What Is Your Ten-Thousand Year Plan? (When the time of perfection comes, will love be there?)

Can you see the forest for the trees?

Give me a word – give me a sign
Show me where to look – tell me what will I find?
Lay me on the ground and fly me in the sky
Show me where to look – tell me what will I find?

Love is in the water – love is in the air
Show me where to look – tell me will love be there? (Will love be there?)
Teach me how to speak – teach me how to share
Teach me where to go – tell me will love be there? (Will love be there?)

Oh – Heaven, let your light shine down
Oh – Heaven, let your light shine down

I’m gonna let it shine – I’m gonna let it shine
Heaven, let your light shine on me
Oh, yeah
Heaven, let your light shine on me

Come on and shine

When we’ve been here ten thousand years…
bright shining as the sun.
We’ve no less days to sing God’s praise…
then when we’ve first begun.

By Steven Gledhill for FREEdom from MEdom Project…

You might be asked in a job interview,

“Where do you see yourself in five years?”

“What do you see yourself doing ten years from now?”

I would like to ask the bigger picture question:

Where do you see yourself in a thousand years?

What do you see yourself doing ten thousand years from now?

With all of the conversation these days about being in the last days until the return of Jesus Christ for His bride, there seems to be a focus on tribulation and if and when the rapture of the church will occur. This has not been lost on the secular world either with talk of predictions and prophecies concerning the end of the world by way of terrorists and religious extremists, military conquest, and economic collapse of superpower countries. Television programs have surfaced featuring people preparing for doomsday scenarios. Like the doomsday preppers, evangelical Christians in some circles have also become consumed with preparing for tribulation times. This preoccupation with end times has even had a divisive impact on families and friends.

The purpose of “What Is Your Ten-Thousand Year Plan” is to attempt to redirect the emphasis ahead to what is waiting for all those who are looking forward to that which is on the other side of this eternal age. Through what I hope is effective use of Scripture, I hope bring attention to what is written about the eternal celebration of being in fellowship with Jesus for at least the next ten thousand years and beyond.

I have clients at the prison who have returned to God through a relationship with Jesus Christ. They often experience a new-found freedom even while behind prison walls. Part of their sense of freedom behind bars is that they tend to take on an eternal perspective about life that lends itself to having very positive feelings even though they may have months and even years left to serve before being released into freedom from their captivity.

I have asked my believing clients the questions above when they were having a really rough time, when say a loved one died. It’s a distressing, depressing time in the experience of an incarcerated man. Some of these believing offenders have lost their sons to gang violence. No matter what horrific thing the prisoner might have done to warrant imprisonment, it doesn’t make the pain of loss any less painful. It doesn’t lighten the weight of a heavy heart.

I will ask, “Where do you see yourself in a year… five years… ten years… a thousand years… ten thousand years?”

“Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me. There is more than enough room in my Father’s home. If this were not so, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you? When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with me where I am.” John 14:1-3 (NLT)

It can be amazing the sudden change in their countenance as they light up when considering their future in the glorious presence of God for eternity. Their eyes get big and there is a grin, whether obvious or subtle. They don’t see themselves in their prison blues. They are not walking around with a rap sheet. They are not burdened with guilt, isolated by shame, labeled by failure, and/or paralyzed with fear. They were humbled by their experience in this life (aeon, age), and get to anticipate the fullness of freedom for eternity in the presence of the Savior who rescued them from the peril of prison and the lifestyle that directed them to such a place. The prospect of eternity is liberating to them. They tend to be less distracted by life’s indulgences since they are not accessible to them.

Eager citizens of heaven

I share that with you because, in all honesty, it puts me to shame what I take for granted each and every day in my relationship with the Savior who desires to restore me into peace, joy, and rest by way of His love for me. My perspective tends to be entrenched in the ups and downs of this age. I tell you though, when things get intense, though I will worry with anxiety for a time, it is comforting to rest in the assurance of my salvation as a citizen of heaven.

They are headed for destruction. Their god is their appetite, they brag about shameful things, and they think only about this life here on earth. But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior. He will take our weak mortal bodies and change them into glorious bodies like his own, using the same power with which he will bring everything under his control. Philippians 3:19-21 (NLT)

The Apostle draws a clear distinction between us (“we”) and them (“they”) in his letter to the church at Philippi. He writes that we as citizens of heaven alive to the age of resurrection, see life and the world from an eternal perspective with an appetite for the joy and the peace found in the best of relationship with Jesus, while they live life according to the appetite found in the carnal desires of the flesh in this age of self-centered instant but temporary gratification with its own eternal consequences.

