Tag Archives: heaven

Heaven is like yeast (Matthew 13:33) March 27, 2016

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – Genesis 48-50

see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)

Today’s Devotional

Matthew 13:33
Jesus: Imagine a woman preparing a loaf of bread. The kingdom of heaven is like the leaven she folds into her dough. She kneads and kneads until the leaven is worked into all the dough.

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

Bread making in this part of the world has become a hobby instead of a part of everyday life as it was in Jesus’ day. In fact, a century ago, bread making was part of everyday life in most American households. It’s still a lot cheaper to make bread than to buy bread if you have the inclination and time. About 15¢ worth of material and a couple of hours and you can have a loaf of bread. Or you can even make it easy on yourself and throw all the stuff in a bread maker and four hours later you have a loaf of bread.

But most people in this country, buy their bread today. Bread making is more a hobby than a necessity. We rely on bakers to make our bread for us. So many of us don’t know much about leavening or what it takes to make that yeast bubble and foam and cause bread to have all those little holes inside. But that’s exactly what yeast does. Yeast is a live usually single-celled organism in the fungus family that uses carbohydrates to produces carbon dioxide. It’s this carbon dioxide trapped in the bread that makes the holes. The gluten in the flour holds the fibers in the flour together so those holes can stay in the shape of tiny bubbles.

If you don’t let the yeast activate and eat up some of those carbohydrates before putting the dough in the oven, the yeast gets too hot too fast and the dough won’t rise as much as you want. If you let the dough rise too long, the dough collapses on itself because the gluten isn’t strong enough to support the large bubbles the yeast creates and like bubbles you blow with bubble gum, they reach a point they can’t sustain themselves and burst. So, again, the dough collapses and you have flat bread.

So how do you avoid these problems? The like Jesus says in comparing heaven to yeast, the woman kneads the dough and the yeast spreads through the bread. It rises for a couple of hours and then the woman kneads it one more time to let it rise a second time. This second rise gives the yeast more even rise capacity so that the race horse bubbles which had their heyday now don’t ruin the loaf and the real work horses that will stand up to the heat can take over.

So Jesus says heaven is like that yeast. There is an initial phase of real excitement. A huge bubble of growth that everyone sees happen fast. But life happens and those, like the seed sown in rocky and thorny soil fall away. They don’t stand up to the pressure of the world and succumb to the temptations Satan throws at them instead of living the life God has planned for them. The pressures of the world crush the fast growing, flash in the pan believers, just like the first kneading crushes the bubbles in the first rise of the dough.

Jesus also says yeast spreads through the dough and heaven is like that. If you look at a loaf of bread, there are tiny holes in every slice, top to bottom, end to end. It shows that the yeast has traveled to every part of the dough. Just so, God’s kingdom spreads to every part of the world. Once yeast is put into the mixture of flour, water, salt, and sugar, the other basic ingredients for a loaf of bread, you can’t take it out and you can’t keep it from spreading through the whole loaf. It goes everywhere in the mixture. God’s word and His kingdom is like that. Once His word broke out into the world, there was no stopping it.

Satan has tried in every way He knows how to stop God’s word from reaching people. He tried banning it with government laws. He tried persecution. He tried ridicule of God’s followers. He tried scientific enlightenment. Satan even tried nailing God’s Son to a cross. None of it worked. God’s word spreads whenever and wherever people of faith go.

Bread making also takes work. Perhaps Jesus used the metaphor to remind us that being part of God’s heaven doesn’t mean we sit around and do nothing. God made us originally to tend His creation and worship Him. Building His kingdom means work. If you want to be lazy, you won’t be part of His kingdom. He gave us a day for rest, but only one day out of seven, not six out of seven. He expects us to use what He’s give us and be productive in building His kingdom. Yeast, to be effective, must be worked into the dough. We must get our hands sticky and covered in dough if we are to make that perfect loaf of bread. And we must get our hands dirty and sticky and covered in the kingdom issues if we are to build His kingdom.

