Randy Alcorn's Blog

Are We Forgiven for the Sins We Can’t Remember and Therefore, Don’t Confess?

Randy Alcorn — Fri, 05 Jun 2026 00:00:00 -0700

A reader wrote me:

I’m a Christian, and I know Jesus died for me. My question is, is it vital to remember all of my sins, so that I can ask for God’s forgiveness? I try, but I know I’ve probably left many out, though not on purpose. When I’m aware of sin, I immediately ask God’s forgiveness. But am I totally forgiven if I don’t ask for forgiveness for a sin because I can’t remember it? I thought of King David, who lived with unconfessed sin; it seems that he wasn’t forgiven until he asked God for forgiveness. I’m just so scared that I might not enter into Heaven unless I can remember all the sins I need to confess. Sometimes I think that I’m being attacked by Satan. Please, can you help me?

Scripture assures us that forgiveness is rooted in God’s grace, not in our ability to remember every sin. Ephesians 1:7 tells us, “In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace.” God’s forgiveness is complete and covers all sins—past, present, and future—when we place our faith in Christ. He is well aware of our hearts and our struggles with sin, which is why we need a Savior in the first place!

You referenced David; his story illustrates that unconfessed sin leads to spiritual turmoil. However, David’s eventual confession (Psalm 51) was not about recalling every specific sin but about a genuine acknowledgment of his need for God’s mercy. God had not rejected David over this sin, but He also was not going to allow David to fester in his sin, without confessing and dealing with it. In grace, He sent the prophet Nathan to confront David. Despite the serious consequences of David’s sin (consequences can remain, even when there is forgiveness), Nathan tells the king, “The Lord also has put away your sin; you shall not die” (2 Samuel 12:7).

Our assurance of salvation does not hinge on memory or perfection in confession. That would make salvation all about us and our performance, not about what Christ has done for us. Romans 10:9 says, “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” It’s about faith in Christ, not a meticulous inventory of sins.

I, too, suspect that the torment you feel could be an attack from the enemy. Satan seeks to instill doubt and fear, distorting our understanding of God’s grace. Remember that 2 Corinthians 10:5 encourages us to “take every thought captive to obey Christ.” When doubts arise, we’re to challenge them with the truth of God’s Word.

1 John 1:9 reassures us: “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” This doesn’t mean we must remember every sin, but that our posture of repentance and reliance on God’s grace is what matters. While we have a settled once-and-for-all forgiveness in Christ, we also have a current ongoing relationship with Him that is hampered by unconfessed sin. God loves us too much to allow us to be entangled by sin.

It’s good that you seek forgiveness immediately when you sin. This reflects a heart aligned with God. However, understand that God’s grace is sufficient (2 Corinthians 12:9). Your relationship with Him is not contingent upon your memory but upon His faithfulness.

John Piper reminds us that “The payment was perfect. You can’t add to it at all. You can’t add to your sin-covering at all.”

He says in a message about why we confess sin, when we are aware of it:

Jesus, once for all, by his life and death, purchased our forgiveness and provided our righteousness. We can add nothing to the purchase or the provision. We share in the forgiveness and the righteousness by faith alone. But in view of the holiness of God and the evil of sin, it is fitting that we appropriate and apply what he bought for us by prayer and confession every day. “Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors” (Matthew 6:11–12). Daily request for bread, because he has promised to meet every need; daily pray appropriation of forgiveness, because it is fully purchased and secured for us by the death of Jesus.

As a believer, you are assured of your salvation. The Holy Spirit testifies to our spirit that we are God’s children (Romans 8:16). Allow that assurance to bring you peace. Instead of fearing you might forget to confess a sin, focus on the relationship you have with Christ and what He has done for you. We should joyfully embrace God’s forgiveness! David described it this way: “Happy are those to whom the Lord imputes no iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit” (Psalm 32:2, NRSV).

It’s crucial to embrace the freedom and peace that comes from knowing you are forgiven in Christ. Don’t let the enemy rob you of the joy of your salvation and the assurance that you are secure in God’s love. Jesus said, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand” (John 10:27-28).

Remember, for those of us who are in Christ, God won’t ever say, “Well, if I’d known that, I never would’ve let you into Heaven!” God knows all your sins and my sins. Jesus died for them all. No exceptions.

So keep seeking God, growing in your relationship with Him, and trusting in His promises. You are loved, forgiven, and secure in His grace!

Wrestling with the Question of Why God Permits Evil and Suffering Is Intensely Practical

Randy Alcorn — Wed, 03 Jun 2026 00:00:00 -0700

Live long enough and you will suffer. In this life, the only way to avoid suffering is to die. Since suffering will come, we owe it to God, ourselves, and those around us to prepare for it.

Bethany Hamilton grew up surfing on the island of Kauai, Hawaii. At age five she chose to follow Jesus. When she was thirteen, a fourteen-foot tiger shark attacked her, severing one of her arms. Bethany returned to surfing one month later. A year later, despite her disability, she won her first national title.

Bethany says, “It was Jesus Christ who gave me peace when I got attacked by the shark.... And it was what God had taught me growing up that helped me overcome my fears...to get back into the water to keep surfing.”

She continues, “My mom and I were praying before the shark attack that God would use me. Well, to me, 1 Timothy 1:12 kind of tells me that God considered me faithful enough to appoint me to his service. I just want to say that no matter who you are, God can use you even if you think you’re not the kind of person that can be used. You might think: why would God use me? That’s what I thought.... I was like thirteen and there God goes using me!”

Bethany and her parents had given careful thought to the God they served and His sovereign purposes. Obviously not every tragedy leads to winning a national title, but Bethany began where all of us can, by trusting God; in her case, with a support system of people having an eternal perspective. Hence, she was prepared to face suffering when it came, and to emerge stronger.

Unfortunately, most evangelical churches—whether traditional, liturgical, or emergent—have failed to teach people to think biblically about the realities of evil and suffering. A pastor’s daughter told me, “I was never taught the Christian life was going to be difficult. I’ve discovered it is, and I wasn’t ready.”

A young woman battling cancer wrote me, “I was surprised that when it happened, it was hard and it hurt and I was sad and I couldn’t find anything good or redeeming about my losses. I never expected that a Christian who had access to God could feel so empty and alone.”

Our failure to teach a biblical theology of suffering leaves Christians unprepared for harsh realities. It also leaves our children vulnerable to history, philosophy, and global studies classes that raise the problems of evil and suffering while denying the Christian worldview. Since the question will be raised, shouldn’t Christian parents and churches raise it first and take people to Scripture to see what God says about it?

Most of us don’t give focused thought to evil and suffering until we experience them. This forces us to formulate perspective on the fly, at a time when our thinking is muddled and we’re exhausted and consumed by pressing issues. Readers who have “been there” will attest that it’s far better to think through suffering in advance.

In this two-minute video, I share that helping God’s people think through this subject is a major reason why I wrote my book If God Is Good:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yu-Nwcm79sA

Here is a three-minute clip from a message on this topic:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7sScsS7BBhc

And I share more thoughts about suffering in an interview with Pastor Greg Laurie:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RwBWFgZGP_Q

AI, Ghostwriting, and the Ethics of Book Writing

Randy Alcorn — Mon, 01 Jun 2026 00:00:00 -0700

In my last blog, I shared some resources to help us evaluate whether we’re using AI in a way that honors Christ. Today’s blog also touches on the subject of AI, but specifically related to writing books.

