The Kingdom Of Heaven Is Now

By Barry Shaw

Before I knew Jesus Christ, I believed that if I led a clean life and did good deeds, I would go to heaven when I died. Now that I believe in and trust Jesus Christ, I know by His grace and not on the basis of my own merit, that I’ll be with Him in heaven. (Ephesians 1:13-14) Moreover, as I have walked with Him deeper in His River of Life, I have come to know that heaven is not a place that I shall know only when I die. It is the place that I have known ever since the Lord chose me as one of His elect. (John 15:16)

Heaven is a spiritual dimension that is just beyond our human time/space continuum. The Bible is replete with examples of the presence of God’s realm just beyond the sight of humans. The Prophet Elisha prayed for his servant’s eyes to be opened so that he could see the surrounding hills full of horses and chariots of fire filled with unseen angels ready to defend the Prophet. (See 2 Kings 6:15-17) The writer of Hebrews wrote that though unseen in our flesh, “we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses.” Hebrews 12:1 Angels surround us though we cannot see them with our eyes. (1 Corinthians 11:10)

Jesus Christ came to earth as God in the person of a man to preach His kingdom and to teach that the kingdom of heaven was now. (See Luke 4:43) He proclaimed: “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe in the gospel.” Mark 1:15. He came to change our destiny by believing in Him. His intention is to draw each of us nearer to Him so that we will be conformed to His heavenly image. (Romans 8:29) By His Holy Spirit we are empowered to experience the fruits of the kingdom life now: “...love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” Galatians 5:22-23. This is the heavenly life.

The Apostle Paul wrote to the Corinthians, “...now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face...” We can experience heaven now, but in Paul’s view, our flesh keeps us from seeing heaven clearly. He continued: “...now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.” 1 Corinthians 13:12 The point the Apostle Paul makes is that although we can only “see but a poor reflection as in a mirror,” we can experience heaven now, not just in the future. We don’t have to die first in order to experience the kingdom of heaven.

Although as earthly beings we can only see through a “glass, darkly,” the part of heaven that we can and do experience in this life as apprentices of Jesus Christ is glorious and wonderful. The realization that we are now in the Lord’s kingdom of heaven enables us to have a totally different attitude toward others in our everyday lives. We live uplifted with God’s perspective. The Lord changes us and puts on our hearts the desire to be more considerate, more polite, more respectful and more loving of others.

In a recent teaching, Pastor Rick Booye described the Lord’s intention for His saints now into eternity: “God’s intention for you as His child is that you will have a never-ending life of unutterable joy, peace, beauty and creativity. You will live in an entirely safe and secure, yet ever-expanding and constantly more wonderful universe where you will contribute to and cooperate with unimaginably marvelous leadership and teamwork in the achievement of infinitely good and meaningful ends. Your relationships will all be profoundly deep and fulfilling and you will have infinite time and resources to develop them.” He added: “The quality of this life begins now.”

When we die, we shall sit at His throne and worship Him with the multitude of believers. We look forward to that glorious life. But now, in our present life even though we are only able to look in that mirror dimly, we are assured of more than just a taste of the fruits of the Spirit. “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.” Ephesians 1:3

By our union with the exalted Christ, we have already been made beneficiaries of every spiritual blessing that belongs to and comes from the heavenly realm.
Rejoice in the Lord for the kingdom of heaven is now!

Barry N. Shaw writes from Applegate Valley, Oregon