Heavenly Places
Churches are filled with people who will not recognize this “Messiah/Mediator,” “…who shall save his people.” One might venture to predict there may be many who do not want to recognize Him. This is not the Jesus who lives in a massive cathedral between two golden candelabra and hangs on a golden cross. This King of David’s seed did not sit on a golden ivory trimmed throne in a sumptuous palace surrounded by servants over which the Queen of Sheba marveled. This is however the genuine redeemer, savior come from God the Father and hung between two thieves on a cruel, rugged cross on a bald windswept knob outside Jerusalem!
“Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed? For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him. He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he opened not his mouth. He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken. And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.
Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities. Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors” (Isaiah 53: 1-12).
Those who don’t know Him should get acquainted with Him and become the loyal subject of this King of kings and Lord of lords. Those who do will suffer the same afflictions and degradation on this corrupted earth He suffered; they will suffer tribulations in this life. On the day of judgment, when this Messiah is their advocate with the Father, they will be exalted and reign with Him in glory.1
In the resurrection they will live in an eternal realm, in a City that has streets of gold so pure it has the appearance of crystal glass where there is no darkness nor night forever. There will be no sorrow, crying nor tears. They will be beyond all jeopardy all sin, death and evil will be destroyed.
- “They departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name” (Acts 5:41).
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