“When We All Get to Heaven”
Sing the wondrous love of Jesus;
Sing His mercy and His grace.
In the mansions bright and blessed
He’ll prepare for us a place.
Chorus: When we all get to heaven,
What a day of rejoicing that will be!
When we all see Jesus,
We’ll sing and shout the victory.
While we walk the pilgrim pathway
Clouds will overspread the sky.
But when travelin’ days are over,
Not a shadow, not a sigh.
Onward to the prize before us.
Soon His beauty we’ll behold.
Soon the pearly gates will open;
We shall tread the streets of gold.
What a comforting, joyful, exhilarating prospect this song presents! For though we are certainly walking “pilgrim pathways” these days with “clouds” of lawlessness, lies, and the lunacy of the cancel culture all around us, reminders of our coming redemption are of the utmost value.
“When We All Get to Heaven” was written in 1898 by Eliza Hewitt, a teacher and poet from Philadelphia whose life, though deeply affected by pain caused from a spinal injury, was a profound blessing to family, friends, and the untold numbers of Christians around the world who glorified God by singing such hymns of Eliza’s as “More About Jesus, “My Faith Has Found a Resting Place,” “There Is Sunshine in My Soul Today,” and yes, “When We All Get to Heaven.” I myself have been encouraged by these songs (most of which were set to the music of Mrs. Emily Wilson) and I am looking forward to meeting these faithful saints in what undoubtedly will not be all that far away.
But what is it about the song that so lifts our spirits and sparks our imagination? Well, several things actually:
1) The fact that the only way I can be allowed into God’s holy heaven in the first place is the “wondrous love” of Jesus that is hailed at the very beginning of the hymn. Jesus demonstrated that love through “His mercy and His grace” as He endured the cross to pay the penalty of my sin. Thank You, Lord!
2) Jesus is preparing for His people a place amid His heavenly mansions — a place that will be free of any stain of sin or rebellion. Instead, there will be purity, peace, righteousness, happiness, and a complete harmony between the believer and himself, with all the saints, with all of redeemed creation, and with the Triune God. Wow.
3) No wonder we will be rejoicing! No wonder we will “sing and shout the victory” when finally we see our Savior face to face. No more sighing. No sorrow or shame. No excuses or promises to try harder. The redemption that Jesus purchased with His death will be enjoyed by His adopted children in our glorified bodies and our undivided hearts.
4) That “day of rejoicing” will, of course, be a never-ending one. And though I have no doubt we will have adventures aplenty on the New Earth where God will dwell with men, the “travelin’ days” on this fallen planet where we are beset with continual temptations from the world, our own flesh, and the devil will be forever over.
5) And finally, I love the line from the final stanza: “Onward to the prize before us” for that phrase underscores the glories that will be awarded us by our gracious, generous God as well as the charge to actively pursue our sanctification until that upward call comes. As we relish the reality of those prizes, we find renewed and deepened resolve to endure the tests presently before us.
Today the clouds and sighs. But tomorrow the unveiled face of the Lord, the mansion, the shouts of victory, the prize, the oh-so-real-glories of heaven! That is absolutely wonderful news. And so today, with fresh resolve, I’m going to “sing the wondrous love of Jesus” indeed. Thank you, Eliza.