The Reality of another Reality

We think heaven is far away. It’s a strange, Western concept, but we think we are the enlightened ones, who have finally put superstitions behind us. Even those of us who claim to believe are a bit hazy on the spirit world. Sure, we claim to believe it’s out there somewhere, but I think we believe in it like we believe nice cliche’s and enjoy pleasant ideas, in the abstract, not as cold, hard reality. Our perception is hazy, our vision so my-optic, that we see this world, this material universe around us as the true reality. Popular concepts of heaven are people as disembodied spirits floating on clouds strumming harps for eternity. Not only does it sound kind of vague, it sounds boring. Scripture tells another story.

Revelation 21:¹⁸ And the building of the wall thereof was jasper: and the city was pure gold, like unto pure glass.

¹⁹ The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with all manner of precious stones. The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, chalcedony; the fourth, emerald;

²⁰ the fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolite; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, topaz; the tenth, chrysoprase; the eleventh, jacinth; the twelfth, amethyst.

²¹ And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; each one of the several gates was of one pearl: and the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass.

John describes a city coming to earth from heaven, a real place, in vivid detail, not all cloud and rainbows, but solid stones. All my reading lately has pointed in this direction: The reality is, this world we live in, is not the ultimate reality. “Appointments with Heaven” By Reggie Anderson and “Miracles” by Eric Metaxas tell of people who have seen the other side, or felt it in a tangible way, who have experienced things unexplainable in a solely materialistic universe, unexplainable by science and human reason, but quite logical if there is a real dimension within arms reach of us at all times, but only masked from our vision by our inability to see it. It’s not out there, in a galaxy far, far away. It collides with this earth that we know and we all get bored with, and one day it will change and engulf this world, in the ultimate make-over, turning all we know into a new, more potent, more real reality.

As an old hymn says: “Cast your eyes upon Jesus, look full in His wonderful face. And the things of this earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of His glory and grace.”

Why is virtual reality so popular? Why do we spend hours on our computers, arguing with people we have never met? Why do we zone out in front of the T.V. or netflix, watching fiction? I’m not here to condemn anyone for these things. I’m talking primarily to myself. There is something that draws us to a fantasy world, where people can do things that people in this world can’t really do. I like superhero stories as much or more then the next person. I used to be a big comic book reader when I was younger. There is something that draws me to stories where the characters are put in seemingly impossible situations and somehow manage to find their way out. Somehow, someway, the hero will triumph, and if he doesn’t, well, we get pretty ticked off. The hero is supposed to become something more then seems humanly possible. By having enough gumption and enough guts, he will overcome whatever the bad guys throw at him, do the impossible and defeat evil. It’s interesting that although atheists and agnostics have become more vocal in our culture, and although their beliefs or lack of beliefs, make the whole notion of evil nonsense, popular culture is full of the notion that evil is real and that good will overcome it. That’s the good part, but the trouble is, we are not often shown the truth, that evil can’t be defeated by being tougher and meaner and stronger. We don’t triumph over evil by gaining superpowers from some bizarre accident, as is the case with almost every superhero movie. We only win by giving up our supposed strengths, and dropping our self reliance at the feet of the One who was pierced on account of the evil within us. Ultimately the greatest enemy we face is the one in the mirror. To walk in the light, we first have to let God snuff out the darkness inside us. This is the road to reality, not embracing a cynical viewpoint that says there is nothing beyond the material world around us, but by understanding that we live now in the shadow lands, in a place where the overflow of heaven only occasionally breaks through and shows us a greater, truer Reality.

Backing up a bit, it’s amazing how much we in America are obsessed with magic, with spiritualism and the supernatural. People crave something more then the evidence of their senses. Let’s face it, materialism is boring. We know, on some level, somehow, that we are more then the sum of our physical existence, more then flesh and blood. We want to be superman, because superman is at least a god with a little “g”, and he at least, can fix some of the bad stuff and make it good.

But, we can’t, and this is where, to repeat myself, we need to understand, we are not superman. We are not saviors, we are the ones in need of saving, and that’s why we crave escape , into a fantasy world, into a virtual reality that makes us feel powerful. Because we fail to see the simple truth that there is a greater Reality swirling around us every day. God is constantly calling us to put down our distractions and focus on Him. To see that what we see isn’t the ultimate reality. He pierced the veil, he stepped out of that greater, more real Reality, into these shadow lands. He became less to make us more.

In every superhero story, a man or woman puts his or her life on the line to defeat evil, to right the wrongs in the world, to save people who can’t save themselves. We love these stories because they are all pale shadows of THE story, the one true “Myth” that all the smaller myths point to. In the greater, truer Reality, the only One who had the power to save us, became the most helpless of us, a baby, and was born in a barn, born to die for a lost and dying race. When He died, the curtain between the material world we see and the heaven we usually don’t see was torn, and Reality has been seeping through ever since. Sometimes, some people get obvious miracles and the rest of us are jealous.  But, perhaps the only reason the rest of us don’t see the light seeping through, is that the prince of this world is so good at finding ways to distract us, to turn our eyes away from the only One that matters and focus them on our selfish desires. Unfortunately, the darkness is seeping through, also, and almost no one who reads the news or pays attention to the hurting people all around denys that darkness.

But, maybe you’re a skeptic. Maybe, you think what I just said above is bunk. But, I have to wonder if part of you wants it to be true. Because whether you know it or not, eternity is planted in your soul and you long for the chance to be more. More then an animal, more then the sum of your DNA. In the words of Nichole Nordeman’s song:

But what if you’re wrong?
What if there’s more?
What if there’s hope you never dreamed of hoping for?
What if you jump?
And just close your eyes?
What if the arms that catch you, catch you by surprise?
What if He’s more than enough?

