Imagining Heaven

We all imagine the streets of gold, crowns, mansions and all things rich and glorious when we get to Heaven...but what if we are just using the measures of success of our own world to define our eternal reward?  Have we missed the point??  Have we taken "the American dream" and applied it to heaven?  We  believe that if we do everything we are supposed to do here, then when we get to the other side we will be rewarded with gold crowns and mansions.  Our false sense of what is success has blinded us to the reality of eternity.

 I believe that when we enter the gates of God's Kingdom, all the wealth in the world will not impress us.  The streets of gold will be mere pavement...the jewels just trinkets. They will be meaningless, worthless because we will be standing in the light of our King.

In this present life we give much more importance to the pretty things than to the King.  We love God, but we don't understand the value of standing in his presence.  That IS the reward of Heaven. 

In his Kingdom, the important thing will really be important.  Just as we bask now in the warm sun, then we will bask in the light of His true, pure love & light.  In the coming kingdom, love will reign. The crowns and mansions, if they even exist, will not be what excite us.  It will be living daily in the light of the creator who redeemed us.

My prayer would be that we can grab hold of this in this world.  To realize there is nothing better or worth more than walking with the king.  I pray God will help us to understand we can share now in this kingdom; that when we focus on Him, his light will fill our hearts & lives fully.

It's not the mansion we long for...it's the King.

How Will They Know Us??

Jesus sat at the table with his disciples, their feet cleaned, their egos humbled. He shared with them, yet again, that soon he would be leaving them. And in the midst of this, he shared his desire for them. “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

 He tells them how the world will know them. Likely, they had their own notions of how the world would know them. They knew he was the Messiah, they believed he would overcome all the reigning powers and that He would reign victorious, and they expected to be known in his courts. And yet he tells them, the world will know you are mine if you love one another.

 Their whole identity is wrapped in Him. He defines them. Even as Peter denies him in the courtyard, he is identified as “one of His”. From the day of Pentecost forward, these men are known as Christ followers. They are known as those who proclaim the name of Jesus, who have chosen to live as he lived and to teach what he taught. John, one of Jesus’ closest friends, said this is how we know we are in Him: whoever claims to live in Him must live like Him. (I Jn 2:6)

 Loving like Christ was their identity.

So many times in the last months I have heard the cry of ‘what if we lose our identity’. This should frighten us, but only if we are speaking of an identity that is in Christ.  I hear this from those who fear that any change in our Christian heritage will bring about a loss of identity. Our identity is misplaced. We seem to identify ourselves (as do those on the outside) through our issues…acapella worship, the name on our doors, how often we take the Lord’s supper. These things define us. And that frightens me.

Perhaps, just maybe, it is time to ‘re-identify’ ourselves. Not with some new contemporary, high tech notion but with an ancient, proven truth. What if our churches, truly began to practice, putting on Christ? What if we raised up disciples to be like Christ? What if, as the body of Christ, we started being known for the love of our savior & our replicating His love?

It worked in Jerusalem. The church there loved each other…and everyone around them. And in no small way. They were a mega church who took care of each other through small groups. The people around Jerusalem were amazed , they saw these people taking care of one another, joyfully and without any reservation. They heard the apostles teach of this Jesus who gave His life for all, and who had conquered death. The church was known for Christ. They were known for living the way he had taught them to live.

 And God grew the church. Not so it could be recognized but so HE would be recognized. The growth had nothing to do with how they worshiped. The growth had to do with how they lived and WHO they lived through. It was all about Jesus and living the love He had taught them.

What needs to change in the church today? I believe it is the way we identify ourselves. When society looks at the church and sees unreasonable love and devotion to one another and to God, we are on the right track. When our identity becomes so wrapped up in Christ that nothing matters but bringing glory to Him and to the Father, His church will flourish…just as it did in the beginning.

 Lord, I pray, let us shine your light.

 When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” -John 8:12 


 “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” Matt 5:14-16

Every Day?

In the heart of Jesus, unity was so key it was one of the last things he spoke to the Father about. Jesus prayed for us to be one, in the same way that He and the Father were one.

What did Jesus mean? Was it about everyone agreeing on everything? About a new doctrinal 'rightness'? Maybe, instead,Jesus was talking about relationships, about needing the body, about knowing our survival as Christians meant depending on Him and each other.

So many times we look at the church of the first century and we try to decipher how they "did church", and yet we absently overlook how they "did life". This 'mega church' group needed each other. They needed each other daily. They sought each other out in the temple courts, they got together for dinner, they knew when someone needed something and they took care of it...and the effect? The prayer of Christ was answered.

Jesus Prayed:(John 17:20-23)

“My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one—I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.

Jesus prayed that his people would be so one that their love and unity would cause the world to take notice and believe and bring glory to the Father.

And look what happened. (Acts 2:42-47)

They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.

Their fellowship and love brought glory to God. The world saw and responded. The world wanted to be a part. This was exactly what Christ prayed.

After the day of Pentecost, the new believers did not resign themselves to "have" to go to the temple at least one day a week to worship and to "have" to do certain things to be accepted by God. Instead, they fell in love with their God and they fell in love with one another. And everyday, they sought out their brothers.

Imagine the excitement and the joy of hurrying to the temple courts, looking for your brothers...embracing them, sitting with them at the feet of Peter and John. Imagine the awe as they sat and listened to the stories told about Jesus...as they watched these ordinary guys heal and do wonderous things in the name of Jesus. Imagine that as they listened, they saw love and humility and servanthood. They saw the Christ through these men. And the Spirit of God was at work. As they gathered, He acted. As they listened, He taught. And through Him, God was in their midst.

I believe more and more in the merit of spending time everyday with our brothers. Not in a formal, sterile assembly, but in our homes, in our parks, in our cities. We need joyful, playful praise. We must be aware of needs. We need to commit ourselves to praising God daily and to talking about God's presence in our lives.

Fellowship should be a thing we hold near and dear. We need one another. God designed it that way. Relationships must be built. A casual, once a week fellowship falls far short of the unity and love described in Acts. The brothers here were ingrained in the lives of each other. We don't know if they ever met as a WHOLE (all those converted in Jerusalem), but we know for certain they sought each other out and they gathered in small groups and went to one another's homes and made sure everyone was taken care of. They became as close as family.

Today could be the very same. If the world saw friendships and family in the church today, if they saw us entrenched in praise for our God and living in love, so that there was no time to tear others down, how would they respond?

The very essence of this new church was its heartbeat of fellowship and love. They loved the Father and the Son first. Then they fell in love with each other because of Him.

And the world took notice. And God used their love for each other and added to the church every single day.