Sky and earth ! (1)

Tuesday July 20, 2021

Sky and earth ! (1)

“In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” Genesis 1.1

For most of us believers, what we know about “heaven” is limited to a few key verses, such as : “There are many mansions in my Father's house. If it wasn't, I would have told you. I'll make you a place. And since I am going to prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you with me so that, where I am, you will be there too.” (John 14. 2-3), or : “Yes, we are full of confidence and we would rather leave this body to go and live with the Lord” (2 Corinthians 5. 8). We like to quote the well-known statement of the apostle Paul : “Indeed, Christ is my life and to die is gain... I have a desire to go away and be with Christ, which is by far the best” (Philippians 1:21, 23). These verses are of great comfort to us, certainly, when we face the departure of a loved one, or when we reflect on our own departure. But what does “the heaven” really represent ? In French we come up against the double meaning of the word sky, which represents at the same time what we see above us, this “blue” envelope which covers the earth, (in English “sky”), but also the celestial dwelling of God, (in English “heaven”). Sam Emadi writes : “I have lived so many years without thinking about the place of 'heaven' in the Bible. I realized one day, with amazement, that heaven was not at all the final destination of believers, only an intermediate place !" Because the place where we will spend eternity is not the “heaven” but the earth, a restored earth, recreated in its original purity and holiness where God will come to lay His dwelling, described by John under the name of New Jerusalem in chapter 21 of Revelation. In the beginning God created two separate domains, that of heaven and that of earth. Eden was in a way the bridge between the two : God came there to visit Adam and Eve (Genesis 3:8-10), allowing them to benefit from His presence. From the day Adam and Eve were cast out, the two realms have remained physically separate for us. Now, centuries later, Christ has assured us that He is with us every day, even though He is also in the kingdom of heaven, our advocate before the throne of the Father, creating a new "bridge" between heaven. and the earth.

Source (His Word for Today)