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A Place Called Heaven
Chapter 7 - Will We Know One Another in Heaven?

Dear friends, we are already God's children, but He has not yet shown us what we will be like when Christ appears. But we do know that we will be like Him, for when we see Him as He really is.--1 John 3:2 NLT


Growing old isn't for the faint in heart--especially for those with a faint heart. With age comes ailments and aches...and a few extra pounds. As humor columnist Erma Bombeck grew older she said something along the lines of, "I'm not telling you what I weigh, but when I measure my girth and then step on the scales, I oughta be a 90-foot redwood,"

For many of us the battle of the bulge was a minor skirmish in our twenties. But it became war in our 40s & 50s. And if it wasn't the bulge, it was something else--wrinkles or sags or bags.

Have you ever gotten out of the shower and stared at yourself in a full-length mirror? For those of us of a certain age, it's unnerving. You ought to try it sometime; it'll jolt you awake--like an electric shock. One overriding thought will fill your mind: I have everything I used to have. It's just few inches lower than where it used to be. Let's not kid ourselves: our bodies aren't the bodies we had in high school or when we first married.

Although you know it's you standing in front of the mirror, you almost don't recognize yourself. And if you're going to a reunion you wonder whether anyone else will recognize you. It's a good thing they place senior yearbook pictures on nametags at high school reunions, or you wouldn't have a clue whom you were talking to!

Unfortunately, most people don't age gracefully. Hearing loss, fading eyesight, and creaking joints accompany our advancing years. Getting older reminds me of what Jesus said to Peter:

I tell you the truth, when you were young, you were able to do as you liked; you dressed yourself and went wherever you wanted to go. But when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and others will dress you and take you where you don't want to go.--(John 21:18 NLT)

If and when we get to the stage described by Jesus we'll hardly recognize ourselves anymore, nor will those who knew us in the vibrancy of our youth.

When it comes to the next life, we are naturally curious as to who we will be in heaven. Will we be ourselves? And if so, which self--the young, energetic go-getter or the old, lethargic individual with hardly enough get up to go? Will we recognize friends and family, and will they recognize us--and which version of "us" will they know?

These are intriguing questions. However, before we answer them it is important to understand some important truths about the resurrection of the dead.


Will Everyone Receive a Resurrection Body?

At funerals, I sometimes hear people say things like, "This isn't the real Mary. This is only her shell. The real Mary--her spirit--is in heaven." Or, "This is the last time we'll ever see Roger in this body." It's natural to say things like this because we know that our earthly bodies are temporal and our spirits are eternal.

However, those realities have led many Christians to the wrong conclusion that there is a dichotomy between our bodies (what some believe are only the appearance of who we are). They believe that since we leave our earthly bodies behind at death, we will exist in heaven as dismembered spirits.

Nothing could be further from the truth. In the new heaven and new earth we will not exist as sanctified versions of Casper the Friendly Ghost. Instead, just as we possess physical bodies in this world, we will also exist and relate to one another in physical bodies in the next world. How do I know that? Consider how God designed us and what His plans are for us.


--End of part 1--

God's Design: Body and Spirit

Throughout this book we've seen that heaven is primarily the re-creation of the original Eden--the earth as God originally designed it. If that is true, then is seems reasonable to assume that the residents of the new earth will exist in the same form as the original occupants of Eden. When we turn to Genesis 2 we find a very interesting statement about God's creation of the first couple:

Then the Lord God formed man of the dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.--(Gen. 2:7)

When God created Adam--and later Eve--He fashioned them physical beings (dust) into whom He placed His Spirit (the breath of life), making each person a "living being." Notice that a person needs both a body and a spirit to be considered a "living being." Without a physical body he or she would not be a "being," and without a spirit he or she would not be "living." God created Adam--and every person since--as body and spirit.

Of course, there is a time coming when every human being will have his or her spirit separated from his or her physical body. The word death comes from the Greek word thanatos, which means "to separate." Death is the separation of our spirit from our physical bodies. As we saw in Chapter 4, at that moment of separation the spirit of a Christian goes immediately into the presence of Jesus Christ, while the spirit of a non-Christian goes immediately to hades, the temporary place of torment.

But how long will that separation of body and spirit last? As we also saw in chapter 4, some theologians speculate that at death, both Christians and non-Christians will receive some kind of temporary bodies while awaiting their eternal bodies. After all, they argue, God originally created us as body and spirit, and in eternity we will be body and spirit. Why would we think that in the intermediate state we would be disembodied spirits?

Others believe, since there is no direct evidence in the Bible that Christians and non-Christians who die will receive bodies before resurrection, we should assume that during the time between our deaths and the receiving of our new bodies we will exist as spirits only.


God's Plan: Two Resurrections

But here is one thing we know for sure: in the future, every Christian and non-Christian will receive a new physical body that is designed to experience the eternal pleasures of heaven or torments of h e l l. The Scripture repeatedly talks about the resurrection of both the righteous and unrighteous. For example, the patriarch Job believed he would see God with hos own physical eyes when he declared:

Even after my skin is destroyed,
Yet from my flesh I shall see God.--(Job 19:26)

The prophet Daniel believed that both the wicked and the righteous would be resurrected to receive their just rewards:

Many of those who sleep in the dust of the ground will awake, these [believers] to everlasting life, but the others [unbelievers] to disgrace and everlasting contempt.--(Dan. 12:2)

When will these resurrections of our bodies take place?


THE FIRST RESURRECTION

The Bible uses the term first resurrection to describe the time when all believers will receive their brand-new bodies for eternity. The apostle John wrote, "Blessed and holy is the one who has a part in the first resurrection; over these the second death has no power" (Rev. 20:6).

It is important to understand that the first resurrection does not occur at a single point in time. Instead, different groups of Christians will receive their new bodies at different times in the future. Paul explained: "For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive. But each in his own order" (1 Cor. 15:22-23).

The Greek word translated "order" is tagma, and refers to a military procession, with each corps falling in at its appointed time. At death every Christian's spirit is immediately ushered into the presence of God, but we do not receive our new bodies until our assigned time or "order."


--End of part 2--

(NOTE: "The" best part is yet to come!--T.S.)

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THE SECOND RESURRECTION

While believers will participate in the first resurrection, every unbeliever since Adam will be part of what we might call the second resurrection. Unlike the first resurrection, the second resurrection will occur at a single point in time--prior to the judgment of all unbelievers at an event commonly known as the great white judgment:

And the sea gave up the dead which were in it, and death and Hades [the temporary residing place of all the unsaved dead] gave up the dead which were in them; and they were judged, every one of them according to their deeds. Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. (Rev. 20:13-14)

Just as Christians will receive physical bodies in which they can enjoy the eternal benefits of the new heaven and new earth, unbelievers will be resurrected and receive physical bodies in which to endure the eternal torment of the lake of fire.


How Is a Physical Resurrection Possible?

1 Corinthians 15 is the most complete explanation of the resurrection in the Bible. The apostle Paul answers many questions we naturally have about the resurrection and the nature of our new bodies. For example, anticipating objections to a physical resurrection, the apostle Paul writes: "Someone will say, 'How are the dead raised?'" (1 Cor. 15:35).

Perhaps you have wondered the same thing. I want to be sensitive here, but I'm often asked about those whose bodies have been destroyed in an accident or a tragedy, such as the victims of September 11, 2001. How can their disintegrated bodies be resurrected? Or consider the passengers in an airliner that explodes over the ocean. The bodies of dismembered passengers are submerged in the water only to be eaten by sea creatures.

When Roger Williams, the founder of Rhode Island, died, he was buried at the foot of an apple tree. When his body was disinterred years later, the roots of the tree had penetrated his casket, grown through the top of his skull, and branched out down his arms and legs. The tree had literally consumed William's body, driving nourishment from his corpse. So how is Roger William's body ever going to be resurrected?

Or consider what happens to the person who at death donates a part of his or her body to a worthy recipient. How can that person ever reclaim his or her vital organs if an eye went to Ethel and a kidney was donated to Sydney? This puts Paul's question in 1 Corinthians 15:35 in a new light, doesn't it? How could a decomposed body--scattered at sea, eaten by fish, consumed by an apple tree, or dissected for its organs--ever be put back together and returned to its original owner? Theologian John Calvin answered the question this way: "Since God has all the elements at His disposal, no difficulty can prevent Him from commanding the earth, the fire, and the water to give up what they seem to have destroyed.


--End of Part 3--

THE ANALOGY: PLANTING AND HARVESTING

Paul answered his own question about the possibility of a resurrection by using an analogy familiar to his audience:

That which you sow does not come to life unless it dies; and that which you sow, you do not sow the body which is to be, but a bare grain, perhaps of wheat or of something else. But God gives it a body just as He wished, and to each of the seeds a body of its own. (vv. 36-38)

Before a watermelon seed ever produces a watermelon it must first be placed in the ground, where it dies. When a farmer goes into the field to gather watermelon seeds but something much better--watermelons! The harvest is always superior to what was planted.

So it is with the resurrection. When we die, our human bodies are like "seeds" that are planted in the ground. The death of our human bodies--regardless of how it occurs--is not a hindrance to a future resurrection but a prerequisite for a greater "harvest." Why?

Notice Paul's words: "That which you sow does not come to life unless it dies" (1 Cor. 15:36). The apostle goes on to explain that our old bodies must die because they are not designed for eternity. "Flesh and blood cannot inherit the imperishable" (v. 50). While your body is perfectly designed for planet Earth, it is not suited for Mars, Pluto, or heaven. That is why we should not view death as "the end" of something great but as "the beginning" of something greater.

The body we receive at "harvest time"--the resurrection--is vastly superior to the body that is planted in the ground. Think of it this way: imagine it's a scorching summer day--100 degrees in the shade. You've been outside working in the yard. To cool down, you come into the house and open the refrigerator for something refreshing. Which would you rather sink your teeth into--a slice of ice-cold watermelon or an ice-cold watermelon seed?

Similarly, when our bodies are resurrected from the grave, it will not be our old bodies that are raised. The resurrection is not a reconstruction but a re-creation of our bodies. Those who have been blown apart, or cremated, or donated their organs to others won't be rebuilt versions of their dead selves any more than a watermelon is a rebuilt version of a watermelon seed. Rather, they are something new and vastly superior--the watermelon itself.


SUPERIOR BUT SIMILAR

Although the "harvest" is superior to the "seed," the harvest is also similar to the seed. You don't plant a watermelon seed and harvest a kumquat! A watermelon seed produces a watermelon. Similarly, you new body that is raised at "harvest" time will not be something completely unlike your body that was buried at death. You don't die and become someone else in the resurrection. There will be some similarities between our earthly bodies and our heavenly bodies.

The perfect example of this is Jesus' resurrection body. And since Scripture promises that the bodies of resurrected believers will be like His (1 John 3:2), we should look closely at Jesus' resurrection body if we want to discover what our bodies will be like in the new heaven and the new earth.

--End of Part 4--

[See? I told you that this would get better 'n' better, didn't I!? -- Tammy S.]

What Was Jesus' Resurrection Body Like?

When Jesus received His new (post-resurrection) body, it was both different from and similar to His old (pre-resurrection) body. Jesus' new body was superior to His earthly body as demonstrated by His ability to materialize at will--even through locked doors. This happened at least twice during the forty days Jesus walked around in His new body. The first time occurred on resurrection day. The disciples were shut up behind closed doors, fearing the Jews might find and crucify them, when, unexpectedly, "Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, 'Peace be with you'" (v. 19). The second time occurred a week later, when Jesus appeared to Thomas, who was "inside...the doors having been shut" (v. 26).

Because Jesus could appear at will, He could also disappear at will. The best example of this comes from the dinner in Emmaus after His resurrection. After explaining from the Old Testament Scriptures why the Messiah must suffer and die, Jesus sat down to share a meal with two disciples. "When He reclined at the table with them," Luke wrote, "He took the bread and blessed it, and breaking it, he began giving it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they recognized Him; and He vanished from their sight" (Luke 24:30-31).

