Bible

Here's Paul Gardner (paid link) on Revelation 1:

I'll put this up here, because this may be of help to someone else at some point, but I'm a bit tentative about doing so.

In working on preaching from Revelation chapter 1, I found it helpful to make an audio recording of the Greek of that chapter. Once I'd got to know any vocabulary that I had to look up at first, it gave me an easy way to become more familiar with the chapter, at the same time cutting through the risks of being over-familiar — you have to concentrate while listening to this.

One of the most glorious truths is the real hope that God offers his people. It's a real, substantial hope of a future on a renewed earth, with renewed bodies, free of suffering, with God himself living among us.

Where might we look in the Bible to see this renewed-earth future promised?

One of the most glorious truths is the real hope that God offers his people. It's a real, substantial hope of a future on a renewed earth, with renewed bodies, free of suffering, with God himself living among us.

Where might we look in the Bible to see this renewed-earth future promised?

One of the most glorious truths is the real hope that God offers his people. It's a real, substantial hope of a future on a renewed earth, with renewed bodies, free of suffering, with God himself living among us.

Where might we look in the Bible to see this renewed-earth future promised?

One of the most glorious truths is the real hope that God offers his people. It's a real, substantial hope of a future on a renewed earth, with renewed bodies, free of suffering, with God himself living among us.

Where might we look in the Bible to see this renewed-earth future promised?

One of the most glorious truths is the real hope that God offers his people. It's a real, substantial hope of a future on a renewed earth, with renewed bodies, free of suffering, with God himself living among us.

Where might we look in the Bible to see this renewed-earth future promised?

One of the most glorious truths is the real hope that God offers his people. It's a real, substantial hope of a future on a renewed earth, with renewed bodies, free of suffering, with God himself living among us.

But many Christians are brought up to believe that when we die we "go to heaven".

Sometimes, the language of "heaven" is a short-hand for this earth-bound future that God promises. But other times, people picture something far more ethereal, and the language is "heaven" is actually quite unhelpful - it sells us short.

A few weeks ago (Trinity Sunday as it happened - this was the lectionary gospel reading this year), I preached on John 16:12-15. That passage includes this sentence concerning the Spirit:

"But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth."

In a couple of week's time, the Lectionary gospel reading will be Luke 7:11-17:

Soon afterwards, Jesus went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went along with him. As he approached the town gate, a dead person was being carried out – the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. And a large crowd from the town was with her. When the Lord saw her, his heart went out to her and he said, ‘Don’t cry.’