subject: Is Heaven Real? How do I get there? [print this page] Is Heaven Real? How do I get there? Is Heaven Real? How do I get there?
The blogosphere debate has been raging lately like, well, hellfire, with questions like: is there really a hell? Does Rob Bell believe in it? If he doesn't, does that mean he'll end up there? Or does love really win?
Whether hell exists as we imagine it, or it takes some other form (try reading C.S. Lewis)we still must grapple with what we believe about the afterlife. One blogger noted that the modern Christian image of hell is influenced as much by the unlikely trio of Dante, Looney Tunes cartoons and The Far Side, as it is by the Bible.
But the debate about hell brings up the converse question: what about heaven?
Our view of heaven has also been influenced by the popular cultureart, music, movies. But often, these images of clouds, harps and pearly gates make heaven seem sort of, well, dull.
Nothing could be further from the truth.
What will it be like? The bible is full of promises about heaven, and yet, for many Christians, it remains a mystery. In his new book, Heaven Revealed, Dr. Paul Enns unpacks countless verses of Scripture to give us a clearer picture of what it will be like. He writes, "Heaven is a place of unparalleled tranquility and beauty." He notes that it is better in every way than our life on earth.
Do you believe that heaven is actually better? One of the dangers of a "blessed" life here on earth, in which you are affluent enough to have plenty of food, a roof overhead and all of your basic needs more than met, is that you don't long for heaven. Perhaps you wonder, how much better could it be? You think my life is pretty good right now. You secretly fear that heaven might be a little boring.
In many ways, such thinking is symptomatic of a larger problem: we make God too small. We fear heaven will be boring, because we don't long for God's presence enough. And we think that we won't have anything to do in heaven, other than just sing or bow down to God. But most theologians believe that we will have work to do in heavenmeaningful, exciting work, that brings us satisfaction and joy, work that is never drudgery, never causes frustration.
In heaven, we'll be reunited with loved ones. We'll recognize one another, even though our bodies will be transformed and healed into a perfect version of our true selves. Dr. Enns writes that we will have a "glorious reunion" with those believers who have died before us. We'll even get to meet family members from previous generations, that we've never met before.
Jesus does not desire to send people to hell. He wants us to turn to him and be in loving relationship with him forever. As Dr. Enns writes in Heaven Revealed: "Jesus wants us to be with himand with each otherin His Father's house."
The recent internet debate about hell raises the question: who goes to heaven? How do you get there? Dr. Enns writes that the requirement is simple: "The admission to heaven is faith in Jesus Christ. He is the only way."
