ON EARTH AS IT IS IN HEAVEN

Pray then like this:“Our Father in heaven,

hallowed be Your Name.
Your kingdom come,
Your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Matthew 6:9-10

What would the earth look like if the prayer that Jesus taught His disciples to pray was answered? What would a world where GOD’s will was the only will that was enacted, look like? The answer is the same for both questions: it would look like Heaven. John Lennon was wrong to encourage people to imagine there is no heaven. Imagining there is no Heaven comforts no-one. Imagining there is no Heaven robs people of a vision of what our earth could be. Imagining there is no Heaven denies people of a foundational reality of our universe and thus leaves them vulnerable to other and all sorts of nonsense. No John Lennon, we must imagine what Heaven is like and pray what Jesus—the Lord of Heaven and Earth, the Chief Commander of the forces of Heaven, the One who could command 12-legions of Heaven’s mightiest angels to obliterate anyone who dared to defy Him (but chose not to)—commanded us to pray: Your will be done on earth as it is in Heaven! I want to challenge you to reimagine Heaven (not reinvent or reconstruct it), so that we might see what Christ wanted us to pray for and work toward being an answer to this sacred prayer.

Imagine Heaven. It is described as the City of God (Psalm 46:4). Even in times of adversity and hardship in the days before the Lord of Glory was veiled in flesh, the righteous ancients of the Old Testament times were strengthen and delighted by their holy imagination of Heaven and their longing for the City of God.

Glorious things of you are spoken,
O city of God.
Selah.
Psalm 87:3

We see in the Word of God that Heaven reflects the GOD who inhabits it. Its beauty, its magnificence, and its perfection reflect its Builder and Designer. This grand vision of the Heavenly City inspired the imagination of people such as Abraham and strengthened him and others to obey GOD and to seek that City as they set out to lay claim to GOD’s Promised Land for their descendants:

For he [Abraham] was looking forward to the City that has foundations,
whose Designer and Builder is God.
Hebrews 11:10

Many other righteous people who walked in obedience to God also saw that their ultimate City was not to be found on earth but their vision of the Heavenly City was to inspire them to make a difference on earth.

But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one.
Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God,
for He has prepared for them a city.
Hebrews 11:16

And little wonder, for in the much longed for City of God there would be: life-giving rivers of eternal refreshment; fruit trees that would never wither whose fruit would always be ripe and delicious; streets paved in gold; and, a radiant light that would never grow dim (Rev. 22:1-2).

And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great, high mountain,
and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God,
having the glory of God, its radiance like a most rare jewel,
like a jasper, clear as crystal….¶ And I saw no temple in the city,
for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb.
And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it,
for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb.
Revelation 21:10-11, 22-23

But it wasn’t just the buildings, rivers, the gardens, or radiant light of GOD’s glory that would have thrilled the ancient worshipers of GOD with such excitement about Heaven, it was also what wasn’t there! The City of God, will be filled with innumerable people (yet not over-crowded, or even crowded) but almost unimaginably populated — with people from every tribe, nation, and tongue who would never again experience sin, guilt, shame, regret, pain, sickness, deprivation, or shunning (Rev. 7:9)! Heaven is not just the architectural pinnacle of beauty and perfection, it is also an emotional and physical source of ultimate human satisfaction. We will never be idle in the Heavenly City! We could never be bored or wearied in that glorious City. We will participate in its furtherance and be ever glad to do so.

Imagine how a clearer vision of this City of God could transform our vision for the cities, towns, and communities within our State! Imagine how a clearer vision of Heaven might transform our view of how many more people could harmoniously and productively fill our cities and towns and contribute to them with increased beauty and goodness and innovations. Imagine our island state growing – economically, emotionally, environmentally, energetically, where over three million grateful people call this their home and find satisfaction in contributing to its furtherance! Imagine churches across this Isle filled with grateful people – not just on Sundays (but especially on Sundays) – but each day of the week with activities and connections that add value to more people and their communities. This can be our divine inheritance to the prayers of those who have gone before us who have faithfully prayed, Thy will be done on earth as it in Heaven!

