinful system, and the rebellious world system. But this earth is my Father’s world. As the famous song says: This is my Father’s world. This current world system is not my home; I’m just passing through. My treasures are laid up in the future reality beyond the blue.
Applications: Three Duties
Remember, Examine, Proclaim
1. Remember Christ
Do we realize the glory and depth of Christ’s work? His sacrifice was infinitely broad. It is a sacrifice so vast, a love so deep, that it stretches beyond the limits of our understanding to reclaim a whole universe for His Father’s glory. It was not just a pardon for the past, but a purchased, imaginable future for us. We must see the crucifixion not just as a historical event, but as a cosmic event. That is why when He died, there was a great earthquake, and all heavenly lights were completely switched off during the daytime. The darkness that covered the land signified a dramatic shift—a great change occurring in the spiritual and physical, visible and invisible realms.
Through the cross, Jesus “disarmed the powers and authorities” (Colossians 2:15), conquering the forces of sin, evil, and death. When He said, “It is finished,” the cross completed everything necessary for God to bring about the ultimate restoration of creation. A new heaven and a new earth (Revelation 21:1) is the logical and glorious culmination of Christ’s work on the cross; it is the glorious result of His sacrifice. Without the cross, there would be no new heaven and no new earth. Christ’s resurrection from the dead is the “firstfruits” of the new creation. That is why Acts 3 says heaven received Him until the time of the restoration of all things.
Because sin, death, and evil have been defeated, God can finally dwell fully with His people again, just as He did in Eden. The new creation is not just a return to Eden; it goes beyond that. It is a world from which evil can never again rise. It is a new world where God’s divine presence is not just felt in His temple but permeates every square inch of the universe.
Oh believers, as you come to this table, feel the weight of this. Let it sink in. How lovely and overflowing with gratitude we should be as we remember Christ. We should learn to think of the cross beyond a small, personal transaction. It is the grand, cosmic event that takes us into new heavens and a new earth and ushers us into eternity.
He not only purchased a redemption to save us from past sins, but He took upon Himself the judgment for our sins and endured our hell at Golgotha. He cried, “My God, my God, why did You forsake me?” He redeemed our souls and our bodies, delivering us from all negative consequences, and purchased an eternal inheritance. That inheritance starts with blessing us with a new heaven and earth. We will inherit the earth because of the Lamb of God slain for us. Jesus not only “purchased” us by His blood, but He purchased all of redeemed creation for us. He died not just to save our souls, but to purchase a whole new world—where every tear is wiped away and every broken thing is restored by His broken body. Oh, the immeasurable work of the God-Man! This is a love so radical, so breathtaking, it should leave us speechless and overflowing with devotion. How can our love for Him be anything less than an overflow of gratitude?
2. Examine
Are we true believers in Christ? Paul and Peter define believers in 2 Peter 3:13: “Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.” We look for them; we wait for them with our necks stretched out eagerly. Think of how we wait at the airport when a spouse has been traveling for a long time—how we stretch to see where they are coming from. We can live as we should only when we look for this new world; then, when He comes, He will find us as good and faithful servants.
If we look for these things, 2 Peter 3:11 asks: “Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness?” You cannot enter that world without living godly now. This is the mandate for godly living. True believers are looking eagerly for a new heaven and a new earth; they are not stuck here.
Are we like that? All believers in the Old Testament were described this way. Hebrews 11 says Abraham and Jacob lived in tents and refused to settle for the comforts of this world. Moses left the treasures of Egypt and the passing pleasures of sin. Why did others sacrifice so much? By faith, they looked for a city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God. They desired a better country—that is, a heavenly one. They lived in faith, believing that if God is going to transform this world so gloriously, it should encourage us to postpone our enjoyments for the coming kingdom.
In Matthew 19:28-29, Jesus promised that in the regeneration—the renewal and restoration of all things—those who have left houses, family, or lands for His name’s sake shall receive a hundredfold and inherit eternal life. Every loss for the kingdom is the best investment. These men understood that this world is unsatisfying vanity. True joy is in the coming world, so they lived to prepare for that. Examine yourself before you come to the table: Are you living for the coming world, or are you swallowed up by this one? Examine and judge yourself so you will not be judged.
3. Proclaim
What a shallow gospel we often preach! The cross is not merely an escape from hell, but the promise of God restoring the whole universe—a cosmic renovation guaranteeing a new heaven and a new earth.
2 Peter 3:9 explains why Christ has not yet come and why we don’t yet have the new heaven and earth: “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise… but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.” For those of you sitting here, the reason Christ has not come is that in the new heaven and new earth, only righteousness can dwell; all the rest will be burned up. God is patient with you, and His patience should lead you to repentance. Do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance? By your hardness and impenitent heart, you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of righteous judgment.
One day, someone might complain from hell that the terrible things I have said were not even one percent of the true horror. Outer darkness, weeping, wailing, and the gnashing of teeth—unimaginable terror awaits if you do not repent. Do not delay! Every day you delay, taking God’s patience as a license to continue in sin, you are storing up the wrath of God. As the people of God, if God is patient for the purpose of saving others, we should have this perspective and plead with sinners to come to Christ by repentance and faith. We need to proclaim the gospel.
Grace Reformed Baptist Church, Bangalore 