I know many people in ministry who are writers on the side, but I find in conversations that because of the demands of their ministries (often as pastors) they just don't have the time to carefully research and sift through or think through what they are writing about.

For all the years I’ve been writing I’ve known “content creators” who research and write on behalf of celebrities or pastors, without their names being recognized as the author. This is a moral problem for both the celebrity and the ghostwriter. If people put their own name to what they didn’t write, my belief is that it is simply lying. I’ve had people tell me it’s not lying if the ghost writers agree not to be mentioned, but in fact, lying with consent is still lying. Others have “editors” who do 90% of the work, including composing the first draft. They are not true editors but ghostwriters!

I firmly believe in editing, of course, and I don’t know what I would do without our staff editors, Stephanie and Doreen, as well as the editors who work for my publishers, but it seems obvious greater care should be exercised both in giving more credit to the people who’ve done the most work in creating a book, and that less credit or none at all be given those who have not done the work.

In 2002, I wrote on “The Scandal of Evangelical Dishonesty,” one component of which was the common practice of ghostwriting motivated by pride and financial profits. I got significant pushback on this, but years later many Christian writers joined me in speaking out against ghostwriting.

In 2020 I addressed this issue again, citing the excellent work of another author, Jenny Rough:

Angela Hunt received a call from an editor one day asking Hunt to ghostwrite a novel for a famous female Bible teacher. The teacher wouldn’t provide materials—or even the idea for the novel. “Anything with this celebrity’s name on it sold a lot of books, so the editor said, ‘Let’s get a novel with her name on it,’” Hunt recalls. Inventing characters and a plot felt different than bringing someone else’s message to the page. Hunt turned down the project. But the editor continued to shop around for a writer, and Hunt soon saw internet chatter about it in an online writing group.

Randy Alcorn was a member of that same group. Amid the banter, Alcorn posted a link to his article “Scandal of Evangelical Dishonesty” that included his views on ghostwriting. Hunt read it—and decided to stop ghostwriting unless she was named on the cover or title page. She realized it wouldn’t cost authors anything to reveal they had help. “It doesn’t belittle them to admit they’re not professional writers. Many secular writers refuse to ghostwrite for the same reason we Christian writers do—it’s not honest, and it disparages the work of the writer who has worked hard to learn the craft.”

Seventy-five writers from the group signed a letter and sent it to editors and publishers asking them to stop using ghostwriters for fiction. “We pretty much blanketed the Christian publishing industry,” Hunt says. The letter, finalized in January 2007, said ghostwritten novels are a form of false advertising and quoted Proverbs 20:10: “False weights and unequal measures—the Lord detests double standards of every kind.” Some publishers became defensive. Others promised to tighten practices.

But no industry standards exist.

Ghostwriting can be especially unpalatable in Christian publishing precisely because the book’s message often focuses on the Bible, a text that speaks against deceit. Karen Swallow Prior, the English professor, sees ghostwriting as misrepresentation plain and simple. “I don’t pretend to be a pastor giving sermons, so I don’t know why pastors pretend to be writers,” she says.

Alcorn makes the same point in one of his most popular books, Money, Possessions, and Eternity: “If we’re not telling the truth about who wrote the book—on the cover in large print—why should people believe what’s inside the book, in small print?”

In other cases, pastors or speakers turn in their sermon notes or transcripts to be crafted into a book, which is certainly better if the original work was actually theirs, not created for them by another person or by AI. I say better, since at least the named “writer” did the initial work. If that initial work is substantially produced by the named author, and an editor is simply proposing changes in wording, the editor should definitely be credited in the acknowledgments, and if 90% of the work was done by the named author, not the “editor,” that’s acceptable.

But when the named celebrity or pastor hasn’t done a substantial amount of the work (sometimes they don’t even look over the manuscript), and feels it was really his even though many of the best illustrations and the very best composition came from the “editor,” to me that is a major problem. There are Christian leaders going on podcasts and television being interviewed about “my book,” which in fact they did not write! When the predominant writer is not mentioned and someone who is listed as an author did a small percentage of the actual work, that is failing to acknowledge that readers have the right to know whether or not the celebrity wrote the book. If it’s “about” the celebrity and the actual author is made known, fine, there is no attempt at deception.

Where this hits the fan with artificial intelligence is that some believe if there is no human collaborator to receive credit, it’s fine for the user of AI to lay claim to being the writer—simply because he gave instructions to or asked questions of AI to produce a 30,000 word book on, let’s say, an evangelical theology of substitutionary atonement. Then he edits it (or not) and could conceivably “create” such a book in a matter of minutes, hours, or days. Or even if it took weeks or months, the primary “writer” would still be AI, not the person whose name is on the cover and is listed as the author on Amazon. As someone who has spent thousands of hours researching and writing articles and books for nearly 50 years, I know a bit about what writing is and is not! And I can guarantee you that having an idea for a book and handing it over to a person or a computer program is not even remotely the same as writing a book!

In this era of AI, I’m concerned that now everyone can have a ghostwriter without having to find and pay a ghostwriter! People can feed their thoughts or a few notes into AI and be delighted with how well written what comes out is. And yes, the results can be remarkable. But just as it was in the days of ghostwritten books that authors or publishers paid for, it is blatantly dishonest to take credit for what you did not write even when no other human wrote it!

A huge part of writing is the discipline of researching, writing, and word selection—all products of being created in God’s image and learning and applying and growing in actual human skills—which I fear will be largely lost. If you don’t do the hard work of research and thinking and putting your thoughts into words, it won’t just be taking shortcuts; it will rob you of the life skills that can only come in applying your mind to writing over the course of years.

If all of us could take shortcuts to become highly skilled runners, high jumpers, and pole vaulters, countless people surely would do so. We do not because we cannot. In contrast, the skills of a researcher and writer are every bit as real as that of a sprinter and marathoner, shot-putter and swimmer. AI cannot create a fake athlete, but it can be used, and is being used, to create fake researchers and writers!

A bestselling author friend and I were reminiscing recently in an email exchange about how things used to be so different in the industry, when both of our first books came out in the 1980s. He has good editors, as do I, but it all starts with what he writes. If the occasional sentence or paragraph is written by an editor as a proposed correction that the author gratefully accepts, that is one thing, but when entire chapters are written by editors—or by AI—they should be recognized as co-writers!

A further irony and complication is that by now I am relatively certain many career ghostwriters, including believers, are having AI compose their original drafts of books. Given the convoluted ethics of ghostwriting in the first place, why wouldn’t they? Now we don’t just have people claiming to have written books other people have written, but we have people taking credit for books not written by any human being at all!

How many people are now going to AI and saying, “Write for me a warm evangelical 25,000-word Christmas devotional, containing many biblical quotations, especially from the gospels and Isaiah, and also including quotations from Martin Luther, John Calvin, John Stott, Phillip Keller, and C. S. Lewis”? They come back to their computer later and begin to read “their” first draft!

Isn’t it reasonable for both Christians and non-Christians to be able to buy a Christian book with the confidence that the person identified on the book and publicized as the author actually wrote it?

I’ll ask what I asked 25 years ago: If we’re not telling the truth about who wrote the book—on the cover, in large print—why should people believe what we say inside the book, in small print?

How Can We Utilize AI in a Way That Honors Christ?

Randy Alcorn — Fri, 29 May 2026 00:00:00 -0700

For better or worse—and there is plenty of both—artificial intelligence is here to stay. I’ve found it enormously useful for various projects, especially when it comes to summarizing large amounts of information I’ve written.

