I believe many would have a difficult time answering this question and it may well be impossible because heaven is inseparably bound up in their gospel. A shortened version would read something like this:
God sent Jesus to save us from our sins so that we can spend eternity with God in heaven.Or perhaps on the opposite side of the coin,
God sent Jesus to deliver us from evil and the punishment of hell.
Thus to extricate heaven and hell from the gospel message would prove to be a difficult task indeed. But I recommend we try because I believe that this exercise gets at the full gospel message. More than that, I believe this exercise would challenge our understanding of why we do the things we do – our motivation for loving, forgiving, and living holy lives. So really consider the following: What if the work of Jesus accomplished reconciliation with the Creator, but there was no expectation of an eternal reward? Would you still seek to live a holy life or would you still try to love God and neighbor?
Might I propose something somewhat shocking – I think that many Christians would not be as “good” (or perhaps would be less “good” as we are not doing a great job currently). Haven’t we all heard preachers and teachers repeat the words of Qohleth when lambasting atheists? These speakers tell us that if there is no God and there is no heaven then we may as well “eat, drink, and be merry for tomorrow we die.” If we found out that there was nothing to look forward to then how would we treat this life? Probably we would seek more pleasure and selfish joy at the cost of loving others. We may not go around killing each other or swindling one another, but my cynical nature believes that we would cease putting others first.
But let me put something out there – a variance of the gospel message. Jesus came to show us the best way to live. He came for more than just saving me from my sins. He came to bring a full life (John 10:10) and that doesn’t have to include heaven. This full life contains a fulfilling existence while on this earth – a lifestyle of love and grace. When we understand that the best life is the one modeled by Jesus and that finds its fulfillment in the Kingdom of God then our motivation for emulating this lifestyle stems not from expectation of eternal reward or punishment but from the firm belief that all joy, happiness, and fulfillment can be found in this life, following the shadow of the Savior.
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11 comments:
Sorry but for me this seems to fit the category of "meaningless talk" (I Tim. 1:6).
It's like saying, "What if gravity didn't work, would we still fly on airplanes."
Barry is again more blunt than I would be, but I also don't find a lot of value in this sort of hypothetical.
I'll say this: if heaven were the only motivation, I'm pretty sure I'd be doing less. There is more, a love for Jesus being chief among them.
Is this close to what you were trying get at?
Wow, not the response I expected. I would reserve the label "meaningless talk" to things like heated debates on whether to purchase gold or silver plated communion emblems as opposed to what I wrote. But, I understand you might not see the value in it.
My goal was to get at our motivations behind why we do what we do as Christians - why we live why we live. If it is just to go to heaven than I think we've missed the purpose of the Christian life and, quite frankly, the purpose behind what Jesus did.
Alright then. It is a factor, but not the factor. Getting to heaven is a done deal, I believe. Rewards in heaven still motivate (as they were intended to). But simply loving God is more and more becoming the biggest factor as I mature.
Okay. Maybe I was little harsh. :)
If there was no heaven and hell I'd be picking and choosing from many different religions. Self-sacrifice ain't a life goal if there isn't some eternal consequence either way.
I might still follow Jesus, but probably not exclusively. Without something after all this a major chunk of motivation is gone. If it wasn't meant to play any part in motivation why does the Bible spend so much time talking about it?
I suspect (although I can't say for sure), that Sam thinks somewhat as I do that the faith of Israel is to be admired. Although they weren't always faithful, at least during for most of their history they didn't seem to have any hope in any kind of reward in the after life. They're hope and faithfulness was wrapped up in the blessings God granted them during there time on earth, and in the hope of a restored physical Israel in the future.
Dan. 12:2 sure seems to indicate there was a sense of an afterlife.
Maybe it was the lack of firm understanding of an afterlife that made them more often than not faithless.
Ben - you are correct in stating that I admire the Israelites for their attempt at faithfulness when there was no eternal reward. You are also correct in stating that for most of their history and most of the Old Testament no heaven or hell is mentioned, just Sheol - the grave.
Barry brought up Daniel 12:2, which is the first and last explicit reference to an afterlife. I place that as a late writing (160 BCE). But even if you place it early - 500s BCE - the Israelites had been exiled and overtaken by then and the majority of their Biblical history was completed.
The point is, somehow God expected faithfulness and holiness from them because he was their God and his "laws" included the best way for them to live. Similarly, Jesus showed us the best way to live, regardless of the expectation of eternal reward.
I'm not sure I agree that the Christian life is the best way to live if there is no eternal reward or punishment.
Self-sacrifice isn't a very good way to live if it's not for the purpose of something better to come. Phil. 3:14, a standard motivational verse, is completely neutralized.
I could see possibly living the parts of the Christian life that are good for me, but why would I lay down my life for another? Simply so their life in the here and now could be better? Would God now punish and reward me simply in the here and now or would things still be as random as they now seem at times? Why wouldn't I pick and choose parts of other religions that make my life more enjoyable (can't deny some of the more hedonistic parts of some religions wouldn't be attractive)?
It would also make God seem kind of selfish. He want's us to love and follow him for what? So he can feel good? So he can be important? It's not focused on my good anymore at least if the way he allows life to unfold, the rain falling on the just and unjust, continued. Would he have to now start simply rewarding us for good and bad in the here and now physical world? That seems awful manipulative and selfish on all parts. Without heaven and hell the whole nature of God and man and our relationship is altered.
This is why I think it's a meaningless conversation. It's similar to the "when does salvation take place" argument. Some theological principles are not meant to, and can't be, separated out into individual parts. They are meant to be take together and are designed to only work when together.
Eternal reward and punishment is a necessary part of our motivation to serve AND love God. Without it the logic breaks down. I don't think God meant or designed us to set aside the principle of eternal reward and punishment, nor to separate it from loving him for His kindness and simply because of who He is.
I get uncomfortable when we try to make it sound like eternal rewards and punishment is an inferior motivation to following/loving God. I think God probably knows how to set things up better than we do. We need to view heaven as part of the wonderful way God has provided for us to be encouraged to follow him and understand the price and sacrifice paid to save us from eternal punishment. It mind sound nice to the human mind to say "we should love him without reward or punishment" but God didn't seem it was necessary for us to do so so why should we?
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