Intelligence, Reconnaissance, and Your Need to Know [part one] ...

In government, particularly in defense areas, or in the clandestine operations of intelligence services, one of the key principles they operate within is referred to as … “need to know”.  Even terrorist groups have discovered the value of compartmentalizing into various cells, so that no single group has all the plans and information of every other group.  When information is made public, plans and operations that might have been carried forward in secret become of little use.  But when information is presented to those who have need of it, better decisions can be made.  When information is made public, the public is then allowed to form their own opinions regarding the data.  Often a decision that would have been made while information was kept secret; is not supported or permitted once information becomes public.  Secrecy is often required to foster and make decisions of “questionable” moral character.  The public light of day makes those same decisions much harder to make.

But what if there were information that literally everyone needed to know.  In the war between good and evil, between God and Satan who has become His enemy, there is such information.  Satan would keep it secret, keep it hidden from view, and tell you that you have no need to know.  This is how information is handled in times of war and for good logical reasons.  God’s methods however, seem to defy that notion.  He offers to us scriptures, with detailed intelligence about His battle plans, locations, and outcomes of future events.  He reveals His best options right out in the open.  He details outcomes in truth that often show His enemy gaining ground in one of His most loved servants.  He seems to reveal plainly intelligence and reconnaissance information any enemy would take high advantage of.  For instance, in the previous chapter of Revelations, the battle that is to take place where all evil is finally put to an end, is staged as the entire evil host led by Satan surrounds the Holy City of New Jerusalem.  Since none of us here, up to this point, have any idea about the modifications God has made to this city in order to accommodate us living in it, this would have been considered in time of war … classified intelligence.  Scouting an enemy’s position, knowing the size of the object intended for conquest, knowing its entry and exit points, etc.. – is considered critical intel for a coming battle.

Yet here in the 21^st chapter of Revelations, God shows it to John, and asks him to record it in explicit detail for us to read, ponder, study, and know with a certainty.  So given our war is not over, and given this battle has yet to be waged, why did God think it important for us to know the size, composition, and these specific details about the New Jerusalem in the here and now.  Why is this intel something we need to know now?  How does it better reveal to us Jesus Christ, as with all of these Revelations, they are to accomplish within us a better understanding the Lord we serve, and of His great love for us?  Given that this intel is normally kept secret in a war, there must be some reason why God thinks we should know it.  Perhaps that warrants a second look at the data provided.

John begins to reveal this intel to us beginning in chapter 21 and verse 9 … “  And there came unto me one of the seven angels which had the seven vials full of the seven last plagues, and talked with me, saying, Come hither, I will shew thee the bride, the Lamb's wife.”  John begins by revealing his source.  The identity of the expositor of this information will be one of the seven angels who carried one of the seven last plagues upon our earth.  From a timing perspective, those plagues were carried out more than a thousand years before New Jerusalem would descend to our world.  For John, perhaps that vision was still very clear in his mind, and recognizes this angel as having participated in those events.  The topic of this intelligence however, is to be details about “the bride”, or “the Lamb’s wife”.  Why use this language to describe the city of heaven?  Why not simply call it out as the “Capital city”, or as the city which will be the center of the universe.  For those are surely both true statements and reflect the reality of war and peace.

Instead, the plainly capital city, is referred to as a bride or wife.  The institution of marriage created before the introduction of sin and evil into our world was one of singular intimacy.  Adam and Eve became one, through the ordinance and commitment of marriage.  They were united in a way that was special and singular.  They were bonded with each other on a deeply loving manner and maintained this relationship even after sin entered our world.  Now, here past the end of all things we know to be true, the same language, the same institution is alluded to in how Jesus Christ refers to the new City of Heaven.  For He sees each of us now, in a level of intimacy as close to Him, as marriage is to us.  The original marriage in Eden was composed of only 2 humans, but the third person in the triangle was to be Christ.  Every marriage relationship here on earth was to also include Christ, in that level of intimacy with each of us, and with both of us.  Marriages were to be founded upon Christ, the ones that are, seem to be able to endure all things.  Here past the end of time, marriage is not a forgotten concept.  Instead Christ refers to the place He has built to live with ALL of each, with EACH of us, as His bride.  For He intends a level of intimacy in His relationship with us, that is to be closer than anything we know, as close as a Husband should love His wife.

