As originally published in the August 8 – 15 edition of The Adventurer.
I was recently reading in an old book entitled Feathers of the Skylark, when I came across a most interesting illustration. It went something like this: A mother and father had just arrived home from the hospital with their newborn baby girl. They were met with great excitement and anticipation by their older daughter who was 4 years old. The older daughter immediately wanted to see, touch, and even hold her new baby sister as much as she possibly could, and even requested some time alone with the newest addition to the family.
Despite the caution of the parents and the uncertainty of the motives of the 4-year-old, they reluctantly agreed to allow the daughter in the baby’s room for some alone time as long as the baby was in the crib. The parents also installed a monitor in case the situation went awry. They closed the door and turned the monitor up to listen to the conversation. They heard their 4-year-old run to the newborn’s crib and ask in great anticipation, “Hurry, tell me what heaven is like! I’m starting to forget the older I am.”
This illustration, while thought provoking in nature, was intended by the author to springboard into a discussion on heaven consciousness. It caused me to think of Paul’s word to the Romans in chapter 8 that “called, justified, sanctified, and glorified” are all states of past, present, and future. It is happening but it has already been done. Our language does not often lend itself very well to this understanding, but nonetheless that is the intention.
I do think we would do well to think of heaven’s glory, at least what knowledge we have of it at the moment. The more we reflect on the glorified state, the more motivated we might be to share this reality with those who have yet to believe – that they too would see they were thought of before the beginning of creation (Psalm 139)! It would do us well to be heavenly minded enough to stir up a hunger in our hearts for more of what Jesus has to offer on earth as we anticipate the coming glory.
– Wes
“Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes.” – Ephesians 1:4 (NLT)