"I Can Only Imagine"

I can only imagine
What it will be like
When I walk
By your side

I can only imagine
What my eyes will see
When your face
Is before me
I can only imagine.

(Bart Millard, 1999; recorded by MercyMe)

The death of Bart Millard’s father prompted the singer to meditate about heaven and eventually to write the song “I Can Only Imagine,” in which he tries to picture what it will be like to be in the presence of Jesus. Sooner or later, particularly after the death of a loved one, most people ponder what life after death will be like. Eric Clapton wrote “Tears in Heaven” after the tragic death of his young son. He asks, “Would you know my name / If I saw you in heaven? / Would you feel the same / If I saw you in heaven?” Johnny Cash asks, “Should you go first or if you follow me / Will you meet me in Heaven some day?” We long to know the answers to questions like these.

Meditating about heaven is good. Contemplating God’s awesome works—past, present, and future—causes us to be worshipful and thankful. And thinking about where we are headed changes the way we behave here. Are we looking forward to and preparing for meeting Jesus face to face? Are we living in a way that is pleasing to God, so that we will hear, “Well done, good and faithful servant”? Are we growing in sanctification so that we will be fit to live in His presence for eternity? Our sanctification will not be complete in this life, but the process should be ongoing every day so we are ready for His coming. As Paul said to the Thessalonians, “May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thessalonians 5:23).

So the purpose of this essay is to encourage us to set our hearts and minds on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God (Colossians 3:1). In it I look at what we know about heaven from Scripture, and I try to draw some reasonable inferences. But much of the essay consists of asking questions and making speculations. My hope is that as we ask the questions and contemplate God’s plans and anticipate the fulfillment of His promises, our hearts will feel “a thrill of hope.” I believe that as we meditate on the fantastic future that God has in store for us, we will delight in Him even more and want to live now in such a way that we will be ready for His eternal kingdom.

One certainty is that worship will be a central feature of heaven. The most magnificent worship services here on earth are only a pale foretaste of the worship that will take place in heaven. Throughout Revelation (e.g., chapters 4, 5, 7, 11, 15, 19), John describes the outpouring of worship that will continually take place:

In the center, around the throne, were four living creatures, and they were covered with eyes, in front and in back. The first living creature was like a lion, the second was like an ox, the third had a face like a man, the fourth was like a flying eagle. Each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around, even under his wings. Day and night they never stop saying:

Holy, holy, holy
is the Lord God Almighty,
who was, and is, and is to come.”
(4:6-8)

Then I looked and heard the voice of many angels, numbering thousands upon thousands, and ten thousand times ten thousand. They encircled the throne and the living creatures and the elders. In a loud voice they sang:

Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain,
to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength
and honor and glory and praise!
(5:11-12)

Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, singing:

To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb
be praise and honor and glory and power,
for ever and ever!
(5:13)

Undoubtedly this worship will be happening continually, but I don’t think it’s the only thing we will be doing. We know for sure that there will be a spectacular feast—the Wedding Supper of the Lamb (Revelation 19:9). I believe this banquet is more than just a metaphor for the relationship between God and His people, and I don’t think it will be the only time we eat in heaven—the trees that bear fruit every month are more than just decoration! Jesus ate and drank in His glorified body, and I believe we will too. At the Last Supper (that is, the last before He died), He suggested that we would eat and drink together in the kingdom of God:

I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God…. I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes (Luke 22:15-18).

Here’s another thing I have been contemplating with respect to heaven. Before Jesus left earth and ascended into heaven, He promised, “Surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” As the disciples watched Him leave, they probably wondered how He could possibly be with them if He wasn’t even on earth. Now we know that He is with each believer constantly in the person of the Holy Spirit. When we pray, God gives us His undivided attention (infinity divided by anything is still infinity!), as if each person were the only person in the universe. I can only think that in heaven our relationship with God will be even more personal and more intimate than it is now. I suspect that there will be times when we are alone with the Lord or in a small group, as well as with the whole company of heaven.

Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God." (Revelation 21:3)

In addition to developing our relationship with God, I also think we will be able to develop our relationships with other people. Better than all the promises of creature comforts, exquisite beauty, and freedom from pain is the anticipation of being with other people in perfect relationships. It is a great joy to look forward to being reunited with those we’ve lost and meeting those we never knew—the saints who went before us, the father who died before his son was born, babies who died in the womb. The Transfiguration gives us a little glimpse of saints who never knew each other on earth—Moses, Elijah, Peter and company—coming together and talking with Jesus. The disciples were terrified, but Jesus told them to get up and not be afraid (Matthew 17:6–7). At that point it was not the right time to settle down in shelters and have a prolonged visit (because Jesus had not yet accomplished what He came to do), but the time will come!