Are you ready to smell that good homemade loaf of bread? How about the growing kingdom of God? Then it’s time to get to work!

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

Heaven — the mustard seed. (Matthew 13:31-32) March 26, 2016

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – Mark 5-6

see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)

Today’s Devotional

Matthew 13:31-32
Jesus told them another parable.
Jesus: The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a sower took and planted in his field. Mustard seeds are minute, tiny—but the seeds grow into trees. Flocks of birds can come and build their nests in the branches.

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

I didn’t know much about mustard seeds or how they grow until I did a little research. There are a few different kinds of plants, none really grow into real trees, but there is one that grows so rapidly and so tall that it could be considered a tree. It grows wild in some of the most inhospitable climates as long as it has a water source. And because the seeds are so small, when the seed pods burst at maturity, the wind scatters them so they have the potential of growing wild almost anywhere.

So Jesus talks about these tiny seeds, about one millimeter in diameter. These tiny little seeds germinate in one to five days and grow large enough to harvest in 60 to 85 days. Usually, the plants grow as clumps of bushes three to five feet high, but in the right conditions these wild mustard plants can grown together into tree-like plants as tall as 20–22 feet high. It’s interesting that Jesus would use this as a metaphor for explaining heaven.

Perhaps He compared heaven to a mustard seed to share how quickly it can grow when conditions are right. Certainly they were right when the Father sent His Son into the world at just the right time to be the perfect sacrifice for our sins. At no other time in history, had the world enjoyed such a wide-spread commonality in language, freedom to travel, common government, and prosperity. The Roman Empire brought together the nations of the known world at a time that made Jesus’ entrance into the world the perfect time for breaking the chains of sin that bind humankind. So His message could spread around the known world more rapidly at that point in time that at any time before or for centuries after His earthly ministry.

Maybe He compared heaven to a mustard seed to demonstrate how much it grows. Heaven starts with God. He created heavenly beings to minister to Him, then created the rest of the universe and then humankind. Each person that accepts Jesus as Lord enters into His kingdom, the kingdom of heaven and it grows by one more person. The rapid growth of His kingdom happens as we share His word and His Spirit convinces and convicts those who hear His message and come to Him in faith.

Maybe He compared heaven to a mustard seed because like the seeds that scatter from the dried pods at maturity, Christianity, faith in Him, scatters broadly as His followers carry Him in their hearts.When we accept Him as Lord, He travels with us and in us. And like at the day of Pentecost when thousands gathered in Jerusalem to worship, then traveled back to their homes, they took with them the message they heard from Peter. Those thousands who became part of the church during those early days didn’t stay in Jerusalem. They were businessmen, housewives, rabbis, city officials. They came from all walks of life and all the surrounding countries. After they received Peter’s words, gave themselves to God, and received His Spirit in them. They took the message back with them to their several countries and cities and homes. Seeds were scattered. Heaven expanded.

Maybe Jesus compared heaven to a mustard seed because it grows under some of the most difficult conditions. He probably picked up one of these tiny seeds from the ground as He shared this parable. Most in the crowd couldn’t even see it. But they understood that when this tiny seed found its place in the soil, it would grow with just a little water. It grew in rocky soil, sandy soil, dry desert climates. It could withstand drought and floods. It grew under the intense heat of the middle-eastern sun. Just so, no matter what Satan does to try to defeat or slow the growth of God’s kingdom, His kingdom not only survives, but thrives and grows fast and high and strong.

Now that you know a little more about the mustard plant and those tiny little seeds that are almost too small to even see, think about this. Heaven is like a mustard seed. Stop and consider what a great thing to be part of God’s kingdom of heaven. It grows no matter the circumstances, it scatters broadly to every nation and every culture on the globe, it grows under the harshest of conditions, it grows as fast as we share His message, God army cannot be stopped.

What a marvelous analogy. Heaven is like a mustard seed. Are you helping it grow by scattering the message, watering new believers and your heart with the Spirit of God? Are you encouraged by the fact that nothing can stop the kingdom of heaven anymore than nothing can stop those mustard seeds from scattering around the desert.

