Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me
(Revelation 3:20)
This invitation is to to join Jesus at his table for dinner. It reminds me of the question, "if you could go to dinner with anyone, dead or alive, who would it be?"
This invitation from God is not just for dinner. He is inviting us to His place.
AW Tozer “The most important thing about a man is what comes to mind when they think about God.”
Does man limit his thought about God to a being we experience only after death?
John 17:3 “And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.”
Contrary to most teaching in the American evangelical church, getting people to heaven was not Jesus’ primary purpose. His primary purpose was and is to bring heaven to earth. To restore Eden. To reconcile all messed up things and bring back perfect shalom.
The church has a purpose. But man seems to miss this point as it taps into something that man cannot fully grasp. How are we to live IN the Garden of Eden when we cannot see it?
Read the 23rd Psalm. The Psalm is known world wide and quoted daily. But when you read it, pay close attention to the final words.
The LORD is my shepherd, I lack nothing.
He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters,
he refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me;
your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever. Psalm 23
All the days of my life, I will dwell where? Not after my death. It speaks of the here and now.
When Jesus says "Heaven is at hand" he speaks of what is now.
Why does man struggle with this concept? Instead of preaching this, man preaches about something that is tangible, winning souls. We can count that. Many churches count the number of baptisms they do annually and publish the results showing their congregation the success they have to winning souls. Although this is certainly commendable, it might be as commendable (and maybe more so) to count the people that live like Heaven is at hand, in the here and now.
This statistic isn't much available to a church as it is impossible to measure on Sundays, or really, on any day.
The goal of the Christian faith is to live this way - to rethink about this relationship with God in the here and now. There is no separation from God. He is with us every minute of every day, regardless of how poorly we make decisions. We can’t banish God back to Heaven because we make bad choices.
Although man cannot perfectly live in the house of the LORD, the goal can lead a person down a path that is commendable by God himself. His grace is sufficient for the faults of man. It must be. Because God didn't create a perfect human.
A perfect day for a man looks like this:
Wake up knowing the I came from love. It is a love that is inconceivable, beyond man's wildest imagination. God is love and it is Him that created us in His image, perfect in every way. Even with our faults. God put us here for His purpose. Understanding this is a good start for any day.
Man then lives his day knowing he is loved by God. If we know we are loved, we can be secure in all circumstances. A peace that surpasses all understanding wraps its wings around us and protects us from all evil. What freedom this gives any person.
Man now is free to go love others. This means his family, his friends, his enemies.
All life lived in this manner is living in the house of the Lord. It is sitting at His table for meals and enjoying the abundance of all God has for His family.
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