We’ve mentioned that we will worship in eternity, because the pictures of the Throne Room in Heaven that are found in Revelation all contain an element of worship, whether by Creation or by what is believed to signify the saints of God. We also read about the Warrior, who must take up his elements of warfare, be trained and skilled in them, so that when the times for battle arise, we can fight alongside our King who is counting on us to wage war with Him against our enemy. The third role I’d like to discuss is that of the Ruler/Judge.
Tag: Eternity
Eternal Roles 2
Where the eternal role of worship is one that is probably mentioned most often, and usually by those inclined to be worship leaders or worship focused pastors, in this post I’d like to discuss a role that is not discussed or presented to us regularly. This is the role of the Warrior.
Eternal Roles 1
I’ve been away from writing for a while, so let’s jump into the Eternity series. Our last post on this topic was aimed at explaining that we are being prepared now for the tasks that will be given to us at the end of time and in eternity. I quoted from a book called, Destined for the Throne, and if you haven’t read this book, I would suggest you do. If nothing else, it will get you thinking about concepts that you cannot turn a blind eye to; you must take the time to study, discuss and consider what is delivered in this book.
The Book of Revelation gives a pretty startling picture of Heaven, the troubles that await the end of time here in Creation, and a glimpse into eternity. With just a quick glance through the pages of Revelation, I’ve found four roles that we can consider ourselves being prepared for in our currently daily lives that we will only later fulfill. Let’s take a look at them.
An Eternal Destiny
Having taken some time to get the idea across that our everyday actions have the potential for eternal consequence, and having given some time for it all to sink in, let’s move on to the second section of Living in Light of Eternity: our present lives are a training ground for our eternal lives.
I have to admit that for a long time I never would have considered this point. It was first present to me in a book study in my first church. The pastor rallied us together for a seemingly simple discussion regarding a book that I hadn’t heard of before, but has shaped for me a very different understanding of life in the now.
Eternity – 4
I’m not sure I’ve answered the point regarding everything we do has eternal consequences? I may have, but I think I’ll take the time for one more shot at it. Until we start to believe this is true, we cannot truly buy into the points that follow. I’m going to dig deep here, but it will pan out in the end.
In Matthew 25:31-46, Jesus foretells a story of His return, and how He will separate those that ministered unto Him on the earth and those that did not. Now, I’m talking about full-time, pastoral ministers. Jesus spoke of those who met His needs – hunger, thirst, clothing; meeting needs, physical as well as spiritual, is ministering. But He isn’t referring to those who saw Him in His mortal body while He walked the earth. He means the people we pass on the path of life every day; to minister to them is to reach a hand to Him.
Eternity 3 – Spiritually Near-Sighted
I think one of the hardest points for us to lay hold of is that every act of every day has eternal consequence. We look at some of the rote, mundane, and seemingly trivial elements of our daily routines and consider them the warm up before we can step up to the pitcher’s mound and throw the curve balls, sliders and fastballs for the real game. Even then we consider most of the “important” parts of our days to be too regulare too earthly to have spiritual significance.
You could this is a sort of spiritual near-sightedness; or maybe more accurately, near-blindness. We can only see the immidate results of our actions, and therefore have little trouble with living in the present. However, we do so at the expense of not only a fast-approaching future, but also that of our eternal future.
Chris MacKinnon 