Resources by Topic: Heaven

Do you have family and friends you wish you could spend more time with? In Heaven you’ll have unlimited time. I’m eager to spend time again with my childhood friend Jerry, who died years ago. I anticipate meeting him in Heaven and picking up right where we left off.

In The Chronicles of Narnia, C. S. Lewis paints a beautiful picture of the New Earth in the final book, The Last Battle. The book begins with a near collision of a railroad train, where the children are thrust into Narnia.

God gave us our imaginations, and when He says, “we are looking forward to a new heavens and a new earth” (2 Peter 3:13), He indicates this should be normal for believers. It is impossible to look forward to something if you do not envision it.

The true biblical doctrine of Heaven is far more attractive than the dull, inhuman view of the afterlife that has long prevailed in evangelicalism. That off-putting perspective still imprisons many believers. Based on countless interactions I’ve had with readers of my book and others over the past sixteen years, here are eight persistent misconceptions about Heaven.

If you encountered a web with its geometric artistry without knowing spiders existed, you would marvel, wondering what human made them, and how. Whether we or spiders themselves appreciate their work, surely their Creator does.

Music is transcendent—a bridge between this world and another. That’s why people devote so much of themselves to it and gain such pleasure in it. We love the rich and varied rhythms and harmonies. In Heaven God will unleash our creativity, not confine it.

It’s been almost three years since author Tim Keller entered the presence of Jesus. As is said of Abel, so it can be said of Tim: “he still speaks through his faith” (Hebrews 11:4, CSB). This video clip, and what Tim says about how the resurrection changes how we face challenges, is just so powerful.

In this clip from a conversation with Rob West on Faith and Finance, Randy says that if we store up our treasures in heaven, we are always moving towards them we get closer to the day we die. Giving is what shifts our treasures and our hearts toward heaven.

One day in Heaven, we will see Christ in His glory. The most exhilarating experiences on Earth, such as white-water rafting, skydiving, or extreme sports, will seem tame compared to the thrill of seeing Jesus.

According to David, the greatest thing we can ask of God is to gaze upon His beauty: “One thing I have asked from Yahweh, that I shall seek: that I may dwell in the house of Yahweh all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of Yahweh and to inquire in His temple” (Psalm 27:4, LSB).

What thrilled these expectant believers in Hebrews 11 was not that God would rule in Heaven—He already did. They dreamed of the time that He would rule here on Earth, removing sin, death, suffering, poverty, and heartache. They trusted that the Messiah would come and bring Heaven with Him.

The Heaven that now exists, called the present Heaven, is where God dwells with His people and angels and the living creatures. It is where His throne is located, and hence, it is the location from which He governs the universe. The present Heaven is a place free from the curse, without sin, death, and suffering.

In this clip from a Q&A with students in the Torrey Honors College at Biola University in 2012, Randy references Matthew 22 and addresses the topic of marriage in Heaven. He says there will be one marriage: Christ married to His Church.

In this clip from a Q&A with students in the Torrey Honors College at Biola University in 2012, Randy explains that you can be wrong without sinning. We will continue to learn in Heaven—testing, improving, and learning like scientists using the scientific method, which involves being wrong at times, but does not require sin to be present.