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Revelation 21 – Is Heaven Materialistic?
Is Heaven Materialistic?
Is the heaven for Christians described for those motivated by materialism? That sounds wrong, but…gold streets, gates of pearl, and overflowing with jewels seem to appeal to the lesser nature of man (Revelation 21). The bad translation wherein we receive a “mansion” (John 14) fortifies physical covetousness in the spiritual heaven. I’ve excused my thinking, of what appears as “crass” materialism, as being necessary to describe the indescribable. Receiving heaven must be greater than anything I’ve received on earth, right? Maybe so.
But if so, isn’t that just a less base description than the heaven described in Islam? Jihadists receive 72 virgins, and heaven rewards the Muslim who on earth abstained from alcohol, by allowing him to imbibe for an eternity without the sinfulness of drunkenness. We rightfully laugh at such a fleshly appeal; but Isn’t that just as “physical” as gold, pearls and jewels? Isn’t their heaven described as the lust of the flesh and ours as the lust of the eyes and pride of life? Maybe so.
Then the obvious dawned on me. Sometimes I am slow. Revelation’s heaven is not about us receiving riches for faithfulness. The crowns we receive are victory crowns, which are less valuable than royal crowns. Heaven is described regally, but not as our prize. No, it is because that is how kings lived! God is king, and his palace and temple and surroundings must be pictured as grander than any earthly king because God is greater than any since he is King of kings and Lord of lords.
Psalm 84: 10 reads, “Better a day in your courts than a thousand anywhere else. I would rather stand at the threshold of the house of my God than live in the tents of wicked people.” Do you get that? It’s like we are blessed here and there if all we are is a door keeper. That doesn’t sound glamorous. But it is glorious!
Our reward in heaven is not streets of gold and pearly gates. Our reward is God! Our eternity is not spent in receiving riches. Our eternity is spent in giving God glory. The reward of heaven is being in God’s presence. Isn’t that more glorious than if we were awarded mansions?
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