For instance, I fed into it my latest book manuscript and asked for 150-word summaries of each chapter. The summaries were 95% accurate, and with maybe thirty minutes of editing they were helpful enough to share with sales and marketing people at my publisher and I’m confident will help others—for instance, people wanting to do a group study of the book.

On the negative side, someone asked me for some additional biographical info, so I asked AI, thinking it would be reasonably accurate by piecing together things online, especially from my blogs and books and our ministry website. But there were a number of inaccuracies in what it said, including that I attended Oregon State University (never have), majoring in business administration (never did). I can’t figure out what sources would have made these claims in the first place, which is one of the mysterious aspects of AI, making us personalize it, saying things like “I get the feeling AI is making this up” or “AI seems to be deliberately misleading me.”

AI has also informed me that I got remarried a few years ago, two years after Nanci died, which was quite surprising, as I think I would have been aware of that. I feel like I need to ask my [nonexistent] new wife for forgiveness since I’ve clearly been neglecting her! Not only have I not been taking her out for dinner, I’ve never met her nor do I know her name! (Though one source did give me her name, which I didn’t recognize.) Generally, I find AI to be 80-90% accurate, but unless I have firsthand knowledge, how do I know which 10-20% is inaccurate?

This is one of the interesting things about AI—sometimes it confidently (again, I am personalizing it) states false information. Why did it not say I had attended Multnomah Bible College and Western Seminary, when there are many online sources that say I did? If it was less than certain (personalizing again), which had to be the case, why not say, “Alcorn may have attended Oregon State and may have majored in business administration,” which would at least serve as a yellow flag, suggesting “Don’t put this in the speaker bio without further confirmation!” Likewise, why did it not say, “It’s possible Alcorn has remarried”? What’s remarkable is, If I hadn’t lived my own life, I would not know what about me was true and untrue!

I directed AI to come up with some questions on chapters I’d written. Some of the questions weren’t good, most were okay, and some were great. So I deleted the okay questions and some of the good ones, replacing them with my own questions which I thought were better. Hence instead of AI editing me, I edited AI. I was the researcher and writer of the book, but this was a time saver and also allowed me to do what I never would have had time to do. This is very different than asking AI to write something I should have researched and written myself!

If AI did the writing for me, I would feel like I needed to credit it just as if I were quoting a source on the web. My recommendation is that if you want to come up with questions for discussion on a book you’re leading a study of, first come up with your own questions, and then ask AI for other questions. I believe that if I am the primary researcher and writer, and if AI is a secondary help, that is the best and natural order of things. But were AI to become the primary and I the secondary, I would no longer be a writer but merely the programmer/instructor of a writing machine. Those, to me, are two radically different things. And they are the difference between true human intelligence that uses a tool, and artificial intelligence that can become a poor substitute for what it means to be created in God’s image.

John Piper gave a helpful answer to how a Christian can wisely approach AI use. He encourages us to ask, “How can I most effectively benefit from its potentials, and avoid its pitfalls?”

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Also see John’s answer to “Should I Use AI to Help Me Write Sermons?”

A good rule of thumb I’ve seen mentioned is that we shouldn’t ask AI to do what we reasonably (and ethically) wouldn’t ask other people to do for us. For example, it is reasonable to ask someone to help compile a grocery list, proofread a paper, brainstorm ideas, summarize information, or assist you in balancing your budget if you’re stuck. But it’s cheating for a student to ask a fellow student to write their paper for them, and therefore, they shouldn’t use AI to do that. It’s unethical for an employee to rip off another person’s report and put their own name on it, acting as if it were their own work and effort, so likewise, if you employ AI for projects, you must acknowledge you have done so, crediting it as you would credit a person. If you wouldn’t do that, probably because you don’t want to admit you were lazy, maybe it will push you to do the work yourself and learn valuable life skills!

In her article “3 Questions to Evaluate AI Use,” Bethany Broderick encourages readers to ask:

1. Am I using AI to push past my God-given limits?

“With each new technological advance, we’re tempted to believe that God’s good boundaries no longer apply—that we can know more, do more, and exercise more control than we were meant to. If we’re not careful, we can use AI in an attempt to be gods over our own lives.”

2. Am I using AI to replace wisdom gained from in-person relationships?

“Our AI use should never hinder the real human relationships for which God designed us.”

3. Am I using AI to neglect the work God has entrusted to me?

“AI should never lead us to sloth—allowing technology to do what God has given us the energy and ability to do ourselves. Instead, believers can use AI to support, not supplant, the good work God sets before us.”

Read the whole article here.

If Christians Shouldn’t Be Happy, Who Should Be?

Randy Alcorn — Wed, 27 May 2026 00:00:00 -0700

G. K. Chesterton (1874–1936) has been widely credited with saying, “Jesus promised His disciples three things—that they would be completely fearless, absurdly happy, and in constant trouble.” It might be argued that most Western Christians aren’t any of these three—least of all “absurdly happy.”

Christianity is perceived to be about tradition and morality, not happiness. I’ve taught college courses on biblical ethics, and I make no apologies for believing in morality. But some Christians, in the name of moral obligation, go around with frowns on their faces, dutifully living a paint-by-numbers religious existence and proudly refraining from what “lesser” people do to be happy. They seem to wear their displeasure as a badge of honor.

Ironically, the church has given unbelievers reason to fear that becoming a Christian will result in their unhappiness. They’ve known—as many of us churchgoers have also known—professing Christians who go out of their way to promote misery, not gladness. I’ve seen Bible-believing, Christ-centered people post thoughts on a blog or on social media only to receive a string of outraged responses from people who wield Scripture verses like pickaxes, swiftly condemning the slightest hint of a viewpoint they consider suspicious. If I were an unbeliever reading such responses, I certainly wouldn’t be drawn to the Christian faith.

I wonder why it’s not immediately recognized by those engaging in such behavior that what they’re doing is utterly contrary to the faith they profess and the Bible they believe. How is it that perpetual disdain, suspicion, unkindness, and hostility are seen as taking the spiritual high ground? Perhaps the message that Christians shouldn’t be happy has really been taken to heart!

Curmudgeonly Christianity abounds. Some professing Christians feel morally superior to those who engage with culture, and as a result, they major on making world-condemning judgments. They proudly abstain from laughter. They assume that barbecues and ball games are the spawn of sin. Grim-faced pharisaical “Christians” make Satan’s propaganda campaign far easier by undermining the Good News and promoting a negative view of happiness.

Who would ever be drawn to the worldview of decidedly unhappy people? Consider satirist and journalist H. L. Mencken’s (1880–1956) definition of Puritanism: “the haunting fear that someone, somewhere, may be happy.” (On the contrary, Puritans, judging by their writings, were some of the happiest people who have ever lived! Considerably happier, judging by his writings, than H. L. Mencken.)

In most unbelievers’ perceptions, Christianity hasn’t brought much joy to the world. As a religion, it’s primarily known for its rules, self-righteousness, and intolerance—none of which convey gladness and merriment.

This is not the whole story, of course. Throughout history, the Christian worldview has accounted for happiness-generating developments such as hospitals and schools, science and industry, music, drama, and the arts. And on a more personal level, nearly every community includes people with quiet confidence in Christ who are extraordinarily loving, kind, helpful, and cheerful. They gladly give of their time and money to those in need. Such people are rarely in the public eye, but they certainly exist. Sadly, however, to many people, they seem to be the exception rather than the rule.

Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) wrote, “Man is unable not to wish to be happy.” This means that all attempts by Christians to disregard or demean happiness are misguided and unfruitful. By creating distance between the gospel and happiness, we send the unbiblical (and historically ungrounded) message that the Christian faith is dull and dreary.

Let’s speak against sin but hold up Christ as the happiness everyone longs for. If we don’t, then we will assure our own unhappiness and feed the world’s perception that Christianity takes away happiness instead of bringing it.

Holy Spirit, please remove from me anything that would turn someone away from you. Please fill me so full of yourself that your happiness spills over onto everyone I meet today. Thank you that in your presence there is fullness of joy. And whenever I lack that joy, please draw me back to your presence for a refill.

Why a Book about Animals, and God’s Eternal Plan for Them?

Randy Alcorn — Mon, 25 May 2026 00:00:00 -0700

On a flight out of my hometown of Portland, Oregon, I struck up a conversation with the passenger seated beside me. I asked her about her work, and she in turn asked about mine. When I said, “I’m a writer,” she wanted to know about my books, so I told her about a few novels and mentioned I had also written nonfiction. But when I said I’d written books about Heaven, her body language changed, and she appeared very uncomfortable. My “religious” reference shut down the conversation. I wasn’t entirely surprised, because Portland has the highest percentage of people in the US without any religious affiliation—9 percent higher than San Francisco and Seattle, the nearest runners-up.8

In an effort to revive the conversation, I asked, “Do you have any pets?” Suddenly, her face brightened. “Yes, I have a dog!”

She showed me a photo, happily telling me all about him. I showed her a picture of my dog and shared how much my wife and I loved animals. I mentioned that two chapters in my big book about Heaven address whether animals, including our pets, might have an afterlife.

She looked at me wide-eyed. “Are you saying you believe there will be animals in Heaven?” I briefly explained the Bible’s teaching about the new creation and God bringing Heaven down to the New Earth, where many different animal species will live together peacefully with people. Just minutes earlier, she had disengaged at the very mention of Heaven. But now we were talking not just about animals, but about Jesus—the central figure of Heaven and the only way to get there.

Like many people I’ve met over the years, Christian and non-Christian alike, this woman had never heard of the biblical doctrine of the New Earth—a beautiful, restored planet with all its current wonders and much, much more, yet without evil or suffering. The prospect of such a place, a true Earth that included animals, moved her from disinterest in the afterlife to genuine curiosity.

Many people distrust organized religion but love animals and the natural world. They don’t know God, yet they cherish what He created. They catch glimpses of Him in nature (Romans 1:19-21). Their love for animals flows from being God’s image-bearers and can be a bridge to the gospel. Why? Because the God who created them also made the animals they adore.

Scripture tells us Jesus went to the cross primarily for humans, but also for the good of His entire creation: “Through him God reconciled everything to himself. He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of Christ’s blood on the cross” (Colossians 1:20).

God’s love for animals and His plan to restore all creation is a major biblical theme, though many believers haven’t yet grasped it—or, worse yet, have never heard it. For me, embracing this truth brings paradigm-shifting joy, which explains why the devil has worked so hard to hide what the Bible says about Heaven, even from those who regularly attend church.

That’s why I’m so excited about my latest book All God’s Creatures: What the Bible Says About Animals, Heaven, and the New Earth, which will be released from Tyndale House on November 17, 2026. It’s been many years since I’ve been this enthusiastic about one of my books! A large part of my excitement is that it is truly unique. There are many self-published and warm-hearted books about animals in Heaven, but they lack serious treatment of the biblical texts or the arguments throughout church history. Perhaps because of our biases, and partly because seminaries don’t address it, for pastors the subject of animals in Heaven is outside the box of orthodox thinking.

But it’s a biblical fact that God has revealed Himself in His creation, and we can see Him through it, even though creation is fallen. After human beings—the only creatures made in God‘s image—His next most important self-revelation is in animals—the other sentient beings in our world. The attention they get in Genesis 1–2 and again in Genesis 6–9 should clue us in to that.

As I was researching the book, I read Job 38–41 repeatedly. In all the times I had read those chapters before, never once had it sunk in that while Job is struggling with the problem of suffering, God’s response is His longest monologue in all of Scripture—a lengthy self-revelation—20% of which is about the inanimate wonders of His creation and 80% of which is about animals. I had long been struck with God’s obvious admiration for the horse and other animals, including Behemoth and Leviathan, but I never noticed that of all the topics He could’ve shared to win Job over, He chose to talk about animals! God’s revelation somehow brings Job to his knees in wonder and repentance. Clearly, God sees something in His animals beyond what many believers do today.

It’s ironic that the only theologians who talk most seriously about animals are liberal, but they import evolutionary assumptions and reason instead of appealing to God’s Word. I think the conservative overreaction, minimizing animals, is partly due to the liberal proclivity toward embracing evolutionary theory. Several wonderful conservative theologians, whom I admire and usually agree with, have argued, “Animals aren’t made in the image of God and therefore, have no place in the world to come.” Try telling that to the angels!

I haven’t asked for book endorsements for 15 years or so, but with All God’s Creatures I knew I would be swimming upstream with some readers who might not take a theology of animals seriously. Max Lucado and Sean McDowell graciously offered these endorsements:

Randy Alcorn’s books have blessed my life for decades. His volume Heaven guided me from a vague, ethereal perspective to an exciting view of the life to come. My copy is underlined, highlighted, and dog-eared! I have the same enthusiasm for All God’s Creatures. It specifically addresses the question of animals on the New Earth by explaining the promise of Scripture regarding our eternal home. Prepare to be informed, inspired, and empowered. Thanks, Randy for this brilliant work.

Max Lucado, pastoril; author of Tame Your Thoughts

Do animals have souls? Will they be in Heaven? Why does God allow animals to suffer? In All God’s Creatures, Randy Alcorn’s answers—based on Scripture texts—might surprise you. You may disagree with some of his conclusions, but you will undoubtedly enjoy his insights and be guided to wrestle biblically with these important questions. I love this book and believe you will too.

Sean McDowell, PhD, professor of apologetics at Talbot School of Theology, author; popular YouTuber

If, like me, you were never taught a theology of animals but would like to learn, I hope All God’s Creatures guides you a good distance on that journey!

Note from Eternal Perspective Ministries: You can now preorder All God’s Creatures from EPM, and your book will ship by media mail when it releases this fall.

One Day, God Will Wipe away His People’s Tears

Randy Alcorn — Fri, 22 May 2026 00:00:00 -0700

The movie Slumdog Millionaire, despite the controversies surrounding it, won eight 2009 Academy Awards and gained popular acclaim. The story’s poverty, violence, crime, and child exploitation provide a backdrop for a young man’s pure, unwavering love for a girl he met in the slums. The pair is tragically separated for years, and after they see each other briefly, she’s taken from him again. Yet he never stops trying to find her.

Against impossible odds, the boy and girl finally reunite. He pulls back her dupatta, revealing a long, captor-inflicted scar that disfigures her face. As she looks down in shame, the young man, his eyes full of tears, holds up her face and kisses her scar. Not first her lips, but her scar. It’s as if the scar itself is at last redeemed, somehow made beautiful.

The extraordinary power of the story lies in the depth of their love, forged in a context of years of injustice, evil, suffering, and separation. That climactic, love-filled moment could not have happened without the story’s disturbing setting. He could not have kissed her scar if she had no scar.