Thus, when we pray for GOD’s will to be done on earth as it is in Heaven it will also be evident when we care deeply about each other to the extent that we are open and inviting and hospitable — just like our GOD who inhabits the Heavenly City. It will be a place where people do not intentionally harm others. It will be a place where all people honour and glorify GOD. It will mean buildings that are beautiful. It will mean that people live knowing that their life and their work has meaning and purpose. It will be a place where we value healthy living and no longer need the biggest buildings in our cities to be hospitals (which are currently grand monuments to our sickness not our health!) or have acres and acres of prisons to lock away law-breakers. This is what we are praying for when we pray Your will be done on earth as it is in Heaven!

In the Old Testament’s account of God’s Story of Redemption of mankind, a foundational component of that story is Israel’s conquest of their Promised Land and serves as example for us in the era of Christ’s victory (1Cor. 10:6). Prior to Israel launching its campaign, Moses sent a representative from each of the twelve tribes of Israel across the Jordan River into the Promised Land as spies to bring back faith-building reports to the rest of the Hebrews to bolster them for their conquest.

¶ The LORD spoke to Moses, saying, “Send men to spy out the land of Canaan,
which I am giving to the people of Israel. From each tribe of their fathers you shall
send a man, every one a chief among them.” So Moses sent them from the wilderness
of Paran, according to the command of the LORD, all of them men who were heads of the people of Israel.
Numbers 13:1-3

However, far from bringing back a faith-bolstering reports of what lay before them in the Promised Land, ten of the spies expressed great fear and doubt about being able to do what GOD promised and commanded –

¶ At the end of forty days they returned from spying out the land.
And they came to Moses and Aaron and to all the congregation of
the people of Israel in the wilderness of Paran, at Kadesh.
They brought back word to them and to all the congregation,
and showed them the fruit of the land. And they told him,
“We came to the land to which you sent us. It flows with milk and honey,
and this is its fruit. However, the people who dwell in the land are strong,
and the cities are fortified and very large. And besides, we saw the descendants of Anak there.
The Amalekites dwell in the land of the Negeb. The Hittites, the Jebusites,
and the Amorites dwell in the hill country. And the Canaanites dwell by the sea,
and along the Jordan.” Then the men who had gone up with him said,
“We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we are.”
So they brought to the people of Israel a bad report of the land that they had spied out,
saying, “The land, through which we have gone to spy it out, is a land that devours its inhabitants,
and all the people that we saw in it are of great height. And there we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak,
who come from the Nephilim), and we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them.”
Number 13:25-29, 31-33

This account of those spies being intimidated by the various nations of giants (the Anakim and Nephilim) stands as a ‘shadow’ and illustration of how the forces of evil seek to intimidate and deceive the people of God from doing what God has promised and commanded. These original forces evil sought to induce great fear and doubt in GOD’s people – deceiving them into thinking that even with GOD’s help they were still unable to defeat these giants. The ten returning fearful spies said, “They made us feel we were small…They made us feel that we could not do what GOD had said that He would help us to do…They made us feel that it (our proposed conquest of them) was impossible.” And the same lies and deceptions are used today to intimidate GOD’s people with dark thoughts like Don’t even bother praying to GOD for His will to be done on earth as it is in Heaven!  You’re too small to make it happen! Even though GOD told you He would help you do it – He was lying to you! And besides, the task of transforming your city and towns to reflect GOD’s beauty, truth, and goodness is far too hard and expensive for you – in fact it might as well be impossible!”

But it is not. And even two of the twelve spies who returned, Joshua and Caleb, knew that it could be done and was not impossible because GOD was bigger than these giants and more powerful than any demonic aid they could have ever mustered.

