Thank you for your wonderful site. I would appreciate your opinion concerning heaven – will heaven be ‘out there’ somewhere as we usually point upward, or will it be on the refreshed, cleansed new earth spoken in the bible? Will the New Jerusalem be a city on the new earth where God dwells and will there be believers outside the city who are able to go in and out of it? Will we be working, such as planting, harvesting, creating art, etc. all to the glory of God or what will we be doing?
In Rev. 21:2 John describes the New Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God. This is the home of the redeemed, the “Heaven” that’s been promised to us as our eternal home. John never mentioned it landing anywhere on Earth and I don’t think it ever will. It’s too big.
It can’t land in Israel because it’s bigger than Israel. At 1400 miles long and wide, it would cover all of Western Europe from Scandinavia to Italy or all the Eastern US from Maine to Florida and the Atlantic coast to the Mississippi. And then there’s it’s height, 1400 miles. The tallest building on Earth today is a little over 1800 feet. The New Jerusalem is 4000 times as tall. It it’s a globe it will be 1/6th the size of Earth.
I believe it comes to rest close to Earth, like a low orbit satellite or a second moon, but never touches down. No mere mortal will be allowed to enter, believer or not (Rev. 21:27), but only the perfected, immortal Church.
As to our activities, there’s no hint given in the Bible. Passages describing people building houses and tilling fields and vineyards refer to Israel on Earth during the Kingdom age, not the Church in the New Jerusalem. All we’re told is that no eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him. (1 Cor. 2:9) Rest assured, you’ll never experience a single minute of boredom.