I know, it seems like a silly question, “Why Heaven?” It should be obvious, but is it?

Let’s start with some of the most common erroneous beliefs people have:

Heaven is a place where we get everything we could ever want … forever. A place where we spend eternity in total pleasure, allowing us to be as self-centered as we wish.

A place that is “all about me, me, me.” It’s that proverbial “better place” where we go because we “deserve it,” supposedly.

And all of this happens because we supposedly “lived a good life” on Earth, even if we never once showed interest in God or the things of God.

Is that your picture? Does all that sound wonderful? Not so fast.

Rod Serling illustrated his disdain for such notions in his classic The Twilight Zone episode titled “A Nice Place to Visit:” 

Rocky Valentine, a petty criminal is shot by police during a robbery. He wakes up in a luxurious world where a jovial, white-suited man named Mr. Pip grants his every desire — endless money, beautiful women and a 100%-win rate at every casino game.

Eventually, Rocky grows bored, miserable, and empty due to the lack of challenge. He says to Mr. Pip, “I don’t think I belong here. I want to go to the other place.” Mr. Pip replies, “The other place? Heaven? Whatever gave you the idea you were in Heaven, Mr. Valentine? This IS the other place!” 

Serling concludes, “A scared, angry little man who never got a break. Now he has everything he’s ever wanted — and he’s going to have to live with it for eternity.” Ouch!

So, what does the Bible say about Heaven’s purpose? 

Bottom line, Heaven is where born again people can live with God forever, not in a perpetual amusement park, but in God’s home as family members.

Jesus said in John 14:1-3:

“Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many rooms; if that were not so, I would have told you, because I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I am coming again and will take you to Myself, so that where I am, there you also will be.”

Although there are countless personal blessings that come to these Heaven dwellers, Heaven is not primarily about you or me at all. It is about God, and what He is doing.

And the best news, Heaven is open for business as we speak.

The late Christian philosopher Dallas Willard wrote, “God is recruiting volunteers now to join Him as family members and partners in the loving fellowship of those taking part in the most exciting adventure that our earthbound minds can imagine:

“Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard, and which have not entered the heart of man, all that God has prepared for those who love Him.” (1 Corinthians 2:9) 

Everything in the Bible points to a Creator-God who “alone is immortal and who lives in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see.”

Such a God is possessed of a nature that is perfectly pure, holy, just and righteous — He is the exact opposite of evil.

In His kingdom, there is order and intentionality; outside of His direct influence, there is chaos, unpredictability and randomness.

Playing Hide-and-Seek with the Divine

It seems almost silly to say that before a person can find God, he must first seek Him, and just as important, he must want Him to be there in the first place.

The childhood game of hide-and-seek would lose its appeal if the seeker simply sat there and made no attempt to find the hider.

Modern man has largely positioned himself in a similar way, having decided to just “sit there” and leave the seeking to God, if He exists at all.

We are surrounded by a society of such people, and when any individual breaks out and actively seeks for transcendent meaning, he is viewed as a “religious nut” or is politely placed in social quarantine.

Yet scripture calls us to seek Him because, just beyond and out of sight, is a being who wants to be found. It’s not that He hasn’t left us with abundant evidence of His presence. In Psalm 19:1, we are reminded, “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands.”

How About You?

So, is Heaven really for you?” Willard challenged us with this:

“One should seriously inquire if to live in a world permeated with God and the knowledge of God is something they themselves truly desire. If not, they can be assured that God will excuse them from His presence … they have become people so locked into their own self–worship and denial of God that they cannot want God.”

Please, don’t let that be you.

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