Books will last after Jesus’s return. That’s clear from Revelation 20:12, which refers to human life record books used for judging the dead. What then about other kinds of books, especially fantastical novels? Will amazing stories made by Christians, including those we explore at Lorehaven, last forever? Can we enjoy new stories? And what about great stories created by nonbelievers?

Episode sponsors “1232” epic audio drama podcast Realm Makers Expo 2025 Omega Plan by Jonathon Karagiannis Earthburst by Dan Megill Mission update

• Lorehaven reviews: last week Jake Rogers’ Planet, this week Fortified
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Listen to our whole Epic Resurrection series.

Quotes and notes

• Zack’s article: I Can’t Wait to Borrow Books from New Earth’s Library
• Heaven by Randy Alcorn
• Our own podcast series Epic Resurrection
  • 12. What if Jesus Promised to Redeem Not Just Our Souls but Our Bodies
  • 13. What if Jesus Promised to Redeem Not Just His People But His Creation?
  • 14. What if Jesus Promised to Redeem Not Just People and Creation, But Also Fantastic Stories?
  • 108: How Does Christ’s Resurrection Change Our Old Lives Forever? | with Tim Chaffey
  • 157. Will We Get Superpowers After the Resurrection?

1. To recap: Earth and physical reality is eternal

• Christians often catch a “meme” that it’s spiritually inferior to be human.
• But it was God’s idea that we should worship him in human ways.
• God tells people to make culture (Genesis 1:28, the Cultural Mandate)
• Sin corrupts our stories, just like creation (which groans) and us, decaying.
• Scripture has examples of people still making good stuff, not just Israel.
• Christ will redeem (not annihilate) creation. Why not human sub-creations?
• Scripture refers to eternal cultural practices (see Rev. 21: 24–27).
• Kings bring “the honor and glory of the nations,” but not “unclean” stuff.
• Scripture promises Christians’ good works will last. Why not our stories?

2. So we think fiction will also last for eternity

• Great stories are great because God is. He puts this goodness into world.
• Now, by redeeming our souls, Jesus also starts redeeming our creativity.
• Make no mistake: they’re still flawed, no matter how Christian in theme.
• But if the cultural mandate is forever, then human culture will last forever.
• Logically, if fiction is held suspect there, then it must also be suspect here.
• In fact, Stephen believes that if you don’t believe fiction will last forever, then there is no point devoting any of our time to enjoying fiction today.
• Let’s ponder how that looks. Actual books? Libraries? Clubs? Adaptations?
• Yes to all these questions, because, again, New Earth will be a real place.
• In fact it is critics, not supporters, who have burden of proof to deny this.
• Let’s talk special cases, like extra-biblical books mentioned in the Bible.
  • The reasons we’re fascinated with “lost books”
  • The “many other things” that Jesus did (John 21:25)
  • Other letters written by Paul or the Apostles
• The journeys to faith of our ancestors will likely be in book form.
• We’ll locate all the puzzles pieces that fit together to lead us to Christ and how God responded to our prayers, especially the angels involved.
• And we’ll know the meaning of our suffering (1 Corinthians 13:12).

3. Special cases: secular books and bad books

• What about secular books still be found in the New Earth library?
• Some of these books are quoted in the Bible, after all, and thus eternal.
• Randy Alcorn suggests that only truthful and Christian books will make it:

Books are part of culture. I expect many new books, great books, will be written on the New Earth. But I also believe that some books will endure from the old Earth. Any book that contains falsehood and dishonors God will have no place in Heaven.[1. “Will There Be Books and Reading on the New Earth?”, Randy Alcorn, Aug. 24, 20212 (excerpted from Heaven).]

• But we might keep some bad books for reasons we keep them now:
  • They’re a relic about the absurd beliefs people accepted back then.
  • They’re an amusement, a comical work of fiction people took seriously.
  • Or they had some good in them, too, which God used to help us.
• Whether the author is Christian, or the book good, we’ll finally be perfect.
• That means no book will ever tempt us to do anything more than laugh.
• We would have holy perspectives even on the most evil, “bannable” books.
• Believers may be able to finish book series, such as Evan Angler
• Resurrected saints may create new books—yes, Lewis and Tolkien too.
  • So we might focus more of our attention today on Christian books.
• For you authors, that means you would have all eternity for all the ideas.
• Time is short, but not that short. And our reading time would explode.
• But so will our days for real-life adventures that we only read about now!

Com station Top question for listeners

• What favorite books would you like Jesus to restore for eternity?

Next on Fantastical Truth

In just 1.5 months, the inaugural Realm Makers Expo will arrive in Grand Rapids. Like the continuing Realm Makers writers conference, this event marks a fantastic chance for Christian fans and creatives to meet with likeminded believers in Jesus. But any big Christian-led conference also attracts people who like biblical virtues and ideas as well as Christians ourselves, yet are not truly believers. How then can we best shine the gospel at Realm Makers?