The Christian Hope
Most Christians, if you asked them what they hope for after death, would probably say something like this:
“I’ll go to heaven.”
And that answer isn’t wrong.
But it’s not the whole story.
In fact, when that answer becomes the entire story, it quietly reshapes how Christians think about their bodies, their work, their suffering—and even the world itself.
This short series exists to recover something larger, richer, and far more biblical:
The Christian hope is not escape from the world, but resurrection and new creation 1Gal 6:15 & Isa 65:17-18.
The Problem We’re Addressing
Over time, many Christians have absorbed a view of the future that sounds spiritual—but actually shrinks the Bible’s vision.
It goes something like this:
- Earth is temporary
- Heaven is permanent
- Bodies don’t matter much
- History is winding down toward evacuation
But when you read Scripture carefully—from Genesis to Revelation—that is not the story you find.
The Bible does not begin with souls in heaven.
It begins with God creating a good world (that’s what He called it) and dwelling with humanity in that world.
And it does not end with humanity leaving creation behind.
It ends with God dwelling with humanity in a renewed creation.
Why This Series Matters
This matters because what you believe about the future shapes how you live in the present.
If your hope is escape, then:
- the body (the material world) becomes secondary
- work becomes temporary
- suffering becomes meaningless
- creation (the material creation, that is,) becomes disposable
But if your hope is resurrection and new creation, then:
- bodies matter
- faithfulness matters
- justice matters
- and acts of love are never wasted
Christian hope, rightly understood, is not passive.
It is deeply formative.
What This Series Will Do
In this three-part series, we’ll walk through Scripture with the help of two careful biblical theologians: N. T. Wright (Oxford) and G. K. Beale (Reformed Theological Seminary).
Not because they are novel or trendy, but because they help us see what the Bible has been saying all along.
Here’s where we’re going:
Episode 1
Why “Going to Heaven” Is Not the End of the Story
We’ll clarify the difference between:
- being with Christ after death
- and the final Christian hope of resurrection
We’ll see why the New Testament treats resurrection—not heaven—as the centerpiece of Christian expectation.
Episode 2
From Eden to New Jerusalem
We’ll briefly trace the biblical story from the Garden of Eden through Israel’s temple, Jesus himself, and finally Revelation chapters 21 and 22. It will be a quick study, but I think you will benefit from it.
Along the way, we’ll see that God’s goal (end – telos) has always been:
to dwell with his people in a renewed world.
Episode 3
Resurrection, Renewal, and Living the Future Now
Finally, we’ll explore how this hope reshapes daily life.
What does resurrection mean for:
- the body?
- work?
- suffering?
- mission?
- the way Christians face death?
This episode is about living today in light of tomorrow.
The Larger Story of God
If some of this sounds unfamiliar—or even unsettling—that’s okay.
This series isn’t about winning arguments.
It’s about recovering a hope that is:
- more biblical
- more embodied
- more realistic
- and ultimately more hopeful
The goal is not to discard heaven.
It is to place heaven within the larger story God is telling.
Invitation
The Bible’s final vision is not of souls escaping earth.
It is of:
- God coming down to dwell with humanity
- Creation renewed
- Resurrection completed
That is the hope Christians are invited to live toward.
And that is the hope this brief series explores.
Thanks for listening. I hope you’ll join me as we explore why “going to heaven” is not the end of the story.
Podcast Resources
- N. T. Wright, Surprised by Hope (Logos) (Amazon)
- N. T. Wright, The Resurrection of the Son of God (Logos) (Amazon)
- G. K. Beale, The Temple and the Church’s Mission (Logos) (Amazon)
- G. K. Beale & Mitchell Kim, God Dwells Among Us (Logos) (Amazon)
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