April 13, 2025
Heaven – Acapella Vocal Band
L. John Bost
Previous: Will Sinners Really Go to Hell?
Introduction
Do you want to go to Heaven? Is heaven even a real place, or was the concept invented just to motivate people to do good? I want to go to Heaven and I want you to go there too.
In this article, we will explore what we can learn about Heaven from God’s Word, the Bible.
The word, heaven, appears 233 times in the Old Testament and 224 in the Old Testament, for a total of 457 times in the Bible (NASU). Different translations have more, some less incidents of the word. Besides the 233 direct references using the term “heaven,” the Greek word translated, heaven, occurs 273 times in 255 verses in the King James Version. Many passages refer to heaven in different terminology, including eternal tabernacles, the kingdom, an everlasting kingdom, incorruption and immortality, a building of God, a house not made with hands, and our habitation which is from heaven.
Old Testament Use of Heaven
R. B. Girdlestone writes:
The Hebrew word generally in use to represent the heaven and also the air is Shamaim (שׁמים , Ass. samami). Sometimes it signifies the atmosphere immediately surrounding the earth, in which the fowls of ‘the air’ fly; sometimes it is used of the space in which the clouds are floating; in other places it refers to the vast expanse through which the stars are moving in their courses. Shamaim is also opposed to Sheol, the one being regarded as a place of exaltation, the other of degradation; the one being represented as the dwelling-place of the Most High and of the angels of God, the other as the abode of the dead.
So, heaven, as used in the Old Testament, refers to more than just the eternal abode of the righteous. It refers to the atmosphere where we live and breathe, the area where birds and airplanes fly, the area where the clouds float, the origin of precipitation and storms, space (the area where the stars, solar systems, asteroids, etc. stay), and, of course, the dwelling place of God and His Son and others and the future abode of the righteous.
New Testament Use of Heaven
The word translated, as heaven, in the New Testament has similar meanings. That word means, according to Thayer:
1) the vaulted expanse of the sky with all things visible in it
1a) the universe, the world
1b) the aerial heavens or sky, the region where the clouds and
the tempests gather, and where thunder and lightning are
produced
1c) the sidereal or starry heavens
2) the region above the sidereal heavens, the seat of order of
things eternal and consummately perfect where God dwells and
other heavenly beings
Is Heaven Real?
Does heaven, the home of the Father and Son, and the future eternal home of the righteous exist? What does the Bible say?
The Old Testament speaks of heaven as a place of reward for the righteous. David sang, “Surely goodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever” (Ps 23:6). Daniel wrote, “Many of those who sleep in the dust of the ground will awake, these to everlasting life, but the others to disgrace and everlasting contempt” (Dan 12:2-3). Similar to Jesus’ words in John 5:28-29. Jesus said:
28 Do not marvel at this; for an hour is coming, in which all who are in the tombs will hear His voice, 29 and will come forth; those who did the good deeds to a resurrection of life, those who committed the evil deeds to a resurrection of judgment.
Where Is Heaven?
Where is heaven?
Heaven in the Old Testament
Moses said in Deuteronomy 4:39, “Know therefore today, and take it to your heart, that the Lord, He is God in heaven above and on the earth below; there is no other.” Moses viewed heaven as being “above.”
Even Rahab, a heathen and a harlot, recognized that heaven is above. She said in Joshua 2:11, “When we heard it, our hearts melted and no courage remained in any man any longer because of you; for the Lord your God, He is God in heaven above and on earth beneath.
David viewed God as looking “down” from heaven. He said in Psalm 53: 2, “God has looked down from heaven upon the sons of men To see if there is anyone who [a]understands, Who seeks after God.”
Solomon viewed heaven as being “above.” According to 1 Kings 8:22-23:
Then Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in the presence of all the assembly of Israel and spread out his hands toward heaven. 23 He said, “O Lord, the God of Israel, there is no God like You in heaven above or on earth beneath, keeping covenant and showing lovingkindness to Your servants who walk before You with all their heart…
The Old Testament characters believed that heaven was above and the earth beneath, that is, that the earth was beneath heaven.
Heaven in the New Testament
Jesus said in John 6:38, “For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.” Jesus said He came “down” from heaven.
When Jesus healed a man who was deaf and spoke with difficulty In Mark 7:31-37, He:
…took him aside from the crowd, by himself, and put His fingers into his ears, and after spitting, He touched his tongue with the saliva; 34 and looking up to heaven with a deep sigh, He said to him, “Ephphatha!” that is, “Be opened!”
Jesus said that God is in heaven. He taught in Matthew 5:16, “Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.” In his introduction to the book of Acts, Luke writes, “The first account I composed, Theophilus, about all that Jesus began to do and teach, 2 until the day when He was taken up to heaven, after He had by the Holy Spirit given orders to the apostles whom He had chosen” (Acts 1:1-2). So, heaven is the dwelling place of God and His Son, Jesus Christ.