But afterward Jesus found him… and told him, “Now you are well; so stop sinning, or something even worse may happen to you.” John 5:14 (NLT)

What if you lived each day eagerly awaiting the return of your Savior? What difference would it make in your approach to how you live today? Where do you see yourself in a thousand years? Do you see yourself reigning on the earth in your renewed glorified body with Jesus? What do you see yourself doing ten thousand years from now? Can you imagine it?

So what actually lies ahead for us in this age of resurrection that Scripture declares we live in today as citizens of heaven? What might actually occur as we pass from our earthly place into our heavenly place? Putting it simply, what happens when we die?

19 Jesus said, “There was a certain rich man who was splendidly clothed in purple and fine linen and who lived each day in luxury. 20 At his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus who was covered with sores. 21 As Lazarus lay there longing for scraps from the rich man’s table, the dogs would come and lick his open sores.

22 “Finally, the poor man died and was carried by the angels to be with Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried, 23 and his soul went to the place of the dead. There, in torment, he saw Abraham in the far distance with Lazarus at his side.

24 “The rich man shouted, ‘Father Abraham, have some pity! Send Lazarus over here to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue. I am in anguish in these flames.’

25 “But Abraham said to him, ‘Son, remember that during your lifetime you had everything you wanted, and Lazarus had nothing. So now he is here being comforted, and you are in anguish. 26 And besides, there is a great chasm separating us. No one can cross over to you from here, and no one can cross over to us from there.’

27 “Then the rich man said, ‘Please, Father Abraham, at least send him to my father’s home. 28 For I have five brothers, and I want him to warn them so they don’t end up in this place of torment.’

29 “But Abraham said, ‘Moses and the prophets have warned them. Your brothers can read what they wrote.’

30 “The rich man replied, ‘No, Father Abraham! But if someone is sent to them from the dead, then they will repent of their sins and turn to God.’

31 “But Abraham said, ‘If they won’t listen to Moses and the prophets, they won’t listen even if someone rises from the dead.’” Luke 16:19-31 (NLT)

This is from the words of Jesus himself speaking on the subject of eternity. We can see from this passage that there is activity in the “afterlife” at a time that there is still life on earth prior to final judgment. So it would seem that Scripture referring to the dead as “asleep” and “sleeping” is perhaps suggesting that sleeping is how it appears from an earthly perspective since the bodies of the dead are in the ground. However in actuality, to be away from this earthly body is to be clothed in something new and wonderful, present and at home with Jesus.

1 For we know that when this earthly tent we live in is taken down (that is, when we die and leave this earthly body), we will have a house in heaven, an eternal body made for us by God himself and not by human hands. 2 We grow weary in our present bodies, and we long to put on our heavenly bodies like new clothing. 3 For we will put on heavenly bodies; we will not be spirits without bodies. 4 While we live in these earthly bodies, we groan and sigh, but it’s not that we want to die and get rid of these bodies that clothe us. Rather, we want to put on our new bodies so that these dying bodies will be swallowed up by life. 5 God himself has prepared us for this, and as a guarantee he has given us his Holy Spirit.

6 So we are always confident, even though we know that as long as we live in these bodies we are not at home with the Lord. 7 For we live by believing and not by seeing. 8 Yes, we are fully confident, and we would rather be away from these earthly bodies, for then we will be at home with the Lord. 9 So whether we are here in this body or away from this body, our goal is to please him.
2 Corinthians 5:1-9 (NLT)

So when exactly do we receive our new clothing; our new body?

35 But someone may ask, “How will the dead be raised? What kind of bodies will they have?” 36 What a foolish question! When you put a seed into the ground, it doesn’t grow into a plant unless it dies first. 37 And what you put in the ground is not the plant that will grow, but only a bare seed of wheat or whatever you are planting. 38 Then God gives it the new body he wants it to have. A different plant grows from each kind of seed. 39 Similarly there are different kinds of flesh—one kind for humans, another for animals, another for birds, and another for fish.

40 There are also bodies in the heavens and bodies on the earth. The glory of the heavenly bodies is different from the glory of the earthly bodies. 41 The sun has one kind of glory, while the moon and stars each have another kind. And even the stars differ from each other in their glory.

42 It is the same way with the resurrection of the dead. Our earthly bodies are planted in the ground when we die, but they will be raised to live forever. 43 Our bodies are buried in brokenness, but they will be raised in glory. They are buried in weakness, but they will be raised in strength. 44 They are buried as natural human bodies, but they will be raised as spiritual bodies. For just as there are natural bodies, there are also spiritual bodies. 1 Corinthians 15:35-44 (NLT)

Well it’s all a lot less complicated after reading all that. How did we arrive at this place of dying into new life? How can we know?

