A number of years ago I had just finished reading "A Brief History of Time" by Steven Hawking, the British physicist and mathematician. Shortly there after I obtained a CD by Terry Clark with the same title as this message. While the CD does not explain the closeness of heaven in the way we are going to discuss it, when you combine that thought with some of the portions of Hawking's book we might be able to see, that heaven really is not that far away.
Seattle really is not a city for sno-cones, it just doesn't get that hot. But on a really hot day, that shaved ice with the sugary syrup can sure hit the spot. But since it has been so cold this spring lets just throw away the ice and the syrup and save the cone. Now pretend you are a kid again and cut off the bottom and look through the small end. Notice how your perception of the world is changed. Your field of vision is limited to just the light reflecting on the stuff the cone allows you to see.
In Hawking's book he uses a similar cone of influence to give us the concept of our visible universe. But the edges of this universal cone are not the paper walls of our sno-cone cup, but the light gathering potential of the earth, a small dot in the universe, as it speeds through limitless space. In other words, we can see only those things which are in the earth's cone, essentially moving at the same speed as we are. Because of the time it takes for light to reach the earth, something that we perceive as beside us, is really that distance in light years ahead of us, or behind us. The behind phenomenon giving us what is known as the red shift.
Something, or some place could be very close moving on a parallel course, but because of the limitation of the cone and the constant speed of light, we would not be able to see this creation. Physicists like Hawking call this dark matter. By measuring the effects of gravity, which all created entities exhibit, they estimate that perhaps up to 90 percent of the universe is made of dark matter.
Now let us change the analogy a little. Virtually everyone reading this initially received it in some sort of room. Chances are very high that there is an adjoining room which you can't see into. But even though you can't see into the other room you know there is all sorts of stuff there. In a way, the opaque influence of the wall keeps you from seeing in. If you are blessed, some one made a door by which you can enter. But you can't see through the wall because light does not pass through it, or if it does, for some reason it doesn't illuminate the details so that we can see clearly.
Now for another way of looking at this subject. When I was in high school every Thanksgiving we would go to my Aunt Joey's in Vancouver, Washington. That would mean after school got out about two in the afternoon, we would get in the car in Kettle Falls and head for Vancouver about an ten hour drive away. Now as the Columbia River makes its bend near the Tricities, you soon have a highway running on both sides of the river. The interstate on the Oregon side, a state highway on the Washington side.
Often we would cross back into Washington at the Bridge of the Gods and travel into Vancouver on the Washington highway. Most of the time it was really dark, just the lights of the car illuminating the road ahead, and the light of the car's dash board were the only lights in our universe, for there was very little other traffic that late at night. But what amazed me is sometimes if you looked across the river you could see lights of other cars and trucks on the Oregon side. Most of the time however, you could not see the Columbia or any of the land mass in Oregon, except the tiny portion that was visible from the light of the other vehicles.
Now I knew Oregon was over there, for when we drove home we could always see that part of the country, but how my perception had changed from the night's drive. It was magnificent, at least for Oregon. But then it could have been California, so Oregon is fine.
Could it be that heaven is not that far away, it is just that we can not see heaven's illumination from earth as Hawking shows us. Heaven is just the room next door, but we really just can't see into it, for the wall that separates us, we call space. The wall and space being define as a the divide between centers of our world and the universe. Put another way, we are on parallel courses, but we are travelling at a speed through space so that light's cone of influence makes heaven appear dark or impossible for us to see.
Now speculatively, could it be that the fall of man, which the Bible calls sin, be the cause for our loss of heaven's direct view? The only door which we have into that perceived dark world is the specific revelation of the Bible and it really does not speed us that much to this destination.
There are those who say that the evangelical church is too heavenly minded to be of any earthly good. Can you get a glimpse of the pie in the sky in the sweet by and by, if it were 90 percent of the universe? Now that would be something to get excited about. We would definitely make that an idol destination.
Now let us look at that different speeds concept. We are told that the universe is 15 billion light years across, plus or minus, and ever expanding. This of course assumes that light is really a constant and not a variable, and that the whole universe is accelerated at the same speed throughout time. This course also assumes that a big bang, or the great singularity as we call it, is responsible for everything.
However, if there is a personality of God, that created everything from nothing, He is not limited to our perceptions of how it ought to be. He could have made creation in time and space where needed, and not have to move it from here to there, or there to here, to fit our desires and godless philosophy. He could have also set the course of all things so that heaven was visible (in earth's cone of light influence) at the beginning of time, and not again until the end of time, or just at the end of time alone, at His pleasure. This could also account for the ever expanding universal concept, we see a bigger universe, because there is a bigger universe to see because that is the way God designed it, through the cone of light's influence. Therefore we are more and more accountable for our godless society through the visual manifestation of common grace.
Last week I mentioned the prophet's vision of heaven, that is a good place for us to look briefly. Revelation 21:1 Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had past away. Also there was no sea.
This verse is the context of the new Jerusalem passage he spent so much time developing, as does the vision of John's apocalypse. But in Revelation the vision flows through the restored creation, not as a singularity. Now Jerusalem is the city where God chose to dwell. Not Seattle, or London, or New York. This new Jerusalem is truly a holy city in which no darkness dwells. In that light it is also a representation of the holiness of her people. That holiness stemming from the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb as its temple. That is the gift of God's love, mercy and grace, as presented in the light of the Bible. It is not something we achieve through our merits or wishful desires.
If heaven is not that far away, seems a little fruitless spending all our time laying up treasures in the world, which rust and rot away. The words from the bridge of Terry's song should be our benediction.
We can all get
weary of this life here below
Throw away the standards that we all knew before
But hold on a little longer 'cause we don't have to stay
Heaven is not that far away
Last week, especially including the first part of this week have been the pits. Some how I picked up this cough, doesn't seem to be anything else, no other symptoms, just a cough. It may be an allergy because of our lousy weather, but it has never affected me before. So suddenly I get this hacking attack until I think I can no longer stand it. Cough medicine helps only briefly, as does sleeping and not eating or drinking anything.
I tried to make an appointment to see the ship I mentioned last week, but after explaining my interest, the listing broker has not gotten back with me and I have not had time or inclination to check again. Maybe the Lord is up to something. Any way I think it would be a perfect vessel for what I envision doing an teaching. And while it is listed well over market price, because it needs no fixing, or alterations, it could be a wise purchase if the dollars are right.
As I start this fourth year of email publishing I would like to thank the dozen or so readers, maybe more, who have continued to receive these words each week from its inception. Those who have been added along the way I would like to thank you also.
Over the last few months my situation has improved significantly, and I would believe that most of that comes from those of you who are praying, please continue your intercession, it works. We still have a long way to go.
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