What do you really have to lose by jumping?

Christmas should snap us out of our lethargy, but so often it only adds to the confusion, because we have made it something it was never meant to be. “There is no peace on earth.” We say. “Just look at this mess we’re in. Hate is strong and mocks the song of peace on earth,  good will toward men.”

But, don’t you long for peace?

“Then pealed the bells more load and sweet, God is not dead, nor doth He sleep.”

Don’t despair, God is not dead. The situation is not hopeless. But, he died. For you. Which is why:

“The wrong shall fail, the right prevail.” Not because you’re strong enough to defeat the wrong, but because He already did. And, if you only have eyes to see, that peace is available to you. No matter what you’ve done this year, no matter who you’ve hurt. There’s no one you’ve hurt more then Him and He is waiting to forgive. But you have to mean it. There’s no faking. No false good intentions will do. You think you’ve sinned too much, been too bad, lost your way for too long? Reality is, He already carried all those things you did, so let them go. They were all worthless, all striving for empty tombs of dead bones that you thought were alive, that you thought were real. Experience peace on earth, as it is in heaven. Let heaven bleed through the veil and cleanse your soul this Christmas.

 

Why we still need the Devil

A poll of American Christians in 2009 tells us the about sixty percent of us don’t believe the devil is a literal being, but only a symbol of evil. Now, perhaps some misunderstood the question. Maybe they were just saying that the devil was not a red guy with horns and a pitchfork who terrorizes young children, but that he was an invisible force in this world. But to say that he’s only a symbol, raises more questions then answers. Do Americans have a Star Wars concept of good and evil? An invisible force with a good and bad side, a ying and a yang, an eastern religion sort of deity? And how do they get these views from their Bibles? The most likely answer would be that they don’t.

Is it enough to say that God exists, or must I also say that Satan exists as well? Why are we so squeamish about admitting that evil is real and alive in our world? Believing in God as the overarching force who does everything, as comforting as that can be on one level, is also very disturbing and problematic. If God is running the whole show, then the whole show is His idea, and frankly, He has some lousy ideas. Because a baby with bone cancer is not, one would presume, the invention of a benevolent dictator.

If God is running the whole show unopposed, then we have reason to call Him a dirty double crosser, on the grounds that war is hell and death and disease are ugly and painful. But, if there is a negative force in this universe, and he looks like hell warmed over, then we at least have another target for our disgust. But does this really get God off the hook? Isn’t He just as liable for not doing something about this cancer on the face of the planet, this thing that we used to call sin? We Christians claim that he, in fact, did something, and something quite dramatic, and effective and magical, in the cross. And yet, we still have this mess. If the something He did was effective, we have not yet seen it’s total effect, and we are pretty bummed out about that, if we care to think about it at all.

We can’t even be who we want to be, for God’s sake. And in spite of all our talk about our sinfulness, darn it, we really do want to be good. We really do want to treat others as we want to be treated. We really do want to be better then we are. And the fact that we fail pretty consistently to reach that standard of good that we perceive to exist, should tell us a great deal about the real state of affairs. There must be opposition. We may downplay his, it’s or her importance, but this really doesn’t help our cause. Because if not he, then the problem is purely us, and by us, I mean God  making us this way. The non-existence or weakness of Satan only leaves us with an unsolvable puzzle. And if, as some suppose, we are only the sum of our DNA, this struggle shouldn’t even be an issue. What animal cares to be more then it is? Does a Zebra aspire to be a Giraffe, and feel sad for failing to reach that goal? But, we are constantly inspired to be more. More loving, more efficient, more kind, stronger, more compassionate, prettier. And our failures grieve us.

A chicken is quite content to peck at the dirt and lay and egg now and then, while it seems we humans are never happy with our own piece of dirt or the number of eggs we lay. We want more. If we are merely animals, then let us act like animals and quit all this nonsense about world peace and excelling at our given tasks. Yet, like it or not, we long for a world where we might rise about mediocrity, where cancer will be cured and disease of every kind done away with and wars cease and love reign. Christians and atheists alike long for that world.

And, as Lewis has rightly said, a longing for a place like that is a pretty good indication that such a place exists.

Do we really need the devil anymore? Isn’t he obsolete?

If we eliminate him, we only have ourselves to blame. Some will say that’s a good thing. That once we get him, and God out of the way, we can quit blaming anyone else for our failures, and soar upward to our own godhood. History, however, proves that notion wrong again and again. Eliminating this tension by supposing there is no adversary has never led us to utopia. Imagining there is no hell has not brought us any more peace then imagining there is no heaven, Mr Lenon.

As one old song says “We never fail to fail. It’s the easiest thing to do.” (Crosby, Stills and Nash)

This is the human condition, the tower of babble that always leads to defeat rather then victory. We can never achieve that lasting victory on our own. We don’t possess the power to defeat Satan by sheer strength of will. And denying he exists only leads us to further despair. It’s impossible to hear God when the devil is screaming in your ear and you think it’s just your own brain talking. We can hide our heads in the sand for awhile. Perhaps you remember this scene from The Lord of the Rings:

Theoden: I will not risk open war.
Aragorn: Open war is upon you whether you would risk it or not.

Theoden: So much death. What can men do against such reckless hate?
Aragorn: Ride out with me. Ride out and meet them.

Open war is upon us. Denying it is foolishness. Your only hope is to ride out and meet them with the King at your side.

Ephesians 6:10-18King James Version (KJV)

¹⁰ Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.

¹¹ Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.

¹² For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

¹³ Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.