God promises He will one day wipe away every tear and take away all sorrow, pain and crying. (Revelation 21:4) In eternity all Christians will have unhindered access to the presence of God where there is full joy and eternal pleasure. (Psalm 16:11)
How can Heaven be a place of happiness without sorrow if those in Heaven remember their own failures? How can Heaven be a place without any crying if those we loved on earth are not in Heaven? How can those in Heaven know unending pleasure while also knowing all in Hell are suffering unending torment? For some the only answer seems to be that the people in Heaven can only have unhindered joy if God removes from them all painful memories and all knowledge of those once known on earth. That solution seems to create another problem. How can anyone retain their distinct identity if they do not remember who they once were?
No full solution can be given to this challenging problem, but an answer can be given which addresses some of the most pressing concerns. The wise person will remember Heaven is glorious beyond comprehension. None should expect to understand on earth what can only be understood in Heaven. The Bible does not present Heaven as a place of great forgetfulness, but of great delight.
These questions can be answered in part with the Biblical promises that the joy we have in Heaven will be so great we will not think on the sorrows of our life on earth. “The sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.” (Romans 8:18) “Our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.” (2 Corinthians 4:17) A mother’s pain of childbirth is intense, but that pain is not grieved later because of the joy she has at bringing a new life into the world. (John 16:21-22) The pains of this life are great, but in Heaven they will not be grieved because they will finally be fully understood. All sufferers will in Heaven understand and rejoice because of the great, eternal blessing their earthly pain has brought them. In the presence of God is a joy so great sorrow cannot endure.
In Heaven all will recognize the justice of God. The bringing about of God’s perfect justice will be the basis of great rejoicing. Revelation 19 shows this in action. The saints of God in Heaven rejoice when He destroys the kingdom of the Antichrist. ““Alleluia! Salvation and glory and honor and power belong to the Lord our God! For true and righteous are His judgments.” In Heaven God’s judgment of the wicked will be know by all to be right and just. None will revel in the agony of another, but all will understand and praise the perfect justice of God. Heaven rejoices in God’s judgment of the wicked because it displays His power, righteousness, truth, glory and justice. In Heaven humanity will rejoice because God’s justice will finally be fully understood and His glory will be displayed to all.
Heaven is a place of joy without sorrow because God is the joy of Heaven and the full revelation of His glory will bring delight beyond description.
Everlasting Truths 
Since there are no sorrows and no tears in heaven, I think that its likely that we won’t even realize that loved ones who “didn’t make it” aren’t there – simply because that would be a source of sorrow. It’s kind of circular, but I also agree that heaven is so far beyond our comprehension that we can’t even scratch the surface of its magnificence. Concern for our loved ones is an earthly concern – those things won’t even enter our minds when we’re in the presence of Messiah. This is the reason why “oh, Jack is looking down at us and laughing” is also not likely – once we’re there, things of the earth will be past. The third heaven is timeless, which is how Yeshua was able to show John the things of Revelation. And John did not sorrow over what is to come, did he? When you not only trust Christ to the fullest, but also live with Him forever, absent loved ones simply won’t matter because He is the bridegroom – the only loved One in our glorified lives, and He who provides those ‘joyous reunions’ – however they manifest – when we meet Him.
Pastor Ron,
Georgia