Not being a regular viewer of the show, I missed Bishop NT Wright’s Colbert Report interview last week about his book Surprised by Hope: Rethinking Heaven, the Resurrection, and the Mission of the Church. You can watch the full episode online—Wright shows up at about the 13-minute mark, after some political chatter (and an appearance by Cookie Monster).

Update: video added:

The point Wright makes in the interview is a familiar one if you have read any of his books or heard him speak: that many Christians have a misguided idea about heaven and the afterlife. Whatever heaven actually looks like, he argues, when we think of heaven purely as an escape hatch from this broken world, it’s too easy for us to forget to carry out acts of grace and redemption in the here and now. We don’t have to wait until we get to heaven to start working for the Kingdom of God—the Kingdom is already on its way, and has been since Jesus rose from the grave. The time to get to work is now.

At least, that’s what I gathered from his brief interview, and from his appearance last year at the Calvin College January Series. What do you think of the interview? Is Wright onto something? Anybody read his new book yet?