|
|
||
|
|
|||
In the Bible, a number of chosen individuals have been granted brief glimpses of Heavenly scenes. We may read of a few of these: “In the year that king Uzziah died I [Isaiah] saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and His train filled the temple.” (Isa 6:1)
“And [Micaiah] said, ‘Hear thou therefore the word of Yahweh: I saw Yahweh sitting on His throne, and all the host of Heaven standing by Him on His right hand and on His left.” (1Kings 22:19)
“And I [John] saw Heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and He that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He doth judge and make war.” (Rev 19:11)
The fullness of Heaven, however, what it will really be “like” has been largely hidden from mankind. We are even partially told why: “For since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, O Elohim, beside Thee, what He hath prepared for him that waiteth for Him.” (Isa 64:4) This is later paraphrased by Paul in 1 Cor 2:9.
But while Isaiah’s statement is intended to explain that Yahweh’s glory is above humanity’s ability to perceive, Paul uses that to make a slightly different point, which is what we are going to look at today.
Before we get to that, though, it might be good to point out that if you look at those examples of Heavenly visions, and I included several so we would have a sample to work with, the focus is always on Yahweh Himself. We don’t read of rivers, and temples, and people standing around in white robes. Some latter day prophets were given a little more detail, but the Biblical authors always focused on the King, and little else beyond Yah and His immediate surroundings are described.
Even among the most beautiful elements of their vision, the prophets’ attention was always drawn to the Creator, because His brightness outshines even those perfect things which He has made.
So let’s go back to Paul’s reference to Isaiah’s vision, and read a little further. We will read the passage that contains the statement, so we will start at verse 7, and go all the way down to verse 14.
“But we speak the wisdom of Yahweh in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which Yahweh ordained before the world unto our glory, which none of the princes of this world knew; for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. But as it is written, ‘Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which Elohim hath prepared for them that love Him.’ But Yahweh hath revealed them unto us by His Spirit, for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of Elohim. For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? Even so the things of Yahweh knoweth no man, but the Spirit of Yahweh.
“Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God, which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth, comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.” (2Cor 2:7 – 14)
That is a longish passage, but all of it is important in order to understand what Paul is saying here. He agrees with Isaiah, that Heaven’s glories are hidden from our natural senses; and yet, the Spirit reveals them to us. But what does that mean, that “the things of the Spirit of Yahweh” are spiritually discerned? Can we see Heaven or not? Can we see spiritual things, or can we not?
There is an answer to this question. Let us read a very familiar passage that quotes Yahshua when He was speaking to His disciples, which I think reveals Paul’s reasoning better than a simple explanation would on its own. “And ye shall hear of wars and rumors of wars; see that ye be not troubled, for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.” (Mat 24:6)
Wars are fearsome things, and rumors of war lead people to anxiety, fear for the future, sometimes panic, especially if the war is nearby. Most of us here live in western countries, and for us, although wars are always going on, we tend to think of them as taking place far away, without any practical threat to our immediate health and safety. But understand, for most people, in most parts of the world, and at most times in human history, war is a very present threat, a very close reality.
And yet Christ tells His followers, “see that ye be not troubled.” Focus your eyes on something else, something beyond the natural senses, but something that is more “real” than anything you can see. That is what Heaven looks like. It is invisible to our senses, but it fills us with its reality, overwhelming the influence of the natural world. This is what allows us to be vessels of the Holy Spirit. This is what allows us to be channels of Yahweh’s miraculous power.
We are not surprised when Yahweh’s providence rescues us from danger. We are overjoyed, yes. We are humbled, and filled with thanksgiving, yes. But actually surprised? No… never that. We know Him. We know His promises to deliver us from danger. This is why we are the ones who heal the sick, raise the dead, and cast out demons. Yahweh’s servants say, “Adonai Yahweh will help me; therefore shall I not be confounded; therefore have I set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be ashamed.” (Isa 50:7) It is good to study the promises of our Father, and to find those that are specific to our circumstances… but this one seems like a “catch all.” This one seems to cover us fairly well. I will not be confounded, or confused. My thoughts will be clear, and I will know the truth. I will not be harmed by the unbelief and ungodliness of others – that is what it means to set my face like a flint, like a hard stone. “I know that I shall not be ashamed.”
Yahweh has not purposed to let His people be ashamed before the world, left in poverty, left in debt, left in servitude. Now, it is possible to take that idea way too far; we are not speaking about that “Prosperity Gospel” here, which teaches that Yahweh’s blessings correspond to material wealth. No, but we are saying that we believe in the promises we have been given. Paul writes, “Now them that are such we command and exhort by our Lord Yahshua the Messiah, that with quietness they work, and eat their own bread.” (2Th 3:12) It is a simple statement, a straightforward idea, but how can we eat our own bread, if we do not have our own bread?
More directly, “If then Yahweh so clothe the grass, which is to day in the field, and tomorrow is cast into the oven, how much more will he clothe you, O ye of little faith? And seek not ye what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, neither be ye of doubtful mind. For all these things do the nations of the world seek after, and your Father knoweth that ye have need of these things.” (Luke 12:28-30)
You know, that’s what Heaven looks like… a state of Sabbath rest that is not fearful about tomorrow, no matter what the world may threaten, no matter what the world endures. We are not promised the fulfillment of all our desires, at least, not yet, not while our desires may yet be… unpolished; however, we are promised what we need in order to fulfil Yahweh’s purpose for our lives. And that is what matters.