John continues in verse 10 … “And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God,”  It is unclear in what time John witnesses this event.  Most likely, it would have been prior to the final battle of mankind, as the city makes its first descent to our world.  In that sense, evil being outside the city is still viable as the ending cleansing fires have not yet begun.  But perhaps the city was elevated from our world during the cleansing fires that consume all evil, and this is it re-descending to our world made new.  In either case, John is exposed to information about the city that he would not have otherwise perhaps seen, had the city been settled into the ground where it was descending to.

John continues in verse 11 … “Having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal;”  John now begins to describe characteristics about the city, about the bride of Christ, that catch his attention.  First, the city is lit up with a light that originates in the glory of God Himself.  The light reminds John in nature of a Jasper stone that is as clear as crystal.  Whether he is aware of it or not, the light John sees is of the same nature he describes earlier in chapter 4 and verse 3 where he describes God the Father sitting on the throne as having the appearance of a Jasper stone.  It is the light emanating from God the Father that penetrates and illuminates this entire heavenly city.  Whether as beams, or particles, or waves, or simply presence, it is God alone who illuminates this city.  No electricity or power plants are required.  Neither is the light of a planetary sun and moon needed to illuminate the city of heaven.  The worship of nature, or of these solar system objects as having divine characteristics has ALWAYS been misguided.  It was our God who created nature, and the sun, moon, and stars – they are the creations, nothing divine within them.  And what is more, the light within this city dwarfs their collective brilliance.  The light from heaven originates there, with the presence of God the Father and then emanates outward.  The sun and moon, will be lit up by what they see in this our new world, not the other way around.

But more than just the brilliant green toned colors of a clear Jasper stone, what is revealed to us in this passage is that our family is not only to include Christ, but His Father God as well.  Christ and His Father intend and desire no separation from each other.  They love each other, and desire to be with each other.  They are family as well.  The beauty is that “we”, the humanity they have created, each of us, and all of us, are to be adopted into this family and dwell as close with BOTH of them as is possible.  We will be walking in the light of God the Father Himself.  He will not be on some distant plain of existence in a remote universe we can hardly fathom.  He will be quite literally … down the street.  You will “know” He is nearby, because His very light enables you to see.  How alike that is for us today.  It is ONLY through the light of God that we can find truth, see scripture as it was intended, and shed our spiritual blindness.  It is God’s light alone that can accomplish this for us today, even though it is not as visually apparent as it will be on that great day.

John continues in verse 12 … “And had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel: [verse 13] On the east three gates; on the north three gates; on the south three gates; and on the west three gates.”  Here John begins to reveal intelligence and reconnaissance information well ahead of the final battle with evil to us in the here and now.  Why tell the enemy ahead of time what to expect, and how to position his troops if this information is not critical to us?  What is so important about this structure of the city that we need to know now?  For in this Revelation, John is publicly exposing some fairly substantial details about the bride of Christ.  First, the city of New Jerusalem like its ancient predecessor, has a wall around it.  But unlike its ancient predecessor, the city is so large it requires more than a single gate in each direction in order to facilitate access in and out of the city.  So there are three gates facing each direction on the square.  There is an angel at each gate.  Presumably this angel guards access to the use of the gate, and supervises the comings and goings through these critical portals into the city.

