Up and Down

Posted on by korgrocker

“Notice that it says “he ascended.” This clearly means that Christ also descended to our lowly world. And the same one who descended is the one who ascended higher than all the heavens, so that he might fill the entire universe with himself.”
‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭4:9-10‬ ‭NLT‬‬

At first sight, these two verses might seem a bit difficult to understand. They describe something that seems at odds with our understanding and experience. In the previous verse, verse 8, we read that Christ ascended somewhere. We know that happened because we read in Acts 1:9 that Jesus, “was taken up into a cloud while they were watching, and they could no longer see him.” Jesus ascended into Heaven, as witnessed by His disciples. And, as an aside, in Acts 1:11 we read that this is the way He will return. One day soon? We don’t of course know when this will be but happen it will.

Another question we have is, “Where did Jesus go to when He ascended?” The disciples saw Him reach the clouds but after that they lost sight of Him. So is He floating around somewhere above us, sitting on clouds, as some artists have portrayed? Perhaps a lot of the confusion we have is because we try and mix the physical and the spiritual. We know and believe, from other Scriptures, that Jesus is in Heaven. We read in 1 Peter 3:22, “Now Christ has gone to heaven. He is seated in the place of honour next to God, and all the angels and authorities and powers accept his authority.” 

Paul, in these verses in Ephesians, sets out a picture of Christ being able to move where He wishes throughout the entire physical and spiritual environment in which we live. More than that, Paul said He did this, “so that he might fill the entire universe with himself”. The Bible seems to provide a little glimpse that this “entire universe” consists of three heavens. There is the physical “heaven” that we can see in part, and which many of our scientists spend their lives in exploring with all the technology at their disposal; the physical universe we can see with its myriads of galaxies and stars. Then there is the “Heaven” where Jesus lives, as described by Peter in the verse quoted above. Where He is sitting on the right hand of God the Father. 

But we also read that the devil and his rebellious angels were cast out of Heaven down to earth (Ezekiel 28:17). Now satan is a spiritual being, so that is why we can’t see him wandering around our planet complete with a red suit, tail and horns holding a pitchfork and accompanied by similarly red-suited demons. But he and his cohorts are here spiritually, as we read in 1 Peter 5:8. “Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.” But as a spiritual being, our enemy will be living somewhere. Some say in hell, but hell doesn’t exist yet – it doesn’t appear in God’s plan until He needs it at the time of the last judgement (Matthew 25:31-46, Revelation 20). So some theologians say that there is a “second heaven” where the devil lives with his minions. The third Heaven is where God lives; the place where Paul was taken up to – we can read his account in 2 Corinthians 12. He called it “Paradise”, as did Jesus to the repentant thief on the adjacent cross.

So back to our verses in Ephesians 4. Paul laid out for his readers a word picture of our almighty God and His omnipresence, throughout the entire, limitless and eternal physical and spiritual universe that he created. We will never get our human minds around its extent, but we can rest assured that because God is everywhere, He can be with each one of us right now. We are not alone. Jesus was right when He said in Matthew 28:20, “…I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” On our pilgrimage through life, we can feel His love and grace around us, lifting our spirits whatever the circumstances. Reminded that one day we too will ascend into Paradise, to join Jesus there. And able at any time to reach out to Him in prayer. Let’s finish today with the first three verses of Psalm 46. A great comfort and reassurance for wobbly pilgrims, as we are sometimes.

God is our refuge and strength,
an ever-present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear, 
though the earth give way
and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
though its waters roar and foam
and the mountains quake with their surging
Psalm 46:1-3 NIV

Heaven and Hands

Posted on by korgrocker

“Oh, praise the Lord, 
all you servants of the Lord, 
you who serve at night 
in the house of the Lord. 
Lift your hands toward the sanctuary, 
and praise the Lord. 
May the Lord, who made heaven and earth, 
bless you from Jerusalem.”
Psalms‬ ‭134:1-3‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Another Psalm from the pilgrim’s song book. A short one, easily remembered, and with a refrain that echoed around the crowd as they ascended up to Jerusalem. Perhaps in the way a football crowd will start a song, lustily singing in support of their team. 

This time the song encouraged the priests in their nightly worship of God. Encouraging them to lift their hands in the direction of where they understood God to dwell. And the last verse is one entreating our wonderful Creator God to bless His people, right from the seat of His power in Jerusalem.

