Chapter 7 How Might Such a Destiny Be Achieved?

One of the most important questions we have pondered for several years is how God might achieve the destiny we have described. How can every person be saved and enjoy a supremely fulfilling life in the Eternal City? The scenarios in our books portray a possible way in which this could be achieved.

Before we begin to unpack our views of what the nitty-gritty of life on the new earth might look like, it’s important to bear in mind a key concept. Jesus refers to God as a parent. When he taught us to pray, he began with ‘Our Father, who is in heaven…’ (Matthew 6:9). Parenthood is foundational to how we understand who God is and how he relates to us.

Human parents don’t always behave well, but Jesus described his Father as the one being who is truly good (Luke 18:19). At the time, Jesus’ teaching that God is a loving parent was a new revelation, and it is still a unique concept among world faiths. Its significance cannot be underestimated, and it is a profoundly beautiful and important aspect of our beliefs.

A loving parent will often create opportunities for their child to mature, for example, by exposing them to new experiences and taking them away on daytrips and holidays. But sometimes there may be the need for correction and discipline. These can encourage growth, but if a child doesn’t believe that their parent loves them, they are likely to reject any such attempts. They are much more likely to listen and accept discipline if they recognise that their parent is chastising them to teach them a lesson for their own good.

We have looked at how people change in this life. From our observations, people change their attitudes and actions when their hearts change. They often turn away from destructive ways when they have come to see the futility of how they have been living. The best motivator for change is being inspired to change, rather than being required to. Many of us who have had the privilege of parenting children will recognise the power of positive motivation over angry yelling, physical punishment and shaming, which only lead to more anguish, resentment and rebellion.

On the new earth we envision that Jesus will act like a good parent and place people in environments where the consequences of not living by love are used to encourage a change of heart. We suggest that people will be placed in small communities, the members of which have been carefully chosen to best trigger the changes needed. Some members of each community will be true followers of Jesus, who will take a ‘parental’ position, exemplifying love. God is relational, and so it seems likely to us that relationships will be the main means he uses to encourage people to learn and to grow.

After a set period of time (we call them ‘jubilees’ in Hope For Everyone), people will be rearranged into new communities so that if any have become entrenched in a particular way of being and behaving, they have the opportunity to make a fresh start and form new relationships with hopefully a more mature attitude. We believe time in these communities will facilitate various processes that will generate progress, although the rate of progress will be different for each person.

God’s nature of unfailing love means that he always acts for our benefit, even when chastisement and discipline are needed. This is the difference between punitive and restorative justice. Punitive justice focuses on punishing the wrongdoer, but restorative justice seeks to chastise in such a way that brings about progress, growth, wisdom and maturity.

Currently God is limited in regard to how much influence he can directly exert on the circumstances of his children. We believe that he is constrained because he wants us to have our own agency and does not wish to control how the population multiplies. He does, however, desire that we should make a start along the path towards maturity and through Jesus’ message in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) and his other teachings sets out what living by agape love looks like. For example, Jesus taught:

“You have heard that it was said, An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. But I say to you that you must not oppose those who want to hurt you. If people slap you on your right cheek, you must turn the left cheek to them as well. When they wish to haul you to court and take your shirt, let them have your coat too. When they force you to go one mile, go with them two. Give to those who ask, and don’t refuse those who wish to borrow from you.

“You have heard that it was said, You must love your neighbour and hate your enemy. But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who harass you so that you will be acting as children of your Father who is in heaven. He makes the sun rise on both the evil and the good and sends rain on both the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love only those who love you, what reward do you have? Don’t even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers and sisters, what more are you doing? Don’t even the Gentiles do the same? Therefore, just as your heavenly Father is complete in showing love to everyone, so also you must be complete.” Matthew 5: 38-48 CEB

Jesus’ words make it clear that God’s idea of how to persuade people to live by agape love is radically different from our human tendency towards punitive punishment and revenge. Jesus invites us to be complete (mature), just as our heavenly father is complete – by loving everyone, even our enemies. It is logical, therefore, to assume that loving enemies and repaying evil with good is exactly how God operates.

When we consider the judgement of God, what do we think of? Do we think of God condemning and smiting his enemies? Do we imagine people burning in flames forever? Do we think of people being shut out of the heavenly city and abandoned forever in the ‘outer darkness’?

Based on Jesus’ teaching and the way he demonstrated God’s love through his life and resurrection, can we justify a different vision? A vision of unfailing and unending love, kindness, goodness and mercy, in which God pursues people relentlessly until they turn from their destructive ways and attitudes? Will God’s kindness lead people to repentance in the ages to come? Will Jesus’ teaching on loving our enemies and repaying evil with good continue to form the basis of God’s design for the cosmos until everything is reconciled to God, the Father of all? Our reply is a resounding ‘Yes!’ and we will explore the details of what this might look like in practice in the next chapters.