7 Lies About Heaven People Believe

We need to clear up some false teaching about heaven that a lot of people believe. These are the seven most believed lies about heaven.

The problem is that we live in a state of what theologians call “the already and not yet.” We are already free from sin, but not yet fully free from sin. We are already being changed from our old sinful self, but not yet perfected. We already get a taste of heaven on earth, but have not yet fully arrived there. 

I’ve found that the best way to think of it is in terms of past, present, and future. Jesus sets us free from:

• Past: the penalty of sin (justification)
• Present: the power of sin (sanctification)
• Future: the presence of sin (glorification)

If we have repented and trusted in Jesus Christ as our Lord and savior, we are already free from sin’s penalty. We are forgiven, fully justified, and heaven-bound. It’s a done deal. God has already written our name in the Book of Life.

Right now, we are growing and being freed from sin’s power over us. As we mature in Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit working in us, Christians slowly become more and more Christlike. However, we still sin. So presently, we are being freed from the power of sin, but it’s still a daily battle between our spirit and our flesh.

But one day, in the future, upon our deaths or Christ’s return (whichever comes first), we will be freed from the presence of sin completely. We will rest for eternity in heaven. Sin and death will be no more. And we will live in perfect peace, joy, and love in the glory of God’s presence forever.  

How Do You Imagine Heaven?

If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.

Colossians 3:1-2 ESV

As the Bible says, we should set our minds on the things above. So let’s imagine heaven. What do you picture? Many think of babies with wings floating on clouds playing harps. That’s not it. When contemplating death and eternity, there’s a lot of mystery, a lot of fear, and a lot of lies that people believe.

The Bible has a lot to say about Heaven. The Old Testament uses the word for heaven over 400 times, and New Testament over 250 times (far more than it speaks of hell). Often these words refer to Heaven, the place where God resides, but other times the same word refers to the air or sky above, or further, where the sun, moon, and stars are set in space. So there is a sense that heaven is like the sky. It is real, it exists, but different from life here on earth. It is a place, but we cannot travel there. We could fly to the outer reaches of the universe and never get there, yet heaven is closer than we think. 

We could spend weeks talking about everything the Bible has to say about Heaven. I can only hit a few passages here. So if you find yourself wanting more, go to the library and find some good books on the subject. Heaven by Randy Alcorn is a good place to start. 

First, we need to know that heaven gives believers a source of tremendous hope. Our lives are focused heavenward. We live for eternity.

So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal. For we know that if the tent that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this tent we groan, longing to put on our heavenly dwelling

2 Corinthians 4:16-5:2

This is huge! This is why heaven is so incredible. Outwardly, we are wasting away. I mean, do you remember the day when you used to be able to sit down in a chair and even stand up without an audible groan? I do. Now everything in my body is like Rice Krispies; it all snaps, crackles, and pops.

Heaven is the hope of all believers! This state of decay that our bodies are in is not the end of the story. In fact, in the grand scheme of eternity, it’s a blip on the radar. Our body is like a tent; it’s temporary. But heaven is our permanent home.

Ever since sin entered the world, it has been nothing but decay. The world is broken. We are broken. Relationships are broken. There is hatred, war, murder, jealousy, envy, lies, greed, sickness, and more. This world cannot hold a candle to the surpassing glory of heaven. Amen?

Just imagine a world without sin. It’s hard to comprehend, but that is heaven.

So I want to help clear up some of the misconceptions about heaven that we often have.

7 LIES PEOPLE BELIEVE ABOUT HEAVEN

1. No Immediate Entry

The first lie about heaven is that you have to wait to enter. 

There won’t be some holding tank of waiting to get into heaven like the Catholics teach about Purgatory. That’s not in the Bible. There won’t be a period of “soul sleep” like some claim where you are really dead for thousands of years and when you are finally resurrected it only feels momentary. 

How do we know this? A few reasons. First, look at 2 Corinthians 5:6-10:

So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, for we walk by faith, not by sight. Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord. So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.

2 Corinthians 5:6-10

For Christians, to be away from the body is to be at home with the Lord. The moment we breathe our last breath on earth will be the moment we stand before Jesus in judgment to eternal reward in heaven or punishment in hell.

Another great example happened on the cross. Jesus was crucified between two criminals. One rejected and mocked Christ, and the other acknowledged Christ and asked him to remember him. And what is Jesus’ response? 

Luke 23:43 says, “And he said to him, ‘Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise.’”

Jesus did not say, “You will enter a period of cleansing, and then when you are purified, then you may be with me.” And he also didn’t say, “You will be with me one day in paradise.” He said, “Today you will be with me in paradise.” And the Greek word for today means “today.”

