Day 7 

Heaven on Earth

Ps Mitchell Varlow

The Church, that gathering of God's people- it's not a gathering of perfect people, but rather a place where imperfect people come to gather. 

I like to think that the gathering of God's people could give us just a small glimpse of Heaven on earth. 

His presence is there:

"For where two or three gather together as my followers, I am there among them."
Matthew 18:20 NLT

When we gather, He is in our midst, and when He is in our midst, anything is possible. He is present to heal, forgive, encourage, teach, speak words of life, and so much more. 

His people glorify Him:

"And then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea. They sang: "Blessing and honour and glory and power belong to the one sitting on the throne and to the Lamb forever and ever."
Revelation 5:13 NLT

Revelation gives us a glimpse of Heaven, and I believe one of the most vivid pictures is that of a vast crowd of every creature glorifying God. 

This picture is further described in Revelation 7:9 NLT:

"After this, I saw a vast crowd, too great to count, from every nation and tribe and people and language, standing in front of the throne and before the Lamb. They were clothed in white robes and held palm branches in their hands."

Whilst we can't fit every nation, tribe, people and language in our building, we are a gathering of people from a variety of cultures, backgrounds, languages and households all coming together as one to glorify God. Just a glimpse of heaven. 

So, I can't wait until we gather once more just to get a small picture of the heavenly places where His presence is manifest and where His people gather to glorify Him. In that place, anything is possible.

Prayer: 

Lord, thank you for the glimpse of Heaven we get to experience in the gathering of your Church. We long for your presence as we gather from different backgrounds to unite in worship.  Amen.