But there were also similarities between His new and old body--enough so that when He appeared to His followers in His new body they eventually recognized Him. I say "eventually" because there were instances in which the disciples did not immediately recognize the Lord--for understandable reasons. Some were so full of sorrow they couldn't see clearly (John 20:1, 14-15). One appearance happened while it was still dark (20:1, 14-15). On occasion the distance between Jesus and His disciples was great enough to obscure recognizable features (21:4). Some were disbelieving (20:24-25), while those behind closed doors were startled when He spiritually appeared (Luke 24:36-37). Finally, others were spiritually dull (vv. 25-26). Yet in all cases the confusion was merely temporary.

Eventually, the similarities between Jesus' natural body and His new body caused His followers to recognize Him. Maybe the similarity was something as trivial as the way He tore apart a piece of bread. After speaking with the disciples on the Emmaus road, Jesus ate dinner with them--just like a man. But Luke records that "He was recognized by them in the breaking of the bread" (v. 35). Perhaps Jesus held the bread in His right hand as He tore it with His other hand because the Lord was left-handed in His natural body. If Jesus were left-handed in His natural body there would be no reason for Him to be right-handed in His resurrection body. His physical features, post-resurrection, were similar to His pre-resurrection features---the nail holes in His wrests and feet prove that.


What will Our Resurrection Bodies Be Like?

Why this detailed examination of Jesus' resurrection body? Scripture promises that our resurrection bodies will be like Jesus':


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. (1 John 3:2)


In Colossians 1:18 Paul referred to Jesus' resurrection as "the firstborn from the dead." The word translated
firstborn" comes from the Greek word from which we get our English word prototype. Whenever a manufacturer builds a new automobile or airplane, they first build a prototype. Every other car and plane is then patterned after that first one. In the same way, Jesus' resurrection body was an example of what our bodies are going to be like.

So in what specific was will our new resurrection bodies be in "conformity with the body of His glory," as Paul promised in Philippians 3:21?


--End of Part 5--

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Our Bodies Will Be Physical

After making the case for the resurrection of Christ and the resurrection of believers in 1 Corinthians 15:1-9, Paul addressed the question of what kind of resurrection bodies we'll receive in verses 39-50. The simple answer is that we'll have different bodies than the ones we now inhabit--as different as the bodies of animals, stars, and plants are from each other. Paul explained:

All flesh is not the same flesh, but there is one flesh of men, and another flesh of beasts, and another of birds, and another of fish. There are also heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the glory of the is one, and the glory of the earthly is another. There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another of the stars; for star differs from in glory: (1 Cor. 15:39-41)

Paul's point is this: the body of a fish is not the body of a bird; the body of a bird is not the body of a beast; the body of a beast is not the body of a human (a truth that obviously is contrary to the basic premise of evolution). A star is not a planet and a moon is not a star. Each one follows its own kind, just as God intended at the beginning of creation.

Similarly, our heavenly bodies will differ from our earthly bodies. Why should we find it difficult to believe that there is one kind of body created for inhabiting earth and another kind of body for inhabiting heaven? But to ensure that we wouldn't misunderstand, Paul detailed the differences between our earthly and heavenly bodies:

So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown a perishable body, it is raised an imperishable body; it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. (vv. 42-44)

The Greek word for "body" used here is soma. In every instance in the New Testament, soma refers to a physical body. So, when Paul used soma in verse 44, in reference to the "natural body" and "spiritual body," he made clear that our resurrection bodies would be just as physical as our natural bodies are physical.

But just because our heavenly bodies will be physical doesn't mean they will be physical in the same way our earthly bodies are. For example:

* Our earthly bodies decay; our heavenly bodies will endure.
* Our earthly bodies are infected with sin; our heavenly bodies will be free of sin.
* Our earthly bodies are weak; our heavenly bodies will be powerful.
* Our earthly bodies are for the old earth; our heavenly bodies are for the new earth.