So we know that the moment we die, though our body is buried, we are home with the Lord.

2. No physical bodies

The second lie about heaven is that heaven is just a bunch of clouds in the sky since it’s a spiritual place. So we will all just be floating around without bodies.

There is some basis for this. As we saw before, 2 Corinthians 5:6 says, “We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord,” and in Revelation 6:9, we see this picture of heaven where John says, “I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the witness they had borne.” So it may seem like we are just these amorphous souls in heaven. 

This has led many to conclude that in heaven, we are only spirits without a body. But that’s too simplistic of an answer.

First of all, every picture we have of people in heaven has physical characteristics. For example, in Revelation 6, these souls of martyrs are given robes. They must have some physical form to wear a robe; they aren’t just puffs of cloud or ghosts.

We also see examples of eating and drinking and having body parts like hands and tongues and eyes and so on in heaven. And heaven will be like a city. There are streets, houses, walls, rivers, and more where we will occupy physical space. We won’t all be ghosts passing through walls and floating around.

Also, Paul mentions that he had a vision of heaven. He says this referring to himself: 

I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows. And I know that this man was caught up into paradise—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows— and he heard things that cannot be told, which man may not utter.

2 Corinthians 12:2-4

So Paul says he doesn’t know if he was in the body or out of it in heaven. From this we can deduce that in heaven, he had some physical form like a body. 

Also, we have to understand that the present state of heaven is different from what will be the eternal state of heaven. It is already heaven, but it is not yet in its final form.

The Bible teaches that after Christ returns one day, God is going to create a new heavens and a new earth. Where heaven is a real place separate from earth now, ultimately, God will make a new creation of heaven and earth. Instead of being separate places, the two will be united as one. 

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”

Revelation 21:1-5

God will make all things new, and it will be God’s city where there is no more crying or pain. Can you imagine it? 

And in this new city, we will be given resurrection bodies. We will be more than just spirits or even new creatures having wings like angels. These will be characteristically human bodies but better. 

But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself.

Philippians 3:20-21

Our resurrection bodies will be like Jesus when he rose from the dead. He was recognizable but different. It was like his old body, and also unlike his old body. 

3. No memories of the past life

The third lie about heaven is that we won’t remember our past life because, as the reasoning goes, “If we could remember the past, then we might get sad about it.”

This cannot be true. Jesus tells that parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus. And you know what’s fascinating about this story? It’s the only parable that Jesus tells where he gives the name of someone. This has led many to believe this isn’t just a fable but a true story. 

There was a rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. And at his gate was laid a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, who desired to be fed with what fell from the rich man’s table. Moreover, even the dogs came and licked his sores. The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried, and in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side. And he called out, “Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame.”

Luke 16:19-26

Lazarus has a name, and Abraham has his name—the same names they had before they died. They seem very much to remember who they are and what their life was like before their death. 

Earlier, when we looked at Revelation 6, we saw that those who died as Martyrs for Christ were also remembered for what they had done. So to think that we are somehow wiped of all memories of the past when we die and go to heaven is not consistent at all with what we read in Scripture.

Instead, we will remember our names. We will know about our lives. And that is a good thing! In fact, our memories will be better than they are now. We may not forget anything, or at least not nearly as much as we do now with our aging minds. But in heaven, those memories will be restored to perfection.

4. No relationships will continue

The fourth lie about heaven is that relationships won’t continue. Now, Jesus did teach that there is no marriage in heaven in Mark 12:25, saying, “For when they rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven.” 

This is a bit of a hard pill to swallow for everyone who loves their spouse deeply. For others, it may come as a relief (just kidding). 

But here’s the point we need to understand: although there is no marriage in heaven because we will not have a need to multiply and fill heaven, we will have perfected relationships. Whether there is any form of romantic component to that, I don’t know. But what I do know is that my wife and I are best friends here on earth, and I believe we will be even better friends in heaven because we will be living without the curse of sin.

There will be no more arguments and fights. There will be no more hurting of feelings. There will be no more stain of the sin of past mistakes. We will live perfectly in paradise together forever. And it won’t just be us but all of our brothers and sisters in Christ. 

We will be reunited with our loved ones who have died. All of our friends, family, and others we have ever known who have trusted in Christ will be there in heaven. What a beautiful reunion that will be!

So although it is hard to imagine, we have to know that all the good things on earth will be even greater in heaven. All the bad things will be gone. Nothing in heaven will be lesser than it is here on earth. So I won’t be sad or upset or completely forget about the many wonderful years I have shared with my wife. And heavenly fellowship will be an even greater experience than any earthly relationship.

5. No fun

The fifth lie about heaven is that some imagine it will be boring. They want to go, but not until they have done everything they dream of doing in this life first.

