For Spring Break 2022,
we went to Asheville, North Carolina. While we were there we visited a store that was full of the most beautiful radiant gem stones. They were so breathtaking to see. And then down the road, we went into a pawn shop and my eyes were drawn to the expensive jewelry. Obviously, it was all too pricey for me. I saw necklaces of gold, silver and pearls. I saw tiny specks of emerald greens, sapphire blues and red rubies sparkling at me. They were so lovely, but the price, even in a pawn shop, was way too expensive for me - so I bought fakes instead of going into debt and buying the real thing. All of this just made me think of how amazing God is to you and to me! He has the opposite economy! What do I mean? Scripture says, our riches are stored up in Heaven. We are not to treasure the things of this world (except human souls of course); and we are not to turn anything created by God into idolatry. As soon as a person thinks that they “own” anything, the Bible says they have fallen into the sin of greed - which is a form of idolatry. We own absolutely nothing. We are called to steward the things that we have - the things that God has given us to be able to make a difference in the Kingdom of Heaven where Jesus is King. At anytime, the Lord can take away our home, our business, our children, our health and our wealth - and He will still be a Good. He is the One who is sovereign- we are not. The Most High God sits of the throne and completely oversees everything created - and that includes the birth of you and of me. Someday, when followers of Christ take their last breath on this earth - they will be revived by the Holy Spirit and inhale the beauty of Heaven. They will see and be in the City of the New Jerusalem. They will see a giant wall of jasper, and a city made of pure gold, that looks like clear glass. Oh, how amazing it will be! They will see the wall of the city built on the foundation stones of the 12 Apostles! The foundational stones that are adorned with the most precious 12 gemstones. The first will be jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate (also called chalcedony) and the fourth will be a vibrant emerald green. The fifth will be onyx, a stone as black as can be, the sixth carnelian - a sweet carnation pink. The seventh will be beautiful crystal, and the eighth beryl - which has many different colors but usually shows up as aquamarine. The ninth topaz, which can present as pale blue, golden brown or yellowish orange. Oh, how magnificent it will be! The tenth chrysoprase, which can present as an apple green, the eleventh jacinth, which presents as a brownish red. Oh - It’s all so amazing to me! And the twelfth precious stone inlaid in the foundation of God is amethyst - the royal purple that can be so intoxicating to the soul. And if inhaling the beauty of the gold wall and these 12 precious stones is not enough, there will be 12 gates made out of giant pearls - each gate from a single pearl! And the main street will be pure gold, as clear as glass - oh, how magnificent it will be! The City of God will be the place that we get to take our revival breath - the first breath of our everlasting life! Can you even imagine how intoxicating that revival breath will be? It will be as if we never died in the first place! Oh, I encourage you to read about it in the message that was given by Jesus to his best friend John! It is all recorded in Revelation 21. The things that we see, the things that we “own” - are NOTHING compared to our royal citizenship in the City of God. I implore you - We would all do well to let go of control of the things of this world! We must be careful not to hold on so tight to the creations that our heart turns to stone! This is what idolatry does - it’s causes the human heart to overflow with a feeling of control. Little children - Be careful not to take hold of the gemstones of this world.
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