GREETINGS FROM HEAVEN

It is almost like a postcard setting, telling us of a wonderful exotic destination we could only dream to visit, when the angel said to Mary "Greetings, you are highly favored!  God is with you."  So much was contained in those few words that heralded the coming of the savior who was soon to be born of her.  For eventually the whole world was going to say hello to Jesus, whom the Angel said was good news of great joy that would be for all the people.  People like the shepherds in the field who were greeted too by a whole choir of angels singing to them in harmony.  After which they hurried to say hello to this Jesus who had just been born in a barn further up.  Tell me it's not a meeting of cultures as the sparks just kept flying.  As with the wise men from the east who in awe and starry eyed, laid their treasures at the feet of little Jesus when they came to say hello.  Those people were highly favored too.  But not only they, because from the city which has no need of the sun, or the moon, because the glory of God shines on it, (rev 21:33), Christ had come to be the light of the world.  And it was to reverberate throughout the ages, timeless and unstoppable.  Changing all who find him to be just as real and tangible as the ones whose lives he touched back then.  Even today we are invited to get a taste of that heavenly country, of the city that is to come, which has foundations that are made by God himself.  The culture of heaven is beckoning us to exchange the perishable for the imperishable and to no longer be clothed in mortality, but immortality (1 Corinthians 15:53).  Now that's a package deal that's hard to refuse!  And what about the best sights that only the locals could show you?  When we can sit together with Jesus in high places, where he is waiting to drink from the vine with us in his Father's kingdom (Ephesians 2:6; Matthew 26:29).  Surely that beats any Michelin outfit, no matter how many stars.  Show me the place where you get treated as a king like that?  You just wouldn't want to say goodbye again would you?  You wanna be there forever and that's exactly Jesus' idea too, for he said to the people who wanted to follow him, that were really getting into things,"I am with you till the end of time."

All in all we are are presented in the bible with a tantalizingly attractive prospectus.  Which makes Christianity rise above the notion, some people have, that religious experience is only a set of rules and dogmas.  From beginning to end, we are given an account of humanity's origin and destiny being inextricably linked with God who ultimately wants to enrich our lives with purpose, meaning and hope for the future.  What's already hinted at in the Old Testament, eventually culminates in the New Testament in an amasing crescendo of spiritual happenings.  With as absolute highlight fully showing us the love, character and humility of God that he demonstrates in Christ, by becoming 'one of us'.  Eventually paying the ultimate sacrifice in doing whatever was necessary to bring the world closer to himself.  And then as a final achievement, lifting us up to where he is, to enjoy with us all that he enjoys.  Scattering the stereotype, that so many have, of a God who is distant and indifferent to humanity and instead showing himself inextricably involved with us every minute of the way, until in eternity we take our place to be with him, in the most amazing fashion.  Jesus encapsulated it perfectly when he prayed "Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am; to see the glory, which you have given me before the foundation of the world."  Turns out the whole creation has been and is even now, longing, waiting and it even says groaning as in the pains of childbirth, until the day the whole world is going to witness the consummation of all this.  Anyway, it's all in Romans 8.  In that chapter words are as it were falling over each other to somehow make us see the goal that's going to be fulfilled.  We are told, that the creation, which is subject to frustration, is living in hope that it will be liberated from the bondage to decay it's in and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God.  That's got to be the 'great hello' to all that was aspired to when God spoke the memorable words at the beginning of Genesis "Let us make man in our own image and likeness."  But at the same time it's also the 'great goodbye' to the terrible frustration and decay mentioned, that's laying deep at the heart of this world.  Decay comes from an old latin word meaning 'to fall away', which is somehow reminiscent of the falling away mentioned in chapter 3 of Genesis.  Sure enough, everything in the world gradually deteriorates, fades away and eventually disappears.  There is so much that people get attached too in this life they end up saying goodbye to.  Loved ones, pets, health, things that are dear to them and ultimately life itself.  People sometimes loose their sanity and even relationships can deteriorate if we don't watch it.

As much as the creation has been hankering after it, God must have been living towards this 'great hello' too, where he can take out some handkerchiefs ready for the 'good old cry', no doubt tears of joy also.  What a relief it will be on that day, because it says in Revelation 21:4 "He will wipe away every tear from their eyes and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain, all those things are gone forever."  God left no stone unturned, as it were being a man of culture, he never gave up what he originally set out to do.  All the promises in the bible about him doing a 'new thing', he really brought about in Christ, who had the 'made in God's image and likeness' logo written allover him.  He really went to town with Jesus and personally went about reversing everything that ever went wrong, in his own inimitable way, eventually making everything brand new.  It's beautifully expressed in 2 Corinthians 5:17 "Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold the new has come!" It goes without saying that what's also going to be a thing of the past is people not knowing God in their lives.  That's why, if you really want to experience the culture of heaven, getting to know God is an absolute must!  Stay close to Jesus and you can't go wrong though. You always get the most of a culture by getting in with the locals.  The apostle Paul took no chances when it came to getting to know God.  He didn't want to miss a thing and wanted to be in with the best when he wrote "I am a man in Christ."   There is an old saying "If you want to get to know someone great and learn from them, you have to live in their pocket for a while."  Well, the language chosen in the new testament and inspired by God, is really saying to us "Are you in!"  It's an amazing deal that's offered to us.  Let's make sure we get our place in the sun (son?)!     

