"For the Christian, heaven is where Jesus is. We do not need to speculate on what heaven will be like. It is enough to know that we will be forever with Him." -William Barclay
The Bible generously provides us with an abundance of wonderful, spiritual, food-for-thought. I came across one such example in Matthew 13:44, The Parable of the Hidden Treasure.
In this particular parable, Jesus divulges that "The kingdom of heaven is like treasure..." Immediately after reading this verse, I sank back into my chair and let His words sink in.
The very fact that our Lord is calling the kingdom of heaven a "treasure" makes you wonder what a truly, indescribable, treasure it must be. The thought is simply mind-boggling!
To help us wrap our minds around this, Romans 14:17 offers some guidance. It is there that the Holy Spirit, speaking through Paul, tells us what the kingdom of heaven is.
Here, he says that it is "righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit." There is a mutual relationship between Christ and the believer. The believer abides in Christ and Christ abides in him (John 6:56).
Thus, the Christian dwells in the kingdom of heaven, and vice versa. This means that there is a treasure of protection surrounding him and a wealth of experience in him.
Upon discovering this heavenly treasure, the poor sinner surrenders all to gain full possession of it, as nothing else even comes close in comparison.
It is a partnership with God in which one becomes a partaker of the divine nature (2 Peter 1:4) to be a partaker of His holiness (Hebrews 12:10).
Consequently, the "righteousness" is God's righteousness (Romans 10:3), the "peace" is God's peace (Philippians 4:7), and the "joy" is the joy of Jesus Christ (John 15:11), which are all apportioned by the Holy Spirit.
Scripture: Matthew 7:21; John 3:3; Acts 14:22; John 14:2; Hebrews 13:14
Prayer: Dear Lord, You make known to me the path of life; You will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at Your right hand, amen. - Psalm 16:11
Love and blessings,
Andrea
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