I will never forget as a young man in the Army, preparing to go to war. I worked hard in training, but it didn’t seem real. I went to Infantry Officer Candidate School at Ft. Benning, GA. There I trained to take command of a combat rifle platoon. I worked hard at it, but it didn’t seem real. Then I got orders for Vietnam. I flew to San Francisco and waited at a reception station for the flight that would take me to the combat zone. Things were getting a bit too real. As I waited for several days, into the reception station came a young lieutenant whom I knew. He had gone to Vietnam before me, but his tour wasn’t finished. Why was he here now? He was accompanying the body of one of our friends who had been killed in action. From that moment on, war got very, very real.
I don’t need to tell you that we are living in dark and dangerous times. If you haven’t watched or read Episode Nine of our series entitled, “What Did Jesus ACTUALLY Say About The End Times? Are These The Days Of The End?” I would encourage you to do so. In it you will see the reasons why I believe we are moving quickly into the time that Jesus predicted would come (Links to Patterns of Supernatural Phenomena Episodes Below).
I’m not a prophet or a professional religious person of any kind. I’m an old soldier and an old Hollywood writer and television showrunner. In Hollywood you get an unusual view of the darkness raging in this world and where it is headed.
I’m not here to set dates or tell you when things will happen because I don’t know. But the power of evil is increasing by the day. And with it comes chaos of every kind. Our world is a vast combat zone and a great invisible war is moving inexorably to a conclusion. If you live in a combat zone, the most dangerous thing you can do is refuse to believe that a war is happening all around you. In case you haven’t noticed, things have not been normal for a long time. More and more people are having disturbing, supernatural experiences. All over the world weird things are being seen in the sky and even governments are acknowledging them. And death is everywhere, from nations at war to murders in classrooms, evil people have given themselves to Satan. That’s where their power comes from. If you think all of this is caused by nothing but psychological, sociological or political problems you are stumbling blind through a mine field.
How do you get ready for all that is to come? You don’t do it by becoming a paranoid prepper putting your faith in a garage full of emergency junk and weapons. You don’t do it by trying to save America. That isn’t going to happen. So-called Christian Nationalism is the road to disaster. If you haven’t seen (Episodes: Part One, Part Two, Part Three) or read our three part series (Essays: Part One, Part Two, Part Three) on the Puritan catastrophe in Salem New England leading to the witch trials, I encourage you to watch them. They deal with the sin of trying to create a Christian nation through governmental power.
To prepare for what is ahead we need to focus in three areas. First, my friend, if you don’t know Jesus Christ, if you haven’t given your life to Him, by confessing your sins and asking Him to forgive you that needs to happen now. It is the only escape from what is to come. Second, if you say you believe in Jesus prove it. Do your part to carry out the Great Commission that He gave to all of us. Search for fellowship with other believers, but don’t depend on the church in America. Except for a remnant of people, it is salt that has gone utterly bad and is worse than useless. It is being thrown out.
Go to the people of your world and tell them the Good News about Jesus while you still can. Remember, your life has to speak before your words will mean anything. Start showing people that you really care about their broken hearts because Jesus cares. Help the poor and rejected. And there is a third essential thing we need to do. We need to learn all we can about the Kingdom of Heaven because it is coming.
Today in so-called Christian churches there is almost no teaching about that Kingdom. The bitter truth is that so many people who claim to be Christians, including pastors and Bible teachers, are totally locked into success based on numbers, people sitting in pews and money in bank accounts. They spiritualize the worship of Self and call it worshiping Jesus. That has allowed every sort of evil abuse by human wolves in leadership. If you haven’t seen or read Episode Thirteen of our series, entitled The Man Who Sold The World: The Trance Of The Golden Idol, I encourage you to read it or watch it. It talks about how we got into this hell hole.
Col 3:1-4 says: “If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.”
When the Apostle Paul says “seek those things which are above” it isn’t a suggestion. The Greek word that is translated “seek” means to actively, single mindedly search out and investigate to discover something. It’s the word used to describe how Jesus seeks those who are lost. And we know that He seeks them with all of His heart. “Things above” means Heaven. We are to seek to know about God’s Kingdom and be prepared for it the way we would search for a vast treasure.
Over and over, Jesus described the Kingdom of Heaven as a treasure more valuable than all the wealth in this world. In Matthew 13:44-46 He said, “The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field, which a man found and hid again; and from joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking fine pearls, and upon finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it.” Are we seeking God’s Kingdom that way?
Hebrews 11:13-16 begins by talking about people of God who died before Jesus came, then it says this: “These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. For those who say such things declare plainly that they seek a homeland. And truly if they had called to mind that country from which they had come out, they would have had opportunity to return. But now they desire a better, that is, a heavenly country. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them.”
Strangers and pilgrims. That’s how people who follow Jesus are to view their time on this earth. That is the exact opposite of the way most people who claim to be Christians view their lives. For strangers and pilgrims God has prepared a city. It is the New Jerusalem, where the life race that we are running will end. The Book of Revelation chapter 21 is very specific about its physical dimensions. That city is over a thousand miles cubed. Over a thousand miles in every direction. That means when the New Jerusalem arrives on earth, which the Bible says it will someday, it will extend straight up into what is now outer space. Does that seem impossible? Really? The God who created the universe isn’t able to handle a little metro construction project?
That great city exists right now and is filled with untold billions of people. Someone once asked, “Are there more people in Heaven or in hell? A wise man responded, “Oh, there are far more people in Heaven and here is how I know. Think of all the little children who have died throughout history from disease, war and child sacrifice to pagan deities.” In our day think of all the children who have died in the womb. In China there have been over 600 million abortions. Over 60 million abortions have been performed in the United States. Those little ones were not wanted here, but God wants them. What a playground Heaven must be. I can imagine huge packs of little boys roaming over the mountains. Thousands upon thousands of little girls diving into the lakes, picking flowers and playing with the animals. Yes, animals.
So many children. But in that place all of us who have put our faith in Jesus Christ will be like children. The sorrow, the broken hearts, the unfulfilled dreams, the terrible losses, that have brought death into our lives will all be over.
Jesus said that the Kingdom of Heaven is within us. We carry it and represent it everywhere we go. But in this world, it’s easy to forget that it’s a real place. A physical place. In fact, it is more real and more physical than the world we live in today. When I say that, I mean that it is infinitely more permanent.
C.S. Lewis got it right in his book The Great Divorce. Do you remember the story of the busload of people going toward Heaven? They get to the outskirts, step out of the bus and see that the land is lovely beyond description, but many of them can’t stand it. It terrifies them. Everything is far too real and hard and they are like ghosts. In their ghostly forms, the flowers are hard as diamonds, the blades of grass are like knives. If you don’t have a body intended to live in that Kingdom it is a beautiful, but terrifying place.
The truth is our world is a dimension full of ghosts wrapped in dust who think this is the only reality. But even quantum physics speaks about the ephemeral nature of what we call real. There are scientists who believe that we are living in some kind of computer generated mirror dimension. C. S. Lewis was right to call our world the shadow lands.
To a massive degree, Satan and his Lords of Darkness are controlling the narrative about the afterlife and Heaven. For many years, Heaven has been painted as a sort of boring, eternal church service with everyone playing harps and groaning out songs. After destroying a Biblical view of Heaven, Satan paints his own version in a thousand near-death experiences presenting a fake heaven. We talked about that in the last two episodes, Are Some Near-Death Experiences Faked By Evil Entities? & Examining The Near-Death Experience Of Eben Alexander.
In Satan’s version of Heaven he gets to play god. Hell he presents as either non existent or a big party where all the most interesting people are gathered for a hellish good time. How we view heaven and hell determines everything about the way we live right now. If we could see hell we would do everything possible to keep people from going there. Episode Seven of our series, entitled Sea of Fire, will give you an idea of what that place is like from near death, eye-witness accounts.
To study Heaven brings us closer to Jesus, because He is the center of that amazing Kingdom. It keeps us focused on the ultimate goal of our lives, which is to be with Him and to enter that Kingdom hearing Him say, “Well done, good and faithful servant.” Also, to study and think about Heaven helps us deal with the darkness and suffering in this world. It gives us strength to run the marathon race of our lives.
Hebrews 12:1-2 tells us: “Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”
Now there are people who just like to get out and run. They don’t care where they’re going, it’s the running itself that’s important, not the destination. I am not one of those people. I have always hated running with a deep passion. When I had to run it was to get to someplace so I could stop running. In the army, I ran in combat boots and it was miserable. In Vietnam, one night my platoon was inserted into a dangerous jungle area. We had just gotten into position when we were informed on the radio that new intelligence had arrived. Guess what? We were surrounded by a North Vietnamese brigade and it would be a good idea if we dis-inserted ourselves like NOW. I will never forget running and stumbling through a mile of dense jungle in the dark. Using flashlights was not recommended. I hate running, but that night I was motivated.
The writer of Hebrews says that we are in a life-long race surrounded by a cloud of witnesses. The word cloud is significant. It means a gigantic number. The Greek word translated witnesses has two meanings. The first is that these are people who have been faithful in their witness for Jesus throughout life on earth and are now at rest in the Kingdom of Heaven. The lives they led bear witness about how we are to live. The second meaning implies that they are spectators watching to cheer us on in our race. I think both meanings are true.
But they are not the only invisible ones who are watching us. In Ephesians chapter six the Apostle Paul tells us of another group. He says, “Be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.”
