“Hooray! I’m in Heaven!” Many of us are waiting to say the same thing. We knew we would once we were saved and growing in the Christian life. The problem is that another group of people are not confident, saying, “I hope I make heaven.” Yes, surprisingly, a number have expressed a hope for heaven to me, but are not convinced they will make it. The difference is so simple. One group reads scriptures and knows what scripture promises for them. The other group seems to have a dusty Bible that sees little usage. Furthermore, their faith is based on the simple Sunday sermon and little else. They may be prayerful but may not be receiving the Word of God. As a result, they are ignorant of the promises of our Lord. Imagine a life of keeping religious rules, dogmas, and so-called traditions, but without a guarantee of salvation. Contrast this with the following:

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only-begotten Son that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).

“Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is Born Again, he cannot see the kingdom of God” (John3:3).

“Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God” (John 3:5).

While these proclamations are listed in John’s gospel, the speaker is Jesus Christ Himself, and John is only the writer. If you are not fully convinced yet, worrying about some past sins, the Word of God has that covered too. Consider, “But if we acknowledge our sins, He who is just can be trusted to forgive our sins” (1 John 1:9). While we have examined various aspects of salvation, there remains one summary by John that is the clincher: “I have written this to you to make you realize that you possess eternal life—you who believe in the name of the Son of God” (1 John 5:13).

When people talk about heaven, most people do not mean a heaven on earth. When queried, they will usually point upward. By contrast, the Bible references three heavens. The first is ole terra firma with the sky, birds and clouds. The second heaven is the area above earth consisting of the sun, moon, and stars. The third heaven is unseen and is the domain of God and the throne of Jesus Christ.

The way to heaven is generally misunderstood as there are so many false proclamations. To minimize these falsehoods, Jesus spoke about the only way to heaven: “I am the way, the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through me” (John 14:5).

Salvation is quite easy to understand. God formed us from nothingness to have a relationship with Him. He also gave rules to guarantee this connection with Him. Our forefathers rejected His love, which action has continued by some through the centuries. Recognizing this separation, God arranged for His only begotten son to die for us by accepting all our sins. By accepting this sacrifice, the consequence of a wayward mankind could be erased and the relationship re-established. Should anyone still reject the Creator’s offer, the result is separation from God now and forever.

Paul explains that “He will provide relief to you who are sorely tried as well as to us when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels; when with flaming power, He will inflict punishment on those who do not acknowledge God nor heed the good news of our Lord Jesus Christ. Such as these will suffer the penalty of eternal ruin apart from the presence of the Lord and the glory of His might on the day when He comes to be glorified in His holy ones and adored by all who have believed—for you already have our witness to you” (1 Thessalonians:7-10).

Some may wonder “what is the theme in heaven?” That is easy to answer. It is contained in the revelation that God is Love (1 John 4:8). To confirm this immutable truth, John explains the reality: “God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him” (1 John 4:16). Therefore, “Our love is brought to perfection in this: that while we should have confidence on the day of judgment, for our relation to this world is just like His” (1 John 4:17). Therefore, we will spend eternity receiving God’s love as well as increasing our love and praises to our Lord.

Are there any descriptions of heaven? To lessen our wondering, God has already unveiled heaven almost like a travelogue in Revelation Chapter 21 and 22.  Be sure to read these chapters to see what has been prepared for us. It is mind-blowing. There are also vivid colors like the precious stones on the New Jerusalem (Revelation 4:1-8) and even a green rainbow (Revelation 4:1-8).

We have described the current religious heaven as being upward. Scriptures reveal that there will be new heavens and a new earth, as the former heavens and the former earth had passed away. In addition, there is the New Jerusalem which will come down from heaven (Revelation 21:1-4).

We have already shown the love of God by the Trinity sharing this love with their creation of Adam and Eve. Again they revealed this love even when mankind turned against God. This was the Father sacrificing His only Son by Him accepting mankind’s sins and redeeming us by His death and resurrection. Now He is about to reveal His love in an incomprehensible manner.

The subject is the End Times or the final days of Earth. In the twenty-fourth chapter of Matthew, Jesus Himself reveals the magnitude of the forthcoming era called The Tribulation: “For those days will be more filled with anguish that any from the beginning of the world until now or in the ages to come.” Do not miss these words, for Jesus Himself proclaims, “See I have told you beforehand!” (Matthew 24:25).

Within the Tribulation period, one fourth to one third of the earth’s population will be killed. As the final aspect of divine love, the Lord has one final impressive act that defies imagination. It was unknown until it was revealed to Paul who subsequently imparted it to the Thessalonians (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18).

