Heaven IS for Real: How Our Family is Handling the Hype

Unless you live with your head in the sand, I’m sure you’ve heard about the recently released movie, Heaven is for Real, and the book it’s based on.

Both tell the story of young Colton Burpo, who experienced a “trip to heaven” during a close brush with death when he was not quite four years old. When the book was first released in 2010, I was invited to review it and help promote it here on my blog. After reading it, I declined the offer, and our family isn’t jumping on the movie bandwagon either.

Here’s why, and what we’re doing instead.

I’ve been researching, praying, and writing this for several weeks. I have friends and family who have read the book and/or seen the movie and enjoyed it, and I don’t mean to step on any toes. I just want to offer a different perspective and bring up some things that may not have been considered. No matter what your opinion on the subject is, I hope you’ll approach what I’m offering here with an open mind.

Theologian Reinhold Niebuhr once said “We should not want to know too much about the furniture of heaven or the temperature of hell.” Yet many modern evangelicals seem fascinated with accounts like Heaven is for Real, dubbed by Tim Challies as “heaven tourism“. I’m uneasy with these accounts in general, but since Heaven is for Real is the one currently receiving all the attention, I’m focusing on it in this post.

Colton’s story makes me uneasy on several levels. On the one hand, I find the story touching as a parent. What an ordeal he and his family went through! On the other hand, while I’m in no position to judge the Burpo’s motives and they seem sincere and well-meaning, I think publicizing this kind of experience can be dangerous. Any time we begin to focus on someone’s subjective experience, we run the risk of elevating it above what God has revealed to us in Scripture, whether consciously or not.

Author Randy Alcorn put it well:

I have seen such great excitement among Christians in response to this book, and I’m sure that will be true of the movie too. I’m not questioning anyone’s sincerity, but this is an experiential account which, if it really happened, at its best simply confirms what Scripture has said all along. Yes, Heaven is real, but we already knew that, didn’t we? God’s Word has told us that all along. When there is so much fanfare about accounts that simply confirm what the Bible says, I wonder if we trust the accounts more than the Bible itself.

Christian philosopher William Lane Craig expressed a similar concern:

My concern is this: Christians, in their enthusiasm for the glimpse of heaven that is offered in the book, may begin to base their view of the afterlife and of heaven on these sorts of experiences rather than on what the Bible teaches.

Like most people, I find these kinds of stories intriguing. We’re naturally curious about and drawn to stories about the supernatural and life after death. But this can be dangerous territory. Is God’s Word enough for us? Are we finding more comfort and encouragement about the reality of heaven from the subjective experience of a gravely ill little boy than we are from God’s Word? He’s told us all we need to know about what comes after death, and if we’re willing to take the time to dig into it, He’s given us a wealth of information (more on that in a minute!)!

I have reservations about some of what Colton saw and experienced from a theological standpoint too. For one, the handful of biblical figures who were privileged to have a vision of heaven were so in awe they couldn’t even describe or speak about it. Why would Colton and others like him experience something so vastly different from them? And what do we do when these contemporary accounts conflict with each other? For example, Don Piper (90 Minutes in Heaven) and Kevin Malarkey (The Boy Who Came Back From Heaven) saw and experienced things that directly conflict with what Colton saw. Whose account is correct?

Brighter minds than mine have expressed my concerns better than I ever could, so rather than reinvent the wheel, I’m going to share a few links with you. I hope you’ll take a few minutes to click the links, read through them, and consider the viewpoints:

• How Christians Should Respond to Heaven is for Real gives a thoughtful evaluation of the movie: “Christians should be quick to remember that while Colton’s story might be heartfelt and inspirational, it isn’t the Bible. The film can be used as a conversational piece about death and a pointer to culture’s interest in the afterlife, but audiences shouldn’t allow this account to dictate their view of the afterlife. Yes, we can develop our theology of heaven from a book. No, that book is not Heaven is for Real.”

• What Hollywood Gets Wrong About Heaven evaluates Colton’s experience in comparison to the accounts of Daniel, Isaiah, John, and the others recorded in the Bible: “I fear we’ve sentimentalized heaven and by extension its primary occupant. I worry the modern understanding of God owes more to Colton Burpo than the prophet Isaiah. And I think this one-sided portrayal diminishes our experience of God.”

