Heaven

What comes to mind when you think of Heaven?

Angel playing a harp on a cloud?

A never ending
church service?...

Something...
boring?

Untitled Slide

“Our belief that Heaven will be boring betrays a heresy - that God is boring. There’s no greater nonsense. Our desire for pleasure and the experience of joy comes directly from God’s hand. He made our taste buds, adrenaline, sex drives, and the nerve endings that convey pleasure to our brains. Likewise, our imaginations and our capacity for joy and exhilaration were made by the very God we accuse of being boring. Are we so arrogant as to imagine that human beings came up with the idea of having fun?” - Randy Alcorn

Are you looking forward to Heaven?

"For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better."
- Philippians 1:21-23

"So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, for we walk by faith, not by sight. Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord."
- 2 Corinthians 5:6-8

"If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your[a] life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory."
- Colossians 3:1-4

"... (v 18) Therefore encourage one another with these words."
- 1 Thess 4:13-18

What will our bodies be like in Heaven?

What will our relationships with others be like in Heaven?

"Heaven wouldn't be Heaven if there was any arena in Heaven that was inferior to conditions on earth. In every realm, in every dimension, Heaven is always better!"
- Dr Paul Enns

What is done in this life has profound effects on the next

Two Judgments

• Great White Throne (Rev 20:11-15)
• Judgment Seat of Christ (Rom 14:10-12, 2 Cor 5:9-10)

Eternal Rewards:
Treasure, Crowns, & Authority

Revelation 4
(note: v 10)

Heavenly Crowns

• Crown of Life
• Imperishable Crown
• Crown of Glory
• Crown of Righteousness
• Crown of Rejoicing

Untitled Slide

Will we have memories of our
life on earth?

God's way of rewarding

"Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." - Matthew 6:19-21

"And whoever gives one of these little ones even a cup of cold water because he is a disciple, truly, I say to you, he will by no means lose his reward." - Matthew 10:42

Will we remember sin on earth and other bad things that happened to us?

What if we have loved ones in hell, will we remember them and be sad?

If there is ethnic diversity, what about language barriers?

Will there be animals in Heaven?

Untitled Slide

Untitled Slide

Discussion Questions

• How would you explain the concept of storing up treasure in Heaven?
• When the Bible is silent on a specific dimension of Heaven, what is one general principle Dr Enns would tell us to take comfort in?
• How does Christoplatonic thought contribute to an unhealthy, false, and (frankly) boring view of Heaven?

Sources/Recommended Reading

• Heaven - Randy Alcorn
• Heaven Revealed - Dr Paul Enns
• The Treasure Principle - Randy Alcorn