This question took me down sidewalks I've never walked before

In today's podcast, we ask the simple question, Where is heaven? While the answer is quite simple, it led Fritz down sidewalks he has never walked before.

"Your Word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path" (Psalm 119:105)

Transcript

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Good morning everyone and welcome to fifteen minutes with Fritz, where Scripture meets the sidewalk. I trust you had a blessed Easter. Today we'll be returning to the one hundred most asked questions about heaven, hell, and the afterlife. We're still focusing on the heaven portion of our study, with just a few more sessions to go before we transition to questions about hell. Today's question Where is heaven is a simple one. And admittedly the answer on the surface is just as simple. But in the somewhat unusual way my mind works, this question was a springboard for other questions, and I found myself walking down sidewalks I have never walked before in all my years as a Christian. I began asking questions I hadn't considered before, questions that I was sure would lead me to a dead end and I'd be forced to say the Bible doesn't explain it, I don't understand it, but God has it figured out. But regardless of how many times I thought the sidewalk I was on was going nowhere, that the Bible couldn't possibly provide answers to the questions I was asking, I discovered anew how high and deep and wide his word is, and I was quite literally amazed. Well, before we get into those strange and obscure sidewalks, let's go back to the beginning and answer the original question Where is heaven? Thankfully, the Bible provides plenty of verses that tell us exactly where it is. Heaven is up. For example, do you remember the prophet Elijah? When his mission on earth was over, he began to prepare his young protege, Elisha to carry on his work. One day as the two of them were walking and talking, the Bible tells us that suddenly a chariot of fire and horses of fire appeared and separated the two of them, and Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind. Elijah went up to heaven, so clearly heaven is up from the earth. Let's look at another example. Remember when Jesus fed five thousand men plus women and children with only five loaves and two fish? Just before he distributed this meager amount of food amongst the crowd, listen to what he did. Then Jesus directed his disciples to have all the people sit down in groups on the green grass. So they sat down in groups of hundreds and fifties. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to his disciples to set before the people. He also divided the two fish among them all. They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces of bread and fish. Jesus looked up to heaven, confirming once again that heaven is up from the earth. And finally we fast forward to the last meeting between Jesus and his disciples after his resurrection. They were using this opportunity to ask him if he was going to restore the kingdom to Israel. Now as a quick aside, this question must have really disappointed Jesus. Recall from last week's podcast that the purpose of his earthly ministry was to be a savior, not a king. Nevertheless, this kingship was still on their minds during the last moments of Jesus forty days on earth after his resurrection. And they asked him, Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel? He said to them, It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority, but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. After he said this he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight. While they were watching him two angels appeared to them, saying, Men of Galilee, why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus who has been taken from you into heaven will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven. So once again he was taken up into heaven. Now, as if this wasn't enough, we still have other instances where God looks down from heaven. Remember the time when mankind was going to make a name for themselves by building a huge tower that reached to the heavens? God wasn't happy about this, and we're told in Genesis eleven that he decided to come down to see what they were building. And in Psalm fourteen we find this The Lord looks down from heaven on the sons of man to see if there are any who understand any who seek God. So whether you're a student of the Bible or just a casual reader, you'd have to agree that Scripture leaves no doubt that heaven is above us over our heads. This is where I started going down some unusual sidewalks. As I thought about heaven being above me, I asked myself another question. If God is in heaven and heaven is above us, how can he also be near to us? I mean after all we're told that the Lord is close to the broken hearted. How can he be close and yet also up from where we are? Now admittedly, I didn't have to think too hard about this one. After all the Bible teaches that God is omnipresent, meaning he is in all places at all times. Am I only a god nearby, declares the Lord, and not a God far away? Do not I fill heaven and earth? In other words, God is not limited to one place at one time. He is everywhere at all times. This answer got me thinking about Paul McCartney. I remember I told you my mind works in mysterious ways. I've seen Paul McCartney twice in concert, but saying I saw him is a bit of a stretch. When he finally came out on