Can You Imagine?

Last week we watched the funeral service of President Jimmy Carter. It was, as expected, an impressive service with its pomp and ceremony reserved for a former United States President.

The speakers included Steve Ford, son of former President Gerald Ford, and Ted Mondel, son of former Vice President Walter Mondale, with both reading remarks written by their fathers honoring President Carter. Of course, President Biden also spoke.

Possibly the highlight was Carter’s grandson, Jason, who told stories about his grandfather that spoke to the simple, humble life the Carters lived in Plains, Georgia. For Jason, he was simply PawPaw making pancakes in the kitchen, working in his wood-shop, fishing a trout stream, or just walking the Georgia fields and forests together.

Perhaps the greatest tribute given to President Carter was when Jason said, “Maybe this is unbelievable to you, but in my 49 years, I never perceived a difference between his public face and his private one. He was the same person, no matter who he was with or where he was. And for me, that’s the definition of integrity.”

Jimmy Carter was known as a man of faith who continued to teach a Bible class in his church in Plains. Thus, it was surprising for his service to end with Garth Brooks and his wife Trisha Yearwood performing John Lennon’s 1971 song “Imagine.” The first stanza offers this thought that seems contradictory to Jimmy Carter’s life, teaching, and values.

Imagine there’s no heaven
It’s easy if you try
No hell below us
Above us, only sky
Imagine all the people
Livin’ for today

The song, that challenges us to imagine there is no religion, seemed out of place in a place of worship, The Washington National Cathedral, and inappropriate for a funeral service.

Apparently, I wasn’t the only one, as social media was filled expressions of disgust. One religious leader from Minnesota, Robert Barron, was appalled and called it an “atheist anthem.” “This was not only an insult to the memory of a devoutly believing Christian but also an indicator of the spinelessness of too much of established religion in our country,” Barron added.

Paul Anleitner, a cultural theologian and podcast host, described Lennon’s song as “a terrible substitute hymn from an empty substitute religion of our Secular Age.”

I was reminded when I was a Senior in High School and the Beatles were at the height of their popularity. John Lennon caused a stir when he said in an interview, “Christianity will go….It will vanish and shrink…We’re more popular than Jesus now.”

While it’s difficult to imagine the hubris of such a statement it’s more difficult to imagine that this life is all there is. No Heaven? No Hell? No afterlife? Nothing beyond the grave?

If Lennon is right, then the Bible is in error and Jesus is wrong.  The Lord promised a heavenly mansion prepared for his faithful followers (Jn.13:1-3). He further taught there is also a place of eternal torment (Mk. 9:43-47). If I can imagine there is no afterlife, can I also imagine Jesus was not the Son of God? In fact, could we also imagine that the Bible is not a Divine book, but a human product? Wouldn’t this finally lead us to imagine there is no God?

Yet, the evidence is overwhelming for the Deity of Jesus, the inspiration of the Bible, and that there is a God, the God of the Bible who created the heaven and the earth.

God put within mankind an imagination that feels there is something more than this life. Something greater. Something bigger. Something better. Something more significant. The Preacher of old expressed it this way. “He has put eternity into man’s heart” (Eccl. 3:11). In the words of Blaise Pascal who’s credited with saying, “There is a God-shaped vacuum in the heart of every man which cannot be filled by any created thing, but only by God the Creator, made known through Jesus Christ.”

It’s ironic that Lennon’s “Imagine” longs for a world of peace and the brotherhood of mankind, yet denies the Source of ultimate peace, “The Prince of Peace,” Jesus Christ (Isa. 9:6) and the fellowship that makes true brotherhood a reality (1 John 1:3-6).

I can’t imagine living a life apart from my faith, without Jesus Christ, and separated from my Creator. I can’t imagine having “Imagine” sung at my funeral service.

What I can imagine is a home of eternal bliss, enduring happiness, and everlasting life. I imagine the beautiful city of God as John described in Revelation. I imagine a land of unclouded day with its crystal clear river running through the city.

I imagine a place of righteousness where there is no sin, no wickedness, and no temptation. I imagine a place of wonderful fellowship and being reunited with my mother, my father, my brother, and so many friends, relatives, and fellow Christians.

I imagine a place where there’s no sickness, sorrow, suffering, or pain. I imagine a land where there will be no band-aids, crutches, or wheelchairs. No Kleenex, aspirin or antibiotics. No cancer, heart disease, or Alzheimer’s. No hospitals, nursing homes, funeral homes, or cemeteries dotting the landscape of heaven.

I imagine a refreshing place. A place of rest and refuge. A place that’s the residence of the Almighty God, of Jesus the Christ, the Holy Spirit, and the angelic host.

I imagine the majestic awesome throne and on it is the ALMIGHTY and all around are those arrayed in white giving him praise.

I imagine a place where the flowers never fade. The light never dissipates. A place of perpetual, breath-taking beauty.

I imagine above the bright blue there’s a beautiful place called heaven.

Can you imagine?

–Ken Weliever, The Preacherman