¶ But Caleb quieted the people before Moses and said,
“Let us go up at once and occupy it, for we are well able to overcome it.”
Numbers 13:30

And Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh,
who were among those who had spied out the land, tore their clothes
and said to all the congregation of the people of Israel,
“The land, which we passed through to spy it out, is an exceedingly good land.
If the LORD delights in us, He will bring us into this land and give it to us,
a land that flows with milk and honey.
Numbers 14:6-8

The forces of darkness have always sought to intimidate GOD’s people and make them doubt GOD’s empowering for the tasks He has called His people to carry out. Can we see the will of God done in Launceston, Tasmania, as it is done in Heaven? The Enemy of all that is true and good says: No! The Ultimate Source of Truth and Goodness says: Pray that it be so! Ancient Israel was hindered from fully possessing their Promised Land which GOD had intended to be a reflection of His Heavenly City because they succumbed to fear, lies, and doubt, about who GOD really was. We must not be so quick to also believe these deceptions of the Evil one:

You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires.
He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth,
because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character,
for he is a liar and the father of lies.
[Jesus speaking to the unfaithful Jewish religious leaders] John 8:44

A local church is an embassy of Heaven. The community of believers within a geographic community where GOD has invested His Spirit, presence, gifts, and ministers, whom He has skilled and enabled with certain experiences and abilities that enables them to work as a body (1Cor. 12:12). A local church holds back the spiritual forces of evil and darkness (Eph. 3:10). A local church is GOD’s presence in a city/town/region where broken lives experience a foretaste of Heaven — where there will be no estrangement, no misery, no harm, no despair and no malady — and while, on this side of Heaven, we are subject to such frustrations as estrangements, miseries, harms, despair, and maladies — the power of God can breakthrough and counter such things on earth when a church ministers GOD’s grace to each other (1Peter 4:10).

And proclaim as you go, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’
Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons.
You received without paying; give without pay.
Matthew 10:7-8

Former Mayor of Launceston welcomes delegates from Ikedo, Japan to Launceston, and reinforced our sister-city relationship with them. #Pray for Ikedo

Each Sunday when a local church gathers it flexes its spiritual muscles by casting out demons, healing the sick, summoning the presence and love of GOD to be revealed to the wayward through the preaching of His Word (Mark 16:16-18). 

A while ago, I heard a Christian leader who shared how he was looking forward to taking a well-deserved and overdue break with his family to a beautiful tropical location. He was looking forward to spending time away from the hustle and bustle of his usual neighbourhood and soaking in the tranquility for some rest and relaxation. The travel agent had assured him that their destination was just the right place. The way the agent described it made it sound like paradise. When they arrived there they immediately saw what the travel agent had described – beautiful tropical forests, a secluded holiday house, a view of the beach surrounded by magnificent mountain-scapes. As they settled into their holiday accommodation he could feel his blood pressure lowering and a peace washing over him. His wife commented with delight about the wonderfully unfamiliar sounds of the local wildlife, especially the magnificently coloured native birds. He checked his phone out of habit and saw that there was phone signal. “Perfect!” he thought to himself, “No interruptions. I can now switch off from the world.” But then he heard other noises amidst the sounds of the wildlife that he and his wife were enjoying. It was the growing sound of people in a nearby village that they had not noticed until now. His heart sank. These people were ruining their holiday in this tropical wonderland of GOD’s creation! he thought to himself. Whether it was GOD or whether it was just his subconscious recollection of GOD’s Word that came to his mind, he wasn’t sure, but he heard, “These noisy people are My creation! They are not impairing this wonderland – they are My reason that this place is truly a wonderland!” Far from seeing these people as a blight on this landscape and “ruining his holiday”, he came to see things from Heaven’s perspective: people are what truly make a place! GOD loves people.

