What the Bible Says About Heaven Part 2

by John Lowe
(Laurens SC, USA)

There will be no weariness.

Part of the curse connected with Adam’s sin in the Garden of Eden was that he would toil to scratch out a living “by the sweat of his face.” But heaven's inhabitants will not grow tired. The Bible says, “For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven: If so be that being clothed we shall not be found naked. For we that are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened: not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of life. Now he that hath wrought us for the selfsame thing is God, who also hath given unto us the earnest of the Spirit. Therefore we are always confident, knowing that, whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord: (For we walk by faith, not by sight) we are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord. Wherefore we labor, that, whether present or absent, we may be accepted of him. For we must all appear before the judgment-seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad” (2 Corinthians 5:1-10).

The body is sometimes compared to a “house” in which the soul dwells and sometimes to a garment with which it is clothed. Paul combined these two thoughts here. He spoke of putting on a “house” as though it were a garment. Paul longed for the day when his mortal, temporal body would be replaced by an immortal, imperishable, spiritual one. He certainly had experienced burdens of sorrow and suffering in his life. However, Paul groaned for heaven because his deepest desire was to be fully “present” with the Lord.
There will be no sorrow.

The Bible says, “For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes” (Revelations 7:17). On earth, we had sorrows and we shed tears on account of sin and hardships, but God Himself, with His own gentle and gracious hand, will wipe those tears away, and there will be no more tears forever.
There will be no pain.

The Bible says, “And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away” (Revelations 21:4). There will be no pain in heaven. Our new bodies will never feel pain because there is nothing in heaven that would cause pain.
There will be no night.

The Bible says, “And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever” (Revelation 22:5). There will be no light source in heaven like the sun, and there will be no light reflectors like the moon. God will light the universe by His presence, for God is light.

There will be no wicked people.

The Bible says, “For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie” (Revelation 22:15). There will be many excluded from heaven; all the wicked unrighteous persons, and particularly those who love to lie.
There will be no end.

The Bible says, “And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal” (Matthew 25:46). There is no death to put a period to life itself; there is no old age to put a period to the comfort of life; there is no sorrow to make life bitter. We will live forever with our Savior who loves us and died for us.

Finally, let’s consider the CHARACTERISTICS OF HEAVEN.
Heaven is a place of unending joy.

The Bible says, “Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth” (Luke 15:7). The angels in heaven celebrate the salvation of men and women here on earth, and that shows that they are interested in our salvation, even though they don’t aid in it. Our joy in heaven will come from being with our Savior and our God.

There is peace in heaven.

The Bible says, “But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented” (Luke 16:25). Heaven is a place of eternal bliss as opposed to hell, which is a place of eternal torment.
Heaven is a place of rest.

The Bible says, “And I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord henceforth.” “Blessed indeed,” says the Spirit, “that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them!” (Revelations 14:13). There will be rest because there will be no more physical labor, but there will also be rest from all sin, temptation, sorrow, and persecution.

Heaven is a place of righteousness.

The Bible says, “Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness” (2 Peter 3:13). There is no sin in heaven, therefore, heaven is a place of righteousness; it is a truly wonderful home for the children of God.

Heaven is a place of reward.

The Bible says, “Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you” (Matthew 5:11-12).

Christians will be rewarded for their service and faithfulness. God will commend those who have worked for Him here on earth and those who have been persecuted for their faith.
Heaven offers opportunity for service.

The Bible says, “Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them” (Revelation 7:15).

Heaven is not a place of barren inactivity. Its inhabitants do not “float around on a fleecy, white cloud, strumming a harp,” as heaven is so often depicted. We will serve our Lord and worship Him forever.

God’s people receive an inheritance in heaven.

The Bible says, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time” (1 Peter 1:3-5).

Our inheritance is “incorruptible”, meaning that it can’t be damaged in any way, no rust, no fire, no germ, no moth can touch it. It is “undefiled”, meaning that it is not stained or defiled by anything. “That fadeth not away” indicates that we won’t inherit it and later find out that it is worthless. “Reserved in heaven” means it is guarded. God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit are taking care of it for us. We couldn’t have a better safety deposit box than that.

Conclusion

The scriptures give us a foretaste of heaven so that we will earnestly anticipate our heavenly home. It will be a state of existence far superior to anything we could conceive on earth. We should look for the coming of the new heavens and the new earth because it will be far better than now.If you are a child of God, rejoice, because you are going to spend eternity in heaven with the Savior.If you are not sure that you are a child of God, let me know, and I will show you how you can be sure.I don’t want anyone to miss going to heaven.
Amen.