In Heaven
In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the temple. Above it stood seraphim; each one had six wings: with two he covered his face, with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one cried to another and said:
“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts;
The whole earth is full of His glory!”And the posts of the door were shaken by the voice of him who cried out, and the house was filled with smoke.
So I said:“Woe is me, FOR I AM UNDONE!
Because I am a man of unclean lips,
And I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips;
For my eyes have seen the King,
The Lord of hosts.” (Isaiah 6:1-5 NKJV)
As I meditate on Isaiah’s mind-blowing experience in the heavenly throne room of God, it “undoes” me too. Other Old Testament prophets recorded their stunning experiences of heaven as reminders of that infrequently experienced reality. The book of Hebrews speaks of the purpose of details in the tabernacle in the wilderness:
They serve as a copy and shadow of the heavenly things. For when Moses was about to erect the tent, he was instructed by God, saying, “See that you make everything according to the pattern that was shown you on the mountain.” (Hebrews 8:5 ESV)
We also discover a multitude of images of heaven in the book of Revelation. So when Jesus begins His model prayer with “Our Father in heaven” (Matthew 6:9 ESV), we have much to contemplate.
In addressing “Our Father in heaven”, Jesus confirms our True Father is elevated yet accessible to believers throughout time and space. This opening address also reminds us that relationship with the Father became severely limited as a consequence of the Fall of Adam but has been restored through Jesus. ”Our Father in heaven”, assures us He is accessible any time we are ready.
As we encounter and acknowledge the supremacy of our True Father (often through reading and meditation on Scripture), He transports us beyond our limited perspectives – perspectives about the wonders of the nature around us; perspectives about ourselves and other believers; perspectives about those who turn away to other gods while condemning the reality of our true God; perspectives about God’s involvement in history, with prior generations of believers and other peoples; and perspectives about how He sometimes appears uninvolved in our immediate circumstances.
Intentional meetings with our heavenly Father, who rules heaven and all forms of existence, give us access to His steady, unseen hand – allowing Him to direct and secure our steps over rocky, slippery paths as we endure hardship or simply make the next decisions about everyday life.
In light of one or more scriptures that speak about heaven, find a vantage point where you can worship our Father in the intimacy of His grandness and nearness.
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