It’s like, “I want to go to heaven, but I still haven’t been to Hawaii.” I understand this kind of thinking because I’ve had similar thoughts. But how stupid. Heaven is infinitely better than Hawaii!

Our treasure, our hope, and everything we hold dear is waiting for us in heaven! 

Will Heaven be boring? No way! 

In Psalm 16:11, David writes, “You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”

In the absence of sin, we will be in the presence of God, experiencing the fullness of joy and pleasure! Everything that brings joy now is still stained by sin. You and I have only experienced shadows of the fullness of joy. In heaven, we will have perfect joy and perfect pleasure! 

God created this world beautiful for us to enjoy. He created things that feel good and taste good for us to enjoy and to give him the glory for it all. And if the things of this earth are pleasing and tasty and beautiful, how much better will heaven be? Remember, heaven will not be anything lesser than life on earth; it will only be greater.

Imagine an eternity with the best of friends exploring a perfect world with God in your presence. That’s incredible.

I have to admit that there have been times when I have wondered if heaven was just an eternal worship service. I love singing as much as anyone else, but anything forever sounds dull. But that’s not what it will be. Yes, the heavenly creatures sing the praises of the Lord forever, and we will too. But worship is more than singing. Worship is living in the fullness of God’s joy and presence in everything we do. We can worship the Lord in the way we eat, work, and play. 

And by the way, I believe there will be jobs in heaven. Why? Before Adam and Eve committed the first sin in the garden in Genesis 3, Genesis 2:15 says, “The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it.”

In other words, jobs existed before sin did. So to think that we are just going to sit on a cloud playing a harp all day is ridiculous. We are going to work perfectly in a way that is enjoyable, not exhausting, and free from the drama and sin of terrible bosses and coworkers! Amen! We will do work that we love, that God has created us to do. And we will find purpose and joy in doing it. 

6. No time

I hear this sixth lie about heaven a lot: “In heaven, time will not exist because God is not bound by time. Therefore, we can jump to and fro throughout time however we see fit.” Ummm… I don’t see that anywhere in the Bible. In fact, I see the opposite.

Look again at the martyrs in heaven:

They cried out with a loud voice, “O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you will judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” Then they were each given a white robe and told to rest a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brothers should be complete, who were to be killed as they themselves had been.

Revelation 6:10-11

Clearly, the martyrs were waiting for justice, and God tells them to wait longer. So there is a sense of time, and they can’t just fast-forward to the end.

Also, notice that the martyrs ask God questions. So we won’t know everything in heaven. We will have access to learn from God, who does know everything, but we won’t suddenly be like god and be all-knowing, all-powerful, time-traveling demigods.

We can see another example of time in the New Heavens and New Earth:

Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him. They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. And night will be no more. They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever.

Revelation 22:1-5

God is so bright and holy that there will be no sun or moon or stars. That’s awesome! Some conclude that this means that there will be no more time either because we measure time by the sun. However, look at the tree of life. It yields twelve kinds of fruit each month. That seems to indicate that there will still be months and time in heaven, even if we don’t have a sun to measure it by. 

7. No One Way In

This is the biggest and worst lie about heaven of all. People say things like, “Everyone gets to go to heaven.” Or “There’s more than one way in.” Or “I’m a good person, so God will let me in.” Not true. 

When Jesus was speaking to the disciples in the upper room before his arrest and crucifixion, he spoke of heaven. And he says this:

In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. And you know the way to where I am going.” Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

John 14:2-6

Jesus has gone to heaven. He currently sits on the throne at the right hand of God until the day that he will return. And for all who believe in Jesus, either on the day we die or the day Christ returns, he will take us to himself and the room he has prepared for us in the Father’s house. 

And how do we get there? According to Jesus, he is the way. There is no other way to heaven except through Christ. You cannot do enough good deeds to earn your way to heaven. It’s about what he did, not you. I don’t care what anybody else is selling you, apart from Christ we are all sinners doomed to die. But in Christ alone, we are set free from the penalty of sin (death and hell), from the power of sin, and ultimately will be free from the presence of sin in heaven.

Treasure Heaven

So here’s the point: Are you living for this world or for eternity?

Don’t believe the lies about heaven.

Set your mind on the things above. Don’t store up treasure here. It will decay and be destroyed. Treasure heaven. Live for heaven. Live for eternity.

Life here is like building a sand castle. The wave of death comes for us all. Nothing here will last except for God and people’s souls.

How does heaven change the way we live? How should heaven change the way we suffer? How should heaven change the way we see pleasure and fulfillment and success in life? 

Live for eternity. Don’t settle for a lesser world.