Pretty cool metaphor when you think about it! 

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

Stay alert! (Matthew 13:24-30) March 25, 2016

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Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – Jeremiah 1-6

see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)

Today’s Devotional

Matthew 13:24-30
Jesus told them another parable.
Jesus: The kingdom of heaven is like this: Once there was a farmer who sowed good seeds in his field. While the farmer’s workers were sleeping, his enemy crept into the field and sowed weeds among all the wheat seeds. Then he snuck away again. Eventually the crops grew—wheat, but also weeds. So the farmer’s workers said to him, “Sir, why didn’t you sow good seeds in your field? Where did these weeds come from?”
“My enemy must have done this,” replied the farmer.
“Should we go pull up all the weeds?” asked his workers.
“No,” said the farmer. “It’s too risky. As you pull up the weeds, you would probably pull up some wheat as well. We’ll let them both grow until harvesttime. I will tell the harvesters to collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned, and only then to harvest the wheat and bring it to my barn.”

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

Well, I have another confession to make. I don’t know how many times I’ve read this passage. I’d have to look up the number of sermons I’ve preached on this passage and used it to talk about the fact that Christian life in a sinful world. God doesn’t take us out of the world, but leaves us here among the thorns and weeds until His harvest-time comes. Then He will separate the wheat from the weeds. He will sort out the good from the bad. Until then, we just put up with some of the evil around us because it’s not going away until He comes again.

I’ve talked in the past about the fate of the two types of plants. The wheat is gathered into bundles and taken into the farmer’s barn to be enjoyed by the farmer and his family. The weeds are bundled and burned. Sounds a lot like the two kinds of punishment meted out at the final judgment, doesn’t it?

I’ve talked about how Satan, God’s enemy does everything he can to spoil the good work God does and sows evil wherever he can. Sometimes Satan even sows evil in the institutional church with its gossip and dissension, its politics, jealousy, and greed. He makes many look more like the world than Christ and so weeds are sown in the middle of God’s field.

But that’s not the confession I need to make today. For the first time, I noticed two important phrases I’ve just passed over time after time as I focused on other parts of this parable. Did you see them? The first one says, “While the workers were sleeping,…” Ouch! The enemy came in while the workers slept! Did you know the Uniform Code of Military Justice carries a punishment up to death for sleeping while on guard? There’s a good reason for that. If you are on guard duty, you are responsible for alerting the rest of the unit if an enemy is on the perimeter and being the first defense to keep the enemy out. If you’re asleep on the job and the enemy breaks in and kills your buddies, you’re essentially an accessory to murder because of your failure to carry out your responsibilities.

So here are these workers sleeping on the job. When they should be watching for the enemy and protecting their boss’ land, they are snoozing under a tree and let the enemy creep in and sow weeds in the field. But that’s not all that happens in the story. Did you catch the second phrase? The workers said to the farmer, “Sir, why didn’t you sow good seeds in your field?”

So here they are blaming the farmer for their negligence. Isn’t that just like too many of us? Oops, I messed this one up, who can I blame! I know, let’s blame God for all the bad things that happen to us. We’re good at that, aren’t we? When in reality, if we would just wake up and keep watch the enemy would never have the opportunity to sneak in and destroy the way we let him. Notice I said we let him! See it’s our choice.

We are not strong enough to stand up against Satan, but God is. The sentry on duty isn’t strong enough to stand up against an attack when the enemy begins to rush the perimeter of a unit. The commander knows that, too. But his job is not to defeat the enemy. His job is to give the warning, alert the rest of the unit, make sure everyone knows the enemy is about to attack. That’s the sentry’s job. So if we will just recognize the enemy is on the perimeter, God will take over and help defeat the enemy. He has already defeated him anyway. Satan just doesn’t know it yet.

