Quest for Heaven
Like anyone who has lost a loved one, I too have often wondered, “Where are they now?” As Christians who believe in Heaven, we cognitively know that they are with Christ in Heaven. But, what does Heaven really look like? How are our loved ones now in heaven? Do they know what is happening on Earth and how much we miss them? We know we will see them again in our glorified bodies when Christ returns but, what happens until then?
For me, the question of Heaven is not just a theological quest. It is deeply personal. It began when my sister’s six-month-old son died of a brain tumor several years ago and I carried his cold, dead body from the hospital back home. From then till a couple of months ago, when I felt my brother-in-law’s cold hands when we went to see him at a funeral home, the question on my mind has been, “Where are they now and how will they be?”
As a church, several of my dear friends have also lost their loved ones recently and I am sure that they are wrestling with these questions as well.
What is Heaven Like?
Recently, I was preaching a final sermon on a series titled, “Soul Care” (link to sermon) where I was looking into the future of our souls from a familiar text in the Bible: the parable of Lazarus and the rich ruler as narrated by Jesus to the Pharisees. (Luke 16:19-31) We see a graphic picture of Heaven and Hell in this parable.
While researching for this, I read Randy Alcorn’s book, Heaven* that has sold over a million copies. He has done an exhaustive study on this topic where he shows how much we can know about Heaven from the Bible. Most Christians tend to have very cliché ideas of Heaven, drawn from children’s storybooks, movies, or pop culture.
From systematic theologians to preachers (including myself), Heaven has been a rarely addressed topic (when was the last time you heard a sermon on Heaven?). Even when it is addressed, it is slipped in as a footnote to lengthy discussions about the rapture or the different views on the millennium.
Randy Alcorn suggests that Heaven is a real but evolving place. It was different before the world was created when the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit existed along with all the angels before the fall of Lucifer (Luke 10:18 where Jesus says he saw Lucifer fall like a lightning from heaven) – it is transient now in an intermediate form – and when Christ returns, a new Heaven and new Earth will be formed, which will last for eternity.
This current, transient Heaven is sometimes referred to as Paradise in the Bible. Here, Randy Alcorn suggests that those who die and have put their faith in Christ will have a transient body until Christ’s return, when we will all have glorified bodies, like Christ.
There are several places in the Bible where we meet saints who were dead. At the Mount of Transfiguration, for example, Moses and Elijah appear in some sort of physically recognizable body. Revelations 6 talks of saints who were martyred being given white robes. Paul has been to the present Heaven (2 Cor. 12:2). John has been given a vision of the Heaven that he captures for us in Revelations. Jesus even tells the thief, “Today, you will be with me in paradise”.
What happens when we die?
Here is what we can glean from the parable in Luke as highlighted by Randy Alcorn.
- When Lazarus died, angels carried him to Paradise.
- The rich man (who had everything in the world but does not have a name in this parable) went to a place of torment.
- Lazarus is with Abraham (whom he could recognize) and others.
- There was communication between paradise and hell (maybe a one-time event).
- Both Lazarus and the rich man retained their identities.
- Both had physical forms.
- The rich man had a tongue that he wished to use to eat Lazarus’s finger
- The rich man remembers and is able to see his lost brothers. This means that consciousness exists after death along with a clear memory of Earth and the people on Earth.
There are a lot of similarities with this list and the Martyrs that we see in Revelations 6:9-11 and Luke 9:31.
Based on the above and other instances in the Bible, we can safely believe that our loved ones too have been carried to Paradise, that they recognize other saints, friends, and family who have gone before them, and that they retain their identities and a transient physical form that does not have pain or suffering.
Not only are our loved ones in a better place but they remember us and remember their lives. They know God’s redemptive plan for us and the world. When we live lives that please God by putting our faith in Christ alone, that can and will surely bring a smile to their faces.
Heavenly Hope
Yes, it is painful for us for a “little while” (compared to eternity) to go through the pain of missing them. Yes, it will not be easy to go through life without our loved ones. Yes, we will not have all the answers to the questions that pop up in our minds when we miss them. But these are short-term pains that will be quelled by an eternal perspective on life and our future where Christ reigns as our King in his everlasting Kingdom.
Recently, our neighbor handed us a copy of the book “Option B” co-authored by Sheryl Sandberg, a Silicon Valley tech executive who had lost her husband suddenly while on a vacation. The book talks about building resilience by looking at the good things we have each day, being thankful for them, and letting them motivate us to develop resilience.
There is much truth in these words and as Christians, we have something even better to hope in. As Paul says in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-14 [ESV], “But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. 14 For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep.”
Our resilience can be built, not just by looking at the past and being thankful for the present but by looking at Christ who literally went through Hell so we can live forever in the New Heavens and the New Earth with our loved ones celebrating life forever.
Two to four people die every second. We will be one of those people eventually. Death tests our worldview and faith in a way that nothing else does. The last thought that will cross our minds when we die is probably the most important thought of our lives. For an atheist or an agnostic person, life after death is empty and non-existent and so I really don’t know how they deal with the loss of their loved ones. For my friends who believe in the karmic cycle of life and rebirth, the thought that their loved one might somehow be born again as another human might bring some relief but I know from friends who have lost someone dear to them that this does not really bring much comfort either.
The Bible has some words of encouragement for us in 2 Corinthians 4:16 [ESV], “So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. 17 For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, 18 as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.” This is the heavenly hope for all hurting hearts. This is the motivation we all need to make life count each day by living on Earth for something bigger than our self. Are we ready to face eternity?