12 But tell me this—since we preach that Christ rose from the dead, why are some of you saying there will be no resurrection of the dead? 13 For if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised either. 14 And if Christ has not been raised, then all our preaching is useless, and your faith is useless. 15 And we apostles would all be lying about God—for we have said that God raised Christ from the grave. But that can’t be true if there is no resurrection of the dead. 16 And if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised. 17 And if Christ has not been raised, then your faith is useless and you are still guilty of your sins. 18 In that case, all who have died believing in Christ are lost! 19 And if our hope in Christ is only for this life, we are more to be pitied than anyone in the world.

20 But in fact, Christ has been raised from the dead. He is the first of a great harvest of all who have died. 21 So you see, just as death came into the world through a man, now the resurrection from the dead has begun through another man. 22 Just as everyone dies because we all belong to Adam, everyone who belongs to Christ will be given new life. 23 But there is an order to this resurrection: Christ was raised as the first of the harvest; then all who belong to Christ will be raised when he comes back. 1 Corinthians 15:12-23 (NLT)

I believe these assurances from Scripture. I do not fear death, but truth be told, I do fear dying; the pain and misery of the experience of dying. I imagine that in that moment when I sense my life on earth is eluding me that I will be frightened in my dying by what I have not known by experience that awaits me on the other side of my resurrection into new life. If I die before my wife does, I will miss her. If she dies before I do, I will miss her. I will miss my family most.

Love in the time of perfection

What is on that side of eternity; the heaven side in glory?

Scripture is clear that in the fullness of eternal resurrection, I will experience family like never before with my eternal heavenly family. I will know by experience love beyond measure; love that transcends even that of a husband and wife, parent and child, brothers and sisters, and best of friends. If I could comprehend that in my temporal human mind, I would rejoice at the prospect of such an experience, and take comfort in the assurance that upon my death I am truly in a better place.

Though I don’t have Scripture to support it, I’d like to believe that my father, grandparents, and so many others who have gone ahead of me into whatever paradise is in the presence of the Savior; that they are at work already interceding in love, earnestly praying for me. That just makes so much sense to me. They don’t have the temptations, distortions, obstructions, selfish motivations, or anything else to interfere with the purpose of kingdom building.

1 If I could speak all the languages of earth and of angels, but didn’t love others, I would only be a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I had the gift of prophecy, and if I understood all of God’s secret plans and possessed all knowledge, and if I had such faith that I could move mountains, but didn’t love others, I would be nothing. 3 If I gave everything I have to the poor and even sacrificed my body, I could boast about it; but if I didn’t love others, I would have gained nothing.

4 Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. 5 It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. 6 It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. 7 Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.

8 Prophecy and speaking in unknown languages and special knowledge will become useless. But love will last forever! 9 Now our knowledge is partial and incomplete, and even the gift of prophecy reveals only part of the whole picture! 10 But when the time of perfection comes, these partial things will become useless.

11 When I was a child, I spoke and thought and reasoned as a child. But when I grew up, I put away childish things. 12 Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely.

13 Three things will last forever—faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is love.
1 Corinthians 13 (NLT)

When we’ve been here ten thousand years…
bright shining as the sun.
We’ve no less days to sing God’s praise…
then when we’ve first begun.

Wow, wow… and WOW!

How is that for perspective? “When I was a child?” is what I am in my imperfect flesh, not seeing clearly my eternal self, but rather seeing “puzzling reflections” with partial, incomplete comprehension of the next ten thousand years and beyond. “But when I grow up…” on the perfect side of resurrection, I will see everything with perfect clarity, knowing by experience everything completely; seeing and knowing as God sees and knows.

What will be perfect when the perfect age of resurrection is fully realized? Everything! And the foundation of perfection is the love found in the person of Jesus Christ. Perfect has already come twice before in the person of Jesus; once born from a virgin, and the other reborn through resurrection from the grave. When Paul refers to the time of perfection coming this third time, all people in relationship with Jesus will fully realize perfection in every way in relationship with perfection; in the experience of perfect love; where there is no fear of judgment, punishment, or consequence. To paraphrase a line from John Eldridge, we will get to live in the reward and privilege of being fully alive in the glory of God.

