Monday, February 21, 2011

Gates of Pearl

And the twelve gates were twelve pearls: every several gate was of one pearl: and the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass. Rev. 21:21

"Dust thou art to dust returneth was not spoken of the soul." Such a telling statement that William Shakespeare placed in one of his more famous plays. Taken from the facts recorded in the book of Genesis, this line standing alone can be taken as a sober warning or a proclamation of hope.
As a Christian I choose to take it as a proclamation of hope. I don't have to live my life thinking that this is all there is. I can get into God's word and learn about that life beyond the grave that is so beyond my finite imagination I can't even begin to describe it. And I am not alone,those whom God revealed glimpses of heaven to were hard pressed to be able to find something on earth that they could liken it to. God inspired them to use some of the most costly and precious things that man values so that we would have an idea of what it would be like.

I don't know about you but it is hard for me to imagine the gates of a city made of pearl. Those are some really huge pearls. Even harder for my limited mind is to imagine the oyster they came from!  But I believe it. I believe it all! Why? Because God said it, and I have seen God work enough in my life and the lives of others to know that He is who he says he is and can do what he says he will do. So if he says that the gates of heaven are pearl, then it's His city, He lives there, who am I to question it? 

 Most know that the pearl comes into being as a result of a lot of pain and labor on the part of the oyster. What better material for the gates of heaven to be made of than pearl? I don't have to tell you that the journey to heaven is filled with rough edges. But God has gone before us in the person of His Son Jesus to take the brunt of the pain for us.
Our contribution as His children is to be obedient in learning how we are to behave in this city we will be calling home. Start practicing it now so that others might see and one day follow you through those gates of pearl.
Have a wonderful day!

No comments: