Heaven (Part 22) – Will There Be Jobs, Money, and Technology in Heaven?

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Will we have jobs and work in heaven? (Austin)

1. The new earth and heavens will be a restoration and glorification of the original earth and heavens (see Section IX – The nature of the new earth).
   1. Adam was given work to do in the garden of Eden before the fall (Gen 2:15, 19-20).
   2. We will have jobs and work to do on the new earth as well.
   3. “Work was part of the original Eden.  It was part of a perfect human life on Earth.  Work wasn’t part of the Curse.  The Curse, rather, made work menial, tedious, and frustrating…(Genesis 3:17-19).” (Randy Alcorn, Heaven, p. 331)
   4. “However, on the New Earth work will be redeemed and transformed into what God intended…(Revelation 22:3). Serve is a verb.  Servants are people who are active and occupied, carrying out tasks.” (Ibid)
2. Our Lord Jesus Christ worked while He was on earth.
   1. He was a carpenter before entering His public ministry (Mar 6:3).
   2. He afterward did the work that the Father gave Him of ministering to His people, preaching the gospel, and healing the sick until His death (Joh 4:34; Joh 5:36; Act 10:38; Joh 17:4).
   3. Jesus was a sinless man and not under the curse of sin, but He nevertheless worked.
   4. We likewise will work in heaven and on the new earth after we are free from the curse of sin.
      1. “Consider Christ’s activities: working in a carpenter shop, walking the countryside, fishing, sailing, meeting people, talking, teaching, eating―doing his life’s work. Even after his resurrection he moved from place to place, connecting with his disciples and continuing his work (A preview of life after our resurrection.)  (Randy Alcorn, Heaven, p. 331-332)
      2. “Since work began before sin and the Curse, and since God, who is without sin, is a worker, we should assume human beings will work on the New Earth. We should assume we’ll be able to resume the work started by Adam and Eve, exercising godly dominion over the earth, ruling it for God’s glory. But we don’t need to just assume this.  Scripture directly tells us.  When the faithful servant enters Heaven, he is offered not retirement but this: “Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord” (Matthew 25:23, KJV).” (Ibid, p. 332) [The scripture quotation was changed to the KJV text.]
3. We will work in heaven (both the present heaven and the new earth) including serving God (Rev 7:13-15; Rev 22:3-4), building houses and planting vineyards (Isa 65:21), working with our hands (Isa 65:22), laboring (Isa 65:23) (see Section X, 24, E – What will we do in heaven?).
4. We will also have jobs in heaven.
   1. Those who are faithful and diligent in this life will be given cities to rule in the new earth (Mat 25:20-23; Luk 19:16-19).
      1. Ruler n. – 1. One who, or that which, exercises rule, command, or authority, esp. of a supreme or sovereign kind. a. One who has control, management, or headship within some limited sphere. Now Obs. or arch. except with suggestion of sense 1.
      2. Authority n. – I. Power to enforce obedience. a. Power or right to enforce obedience; moral or legal supremacy; the right to command, or give an ultimate decision.
      3. These are high-level jobs.
   2. If there are rulers who have authority over cities in heaven, then that means that there will be subordinates that work for them.

Will there be money in heaven? (Sette)

1. Money n. – 1. a. Current coin; metal stamped in pieces of portable form as a medium of exchange and measure of value.
2. Money is simply the most commonly used commodity for exchange.
3. Money is not evil, which is evident by the fact that God authorized its use.
   1. God commanded Jeremiah to buy a piece of land with money (Jer 32:25).
   2. Jesus had Peter pay their taxes with money (Mat 17:27).
4. It is the love of money that is evil (1Ti 6:10).
5. It appears that there will be money in the new earth.
   1. The kings of the earth will bring their glory into the new Jerusalem (Rev 21:24-26).
   2. Glory sometimes refers to money in scripture (Est 5:11; Psa 49:16-17; 1Th 2:6).
6. It seems reasonable to conclude that there will be money on the new earth for the following reason.
   1. We will be working and producing things in heaven such as houses and vineyards (see Section X, 24, E – What will we do in heaven?).
   2. Building a house requires many different types of materials which requires many different people to produce.
   3. Bartering for these materials would be very inefficient.
   4. God authorized the use of money in this life to facilitate such transactions.
   5. It is logical to conclude that money would be used for such purposes in the new earth.
7. The Lord told Israel to come to Him and buy food and drink without money (Isa 55:1), but this is not a proof text that there is no money in heaven.
   1. First of all, the context of the passage says nothing about heaven or the new earth.
   2. Secondly, the Lord asks them why they spend money for that which is not bread and doesn’t satisfy (Isa 55:2).
      1. This demands that they were spending money at the time that God told them to buy food and drink from Him without money.
      2. Therefore, money was in use at that time.
      3. Therefore, the time was either during their lives on earth, or, if the time was in heaven, money is present in heaven.

Will there be technology on the new earth such as cars, computers, electronics, etc.?

1. The new earth and heavens will be a restoration and glorification of the original earth and heavens (see Section IX – The nature of the new earth).
2. In the original creation man was given a mandate to have dominion over the earth (Gen 1:28).
3. This would have been accomplished by using the raw materials that God put on the earth to make equipment which would enable man to subdue the earth and harness the natural creation to make it work for him.
4. God is a creator (Gen 1:1; 1Pe 4:19).
5. We were created in God’s image (Gen 1:27).
   1. We were created with a mind and body capable of designing and creating amazing and beautiful things which improve the quality of our lives (Exo 31:3-6; Exo 35:30-35; 1Ki 7:14).
   2. “God’s instructions and his delight in the gifts he imparts to people to accomplish these tasks make clear what we should expect in Heaven: greater works of craftsmanship and construction, unhindered by sin and death.” (Randy Alcorn, Heaven, p. 444)
6. It is a mark of wisdom to find out knowledge of witty inventions (Pro 8:12).
7. I see no reason why we would not use our God-given intelligence and capabilities to design and create godly and helpful technology on the new earth.
8. Could that technology include cars, computers, electronics, etc.?
   1. If those things were only used for godly purposes, then I think it’s possible that we might be allowed to create them.
   2. This of course is only my speculation based on reasoning from some basic principles in the scriptures.
9. “We do know, however, that the New Jerusalem will have streets and gates, suggesting conventional modes of travel. If citizens only walked, perhaps paths would be enough.  But streets may suggest the use of wagons and horse-drawn carts, or something more advanced.  Will we ride bicycles and drive motorized vehicles?  Will we travel to other places outside of the New Jerusalem in airplanes?  We don’t know.  But we should use the “why not?” test.  Is there anything sinful about wheels and motors?  Unless you’re a Christoplatonist, you realize the answer is no.  Therefore, there’s no reason to assume we won’t enjoy high-tech modes of travel on the New Earth.” (Randy Alcorn, Heaven, p. 446)