Likewise, the climax of Revelation 21:4, when God wipes away all tears from every eye, could not happen without the billions of tears shed because of the evil and suffering we’ve endured (and inflicted). It could not happen had Jesus not borne it on the cross for us.

David asked God, “Record my lament; list my tears on your scroll—are they not in your record?” (Psalm 56:8). David believed his suffering mattered, that God counted it as precious, so precious that the Lord kept an account of every tear.

This gives special meaning to the promise that God will wipe away every tear from His children’s eyes. Our tears are all recorded in Heaven’s books. God is keeping track of the pain behind each and will deal with them one by one.

When Jesus wipes away all our tears with His gentle, omnipotent hand, I believe our eyes will fall on the scars that made our suffering His, so that His eternal joy could become ours. “He will swallow up death forever. The Sovereign LORD will wipe away the tears from all faces; he will remove the disgrace of his people from all the earth. The LORD has spoken” (Isaiah 25:8).

Hasn’t God in Christ kissed our scars? And when we look at the scars on the hands and feet of Jesus, might we not, with tear-filled eyes, wish to kiss them?

Put a diamond only in light, and you will see some of its wonders; but set it against something dark then shine a light on it, and you will see what otherwise would have remained invisible.

I fell in love with astronomy years before I fell in love with the Lord of the cosmos. Night after night I observed the marvels of planets, stars, nebulae, and galaxies. As every backyard astronomer knows, streetlights and bright moonlight obscure the wonders of the night sky. In order to see the full glory of the stars, I learned that you must stay out for hours in the cold darkness. I did this night after night because what I discovered was worth it.

As the Heavens declare God’s glory in the absence of other light, so God shows Himself against the backdrop of evil and suffering—if only we are willing to look... and to discover that seeing Him is worth even the cold darkness.

Self-Obsession Is a Formula for Unhappiness

Randy Alcorn — Wed, 20 May 2026 00:00:00 -0700

On the first day of a vacation, I received a phone call that marked the worst publishing experience of my life. The book I’d worked so hard to write had been changed for the worse, and I was told I had no recourse. For the first and only time, I felt the published book would be inferior to the manuscript I submitted. Though I’d faced far more difficult circumstances, it was the low point in my professional life. I was disappointed not only by what had happened but also by how deeply it affected me. If you’ve ever been disappointed about your own disappointment, you understand.

We were at our friends’ house on Maui. Despite the beautiful surroundings, I stewed over this writing project, even though I realized I’d eventually gain perspective. (I did, but not until after the vacation; I just wanted to fast-forward to when I knew I’d feel better!) Meanwhile, I snorkeled for hours a day. That was the only time when the cloud dramatically lifted. Floating among the beautiful fish, turtles, eels, and sharks, and even enjoying that unforgettable ninety minutes of swimming with Molly the monk seal, I lost myself in these creatures and the God who made them. I forgot about myself, my shortcomings, others’ failings, and my disappointments. I left my troubled self on the shore. As long as my face was underwater, I was free and happy. It was only when I got out of the water and came back to “Randy’s world” that my happiness vaporized.

Sometimes I have that same experience of losing myself during quiet times with God. Sometimes I have it when laughing with my family and my friends. Other times it’s when I’m riding a bike or listening to music or a great audiobook.

Over the years, I’ve learned not simply to think less of myself but to think about myself less. When I’m thinking most about Jesus, not me, I’m most happy.

An article about unhappy writers says, “The common theory for why writers are often depressed is rather basic: writers think a lot and people who think a lot tend to be unhappy.” This is a half-truth. People who think a lot about themselves and their plans for wealth and success—e.g., writing a bestselling novel and being mentioned in the same sentence with Hemingway—do tend to be unhappy. But people who think a lot about Christ and His grace, the great doctrines of the faith, and how to love and serve others tend to be happy people. So it’s not thinking that’s the problem; it’s who or what we think about, and how we choose to think about them.

When I contemplate Christ—when I meditate on His unfathomable love and grace—I lose myself in Him—and paradoxically, I find myself. When He’s the center of my thinking, before I know it, I’m happy.

Tim Keller writes,

Don’t you want to be the kind of person who, when they see themselves in a mirror or reflected in a shop window, does not admire what they see but does not cringe either? . . . Wouldn’t you like to be the skater who wins the silver, and yet is thrilled about those three triple jumps that the gold medal winner did? To love it the way you love a sunrise? Just to love the fact that it was done? You are as happy that they did it as if you had done it yourself. . . . This is gospel-humility, blessed self-forgetfulness.

C. S. Lewis said of the humble person, “He will not be thinking about humility: he will not be thinking about himself at all.”

Keller, inspired by Lewis, says, “Gospel-humility is not needing to think about myself. . . . I stop connecting every experience, every conversation, with myself. In fact, I stop thinking about myself. The freedom of self-forgetfulness. The blessed rest that only self-forgetfulness brings.”

Why would we want to think about ourselves, the lesser, when we can think about Jesus, the infinitely greater? This happens directly, when we worship and serve Him, and also indirectly, when we love and serve others for His glory.

When we lose ourselves in God and His Kingdom, as Jesus says, we find ourselves—and, in doing so, we find happiness.

Let Scripture Turn on the Ignition of Your Imagination about the New Earth

Randy Alcorn — Mon, 18 May 2026 00:00:00 -0700

God gave us our imaginations, and when He says, “we are looking forward to a new heavens and a new earth” (2 Peter 3:13), He indicates this should be normal for believers. It is impossible to look forward to something if you do not envision it. People study in advance for trips, preparing themselves for seeing the great barrier reef in Australia or the Alps in Switzerland, or even for visiting Disney World. It is impossible to anticipate the new heavens and New Earth unless you use your sanctified imagination to envision what likely awaits us. Of course, you should never imagine anything that contradicts God’s revealed word. But you should take what He has given us in Scripture and let it fan into flames your imagination.

I use my imagination in my book Heaven. That imagination is not based on nothing; rather, it is based on clear, biblical passages. One of many examples is animals on the New Earth (see Isaiah 11 and 65). The traditional view of Heaven as largely a disembodied state with nothing for us to do and nowhere for us to go will lead to a false theology of Heaven that sees it as a better destination than hell, yet incompatible with human life and happiness because it is unearthly. But God made us to live on the Earth, and He designed us to live forever on a New Earth, which will be the capital planet of the new universe! No one can possibly get excited about that unless they allow the Holy Spirit to turn on the ignition of their imagination.

That imagination should be firmly restrained by any fences that Scripture gives us, but we should never reduce Heaven to some pitiful disembodied existence that is completely contradicted by the resurrection of Jesus and the promise that we will become like Him in our resurrection. Still, some may say, “We can’t imagine what the New Earth would be like.” I disagree. When God speaks of us having “new bodies” do we shrug our shoulders and say, “I can’t imagine what a new body would be”? Of course we can imagine it. We know what a body is—we’ve had one all our lives! Look in the mirror—you can see what a body is, and you can remember when it looked better. You can imagine a new body.

Likewise, we can imagine a New Earth, because we’ve lived on Earth. So look out a window. Take a walk. Talk with your friend. Use your God-given skills to paint or draw or build a shed or write a book. But imagine it—all of it—in its original condition. The happy dog with the wagging tail, not the snarling beast, beaten and starved. The flowers unwilted, the grass undying, the blue sky without pollution. People smiling and joyful, not angry, depressed, and empty. If you’re not in a particularly beautiful place, close your eyes and envision the most beautiful place you’ve ever been—complete with palm trees, raging rivers, jagged mountains, waterfalls, or snow drifts.

