No disrespect intended, but,this implies no more football. Is Heaven a place where everyone just stands around eating fruit and praising God for eternity?
That is an interesting observation.....Assuming that everyone is going to heaven......but who told you that was true?
Where did God put humans in the beginning....and how long were we supposed to live on earth? Was Adam ever told he would go to "heaven or hell", depending upon whether he was good or bad? If he obeyed he would live forever on earth, but if he disobeyed he would die. Two choices...life or death....was all there ever was.
My study of the Bible reveals that humans were never supposed to go to heaven, in fact the apostles themselves had no notion about this even as Jesus was ascending to heaven right before their eyes......they asked a very Jewish question as he was leaving....
"....they asked him: “Lord, are you restoring the kingdom to Israel at this time?”...(Acts 1:6)
Jews believed in an earthly Kingdom with Messiah as king, and Israel restored to her rightful place as God's people.....but they did not know how that would come about since Rome was a dominant world power, and it didn't appear to be going anywhere. Israel had no army by that time.
After the diaspora, (the dispersion of the Jews outside of their homeland) the Jewish people had not had possession of their homeland for hundreds of years, so when Jesus walked the earth, the Romans had jurisdiction over Jerusalem and its surrounds. It was indicated by Daniel, (back when he was an exile in Babylon some 500 years before the birth of Christ) that a march of world powers would dominate the Jewish people until the "Appointed Times of the Nations" (or "the Gentile Times) were fulfilled. (Luke 21:24)
Rome was the fourth Gentile world power to dominate God's people, (according to Daniel's prophesy) but there was another world power to come, reaching all the way down to our day, when the last ruling kings would come to their end. (Dan 2:44)
Jesus went on to say to his apostles....
."It does not belong to you to know the times or seasons that the Father has placed in his own jurisdiction. 8 But you will receive power when the holy spirit comes upon you, and you will be witnesses of me in Jerusalem, in all Ju·deʹa and Sa·marʹi·a, and to the most distant part of the earth.” (Acts 1:-8)
They were going to receive the holy spirit which would reveal to them the purpose of their choosing and where they would serve as "kings and priests" with Christ (Rev 20:6).....so they had work to do, the scope of which must have puzzled them...how would this small band of believers ever reach "the most distant part of the earth"? Jehovah would see to it. (Matt 9:37)
"9 After he had said these things, while they were looking on, he was lifted up and a cloud caught him up from their sight. 10 And as they were gazing into the sky while he was on his way, suddenly two men in white garments stood beside them 11 and said: “Men of Galʹi·lee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This Jesus who was taken up from you into the sky will come in the same manner as you have seen him going into the sky.” (Acts 1:9-11)
Jesus was going to return as he promised....but not for another 2000 years. But he would return in the same "manner" as he left....How was that?.....the world did not know that it happened, and only his closest companions witnessed it. So has Jesus already returned? World events since 1914 testify to it. He gave all of the signs, not of his "coming" but of his "presence"(parousia) as King of God's Kingdom. If his return was a visible event, then why the need for a sign? (Matt 24:3-14) All the things he spoke about have come to pass.....beginning with an unprecedented kind of warfare....."nation against nation and kingdom against kingdom in what would come to be called the "FIRST WORLD WAR"....which was followed by all the other signs in the years since then.
God's Kingdom would rule from heaven, with a specially chosen remnant of natural Israel in the apostles and many of the first Christians, joined later by others (Gentiles) who would be chosen for a role in heaven too, but by and large, the destiny of the redeemed human race will be on earth, ruled by the best government that mankind has ever seen.
This means that humans will live in paradise on earth as God first purposed, with all the enjoyments that we missed out on.....even maybe football and donuts!
King David wrote in prophesy....
"Your kingship is an eternal kingship,
And your dominion endures throughout all generation
14 Jehovah supports all who are falling
And raises up all who are bowed down.
15 All eyes look hopefully to you;
You give them their food in its season.
16 You open your hand
And satisfy the desire of every living thing."
Sounds good to me.....
Praising God is a wonderfulI thing, but I would think that, even God, would tire of that after a few thousand or million years. I wonder what, if any, temporal activities might be replicated in Heaven. Will we have modern homes with ovens and dishwashers or return to the "Garden of Eden" type of environment? I believe that we will see Jesus and reunite with our loved ones. I hope my dogs also get to show up. How do you envision Heaven? The Scriptures don't have alot to say about it.
I never actually wanted to go to heaven because I knew in my heart that the earth was meant to be my home.....it wasn't till I studied the Bible for myself that I realized that going to heaven was never mentioned as an option for mankind in general...only for the elect ...and their role is clearly defined...(Rev 20:6)
Kings need subjects, and sinners need
priests to intercede for them and lead them in worship....there are no sinners in heaven.
Revelation is about the future......and what a future it portrays....
This is what John saw in his vision of the future.....
"I also saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God and prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 3 With that I heard a loud voice from the throne say: “Look! The tent of God is with mankind, and he will reside with them, and they will be his people. And God himself will be with them. 4 And he will wipe out every tear from their eyes, and death will be no more, neither will mourning nor outcry nor pain be anymore. The former things have passed away.”
What is this talking about? "New Jerusalem" is a heavenly ruling authority, (Christ's bride) seen bringing God's rulership to "mankind" on earth.
God is going to be "with them" through the Kingdom of his son, and he will bring all things back into reconciliation with God.....there will be no more pain, suffering or death in the new world to come....everlasting life in paradise on earth is what God gave us at the beginning....nothing has altered that purpose from being fulfilled in the future. (Isa 55:11)