Will Our Pets Be In Heaven?
Before we answer this question of whether our pets will be in
heaven, we need to first understand what and where heaven is.
Heaven is not the final destination, it is just an intermediate state.
When believers in Christ die, their souls leave the earth, and enter
into the presence of Jesus. They will go to a place and paradise known as the
Abraham's bosom.
Luke 16:22
So it was that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels to
Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died and was
buried.
The dead will wait there till the Second Coming of Christ. While
being there, they will be freed from all the effects and evils of
the fall of mankind such as sins, pains and sicknesses. They will see
their Savior and Lord face to face, and have sweet communion with
Him continually. They will rejoice and celebrate in the presence of
God. They will worship God continuously.
Though perfectly and completely blessed, this paradise is only
temporary. It is just an intermediate state.
At the Second Coming of Christ, the righteous ones will descend
with Jesus to the earth. Earth will become the dwelling place of
mankind. All things are made
new in a new heaven and a new earth!
Revelation 21:1-4
1 Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the
first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no
more sea.
2 Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem,
coming
down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned
for her husband.
3 And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the
tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they
shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God.
4 And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there
shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no
more pain, for the former things have passed away.”
At the Second Coming of Christ, there will be the resurrection of
the dead.
1 Corinthians 15:51-53
51 Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we
shall all be changed—
52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For
the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised
incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this
mortal must put on immortality.
In the intermediate state or paradise, there is no record of what
the physical or bodily state of the dead will be, maybe in the same
state of the spiritual beings like the angels. But at the
resurrection of the dead, we will not all die, but we will all be
changed. It will only take less than a second. We will be changed as
quickly as an eye blinks. This will happen when the last trumpet
sounds.
Those who have died will suddenly become alive, with new bodies
that will never, never die. And we who are still alive at the Second
Coming shall suddenly have new bodies too. For our earthly bodies,
the ones we have now that can die, must be transformed into heavenly
bodies that cannot perish but will live forever. We will have
physical bodies that do not perish!
There is no records of whether our pets will be in the
intermediate state or paradise as they do not have a spirit in them.
However, there will be animals in the new earth!
Isaiah 11:6
The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb,
The leopard shall lie down with the young
goat,
The calf and the young lion and
the fatling together;
And a little child shall lead them.
Remembering Noah’s Ark, God did not only preserve mankind, He
also preserved the animal world. The animals are also His creation!
Genesis 7:1-3
1 Then the LORD said to Noah, “Come into the ark, you and all your
household, because I have seen that you are righteous before Me in
this generation.
2 You shall take with you seven each of every clean animal,
a male and his female; two each of animals that are unclean, a male
and his female;
3 also seven each of birds of the air, male and female,
to keep the species alive on the face of
all the earth.
There will also be trees, plants and flowers in the new earth!
Revelation 22:1-5
1 And he showed me a pure river of water of life,
clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb.
2 In the middle of its street, and on either side of the river, was
the tree of life, which bore twelve fruits,
each tree yielding its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree
were for the healing of the nations.
3 And there shall be no more curse, but the throne of God and of the
Lamb shall be in it, and His servants shall serve Him.
4 They shall see His face, and His name shall be on their foreheads.
5 There shall be no night there: They need no lamp nor light of the
sun, for the Lord God gives them light. And they shall reign forever
and ever.
Yes, back to the Garden of Eden where the river of God is flowing
in the City of God!
In the original Garden of Eden, Adam was given the divine task of
naming the animals and taking good care of them.
Genesis 2:18-20
18 And the LORD God said, “It is not good that man should be
alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him.”
19 Out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field
and every bird of the air, and brought them to Adam to see what he
would call them. And whatever Adam called each living creature, that
was its name.
20 So Adam gave names to all cattle, to the birds of the
air, and to every beast of the field. But for Adam there was not
found a helper comparable to him.
But the animals were not the same beings comparable to Adam
before Eve was created. Adam was incomplete with the animals! Adam
was alone!
So Eve was created. And Adam found his companion. But in
the new earth and new heaven, there will be no marriages and such.
Matthew 22:30-32
30 For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given
in marriage, but are like angels of God in heaven.
31 But concerning the resurrection of the dead, have you not read
what was spoken to you by God, saying,
32 ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God
of Jacob’? God is not the God of the dead, but of the
living.
There will be no marriages in heaven. And this does not mean that
a husband and wife will no longer recognize each other in heaven. But it
does mean that a husband and wife will not have a marital
relationship and status in heaven.
Just like God is the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the
God of Jacob. Yes, not the God of Abraham who is the father of Isaac
who is the father of Jacob. Three individuals - Abraham, Isaac and
Jacob. There is only one Father in heaven. The rest are His sons and
daughters – His children. There are no grandchildren in heaven!
There will be no marriage in heaven simply because there will be
no need for it. When God originally established marriage, He did so
to fulfill
certain needs.
Firstly, Adam was in need of a companion. It was not good for the
man to be alone. Thus God created a helper suitable for
him.
Eve was created to solve the problem of Adam’s loneliness. As a
life companion, Eve was also created to help Adam in the tasks that God had
given him.
In the new earth, nobody will be alone or will be needing
helpers! We will be surrounded by multitudes of believers and angels
in the holy presence of God. All of our needs will be met. We will
have good company and companionship.
Secondly, God created marriage as a means of procreation, filling
and multiplying the human race on earth. In the new earth, the earth
will be filled with human beings! There will be no need for
reproduction and new births. Therefore, there is no need for
marriage in heaven.
Given the same reasons, the animals will be there not to relieve
us from loneliness. Whether
they are our pets or not, it is quite obvious.
We have pets because they provide some forms of companionship and
relief for us. But there is no need for such companionships in
heaven. And this is not a disappointment or letdown.
The fundamental issue is this: Is God really good? Is He a
spoilsport or joy killer, wrecking the joys and funs of our life? It
was the same issue that Adam and Eve faced in the garden. And we are
still wrestling with this issue every day.
The devil is still whispering in our ears. And our flesh is
lusting and tempting to do what Adam and Eve did. The truth is this. God desires
us to be abundantly blessed and truly happy, and He knows all of our needs.
But if we adore and worship our pets more than Him, then they are
not good for us.
Thus, there will be animals in the new earth. Most probably, we
will take good care of them as God’s creation like Adam did. But
they will not be our favorite pets.
Our true one desire will be this:
Psalm 27:4
One thing I have desired of the LORD,
That will I seek:
That I may dwell in the house of the LORD
All the days of my life,
To behold the beauty of the LORD,
And to inquire in His temple.
God will show us the path of life. In His presence is endless
joy, and in His right hand is eternal delight.
Psalm 16:11
You will show me the path of life;
In Your presence is fullness of joy;
At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.
And we will never be alone again!
If interested, please view:
We Shall Behold Him
Written on:
28 April 2024