All we have to do is stay awake, stay alert, watch for the temptations that Satan sends our way. Then we sound the alarm and bring in the big guns. Call the artillery. Send for reinforcements. Let God deliver us from the attacks that Satan might bring our way. What happens then? Victory! That’s what! Don’t sleep on the job. Stay awake. Stay alert. Sound the alarm. You won’t be sorry when God keeps Satan and his minions outside the gates of your life.

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

Put your treasures in heaven (Matthew 6:19-21) January 23, 2016

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Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – Matthew 8-10

see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)

Today’s Devotional

Matthew 6:19-21
Jesus: Some people store up treasures in their homes here on earth. This is a shortsighted practice—don’t undertake it. Moths and rust will eat up any treasure you may store here. Thieves may break into your homes and steal your precious trinkets. Instead, put up your treasures in heaven where moths do not attack, where rust does not corrode, and where thieves are barred at the door. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

Well, to see if Jesus words hold true, I took a look at the stock markets from a year ago today. Google is up from a year ago. That’s good news if you have stock in Google. Almost everything else is down from a year ago today. Over the last couple of weeks, everything has taken a nose dive. It’s only a drop of five or six percent, but that represents trillions of dollars of investments for people who planned their retirements or some big windfall on the continuing rise of the stock market. So much for storing up your treasures in stocks. In the long run, it just doesn’t work. It finally runs out and you can’t take it with you.

How about gold and silver and precious gems? Well, it sounds good, but someone has to buy it, right? So if you have a few pounds of gold sitting around your house it sounds like a great investment. But what happens if the economy really crashes? Do you think your local grocer will accept a hunk of gold for your groceries? He might, but probably not. I doubt if he wants to worry about figuring out the purity of the gold, weighing it, storing it, figuring out how much it’s worth, and providing security for it. Gold is really a pain to have on hand in any quantity. Ask Fort Knox!

When the economy goes kapluey, who’s going to buy your gold, anyway? Who can afford it? What will it be worth? You’re stuck with a lump of gold that you’d happily give away for a scrap of food if someone would give it to you. But ask the Argentinians who a few years ago went through run away inflation what gold was worth to them. Those things will be meaningless to you.

So if gold and silver and stocks and priceless jewels and all those earthly treasures are meaningless, what are we to store up? What treasures can Jesus be talking about when He says to store them in heaven?

If we back up to the beginning of His discourse on the mountain, I think we begin to understand His meaning. Jesus has talked about attitudes being right. He’s talked about thoughts set on goodness and love. He’s talked about keeping your mind out of the gutter and instead offering simple meaningful praise to God. He’s talked about giving to others generously without fanfare. He’s talked about faithfulness to spouses, friends, even enemies. Jesus talked about a new lifestyle from that seen in most circles of society.

From the previous sixty verses Jesus has already laid out a kind of living that turned the general thinking of the religious community upside-down. He has already said enough to cause the Pharisees to hate Him and want His blood. Jesus has already declared their practices shallow, vain, and worthless. He tells those who will listen to His sermon that God has a better plan for them. God has ushered in a new covenant with all humankind. Salvation has arrived, not from doing good deeds. It didn’t come from obeying all the rules. Salvation didn’t come from being religious.

Salvation comes from a change in attitude. It comes from our relationship with God and particularly our relationship with His Son, Jesus the Christ. Through these sixty verses, Jesus has talked about things that affect our relationship with God and others. God wants a vibrant, living relationship with us. He wants our attention. Just like your spouse or your best friend wants your attention to keep your relationship strong, so does God. He wants to talk to you through His word and He wants you to talk to Him through prayer. God wants to communicate with you so you learn of Him, not just about Him.

Everything Jesus tells us to this point leads us toward building our treasure in heaven. It’s not brownie points of doing good, but rather it’s loving God with your all your strength, mind, soul, and spirit. It’s loving your neighbor as yourself. It’s building relationships with others. It’s sharing God’s love with everyone you meet. It’s telling others what God does in your life, witnessing to His amazing grace. That’s your real treasure. Everyone of those people you introduce to God’s kingdom, those are the real treasures you put away in heaven. Eternal friends and family. Those relationships will go on forever.