The differences between our earthly bodies and our heavenly bodies often lead people to ask whether we will eat and drink or wear clothes in heaven. And what age will we be? As with all questions about our resurrection bodies, we must look to the resurrection body of Jesus for answers since He is the pattern--the protokos--of our resurrection bodies.

We're already seen, on at least three specific occasions, that the resurrected Jesus shared a meal with His disciples. But even before Jesus' death and resurrection He promised His disciples they would gather at His banquet table and feast with Him during the millennial kingdom. (Luke 22:29-30). Obviously this event during the millennia occurs after Jesus' and the disciples' resurrections, when they are living in their new bodies. This promise indicates that we, too, will share meals with Jesus and the disciples in our new bodies.

We'll also wear clothes in heaven. Some object to this idea because Adam & Eve, before the fall, didn't wear clothes. Although life on the new earth will be Eden-like, it won't be like the popular survival show %%bbCodeItem_6%%, in which a man & woman attempt to survive in the wild for 21 days without clothes.

When John saw the resurrected Christ on Patmos, Jesus was "clothed in a robe reaching to the feet, and girded across His chest with a golden sash" (Rev. 1:13). And when Christ spoke to the church at Sardis, He told them: "He who overcomes will thus be clothed in white garments" (3:5), which John confirmed with his own eyes (7:9).

When the bride of Christ--the church--is presented to Jesus at His 2nd coming, we will be clothed in "fine linen, bright and clean" (19:8). And when Jesus, the conquering King, comes to finalize His war with evil, it is said He will be "clothed with a robe dipped in blood" (v. 13).

We will also retain our sexual identity in our new bodies. Some have wrongly concluded that we'll be androgynous in heaven--genderless--because Paul claimed, "there is neither...male or female...in Christ Jesus" (Gal. 3:28). But Paul wasn't referring to the sexual nature of our bodies in the next life. He was referring to our equality in Christ--in this life. The fact that some people did not recognize the resurrected Lord immediately (like the two on the road to Emmaus) strongly argues that Jesus looked like any other man instead of some "otherworldly" sexless alien.

Our bodies will probably be resurrected at an ideal, youthful, and mature age. Though we can't be sure, many theologians believe we'll be in our 30s. Thirty is considered the peak of perfection, both mentally and physically. (I think I remember that!) It was the age when Old Testament priests began their ministry in the temple and when Christ began His public ministry. So, for those of us little bit older, go back and look at old pictures and imagine your eternal self when you were 30. And for those younger than 30, including children . . .well, you have something to look forward to!

--End of Part 6--

I sincerely hope that babies, children, and teenagers will be resurrected as babies, children, and teenagers, with the capacity to mature to adulthood! I would really hate to see the Rapture rob them of their childhoods and youth.

Please do read on, Kathy, for here is still more of Dr. Robert Jeffress' words:


Our Bodies Will Be Perfect

We will have real, physical bodies. But, as we've seen, they will be different than the bodies we inhibit today--they will be free from sin and therefore free from disease, decay, and death. Remember, in heaven, "the first [the things of the earth] have passed away" (Rev. 21:4). Cancer, heart attacks, and strokes will all be a thing of the past. So will blindness, deafness, and paralysis, as well as gray hair, wrinkles, and widening girths. Missing limbs will be restored. From the top of our heads to the bottoms of our feet, we'll be perfect in every way.

"Can you imagine the hope this gives someone spinal cord-injured like me?" my friend Joni Eareckson Tada asked. "Or someone who is cerebral palsied, brain-injured, or who has multiple sclerosis? Imagine the hope this gives someone who is manic depressive. No other religion, no other philosophy promises new bodies, hearts, and minds. Only in the Gospel of Christ do hurting people find such incredible hope."

