WILL WE KNOW ONE ANOTHER IN HEAVEN?
Billy Graham wrote, “I am often asked if we will recognize each other in Heaven. My answer is a resounding yes!” He goes on to say that When David’s infant son died, David declared, “I will go to him, but he will not return to me” (2 Samuel 12:23). David assumed that he would be able to recognize his son in heaven, despite the fact that he died as a baby. In Luke 16:19-31,
DEAR DR. GRAHAM: Do you think we will recognize each other in Heaven? My husband died last year, and it would horrify me to think that we might not know each other because God had given us different appearances or something. — Mrs. M.L.
DEAR MRS. M.L.: While the Bible doesn’t answer all our questions about Heaven, I have no doubt we will recognize each other there. In fact, the Bible indicates we will know each other more fully than we do now.
The Apostle Paul declared, “Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known” (1 Corinthians 13:12).
It’s true that our appearance will change, because God will give us new bodies, similar to Jesus’ resurrection body. Those bodies will never grow old or tired, nor will they ever experience pain or suffering or death.
When Jesus was transformed into His heavenly glory before the eyes of some of His disciples, “His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light” (Matthew 17:2).And yet His disciples still recognized Him, and so did Moses and Elijah who came from Heaven to speak with Him.
Christ’s disciple recognized him countless times after His resurrection.
Mary recognized Jesus in the garden after his resurrection.
Christ’s disciples recognized the bodies of Moses and Elijah, even though they couldn’t know what they looked like. If we can recognize people we’ve never seen, how much more likely is it that we will recognize our family and friends.
King Saul recognized Samuel when the witch of Endor summoned Samuel from the realm of the dead (1 Samuel 28:8-17).
Abraham, Lazarus, and the rich man were all recognizable after death.
At the transfiguration, Moses and Elijah were recognizable (Matthew 17:3-4). In these examples, the Bible does seem to indicate that we will be recognizable after death.
Many people recognized Jesus after His resurrection (John 20:16, 20; 21:12; 1 Corinthians 15:4-7). If Jesus was recognizable in His glorified body, we also will be recognizable in our glorified bodies.
