A Taste Of What it Will Be Like

“I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels as burning fire. A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him: thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened.” (Da 7:9-10 AV)

 

Daniel is seeing the day when the rulers of this world are cast down and the LORD Jesus Christ sits on His throne to rule all of creation.  At the moment, the kingdoms of this world are under the influence of Satan.  Mankind has chosen evil instead of good.  This is evident as we watch our leaders pass laws that make it legal to murder and mutilate children.  The world is so sick by their own intellect they cannot see the satanic origin of all of this.  It is truly evil.  They have the gall to think if they erase Christianity from the face of the planet, they will be free of the guilt their conscience bears.  Not true.  The conscience is something that every human being is born with.  Getting rid of that which testifies with the conscience that something is evil will not erase guilt and shame.  These emotions are inherent to our condition as a human being.  We are created in the image of God and no matter how much we seek to flee it, this will never change.  But what I would like to really think about this morning is the simple yet indescribable appearance of God Himself.  One wonders when we witness the Ancient of days sitting upon His throne, what our reaction might be.

Daniel gives a rather dramatic picture of the appearance of Jesus Christ.  Pure wool is pure white and glistening.  It has the properties of a finely spun monofilament that seems pure white but reflects light back from within the fibers and not from the surface area of the fibers.  The use of words ‘fiery’, ‘flame’, and ‘fire’ are hard to describe.  These words come from two words.  The second is fire.  But the first is what puzzles the reader.  It means shiny.  When we think of fire, we think of a yellow, orange, and blue flame.  The fire may emit light, but it doesn’t travel far.  If it is concentrated and reflected, it goes a bit further.  But the use of the words here implies a far more intense light than an open flame could produce.  What comes to mind is lightning.  It was lightning that accompanied the voice of God on Mount Sinai.  Of God’s lightning, Elihu of the book of Job says, “He directeth it under the whole heaven, and his lightning unto the ends of the earth.” (Job 37:3 AV)  The light that appears with Jesus Christ will be like the light of the Mount of Transfiguration.  So bring that it outshines the sun.  This light encompasses His throne, chariot, and the path He will take when He returns.  When one considers the innumerable souls that circumspect His throne as ministers of His court, the sight would be overwhelming, to say the least.

I have been thinking about eternity quite a bit lately.  Perhaps it is the times in which we live.  Perhaps it is part of getting older.  Or perhaps the reality check we experience with Lisa’s diagnosis.  Maybe it is a combination of all three.  I am beginning to see my friends pass away.  I am becoming that older preacher everyone else comes to because the preachers I grew up with are all gone.  No matter the cause, my thoughts are becoming more heaven-bound day by day.  Part of those thoughts regards the appearance of God.  The wonder that my eyes will behold with the pure holiness I will encounter can only mean that when it happens, all composure will be lost as I fall flat on my face before the One who gave everything that I might be there.  The human mind cannot comprehend the likeness of God because there is simply no comparison.  As Daniel did above, we can only describe what we see as compared to what we know.  We do not know what God looks like.  We never will until eternity.  It begs the question of how I will respond.  I am sure whatever the response, it will be exactly what He wishes.  Part of me feels deeply intimidated and humbled at the thought of seeing Jesus face to face. But another is equally excited.  To see the deep love which I have experienced on the face of the One who loves me with eternal love is something I cannot wait to see.  Daniel was moved by this sight for the rest of his life.  He was never the same.  We will be, too!  Glory!