What is this saying? An invisible war is going on and as we run the race of life, we are in a deadly struggle with a host of invisible beings who are in a military like organization and are very experienced in destroying humans. But God is on our side. He stands with us and has provided what we need for the fight. As we run toward heaven, we should be spiritually armed warriors on the attack taking the battle to the enemy, and with God’s power inflicting damage on him. Here’s the rule of this war. If you say you are a believer in Jesus and you are never attacked, something is wrong with you. Satan does not waste resources. Live your life worthy to be attacked and don’t surprised when you are. Praise God for it.
My family has known a number of U. S. Navy SEALs. They describe having an attack attitude in combat that they call being positive aggressive. On a mission, nothing holds them back. They are prepared and all in. Their weapons are ready. In that situation, the last thing a warrior needs is to be weighed down with useless junk.
The writer of Hebrews tells us that we are to lay aside every weight that keeps us from running toward the finish line in that Great City, the New Jerusalem. The word weight means bulk or encumbrance. This isn’t necessarily sin. Yes, we are to lay aside all sin, confessing and repenting of it, but encumbrance means things of all kinds that slow us down.
It could mean burdens of guilt or memories of wrong decisions in the past. You’ve confessed them to Jesus and tried to put things right with the people you injured. If so, God has forgiven you, so stop carrying that burden. It could mean bleeding wounds that others have inflicted on you. There’s nothing like a terrible wound inflicted by a person you trusted to make you stagger and fall. I know how that feels.
You can stagger the rest of your life under that wound or you can strip the enemy of his power. How do you do that? Forgive those who inflicted the wound and leave them at Jesus’ feet. He knows your sorrow. He has shed tears with you. You are forgiven by Him which gives you the power to forgive others. The streets of Heaven are paved with forgiveness and only those who forgive because they have been forgiven can walk there. A major strategy of the enemy is to destroy children by inflicting wounds that will never heal. Is that where your wound comes from, my friend? Jesus is able to heal that wound. Give it to Him and forgive. Don’t let a broken heart destroy God’s purpose for your life.
But you know, a lot of the junk that drags us down are things that we like or think we need. Many years ago, when I was in Infantry Officer Candidate School we spent a week in the woods doing war games. This was in the middle of winter and it was cold. We were doing river crossings. And not with bridges. I hate being cold and wet. Especially I hate sleeping cold at night, so I brought all kinds of junk with me to keep me warm. Also I brought a bunch of other stuff that I thought I might need in the wilderness to make me as comfortable as possible. That garbage weighed me down. It exhausted me and I had to pack it on my back for an entire week.
I learned. In Vietnam, in actual war, I carried as little as possible. My weapon, as much ammunition as I could stuff everywhere, water, a few cans of delicious C rations, a poncho for rain, an air mattress to try to sleep out of the mud, and, of course, the most important thing of all, toilet paper. Only carrying what was necessary helped me run when I needed to and kept me from being needlessly exhausted.
What was the key to that kind of life? I had stopped depending on myself as my only source of supply. I was depending on the U. S. Army to bring me what I needed before I ran out. But to live that way I had to be willing to go where the army sent me. Many times I didn’t like that idea, but I did it.
There have been many times when I haven’t liked where Jesus has sent me. But looking back over my long life, His plan was always right, always for my best. I can tell you from personal experience, when we think we’ve gotten to the end of our resources, He has not forgotten us. His resupply flight will come. But we need to live in obedience to Him as our warrior King.
As followers of Jesus we have a finish line in front of us. The race is not easy. Often we hit walls and think we can’t go on. But when that happens we need to remember that our finish line is in Heaven – in the Kingdom, standing before the King. And we run faithfully because when we see Him we want to receive from Him a winner’s crown. What legacy will you leave in this world? If you died today what would people remember about your life? Your view of Heaven right now is going to have everything to do with what you leave behind.
C. S. Lewis wrote this in his book, Mere Christianity: “If you read history you will find that the Christians who did most for the present world were just those who thought most of the next. The Apostles themselves who set on foot the conversion of the Roman Empire, the great men who built up the Middle-ages, the English evangelicals who abolished the slave trade, all left their mark on earth precisely because their minds were occupied with Heaven. It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this one. Aim at Heaven and you will get earth ‘thrown in’; aim at earth and you will get neither.”
What does Heaven look like to you? On December 22nd of 1899 a man who had spent his life telling others about Jesus and Heaven lay dying. He was D. L. Moody, the greatest Christian evangelist of the 19th century.
His family was with him. He was dying at home. Several times they thought he was gone, but then he would revive. Each time he would ask, “Why am I back here?” Then he told them what he was seeing. He could see into that Heavenly city and waiting for him there were his grandchildren. The little ones who had passed away, leaving so many broken hearts, were gathered, waiting for grandpa to arrive. Who is waiting for you? One Person is Jesus who loves you so much that He died for you. Are you looking forward to meeting Him? Are you ready? I hope so.
Go Deeper With Coleman Luck
The personal experiences of former Army infantry First Lieutenant George Coleman Luck Jr. during his year in Vietnam – 1968
Go Deeper On Heaven
Thorncrown Studios 