Will we have our own homes in heaven?
Jesus said, "In my Father's house are many rooms.. I am there to prepare a place for you" (John 14:2). The word place in singular, but rooms is plural. This suggests that Jesus has in mind for each of us an individual dwelling that is a smaller part of the larger place.
The word room is cozy and intimate. The terms house or estate suggest spaciousness. That is heaven: a place both spacious and intimate. Some of us enjoy coziness, being in a private space. Some of us enjoy largeness, a wide-open space. Most of us enjoy both. The New Earth will offer both.
Heaven isn't likely to have identical residences. God loves diversity. When we see the particular place he has prepared for us-not just for mankind in general nut for us in particular-we will rejoice. We will realize it is truly the perfect home, tailor-made for us.
After speaking of the shrewd servant's desire to use earthly resources so that "people will welcome me into their houses" (Luke 16:4), Jesus told his followers to use their earthly resources to gain friends by making a difference in their lives on Earth. The reason? "So that when it {life on earth} is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings" (v.9).
Out "friends" in Heaven appear to be those whose lives we've touched on earth and who will have their own "eternal dwellings." Luke 16:9 seems to say that these "eternal dwellings" will be places where we'll stay and enjoy the companionship of our friends.
Because many people don't understand that the ultimate Heaven will be the New Earth, it never occurs to them to take this passage literally. They think "eternal dwellings" is a general reference to Heaven. But surely Christ isn't saying we'll enter Heaven because we used our money wisely! In the parable, the eternal dwellings are heaven's equivalent to the private homes that the shrewd servant could stay in on Earth. Since Jesus promised us a house and rooms and places and we know we'll be in bodies on a physical New Earth, why shouldn't we take this promise literally?
The word room is cozy and intimate. The terms house or estate suggest spaciousness. That is heaven: a place both spacious and intimate. Some of us enjoy coziness, being in a private space. Some of us enjoy largeness, a wide-open space. Most of us enjoy both. The New Earth will offer both.
Heaven isn't likely to have identical residences. God loves diversity. When we see the particular place he has prepared for us-not just for mankind in general nut for us in particular-we will rejoice. We will realize it is truly the perfect home, tailor-made for us.
After speaking of the shrewd servant's desire to use earthly resources so that "people will welcome me into their houses" (Luke 16:4), Jesus told his followers to use their earthly resources to gain friends by making a difference in their lives on Earth. The reason? "So that when it {life on earth} is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings" (v.9).
Out "friends" in Heaven appear to be those whose lives we've touched on earth and who will have their own "eternal dwellings." Luke 16:9 seems to say that these "eternal dwellings" will be places where we'll stay and enjoy the companionship of our friends.
Because many people don't understand that the ultimate Heaven will be the New Earth, it never occurs to them to take this passage literally. They think "eternal dwellings" is a general reference to Heaven. But surely Christ isn't saying we'll enter Heaven because we used our money wisely! In the parable, the eternal dwellings are heaven's equivalent to the private homes that the shrewd servant could stay in on Earth. Since Jesus promised us a house and rooms and places and we know we'll be in bodies on a physical New Earth, why shouldn't we take this promise literally?
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