So, like Jesus says, “Instead, put up your treasures in heaven where moths do not attack, where rust does not corrode, and where thieves are barred at the door. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

Chose the intangibles (Luke 12:13-34), September 29, 2015

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Today’s Scriptures

Today’s Bible reading plans include:

Ready – Luke 12:13-34

Set – Zechariah 4; Luke 12

Go! – Zechariah 4-6; Luke 12

Luke 12:13-34
13 A person in the crowd got Jesus’ attention.
Person in the Crowd: Teacher, intervene and tell my brother to share the family inheritance with me.
Jesus: 14 Since when am I your judge or arbitrator?
15 Then He used that opportunity to speak to the crowd.
Jesus: You’d better be on your guard against any type of greed, for a person’s life is not about having a lot of possessions.
16 (then, beginning another parable) A wealthy man owned some land that produced a huge harvest. 17 He often thought to himself, “I have a problem here. I don’t have anywhere to store all my crops. What should I do? 18 I know! I’ll tear down my small barns and build even bigger ones, and then I’ll have plenty of storage space for my grain and all my other goods. 19 Then I’ll be able to say to myself, ‘I have it made! I can relax and take it easy for years! So I’ll just sit back, eat, drink, and have a good time!’”
20 Then God interrupted the man’s conversation with himself. “Excuse Me, Mr. Brilliant, but your time has come. Tonight you will die. Now who will enjoy everything you’ve earned and saved?”
21 This is how it will be for people who accumulate huge assets for themselves but have no assets in relation to God.
22 (then, to His disciples) This is why I keep telling you not to worry about anything in life—about what you’ll eat, about how you’ll clothe your body. 23 Life is more than food, and the body is more than fancy clothes. 24 Think about those crows flying over there: do they plant and harvest crops? Do they own silos or barns? Look at them fly. It looks like God is taking pretty good care of them, doesn’t it? Remember that you are more precious to God than birds! 25 Which one of you can add a single hour to your life or 18 inches to your height by worrying really hard? 26 If worry can’t change anything, why do you do it so much?
27 Think about those beautiful wild lilies growing over there. They don’t work up a sweat toiling for needs or wants—they don’t worry about clothing. Yet the great King Solomon never had an outfit that was half as glorious as theirs!
28 Look at the grass growing over there. One day it’s thriving in the fields. The next day it’s being used as fuel. If God takes such good care of such transient things, how much more you can depend on God to care for you, weak in faith as you are. 29 Don’t reduce your life to the pursuit of food and drink; don’t let your mind be filled with anxiety. 30 People of the world who don’t know God pursue these things, but you have a Father caring for you, a Father who knows all your needs.
31 Since you don’t need to worry—about security and safety, about food and clothing—then pursue God’s kingdom first and foremost, and these other things will come to you as well.
32 My little flock, don’t be afraid. God is your Father, and your Father’s great joy is to give you His kingdom.
33 That means you can sell your possessions and give generously to the poor. You can have a different kind of savings plan: one that never depreciates, one that never defaults, one that can’t be plundered by crooks or destroyed by natural calamities. 34 Your treasure will be stored in the heavens, and since your treasure is there, your heart will be lodged there as well.

Today’s Devotional

From today’s background scripture God might say:

Satan has managed to turn people’s eyes toward material things so easily. You long for the things you can see instead of the things that really have value. Look around you where you sit right now. How many of those things did you have ten years ago? Twenty years ago? Or turn it around, how many of the things that you see around you will still be in your possession ten years from now? Twenty years from now?

See, all those tangible things will disappear. No matter how long you might think they will last, even if your looking at something that came from what is thought antique, it will someday crumble into dust. Nothing tangible lasts forever. But your soul, that I breathed into you when you took shape inside your mother’s womb, will last forever. I will last forever. Heaven lasts forever. And hell lasts forever. The tangible things of this life will be gone before you know it, but your immortal soul lives on through eternity.