A vision of Heaven can inspire us to build better buildings, create better roads, integrate more trees and plants into our cities, plant more magnificent and well designed gardens, foster greater care for our wildlife, cultivate more harmony among our various and diverse citizens, innovate ways to enjoy our natural wonders (especially our magnificent Tamar River), improve our communication within our city, strengthen our sisterhood connections with Ikeda (Japan) / Napa (USA) / Taiyuan and Putian (China), promote healthy relationships and stronger families (which make a significant dent in the “current housing crisis”), build businesses that contribute to the economic and social wealth of our State, encourage beauty and creativity in the arts – especially the visual, literary, filmic, theatrical and poetic, and encourage virtuous learning in what the ancients saw as resulting in good humans (which is why the study of philosophy and classics used to be called humanities).

 I am not the first to promote a re-visioning of Heaven, the City of God, to serve as a template for how GOD’s will could be implemented in the earth, thus fulfilling the model prayer of our Lord: one earth as it is in Heaven. My ideas expressed in this humble weekly Pastor’s Desk are far from original. On August 27th  A.D. 410, the Visigoths entered Rome and in just three days wreaked havoc — burning the city, slaying thousands, raping women, enslaving multitudes, and doing what had not been done in 800 years. The pagan priests of Jupiter, Venus, Minerva, and over two hundred other Roman false gods protested that their false gods were smiting Rome because large numbers of Romans had turned from worship of demons to the One True God who is eternally Father, Son and Holy Spirit. In A.D. 426 Bishop Augustine of Hippo (North Africa), after ten years of writing it, finally finished his now classic work, The City of God, in which he responds to these pagan claims that it was the Christians were to blame for the sacking of Rome. He pointed out that in fact, Rome had actually suffered horribly from such similar tragic events despite their exclusive worship of their demon gods – Jupiter, Hercules, etc. He then cast a vision for how any city or society could be reformed as a reflection of the “celestial city” – the City of God.

But neither was Augustine original in this idea. The writer to the Hebrews told the disillusioned Jews, whose capital would soon be destroyed by the Romans, that they too need to re-vision Heaven – the City of God.  

But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God,
the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering,
Hebrews 12:22

For here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come.
Hebrews 13:14

And while we each wait during our earthly sojourn for our arrival at our True Home, we are ever mindful of our Lord’s commanded prayer and its hopeful answer which we know will find its final fulfilment only in the Heavenly City of God. In the meantime, we strive to be a part of the answer for the prayer that the Church has prayed for two thousand years. Even so, we can be assured that even our lifetime it is possible that the One said that He was making (not just will make) “all things new” is indeed trustworthy and true.

And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying,
“Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man.
He will dwell with them, and they will be His people,
and God Himself will be with them as their God.
He will wipe away every tear from their eyes,
and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning,
nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”
¶ And He who was seated on the throne said,
“Behold, I am making all things new.”
Also He said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”
Revelation 21:3-5

May the grace of the Lord be with us all and may God’s will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

Your Pastor,

Andrew

Let me know what you think below in the comment section and feel free to share this someone who might benefit from this Pastor’s Desk.

The Surprising Places Moments & People Where When & Who The Holy Spirit Suddenly Transforms

The road to where he was going was hot and dusty. His mind was racing over what he had just seen. Never in his life had he witnessed anything like it. He knew this road well. From a young age he had first travelled it going in the other direction when his father had enrolled him into the tutelage of Israel’s leading professor and an expert in Torah Law. He had been taught well. Which was why, as an adult, he was now travelling north from the Holy City to the capital of Syria to track down and imprison — and if necessary — execute the members of this growing band of infidels who were seeking to destroy his beloved religion and to defy the God he had dedicated himself to. But something was troubling him. He had just overseen the execution of one of these renegades in his usual manner. But never had he seen a condemned and bleeding man so in control of a situation; and, never had he seen a man who was surrounded by an angry mob look to so calm so peaceful so confident and so … forgiving. In his final seconds of life he uttered those words. It was those words that had set his mind racing as he travelled with his two companions, each of them on horseback, as they neared Damascus. And then it happened! Boom! Knocked off his horse at the force of it. Blinded by the intensity of the light. And the voice that silenced everything else that spoke simultaneously into his “dream ears” and his “awake ears”. From this booming moment his life was ever changed. Few believed it, least of all those in Damascus who dreaded his arrival. But it was real. And it was but the first of a series of dramatic transformations wrought by the ‘boom’ of the Holy Spirit. And this ‘holy boom’ continues to surprise, in surprising places, at surprising moments, and with the most surprising choice of people!

