Here is a loose paraphrase of the story:

Voltaire was asked by someone what he thought of the Resurrection of Christ.

I have no problem with it, Voltaire responded.

What? You, the great anti-Christian thinker, have no problem with the Resurrection?

No, Voltaire replied.  The problem I have is with the Incarnation.

What Voltaire is saying here, of course, is that an all-powerful God would have no problem rising from the dead, so that would be easy to believe.  The bigger issue would be in an all-powerful God becoming Man in the first place, otherwise known as the Incarnation.  For Voltaire, that was not something he could believe.  Even though this story comes from the mouth of an ardent unbeliever, I have kept it in my mind over the years for a few reasons that have to do with the profound truths it reveals about God and His love for us.

The first truth it reveals is the monumentality of the Incarnation, in which God became Man. For an omniscient, omnipotent, omnipresent God to choose to become Man and experience the limitations of our human condition in all things except for sin is simply mind-boggling. Such an act is almost too difficult to believe because it almost seems to be too improbable and too far-fetched.

For a deist like Voltaire, who would have thought of God as a cold and detached force rather than a loving deity who interacts with man, God would never have chosen to become Man. It would have been far too much to bow down to the level of the human person. It would have been far too exceptional, far too unbelievable to think that the Infinite would agree to become Finite.

When we consider this in light of the kind of life that Christ lived, the exceptionalism of the Incarnation becomes even more extreme: a birth in a place that was relegated to the feeding of animals; immediate persecution which required fleeing to a foreign land; an upbringing in a family without special economic status; a career as a modest carpenter, and then teacher; and later a brutal Death.

All of the ordinary events of the life of Christ point to an absurdly astounding set of circumstances for an all-powerful God.  Any kind of earthly limitations seem to be far too lowly for a God who created the stars, the galaxies, the universe.  I am reminded of a part of a poem I heard many years ago on a Christmas record, which went:

What do I give to the Boy / Who has the whole world for a toy?

The Incarnation was nothing less than the greatest act of humility the world has ever seen.

This leads to the second truth that Voltaire’s statement reveals: the absolutely immense love of God for mankind. As Christians, we believe that God did, in fact, do the improbable by bowing down so incredibly low to become Man.

Further, we believe He did it out of love for us. The actions of our God were not done out of some egotism that we might expect out of a Greek deity who was doing it as a calculated move to increase power or slight his enemies, but instead out of the most profound love that we can imagine, or perhaps even beyond what we can imagine.

In response to Voltaire’s statement about his lack of belief in the Incarnation, we can honestly respond with a partial affirmation: “Yes, in a sense, it is difficult to comprehend!”. But as unbelievable or incomprehensible as it was, we know that God did, in fact, become Man, and did so because He loves us.

This is something not to cast aside in our minds, but instead something to meditate on, and ponder, and relish throughout our lives.

In our previous entry we discussed the changes a believer will undergo when they go to heaven to be with the Lord.  We will be transformed into celestial beings of light that share in the divine nature of God and will be co-rulers with Jesus as the adopted children of God.  In this entry, we shall discuss how Christians should not view heaven as the end goal of salvation.  Instead, Christians should remain focused on communing with God as being more important in their salvation.

First of all, becoming a Christian is not to follow Jesus simply for what He bestows.  Does it not seem shallow to follow Christ because He has the power to offer you eternal bliss in heaven?    It is true that Jesus died on the cross to offer a means of pardon for our sins.  His death and resurrection makes it possible for us to be redeemed in the eyes of God even though we are guilty.  God does not ask us to be perfect, but rather He asks us to receive the pardon of Christ who paid our penalties in our stead.  Realistically, all one has to do is accept Jesus as Lord and Savior to obtain the free pardon of salvation and gain access to heaven.  One doesn’t even have to completely understand God to receive the pardon since we don’t even know God’s real name!  As we are now, we are only able to understand what Christ taught us in the scriptures about His Heavenly Father.  Since we know so little about Him, it should be our first priority to learn all we can about our God and to love Him for what He is and not for what He has to offer.

