Resources by Topic: Heaven

When I look at my books in other languages on the shelf, I sometimes marvel at how far God has taken them and what lasting impact there may be even in books which have gone out of print but will fall into someone’s hands at the right time and place in the providence of God.

In January 2021 Randy Alcorn did a presentation for the C.S. Lewis Institute. He looked at Lewis's depiction of Heaven in the Narnia stories, and discussed how that reflects what we see in Scripture.

Everything will be glorified, even nature itself. And that seems to me to be the biblical teaching about the eternal state: that what we call heaven is life in this perfect world as God intended humanity to live it. When he put Adam in Paradise at the beginning, Adam fell, and all fell with him, but men and women are meant to live in the body, and will live in a glorified body in a glorified world, and God will be with them.

The book of Hebrews seems to say that we should see Earth as a derivative realm and Heaven as the source realm. If we do, we’ll abandon the assumption that something existing in one realm cannot exist in the other. In fact, we’ll consider it likely that what exists in one realm exists in at least some form in the other. 

First and foremost, I look forward to being with Jesus, my Lord and Savior and best friend. To be in His presence, to listen to Him and walk with Him…nothing could be better than that.

Not long ago a reader shared a profound comment in reply to a post on my Facebook page. This is one of the most powerful stories we’ve received from readers of the Heaven book.

Do people in Heaven see what’s happening on earth, and do they remember? Here’s a video answering this.

Randy Alcorn was interviewed on questions about Heaven at the C.S Lewis Conference. In this clip, he answers the questions on what happens to babies when they die in the womb.

Many people have lost loved ones who didn’t know Christ. Some people argue that people in Heaven won’t know Hell exists. But this would make Heaven’s joy dependent on ignorance, which is nowhere taught in Scripture.

Christ proclaims from his throne on the New Earth: “Behold, I am making all things new” (Revelation 21:5, ESV). It’s not just people who will be renewed but also the earth and “all things” in it. Do “all things” include animals? Yes. Horses, cats, dogs, deer, dolphins, and squirrels—as well as the inanimate creation—will be beneficiaries of Christ’s death and resurrection.

In an age when people try to make doctrines more appealing by ignoring or twisting biblical truth, here’s the irony — the true biblical doctrine of Heaven is far more attractive than the dull, inhuman view of the afterlife that has long prevailed in evangelicalism.

Knowing Jesus makes all the difference, and also knowing His heart and His character makes a huge difference as we think about this.

God can certainly do anything He wishes, including showing someone a glimpse of eternity. But it’s hard to evaluate because every experience is subjective, and obviously being in an accident is very traumatic for someone’s brain. 

You are correct that Scripture doesn’t directly address Lazarus’s experience between death and when Jesus resurrected him. But we can make some deductions based on other Scriptures.