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Heaven Begins on Earth, December 27
Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will
give you rest.
Matthew 11:28
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Heaven is to begin on this earth.
Those who take Christ at His word, and surrender their souls to
His keeping, their lives to His ordering, will find peace and quietude.
Nothing of the world can make them sad when Jesus makes them glad
by His presence. In perfect acquiescence there is perfect rest. The Lord
says, “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on
thee: because he trusteth in thee.”
Isaiah 26:3
. Our lives may seem a
tangle; but as we commit ourselves to the wise Master Worker, He will
bring out the pattern of life and character that will be to His own glory.
And that character which expresses the glory—character—of Christ will
be received into the Paradise of God. A renovated race shall walk with
Him in white, for they are worthy.
As through Jesus we enter into rest, heaven begins here. We respond
to His invitation, Come, learn of Me, and in thus coming we begin the
life eternal. Heaven is a ceaseless approaching to God through Christ.
The longer we are in the heaven of bliss, the more and still more of
glory will be opened to us; and the more we know of God, the more
intense will be our happiness.
When the Lord’s people are filled with meekness and tenderness,
they will realize that His banner over them is love, and His fruit will be
sweet to their taste. They will make a heaven below in which to prepare
for heaven above.
As we walk with Jesus in this life, we may be filled with His love,
satisfied with His presence. All that human nature can bear, we may
receive here. But what is this compared with the hereafter? There “are
they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple:
and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them. For the Lamb
which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them
unto living fountains of waters.”
Revelation 7:15-17
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