But perhaps most importantly, God does not forget His promises.  The nation of Israel rejected Christ, the religious leaders in the days of the Messiah, rejected the cornerstone of their faith.  They threw away the hope of their redemption, choosing rather to maintain power over the people, and keep their own interpretations of scripture, rather than to see scripture through the eyes of its Author.  While this event scarred Israel, and forced the church of God to move away from its traditional bloodline into the gentile world and peoples, it did not undo the hope of the Messiah in the many generations of Israel that had gone on before that day.  The many members of the nations and tribes of Israel who died before the Messiah appeared were not forgotten by God, because their descendants rejected the truth of Christ.  Here past the end of all things, God renews His people and the nation called by His name, and He prints the names of the 12 tribes of Israel across the gates to the city.  For it is out of Israel that the Messiah came to this world.  It is by Christ we are able to enter this Kingdom.  And for nearly 16 hundred years, the tribes of Israel lived in the hope of that saving event. From Abraham to Joseph and Mary, the people who had chosen to follow God, are remembered here past the end of all things.  Think of it, God intends to honor those predecessors so highly, He will be inscribing their names across the very gates of His perfect city, of His bride.  And He does not just inscribe the names of Judah, or Benjamin, or Levy, but of all twelve tribes.

It is no accident that the empires and focus of the world in scripture centers around Jerusalem and the people of God.  The story might have been a different one, if instead of Abraham a Chaldean by descent, another patriarch of a different group of people had chosen to seek to find God with all of his heart.  After the tower of Babel, there was no Mayan traversing the continents who wanted to seek God.  Nor was there a Viking, or Chinese, or Indian, or Zulu who wholeheartedly sought to find our God.  For if they had, the center of focus would have rested in another region of the world.  The story of scriptures were never constricted to Abraham by the limitations of our God, but instead by the hard-hearts of his creations.  The Vikings and Zulu worshipped strength, not humble submission.  The Chinese worshipped tranquility.  The Indians worshipped nearly everything.  Every culture that descended from the Tower of Babel made a choice to worship anything other than the true and only God.  Even Abram’s own family were active idol worshippers.  He had to leave his family home, in order to leave the influence of this corruption of faith.  But what distinguished the nation Abram would give birth to, was an inheritance that began from a DECISION to follow God.

Abram became Abraham because he spent his life dedicated to following God.  Isaac made his own decision to uphold this tradition of faith.  Jacob, though highly flawed, made the same decision.  And so generations of descendants while far from perfect, made a similar decision to follow God.  When after Christ had come, a new decision was to be made, not one based on bloodline, but one based on whether to continue to follow the true Messiah or not.  The generations of Israelites who had lived before were located in the cross roads of early civilizations in order to bring the gospel of God to the people who lived around them.  They were intended to be a light so that God could reach all peoples.  While it did not work out well, it did not fail entirely as many seeds were sown around the world through what the people called by the name of God did.  Now, past the end of all things, God AGAIN remains true to His promises and publishes the names of the tribes of Israel across the gates that offer access into the city of New Jerusalem.  He ties the history of His people together, from the grandchildren of Abraham, to a city taken by King David many years later, to the Messiah.

This revelation offers to us the permanence of God’s promises.  History and subsequent failures of mankind do not undo the fulfillment of God to those who were faithful to him in the generations that went on before.  The intelligence regarding our future heavenly home offers great detail and insight into the permanent nature of what God creates.  This will be our home forever.  And the changes wrought within us will be everlasting as well.  We should take hope in this message, realizing that what is promised to us, will be fulfilled in us.  Here past the end of all things are seen the fulfillment of His promises to those who were our spiritual forefathers.

And the intel, had only just begun …

 

City Life ...

City slicker, or country bumpkin; do you prefer either, both, something else entirely?  There are those of us who truly appreciate large cities.  They just seem to speak to us.  A city like New York, or Los Angeles, or Washington D.C. just seems to exude a rhythm, a work ethic, a unique sense of relaxation or stress.  Maybe it is the people that live in them, but as the population tends to come from all over the world, this would appear to make less sense.  Maybe it is the geography or the climate, but then not all northern or southern cities “feel” the same.  Maybe it is the architecture of the buildings, but this would make more sense internationally than within our nation.  There is just something about a city where it seems to illicit in us both positive and negative reactions.  Country living on the other hand seems to have a much more common theme – wide open expanse.  Whether it is on a wheat farm in Nebraska, a mountainside in Oregon, an old plantation farm in deep south, or a country home in Maine – the common theme they share is an appreciation for the beauty of nature, a preference to leave it as “untouched” as possible, and the ability to “move around” without bumping in to a constant stream of people.  It is interesting then to consider that our eternal destiny is to be both city-dweller, and country-dweller for all time.