stage he was so far away we could barely make out that it was him. I've often wondered if that's what it's going to be like in heaven. The Bible promises that we will see Jesus face to face, but I fear there'll be such a large crowd of people around him that I'll never get the chance to actually meet him. However, because of his omnipresence, Jesus will be sitting in the living room of my mansion at the same time he's sitting with everyone else in heaven. Difficult for me to comprehend, but still affirmed in Scripture. From here my thoughts went in a totally new direction. I got to thinking if heaven was up to those who were in the land of Israel, Elijah, Jesus, and the disciples, is it still up for me? I mean I'm on the opposite side of the earth. How could heaven still be up? Practically speaking, the only way that's possible is if heaven is all around us, not just up from us. In other words, the earth is in the midst of heaven, like a submarine submerged in the middle of the ocean or an airplane flying through the sky. Here's another way to look at it. As I write this, I'm sitting in the office in my home. The television is on in the other room, so I put on my headphones and tune into Spotify to drown out the TV with some background noise. Spotify is always being broadcast around me. I can't see it and until I tune into the channel I can't hear it. In a similar way, heaven is all around me. Does that make sense? It's a reasonable illustration about heaven and it helps me understand the concept. But is it biblical? Turns out that it is. The Old Testament tells the story about when the king of Aram sent a massive army to capture the city of Dothan, where the prophet Elisha was living. Here's how the events unfolded. When the servant of Elisha got up and went out early in the morning, an army with horses and chariots had surrounded the city. O my Lord, what shall we do? The servant asked. Don't be afraid, the prophet answered. Those who are with us are more than those who are with them. And Elisha prayed, O Lord, open his eyes so he may see. And the Lord opened the servant's eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. You see, the horses and chariots of fire, God's heavenly army, were surrounding the city to protect it. Elisha's servant just couldn't see them until God opened his eyes. So we shouldn't think about heaven as a different place in a different location from where we are. We should think about it as being all around us. I came across the phrase the thinning of the veil in my studies this week, and I was immediately drawn to it. Thinning of the veil is the idea that our physical world and the heavenly world are not separated by distance or a solid wall, but by a veil, and sometimes that veil is drawn open or made a little translucent, like it was for Elisha's servant. There are several examples of this idea in Scripture. Transfiguration is a good place to start. Jesus took Peter, James, and John with him and led them up a high mountain, where they were all alone. There he was transfigured before them. His clothes became dazzling white, whiter than anyone in the world could bleach them, and there appeared before them Elijah and Moses, who were talking with Jesus. Elijah and Moses were in heaven, yet they joined Jesus and a few of his disciples on earth. Here's another example. Just before he was stoned to death, Stephen said, I see heaven open, and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God. Finally, in the last book of the Bible, the apostle John tells us I looked and there before me was a door standing open in heaven. John was physically on the island of Patmos, but his eyes were open to see into heaven. Now I have never experienced anything close to what these men experienced. But there are occasions when I feel especially close to heaven. Usually it's during a worship service while singing certain songs. There's a welling up of spiritual emotion inside me. I don't see anything like doors opening or chariots of fire around me, but there is a definite spiritual experience that leaves me almost trembling in awe and wonder. I think we've all experienced similar feelings, and I now attribute it to the thinning of the veil between heaven and earth. God is giving us a glimpse of the heavenly realm here on earth. We need to embrace those experiences and we need to be grateful for each one of them. So in conclusion, I think we need to change our thinking about where heaven is. Yes, it's up, but we shouldn't limit it to occupying a specific place or a specific location. No, I think we need to picture it as being all around us, surrounding us much like God does with his everlasting love. Let's pray. Lord, thank you for showing us how close you are to each one of us. Thank you for giving us glimpses of the grandeur of heaven even in our sinful fallen world. And thank you for your word that guides us to your truth, regardless of the sidewalk we are on. For Jesus' sake, amen. Our benediction comes from Psalm one hundred. Shout for joy to the Lord all the earth, worship the Lord with gladness. Come before him with joyful songs. Know that the Lord is God. It is He who made us, and we are His. We are His people, the sheep of His pasture. Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him and praise His name, for the Lord is good, and His love endures forever. His faithfulness continues through all generations. This is the end of our podcast, but it's not the end of our story. Thank you for listening.