Of course Heaven is for real. The Bible says so. In the recently released and wildly popular book “Heaven is for Real” by Todd Burpo the author gives his eyewitness account of what he presents to be his son’s eyewitness account of Heaven. After a near death experience due to a severe case of appendicitis little 3 year old Colton Burpo claims to have gone to Heaven and returned. The book seeks to affirm the reality of Heaven based on the eyewitness testimony of what the elder Burpo experienced as his son began reporting visions of Heaven to him after his son’s death-type experience.
I have a few concerns about the book and its influence upon Christians. These are not angry postulations, but concerns. Disagreement does not need to equal defensiveness nor anger. Please realize that the propositions set forth in the book have serious and eternal theological implications and therefore deserve a thorough and lucid examination.
Of course Heaven is real. Unfortunately this book never tells the reader how to get there. There are three times that Pastor Burpo offers a few hints about how one might receive Heaven in the next life. On pg. 57 Colton expresses concern for a man that has died by stating that he could not go to Heaven unless he had “Jesus in his heart.” Of course the Bible never uses this language specifically to describe salvation and the eternal life that accompanies. Romans 8:9 does say that anyone who belongs to Christ has the “Spirit of Christ” but the way to Heaven certainly needs more explanation. As Todd describes Colton’s visit with “Pop” in the afterlife he admits that his grandfather was “a guy who went to church only once in a while” and that even his mother had persistent doubts about Pop’s salvation. He does share a story on pg. 90 about a preaching event in which “Uncle Hubert” asked if “anyone wanted to give his life to Christ” and Uncle Hubert “saw Pop raise his hand.” Let me be clear, I hope to see Todd’s Pop when I get to Heaven, but even here this does not tell someone how to arrive at the heavenly place. My hopes were high on pg. 111 when Todd reports a discussion he had with Colton about the meaning of Good Friday. The father asked, “Colton, do you know why Jesus died on the cross?” Colton responded, “Well, Jesus told me he died on the cross so we could go see his Dad.” This is a tender way in childlike terms of describing some sort of fellowship with God but still there is not direction to the reader on how this may become a reality in one’s life. The Bible states the importance of repentance from sin (Psalm 51:8-13; Jer. 3:22; Ezek. 33:5; Matt. 3:2; 4:17; 9:13; Acts 2:38; 3:19; 17:30; 20:21; 26:20; 2 Tim. 2:25) and trusting in Christ as Savior (John 1:12; 3:15-16; 3:36; 5:24; 6:47; 11:25-26; 14:6; 20:28-31; Acts 4:12; 10:43; 13:38-39; 16:31; Rom. 5:1-2; 10:9-10; Gal. 3:26; Eph. 2:8-9) in order to be saved from sin and be reconciled to God. All of this is missing from Burpo’s book about Heaven, but God’s book is explicitly clear. Although this book had a great opportunity to share the gospel with a large audience and explain to people how they may receive the work of God’s grace through faith in Christ it simply does not do so. Todd’s testimony about Colton’s experience is preeminent in the book rather than Christ and the Heaven He provides for all who repent and believe in Him.
No More Contradictions and Additions Please. God is particularly clear about the importance of not subtracting from nor adding to His revealed word. Deuteronomy 4:2 says, “you shall not add to the word which I command you, nor take from it.” Proverbs 30:6 states, “do not add to His words” and Revelation 22:18 offers this warning, “If anyone adds to these things, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book.” God commands at the beginning, middle, and end of His Word, “do not add to it.” Christians have historically understood that the Bible is God’s Word and that we are not intended to add to this special revelation. When someone claims to have gone to Heaven or received some type of direct vision from God they are actually claiming to have direct revelation from God Himself. The problem is that now the report of the revelation they claim to have experienced is an authoritative claim, placing their credibility on the same level as the Bible. Moreover, so many of these revelatory claims are contradictory not only with the Bible but also with each other. My concern here is not to compare Burpo’s testimony with others who claim similar experiences (a multitudinous and profitable literary genre) but to address the multiple extra-biblical claims in his book.
