by: Spencer Shaw

For a variety of reasons, most Christians grow up thinking about heaven as a purely spiritual existence. Many Christians’ conception of heaven is akin to a disembodied spirit, floating in the clouds, playing a harp. While there is nothing inherently wrong with such a belief, there are several theological issues with an only spiritual heaven, wholly disconnected from anything physical. Below are three of the most significant issues with an overly spiritualized heaven:  

(Rather listen to the article? Click the play button below to do so!)

Theological Consistency

All Christians are theologians. As theologians, consistency of theology is vital. What we believe in one area of theology must be compatible and free of conflict with our beliefs in all other areas of theology. A heaven that is an entirely “spiritual” existence, free from any “physical” manifestations (e.g., a physical earth, creation, human bodies) is in conflict with many other central convictions of Christian faith. 

One such belief is the original creation. In Genesis 1, when God created the cosmos, he said that the creation was “good” and that human beings were “very good.” Therefore, Christians believe that the original creation was perfect but has been corrupted by sin. This view does not fit well with a view of heaven that says we are waiting to escape this corrupted earth and bodies to a completely different existence. The original creation was perfect, it was what God desired to create, and it is what God is trying to restore. 

A second belief is the resurrection. Christians believe that Jesus was resurrected from the dead, conquering the powers of sin and death, giving hope for our own resurrection in the same manner (1 Cor 15:20–22). The resurrection necessitates at least some physicality in heaven, because our physical bodies will be resurrected. It was Jesus’ physical body that was resurrected, albeit slightly different, and our resurrection will be in the same way. You cannot resurrect a soul or spirit, because a soul does not die; only something that has died can be resurrected. Our physical bodies are the only thing that fit this description. 

A final belief, and probably the most important, is the incarnation. Of central importance to Christian faith is the belief that God became a physical human being in Jesus of Nazareth. One of the reasons the incarnation was necessary is because God desires to save the entire human being (i.e., body, mind, spirit) and the creation. God is Spirit (John 4:24), and a Spirit can save a spirit. However, God had to fully become an entire person to save the entire person. If heaven is only a spiritual existence, then there was no reason for the incarnation and death of Jesus. (See our podcast episode, Was the Incarnation of Jesus Necessary?)

What Kind of God are we Left With? 

Consider, for a moment, what kind of God we are left with if heaven is an entirely spiritual existence. We are left with a God who created a “good” cosmos and “very good” human beings only to destroy it all and do something completely different. We are left with a “sovereign” God who began a Plan A (i.e., the original physical creation), knowing that sin would foil the plan and that he would move on to a completely different Plan B (i.e., a spiritual heaven). Why wouldn’t the sovereign God just start with Plan B instead of trying and failing at one thing to do something different? 

It makes much more sense for the sovereign God’s Plan A to be his only plan. Therefore, the end of God’s story is the beginning. Heaven is a return to the original perfection existent in the original creation. A return to the original plan. 

What View Do We Have of Human Bodies and Creation?

Suppose we allow belief in an entirely spiritual heaven to develop to its logical conclusion. Where does this belief lead us in terms of human bodies and creation? If our goal is to escape this physical creation and our physical bodies, why care for either? Why care about our physical health? Why care about other people’s physical bodies? Why provide people with food, water, clothes, and shelter? Why does it matter what we do and how we act in our physical bodies? Why care for the environment? Why not just destroy and burn everything down? That is what God is going to do anyway! 

However, if God desires to save the entire creation and resurrect our bodies, then God cares about human bodies and creation, and so should we. We now have a mission to transform the world, care for human bodies, and protect the creation. 

_______________________

Looking for more study? Check out our discussion on New Creation in the Life of Jesus here.