All who confess that Jesus is the Son of God have God living in them, and they live in God. We know how much God loves us, and we have put our trust in his love. God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them. And as we live in God, our love grows more perfect. So we will not be afraid on the day of judgment, but we can face him with confidence because we live like Jesus here in this world. Such love has no fear, because perfect love expels all fear. 1 John 4:15-17 (NLT)

Are you seeing more clearly the forest for the trees?

Continue reading clicking here for Part Two.

What Is Your Ten-Thousand Year Plan? (When the time of perfection comes, what happens?)

Can you see the forest for the trees?

by Steven Gledhill for FREEdom from MEdom Project…

When we’ve been here ten thousand years…
bright shining as the sun.
We’ve no less days to sing God’s praise…
then when we’ve first begun.

All who confess that Jesus is the Son of God have God living in them, and they live in God. We know how much God loves us, and we have put our trust in his love. God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them. And as we live in God, our love grows more perfect. So we will not be afraid on the day of judgment, but we can face him with confidence because we live like Jesus here in this world. Such love has no fear, because perfect love expels all fear. If we are afraid, it is for fear of punishment, and this shows that we have not fully experienced his perfect love. 1 John 4:15-18 (NLT)

When will the time of perfection come?

When will this happen? There a lot of folks speculating and even making a living talking about when. I will not claim to know, except to say that I agree that since Israel was restored to statehood in 1948 that we are likely in the season of when the time of perfection comes for us. If, as Peter says, to God a day is as a thousand years and a thousand years is as a day, perhaps he was knowingly or unknowingly prophetic in suggesting that here in the third millennium or maybe since 1948, we are in the third day. Last time Jesus came it was early in the morning of the third day. That could mean that the time is ripe. Or, if the 24-hour cycle of the day in Christ’s time began at sundown, early in the morning is a third of the way into the day. Maybe we’re still some three hundred years from the return of Christ. Or maybe we’re already a third of the way into tribulation for you Daniel (Chapter Nine) scholars speculating that Christ will return around 2018 after seven years of tribulation, some seventy years since Israel’s restoration.

Who knows when the time of perfection is going to come? ‘When’ doesn’t seem to make a difference in the context of eternity in the full realization and experience of living in the time of perfection. ‘When’ is really only important to those not prepared for the time of perfection; those with reason to fear judgment, punishment, and consequence; those who literally choose to be free from relationship with Jesus; those who choose to be aligned with their sin—the sin that Jesus paid the price to condemn for eternity. To be aligned with one’s sin, free from relationship with Jesus, is to choose condemnation; eternal (not death) dying. We don’t need to understand specifically what hell is or will be, except that it will most certainly be the experience of dying forever and ever. I, for one, do not want to know what that means or involves; not even for a second.

Like I said in Part One, there is a great deal of talk today about the perilous times we are living in throughout the world and what it all means for us who believe that Jesus is indeed returning for His bride to bring her home to where He lives. Folks wish to debate whether or not there will be a rapture of the saints; debating whether or not the rapture will occur before the great tribulation (the pouring out of God’s wrath in the book of Revelation), in the middle of the tribulation, or at the conclusion of the tribulation. Much of the speculation hinges on the interpretation of the prophetic words of Jesus in the book of Matthew.

“But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left. Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. Matthew 24:36-42 (NLT)

Taken away or left behind?

Now, why did He have to go and say it like that? Tim LaHaye and Jerry Jenkins made a living on the best-selling Left Behind series drawn predominantly from this passage of Scripture. The question is, who is them that were taken away by the flood? You would think that those taken away by the flood were those who drowned. If that is the case, then Noah and his family were left behind to sustain human life until the waters subsided. Oops… that would mean that being left behind is a good thing as those taken away are taken away by tribulation or judgment that is to occur after tribulation.

On the other hand, perhaps Jesus meant that Noah and his people were taken away from the wrath of the flood and those left behind drowned in the great tribulation that came upon them. If that is the case, then maybe being raptured before the great tribulation is still possible. The rapture “doctrine” did not really even surface in evangelical teachings and traditions until the early 1800s. But by the 1960s and 70s when I grew up, the tradition of pre-tribulation rapture of the saints both dead and alive on the earth was a certainty. I grew up understanding the return of Christ to be the rapture when he catches us up in the blink of an eye to meet Him in the air, as if in the clouds so to speak.

For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17 (NIV)

While this was the pivotal passage I understood to be about the rapture of the church, it is clearly speaking of the return of Jesus Christ, which occurs at the conclusion of seven years of great tribulation when the trumpet calls us home and we meet with Jesus in the air. If one was to call this the rapture of the saints then it occurs post-tribulation. There is Scripture in the book of Daniel that perhaps suggests a mid-tribulation rapture prior to the worst of God’s wrath being poured out upon the earth until the heavens and the earth are on fire. (We could be a couple of years into tribulation already according to some scholars.)

