Perceiving the Ages to Come
Monday, June 16th, 2008A river of living water flows from beneath the throne of God. A tree bearing the fruit of an indestructible life stands by that river. There is a city with massive gates of pearl and streets of translucent gold, it is an eternal dwelling place not made by human hands. This city will rest upon a mountain that will stand above all the other mountains of the earth, Zion. The patriarchs of old sought this city, living out all their days on this earth with holy dissatisfaction – longing for the age to come.
In that coming age, Jesus will stand in the authority of His Father as the ruler of the kingdoms of earth and the kingdom of Heaven. This is our eternity; the time of perfect communion with the Son of Man, who is the Son of God. Heavenly Jerusalem is the city we were made to live in. We will dwell there with the Lamb, which is the purpose we were created to fulfill. We are made to be the focus of a divine beings unyielding affections. I was made to walk with Him.
Therefore, the true meaning of a human life cannot even be fully realized in this age. That is why Paul exhorts the church of Collasae “Col 3:2 Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.” Our lives, eternal lives, have been hidden in Christ to be revealed on the day of his coming. It is that day, which the Spirit yearns for with earnest expectation and all creations groans to see. When we see him, we will be transformed and made as He is, we will be revealed as the Children of God. Hallelujah! The King of Kings will then reward the Saints of light for their loving obedience in this evil present age.
Do we believe that this is a real day in our future? Do I believe that Zion described with such marvelous detail in the Holy Scriptures is really a city I will one day see and live in? Have I set my gaze on the age to come? These questions are important, because the revelation of the age to come imparts grace to live a sanctified life today. If we cultivate perception in our Spirits of the highest realities of eternity, then we will not be allured by the passing pleasure of this life. I will be drawn close to God by the satisfaction of the dream he has for our future and the love he has for me that shall not ever pass away - though heaven and earth pass away. In fixing our eyes on eternity, we will be empowered to live filled with real hope, even in the worst time of trouble the world has ever seen.
Jesus primary message when he walked the earth was that, “The Kingdom of Heaven is at Hand.” The understanding of the Kingdom of Heaven was the teaching he shared to provoke the hearts of Israel to return to God. We became citizens of this Kingdom when we were born again of the Spirit of God. It is through seeing this Heavenly Kingdom that exists in the unseen realm, through eyes of faith, that we appropriate the power to overcome the kingdom of this world. So we must pursue by revelation a vision of the Kingdom of Heaven that has come and is coming.
It is by setting our minds on the reality of this Kingdom and its King that we will have divine might imparted to our Spirits to manifest the powers of the age to come – prophecy, apostolic preaching, healing, deliverance, creative miracles, and above all else the virtues of Christ - right now! Jesus said, in John 7:37 “He who believes in me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will Flow Rivers of living water.” There is a river of Life, it flows from beneath the throne, and will flow out of you - today. For the Kingdom of Heaven, is neither here nor there, but is within you.