The God of the universe, our God of life and love, tends to reside on a throne.  From what we can gather in scripture, His throne is at the highest pinnacle of a city, a city we call Heaven.  It was from this city that Lucifer who became Satan was cast out.  Satan and his followers were barred from re-entry other than by invitation (as when the conversation over Job occurred).  And it is at the end of evil that Satan will try in futility once more to take the city with his army of evil angels, and resurrected evil men and women.  Apparently, even beyond what we understand about cities, the city of heaven is something that perfect love will defend, and absolute evil covets for its own.  It is in this very city that Jesus Himself promises to build us a home, that we might return to be with Him forever.  It is in the book of Revelations where the Apostle and prophet John describes what He can see of the city of heaven, it’s basic dimensions and some of its characteristics, such as having twelve gates whose doors are made of solid pearl, 12 foundations of various precious stones, and streets made of gold.  God however, is always described as being located at the city center, and at the highest point.  Christ is usually found at God the Father’s right hand.  If these locations predate our existence, and are talked about in scripture as being the condition to which we will return.  It would seem then, that city life, or rather perfect city life, is something we are destined to share.

The question then is what makes a city?  Why does scripture describe the location of God the Father as being in a city?  I think the answer may be found in examining as we described earlier the only common element to country-living, wide open spaces.  Cities tend to be “full” of people, or in this case, intelligent beings.  The angels occupy heaven.  Ever thought about why?  There is at least one incredibly expansive universe which God has created.  It contains galaxies which are huge each holding stars/suns beyond measure, that could each have planetary systems with possibly many planets.  In terms of where a person or angel might be found, it makes for an infinite game of hide-and-seek.  So why hang out in the city of heaven, if literally every single other place in the universe is available for touring, or residence?  Do you think angels perhaps like us, require companionship in order to be truly happy?  Begs the question, how can one serve, if one is alone?  Or is it perhaps that all life just tends to gravitate towards being close to God?

Perhaps gravity is more than dropping an apple from a tree, perhaps it is being inexplicably drawn to the source of all life and love.  It would seem logical then that to comfortably accommodate all the angels and life forms (soon to be us) that wish to be near God, a “city” would emerge.  Proximity to God is a measure of “value” that perfect beings aspire to attain.  Lucifer used to occupy the third-highest position in the kingdom of heaven before his fall.  While Christ was on the right hand of the Father, Lucifer at that time the archangel (or leader of the angelic hosts) was on the left.  Until he chose to break trust with God and explore self, he did not realize that Christ was closer to God than himself.  In a government where the highest leader is also the highest servant of all, it is hard to distinguish differences in “rank”.  In the perfection of heaven, expressing unselfish love is the highest ambition any life form can achieve.  Indeed the entire un-fallen angelic host lives to serve our God in any way they can.  It remains their highest ambition, and is perhaps the greatest reason they choose to remain as close to God as they are able to do (i.e. city life), rather than explore regions of the universe at the far ends of space.  Angels it would seem, go where they are needed, but highly prefer the company and proximity of God.

Another point of interest emerges when considering our destiny towards city-life; cities may sprawl outwards, but they tend to rise upwards just as often.  The “skyline” of a city reflects a number of buildings that rise upwards towards the sky, often found in groups right next to each other.  In order to accommodate large numbers of people, residents of a city often have “homes” located on different floors of the towers that rise near the center of a city.  It would seem logical then, that to house the hopefully vast numbers of humans that accept the gift of freedom from evil in our new and perfect location, we might find the homes our Lord has created for us in structures that rise upwards, not just sprawl outwards.  In point of fact, John identifies that the heavenly city is as tall as it is wide and long.  And no, I do not imagine a Borg-Cube when I think about heaven, but I might imagine more of a city whose skyline looks more like the pyramids of Egypt.  The throne building being the center piece and rising to a higher point than any other structure, but having many tall structures around it that may rise to various heights, getting perhaps a bit shorter as they sprawl outwards to the walls of the city.  Regardless of how the height is architected, it is certain that height is a part of the equation.  And it would seem logical that height is meant to provide us with the “homes” our Lord is making.