Here is a list of the multiple experiential claims which offer revelation that is way beyond the Bible. On pg. 63 Colton says that Jesus rides a “rainbow horse” and that the boy “got to pet him.” A culturally popular and non-biblical idea is mentioned on pgs. 72-73 as Todd says that Colton knows that “everybody’s got wings” in Heaven and “everyone kind of looks like angels.” This motif continues in Colton’s description of Pop on pg. 87 as he is said to have “really big wings.” Again on pg. 90 Jesus is described as riding a “rainbow horse” which is of course completely foreign to the biblical record. As Colton describes God’s heavenly throne on pg. 101 he says that Jesus is seated at the right hand of God which is something any preacher’s son will know but then problematically says that the left seat beside God’s throne is occupied by “the angel Gabriel.” Pastor Burpo then attempts justification for this extra-biblical assertion by referring to Gabriel’s appearance to Zechariah before John the Baptist’s birth. There is nothing in the Bible that refers to Gabriel sitting at the left hand of God. The description provided of the Holy Spirit on pg. 103 is somewhat alarming as the young Burpo says, “he’s kind of blue.” Although he admits “that’s kind of a hard one” we must be extremely concerned about descriptions of the third person of the Trinity which go beyond the Biblical revelation which He Himself superintended. Todd continues his testimony of Colton’s experience about Heaven and the need for swords for all who dwell there. He says, “angels carry swords so they can keep Satan out of heaven!” (pg. 133) Burpo then mentions the spiritual warfare that takes place in Daniel 10, but the biblical account speaks of battle in the spiritual realm not some desperate heavenly need to prevent Satan from entering Heaven. As he goes on, “the women and children got to stand back and watch...but the men had to fight.” (pg. 136) What are they fighting in Heaven you might ask. According to Burpo, “we’re fighting monsters...like dragons and stuff.” He tries to connect this vision to Revelation 9 and 20 but this requires a great deal of creative hermeneutical maneuvering. In response to many Catholic inquisitors Colton says that he saw Mary, the mother of Jesus, “kneeling before the throne of God and at other times standing beside Jesus.” That may coincide with Catholic beliefs but is not a part of the Bible.
The amount of extra-biblical claims should be alarming for Christians who believe in the sufficiency of Scripture for our faith and practice. Those of us who believe the Bible is God’s inspired word will be cautious about embracing claims of anyone who adds to the revelation that God has so carefully preserved for us. Heaven is real and we already have reliable eyewitnesses. The Holy Spirit inspired them to write the Scripture. The Old Testament prophets, New Testament apostles and prophets, and of course Jesus are sufficient eyewitnesses.
The Question of Motives. I cannot fairly respond to the motives of Todd Burpo in the writing of this book. I assume he has the best intentions. He certainly gives every indication of being a wonderful father. I was profoundly encouraged throughout the book as a preacher-father myself when I found many of the descriptions Colton gave about things he heard his father preach and teach him both nightly and weekly. Our children hear much more than we many times think and Colton provides great encouragement to any preacher wondering if children are hearing the ideas he is communicating. It was heartwarming to read about a father who in spite of a very hectic life, which required the juggling of bi-vocational ministry, still made nightly Bible reading and prayer a priority in his family life. I was bi-vocational for 10 years and I found myself relating to Todd in many ways. He provides a great example of a pastor-worker-father-husband-community servant and I am thankful for men who sacrifice so much of themselves for the sake of others.
I cannot interpret all of the reports of Colton Burpo. He was 3 years old at the time of his special event and 4 years old at the time his father began recording his reports. It is evident throughout the book that Colton was a wonderfully imaginative boy and that he has a father who has loved him and taught him the Bible. There are certainly many possibilities which could explain any of the descriptions in this book. I know from my own experience as a parent that there have been conversations which my wife and I assumed were private but later found out the kids heard more than we thought. Some people presume that since Colton was a little boy there could not have been any deception in his reports. This is not an accurate logical presumption because nowhere is it proven that youth equals lack of guile. Actually human experience has shown us just the opposite. Children are capable of deception from even their earliest days and any parent knows this. I am certainly not saying that Colton was deceptive, I do not know, but just because he was a child does not mean that he was not.
