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There’s much imagery and prophecy about heaven in Revelation that is “deep” (and debatable), but the beautiful picture of eternal life with God – the picture that was made possible by the death of Jesus and that was begun by his resurrection – isn’t debatable. That picture creates a longing in us for God’s Kingdom here and now and offers 3 ways that heaven’s reality can give us a full life today.

Heaven gets bad press — clouds, harps, endless church services, somewhere far off and a bit boring. But the reality promised by Jesus is so much better: a renewed earth, resurrected bodies, God making His home among His people, every tear wiped away. The longings that ache in us for justice, beauty, and an end to pain are “bootprints” of what we were made for. The One on the throne tells us to write it down — “trust this.” The future He promises is the very thing that makes the present possible.

At the Pool of Bethesda, a man who had been lame for 38 years waited for someone to lower him into healing waters—but when Jesus asked if he wanted to get well, the man could only imagine one solution: the pool. We often limit God to the “pools” we’ve imagined, missing the fact that Jesus offers something far greater than any system or outcome we’re clinging to. True rest is not something we earn through work or achievement—it is the gift of a God whose approval is the only worth we need.