As for opulence and beauty, I can think of no better architect than our Lord and creator.  It was He after all who created the elements like gold and pearl in the first place.  I would imagine that a penthouse home architected by Jesus Himself would be personalized for each child He redeemed, with elements that just that person would love and appreciate.  I doubt any two homes would be exactly alike.  And I would expect perhaps that my home, and the home of my wife, might be an adjoining apartment with nothing but a set of double doors separating the two (if that).  The weird thing for me to consider is the modified use of my two normally favorite rooms (the bedroom and the bathroom).  Toilets will be no more so that will be huge change for me.  I guess it also leaves more room for the bathtub.  But then too, will I still need a sink?  Won’t need makeup, not sure if I still need to brush my teeth or shave.  Will I still need to comb my hair, or will it just shake out dry as I need it to?  Perhaps there will be no need of sinks either.  Even the bathtub may be more a device of recreation than necessity.  Do you think we will even get “dirty” in heaven.  We won’t smell, so how does one define “dirty” anyway?

The bedroom too (in my new city apartment) may be a bit of an unused room.  In the city, there is no need of a sun, as God’s very presence makes it bright as noon-day perpetually.  In this situation I imagine we will be eternally energized just from being near Him.  We won’t need sleep in the city, and therefore a bedroom might be a bit superfluous.  How do I nap after all if I just can’t get tired; too excited, too happy, too energized.  Why would I even want to attempt a nap under those conditions?  Would I even want to lay down?  Which begs the question, how much use would I even have for this penthouse home?  I will not have an extensive wardrobe that requires a place for storage.  My clothing or coverings will be made of light (adjusted to the colors and shapes I can envision at will), so closets seem unneeded.  I won’t have medicines, make-up, or toiletries so cabinet space in the bathroom may not be needed.  It could be that the newly-highest-used-rooms in my home may be the kitchen, and dining room.  That one I could really get in to, perfect ingredients to serve perfect meals to my perfect family and friends.  Perhaps the new best function of our heavenly homes will merely be a place for us to talk with each other, eat with each other, and hang out with each other.  Certainly a bit different perspective than what we think of today in our homes.  Today our homes are a refuge from society, in heaven they may be a focal point of it.

I might liken our homes in heaven, to a hotel room in Las Vegas.  A place with a beautiful view, and perhaps all the essentials we might need; but everything in Las Vegas is designed to keep you out of your room as much as possible.  In Vegas these intention may be less than noble, but in heaven the concept may be similar with the extreme exception that everything in heaven will be designed with perfect intentions, motives, and actions.  Still we may be so busy, or so excited, or just so interested in the people and activities around us, that spending a great deal of time “in our homes” may not enter our thoughts that much.  Our homes may make Donald Trump’s apartment in New York look like a slum, but the things we value in heaven are much more the people, than the stuff.  After all, gold is nothing more than concrete in the city we are destined to have a home forever within.  It may be beautiful concrete, but concrete is concrete none-the-less.

One might deduce from the emphasis scripture places on the heavenly city, that our future destiny includes only a city life.  It does not.  To realize this, one need only look back to our Genesis, both Adam and Eve were given a garden home, not a city high rise apartment.  God’s idea of country-living was a particularly perfect garden in an otherwise perfect world.  When after Lucifer, man broke trust with God and embraced self and evil, he was “driven” from the perfection of his garden home.  There was a distinction between Eden, and it surroundings.  The whole of planet earth was not considered Eden, only the area where God had planted it.  A gate marked the entry point for Eden, and until the flood, it was guarded by an angel with a flaming sword.  It is believed that just before the flood, God took the garden to heaven to preserve it, perhaps make it the “central park” of heaven, perhaps return it to Adam and Eve once evil had been ended once and for all.  It is speculation.  But where God chose to make man’s first home is not speculation.  It was decidedly country living not city.

