HarleyD: "While I agree with BTL that there is a hierarchy in heaven, it will have nothing to do with having more. I think it will be about serving more."
Regarding hierarchies in heaven, there is an obvious one between God and us. But I also think we will not lose our "position" in the body. I do not imply a different level of reward or merit (I tend to agree with the author), it simply means that we will continue to have indivdual roles in heaven just as a body has different parts.
On earth we tend to give more glory to certain roles, positions, abilities even within the church but I believe in heaven each will be perfected and none will be glorified above another (except the Godhead, of course). As well, there will be no competition nor envy thus our personal satisfaction will be complete in our purposed roles.
It is still a mystery to me how God will satisfy all these things and still maintain a unique identity for each believer!
That is an excellent way of stating it and I stand corrected since hierarchy implies various levels of positions.
Heaven is a mystery to me as well. Why are believers judged if not for giving rewards? But why are we given rewards if our Lord Jesus works through us? Why do we cast down the rewards if God gives us the rewards even though our Lord Jesus works through us? Why would we even want a reward except to hear, "Well done"? It's all very confusing to me.
The true reward of heaven is God Himself. The roads are paved with gold because it will have no value there.
Being satisfied in Him will be reward enough.
While these rewards are called crowns and mansions and other things in the Bible, I do not believe that they are outward possessions, but instead an inward capacity to possess. What we do here on earth builds within us our capacity to possess love, joy, and worship. The greater our service to God and to others the greater our capacity for eternal blessings.
There will be no envy of those who have greater rewards. In Heaven everyone's "cup will runneth over" meaning that God will bless us to capacity that we will be able to enjoy. But for those He has rewarded, their capacity will be greater and will hold greater love and joy before overflowing.
As for the hierarchy in Heaven; we know that there is a hierarchy among the angels and in Matthew 20 Jesus in His conversation with James and John about who would sit to His left and right, clearly indicates that there is a hierarchy amongst men in Heaven also.
We have no explanation of what this hierarchy is like but we do have have a couple of clues.
Luke 9:48 . . . For he who is least among you all—he is the greatest.
Mark 9:35 . . . "If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all."
These verses clearly indicates that it is a hierarchy of servitude.