The action is called the Rapture of the church or the Body of Christ being lifted up to meet Jesus in the clouds. The first action before this for living and dead Christians is a new heavenly body. Afterward, the Christians are brought to heaven with Jesus to begin a heavenly existence. Do not miss the fact that God has recognized how the Christian people in the churches have loved Him and wants to save them by removing them from the Tribulation period.

Suppose you die today. Are you waiting for a deathbed conversion or the start of the Rapture? If so, you are literally playing with fire. Where is your destination? There are only two possible destinations: one is upward to heaven; the other is downward to hell. Christianity alone stresses a relationship with God through salvation which includes forgiveness of sin. This is obtained through belief in the redeeming quality of God’s Son, Jesus Christ. The time of becoming a Born-Again Christian is now. Accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior; ask forgiveness for your sins and change the wrong elements in your lifestyle. With this action you will become aware of the love of God as presently revealed. In addition, be mindful that,

“Eye has not seen; ear has not heard, nor has it dawned on man what God has prepared for those who love him” (1 Corinthians 2:9).

 

 

The Joshua Tree, A Desert Parable: Chapters 2-3 of 5

For Chapter One, go to www.raptureready.com/2020/01/09/joshua-tree-desert-parable-chpt-1-5-jean-louis-mondon

Chapter Two

The Encounter

Just when the desired goal of shutting out all external stimuli has been achieved, or so he thought, a warm voice shook him out of his altered state of consciousness. In spite of its gentle tone, the voice triggered a reflex that rippled throughout his body, caused by the unexpectedness of his breaking the silence barrier.

“Welcome to the desert; I was waiting for you, and here you are just on time,” the unexpected voice said. These words gripped his heart with an uncontrollable anxiety.

That’s it, our lost traveler spoke to himself, thinking he was alone. Either I am waking up from a terrible nightmare, or I am in the throes of delirium just before dying of thirst, of a heatstroke and madness. First, dementia sets in, indicating a decreased blood circulation to the brain.

But then, what if this were real? He continued his monologue, arguing with all the motivation of his survival instinct. After all nobody enjoys dying alone. What if? In a desperate attempt to maintain a grasp on reality, he squinted with his deficient eyes to focus on the fuzzy image standing in front of him.

“No, you are not going to die, I assure you. As long as there is life there is hope,” the strange voice continued.

“Easy for you to say. You should try being in my place.” The lost man uttered these words without realizing the weirdness of the situation.

“Yes, I understand,” the reply came back – giving the confused man the sensation of playing a solitary mind game of paddle ball, having heard this cliché so many times before – “but I was in your situation before. This is why I am here with you. Perhaps one day you will be in my place after you meet my Master.”

The mere mention of that word “master” jolted him back from his distraction, the match getting more challenging to his overblown ego.

“No thanks! Me, submit to a master. It’s been a long time since I have been out of school. Who do you see in front of you? A child who needs to be taught? Have you ever heard of pulling yourself up by your own boot straps? And God helps those who help themselves?”

“Indeed, those are wonderful, comforting words. But let me introduce myself: Joshua, guardian and desert guide. How about you?”

“Mine is Theophilus McCall.”

“What a beautiful name! Do you know its meaning?”

“No, my parents named me at my baptism.”

“Nice meeting you, Theophilus. Well, it’s getting late. Why not continue our conversation tomorrow? You really need some sleep. Good night.”

Chapter Three

Welcome to The Home of Mirages and The Horned Viper

“Whoever digs a pit may fall into it; whoever breaks through a wall may be bitten by a snake” (Ecclesiastes 10:8).

“Surely the serpent will bite without enchantment; and a babbler is no better” (Eccl 10:11, KJV).

“To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation… You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see” (Revelation 3:14, 17-18).

AN UNUSUAL CONVERSATION

Early in the morning, Theophilus wakes up grumpy. After a night of disturbing dreams, he gets up; and through his barely opened eyelids, he is able to make out the fuzzy silhouette of a strange vision cut out on the background of an intense blue sky. Refusing to believe his weakened eye sight, he rubs his eyes, trying to get a better focus on the scene.

“Good morning Theophilus. I hope you had a good night sleep.”

Now, he couldn’t believe what he heard. There, at only a few feet distance, planted in the desert sand, what appeared to be a tree, or more exactly, a cactus, stood up, resembling the ones he had seen in the science books of his childhood.