Think of friends or family members who loved Jesus and are with Him now. Picture them with you, walking together in this place. All of you have powerful bodies, stronger than those of an Olympic decathlete. You are laughing, playing, talking, and reminiscing. You reach up to a tree to pick an apple or orange. You take a bite. It’s so sweet that it’s startling. You’ve never tasted anything so good. Now you see someone coming toward you. It’s Jesus, with a big smile on His face. You fall to your knees in worship. He pulls you up and embraces you.

At last, you’re with the person you were made for, in the place you were made to be. Everywhere you go there will be new people and places to enjoy, new things to discover. What’s that you smell? A feast. A party’s ahead. And you’re invited. There’s exploration and work to be done—and you can’t wait to get started!

Who Do You Say Jesus Is?

Randy Alcorn — Fri, 15 May 2026 00:00:00 -0700

Having been raised with no knowledge of God, part of what drew me to Christ is how the Gospel accounts seemed so contrary to typical human reasoning. Yet I found them completely credible. No human would make up such a story! It had the ring of truth to me…and still has.

In the Old Testament, we read how God kept reaching down to His people: “The Lord…sent word to them through his messengers again and again, because he had pity on his people…But they mocked God’s messengers, despised his words and scoffed at his prophets” (2 Chronicles 36:15-16).

The prophets foretold the coming of Messiah. Yet centuries of oppression and suffering passed, and many lost hope. In every generation there were people like Simeon and Anna who longed for and prayed for Messiah’s coming. And finally, when the Redeemer’s absence became unbearable, He came: “But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman” (Galatians 4:4).

Jesus came to us in humility. He didn’t have the honor of being born to the house of a king. He wasn’t born in Rome, the world’s political capital, or Athens, the philosophical capital, or Alexandria, the intellectual capital, or even Jerusalem, the religious capital. He was born in tiny Bethlehem, which means simply “House of Bread.”

Jesus came in humiliation. Everyone who could count thought He was conceived out of wedlock, a shameful thing in that time and place. He grew up in a town of ill repute, where a Roman military outpost accounted for moral corruption: “Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” (John 1:46).

Jesus worked as a humble carpenter, lived in relative poverty, and endured many indignities as He spent three years teaching and healing and speaking the good news of God’s Kingdom. And then, the eternal and infinitely holy Son of God chose to endure the most shameful death—crucifixion with its excruciating suffering—to take our sins on Himself. Not some, but all of them.

Jesus made bold claims about His identity, which religious leaders of His day considered blasphemy. He claimed to be God’s only Son, one with the Father, descended from Heaven and destined to rule the universe as King. And what response was He met with? “For this reason they tried all the more to kill him” (John 5:18).

Many today try to reduce Jesus to the role of a good teacher, one good moral example, maybe the best among many. But His own claims about Himself in Scripture make that impossible. In his book Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis famously pointed out,

I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about him: I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept his claim to be God. That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic…or else he would be the Devil of Hell…but let us not come with any patronising nonsense about his being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to.

The battle for human souls pivots on the issue of Christ’s identity. He’s the watershed, the dividing line between Hell and Heaven. Jesus made that clear when He asked his disciples about His divinity: “‘But what about you?’ he asked. ‘Who do you say I am?’” (Matthew 16:15).

That question is the most important one we will ever answer. Our own eternity hangs in the balance. Who do you say Jesus is? Who do you believe, in your mind and deep in your heart, that He really is? Every person must give an answer—and whether our answer is right could not be more consequential.

Excerpted from Face to Face with Jesus: Seeing Him as He Really Is.

Thoughts on Courage, and What We Can Expect in Heaven: Part Two of My Interview with Dennis Rainey

Randy Alcorn — Wed, 13 May 2026 00:00:00 -0700

I had a great two-part conversation with Dennis Rainey for his podcast “Inspiring Courageous Faith.” If you haven’t watched part one, you can do so here. We talked about Nanci’s cancer battle, and trusting Jesus when life is hard.

In part two, we talked about faith, Heaven, and the realities that shape courageous living:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_iChVEQpjKY

Dennis likes to ask his guests, “What’s the most courageous thing you’ve ever done?”

I think many of us struggle at times to be courageous and boldly follow Jesus—I know I do. But in my experience, when I have walked with the Lord step by step, He provides the strength and help I need, just when I need it.

For example, in the area of giving, it started with following Christ by giving a certain amount, and then giving more, and now giving even more. With advocating for unborn children, as I shared in the video, it started with Nanci and me opening our home to a pregnant young woman and helping place her child up for adoption. I served on the board of a crisis pregnancy center, and we gave substantially more of our income to support prolife work. We also participated in Life Chain (holding up signs that read “Abortion Kills Children”), went to abortion clinics, and did sidewalk counseling (at first not disobeying the law, then standing in front where we could be arrested). All of that was gradual.

So I would encourage anyone wanting to develop courage to follow the Lord wherever He is leading you, then depend upon Him to give you more courage to take the next step. Our lives are supposed to be what Eugene Peterson calls “a long obedience in the same direction.” God calls us to “stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong” (1 Corinthians 16:13, NIV).

Following Christ requires taking up our cross daily, which means little sacrifices made repeatedly again and again and again. It means living in light of eternal realities. And one day you will wake up and realize (or if you are humble you may not realize) you have become a bolder, more courageous, and more heavenly-minded person. That should not be the exception, but the norm for the Christian life. And it’s all by His gracious empowerment!

For while we are still in this tent, we groan, being burdened—not that we would be unclothed, but that we would be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee. 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 4-10, emphasis added).

Some further thoughts on courage:

“I would go to the deeps a hundred times to cheer a downcast spirit. It is good for me to have been afflicted, that I might know how to speak a word in season to one that is weary.” —Charles Spurgeon

“He that will not sail till all dangers are over must never put to sea.” —Thomas Fuller

“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the LORD your God is with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.”—Joshua 1:9

Cancer, Grief, and God’s Sovereignty: Part One of My Interview with Dennis Rainey

Randy Alcorn — Mon, 11 May 2026 00:00:00 -0700

I’ve long appreciated Dennis Rainey, a great brother. Eternal Perspective Ministries considers it a privilege to support FamilyLife, which Dennis and his wife Barbara cofounded along with two other couples.

Dennis has a new podcast called “Inspiring Courageous Faith.” He and I had a great conversation together, and in part one we talked about my wife Nanci’s cancer, my grief since she went to be with Jesus, and God’s sovereignty over it all. Dennis shared about a tragedy their family has walked through, and how they’ve trusted God through it, which was touching:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SHIax6dqbHY

On the topic of courage and trusting Jesus through suffering, here’s something Nanci wrote during her cancer battle:

“I believe that I shall look upon the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living!Wait for the Lord; be strong and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!” (Psalm 27:13-14, ESV).

To “look upon the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living” does not mean all of us will live as long as we want or that all will go according to our wishes and desired diagnoses in this life. The LORD’s goodness toward us is what He knows to be the best good, for now and forever, not what we think to be the best good for us.

His good may not always feel pleasant, or even fair in my limited perspective, but the truth is: His good is always perfectly designed for me. The LORD’s good carries His plans for my life; and His plans are better than I can imagine.

