"Will we eat in Heaven?"

WILL WE EAT IN HEAVEN?

Psalm 16:11 say,

"…..in thy presence is fullness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures forevermore."

Will the pleasure of eating be one of the pleasures we will enjoy at our Lord's right hand?

God created mankind with their five senses - touching, smelling, seeing, hearing and tasting. They are very much a part of who we are. And, as I said during last week's lesson, God may destroy what man has made, but He never destroys what He has made.

The sense of taste gives us, here in time, a great deal of pleasure. The average person eats about one ton of food per year. If the other senses are present with us in Heaven, why not this one. I believe we will have all of our senses, still active in heaven.

We will certainly be able to see and enjoy the jewel-splendored New Jerusalem, and hear the joyous praise of the angelic choir. We will be able to touch the golden streets as we walk with our Lord, and smell the fragrance and perfume of heaven as mentioned in Revelation 8. Why would we ever doubt that we will enjoy the sense of taste?

We will certainly have bodies, which will make it possible to eat. But, since we will never die, I don't think we will have to eat. Today, we live in bodies inferior to those we will have in heaven. Our present bodies rely on the subsistence of food and drink to help them grow and remain. But, being hostage to our bodies will be reversed in heaven.

The scriptures tell us that Jesus ate with people after his resurrection.

Luke 24:39-43 NKJV

39 Behold My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself. Handle Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have."
40 When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His feet.
41 But while they still did not believe for joy, and marveled, He said to them, "Have you any food here?"
42 So they gave Him a piece of a broiled fish and some honeycomb.
43 And He took it and ate in their presence.

His eating here certainly was not to keep his body alive, for it was now glorified and would never die. On this occasion, Jesus used eating as final proof that he was no ghost, but had a real physical and tangible body. By eating at this time, He also showed that the resurrection is not just a spiritual event of the soul as some heretics have espoused down through history.

The fact that Jesus ate following his resurrection, is a strong argument for the bodily, physical resurrection of Christ. The message of the resurrection is not only about the immortality of the soul, but is about the immortality of the body. According to Romans 10:9-10, nobody is fully Christian until he or she believes in the bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ.

In Acts 10:39-41, Peter shared his testimony of experiencing the reality of the resurrection. As he did, Peter made a point of telling of the food and drink they enjoyed with Jesus following the resurrection.

Acts 10:39-41 (NIV)

39 "We are witnesses of everything he did in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They killed him by hanging him on a tree,
40 But God raised him from the dead on the third day and caused him to be seen.
41 He was not seen by all the people, but by witnesses whom God had already chosen-by us who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead.

What was the key evidence of the reality of the physical resurrection of Christ's body? It was the fact that after He died He came back to drink and eat - some of the main acts of a living body. It is folly to spiritualize the resurrection, as many have done. It is a flat rejection of God's Word to do so.

Not only did Jesus eat in His resurrection body, He taught that eating and drinking would be a part of the eternal kingdom.

Luke 22:16-18 NKJV

16 for I say to you, I will no longer eat of it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God."
17 Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, "Take this and divide it among yourselves;
18 for I say to you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes."

Verses 29-30 (NKJV) add these words:

29 And I bestow upon you a kingdom, just as My Father bestowed one upon Me,
30 that you may eat and drink at My table in My kingdom, and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel."

In Luke 14:15, we read: Blessed is he that shall eat bread in the Kingdom of Heaven.

We also know, from the Old Testament, that God and angels ate back then. One such time was when God and two angels visited Abraham.

Genesis 18:1,2, 5-8 (NIV)

1 The LORD [Jehovah - God] appeared to Abraham near the great trees of Mamre while he was sitting at the entrance to his tent in the heat of the day.
2 Abraham looked up and saw three men standing nearby. When he saw them, he hurried from the entrance of his tent to meet them and bowed low to the ground.
5 Let me get you something to eat, so you can be refreshed and then go on your way--now that you have come to your servant." "Very well," they answered, "do as you say."
6 So Abraham hurried into the tent to Sarah. "Quick," he said, "get three measures of fine flour and knead it and bake some bread."
7 Then he ran to the herd and selected a choice, tender calf and gave it to a servant, who hurried to prepare it.
8 He then brought some curds and milk and the calf that had been prepared, and set these before them. While they ate, he stood near them under a tree.

