Our sense organs 45

Heaven:
a) Heaven is a place where we will see and hear:
In the first place we will see God the Father and
Jesus in person: “we shall be like him, for we shall
see him (Jesus) as he is” (1 John 3:2). Furthermore:
“No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no
mind has conceived what God has prepared for
those who love Him” (1 Cor 2:9). Here on earth
we are astounded by God’s providence and wisdom;
how much more will we be astonished
when we see Him face-to-face in heaven, and
enjoy his presence eternally!
b) Heaven is a place where we will taste and smell:
The essence of heaven is described in the New
Testament as a great banquet where there will be
feasting. At the last supper Jesus told his disciples
“I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now
on until that day when I drink it anew with you in
my Father’s kingdom” (Matt 26:29). Also in the
parable of the royal banquet where the essence of
heaven with God as Host is described, we read:
“I have prepared my dinner” (Matt 22:4). In Luke
12:37 we find another equally important statement
in this regard: “He will dress himself to
serve, will have them recline at the table, and will
come and wait on them.” If the Son of God invites
us to dinner, we may presume that the spread will
be exceedingly rich and excellent.
c) Heaven is a place full of wonderful experiences:
When the prodigal son returned to his father, he
prepared a feast for him. After everything was
ready, we read in Luke 15:24: “So they began to
celebrate.” Another very important aspect of
heaven has now been expressed, namely that it is
a place of indescribable and everlasting joy. Everything
which pleases us will be richly available in
heaven – love, peace, friendship, and well-being.
It is noteworthy that Jesus addresses all five
senses during His last supper. In this way He
reminds us of our salvation which He effected,
and consequently also of heaven:
When the Lord’s supper is celebrated, the words
for its institution (1 Cor 11:23 ff) are usually read.
This involves the sense of hearing.
46
The bread and the wine are firstly observed visually,
then we see them as signs of the Lord’s presence.
We accept the bread, using our sense of touch.
“Taste and see that the Lord is good“ (Ps 34:8).
When we eat and drink, our senses of tasting and
smelling are also involved.
Hell:
a) Hell is a place of thirst and torment: The rich
man in Luke 16 calls to Abraham: “Have pity on
me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger
in water and cool my tongue, because I am in
agony in this fire” (Luke 16:24). In contrast, Jesus
says: “He who comes to Me, will never go hungry,
and he who believes in Me, will never be thirsty”
(John 6:35).
b) Hell is a place for remembering: The knowledge
of this life does not vanish when we die. In the
place of damnation the rich man thinks of his
brothers who lived just as godlessly as he did. He
realises that he could do nothing for them, and
thus requests Abraham to send Lazarus to them:
“Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my
father’s house, for I have five brothers. Let him
warn them, so that they will not also come to
this place of torment.” Abraham replied: “They
have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to
them” (Luke 16:27-29). It is a fact that nobody
returns from death to warn his relatives. Our only
guide to salvation is the Word of God – the Bible!
c) Hell is a place of darkness: In this life we enjoy
very many wonderful sensations through our
eyes and our ears. 83,000 people were present at
the colourful opening ceremony of the centennial
Olympics in Atlanta on the 19th of July 1996,
and 3,500 million people all over the world
watched the four hour show on TV. About 5,500
technicians and others cooperated to produce
this magnificent opera-like sound-and-light presentation.
Why were the spectators prepared to
travel so far and to pay hundreds of dollars for
an admission ticket? They wanted to see, hear
and experience something special. In the same
way heaven can be regarded as an immeasurably
superior “presentation” of beautiful and glorious