You see, this is all very complicated and most distracting from what we really need to be focused on. Here are definitions for the word ‘rapture’, according to Merriam-Webster:

1 : an expression or manifestation of ecstasy or passion
2 a : a state or experience of being carried away by overwhelming emotion; b : a mystical experience in which the spirit is exalted to a knowledge of divine things

Of course the dictionary kindly added the following definition, probably around the 19th or 20th century:
“the final assumption of Christians into heaven during the end-time according to Christian theology”

We are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior. Philippians 3:20 (NLT)

What ‘rapture’ really means is being carried away by passionate ecstasy, overwhelmed emotionally by the reality of who we are as citizens of heaven, eagerly awaiting the return of our Savior to come get us and take us home into the perfect love that is in His presence in the time of perfection, fully alive in His glory. Pastor Randal Ross* preached this recently about what rapture really is intended to mean for us and it touched my heart.

What are we to do?

Evangelical Christians these days are even quarreling as they speculate about what is to come in the last days. What we ought to be doing is getting excited about resurrection into the time of perfection that is imminent and hopefully coming soon for us in relationship with Christ. Pastor Ross said that our emphasis should be the following from these prophetic words of Jesus as we approach the imminence of His coming:

31 “But when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit upon his glorious throne. 32 All the nations will be gathered in his presence, and he will separate the people as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will place the sheep at his right hand and the goats at his left.

34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home. 36 I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.’

37 “Then these righteous ones will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 Or a stranger and show you hospitality? Or naked and give you clothing? 39 When did we ever see you sick or in prison and visit you?’

40 “And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!’

41 “Then the King will turn to those on the left and say, ‘Away with you, you cursed ones, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his demons. 42 For I was hungry, and you didn’t feed me. I was thirsty, and you didn’t give me a drink. 43 I was a stranger, and you didn’t invite me into your home. I was naked, and you didn’t give me clothing. I was sick and in prison, and you didn’t visit me.’

44 “Then they will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and not help you?’

45 “And he will answer, ‘I tell you the truth, when you refused to help the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help me.’

46 “And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous will go into eternal life.” Matthew 25:31-46 (NLT)

Now this is prophecy that trumps all prophecy. Instead of speculating and, yes, worrying about whether or not we will be subject to tribulation, the spirit of anti-christ, mark of the beast, and all that, we need to refocus and place our emphasis on loving as many as we can into the family and kingdom of God through service, testimony, and obedience in the pursuit of righteous purity. Trust me, I am writing this to myself as much as for what it can do to adjust your perspective on how we do recovery from selfish entitlement one day at a time.

I am excited at the prospect of what my life will be in ten thousand years but I must be about the challenge laid out before me by Jesus. What can I be doing for Him in these early days of my ten-thousand year plan to maximize the opportunity for so many more to know Jesus by faith through service, testimony, and obedient righteous living? I cannot do it alone in my own strength so it becomes paramount that I surrender each day to the purposeful will of God in obedient service to Him and trust the Holy Spirit to do the miraculous to transform lives through His compassionate mercy.

Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think. Ephesians 3:20 (NLT)

Are you seeing the forest for the trees?

“Someone who can’t see the forest for the trees has typically become so focused on details that he or she begins to ignore the overall situation. A person accused of being unable to see the forest may want to take a step back from the situation, to regain a wider perspective on it. It is very easy to get caught up in minutia of a situation, especially when someone works on a problem for an extended period of time, or has only been working on one aspect of a larger issue.” —WiseGeek.org

What are the trees obstructing your view of the forest? How are the circumstances of this life impeding your perspective of what is to come in the time of perfection? I take this up with the men at the prison where I work who struggle to consider the bigger picture because of their obsession with that which is in the way right in front of them… anger, resentment, vengeance, envy, guilt and shame, loneliness, fear of the unknown, feeling like a failure, etc. When you walk up to the tree and obsess about controlling the life on and about the tree, you miss the bigger picture concerning the immeasurable possibilities of life in the forest; the forest that is lush, full of life, and endless in scope, going on and on and on.

The perfection that is to come in eternal glory with our Savior and Lord is the forest. Please, take the time to consider your ten-thousand year plan. Get excited about it. Be motivated to live each day at a time eagerly awaiting the Savior in anticipation of the time of perfection.

When troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. James 1:2 (NLT)

“Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me. There is more than enough room in my Father’s home. If this were not so, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you? When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with me where I am.” John 14:1-3 (NLT)

Trust me, when dealing with the troubles of the day, it helps to broaden your perspective, seeing the forest for the trees.

Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again—rejoice! Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do. Remember, the Lord is coming soon. Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.
Philippians 4:4-8 (NLT)

It’s Simply a Matter of Time

by Steven Gledhill for FREEdom from MEdom Project…

“I do not believe it to be a matter of hope… it’s simply a matter of time.”  —from the movie, The Matrix, Reloaded: Morpheus describing the certainty of victory because of who is on their side 

I asked a client of mine at the prison I work at on his birthday how young he was. “Young, I turned 47 today.” Since he is a believer in recovery I asked him, “Where do you see yourself ten years from now? Where do you see yourself 1000 years from now? Ever wonder how young you’ll look… how good you’ll look?” He loved that.

What is the end game for those who stay the course of recovery, laying down selfish desires and pursuits to instant gratification, to pursue fulfilling satisfaction in the perfect will of God? Well for one thing, the “game” doesn’t end. It just becomes a lot more fun. In relationship with Jesus is resurrection from the old life into the new life at the present time. The Bible says that the Kingdom of God is near and at hand. We live today in the kingdom age of glorious grace as citizens of heaven. The light of the new day is upon us. It’s merely a matter of time before we dance on streets of gold in the new earth. Humility is the key to living out recovery from an eternal kingdom point of view while looking forward to celebrating our recovery forever. 

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 5:3 

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled.” Matthew 5:6 

I recently attended the funeral service for a 16-year-old girl named Jenna. For the last five and a half years of her life, Jenna suffered from T-Cell Lymphoma, a cancer that attacks white blood cells and destroys major organs in the body. In Jenna’s case her lungs were under siege from this deadly disease. By the end, after numerous procedures she would wear a breathing apparatus that looked like something that Darth Vader (Star Wars) would wear just to survive another day.

Jenna had an opportunity for a lung transplant but it came with big time risk. Jenna’s body rejected the new lungs and she died, entering the presence of the Lord. What was amazing at this funeral were the songs Jenna wrote only months before she left her severely flawed existence for the glory of Heaven; a destination she was certain of. She wrote with bated anticipation as if she had been given a glimpse into her eternity in relationship with Jesus. In her song, “What I Found”, Jenna wrote to Jesus in the first person asking Him to wait for her while she sought Him out. But then it was as though she understood that Jesus would be seeking her out so she promised Him that she would wait for Him to find her.

While she had hoped that her knew lungs would work out, that was something she could only speculate. What she knew to be as sure and real as the words on this page was that it was only a matter of time before she would be in the literal presence of her Lord Jesus. Jenna took peace in that. All who knew and loved her knew her peace to be genuine. She was already enjoying a sweet fellowship with Jesus as though she was invited to a unique spiritual place perhaps reserved for someone as near to eternity as she was. 

What are you sure about? 

Be sure about this… Your recovery is not in vain!  Jesus Christ is alive, and at the end of the day, is preparing a celebration of literally heavenly proportion.  Paul viewed his recovery from sin as an upward calling to experience the unspeakable joy of heaven in the presence of Jesus himself.  “Upward calling” means that his purpose is to do the will of God in order to please him, knowing that his reward is heavenly and beyond his comprehension. This is definitely a spiritual concept on how to function from day to day.  He saw doing the will of God in all of his activities as unto his upward calling. 

Paul would do whatever it took to fulfill the will of God for the ultimate prize. 

“I press on, that I may lay hold of that since Christ Jesus has already laid hold of me.  Brethren, I do not consider myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward calling of God in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 3:11-14 (NKJV) 

Paul’s daily goal was eternal fellowship in heaven with Jesus.  It is his eternal objective that motivates him in recovery, driving him in his pursuit to will and to do the will of God, empowered by God.  Paul believed the teachings and promises of Jesus and did cling to them.  Jesus promised he would be preparing a place for us beyond our wildest imaginations.  

