Hello friends. In my imagination I can hear her saying as she looks around at us, “People. Listen to me. Don’t be sad for me. I’m having the time of my life!” In my mind I can see Erma Cudney thanking Jesus in person for everything He has done for Erma and her loved ones. She went to be with Him on the afternoon of Aug. 21st. What a time of celebration at her stepping over into the “real world”, the spiritual realm where God resides, the actual kingdom of heaven that Erma became a citizen of, the moment she believed in Jesus as her savior. Like a loved one who has gone on a long journey, Erma is missed, but we will meet again with love and hugs after a while.…
Such abundant love from our creator! He loves us so much that God wants us to live with Him forever after our years are completed on this earth.
There is so much more to our existence than just our lives here on earth, but this is the battle zone and place of decision where people either accept or reject, by faith, the free gift of eternal life with God, that starts with the choice to believe that God loves you, and Jesus took your place so you could join him forever in the “real world” of heaven.
Heaven existed before the earth was created, God is a spirit, and the Bible says those who worship Him must do so in spirit and in truth. Jesus said His words are spirit and they are life.
The Believer has dual citizenship as learned in a previous column. We have two realities, the physical reality of living here on earth, and the spiritual reality of what God says in the Bible. The physical earthly life and the spiritual heavenly life are both very real, and the life the believer lives on earth depends on what value is placed on what God says, even in the face of earthly contradictions.
You have heard people say, “Pinch yourself to see if you are dreaming or awake”. For most folks, if they can’t taste, touch, see, hear, or smell something, it is difficult to believe it exists, but we know air exists, because we have to have it to breath. The propane that we use for cooking and heating etc, is naturally odorless and in that state could be dangerous, so the propane companies add a rotten egg smell to it so we can sense with our noses when there is a leak.
In the same way we can learn heavenly reality by knowing what God says in His word, the Bible. The spiritual reality of God’s kingdom existed before this earthly reality, that is why the apostle Peter could say that God has given believers all things that pertain to life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3). These things that pertain to believers exist in the Kingdom of heaven, in the spiritual realm of God. (Eph 1:3)
Jesus said that if they didn’t understand the parable of the sower they would not understand any of the parables. That parable is the key to making the reality of heavens blessing, a reality here on earth.
Sowing the seed of the word of God, or saying words that agree with God’s promises, even though they may fly in the face of what looks like your only reality, calls the spiritual reality that God provides as a gift for his children into this earthly reality. The Bible calls it “calling things that be not as though they were”(Rom 4:17) It sounds like magic, but it is not. It is part of the Gospel or Good News of Jesus Christ. And just like a seed that is planted in this earthly realm, it takes time for it to start to grow. A seed starts to grow while hidden from sight, underground and you cannot see it, but it is growing. Similarly, when you plant the seed of God’s word into your life and the lives of others, it requires time to grow and produce a crop. We hope for something, and find the promise in God’s word, we speak it and release our faith in God to accomplish it, and we know that God loves us deeply and we return his love to Him as His beloved children.
These principals are the same ones used in heaven.
God has given His children the language of heaven (His word) to use on earth to show His love for His children and be a blessing to them and others.
Until next time, God bless you and your loved ones.