A TASTE OF HEAVEN

                                                                 A TASTE OF HEAVEN

Ever since I became a Christian I’ve been exploring the culture of a country I’d never been to, but got to know more and more.  It’s a place called heaven and just as any place has its culture, there’s also the culture of heaven.  Ancient for sure, the first one there ever was!  God’s own culture no less, that he’s so happy with he wants it to go on forever.  Which is very much like himself I guess in that he is on record as having no beginning or end, which is a staggering long time by any standard.  What’s more, in that time he’s always been the same as he ever was, yesterday, today and forever.  And the culture he enjoys so much?  He wouldn’t change it for the life of him either, it’s here to stay too.  So, if it’s good enough for someone like him, who’s seen it all and I mean everything there is to see!  But he settles for that one place called heaven.  Then it must really be the place to be for even the most spoiled lover of culture.  Enough to make many a tourists heart beat faster.  And then to think it’s been opened up to the public, for everyone to come and experience it, awesome!  It’s like the locals in some amazing exotic location, who knew they were onto a good thing, that they’d enjoyed forever, couldn’t, just couldn’t, didn’t want to keep it to themselves anymore.  Like they had to take the lid of this well kept secret, because it became almost too painful not to share it with others. Something so good they wanted everybody to know about it.  Reminds me of what I saw written at the back of a bottle of wine in the supermarket the other day.

They said: “This wine has a deep cherry colour which is typical of vibrant Tempranillo wine.  The wine has a pronounced nose full of rich intense aromas of ripe red fruits with subtle, sweet notes of vanilla and sweet spices.  The palate is fresh, soft and velvety with flavours of red currants, vanilla and chocolate leading to a long elegant finish.”

Makes you want to taste it doesn’t it?  The language of the bible is like that too to bring home to us some pretty amazing stuff.  Beckoning us to come on in.  “come on in, the water feels good.  What are you waiting for?” “Don’t let us enjoy all this by ourselves, there’s plenty of room!”  Listen to what Jesus said in John 14:3 “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.”  John 14:2 “My Father’s house has many rooms: if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you.”  Matthew 26:29 “I tell you, I will not drink from this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.”  The apostle Paul, Ephesians 2:6 “And God raised us up with Christ Jesus and made us sit with him in heavenly places.”  Imagine the panoramic views from there while we are having that drink with Jesus!”  And how about this one, Matthew 11:28, Jesus said “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest.”  So not only are we going to get our own room with the best panoramic views there are, but there’s a deckchair to come with it.  A place where we are going to feel rested and refreshed.  When does the next plane go?  It’s like the richest man in the universe is inviting us to stay with him in his personal resort.  The very one who once famously said about another one he’d just opened that everything was looking ‘good’ as far as the eye could see (Genesis 1:31).  And we are talking here about someone who doesn’t miss a thing.  It’s not like on the surface everything looks good, but when you look under the matrass you find mold.  No no, it was all good, everywhere, in every nook and granny.  He also said the food there was good to eat.  No wonder the people who went there felt very very good too!  What, with the best food money can buy, a gorgeous climate, heavenly company, a crime rate that’s non- existent, in an all- expenses paid sort of playground of the gods!  Honestly you can only feel really really good there can’t you?  The kind of place where you can find rest beyond your wildest imagination and where you get treated with such loving care you’ll just never want to leave again.

With what’s on offer it would be hard to imagine anyone wanting to turn their back on that.  Beats camping out in the bush underneath some snake invested tree, endangering your life in a field of thorns and thistles with all kinds of creepy crawlies everywhere!  But then again, everyone his own.  You’re always going to find a couple of people somewhere who’d go for the latter I guess.  But not me!  I’m not gonna let this one go by.  Because the one who made that culture also made people, all people, in his image and likeness no less.  Then there’s got to be a cultural heritage out there, somewhere, that ought to find reflection in my little person too.  I like it!  That’s awesome beyond words and so special, that the thought of it makes me sit up in anticipation.  Tickling just about every inquisitive bone in my body.  Making me want to discover all the intricate niceties to be found in what’s really a going back to my roots I didn’t know I had.  After all, Paul the apostle, who knew a thing or two about heaven, urged us to set our minds on things above (Colossians 3:2).