We can assume that our resurrection bodies will be attractive and retain the same physical traits of our individual bodies today. In other words, not every man will have the physique of a bodybuilder and the looks of a movie star. Nor will women have the shape of a fashion model and the face of an angel. Your face will be your face. Your body will be your body--tall, short, thin, or plump. But all will be healthy and appealing. We won't have to worry about body image, comparing ourselves with others. Plastic surgeons will not be needed in heaven. Nor will cosmetics--sorry all you Mary Kay-ers. As one writer claims, "We won't have to try to look beautiful--we will be beautiful."

Our Bodies Will Be Personal

Your body, your memories, your gifts and talents, your passions, and your spirit are what makes you you. In the resurrection, all of these will be perfected and glorified, "in the twinkling of an eye" (1 Cor. 15:52). But you won't become someone else or something else (like an angel). You will become the you God intended you to be.

When John wrote that we "will be like [Jesus]" (1 John 3:2), the apostle didn't mean that we will become mini-Christs, like Dr. Evil's "Mini-Me in Austin Powers movies. We will become like Christ in character and with a similar heavenly DNA, but I'll be Robert Jeffress--only perfected. And if you're a believer, you'll be Sandy Smith or Bob Brown or [insert your name]--only perfected.

Think of it like this: you probably have a computer and use certain software for word processing or developing spreadsheets. When an upgrade becomes available, you don't get a whole new program; you get a better version of the same program--only with new and better features. Likewise, with our resurrection we'll have upgrades, including new features (though without the glitches or programming errors), but we'll still be who we are.

This was Jesus' point when He appeared to the disciples after the resurrection and said, "It is I Myself" (Luke 24:39). Who He was before His death and resurrection is who He is after His death and resurrection. Randy Alcorn made a strong case for continuity when he wrote:

If we weren't ourselves in the afterlife then we couldn't be held accountable for what we did in this life. The Judgment would be meaningless. If Barbara is no longer Barbara, she can't be rewarded or held accountable for anything Barbara did. She'd have to say, "But that wasn't me." The doctrines of judgment and eternal rewards depend on people's retaining their distinct identities from this life to the next."

Part of our distinctive identity is that we'll keep our own individual names in heaven. God promised the righteous citizens of Israel that their individual names would endure throughout eternity:

"For just as the new heavens and new earth
Which I make will endure before Me," declares the
LORD,
"So your offspring and your name will endure."
(Isa. 66:22)

--End of Part 7--

Our Bodies Will Be Personal (Continued...)

And Jesus called those currently in heaven by their earthly names. "I say to you that many will come from east and west, and recline at the table with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven" (Matt. 8:11).

But some will also be given additional names in heaven. Speaking to the church at Pergamum, the resurrected Christ said, "To him who overcomes...I will give him a white stone, and a new name written on the stone which no one knows but he/she (I added "she".--Tammy S.) who receives it" (Rev. 2:17). These new names don't invalidate our old names, nor do they erase our personality. In fact, these new names reflect the true personality and responsibility of those who receive them. For example, Jacob, which means "heel-catcher" or "supplanter," was also Israel--"one who strives with God." Simon, which means "God has heard," was also Peter--"the rock." And Saul, which means "prayed for," was also Paul--"small" or "humble."

We've looked at a lot of details concerning our resurrection bodies. But what does it all mean? Simply this: when we get to heaven we'll recognize each other as the unique individuals we are. We'll recognize saints whom we've never seen before. Peter, James, and John recognized Moses and Elijah when they appeared with Jesus at His transfiguration (Matt. 17:4).

The relationships we have formed on earth will continue in heaven. But they will continue without strife or enmity. In heaven, all things are made new. "Our eternal reunion with Christian loved ones and friends will be ceaselessly glorious," theologian Ron Rhodes wrote:

Keep in mind that we will no longer have sin natures. There will be no fights among loved ones. There won't be any resentment or envy or jealousy. There won't be any oneupmanships or rivalries. There won't be any cross words or misunderstanding or selfishness. Our relationships in heaven will truly be wonderful and utterly satisfying.

Now that is something truly to look forward to in that "place called heaven."

--End of Chapter 7--

that will be a wonderful day, the day we are renewed by God's power, the way He planned
and no more disagreements or arguments
we will know Jesus face to face