Most of us like to eat and drink. Every reference to sitting at a table and having a banquet in heaven should forever free us from the myth of floating around without bodies.

The Old Testament also tells us that during the Millennial reign of Christ, He will prepare a banquet on Mount Zion.

Isaiah 25:6 NKJV

6 And in this mountain The LORD of hosts will make for all people a feast of choice pieces, a feast of wines on the lees, of fat things full of marrow, of well-refined wines on the lees.

(The last verse of the previous chapter identifies this mountain as Mount Zion.)

Feasts in the Bible are often celebrations of victory. The victory became a time for national rejoicing and success. Here we see joy and the abundance of good things combined with the presence of the Messiah when He comes to reign.

Revelation 19:7-9 (NIV)

7 Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready.
8 Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear." (Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of the saints.)
9 Then the angel said to me, "Write: 'Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!'" And he added, "These are the true words of God."

Although people will eat and drink in heaven, it will not be because they are hungry or thirsty.

Revelation 7:16 (NIV) informs us;

16 Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat upon them, nor any scorching heat.

One of the most conspicuous evidences for eating in heaven is the tree of life.

Revelation 22:2 (NIV)

2 …On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.

WILL WE EAT THE FRUIT OF THIS TREE?

I think that is what it says in verse 14, later, where we read; "Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life."

We will have access to the fruit of these trees. There is going to be new fruit every month which would just go to waste if not eaten.

In Revelation, chapters 2 & 3, we find the seven letters to the seven churches of Asia Minor. In the words to the very first church, Ephesis, we find these words.

Revelation 2:7 (NIV)

7 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.

There should be no doubt that we will eat from the fruit of these trees. God wants us to enjoy eating in heaven.

Here is another thought to think about. In Luke 16, Jesus portrayed the rich man in hell, as having the capacity to enjoy a drop of water on his tongue. What a paradox that would be if He gives those in hell bodies with taste buds, but denies them to the saints at the wedding feast in heaven.

We know that none of us has tasted all the delectable food God has created in this world. There are thousands of dishes we have never had a chance to try. I believe there is every reason to believe that in heaven we will be able to taste everything God has created. And possibly food not only on this planet, but everywhere else in the universe.

ARE THERE FOODS IN THE UNIVERSE WHICH ARE NOT GROWN ON THIS PLANET?

The Bible reveals that there is at least one. In Psalm 78, we have what is called "angel's food."

Psalm 78:24-25 (NIV)

24 He rained down manna for the people to eat, he gave them the grain of heaven.
25 Men ate the bread of angels; he sent them all the food they could eat.

Not only is the bread of angels mentioned, but it also talks about the grain of heaven. It is quite possible that there are many different kinds of food that the people on earth have never tasted. For all we know, it's possible that the twelve fruits of the Tree of Life is totally different from anything we have ever tasted. They could all be new ones, just made special, for the Bride of Christ. I don't think any of us would dare to say God has exhausted His creative ability.

If you will allow me to make a play on word, the Bible tells us that all He created were the work of his fingers. What would happen if He used both hands.

We do know that all the good things that have come from the hand of God is this life is only a small preview of the things to come. The best is yet to be.

The communion table is symbolic of the hope of believer's to one day to be with Jesus. To be at His table in the Father's house. This symbolic meal shows forth His death till He comes. It is but a taste of the good things to come. It is interesting that Jesus wanted us to remember Him always, by means of a symbolic meal. Eating with Jesus in heaven will be the fulfillment of all that He did for us on the cross.

Our heavenly bodies certainly won't need what is now essential; food, drink, oxygen, covering. But we will be fully capable of enjoying all these things.

If God surprises us with something we cannot now conceive, that is all the better. But until then, the literal hope of the enjoyment of eternal eating is not only legitimate, we have an obligation to thank God and rejoice in the hope of eating in Heaven.

Last Updated: Wednesday September 07 2011
©2001 John's Notes