The unseen place called Heaven

“Has this world been so kind to you,” asked C.S. Lewis, “that you should leave with regret? There are better things ahead than any we leave behind.” What he said holds true if you are God’s child. Life as you know it will never be easy or trouble-free. The problems you are facing, however, will someday dissipate in heaven’s glory. But for those who do not know God, the best they will ever have is life now.

Some 3,500 years ago, Moses described a human lifespan as 70 to 80 years long. In spite of scientific advances, our life expectancy hasn’t changed much. “You’re not going to get out of this alive,” someone said. It’s true, but then what? Then there’s the hope of heaven.

The Bible speaks of heaven more than 400 times. Jesus said candidly that He had come from heaven and was to return there when His work was done on earth (John 14:1-6). He spoke of heaven from the vantage point of an insider who knew what was there and what it was like. Jesus Christ told His followers what to expect and how to get there.

So what is heaven like? And in the face of our many trials and difficulties here on earth, what does heaven promise?

The apostle Paul writes, “I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us” (Romans 8:18). To the Corinthians he wrote, “For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:17-18).