• Michael Patton did a thoughtful review of the book: “I don’t dismiss these types of things outright. I think they are fascinating. But neither do I hold on to them too tightly. Though I will continue to read about and reflect on people’s ‘I saw heaven’ testimonies, I will never hang my hat on them. Neither should you.”

• I hugely respect Randy Alcorn, and the subject of heaven is something he’s spent years studying. I really appreciate his thoughts on the book  and the movie both: “I do believe that something is seriously wrong if people take more time to contemplate and discuss Colton Burpo’s account of petting Jesus’ rainbow-colored horse, or of Jesus wearing a crown with a pink diamond, than they do studying what the Bible actually says about Heaven. The back cover of the book says ‘Heaven Is for Real will forever change the way you think of eternity.’ I would say, ‘Seek to let the Bible alone change the way you think of eternity.‘”

• Tim Challies’ opinion on this and other books of the genre he’s dubbed “heaven tourism” is worth considering, as well as his reviews of the individual titles.

• Nancy Guthrie, one of my favorite authors, shares why We Don’t Have to Read the Book or See the Movie to Know That Heaven is Real: “People sometimes say these stories encouraged their faith or the faith of someone they know. But I think they actually diminish biblical faith by elevating claims of a supernatural experience over the substance of the Scriptures. Most of these claims of seeing into heaven focus on earthbound concerns and stunted human desires that lack what the Bible describes as the heart of heaven—the glory of God, the Lamb who was slain, on the throne of the universe.”

• The family of Kevin Malarkey, who had a similar experience to Colton Burpo’s at age six that’s recounted in the book The Boy Who Came Back From Heaven, says his story has been exploited and that these type of books are dangerous. You can read more at his mother’s blog here.

• The Gospel Coalition has a thorough review of the book here.

• David Platt sums up his concerns without any sugarcoating in this YouTube clip, and John Piper offers his thoughts as well.

I’m not going to argue that Colton Burpo, and others like him, haven’t had real experiences that can’t easily be explained away. But they remain just that: the anecdotal, subjective experiences of finite, fallible human beings, and can’t tell us anything definitively. I just don’t think that sharing these accounts is beneficial or necessary. At best, they’re an interesting diversion, at worst, they have the potential to cause confusion and speculation, and draw people away from God’s Word. No matter how sincere or well intentioned they are, giving our time and attention to these types of accounts too easily tempts us to look to them as a source of hope over Scripture.

So, what is our family doing in response to the hype surrounding the movie and these types of accounts?

We’re doing a biblical study of heaven as a family, using our Bibles and Randy Alcorn’s comprehensive book and study guide on the subject. His book is based on Scripture and covers every question you could probably think of. Take a look at the Table of Contents to see what I mean.

We’ve had some fantastic discussions with our teens spurred by this study! We’ve read excerpts from Heaven is for Real and some of the other books of the same genre and contrasted them with what Scripture says. When the movie comes out on DVD, we may rent it and watch it so we can evaluate it in light of what we’re learning. But everything we need to know has been given to us, if we’re willing to take the time to find it and study it!

We will do much better if we trust someone who was actually dead, not someone who was just near death. Christ, as we shall see, is the only One who is qualified to tell us what we can expect on the other side. He was dead – so dead that His body became cold and was put in a tomb. Three days later He was raised from the dead with a glorified body. Here is someone whose opinion can be trusted. To John this risen Christ said, “Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last, and the living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of death and Hades “ (Revelation 1:17-18). Reliable information does not come to us by trying to peer behind the partially open curtain. God alone knows what really lies on the other side of the veil. And that is why we can do no better than study what the Bible has to say about the Great Beyond. Erwin Lutzer, One Minute After You Die p. 27.

Have you read the book or seen the movie? What are your thoughts?

Linked with Raising Homemakers, Works for Me Wednesday, Hearts for Home, Thrive at Home, Heart Filled Fridays, Essential Things Fridays, Fellowship Friday.