Completely taken aback, his first reaction is to think, It is not happening. If I told my family and my friends, they would lock me up in a psychiatric ward. I must be hallucinating or I am seeing a mirage.

“Calm down,” reassured Joshua, who could perceive his state of mind; “You are not going crazy. You can tell that I am real, can’t you? Are you bothered by my talking? Of course, it is a bit unnerving; your world is different, and I can understand your reaction.”

Relieved that, after all, he was not crazy – who wants to look for lost marbles in the middle of the sandy desert floor without help from anyone? Theophilus replied: “Are you joshing me,” spontaneously blurting some of the humor he thought he had lost? “As if it were natural to accept that a Joshua tree has the gift of speech, that he could care about a man and discuss things about which he does not have the slightest idea.”

Then, he remembered the preceding night’s conversation and blushed in shame at the thought that he had carried on a conversation with a cactus in the desert. He had a furtive glance around to make sure that nobody had been a witness to this absurdly surreal scene.

Josh: “You are right. I like to kid around. Well, then. Tell me the story of your life. I see you are passionate about travel adventures, trying to find yourself. And how are you going to know if you finally found yourself if, in the first place, you don’t know who you are and what you look like?”

Theo: “Hey, watch it! You start annoying me. What about you? What do you look like? You can be proud of yourself; you found yourself, indeed, didn’t you? What a beautiful place to spend the rest of your life! Congratulations! Your master must be very proud of you. Tell me again, why can’t you speak clearly like everyone else?”

“Because you don’t have enough wisdom to understand the words of my master,” Josh replied. “But you are right. He is the one who gave me this responsibility which I am handling in the best way and also keeping his words. One day, when you meet him, you will understand.”

“I knew it! It is you who are incapable of intelligent reasoning. You are hiding behind someone else´s teaching. You cannot even have an original thought.”

“Ouch; touché! But I forgive you. You have lost your way; you are not seeing clearly because your center of vision comes from Lao Di Sé. A little bit of good compensates for and balances evil. You believed in their remedies for your illness, didn’t you? Well, you can see the result. Now you see double!”

“It’s not true! I didn’t drink anything, I assure you.”

“It’s not a question of drinking. On your way, did you meet a sand viper with two horns that lies in wait for its victims and poisons them surreptitiously? The poison weakens their vision until they become incapable of telling the difference between reality and their own erroneous perceptions. For example, they are poor but believe that they are rich; they think that darkness is light and are convinced that evil is good. The worst part is that they don’t realize that they are deceived because of the serpent’s power with his subtlety and his many disguises.”

“Rubbish! All this is philosophy! As for me, I have more pressing needs. I want to get out of this blasted desert to go back to my world where the cacti don’t talk nonsense about spells on people in dire need of real help.”

“Well, then, Theo, I am ready to help you. Where are you going? What are you looking for?”

“Come on, Josh, it’s obvious! I want to go back where I come from, and I am looking for the exit door.”

“Yes, of course; they all say the same thing. But there is a slight hitch; here as you know, we are in the desert. This is a very different place. People that are lost need a guide. But there is no way back; and to get out of the desert, one has to go, not through an exit door, for no such door exists, but through an entrance doorway. This is why my Master placed me on your path.”

“Not again, please. Josh, you are not going to bother me with your master. What can he do for me? Sell me a camel or a flying carpet? Or offer me a lamp with a genie inside? Does he live in an oasis nearby where he sells maps of the desert?”

“None of it. And by the way, the camel is too big, and the entrance door is very small. And He is the one who has the keys. He does not sell anything, but He alone can satisfy your thirst and your hunger, and give you new clothes that do not wear out. Moreover, he can heal you of your disease and restore your sight so that you will not lose your way again.”

“Stop making fun of me, Josh. Nobody is that generous a giver. There is no freebie in this world. Everything has a price; that’s the law. I simply need to gain my strength back and find a pharmacy where I can buy some salve for my eyes that are irritated instead of becoming a mere desert souvenir, a broken statue sculpted by this blasted sand.”

“I am afraid that your condition is a little more serious than you think. But you are not well enough yet to meet my Master. Get some rest in my shade; and, later, I will take care of your heart which right now is your most urgent concern. We will continue our chat once you feel better. Tomorrow, you will meet my brother who will help you find the Master of the Joshua trees.”

My friends, take care until our next encounter.

TO BE CONTINUED

Jean-Louis

http://lightnseed.blogspot.com

To hear the “The Joshua Tree” ebook on audio (1 hour and 12 minutes), go to:

http://livinginhisname.org/mp3s/other-works/the_joshua_tree_ebook.mp3