I want you to live with Me. It is your choice, though. Choose to treasure the intangible. Choose to seek and find Me. Choose to build up your treasures in heaven by loving others with Christlike love. 

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

John describes heaven (Revelation 21), September 16, 2015

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Today’s Scriptures

Today’s Bible reading plans include:

Ready – Revelation 21

Set – Ezekiel 41; Revelation 21

Go! – Ezekiel 40-41; Psalms 128; Revelation 21

Revelation 21
1 I looked again and could hardly believe my eyes. Everything above me was new. Everything below me was new. Everything around me was new because the heaven and earth that had been passed away, and the sea was gone, completely. 2 And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, prepared like a bride on her wedding day, adorned for her husband and for His eyes only. 3 And I heard a great voice, coming from the throne.
A Voice: See, the home of God is with His people.
He will live among them;
They will be His people,
And God Himself will be with them.
4 The prophecies are fulfilled:
He will wipe away every tear from their eyes.
Death will be no more;
Mourning no more, crying no more, pain no more,
For the first things have gone away.
5 And the One who sat on the throne announced to His creation,
The One: See, I am making all things new. (turning to me) Write what you hear and see, for these words are faithful and true. 6 It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will see to it that the thirsty drink freely from the fountain of the water of life. 7 To the victors will go this inheritance: I will be their God, and they will be My children. 8 It will not be so for the cowards, the faithless, the sacrilegious, the murderers, the sexually immoral, the sorcerers, the idolaters, and all those who deal in deception. They will inherit an eternity in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.
9 And then one of the seven messengers in charge of the seven bowls filled with the seven last plagues came over to me.
Heavenly Messenger: Come with me, and I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.
10 He took me away in the Spirit and set me on top of a great, high mountain. As I waited for what I thought was a bride, he showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God. 11 It gleamed and shined with the glory of God; its radiance was like the most precious of jewels, like jasper, and it was as clear as crystal. 12 It was surrounded with a wall, great and high. There were twelve gates. Assigned to each gate was a messenger, twelve in all. And on the gates were inscribed the names of the twelve tribes of Israel’s sons. 13 On the east wall were three gates. On the north wall were three gates. On the south wall were three gates. On the west wall were three gates. 14 And the city wall sat perfectly on twelve foundation stones, and on them were inscribed the names of the twelve emissaries of the Lamb.
15 My guide held a golden measuring rod. With it he measured the city and the gates and the walls. 16 And the city is laid out with four corners in a perfect square, the length the same as its width. He measured the city with his measuring rod, and the result was that its length and width and height are equal: 1,444 miles, a perfect cube. 17 And my guide measured the wall; it was nearly 72 yards high, in human measurements, which was the instrument the guide was using. 18 The wall was made of jasper, while the city itself was made of pure gold, yet it was as clear as glass. 19 The foundation stones of the wall of the city were decorated with every kind of jewel: the first was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, 20 the fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the twelfth amethyst. 21 The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate expertly crafted from a single beautiful pearl. And the city street was pure gold, yet it was as transparent as glass.
22 And in the city, I found no temple because the Lord God, the All Powerful, and the Lamb are the temple. 23 And in the city, there is no need for the sun to light the day or moon the night because the resplendent glory of the Lord provides the city with warm, beautiful light and the Lamb illumines every corner of the new Jerusalem. 24 And all peoples of all the nations will walk by its unfailing light, and the rulers of the earth will stream into the city bringing with them the symbols of their grandeur and power. 25 During the day, its gates will not be closed; the darkness of night will never settle in. 26 The glory and grandeur of the nations will be on display there, carried to the holy city by people from every corner of the world. 27 Nothing that defiles or is defiled can enter into its glorious gates. Those who practice sacrilege or deception will never walk its streets. Only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life can enter.

