What is heaven?
Personal note: I have posted this (in advance) on the day and time of the funeral of our esteemed brother-in-Christ, Deacon, Captain of Boys’ Brigade at Oldfield Baptist, and well-known and beloved man in the community, Martin Smith.
Question 10055
When Christians speak of heaven, we’re talking about the dwelling place of God and the eternal home of all believers. But heaven is more than just clouds and harps, as if it is to do with that at all. Scripture presents heaven as a real place where God’s presence is fully experienced, where His will is perfectly done, and where His people will live forever in glorified bodies. Understanding what the Bible actually says about heaven helps us grasp not only our future hope but also how we should live today.
Heaven as God’s Dwelling Place
The Bible consistently presents heaven as the place where God dwells. When Jesus taught His disciples to pray, He began with “Our Father in heaven” (Matthew 6:9). This doesn’t mean God is confined to one location, for Scripture clearly teaches that God is omnipresent. Rather, heaven is the realm where God’s presence is most fully manifested and where His glory is most clearly seen.
Isaiah’s vision gives us a glimpse: “In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of his robe filled the temple. Above him stood the seraphim… And one called to another and said: ‘Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!'” (Isaiah 6:1-3). This vision occurred in the heavenly realm, showing us something of the worship that continually takes place there.
The apostle Paul speaks of being “caught up to the third heaven” (2 Corinthians 12:2). Jewish understanding recognised three heavens: the atmospheric heaven where birds fly, the stellar heaven where sun, moon, and stars exist, and the third heaven, the very dwelling place of God. This third heaven is what we typically mean when we speak of heaven as our eternal home.
Heaven Now and Heaven Future
We need to distinguish between heaven as it exists now and the eternal state that will come after Christ returns. Currently, when a believer dies, they are “away from the body and at home with the Lord” (2 Corinthians 5:8). Paul said that “to depart and be with Christ” is “far better” than remaining in this life (Philippians 1:23). This present heaven is where believers’ spirits go immediately upon death, a place of conscious fellowship with Christ.
However, this is not our final destination. The Bible speaks of “a new heaven and a new earth” (Revelation 21:1) that will come into being after the millennium. This will be the eternal state, where heaven and earth merge together in a way we can barely comprehend. The New Jerusalem will descend from heaven to the renewed earth (Revelation 21:2), and “the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God” (Revelation 21:3).
This means our ultimate destiny is not to float around in some ethereal spiritual realm but to live on a renewed, physical earth in glorified physical bodies, with God dwelling among us. Heaven comes to earth, so to speak. This is the restoration of Eden on a cosmic scale.
What Heaven Is Like
Scripture gives us several glimpses of heaven’s characteristics, though our finite minds can only grasp so much of an infinite reality. First, heaven is a place of perfect worship. Revelation repeatedly shows us scenes of heavenly worship: “Day and night they never cease to say, ‘Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!'” (Revelation 4:8). The worship there is not boring repetition but endless discovery of God’s infinite glory.
Second, heaven is characterised by the absence of sin and suffering. “He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away” (Revelation 21:4). No more funerals, no more hospitals, no more broken relationships, no more sin to confess. Everything that mars our existence now will be gone forever.
Third, heaven includes perfect fellowship. We will be with Christ, which is the heart of heaven’s joy. Jesus prayed, “Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory” (John 17:24). We will also be reunited with all believers throughout history, forming one great assembly in worship and fellowship.
Fourth, heaven involves activity and service. The idea that we’ll be idle in heaven contradicts Scripture. Jesus speaks of faithful servants being given authority over cities in His kingdom (Luke 19:17-19). We will serve Him actively: “his servants will worship him” (Revelation 22:3). Our service will be joyful, unhindered by sin, fatigue, or limitation.
Our Bodies in Heaven
A crucial biblical truth is that we will have bodies in heaven. Greek philosophy promoted the idea that the body was a prison from which the soul needed escape, but this is not biblical Christianity. We believe in the resurrection of the body. Jesus rose bodily, and we will too.
Paul explains in 1 Corinthians 15 that our resurrection bodies will be like Christ’s glorified body. “Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven” (1 Corinthians 15:49). These will be real, physical bodies, yet transformed, imperishable, glorious, and powerful (1 Corinthians 15:42-44).
Jesus in His resurrection body could be touched (John 20:27), ate food (Luke 24:42-43), yet could also appear in locked rooms (John 20:19). Our bodies will be suited for the new creation, freed from the limitations and corruptions of our present bodies yet maintaining continuity with who we are now.
Practical Implications
Understanding heaven shapes how we live now. First, it provides hope in suffering. Paul could say, “I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us” (Romans 8:18). When we face trials, grief, or persecution, the reality of heaven sustains us.
Second, it affects our priorities. If heaven is our true home, we won’t be consumed with accumulating earthly possessions or status. Jesus said, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth… but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven” (Matthew 6:19-20). We invest in what lasts eternally.
Third, it motivates evangelism. If heaven is real, so is hell. The urgency to share the gospel comes from knowing that where people spend eternity depends on their response to Christ in this life. Heaven is not automatic for everyone; it is only for those who trust in Jesus Christ as Saviour.
Fourth, it gives us perspective on death. For the believer, death is not the end but a transition. “Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints” (Psalm 116:15). We need not fear death, for it is the doorway to being with Christ.
Conclusion
Heaven is not wishful thinking or mythological escapism. It is the certain promise of God to all who trust in Jesus Christ. It is a real place where we will have real bodies, engage in real activities, and experience real joy in the presence of our Saviour forever. The biblical vision of heaven is not ethereal spirits playing harps on clouds but glorified human beings living on a renewed earth in perfect fellowship with God and one another, fulfilling the purpose for which we were created. This hope is not meant to make us “so heavenly minded that we’re no earthly good” but rather to make us effective in this life because we know what’s coming in the next. As C.S. Lewis observed, those who thought most about the next world did the most in this one.
“And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God.'” Revelation 21:3
