Question from a reader:

If God and the spiritual realm are outside of time, does that mean everyone who will be in Heaven is already there? So for example, If I die, do I have to wait 40 years in Heaven until my children die on Earth to see them? Or will we all be there together simultaneously?

Answer from Doreen Button, EPM staff:

Time cannot constrain God. He is infinite (omnipresent, omnipotent, and omniscient). We are not. Humans are finite, although the Resurrection will equip us to become immortal. We cannot be everywhere at once and if time didn’t exist, everything would happen simultaneously, and we are not built to handle a state that would be so terribly disorienting and confusing for us. Heaven (the future heaven which we refer to as the New Earth) is a place God created for humans. Time will no longer be the tyrant it is to us now because we won’t have our deaths staring us in the face. We will have time for everything we want and need to do, without hurry or anxiety.

The Resurrection is a one-time event, so after it, people we love who also loved Jesus and have not died previously will essentially all be together at the same time. How much “time” elapses or how the dead experience any delays while waiting in the current, temporary Heaven is anybody’s guess. Scripture tells us everything we need to know for now and God will reveal as much more as He cares to when the right time comes. We do know that animals and people sing in worship to God even in the present Heaven (cf., Revelation 5:8-14), and music requires time; therefore, we can assume that where humans are, time must necessarily be there as well.

If you visit our website with the search “time in Heaven” you’ll find multiple articles, including a clip from an interview which very clearly addresses this topic.

Blessings to you in your search for Truth.