Will we work in Heaven?

Will we work in Heaven? At first glance this seems like a pretty abstract question quite unrelated to the nitty gritty of the here & now. But it isn’t. It is hard to love something that will not last - something that “doesn’t matter” in the eternal scheme of things. If work is solely part of this broken fallen world we live in – a have to, rather then a get to – it is a curse from which we will be liberated in glory. And thus work has more to do with Hell than with Heaven. With this mindset, is it any wonder that some Christians go through the motions in their jobs?

            There is no question that sin has corrupted our work. In consequence of their disobedience God did curse work. Our work now has an element of “painful toil” and the frustrations of “thorns and thistles” and a “great increase in the pains of childbearing” (Genesis 3:16-19). But I don’t need to convince you that work can be frustrating. I do however, need to convince you that work has an element of holiness, an element of eternity within it. Or at least I need to be convinced of this!

            As a child I imagined Heaven being a place of golden harps and white fluffy clouds – a land of unceasing worship – a never ending round of “Shine Jesus Shine”. I dropped this view because honestly at 15 it sounded more like Hell than Heaven to me! (Which exposes both the shallowness of my view of worship and the fickle nature of my affections for Christ.) As a young man Heaven became a land of “sanctified self-indulgence”. Sort of like a never ending cruise. Delicious food and drink, blue oceans, white sandy beaches, beautiful people, sports, entertainment, a land of leisure and play. A place to be served, to rest, to laugh and to never ever have to lift a finger to work again. Leland Ryken in his book Redeeming the Time: A Christian Approach to Work & Leisure writes, “the brief pictures of the future life that the Bible gives us provide no hint of work but only an abundance of feasting and celebration. In addition to the rest that remains for the people of God (Hebrews 4:9-10), there is play and festivity.” There is some Biblical support for this view. Consider:

^ESV Zechariah 8:5 And the streets of the city shall be full of boys and girls playing in its streets.

^ESV Jeremiah 30:19a Out of them shall come songs of thanksgiving, and the voices of those who celebrate.

^ESV Jeremiah 31:4, 13 Again I will build you, and you shall be built, O virgin Israel! Again you shall adorn yourself with tambourines and shall go forth in the dance of the merrymakers. … 13 Then shall the young women rejoice in the dance, and the young men and the old shall be merry. I will turn their mourning into joy; I will comfort them, and give them gladness for sorrow.

            Heaven will certainly be a place of great festivity, celebration and joy! But our view of Heaven is impoverished if we selectively quote the Scriptures. It is quite clear that work does continue in Heaven. Consider these scriptures:

^ESV Jeremiah 31:5 Again you shall plant vineyards on the mountains of Samaria; the planters shall plant and shall enjoy the fruit.

^ESV Isaiah 65:17, 21-23 "For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth, and the former things shall not be remembered or come into mind. ¹⁸ But be glad and rejoice forever in that which I create; for behold, I create Jerusalem to be a joy, and her people to be a gladness. …. ²¹ They shall build houses and inhabit them; they shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit. ²² They shall not build and another inhabit; they shall not plant and another eat; for like the days of a tree shall the days of my people be, and my chosen shall long enjoy¹ the work of their hands. ²³ They shall not labor in vain or bear children for calamity,¹ for they shall be the offspring of the blessed of the LORD, and their descendants with them.

            We need to reconsider our view of Heaven. The Scriptures describe Heaven as a place of leisure and work. But something glorious has happened. The curse has been lifted and work is no longer frustrating. In fact it seems that in Heaven work and leisure overlap! Heaven is a place where our avocation (what we most enjoy doing) and our vocation (what we do for living) overlap! If this is so, let give our very best efforts to our current vocations. For in doing so we not only glorify God we prepare for Heaven.