Your Best Life Then: Thoughts On Heaven

Your Best Life Then: Thoughts on Heaven

      What will heaven be like? How can I get to heaven? What are we going to do in heaven? Will I know everyone in heaven? These are just a few of the questions people wonder about or ask. They all share something in common...they are all man centered. Or to be more accurate, they are selfish and “me” centered. To begin, heaven is not about you and me. We might be there, but that is beside the point. How we think of heaven reveals a lot about us- our hearts, our motives, our focus, and our priorities.

      Are you angry with me yet? It is alright if your are, I can take it. I begin like this to prove a point. There is much preached, written, and spoken today on heaven. However, so much of it is unbiblical. Much of it sounds as if heaven is everything we deem good on earth, only up there. Some even try to bring heaven down to earth and believe that we can enjoy everything heaven affords now. I am sorry, if I can have my best life now, doesn't that mean that when I die, the best I can hope for is something less than what I enjoyed on earth? If my best life is now, doesn't that make heaven a lot like hell? Why would anyone want to go to heaven? I can have it all right here and now!

      Biblically speaking, for a believer, their best life is to come! It is not here. It is not now. Oh no, heaven will be greater than anything some goofy, unbiblical, people pleasing clown dreamed up. Here are some biblical thoughts about heaven.

Heaven is not for everybody

      Not everyone is going to heaven. And not only is not everyone going, most who think they are on their way would be miserable if they were to make it. How can I say this? It is the Bible. God's word is clear- only those who have repented and trusted in Christ alone for the forgiveness of their sins will spend eternity with God in heaven (Mk. 1:15; Jn. 3:1-21, 14:6; Acts 20:21; Rom. 3:19-26, 10:5-13; 2 Cor. 7:10; Rev. 7:9-17).

      People want to go to heaven because no one in their right mind would want to go to hell. However, so many that think they want to go to heaven have not repented of their sin and trusted Christ for salvation. They may say that they believe in God, but believing in God is not enough. Satan and the demons believe in God. Only those who have been regenerated by the Spirit of God, been convicted of their sin, repented of their sin and turned to God, and embraced Jesus Christ alone as Lord and Savior, will spend eternity in heaven.

      People think that they want to go to heaven, but in reality, they would be miserable. Why? Because heaven is a place of unending worship and praise of the blessed Trinity. If you do not worship and enjoy God while on earth, you will not glorify him in heaven. Here is a description of heaven:

And the four living creatures, each of them with six wings, are full of eyes all around and within, and day and night they never cease to say, 'Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!' And whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to him who is seated on the throne, who lives forever and ever, the twenty-four elders fall down before him who is seated on the throne and worship him who lives forever and ever. They cast their crowns before the throne, saying, 'Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created.' (Rev. 4:8-11)

      Even if you were in heaven, you would hate it. Being unregenerate and still in your sins, heaven would be hell to you. You would have nothing in common with anyone else there. You do not love and praise God now, why do you think it will be different in heaven? Seeing glory and being around holy beings will not transform your dead and depraved nature. We are not changed by sight. Sinful man is only transformed by the Spirit of God. You would hate it.

       And not only would you hate heaven, but you would continue to hate God. In fact, your hatred for God will increase because you would see him in all his splendor, holiness, brilliance, goodness, righteousness, majesty, and justice. Natural man hates these things about God. Sinful, depraved man cannot love God and these attributes that he exhibits. We are enemies of God (until he initiates reconciliation with us) and as such there is enmity between us. God hates sin and we hate God. Hence, you would be miserable in heaven.

      But, there is hope! Repent. Turn from your sin and wicked ways and run to Christ who died for sinners. Beg God to change your heart, to cause you to hate sin and love him. Read his word. Sit under biblical preaching. And pray. Pray for God to remove your heart of stone and give you one of flesh.

If you are not holy on earth...