I should also say to those other multiplied authors who offer books in the genre of “gone-to-afterlife-and-write-book-about-it” that there is one way to help clarify your motives. Don’t write for profit. There are many things that are different about the biblical authors and contemporary authors about heavenly claims. Isaiah, Ezekiel, John, and Paul each claimed to have had heavenly visions. These occurred for the purpose of prophetic vision for the writing of scripture. They were not on some near death journey to heaven and back. Each time the men were terrified concerning what they saw as they were confronted with the mighty holiness of the glory of God. They were not concerned about trite details such as wings and halos but they were humbled by the magnificence of the Almighty. Each of these biblical authors were so impacted by what they experienced that they were also afraid to speak much about it. They certainly did not profit from anything that they wrote. And another thing, they were all willing to die for the truth they experienced.
The Evidence is Concrete. I have wondered why so many people have been so intrigued with these stories about people seeing Heaven. A good friend offered the suggestion that many people are seeking what they consider “concrete” evidence about the reality and content of Heaven. Possibly seekers are thinking that an eyewitness in this generation will provide them with more certainty than the biblical accounts, or at least that it might subsidize their faith. This should be carefully thought through, for what is at stake is exchanging faith in the concrete evidence of prophetic eyewitness accounts which make up the Bible for the eyewitness account of a father about what his 3 year old son claims to have witnessed. One may not see the distinction so I will remind you that Burpo offers multiple testimonies of details that do not exist in the Bible. These details are at best imaginative additions or at worst blatant contradictions. The Bible is sufficient for all we need to now know about Heaven. If God wanted us to know more in this life about the life to come He would have included it in His perfect revelation to us. Since He didn’t do that we must now keep our faith founded upon the firm foundation of His Word rather than contemporary claims of heavenly experiences. “We walk by faith and not by sight.” (2 Cor. 5:7) One day we will know more, for to be “absent from the body is to be present with the Lord” (2 Cor. 5:8) but for now...God’s Word is enough. Of course Heaven is for real, the Bible says so.
Further Recommended Reading:
Luke 16:24 “Then he cried and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.’ 25 But Abraham said, “Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted and you are tormented. 26 And besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, so that those who want to pass from here to you cannot, nor can those from there pass to us.’
Luke 16:27 “Then he said, ‘I beg you therefore, father, that you would send him to my father’s house, 28 for I have five brothers, that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment.’ 29 Abraham said to him, “They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.’ 30 And he said, “No, father Abraham; but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ 31 But he said to him, “If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.’ ”
BIBLICAL REFERENCES ABOUT HEAVEN:
No less than 530 times Heaven is mentioned in the Bible. Here are some of them:
Genesis 1:1; Revelation 10:6; Psalm 89:29; 2 Corinthians 5:1; Jeremiah 31:37; Psalm 103:11; Isaiah 57:15; Deuteronomy 26:15; Psalm 20:6; Isaiah 57:15; 1 Kings 8:30; Matthew 6:9; Isaiah 66:1; Acts 7:49; Daniel 5:23; Matthew 11:25; Psalm 11:4; 135:6; Daniel 4:35; 1 Kings 8:27; Jeremiah 23:24; 1 Chronicles 21:26; 2 Chronicles 7:14; Nehemiah 9:27; Psalm 20:6; Genesis 19:24; 1 Samuel 2:10; Daniel 4:13, 14; Romans 1:18; Acts 3:21; Hebrews 6:20; 9:12, 24; Matthew 28:18; 1 Peter 3:22; Matthew 18:10; 24:36; Luke 10:20; Hebrews 12:23; Matthew 5:12; 1 Peter 1:4; Luke 15:7; Matthew 6:20; Luke 12:33; 1 Corinthians 15:50; Revelation 7:16, 17; Ephesians 5:5; John 14:2; Hebrews 11:16; Hebrews 4:9; 2 Corinthians 12:2, 4; Galatians 5:21; Ephesians 5:5; Hebrews 11:5; 2 Kings 2:11; Revelation 4-5; 7:9-17; 14; 21-22
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