All tagged heaven
Do we feel particularly unworthy this morning? When we rose from bed did we feel dulled by the world as if we had lost our spiritual sheen? Well, cast that feeling off because we are living stones... pieces of heaven. When we look into the mirror we should rejoice, and see ourselves as a reflection of Christ’s perfection; we should see ourselves as a reflection of the Kingdom which is to come.
There are those who are more concerned about how many will be saved, and who will be allowed to enter the Kingdom of God, than they are about whether they are among that number. The real question remains; will we be prepared in our own faith at the time Jesus returns for the righteous? So, let’s ask ourselves, are we one of those who asks persistently “How many?”, and neglects to strive and ask “Will I be one?” We cannot save ourselves by knowing the number who will enter Heaven, no, only by having striven to know Jesus, and by waiting faithfully on Him, can we be among that number… whatever that happens to be.
We suffer the ailments and troubles of the world, but we will overcome them in this place with the help of our Lord God. He is good, and He will show us the vastness of His goodness if we are willing to wait upon Him. Do we believe? Do we believe with all our heart so that we can know without a doubt that He is with us, and that we will see His goodness here in the land of the living? David believed in this way, and his faith encourages us to do the same.
Do we believe that God interacts with us in the present; right here where we are today? Do we believe that He not only exists in Heaven, but is able to reveal himself to us on earth, in this land in which we live? Well, David, a man after God’s own heart, believed this, and if we don’t then do we believe that God is really omnipotent and omnipresent after all? If we limit God to heaven have we set bounds on Him, seeing him as a prisoner, confined to a spiritual world?
There is nothing in the world that we should boast of because in Christ we are no longer its citizens; we are aliens in a strange and foreign country. We are like the thief who, crucified alongside Jesus, was made new by his faith, and dined thereafter in paradise. We are new creatures in Jesus, having been crucified to the world, even as it has been crucified to us. Today we are weary travelers in a distant land who long for the familiar sight of home, and the true joy, and comfort, that awaits us there.
As Christians we profess our faith in Jesus Christ, saying that He abides in us, we abide in Him, and that we walk with Him every day, but if we truly believe, and walk with Him,then how can some of us remain so firmly attached to this world? How can we be in a relationship with Jesus, who is not of this world, while maintaining our own earthly citizenship simultaneously?
During the life of Jesus leading up to the crucifixion He taught us many things, but in the forty days after His resurrection Jesus remained with His disciples and taught them, and us, about the kingdom of God. What a lesson it was. Today we look to the sky, and long for the second coming, we look forward to our resurrected bodies, meeting the likes of Moses and Elijah, walking through walls, our tears being dried, and so much more, but before this all occurs we have a few things to do. Are we ready?
We desire to praise and worship God, and His Son, the Lamb of God, and yet so often we feel lost as we attempt to do so. We kneel in our prayer closets, and offer up prayers in bowls made of gold, and yet they all seem to fall short. We lift our hands and close our eyes in reverence, but just can’t seem to feel the presence of God. This can be what we experience in places constructed in the world with human hands, but when we come before the eternal throne of God, and Grace, where we prostrate ourselves, then our praise suddenly takes wing, and our worship glows in glory because here we find the Father, and the Lamb of God, prepared to receive us into themselves as we join with all heaven and creation in praise, and worship.
We always picture Heaven as a place filled with praise, the continuous sound of worship, and the smell of incense, but on occasion it is also silent, being filled with the Holy Silence of God. Sometimes silence comes with prayer, and everything becomes still except the smoke of our prayers themselves as they rise before God. Yes, what we pray as words on earth become much more in the spirit world... they become incense, and fill bowls made of gold, and spoken words become silent feelings.