It may be that heaven requires a city in order to accommodate all of the residents who wish to be close to God.  But the re-creation of our world after evil, after hell, and after death itself is finally consumed (as described in Revelations), is the re-creation of our entire world.  Our world will be “made new”.  We are not destined to live in a city surrounded by the destruction and remnants of a world steeped in sin at the time of our Lord’s second return.  Nor are we destined to live in a city, now transplanted to Jerusalem’s earthly locale, only to be surrounded by the death and tortured torments of the wicked burning forever just beyond our gates.  No, the world’s destruction remnants from the time of Christ’s return will be completely consumed in the hail of fire, and lava that consumes Satan, evil, and all who refuse the freedom from self that our God offers.  Our world will burn, and evil will be consumed in the flames, as will pain and death.  They will be removed forever.  They will cease to exist forever.  In that sense, the finality of God’s judgment will be eternal.  But they will also be removed from our sight, and our memories forever.  We will not go through the eons of time, lamenting our role in the evil we embraced, nor missing those who refused the embrace of love our God had offered them all.  All of that past will sleep the sleep of non-existence.  Our tears must be wiped from our eyes.  And for those who refused His mercy, the finality of His judgments are all that can be left to them.  But John is specific in his writings that our world will be made new again.  Heaven’s location may be fixed at Jerusalem’s old locale, but the rest of the planet will be getting an extreme makeover.

It is out into this newly created world that we will also go to make our own homes.  In this, we will have both a city home, and a country home.  Located away from the city of heaven, and thus a bit farther away from the direct presence of God, the cycle of night and day will once again become relevant.  The sun will rule our day, and the moon our night, as it once was in the garden home our Lord first created.  It is there where a bedroom may finally be needed again.  It is there where the relevance of Sabbath will re-emerge.  For the Lord Himself marked the Sabbath by measuring the time of days with the rising and setting of the sun.  And the prophet Isaiah discusses the idea of Sabbath and … “from one new moon to another” in his forecasts of heaven.  These ideas of timing around the rising and setting of the sun can only be relevant away from the city center, where the presence of God outshines the sun.  It stands to reason then, based on God’s original designs, and his indications of his eternal intentions, that we will live, or have homes, in more than one place.  We will be both city-dweller and country-dweller. 

Though no matter where we hang our crowns so to speak, how we live and what we value, will have transcended from a focus on self, to a focus on others.  Whether we entertain guests in our city or our country homes, the precious company of a guest, will be the prized commodity.  It will not be our beautiful hand crafted furniture, or pride in our architectural and engineering achievements we wish to discuss, but the testimony of a life spared by love.  We will never grow tired of hearing how God redeemed you, how He freed you, and what He is doing with you and for you even right now.  Those stories will not be merely past tense, but present and future as well.  God will ever be interacting with us all.  He will be among us, with us, able to see us face to face without fear or shame on our part.  We will know Him, really know Him.  Imagine the honor, of offering our Lord a home cooked meal for His enjoyment.  It will not be the design or finery of the china that will be our first concern, only that He is coming to see us today.  It will not be comparisons of how our home exceeds that of our neighbors, in heaven, were that true, we would gladly give our home to our neighbors just to see them happy.  No, in heaven, to be with God is the reward.  To hold companionship with those who are precious to us, literally every living soul, is our reward.

Our homes in heaven are nothing more than a place to hold events, a place to serve, a place to gather, a place to recount the infinite mercy and love of our God.  There will be no homeless in heaven.  There will be no poor.  But how we measure wealth will have radically changed.  How we measure the value of the company of another will have radically changed.  A home in heaven can only be understood in this context.  Our thinking will change, starting here and now, as we surrender to Christ, and allow Him to re-create us anew from the inside out.  Heaven will be the culmination of that work, not its beginning.  Heaven will be the place where the work of re-creation within us can be fully appreciated.  It is only when our thinking has been made new, our desires have been made new, and our values systems completely made new, that we can finally begin to appreciate what our homes might be like, and what is truly important within them.  A change in how we think, a change in how we love, this is the beginning of freedom from self that our God offers us freely.  It is the beginning of wisdom, and why when we reach heaven, our definition of “living” will be something completely different than it is today, no matter the locale of our homes in perfection.

Millennia ...