Two thoughts came my way today as I meditated on this Psalm – where does God live and when we worship Him what do we do with our hands? To the Israelites, God had to live somewhere. It was either the tabernacle in the wilderness, a portable building – its blueprint is detailed in Exodus – or the elaborate temple buildings erected in Jerusalem. In the AD years, churches and cathedrals have dominated towns and cities throughout Western societies. Ornate and decorated with statues of saints, stained glass windows and a variety of edifices, they have been the focus of worship in many generations. But where does God really live? Perhaps the best indication is what Jesus said. After all, He is God’s Son. In Matthew 6:9 we read, “… Our Father in Heaven, hallowed be your name“. So we know that God lives in a place called Heaven and we also know that Jesus is there, preparing a home for us (John 14). So it must be a real place. But its location in the universe is unknown – perhaps mankind doesn’t yet have the technology to find it. Perhaps only God can reveal it to us. Or it may be in a different physical form beyond our comprehension. We also know that we will be given new bodies when we get there (1 Corinthians 15). However, we can assure ourselves a future in Heaven by accepting Jesus as our Lord and Saviour. There will be an exciting time for us when we cross the “great divide”. 

My second thought today concerns what we do with our hands when we worship God. There is the traditional religious pose of putting our outstretched hands facing upwards, palm to palm, finger to finger, holding them close to our chests. Not too ostentatious. Not bringing attention to ourselves. Or in wild abandon, we can stretch out our arms and hands upwards to the heavens, in a deeply felt heart attitude of worship to our Creator God. But what is in our hearts is the key. What are we thinking about when we worship God? Are we reviewing what we watched on TV last night, or are we overwhelmed by God’s love and kindness to us, and in response reaching out to our Heavenly Dad? Stretching upwards with every sinew in worship to God, expressing what is within. God has done so much for us – how can we not respond to His love and grace in whatever way we can? Wherever He lives.

A Holy Kiss

Posted on by korgrocker

“Unfailing love and truth have met together. 
Righteousness and peace have kissed! 
Truth springs up from the earth,
     and righteousness smiles down from heaven.”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭85:10-11‬ ‭NLT‬‬

I love the poetic language in the Psalms. The descriptive words used, even in a translation, capture the Holy Spirit inspired message, lyrically flowing from the writer’s pen onto whatever medium was used in those days. In verse 10 we have four God-words – love, truth, righteousness and peace – coming together in a cosmic coincidence, intimately acquainting us with a glimpse of God in his Heavenly home. It’s the purity behind these words that has grabbed my attention today. Not just the limited human love, but unlimited, unfailing, God-love. Not the truth tarnished by human minds, but total God-truth. But what happens when just these two aspects of God’s character meet? A priceless jewel is birthed and it has a new word to describe it that hasn’t yet been conceived, awaiting us in Heaven. Something so significant has happened in Heaven that it can’t be held back, and in response, truth, a poor copy though, emerges in our sin-ridden domain here on planet earth. The imagery continues when two more God words appear on the Psalmist’s parchment – God-righteousness and God-peace. We are bounded by our very limited human understanding of what these words even mean, but we read that they come together in a kiss, in an intimate embrace, producing another jewel. Heaven is full of priceless objects that totally escape our human comprehension. An unlimited treasure chest of precious jewels that will take us eternity to discover and enjoy. Jewels safe in an environment uncorrupted by sin. I appeal to my readers this morning – make every effort to ensure your future. Make every effort to make the right investment. Make that faith-leap through the blood of Jesus into an assured future, beyond human understanding and comprehension, safe and sound in God’s presence.

Helicopters

Posted on by korgrocker

The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit. John 3:8 NIV

Behind the trees this morning I heard the sound of a helicopter. First in the distance a popping noise and then, as it got closer, a swishing sound . It then appeared through a gap in the trees. So I looked it up on the “Flightradar24” App (if you are interested in flying then this is a great app to get and it’s free!) and was told that it was an “Airbus Helicopters AS355” but no information about where it had come from or where it was going was available. Of course, it must have started somewhere, and there will be a time when it has to land, if only to refuel. But the relevant data about its origin and destination was missing. 