I could probably stop here… message complete. We now know what Heaven looks like, but I want to make sure that you are comforted in your faith. I want everyone to know that they are to lay their trust in Yahweh completely, because those who are at rest do not hesitate to be bold. When they work to correct false doctrines, or when they seek to evangelize the lost, when they meet Satan’s attacks with Biblical promises, they are not doing so because they are afraid of rebuke, or consequences, or failing to fulfill their obligations. They are not doing so to appear wise in the estimation of others, nor to collect their tithe as an “official” minister of God. The saints are at rest, settled concerning all these things; therefore, their boldness is entirely unselfish. Their boldness arises out of a desire to see Yahweh glorified, and men, women and children drawn to that revealed glory. They know the joy that comes from receiving that glory, and agape compels them to give others the same opportunity for forgiveness and atonement that they have enjoyed.
That is it. They will not seek recognition, or titles, or compensation. They would be ashamed to live in a mansion while others are impoverished, or to drive an unnecessarily expensive car while others go hungry. The things we steward should be adequate, elegant, beautiful when possible, but never extravagant. It is the animal mind, the carnal mind, which competes, and seeks to triumph over others. It is the divine mind, the mind of Christ, which sacrifices for others, and sees nobility in serving them.
“Let not your heart be troubled.” Yahshua does not tell us that conflict and suffering are non-existent, or irrelevant, or even that they aren’t important. But they are not sufficient to damage our peace. They are not capable of causing us to submit to temptation. In the desert, before His baptism by John, Yahshua endured the three great temptations of the devil, and every soul faces these three temptations, albeit in different forms.
First, Yahshua was hungry, to the point of starvation, yet He would not work a miracle for selfish reasons. In this, He overcame the temptation to worship the needs of the physical body.
For the second temptation, Yahshua was sure of the Father’s protection, yet He would not act recklessly or presumptuously in casting Himself off the roof of the temple. In this, He overcame the temptation of the faithful to extremism and imbalance.
Finally, Yahshua was offered all the riches of the world, yet He would not compromise His integrity. In this, He overcame the desire for the praise of men, for the fulfillment of pride, and the satisfaction of a worldly reputation.
He did these things, and conquered, because His mind was resting on the Father, just as in Isaiah’s vision. Just as in John’s vision. The Heavens open up, and while there are many wonderful things to see, we see the Father. We see our Father, shining in His glory.
Here on earth, while we await the physical manifestation of our divine Inheritance, we see past the veil, so that even when challenges arise, deadly and deceitful, our minds are resting on the Father and His promises, and we see Heaven. It is not perceived with our physical senses; nevertheless, it fills us with its light, and we shall not be confounded, nor shall we be ashamed before the world.
Heaven can look, to the earthly observer, like a lot of different things. It can look like wars, and rumors of war. It can look like a medical crisis. It can look like a frustrating relationship. It can look like a blown-out car tire. It can look like a broken friendship. But to the mind at rest, the mind that trusts in the promises of Yahweh, it is one more step on streets of gold.
And I am not saying that we do not acknowledge when a challenge is a challenge. No, I’ve seen people taking even this principle to an extreme, and some even destroyed by it. If they are suffering from a health crisis, but do nothing to correct it because, “I’m blessed, no matter what… the Lord will provide,” that is a kind of presumption. We are told to present our petitions to Yahweh, and to ask our brothers and sisters to join us in prayer when we are seeking to overcome a trial.
The balance is not that the trial does not exist. Sometimes we are thrown into a fiery furnace, like Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. We do not say, “Oh, this is lovely… there’s no furnace here.” There is a furnace, in fact, it is important to acknowledge that there is a furnace, otherwise the witnesses will think us foolish, not faithful. The testimony is that we are in the fire, we are in the furnace, but we are not harmed because Yahshua is with us.
If we say, “There is no furnace,” we deny reality, we reject the test rather than overcome it. If we say, “There is no illness,” or “There is no financial concern,” or “There is no miscommunication to address,” or “There is no false thought to identify and reject,” then we will have no testimony when Yahweh delivers us. In fact, Yahweh may not deliver such an individual at all, because denial is not faith. Faith sees what is true, but sees the greater reality along with it, and rejoices that it is greater. Here is an example of what I mean, and I will conclude with a very brief discussion of this passage:
“And when the servant of the man of Elohim was risen early, and gone forth, behold, an host compassed the city both with horses and chariots. And his servant said unto him, ‘Alas, my master! How shall we do?’ And he answered, ‘Fear not, for they that be with us are more than they that be with them.’ And Elisha prayed, and said, ‘Yahweh, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see.’ And Yahweh opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha. (2Kings 6:15 – 17)
Yahweh did not hide the armies of the King of Syria from the eyes of Elisha’s servant. I suppose that would have been just as comforting, to see the enemy’s army disappear. But that would not have been reality. Instead, Yahweh revealed more of what was true. The Syrian army was present, it existed, and it desired to overcome the faithful. However, the greater reality was that Elisha and those with Him had the protection of a King infinitely greater in might, and the divine armies were already watching over them, ready to prevent any harm.
That is what the servant of Yahweh in his Sabbath rest knows to be true, not that the dangers are absent, but that the safety is greater, and that the testimony will be one of triumph, not of an unopposed journey. That is what Heaven looks like, the golden land at the end of a life of sanctification, and the life itself, lived now amongst the stones, and the thorns, and the vines that grow in shallow ground. It is all a part of the life and destiny that our Father has authored for us, each of us individually, and as we let Him take our hand and guide us, we will rest, we will be bold, and we will overcome. Spiritual things are spiritually discerned, as Paul wrote, and by the Spirit which dwells within us, we do indeed see, and we will help others to see Heaven, just as we do.
David.