So for the time being forget about heaven.  Forget about what awesome bliss awaits you.  Lets focus instead on the One who is the source of that bliss.

God Is Faithful

No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.  (1 Corinthians 10:13, English Standard Version)

God is faithful in His promises and His abilities to deliver us through our hour of temptation.  I’m sure all of us have been in a difficult situation where we could have chosen to take the easy way out or simply given up.  But what about those times when a solution became available at the right time just when you needed it to appear?  Coincidence?  Maybe…but I am willing to bet that God was behind the answer.  And if God was behind the answer, what does this say about God?  It says He cares about His children (and yes this includes unbelievers too).  I concede that there are times when people seemingly don’t receive an answer from God.  When a child is murdered, when a woman is raped, or soldiers die in combat, it seems God did not deliver them from their hour of trial.  We cannot forget, however,  that we still live in a fallen world in total rebellion against God.  Until Jesus returns to establish His reign on earth, there will continue to be suffering and death unfortunately.  For those who endure until the end, great will their reward in heaven be and nothing can take that reward away.

God Is Light

This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.  (1 John 1:5 English Standard Version)

The term “light” can mean many things.  It can symbolize God’s purity and holiness.  It can represent truth.  It can mean exposing evil and the darkness of sin. When we enter into a relationship with God, we will be exposed to His light, which will reveal our hidden sins we must confess to Him.  Yes it is a painful thing when we confess our sins to God, but it cleanses us at the same time.  Also, the light of God will reflect upon us and shield us from the encroaching darkness of the world and its current ruler Satan.  Darkness and light cannot exist is the same place so when we reside in the light of God, we are safe from harm.

God Of Giving

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. (James 1:17 English Standard Version)

God loves to give blessings to His children.  His gifts are perfect and enduring so that the forces of evil cannot undo them.  Heaven and eternal life are two of His greatest gifts, but not His greatest.  Jesus was His greatest gift to humanity.  Without Jesus no other gift would even matter especially heaven itself.  A God who loves us so much to give His most precious gift to those who didn’t deserve it, is testament to why we should concentrate on God Himself instead of His gifts.  Even if God did not offer us heaven, we should still love Him for who and what He is rather than what He can offer.  Salvation is more than living in the afterlife, it is living for God in the here and now regardless of the destiny of our earthly bodies.

God Is Spirit

God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth. (John 4:24 English Standard Version)

Finally, we must remember that God is a spiritual being not corrupted or affected by the material universe.  He is not limited to anything or by anything.  We cannot adequately worship Him in the flesh or comprehend Him with our brains.  We know only what He has revealed in His scriptures, which are merely sufficient for as we are now.  However, once we enter into eternal rest, we will know Him on a much higher level of sophistication, and will only then be able to properly worship Him as He deserves.  A spirit does not need a physical realm to exist.  Nor do spirits need bodies or “things” to live.  God is the ultimate spirit being, therefore, residing in Him for eternity would be more than sufficient.  Heaven is merely just a bonus He lovingly adds to the super abundance of His presence.  In all reality, we should count heaven as nothing compared to just communing with the Lord of Hosts.  But as always with God, He always manages to find ways to magnify the perfect and wonderful to even greater degrees.

Conclusion

Heaven is one of the most wonderful things to look forward to, but it is nothing compared to God Himself.  We should focus in on His love, holiness, and divine glory before we even consider the majestic things He promises us.  Even if God offered no heaven or eternal life, His goodness and love alone, would be sufficient for our salvation.  I even dare say we should continue to praise the name of our Heavenly Father should He deny us a place in heaven.  God owes us nothing, yet He gives us everything even though we do not deserve it.  Heaven is nice, but without God, it would be empty and without purpose.  Please remember that a great price was paid for your entry into heaven, and that the gift giver is far more important than the gift He offers.

As wonderful as these things are to think about, they do not do justice to what eternal salvation entails.  God has a plan for His children that involves more than singing and resting for all eternity.  We do not know the specifics of God’s future plans for us, but we can know a few things from scripture.