“Let not your heart be troubled; you, who believe in God, believe also in Me.  In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you.  I go to prepare a place for you.  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also.  And where I am going you know, and the way you know.” Then Thomas said to Him, “Lord we do not know where you are going, and how can we know the way?”   Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through Me.” John 14:1-6 (NKJV) 

The more we discover who Jesus is in our recovery from a life of addictive sin, the less Scriptures like this are a mystery to our ears.  As we grow in knowledge and experience, we become more mature spiritually and are able grasp the truths of the Bible, the Word of God written specifically for you and for me.  The more we more fully understand who we are in the new resurrection age of grace, the more we are content with our everyday lives as a foreshadowing of what’s to come. Revelation of this truth of who we are today as citizens of heaven—now, today—the more we can be at peace with our past, present, and future.  We no longer live in an age of darkness, but rather we walk in the light.  When this revelation is truly alive in your heart, you cannot help but shine your light brightly wherever you are and wherever you go.

We can apprehend the vision of eternal life in heaven with the fellowship of one another as one genuinely happy family.  Heaven is the package enveloping the prize.  The prize is Jesus, face to face, heart to heart, soul to soul.  The treasures of heaven will not be exhausted, the Bible says (Luke 12:33).  In fact, the Bible tells us that when we are committed to the will of God as our reasonable service to him, we are storing up treasures in heaven even now in this lifetime.  Jesus explains that if it is our purpose to store up treasures on earth—material wealth, toys, and selfish ambitions—that they do not transfer into heaven’s economy.  As you have heard it said, “You can’t take it with you.” 

“And don’t be concerned about what to eat and what to drink. Don’t worry about such things.  These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers all over the world, but your Father already knows your needs.  Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and he will give you everything you need.  So don’t be afraid, little flock. For it gives your Father great happiness to give you the Kingdom.  Sell your possessions and give to those in need. This will store up treasure for you in heaven! And the purses of heaven never get old or develop holes. Your treasure will be safe; no thief can steal it and no moth can destroy it.  Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.” Luke 12:29-34 (NLT) 

The more you grow in your recovery the more this makes sense as the most profitable way to live.  We have so much to look forward to living in the truth.  When we were lost in addiction, all we could see was what was right in front of us—instant gratification.  When we are committed to our recovery, the blinders come off as we do what Paul did, forgetting what is behind (or as Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 6, “what we were”) and moving forward and upward, answering the call of God, and driven to overcome and to do the will of God so as to attain the prize of heaven and all that heaven is—fulfilling satisfaction. 

Look at what Jesus said to His disciple John in the book of Revelation. 

“Behold, the tabernacle (dwelling place) of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people.  God Himself will be with them and be their God.  And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying.  There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.”  Then He who sat on the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.”  And He said to me, “It is done!  I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End.  I will give of the fountain of the water of life freely to him who thirsts.  He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and He shall be My son.” Revelation 21:3-7 (NKJV)  

How’s that for a promise to all who have overcome their thirst for the things of the world and faithfully put their trust in him, the one who quenches our thirst with what Jesus calls “living water”?  At the end of the day (dwelling in the former age of darkness as a vessel of light), we get to enjoy being in the presence of God himself as his sons and daughters.  Wow!  I cannot even begin to comprehend what Jesus means when he says that we who have overcome will inherit all things as God’s kids in direct fellowship with him.  Jesus is talking about heaven at his level.  While at best I can only imagine, I am convinced that my wildest imaginations pale in comparison to the heavenly reality he is talking about. 

What else did Jesus say about heaven? 

The twelve gates of the city were twelve pearls; each individual gate was of one pearl.  And the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass.  But I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb (referring to Jesus) are its temple.  The city had no need of the sun or of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it.  The Lamb is its light. Revelation 21:21-23 (NKJV) 

This brief description of what heaven looks like gives me chills.  This is exciting!  It’s no wonder our worldly treasures are useless there when the streets of God’s neighborhood are pure gold.  Can you imagine what your home (your mansion) is going to look like?  Our bodies will be changed into something glorious.  The Bible says that. 

It is the same way with the resurrection of the dead. Our earthly bodies are planted in the ground when we die, but they will be raised to live forever.  Our bodies are buried in brokenness, but they will be raised in glory.  They are buried in weakness, but they will be raised in strength.  They are buried as natural human bodies, but they will be raised as spiritual bodies.  For just as there are natural bodies, there are also spiritual bodies. 1 Corinthians 15:42-44 (NLT) 

I cannot really know what that means, since my finite brain does not comprehend it, except that we are different and better to the point that the Bible says we can behold the glory of Christ himself in all of his glory.  I do not know how I will appear in glory (heaven).  Nor can I imagine what you will look like.  All I know for sure is that I won’t be old.  My eye sight will be perfect.  I won’t be plugged up with sinus congestion as is the case with me. There will be no sickness. There will be no pain. There will be no weakness.  My body will be strong.  I will live forever in my prime in glory.   How exciting is that? 