Besides the healing and growth of personal relationships, the descriptions in Revelation 21 and 22 sound as if there will be healing and peace on a global scale: “The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it. On no day will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no night there. The glory and honor of the nations will be brought into it” (21:23–26). “Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful” (21:27), no cowardly, unbelieving, vile, murderers, sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, idolaters, or liars (21:8; 22:15). Only those who “wash their robes . . . have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city” (22:14). They can enjoy the river of the water of life that keeps “flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb” (22:1). On either side of it grows the tree of life, whose leaves “are for the healing of the nations” (22:2).

It will take all of eternity for us to get to know God fully. Besides getting to know Him and getting to know other saints, I think He will also allow us to explore His creation and get to know it. We haven’t even begun to fully know our speck of Earth; imagine what else is out there! I think we will be astonished as we see the extent of His extravagant creativity. And will there be books in heaven? Why not? I doubt that we will instantly know everything there is to know; I imagine we will keep learning and growing forever—whether through experiencing, exploring, reading, talking with other people, or learning directly from God.

Music will definitely have a big role in heaven—voice, harp, trumpet, and probably every other kind of instrument used for worship in the Bible, like tambourine, flute, and lyre. And why not instruments and music styles from every culture? Imagine a heavenly orchestra with every instrument in the world. And unless God Himself or angels or elves make these instruments, somebody will have to do it. I wouldn’t be surprised if there were craftsmen creating violins surpassing the Stradivarius and organs more wonderful than those in the greatest cathedrals. And if there will be music in heaven, why not the other arts as well? Dance, drama, painting, sculpture, literature? Jesus is making our homes in heaven, but maybe we’ll have architects and carpenters and interior decorators too. Will there be chefs to prepare the wonderful banquets we’ll enjoy? How about jewelers for all the precious stones? My husband loves to do math; maybe he’ll be able to keep doing it in heaven, discovering more and more about the order in God’s universe. What about scientists? Why couldn’t there be biologists, astronomers, geologists, chemists, and physicists, to name a few?

I don’t presume to know exactly what or when the Millennium will be or how everything will play out in God’s plan, but the phase of the Kingdom of God described in passages like Isaiah 11 sounds like a wonderful time of peace and righteousness. In this messianic kingdom, the Branch will bear fruit and the Spirit of the Lord will rest on Him. With righteousness He’ll judge the needy, and with justice He’ll give decisions for the poor. All the animals will live in harmony (wolf, lamb, leopard, goat, calf, lion, yearling, cow, bear, ox, cobra, viper—and I bet our pets), with a little child leading them.

They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. In that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples; the nations will rally to him, and his place of rest will be glorious” (vv. 9–10).

The Bible paints a picture of the coming kingdom in broad strokes, but there’s nothing wrong with wondering what it will be like in the particulars. Will we be able to take walks? Will we run? What about hiking? Will we climb mountains? Will there be snow-capped mountains? Can we use snowshoes or cross-country skis in the snow? What about downhill skis? Can we ice skate on a frozen pond? Roller skate on streets of gold? What about biking? Or sailing? Will we skip stones across the surface of a quiet lake? Can we go swimming? Swinging over a creek on a rope? What about whitewater rafting on a rushing river? Can we waterski? If so, I imagine there will have to be motorboats—unless we’re strong enough to paddle a canoe that fast! Will we play sports? Will we have foot races or bike races or boat races? Will we play catch with a ball? Hit balls with bats or paddles or racquets or clubs? Play basketball or volleyball? Play football? Touch or tackle? Will we play games like chess or checkers? Other board games? Card games? Will we travel? Where and how? If we will play games and sports or travel to distant places, who will make the equipment or the vehicles? These and a thousand other questions come to mind.

In any case, heaven will probably be very different from what any of us think it will be. But I think it’s OK to imagine the most wonderful place we can conceive of, and then realize that it will be far more so than we can begin to envision. As Paul says, “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him” (1 Corinthians 2:9).

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These are some of my musings about heaven. What do you readers think? How do you conceive of God’s coming kingdom? What excites you most about it? How does thinking about the life to come affect the way you live your life now? I’d be interested in hearing other people’s ideas. Even as I wrote the next-to-last paragraph with all the questions, I wondered if I might be getting out into left field. Do you think these activities will be part of our experience in the Millennium and/or the eternal kingdom? If not, where would you draw the line? What about the different professions I mentioned? I’d love to get feedback so I can develop my thoughts more, because meditating on heaven is joyful and makes us want to live in such a way as to be ready for it. Go ahead and imagine!