      If a person is not holy or does not desire to live a holy life while on earth, there is no hope that he or she will go to heaven. Heaven is a place of holiness. The thrice holy God dwells in heaven and his holiness, his otherness, is manifested. The unholy simply will not be in the presence of the Holy. The unholy cannot be in the presence of a holy God. God is so holy that he will not allow the impure to be in his presence. The only reason that redeemed sinners will be able to dwell in heaven with God is because they are united to Christ, sanctified, and are made holy. They will be without sin.

      Peter wrote, “As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, 'You shall be holy, for I am holy.'” Holiness for the Christian is a way of life. It is also who we are. Believers still sin, but they repent. They never lose their salvation or are separated from Christ. They continue to grow in holiness and righteousness because their God is holy and righteous. This is what Christians do. Non-Christians, however, do not grow in holiness. Indeed, they cannot because their nature is unchanged. So, no holiness on earth equals no holiness in heaven. The truth is, sinful and unholy beings cannot be in the presence of a holy God. They would cease to exist, they would be undone and ruined.

If you could have heaven...?

      Why do you want to go to heaven? This is a simple question. Another question is, if you could go to heaven and enjoy all of the benefits it affords but Jesus is not there, would you go? In other words, if you were allowed to enjoy all of the glories of heaven, not experience pain, suffering, disappointment, discouragement, loss, death, sin, evil, etc. for all of eternity would you live there if Jesus was not in heaven? This question reveals your heart. It also shows what or who you love.

      A heaven without Jesus is not heaven. Why do you desire to go to heaven? Is it because Jesus is there? Is it because you will finally be able to worship the King without interruption, sin, weakness, distraction, the flesh, temptation, apathy, etc.? Do you desire heaven because you will see Christ in all of his glory and majesty? Do you desire heaven because Jesus is the desire of your heart? Are you willing to go wherever Jesus is? If Christ was in hell, would you spend eternity in hell with him? Is Jesus your all? Who or what are you worshiping?

And they sang a new song, saying, "Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation, and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth." Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice, "Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!" And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying, "To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!" And the four living creatures said, "Amen!" and the elders fell down and worshiped. (Rev. 5:9-14)

      This is a picture of what heaven will like. Is this your heart's desire, to worship Christ for all of eternity, to see him and love him and adore him and commune with him and shout praises to him and know him better and learn from him? If it isn't, if you do not desire heaven to be with Christ, you may not be going. You really need to examine yourself to see if you have heard the gospel, repented of your sins, turned to Christ, and embraced him alone for salvation.

Is your view of heaven idolatrous?

      It appears that many people have an idolatrous view of heaven. This is connected to the previous point. The desire to go to heaven is real in many people, but what are their motives? Heaven can become an idol (just as anything else). What makes heaven an idol? Do you desire heaven more than you desire Christ? What do you see yourself doing in heaven? Will you enjoy God forever or will you catch up on some much needed rest? Do you want to go there just to see loved ones?

      Do you desire heaven to worship Christ face to face or to only escape judgment? Do you see heaven as a place where you can have all of the junk that is available here on earth? Do you think that heaven is a place where you will rest, be entertained, enjoy partying with others, just hang out, play, etc. or is it a place where God in all of his glory and holiness commands our everlasting devotion?

      What makes heaven our best life then is that we are in the very presence of our great and glorious God. We will be without sin and be able to finally worship God as he deserves and as our hearts cry out for here, but we are limited by our flesh, and weakness, and sin, and others, and our attitudes, and anything else that gets in the way. Heaven becomes an idol when you desire the place more than the Savior. Or you desire all of the gifts and blessings, but do not care for the fellowship and close communion with the Lord of Glory.

      Beware of idols. Is your view of heaven an idol? Do you desire heaven because Jesus will be there? Or, is it something else? We must all examine our hearts and motives, our affections and desires. Heaven will be enjoyable and there will be many blessings. The point is that we must not desire the gifts of God above God. Heaven is heaven because God is there. Heaven is heaven because the redeemed will enjoy unending communion with the God of the universe.

      For the Christian, our time on earth is practice. It is the warm-up. We worship God and grow in holiness, only it is imperfect because of our sin and the flesh. We know that our best life is not now. We know that our best life is then, in heaven, with God.