When Paul spoke of pressing on to reach the goal to attain the prize, this is the kind of reality he was talking about.  He admitted that recovery is not easy.  Paul, like Jesus, worked his ABC recovery steps each and every day.  The Bible tells us, though, that our human existence is merely temporary, and this life we’re in with all of its complexities and difficulties is but a blip in the context of our eternal life in heaven with Jesus Christ and the entire family of God. 

But there shall by no means enter it anything that defiles or causes an abomination or lie, but only those who are written into the Lamb’s Book of Life. Revelation 21:27 (NKJV) 

The Bible also tells us that heaven cannot be defiled; therefore, only those purged of their addictive sin can enter into it. We are purged of addictive sin since we were crucified with Christ; our sin condemned with Christ during the three days he endured for our freedom.   This makes sense.  Otherwise, heaven would not be any more or better than what we have in the world right now, and look what is going on in the world now: disease, poverty, homelessness, starvation, jealousy, depression, stress and worry, depravity, greed, dictatorship, fighting and war.  The war of the world we live in will be defeated.  The enemies of God will be destroyed. 

What about our enemy, Satan, who continually baits us into sinking further into our addictive mess?  What happens to the one who accuses us before God as being worthless and unfaithful, and ridicules us before God as not fit to receive his grace?  What happens to our enemy, who has convinced so many to reject the sacrifice of Jesus Christ and to pursue their life of addictive sin until it killed them?

Check it out. 

Then I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the accuser of the brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down.  And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.” Revelation 12:10-11 (NKJV) 

Can you guess who “they” is in this passage?  “They” is all of us victorious in recovery over addiction to our self-centeredness.  What these verses say for us is that when total recovery (meaning salvation) has come as we are resurrected into the presence of Jesus Christ our King, we will return with him to defeat our accuser once and for all.  Because we did not believe the lies of the enemy and the spirit of addiction, having embraced the sacrifice of Christ’s blood on the cross, we are victorious over addiction.  We defeat the enemy.  It’s not even close, folks.  It’s a slaughter. 

Recovery is so worth it.  Freedom is worth it.  Experiencing God’s glory is worth it. Choose recovery!  

At the end of the day comes the reward for a lifetime of recovery that cannot be measured in human terms.  The reward is an eternity literally in the presence of our Sympathetic Savior, Jesus Christ.  As we take his gift of recovery, and invest it in a lifestyle committed to doing the will of God, it is only a matter of time before Jesus himself tells you and tells me,

“Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things.  Enter into the joy of your Lord.” Matthew 25:23 (NKJV) 

“Well done” are two of the most precious words we will ever hear.  These words are the gateway to eternal fellowship with our Lord Jesus.  We will celebrate for eternity a life of recovery in relationship with our Savior.  We will all be together in the glory of heaven.  At the end of the day we experience the best day of our life in heaven with Christ, and with each other.  What a day that will be.  This is not a dream.  It is real.  It is our hope.  But it is not merely a matter of hope, but in fact, a matter of time.  It is a promise that is absolutely certain.  Do you believe it? 

In the Matrix movie, Morpheus had faith in Neo to have the power and authority to end the struggle of the people because he believed in what he knew to be true of Neo.  He knew for a fact that Neo had the power and authority to overcome the enemy and win the battle once and for all.  That is why, when the governor replied to Morpheus about Neo’s capability, “Let’s hope so”, Morpheus responded with the fulfillment of the promise: “It’s not a matter of hope…it’s simply a matter of time.” 

In Jesus Christ we have already won the battle over ‘me’dom and all adversity.  Jesus knew at the cross when he said, “It is accomplished” that he had, through his sacrifice and resurrection, defeated death.  The victory in recovery is ours through relationship with Christ.  Soon, we will see Jesus face to face and all will be revealed. 

Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. I Corinthians 13:12 (NIV) 

We will know him fully.  I’m not sure I can fully appreciate this until I actually lay eyes on him.  We will touch his nail-scarred hands and experience the warmth of his embrace while resting in his arms throughout our eternal destiny.  We will look into his eyes as we talk to him.  Better yet Jesus Christ will look into your eyes and mine with the same compassion he had for his disciples.  He will have the same look of love in his eyes that he had for everyone he encountered and touched on earth as he looks into our eyes and touches us.  The day is coming; maybe sooner than you think.  What a day that is to look forward to.  

I can’t wait!  It‘s simply a matter of time. 

And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing:  Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.  Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me—everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you. Philippians 4:8-9 (NLT)