Only in Heaven

by Brett Manero

I’ve just returned from a most blessed retreat – most likely the most impactful retreat of my earthly journey (so far). There is something incredibly cleansing about literally retreating to a secluded place to listen to God, appreciate nature, and focus on healing. Returning to “the world” is always difficult with its noise, demands, and corruption.

During the retreat, my fellow retreatants and I reflected on many things. A general theme that came up is the terrible reality of suffering, the presence of evil in our world, and our mutual longing for the coming of God’s Kingdom. This of course will only be perfectly achieved with the Second Coming of Jesus Christ, the King of that very Kingdom. In the meantime, we remain in a “middle stage” of history, a waiting period, a holding pattern, so to speak, as we build and oversee the Kingdom on earth, waiting and longing for the King to return and take the reigns.

It seems like the world, (very) broadly speaking, is divided into two groups. There are those who long for the coming of God’s Kingdom (Christians), and those who seek to create a perfect society here on earth. I understand that the world is divided into far many more groups of people, religions, political views, etc, but let’s focus on just these two for the moment. Christians (should) realize that perfect, eternal happiness can only be realized with Jesus Christ’s return, the Resurrection of the dead, the Final Judgment, and the sweet end of death, pain, and suffering. “He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain any more, for the former things have passed away(Revelation 21:4). It sounds amazing, and yet it also seems scandalous that we are not there yet.

But it will come. Of that we are not to doubt. Does this mean that we ignore the present world or attempt to escape from it? No. The genius of the saints of the Church is that they looked forward to the perfection of God’s Kingdom, as they knew all too well just how wretched our present world can be, but they also labored to make the present world more bearable. It’s a delicate balance: making this world kinder and more tolerable, while realizing that it is ultimately passing away. “And the world passes away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides for ever” (1 John 2:17).

But what’s the point of making this present world better and more tolerable, if it’s passing away? That’s a good question. Because God wants us to, because He has sent us out into the world to do exactly that. Perhaps most importantly, because by showing Christ’s love to the world, it will inspire hope in so many to look forward to eternal life.

As for others, there is a belief that this current world is all there is. And if that is true, then achieving some sort of blissful perfection here and now is the goal. Perhaps since the Tower of Babel, humanity has sought to create a blissful existence on earth. We know how that ends, with God condemning the arrogance of man as he tries to create an earthly bliss while ignoring God. The story of Babel shows us that human beings can only find their ultimate fulfillment in God, and attempting any sort of perfect society on earth cannot be done because, we are still in that middle period of history, awaiting Christ’s Second Coming.

It’s an election year in the United States, and we hear the usual debates between the two major parties on “how” to achieve a thriving, stable society in America. I can become cynical as I listen. If there’s anything that’s true from all of human history, it is that suffering will always be present in this world, and no political party, President, or King can bring perfect bliss. Only Jesus Christ can do this, and this is why we long for His coming. “He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!(Revelation 22:20).

For each and every one of us who has experienced suffering (and that is indeed each and every one of us), we find comfort here too. While it’s distressing that we can never achieve perfect peace on earth, we know that we can in heaven. Maybe when life becomes overwhelming, when it seems like it’s an endless absurd journey, we find a strange comfort in that truth that we can’t find heaven on earth. Heaven can only be found in heaven. When we are frustrated with ourselves and with the world, we can know that we are not wrong in our noticing the problems of the world – because it is a horribly flawed place.

For the moment, we endure, we keep going. We see glimpses of heaven in the Church on earth, in the goodness of people (and there is much of it), in the saints, in love which is very much present, although it’s easy to miss it. And like the Saints, we strive to make this world a better place, knowing that something infinitely better is yet to come.


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