Christians and unbelievers alike want to believe there is a better place than Earth: a type of paradise where there is no pain and suffering. The name we give that place is typical "heaven," the place where 'good' people go. Rock songs talk about heaven differently (Heaven by Bryan Adams, Heaven is a Place on Earth by Belinda Carlisle), referring to a state of exquisite happiness, usually in the arms of someone they love. It is a fleeting kind of happiness, contingent upon circumstances involving idols, which include the special people in our lives. Could there be a real heaven, and if so, what is heaven like? How is the Biblical Heaven greater than anything the secular world can imagine? Where is it, and how does one get there? Does God say anything about heaven in the Bible?
What does the Bible say about heaven being real?
A keyword search for "heaven" in the ESV yields almost 700 results. The Hebrew word shamayin means "heavens" or "sky". The Greek word ouranos means "heaven," referring to the sky or the spiritual heavens, unseen realms. Ezra mentions "the God of heaven" (5:11), and Daniel also talks about the "God of heaven". (2:37) John the Baptist declared, "Repent, because the kingdom of heaven has come near!" (Matthew 3:2). Immediately after Jesus was baptized, Matthew wrote that "the heavens suddenly opened for him". (3:16)
The heavenly realms are not always considered a place of joy and peace. Paul urges believers to gird themselves against "the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places." (Ephesians 6:12). Context helps the reader to understand if Scripture refers to the sky or a spiritual realm; and the nature of that spiritual realm also. Even the slight distinction of "heavenly realms" versus merely "heaven" is a clue as to what Scripture is talking about.
Christ brings heaven with him, so positive, spiritual references to heaven often involve light. "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life." (John 8:12). Jesus also declared, "I have come into the world as light so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness." (John 12:46)
Where is the spiritual heaven?
God is not contained within the boundaries of human devising; therefore, it stands to reason that the Kingdom of heaven "is not limited by the normal boundaries of time and space." John MacArthur explains that, although we cannot see it, "Scripture clearly teaches that heaven is a real place that can be seen and touched and inhabited by beings with material bodies."
Do we go there when we die? Other Biblical clues indicate that heaven comes here. Revelation 21 describes John's vision of "a new heaven and a new earth [...]. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of Heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband." However, according to John MacArthur, "The New Heaven and New Earth are seen blending in a great kingdom that incorporates both realms." Could the New Earth - restored to Eden-like perfection - be the New Heaven? Or is there an in-between place? If so, then those who die in Christ are already in heaven, but not the final heaven in which body and spirit are united.
There is a sense in which Christians are said to have "fallen asleep" when they die, before the resurrection. Since they have not been resurrected bodily yet, are they now in heaven? If so, in what state do they now reside? Paul wrote, "Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep." (1 Corinthians 15:20). This indicates that the dead in Christ sleep for a while before being raised. Yet Christ also told the thief on the cross that "today you will be with me in Paradise." (Luke 23:43). Christ was physically present somewhere, and the thief was with him.
John Piper asserts that believers enjoy the presence of Christ "now, after death, an intimate, sweet experience of being in Christ's presence between death and resurrection." In other words, there is a time when the Christian enjoys Spiritual communion with The Messiah before the resurrection takes place. Piper points to Philippians 1:21-23 where Paul says he would prefer to leave this life and be with Jesus Christ even though this would mean living between his earthly and resurrected state. There must be something still in heaven, but not the final place of resurrection life.
Are our bodies resurrected in heaven?
The resurrection is a bodily resurrection. Matt Perman affirms, "Yes, our bodies will be raised not spiritually or ethereally, but physically and materially. Our souls will be reunited with our transformed physical bodies, brought back to life from the dead." Perman associates the resurrection of believers with Jesus' resurrection, which was indeed a physical phenomenon. Christians will not merely be spirits in the presence of Christ but will also serve and worship him in their new bodies.
When he returned from the grave, Jesus ate with the disciples, and they could touch him. "Touch me, and see. For a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have." (Luke 24:39). The Body of Christ, being in Christ, being made like Christ, will be like him in every way, including this one. The mortal and perishing body each person carries around today will no longer be touched by death, illness, injury, or abuse; it will not be subject to temptation or pain.
What does the Bible say heaven is like?
Mike Leake explained that the etymological origins of "Paradise" indicate a comparison with the Garden of Eden. What is "so wonderful [there] is not the trees or the rivers or the luscious fruits, it is the presence of Almighty God." He indicates that Paradise and Heaven are the same place because each word describes the place where God is. When Christ began his ministry, he declared, "repent, for the Kingdom of God is at hand." (Matthew 4:17). Wherever he is, the Kingdom is also, and the Kingdom IS Heaven. But the resurrection has not yet happened.
Johan D. Tangelder summarized Randy Alcorn's description of heaven, the reality we can only imagine or describe. Questions about whom one will be married to, whether they will live in a family with their children, and where their friends are will become irrelevant. Instead, there is The Body, the Church, married to the Bridegroom, Christ. There will be animals, rocks, plants, and food. But "the institution of marriage will have fulfilled its purpose. The only marriage will be between Christ and His bride – and we'll be part of it." The New Jerusalem will be vast, but it will not feel like a scary, urban mess. All around them, inhabitants will survey "a place of extravagant beauty and natural wonders. It will be a vast Eden, integrated with the best of human culture, under the reign of Christ." Although Christians will serve God in Heaven (Revelation 22:3), Tangelder explains that "regular rest will be part of the life to come in the new universe."
The City, when measured by the angels, will be vast. Its foundation walls will be "garnished with every precious gem imaginable: the first foundation jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, the fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the twelfth amethyst. The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate a single pearl. (Revelation 21:11; 19-21, The Message) In John's visitation, "the City shimmered like a precious gem, light-filled, pulsing light."
(John MacArthur).
Is heaven real?
In conclusion, heaven is certainly real. Believers cannot see it or go there in their mortal state, but Jesus has assured them that the place exists. And heaven is more beautiful than any person could imagine. Even John's Revelation is limited by the capacity of human thought to contain the reality of God's Kingdom. "For nothing will be impossible with God." (Luke 1:27). That includes total restoration between God and all of his creation.
https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/where-is-heaven-on-earth
https://reformedperspective.ca/heaven-what-can-we-know/
https://www.crosswalk.com/faith/bible-study/what-is-paradise-and-is-it-the-same-as-heaven.html
https://biblehub.com/hebrew/8065.htm
https://www.gty.org/library/questions/QA110/where-is-heaven
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