One thousand years. The Bible speaks of a thousand years in Revelations chapter 20, as a sort of time-out for Satan. He is bound to this earth alone in solitude for a thousand years with no-one to deceive. Those who did not embrace Christ and the freedom from evil He offers die and remain asleep until the thousand years are ended. At that point they are resurrected for a little season. But before we get too far ahead, I would like to focus a bit of attention on the thousand years.

We saved followers of God will be in heaven (the city). We will be given coverings of light, a harp which we will instinctively know how to play, a new name, a ring, and a crown containing stars to symbolize those we were instrumental in helping to show the love of God to. We will be eating from the tree of life and drinking from the river of life. We will be feasting at the table of God in gigantic banquets, and singing songs of praise not even the angels can truly understand. And we will be casting our crowns at the feet of Jesus as we come to realize our true unworthiness, and His great love and mercy that sees us in the place we are in. But we are not here for just parties, and worship. There is a work still to perform; a work requiring a thousand years.

First; why that number? After all Satan could have been bound for a day or a million years, it is relatively immaterial to us isn’t it, as we have forever in our mindsets at this point. Some believe, this thousand years is a symbol of the Sabbath rest, as our created life on earth is about 6000 years old, the seventh millennia could be a symbolic recognition by our creator that our earth itself needed a rest. This kind of speculation regarding the significance of numbers in the Bible is interesting, but not necessarily based in fact. Similar speculations exist around the number 400 for example. There was about 400 years between the flood and Abraham, 400 more years until Moses, 400 years of Judges, 400 years of Kings, and 400 years of captivity and desolation just prior to Christ’s first coming. Since then another 2000+ years have passed. There are 12 tribes of Israel names after their 12 brother / sons of Jacob; there are 12 gates to the city, and 12 foundation stones it is built upon; 12 disciples that became 12 apostles. Seven days in a week; seven candlesticks in a holder in the temple; seven last day churches; Interesting phenomenon around numbers, but nothing too telling – so why introduce a millennia now?

Perhaps this thousand years is for the benefit of Satan himself; a chance for him to contemplate all the vast pain he is responsible for; a chance for him to realize just how far from God and perfection one can go when at first the deviation looks so small. But as Satan seems to have only ever hardened his position against God, I doubt this time period is for his benefit. What about us? I submit there are two pressing concerns left over from our time spent on earth. The first is the disposition of those who are not with us in perfection. We have never been intended to judge anyone while on earth, the lives, actions, and motives of others are hidden from our view; but in heaven this situation changes. The biggest judicial review of history itself begins, as the books are thrown open to all who have interest to review the records of the fallen and insure God’s judgments are fair and upright. It will be difficult for parents to see a missing child, and not question if perhaps a mistake has been made. Still more difficult for married couples who spend their lives together, attend church regularly, and find they are now parted in eternity (one waiting the resurrection of the wicked, one already in perfection). To let go of the love for those we care most about, will require a degree of “proof” so often demanded in our world.

And the records will be opened. We will see every detail of the lives we examine, from the earliest cognitive responses, to the dying breath and thoughts. We will see every deed, every word, and every thought behind them as recorded in the books of life and of death in heaven. And the pain of it will be immense. For we will share the pain God feels, when He is forced to acknowledge His rejection in the hearts of those He thinks only to love. It breaks the heart of God to be rejected by His creations, His children, His precious treasures; as it will then break our hearts no longer burdened with pride, selfishness, and thoughts of how we might be perceived to be caught crying. Tears will flow like rivers as we read the detailed accounts of those we loved, of memories we never saw from their perspectives, as time after time they choose to reject love, and embrace self-interest. Every attempt that God makes to lure them to Him is rejected. Every sin against them committed even by us, is capitalized on, by Satan to harden their hearts against our God. For we bear responsibility in the loss of our family, of our loved ones, of our world, and community. Our lack of action, our lack of giving when it was needed, our unwillingness to sacrifice time, energy, or resources when needed to save another at the most critical times will have played a role in the demise of another’ eternal soul.