God often blesses us by revealing some of His good purposes in our lives. These are times when it is easier to continue walking the path He has chosen for us. He sometimes withholds the reasons for His choice of goodness in our lives until we see Him face to face. This too is part of His goodness toward us.

He desires that we trust in His character rather than our circumstances. For me to believe with all my heart in the goodness of God—under all circumstances—blesses my Father, my Savior, and my Comforter. That is to say: it causes God to rejoice in me. What could possibly be better?!

Dennis mentioned my booklet Grieving with Hope. If you’re dealing with loss and grief, my prayer is that it’s an encouragement to you, and a reminder that God is with you in your suffering.

Some further thoughts on trust:

We cannot always trace God’s hand, but we can always trust God’s heart.” —Charles Spurgeon

I will trust Him. Whatever, wherever I am, I can never be thrown away. If I am in sickness, my sickness may serve Him; in perplexity, my perplexity may serve Him; if I am in sorrow, my sorrow may serve Him. My sickness, or perplexity, or sorrow may be necessary causes of some great end, which is quite beyond us. He does nothing in vain.” —John Henry Newman

And those who know your name put their trust in you, for you, O LORD, have not forsaken those who seek you.” —Psalm 9:10

We Sow in Tears, But We Will Reap in Joy

Randy Alcorn — Fri, 08 May 2026 00:00:00 -0700

I read these words from one of Charles Spurgeon’s sermons, and found them both timeless and encouraging:

It will sometimes happen that where there is the most sorrow in the antecedents, there will be the most pleasure in the sequel. As the furious storm gives place to the clear sunshine, so the night of weeping precedes the morning of joy. Sorrow the harbinger; gladness the prince it ushers in.

[William] Cowper says: “The path of sorrow, and that path alone, Leads to the place where sorrow is unknown.”

To a great extent we find that we must sow in tears before we can reap in joy. Many of our works for Christ have cost us tears. Difficulties and disappointments have wrung our soul with anguish. Yet those projects that have cost us more than ordinary sorrow, have often turned out to be the most honorable of our undertakings. …You may expect a blessing in serving God if you are enabled to persevere under many discouragements. The ship is often long coming home, because detained on the road by excess of cargo. Expect her freight to be the better when she reaches the port.

"Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning." (Psalm 30:5)

As I’ve shared before, reading and discussing biographies of faithful believers can give both children and adults footprints to follow, especially through our suffering. So let me recommend John Piper’s excellent presentations on the life of Charles Spurgeon and the life of William Cowper (whom Spurgeon quoted above).

If you’d like to read more from Spurgeon, see my book We Shall See God. In writing that book, I became Spurgeon’s coauthor, without his permission, drawing extensively from the best of his sermons about Heaven and the New Earth and adding my own thoughts, so it’s about half and half. If the saying “it’s easier to get forgiveness than permission” ever applied, I’m confident it will when I meet Spurgeon and explain how he and I wrote a book together. :) It may help to tell him that all the royalties went to causes he would endorse!

Eight Myths about Heaven That Many Believe

Randy Alcorn — Wed, 06 May 2026 00:00:00 -0700

Big books full of Scripture, theology, and quotations from people long dead don’t normally sell well. Yet to my surprise, and the publisher’s, over a million copies of my 2004 book Heaven have sold. Innumerable readers, including pastors, have told me their views of the afterlife have radically changed.

Why? In an age when people try to make doctrines more appealing by ignoring or twisting biblical truth, here’s the irony—the true biblical doctrine of Heaven is far more attractive than the dull, inhuman view of the afterlife that has long prevailed in evangelicalism.

That off-putting perspective still imprisons many believers. Based on countless interactions I’ve had with readers of the book and others over the past sixteen years, here are eight persistent misconceptions about Heaven.

1. We will spend eternity in the clouds.

After the final judgment, God will remake the universe itself and then relocate the present Heaven to the New Earth, where He will live with His people (Revelation 21:1–4). The promise of Heaven on Earth shouldn’t surprise us, but it’s shocking and suspicious if we’ve always believed something else.

Many throughout history understood this biblical doctrine, including more recent Reformed theologians such as Herman Bavinck, Cornelius Venema, Anthony Hoekema, and Albert Wolters. Sadly, the great majority of evangelicals have not read their books. Even those who have don’t always grasp the implications.

At Bible college and seminary, my last New Testament classes ended with the final judgment in Revelation 20. In eschatology, we examined the pros and cons of a mid-trib rapture, and discussed the millennium, but we never talked about the new earth, the central subject of Scripture’s last two chapters. So we paid zero attention to the place where we will live with Jesus and each other forever! Pastors who have read Heaven often contact me to share that their education was nearly identical.

As humans, we’re no more drawn to a vague angelic realm than we are to eating gravel. We need to recover the biblical doctrine of Heaven, culminating in the New Earth.

2. The Bible says very little about Heaven.

A Christian leader once visited my office, asking what I was researching. “A big book on Heaven,” I answered. He replied, “First Corinthians 2:9 says, ‘No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him.’ So what will you write about?” I gave my usual response: “You didn’t complete the sentence: ‘but God has revealed it to us by His Spirit.’”

When God reveals otherwise undiscoverable truths to us, we’d better pay attention. “The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things that are revealed belong to us and to our children forever” (Deuteronomy 29:29). The Bible’s substantial information about the world to come belongs to us—and the Bible provides far more information than most realize (for example, Isaiah 60 is quoted twice in Revelation 22, suggesting it’s about the New Earth).

God wants us to anticipate what awaits us. That’s why Peter says, “According to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells” (2 Peter 3:13).

3. We can learn about heaven from people’s claims of going there.

A television network once called my office and asked, “Has Randy been to Heaven?” Our receptionist answered, “If he has, he’s never mentioned it. But he did do years of research in the Bible and church history.” The conversation ended abruptly: “We want to interview people who have actually been there.”

Too often, people view accounts of visiting Heaven as gospel. Obviously, God can show someone the afterlife if He so chooses. But “it is appointed for man to die once” (Hebrews 9:27). Since these stories are told by people who will “die twice,” it seems likely that they did not truly die the first time, even if vital signs weren’t measurable. A person’s memories under heavy sedation—and his or her ability to distinguish dreams from reality—aren’t reliable, but God’s word is (John 17:17).

The apostle Paul, who had been to Heaven, said, “This man was caught up into paradise . . . and he heard things that cannot be told, which man may not utter” (2 Corinthians 12:3–4). Many books, however, claim to divulge secrets that, sadly, some readers believe instead of Scripture.

4. Heaven now will be Heaven later.

When Christians die, they enter the present Heaven. “Grandma’s now in Heaven” refers to a temporary period between life on Earth and the resurrection.

Though the present Heaven is wonderful, “far better” than Earth under the curse (Philippians 1:23), it is not the place we’re made for. Our destiny is a resurrected life on a resurrected earth: “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth. . . . I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them’” (Revelation 21:1–3). Heaven is wherever God dwells and His throne is, and God’s dwelling place and throne will be on the New Earth (Revelation 22:3).

God’s ultimate plan is not to take us up to live with Him in His place (which happens at death). His plan is, rather, to come down after the resurrection to live with us forever in our place, the New Earth. As Jesus is God incarnate, so the New Earth will be Heaven incarnate.