The helicopter could be seen and heard but I couldn’t tell where it had come from or where it was going. In today’s Scripture, Jesus uses the analogy of wind. It can be heard but we don’t know where it came from or where it is going. It’s the same with our natural lives, we don’t plan either our origin or destination. That is, of course, unless we embrace the teaching of Jesus in John 3. But it is “sad but true” (to quote the title of the Metallica song) that most people seem unconcerned about their destination in life. They obviously cannot do much about their origins, but they can take steps to ensure the right destination.

In His discussion with Nicodemus, the Jewish leader who crept into Jesus’ presence after dark, Jesus explained the need for a spiritual birth. He said, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’” (John 3:5-7). So by being born again, we can determine our spiritual origins, and this starts us on the right journey through life. But how can we be sure that we are on our way to the right destination? We have a choice. We can either spend eternity with the devil and his demons in hell, or we can spend eternity with God and His angels in Heaven. A wrong choice and a right choice. A wrong destination and a right destination. And we can make the right choice by believing in Jesus, God’s only Son, to forgive us for our sins. On a cross at a place called Calvary He took upon Himself all our sins and gave us in exchange His righteousness. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. 2 Corinthians 5:21. And by being righteous in God’s sight we are assured of a future with Him in eternity.

So as Christians, we have an origin and a destination, and the spiritual App equivalent of Flightradar24 will record our journey between them. Not more “N/A” against the points of origin and destination. We have been born again through the Spirit of God, and assured a future in Heaven through our salvation. Our flight plan has been recorded in God’s Book of Life.

If you are unsure of where you are going and want to know more, please message me. It could be the most important decision you have ever made.

Don’t Give Up

Posted on by korgrocker

“I pray to you, O Lord, My rock. Do not turn a deaf ear to me. For if You are silent, I might as well give up and die. Listen to my prayer for mercy as I cry out to You for help, as I lift my hands toward Your holy sanctuary.” Psalms‬ ‭28:1-2‬ ‭NLT‬‬

To David, his relationship with God was so important, so profound, that if God was to ever withdraw from that relationship, David said he might as well stop living. We don’t know what David was praying about, though we get a few clues later in the Psalm, but at this critical moment in his life, he felt as though the heavens were made of brass and his petitions were falling on deaf ears. But as we read down this Psalm, we find that God did answer him. He writes in verses 6 and 7, “Praise the Lord! For He has heard my cry for mercy. The Lord is my strength and shield. I trust Him with all my heart. He helps me, and my heart is filled with joy. I burst out in songs of thanksgiving.”

So the question is, how important is my relationship with God? If the heavens were closed to my prayers and petitions, what would I think and do? Would I give up, spiritually speaking? It’s a sobering thought, but, like David, I can praise Him this morning because a theme of God’s love for me runs through the Bible, like letters through a stick of seaside rock. He says that I am His child (1 John 3:1). He says He cares for me (1 Peter 5:7). He reassures me that there is nothing I should be anxious about (Philippians 4:6-7). And so on. There are many such reassuring verses throughout the Bible. So this morning, I can praise and worship my Father, my Saviour God with a grateful heart. Can you?

Sanctuary

Posted on by korgrocker

“I love Your sanctuary, Lord, the place where Your glorious presence dwells.” Psalms‬ ‭26:8‬ ‭NLT‬‬

There’s an old film I saw in my childhood where Quasimodo cried out, “Sanctuary, Sanctuary” in a scene from the film depiction of Victor Hugo’s book. The hunchback was claiming his right to being in a safe place, free from abuse. Or so I remember. A sanctuary is a place or state where we feel secure, and to the Psalmist, David, his sanctuary was the place where God lived. And having been brought up in an era when churches were revered, I still get a sense of peace and tranquility in a church building with stained glass windows and an altar. Perhaps I was brought up to think that God lived there.

But where does God really live? Where is His glorious presence? We are informed in 1 Corinthians 6:19 that our bodies are the temples of the Holy Spirit. So God lives within us. And one of Jesus’ titles was “Immanuel” which means “God with us”. And so it is. Through Jesus, God came to live on this earth, offering us the opportunity to live with Him for ever, in His “sanctuary”, eternal life. And it is in and through Jesus that we will see and experience the “glorious presence” of God. Make sure you don’t miss it, Folks.