We do NOT yet understand the great price we are paying with our constant addiction to self-interest in this life. We have no idea of the magnitude of our tiniest decisions. We have no idea the impact of our casual words spoken without thought of how they may be heard and interpreted. We are so careless with the lives of others, as we refuse to see the value in other souls, and focus only on our own. Were all the members of a church to simultaneously fall into vision and foresee the great impact of their selfishness during this special millennia, they would awaken and give every cent they had to the cause of Christ. They would gladly quit their jobs, and spend every ounce of energy ministering to the needs of those who now they ignore. For the price of a lost soul, weighs too heavy on perfected hearts. When finally we love as He loves, we are not equally protected and assured that we did all we could to help others as God does. For God is perfect in His efforts to redeem fallen man, but we; we are much less perfect. We put self ahead of our efforts to save others, as self blinds us to the cost and impacts of what we do. It will be at this time, that we will require healing from our God in order to continue to exist. And healing will come again, as He wipes all tears away from our eyes. For despite our shortcomings and responsibility for the loss of other souls, our God remained faithful to try to redeem them, and they would not.

Those who believe that hell burns forever, do not fully understand what it is like to have heart like the one of our God. To love as God loves is not a casual thing, or a part-time endeavor. Love cannot be blinded to the needs or pains of another, rather love is keenly aware of these things. To love as God loves is to be filled with love from bottom to top, to be consumed with how to bring peace, joy, and comfort to the object of our love – with NO thought of reward. To love another is its own reward. Our time in heaven must be long enough for us to insure for ourselves for all time that our God has been just in how He has dealt with those who refused to embrace Him. But our time must have a limit so that we do spend our days in dread of the execution of the sentences that have been pronounced.

For me, I almost do not want to know. The mercy that I would be in perfection is enough for me to trust in whatever judgments God has made on those I find missing. I already know, my record will be wanting. I already know, I have not done enough to save those I love. I already know, my selfishness will be more than enough to break me in the world to come. No matter what I do from this point forward, my deeds to this point have caused more pain than sought redemption. I already know I have been an instrument of destruction, more than a reflection of His love. While I believe He can and does forgive me; for me to open the records of others to review and remember my own participation in their demise is already too much for me to bear. Even so Lord, save me from myself and the evil I seem powerless to evict from my soul.

The self-interested heart finds a kind of fulfillment in the judging of others. There is a kind of satisfaction in trying to uncover the truth, and render a just sentence, for deserved behaviors. We think of judging the wicked in these terms today, because our hearts are infected with self. But when made pure from our disease; the work of judging those who were more like us that we care to admit, and who suffered at our own hands will not be a satisfying, fulfilling work. It will be nothing but sad. Sorrow will fill the halls of heaven while this work must persist. We will verify what does not need verification. We will review true justice and infinite love, and the mystery of how it can continue to be rejected in the hearts of man. It is a strange work we are destined to perform.

You see it is impossible to fully enjoy eternity at this point. For evil still exists, it exists in the embodiment of Satan bound alone on earth, it exists in his demonic following, it exists in those who sleep and await a resurrection to judgment. While evil continues to exist in the universe, it is impossible to fully enjoy eternity with God. For us to finally be free, the influence of evil must be rid of throughout all of time and space. This must begin in our hearts and minds. We must learn the lesson Satan failed to learn. We must trust God completely, regardless of how it looks to us. We must rely on His wisdom, knowing He does nothing to hurt us, and everything to save us. We must come to know, that only God can be trusted despite whatever considerable knowledge we gain over time. This lesson Satan failed to learn. When facing a conflict with God, He broke trust with God, and trusted in himself to the downfall of everything that followed him in this. Our ability to choose away from God will exist forever, but our inclination to choose it will be halted for permanently etched in our minds is the price for lack of trust.

We must also learn the lesson that Adam failed, by not trusting God with those who we love. We must be confident that God loves us all, and will provide for our need to love in a special way for all time and eternity. For we will never tire of loving, as love itself is the basis or definition, or substance, or power, make-up of our God beyond the point of our current understanding. Given our choice to trust God above ourselves, and with everything that we love; we will finally be ready to see the extinction of evil from all the Universe. And this extinction is right around the corner …