I don’t like change. Just ask my wife. As I was writing this book, my wife decided to change my office. She secretly bought me a used oak rolltop desk to replace my drab metal office desk. Then she decided to purchase new bookshelves to replace the older wood bookshelves she thought were ugly. It’s not so much change that I dislike. It’s things that are foreign or unknown to me. All my books and files were in the hallway for a few weeks. What if some files I needed were in a box at the bottom of the stack of six boxes? People like me don’t like the unknown. If I travel to Timbuktu, will I be able to tolerate the food?
Some things won’t change in heaven. God will never change. Neither will Jesus. The writer of the book of Hebrews claims, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever” (13:8). In heaven we will be sinless. That will never change. We will be eternally holy. I will never again lie, cheat, steal, lust, be greedy, have impure motives, and on and on. That’s very encouraging—both to me and to everyone who will know me in heaven! But just because God and Jesus don’t change in their nature and character, and just because our holiness will never change, doesn’t mean there won’t be any change at all in heaven.
With no changes at all, things get depressing really quickly. Who wants to wear the same clothing for months and years, let alone for eternity? Sometimes we need a change of scenery, a change of foods to eat, a change of colors on the wall of our living room. Like oxygen, change is a basic need of humanity. Why else is it considered a punishment to be locked in a prison cell? Ultimately, we all need and love variety.
If people will be entirely happy in heaven (and they will), it is essential that heaven be thoroughly human in its activities and conditions. That includes an assortment of activities. Imagination and curiosity are also fundamental to our being. Without future goals that involve innovation, together with rational and emotional elements, heaven would not be heaven. Humanity was created and destined for change and variety. Without variation and creativity, there is no joy and happiness.
God loves the “new.” The Bible is filled with this word. Paul told the Corinthian Christians, “If anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” (2 Cor. 5:17). In Revelation, a “new song” was sung at the throne of God (14:3). It is also recorded that God will declare at the beginning of eternity, “I am making everything new” (21:5). Heaven is all about the continuing of new things. God is a God who creates. This is who he is. He will never stop creating new things.
If the new heaven and new earth are a reflection of the old heaven and the old earth, we should expect an incredible variety in the eternal earth. What if you had a lifetime to explore this world? Each place you chose to visit and investigate would be distinct and unique. One lifetime would not be nearly enough time to exhaust the adventures of this world. But we will have an eternity to explore the new heavens and the new earth. Perhaps there will even be distant worlds or multiple universes to visit. If God will make all things new, how long will it take for us to seek out, explore, and study all these things made new? An eternity! That’s variety and change.
There are approximately 10,000 different species of birds in the world, 20,000 species of butterflies, and 40,000 species of spiders. I think God knows about variety—and loves it. Heaven will involve constant variety.
FOR FURTHER STUDY
Isaiah 43:19; 48:6; Matthew 24:35; Hebrews 1:12; 7:21; 13:8; 1 John 2:17