GOD WILL GIVE US A NEW NAME

Revelation 2:17 says, “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who conquers I will give some of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone, with a new name written on the stone that no one knows except the one who receives it.”  English Standard Version

When we get to Heaven, we all will receive a name that is unique only to us.  God will move to re-establish us into something greater than we were in the flesh while still on earth.  Under our old names, we sinned, and therefore our names are forever attached to the sinful thoughts and deeds we contaminated our souls with.  Currently, God chooses to see His son Jesus when He looks down at us, and that is how He will continue to look upon us until we are redeemed in our new glorified bodies and are no longer stained by our sin nature.  Only then will we be worthy of an individual name that can stand on its own in the presence of the Lord.  Becoming a worthy individual spirit leads to the next part of salvation.

WE WILL PARTAKE OF THE DIVINE NATURE

2 Peter 1:4 says, “by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.”  English Standard Version

Now this verse can be interpreted in different ways, but in essence, all interpretations basically mean the same thing.  Once we get to Heaven, either we will take on most of the attributes and properties of God’s divine nature—essentially becoming little “gods”—or we will gain the ability to understand and harmonize with God’s divine nature at a level of sophistication suitable for a full relationship with the God of the universe.  Either way, we will no longer be limited to our human nature and all of its inadequacies that hamper our ability to commune with God.  But God desires more than just our companionship He wants to grant us authority.

WE WILL BECOME JOINT HEIRS TO THE THRONE OF HEAVEN

Romans 8:17 says, “and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.”  English Standard Version

Here is a great reason why God allows Christians to go through so much suffering in the world.  If He did not bring His only begotten son down from the cross, then why should we not expect suffering and persecution for many of the same reasons Christ was made to suffer?  And as we suffer the hatred of the world, we will eventually share in the glory that Jesus possesses for all eternity for we are made to suffer in His name.  So think about it for a moment.  We will actually be co-rulers of Heaven with Jesus, and the universe by default.  Are you ready to rule the universe?

SOME FINAL THOUGHTS

I bet many of you have not really stopped to consider how radically changed you will become once you enter the Kingdom of Heaven.  You will cease to be human for starters.  Secondly, whatever gender you identify with now, will no longer have meaning to you in eternity.

Galatians 3:28 says, “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”  English Standard Version

There is only one group identity in the Kingdom of Heaven….becoming one in Christ Jesus.  We will think as Christ, act as Christ, rule with Christ, and have all the rights and authority that Jesus holds.  So why does God go to the great effort of establishing us as His children and ranked above even the angels themselves if He does not have some grand plan for us that goes beyond just worshipping Him and enjoying blissful rest?  I think the odds are pretty strong that we will have great tasks to perform that will give even greater glory to God…just what they will be is still a mystery.  Are you ready for what awaits?  If you say “yes” then I say you might want to rethink things a little because there is much more to salvation than immortality and singing in the Heavenly chorus…much much more…which we will discuss in Part 2 of our series on salvation.

Once we begin to believe in God’s saving power, we then can have hope in the midst of persecutions, doubts, and uncertainty.  A Christian who has hope is a very powerful instrument that the Lord can use to touch others who desperately need their lives touched.
But a Christian cannot move mountains for the Kingdom of Heaven with just faith and hope.  Christians must also learn how to love, and not only love others like themselves, but also to love others who are different and even hostile to them.  Christ reminds us that nothing that is flesh and blood is our enemy.  If we remember this admonition, we can learn to love others…even those who plan harm to us.

As with anything though, it requires prayer and studying the Scriptures to learn the mastery of loving.  It is the objective of every Christian to become Christ-like, and the only way to achieve the image of Christ is to love as He did.  Ultimately, once we are in Heaven, we will all be transformed into beings who share the mind of Christ in all things.  We will begin to share in the Divine Nature as the Children of God.  God bless you as you learn to build upon your faith and hope to find the ability to love in any situation!