Just a Thought! - 4 February 2013

"And I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, and He who sat on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and wages war. His eyes are a flame of fire, and on His head are many diadems; and He has a name written on Him which no one knows except Himself. He is clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God. ... And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, "KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS."" (Revelation 19:11-13 & 16)

Revelation 19 is an awesome picture of Christ on His white horse, coming forth to dispose of His enemies. A picture that is filled with beauty and ugliness at the same time. A picture of both life and death. Much can be said of this passage, but I want to just focus on one aspect, the name of Christ that is revealed to us in verse 16 - King of kings.

Herod the Great

This month, the Israel Museum is opening a large exhibit which highlights the life and architecture of Herod the Great, the controversial king of Israel at the time of Jesus' birth. Herod was a practising Jew from Idumea (Edom), a place where many Jews had settled and commingled with the locals. His mother was an Arab Nabataean noblewoman. However, due to his heritage the Pharisees did not see him as being Jewish, and the fact that he was made king of Israel by the Romans only made matters worse. Furthermore, he also executed some of his sons as well as his wife Mariamne, a Hasmonaean princess.

Despite all this, Herod sought to find favour with his people and set out to build the nation through an extensive architectural programme. His most notable building projects were:

- The extending of the Temple Mount - construction took about a year and a half, and in order to comply with religious law, Herod employed 1,000 priests as masons and carpenters. Today, only the Western Wall still stands and is considered by the Jews to be the holiest place of the structure.

- The fortification of Masada - situated in the south of Israel facing the Dead Sea, this fort was used by the Jewish Zealots as a refuge from the Romans during the First Jewish-Roman War (66–73 AD).

- The port city of Caesarea - a Roman administrative capital that Herod named in honour of Augustus Caesar. This was an incredible architectural feat, as Herod had to have the harbour deepened as it was initially too shallow to be used as a port. It was as a result of this that Flavius Josephus, a first-century Jewish historian, wrote of him, "Thus the king conquered nature herself."

- Herodian - Herod's last grand project that was a volcano-shaped hill, built to serve two purposes: a fortified palace for the royal family, and as the future tomb of Herod (His tomb was only discovered in 2007).

The True King of Kings

Two events stand out in contrast to the legacy that Herod left behind.

Firstly it was in the city of Caesarea that Peter first brought the Gospel of Jesus to the Gentiles (see Acts 10:1). As a result of Herod's port, the Gospel began to spread to the rest of the world. A legacy far greater than anything Herod could have ever left behind himself.

But more than that, Herodian was built just outside the little town of Bethlehem. What a testimony to God and His plan to bring the Messiah into the world. The very man that would try to kill Jesus at His birth would be buried just a few years later only a few kilometres away, overlooking the town where Jesus was born. And the baby that he tried to kill would end up changing the world far more than Herod could ever dream or imagine.

Let us worship Jesus today as He truly is the King of kings and the Lord of lords.

Just a Thought!

© 2013

Just a Thought! - 15 October 2012

"Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, "Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them, and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away."" (Revelation 21:1-4)

There are many books on the market of people who have supposedly visited Heaven. From tales by children to those in hospital due to an accident or terminal illnesses, it seems as though people are visiting Heaven daily.

Though many of these books try in one way or another to give us hope of the afterlife, they can be misleading, over romanticised, and often times contradictory to each other and to Scripture. After all, they are merely man's attempts to describe God's home. However, the best place to find out what Heaven will be like is to see how the designer, namely God Himself, describes it in His book, the Bible. Let us get a glimpse of this great place.

"I Can Only Imagine"

Imagine, if you can, being the disciple John, exiled on the island of Patmos, having only seen the sights of the Middle East, Macedonia and parts of ancient Europe, and then being shown by God, all the wondrous sights of Heaven. Imagine trying to put those sights, of things that you have never seen in your life before, nor probably ever have imagined, into words. How would you describe them? Even with modern technology and the many advancements of the twenty-first century, we would be hard-pressed to do so.

It is difficult to imagine how beautiful Heaven is. When we get there, we will see a place that will be nothing like we have ever seen, heard, or conceived of here on earth. We will see first hand the things of God's glory that He has prepared for those who love Him (1 Corinthians 2:9). Take a look at some of John's descriptions:

- A city made of pure gold with walls made of jasper, whose foundations are decorated with every kind of precious stone (Revelation 21:18-19),

- The streets that we will walk on made of pure gold (Revelation 21:21),

- No darkness or night, no sun or moon, because the glory of God Himself will give heaven its light (Revelation 22:5 and 21:23).

Familiar, But Perfect

Although unimaginable, there are certain aspects to Heaven that will be a little familiar to us, but perfect:

- We will have bodies, though different and glorified (1 Corinthians 15:42-44).

- We will have eyes to see and ears to hear (Isaiah 65:19, Revelation 21:4).

- We will be able to eat and drink (Luke 22:29-30).

But there will be other things that are impossible here on earth. Perfection like nothing ever experienced:

- There will be no mourning, crying or pain (Revelation 21:4).

- There will be no sin and nothing impure (Revelation 21:27).

- There will be fullness of joy and pleasure (Psalm 16:11).

- There will be no more unanswered questions, confusion, or ignorance, and no need to walk by faith rather than by sight (1 Corinthians 13:12).

But more importantly, we will be with Jesus Himself (Revelation 21:3 and 22:3-4).

What a wonderful and awesome place Heaven is. And rest assured, if you have lost a loved one who was in Christ here on earth, they are now experiencing the above with their Saviour, and one day we will joy them. Oh what a glorious day that will be.

Just a Thought!

© 2012