5. We’ll live forever without a body.

Plato believed that material things, including bodies, are evil, while immaterial things, such as souls, are good. What I call “Christoplatonism” infects many churches, teaching that human spirits are better off without bodies, and Heaven is a disembodied realm.

Our inability to appreciate the physical nature of the resurrection robs believers of excitement for Heaven. God’s future plan of a renewed physical universe means we will live, eat and drink, laugh and play, rest and work, exercise our gifts as God’s image-bearers, and most importantly, be with, worship, and serve King Jesus.

Jesus spoke of the “renewal of all things” (Matthew 19:28 NIV). Peter preached that Christ will remain in Heaven “until the time for restoring all the things about which God spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets” (Acts 3:21). Yet somehow, we’ve overlooked an entire biblical vocabulary. Reconcile. Redeem. Restore. Recover. Return. Renew. Resurrect. God plans to physically restore His entire creation, including us, Earth, and animals (Isaiah 11:6–9; 65:17, 25; Romans 8:19–23).

6. Heaven will be boring.

Believing that eternal life consists of endless harp strumming furthers Satan’s strategy “to utter blasphemies against God, blaspheming his name and his dwelling” (Revelation 13:6).

Thinking that Heaven will be boring betrays a heresy—that God is boring. Nonsense! God made our taste buds, adrenaline, the nerve endings that convey pleasure to our brains, our imaginations, and our capacity for happiness and excitement.

“No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him” (Revelation 22:3 NIV). Servants have things to do, places to go, people to see. Our most common everyday activities will be worship, punctuated by the joy of joining the multitudes to praise Him.

First Corinthians 10:31 will apply just as much in eternity as it does now: “Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” We can worship God now by working, painting, playing, reading, writing, and enjoying every other innocent activity. How much more on a New Earth where righteousness reigns?

7. We won’t be us anymore or remember our former lives.

The idea that we’ll lose our identities in heaven is Hindu, not Christian. Resurrection will forever reestablish us as glorified human individuals.

Christ’s resurrection is our prototype. He proclaimed, “It is I myself” (Luke 24:39). When Thomas said, “My Lord and my God,” he knew he was speaking to the same Jesus he’d lived with for years. Job said, “After my skin has been thus destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God, whom I shall see for myself” (Job 19:26–27).

You will be you in Heaven. Who else would you be? Since we’ll give an account of our lives on earth, we must remain us, and our memories will have to be better, not worse. Scripture gives no indication of a memory wipe causing us not to recognize family and friends. In fact, if we wouldn’t know our loved ones, the comfort of an afterlife reunion, taught in 1 Thessalonians 4:14–18, would be no comfort at all.

8. Heaven will be a spiritual realm with no human culture.

A Bible college professor took offense at my suggestion that culture—including inventions, concerts, drama, and sports—will likely be part of the New Earth. But if we will be God’s resurrected image-bearers living on a resurrected earth, why wouldn’t they be?

We’re told Heaven is a city (Hebrews 11:10; 13:14). Cities have buildings, art, music, commerce, science, and technology. And of course, cities have people engaged in gatherings, conversations, work, and play. Heaven is also a country (Hebrews 11:16). Countries have land, animals, rulers, and citizens who are both diverse and unified. We’re told “the kings of the earth will bring their glory into” the New Jerusalem (Revelation 21:24).

Culture is the natural, God-intended product of His calling for mankind to rule over creation. If we believe Scripture’s teaching that mankind and earth will exist in physical form, as the entire doctrine of resurrection dictates, then culture must continue. How could it not?

Best Is Yet to Come

Since the resurrection awaits God’s children, we haven’t passed our peak happiness and never will. There’s no need for bucket lists, because our new universe adventures will far exceed this life’s. We really will live happily ever after. That’s not wishful thinking. It’s the blood-bought promise of Jesus.

We should daily look forward to a world without evil, suffering, or death, where God will live with us and wipe away our tears forever (Revelation 21:4). Anticipating the glorious realities of the resurrected earth has breathtaking implications for our present happiness and our sense of the far-reaching scope of the gospel message.

Let’s live upon Heaven’s joys now, jettisoning unbiblical and unworthy views of Heaven, and believing that the best truly is yet to come.

How Can We Sense God’s Leading in Our Lives?

Randy Alcorn — Mon, 04 May 2026 00:00:00 -0700

A reader sent me this question: I really want to follow Christ but at times I become anxious searching for God’s Spirit within me. How can I hear God’s voice and know that He is clearly speaking to me?

Knowing God’s voice, I think, comes from abiding in Christ, as we see in John 15. A vital part of that is His Word abiding in us. Confession of sin is also important, so our relationship with God isn't hindered by our sin. The wisdom and input of others—not just any others but very godly others—is certainly helpful. But in the end, there is a supernatural aspect to following God’s leading that’s more than knowing what the Bible says and listening to others.

It’s hard to put it in words, but sometimes I sense a definite prompting from God—call it the still small voice or whatever. Often, I’m prompted to pray for someone, speak to someone about the Lord, or to give them a book, and not just a book but one particular book. I remember years ago I was playing tennis with a non-Christian guy I’d never met. At the time, my default giveaway book to nonbelievers was Grace and Truth Paradox, but for some reason I really felt led to give him Lord Foulgrin’s Letters. I called him the next day to see if we could play again and he said, “I read that whole novel you gave me; it was very interesting.” I have no doubt God was speaking to me to give him that particular book.

I usually avoid the words “God told me to...” or especially, “God said to me, ‘Give him Lord Foulgrin’s Letters.’” Yet essentially, I do believe that’s true. I avoid saying it that way because for me, it’s never been an audible voice, and because there is a danger in thinking that everything that comes into your mind is a word from the Lord. But sometimes it seems just as objectively real even though it’s not audible. Of course, that’s my subjective sense, but I am virtually certain of God’s leading in some of these things even that are not directly stated in Scripture (but certainly honor and align with it).

In many ways, I think God’s voice has become clearer to me as the years have gone on. Maybe I’ve been around long enough now to evaluate the difference between a thought or idea popping into my mind, and something really coming from the Lord. Of course, much of life does function on the basis of principles, wisdom, and counsel. We don’t need an audible voice from God to know we should help the needy and share the Gospel!

I do have a greater sense than ever of God’s providence in arranging the people who come across my path. For example, when I was helping coach tennis, I got a call about a player who was really struggling. I called him and spent three hours with him, mostly playing tennis, but also building a relationship, and talking quite a bit afterward. I felt God directing me to call him, to say certain things, to pray for him, etc. I have no doubt of God’s voice and direction in this. On the other hand, when I came home, the Olympics were on, and I watched them for forty minutes. It wasn’t a matter of feeling God’s leading. It was a discretionary choice. I didn’t have to hear God’s voice to figure out what I should do.

Now that doesn’t mean that God’s Spirit doesn’t lead in such trivial things, but I can say that I don’t sense God’s voice in every detail of my life (nor do I need to!). But most days I have a number of things—small and large—in which I do think I’ve heard His voice in the sense I’m talking about.

I encourage anyone seeking to follow the Lord’s leading to relax and be patient, and let God develop your sense of His voice and direction more as the years go on. As long as you abide in Him and stay rooted in His Word, I believe you’ll find a greater sense of assurance of God’s leading and speaking in your life.

Randy Alcorn's Blog

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1. We will spend eternity in the clouds.

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4. Heaven now will be Heaven later.

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8. Heaven will be a spiritual realm with no human culture.

Best Is Yet to Come

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