Three times in Revelation John uses the phrase, “down from heaven,” in reference to the dwelling of the angels. He writes in Revelation 18:1, “After these things I saw another angel coming down from heaven, having great authority, and the earth was illumined with his glory.” In Revelation 20:1, he writes, “Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding the key of the abyss and a great chain in his hand.” He writes in Revelation 7:9, “And they came up on the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city, and fire came down from heaven and devoured them.”
So Biblical characters and writers in both the Old and New Testaments viewed heaven as being “above.”
Where Is Heaven Now?
No scripture speaks of heaven as being anywhere except “above.” None speak of it as being anywhere else in their time. None speak of it being anywhere else in the future.
More importantly for our current study, the scriptures plainly present heaven as a real place.
Will the Righteous Really Go to Heaven?
Will the righteous really go to heaven? What does the Bible say?
Jesus exhorted in His “sermon on the mount,” in Matthew 5:11-12:
Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
Jesus a great reward in heaven for those who joyfully endure persecution. He said in Matthew 6:19-21:
19 Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; 21 for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
Jesus said we will have treasures in heaven if we store them up there rather than in material possessions here. He made a similar statement to the “rich young ruler” in Matthew 19:16-22.
The Apostle Paul writes in Philippians 3:20, “For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ…” Paul says “Our citizenship is in heaven.” That means that this world is not our home, but we sojourn here while awaiting entry into heaven, our true home. He wrote to the Colossian Christians, “…praying always for you, 4 since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and the love which you have for all the saints; 5 because of the hope laid up for you in heaven, of which you previously heard in the word of truth…” So, the righteous have hope in laid up in heaven. Paul writes in Hebrews 12:22-24:
But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to myriads of angels, 23 to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the Judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, 24 and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood, which speaks better than the blood of Abel.
Paul says that our names are “enrolled in heaven.” The “general assembly” is the church. Strong defines the word translated, church in the New Testament, as “a calling out, i.e. (concretely) a popular meeting, especially a religious congregation (Jewish synagogue, or Christian community of members on earth or saints in heaven or both).” Thayer defines the word, as it is used in the New Testament, as “an assembly of Christians gathered for worship in a religious meeting.” The members of “the church of the firstborn” (Jesus) are “enrolled in heaven.”
The Apostle Peter writes in 1 Peter 1:3, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead…” Where is our “living hope” that is ours “through the resurrection of the dead? Peter answers that our living hope is “to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you…”
James Burton Coffman writes, “Who are enrolled in heaven” is a reference to the Book of Life and to the names of the redeemed of all ages written therein.” Members of the church are written in the “Book of Life.” The Book of Life is referenced John writes in Revelation 20:12:
And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books, according to their deeds.
The Book of Life is referenced seven times in the New Testament (NASU). Jesus told the Seventy in the Limited Commission in Luke 10:20, “Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are recorded in heaven.” The Lord’s faithful have their names written in heaven in the Book of Life!
We Will Be With God
Paul writes in Colossians 3:2-4:
Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth. 3 For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory.
We have seen that God is heaven. When we died to sin and began a new life when we were baptized (See “What Does It Mean to Be Born Again?”). F.F. Bruce writes (As quoted by Coffman):
“The apostle’s argument is this: `When you sank under the baptismal water, you disappeared forever to the world. You rose again, it is true, but you rose only to God. The world henceforth knows nothing of your life, and (as a consequence) your new life must know nothing of the world’.” Since Christians live “in Christ,” and Christ indeed is their true life, it is inevitable that their life should be securely preserved where he is.”
Notice particularly the last sentence in Bruce’s comment, “Since Christians live “in Christ,” and Christ indeed is their true life, it is inevitable that their life should be securely preserved where he is.”
John writes in 1 John 3:1-3:
See how great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we would be called children of God; and such we are. For this reason the world does not know us, because it did not know Him. 2 Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is. 3 And everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.
What beautiful words!
Conclusion
Yes, good people, or, as the Bible puts it, righteous people, will really go to heaven. What will heaven be like? Jesus said in Revelation 21:2-4:
And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them, 4 and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.”
Jesus promised that the good and faithful slave would “‘enter into the joy of your master’” (Matt 25:21, 23). The “loud voice from the throne” (Rev 21:3) described the “joy of the master!
How long will the righteous be in heaven? Paul answers, in 2 Corinthians 5:1-2:
For we know that if the earthly tent which is our house is torn down, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. 2 For indeed in this house we groan, longing to be clothed with our dwelling from heaven…
Do you want to go to heaven? As I wrote in the Introduction, I want to go to heaven and I want you to go too. Why not contact me, or a church of Christ near you and let us help you learn what you need to do to go to heaven? Contact the Strasburg Church of Christ at strasburgcoc@yahoo.com or 540-465-3311.