Today’s Devotional

From today’s background scripture God might say:

John saw the city I am building for you. If you wonder if it’s large enough to accommodate all who will enter, look again at its measurements. 1,444 miles on every side, a perfect cube. Now imagine a city that stretches half-way from Maine to Los Angeles, from San Antonio to Canadian and is more than five times higher than the space lab in orbit. Ten million people live in New York City. My city can hold the population of the world many times over. You see I really do want everyone to know My saving grace. I’m preparing a place for everyone. I know that all won’t follow Me, but I’m preparing a place in the hope that all will choose Me instead of their own path. John describes it. It’s a pretty nice place. I’m still working on it for you, but it’s almost ready. You can live there by believing in Me. Choose right and join Me. 

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

Heaven is waiting (Revelation 4), August 30, 2015

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Scriptures

Today’s Bible reading plans include:

Ready – Revelation 4

Set – Ezekiel 11; Revelation 4

Go! – Ezekiel 8-11; Revelation 4

Revelation 4
1 After I wrote down these messages, I saw a door standing open in heaven and heard again the first voice that sounded like a trumpet.
A Voice: Come up here, and I will show you what must happen after this.
2 Immediately I was caught up in the Spirit, and I saw a throne that stood in heaven and One seated on the throne. 3 The One enthroned gleamed like jasper and carnelian, and a rainbow encircled the throne with an emerald glow. 4 Encircling that great throne were twenty-four smaller thrones with twenty-four elders clothed in white robes with wreaths fashioned of gold on their heads. 5 Out of the great throne came flashes of lightning, sounds of voices, and peals of thunder. In front of the great throne, seven torches were ablaze, which are the seven Spirits of God. 6 Also in front of the throne was a glassy sea of shimmering crystal.
In the midst of the throne and encircling the throne were four living creatures, covered all over with eyes, front to back. 7 The first living creature was like a lion, the second creature was like an ox, the third creature had a face like the face of a human, and the fourth creature was like an eagle in full flight. 8 These four living creatures, each of which had six wings and was covered with eyes—eyes on the outside and on the inside—did not cease chanting. All day and night they were singing.
Four Living Creatures: Holy, holy, holy
Is the Lord God who is the All Powerful,
who was, and who is, and who is coming.
9 And when the living creatures declared glory and honor and thanksgiving to the One seated on the throne, the One who lives throughout all the ages, 10 the twenty-four elders fell prostrate before the One seated on the throne, worshiped the One who lives throughout all the ages, cast their golden wreaths before the throne, and chanted to Him.
11 24 Elders: Worthy are You, O Lord; worthy are You, O God,
to receive glory and honor and power.
You alone created all things,
and through Your will and by Your design, they exist and were created.

Today’s Devotional

From today’s background scripture God might say:

John got a glimpse of what was to come at the end of time. He saw a part of heaven few have witnessed. I allowed him to see My throne so he could share with My children some of their future. I wanted to give you a small vision of the future I have in store for you to give you hope in the desparate times you might face because of your faith. You see, I promised you will face trouble and misunderstanding and persecution as long as you live in this world. But in the world to come, the blessings are so far beyond your imagination, you will find your sufferings as nothing compared to those riches.

The first thing people see when they see My throne is the creature surrounding Me singing praises to Me. They can’t help it. It’s the natural response to who I am. John saw it when he peeked into heaven. He saw the flying creatures singing “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come.” The 24 elders seated around My throne also sang praises to Me. They, too, couldn’t do anything else. All who see Me burst out in praise.

The throneroom is filled with sounds and sights that are impossible to describe with words. John tried, but fell short. The rainbow of colors he describes doesn’t give it justice. The sound of voices and peel of thunder fails to give an adequate representation of what he saw. There are lots of stories about heaven. They give people hope about what is to come. The best source, though, is My word. Listen to what John says about it. Listen to what David says about it. Read what Daniel and Ezekiel say about it. Listen to My words about heaven as I spoke to My disciples.

Heaven is a special place. It’s My home and I want you to share it with Me. How do you get there? Obey Me. That’s it. It’s as simple as that. I’ve been preparing it for you for a long time. It’s your decision whether to come or not. Admission is by reservation only and reservations come through obedience. I want to see you there.

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
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