And falling to his knees he cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep.
¶ And Saul approved of his execution.
¶ And there arose on that day a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles. Devout men buried Stephen and made great lamentation over him. But Saul was ravaging the church, and entering house after house, he dragged off men and women and committed them to prison.
Acts 7:60-8:3

 

BEHIND THE BOOM

When Saul began his murderous rampage against the Christ-followers, some of these believers began to pray for Saul to be blessed and to come to know Christ as Saviour, as Jesus had commanded His followers to do (Matt. 5:44). I wonder how many Victorian Christians are praying now in a similar way for Premier Dan Andrews? I wonder how many Tasmanian believers pray like this for that person who annoys them? Behind the ‘boom’ that the Saul of Tarsus encountered was a band of unnamed believers who were praying for him.

¶ But Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any belonging to the Way, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. Now as he went on his way, he approached Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven shone around him.
Acts 9:1-3

We Christians have good reason for thinking that people’s conversion journey is often a step-by-step pathway leading to that divine appointment of new birth; but, we also need to recognise that the Holy Spirit can also ‘boom’ convert someone without this step-by-step process. This is evidenced by those people who once regarded God, spirituality, and especially Christianity, as nonsense or perhaps irrelevant, or maybe even something worse — then seemingly in a ‘boom moment’ of Holy Spirit transformation they are instantly converted to being passionate lovers of God, His Word, His people, and His Cause! Saul of Tarsus appears to be such an example but he is by no means the only one. This past week I heard two other similar testimonies of people who were suddenly converted to Christ. A few months ago I heard the remarkable testimony of Becket Cook who even used the word “boom” to describe his experience with the Holy Spirit when he was suddenly converted to Christ (I recommend subscribing to his Youtube channel).

And falling to the ground, he heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?”
And he said, “Who are you, Lord?” And he said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.
But rise and enter the city, and you will be told what you are to do.”
The men who were traveling with him stood speechless, hearing the voice but seeing no one.
Saul rose from the ground, and although his eyes were opened, he saw nothing.
So they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. And for three days he was without sight, and neither ate nor drank.
¶ Now there was a disciple at Damascus named Ananias.
The Lord said to him in a vision, “Ananias.” And he said, “Here I am, Lord.”
And the Lord said to him, “Rise and go to the street called Straight, and at the house of Judas look for a man of Tarsus named Saul, for behold, he is praying, and he has seen in a vision a man named Ananias come in and lay his hands on him so that he might regain his sight.”
But Ananias answered, “Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much evil he has done to your saints at Jerusalem.
And here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who call on your name.”
But the Lord said to him, “Go, for he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel. For I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name.”
So Ananias departed and entered the house. And laying his hands on him he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus who appeared to you on the road by which you came has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.”
And immediately something like scales fell from his eyes, and he regained his sight.
Then he rose and was baptized;  and taking food, he was strengthened.
¶ For some days he was with the disciples at Damascus. And immediately he proclaimed Jesus in the synagogues, saying, “He is the Son of God.”
Acts 9:4-20

  LET’S BE BEHIND ‘THE BOOM’

We can each be among the unnamed believers behind the Holy Spirit ‘booms’ that could take place right around Tasmania among those who currently give no thought to God, His Word, His Church, His Cause. As we pray and intercede on behalf of these hardened, indifferent, pre-believers, that Holy Spirit continues to do what He does often in a way that we cannot see. But when the boom takes place it was as Jesus told Nicodemus-

The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound,
but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes.
So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”
John 3:8

Your pastor,

Andrew

Let me know what you think below in the comment section and feel free to share this someone who might benefit from this Pastor’s Desk.