3. Heaven As It Was, Is, Will Be

But if we turn to heaven as it IS, we find that which sets before us a certain contrast from that which was, and from that which will be.
In the prayer now answered-" And now, Father, glorify Thou me with the glory which I had with Thee before the world was"-we have, clearly enough, Jesus of Nazareth as Son of man in the glory which He had with the Father before the world was.
The Son of God in the divine glory, creating and upholding and testifying in Scripture, is that which faith recognizes to have been true of the Son from Gen. 1:1, down to the day of His incarnation.
But this is very different from this same blessed One being displayed now, as Son of man, upon the throne, in the glory which He had with the Father before the world was. Now, the work is done; and He Himself is there, in proof of its being finished, and the power of the Holy Ghost is come down.
And as to what will be. He, on whom every title of redemption-glory rests, has yet, hereafter, to rise up from the place where He now sits, in patience, waiting, and to act upon and according to the titles so resting upon Him.
It was, I admit, an amazing step onward, when God became manifest in flesh; and when the Son of the Highest was born a babe in Bethlehem. But still the work was not done: the cross was still future; and, until the cross had been endured, the work was not done.
The work ended, and the value of it proved by the resurrection of the Lord, He is now in heaven: His patience still waiting. The work is now known only to faith; because grace will gather a people to Him there in heaven.
And when that gathering and calling to heaven are closed, He will rise up to act in energy and power; to show out the power and the glory.
If I consider the manifestation of the glory of God in connection with these three general testimonies of heaven as it was, heaven as it is, and heaven as it will be, I cannot hesitate for a moment as to which is the brightest and best manifestation of that glory.
True! each was perfect in its time; each display, too, has a bearing upon the others, and a voice from and for the others: but as well might we say, that heaven as it will be, when the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb shall dwell in the new Jerusalem, will not be a brighter and fuller display than that which now is-as to say, that heaven as it is, has no fuller testimony to faith, as to the glory of God, than had heaven as it was.
While man was being tried, and while time was allowed to roll out, in order that it might be seen that, among men, there was no savior, heaven shut its light in to itself, and spake forth its thoughts by types and shadows upon earth, and in earthly redemptions of an earthly people.
When the Son appeared-who was worth speaking of; save He? God manifest in flesh; He of whom it could be said, " He that hath seen Him, hath seen the Father"-this was light displayed; the true and real Light. And yet it had not expressed itself, according to the earth, fully, until upon the cross He cried, "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" But here was an enigma which none but God could solve or explain: it was solved by the resurrection; and is now explained to faith since the ascension, and descent of the Holy Ghost.
And here comes in that other all-important truth; namely, that the light was light fitted for man as a sinner upon earth. It was not only perfect light, shining forth from God; but light that now can shine into the heart and mind and conscience of a poor sinful soul. Where was this to be found in Old-Testament times? There was nothing then that could make the conscience perfect.
God in the tabernacle, or God in the temple? Yes; but how far will the tabernacle of the wilderness, or the temple of the land, set a soul at rest? As God of Israel, He may pardon: but eternity? How shall I find rest as to it? The Jewish sacrifices have only efficacy for a year! And the day that discharges all guilt, the great day of atonement, precedes days on which sin may be renewed.
Then, again, shall I give a bullock or a ram for the sin of my soul? Or how can a sinner like myself mediate for me? Thanks be to God! all this is now changed. Upon the throne of the Majesty of the Highest, there is a Man who, with the heart of the Son of man, assures our souls, that that which has justified God in proclaiming His throne to be the throne of mercy, may well justify us in drawing near with boldness. And what solemn truth meets one's soul there? Sin was against the God of heaven, in His eternal majesty; His own Son, as Son of man, has borne the full penalty in His own body on the tree; and, token of the ineffable delight of God in Him and His work, He has received the promise of the Father, and sent down to us the Holy Ghost. Here the soul finds a perfect rest; and though we have, with patience, to wait until He rises up, yet are our hearts assured before Him in love; and we do with patience wait for Him, who shall appear a second time without sin unto salvation. We take our place as a redeemed people, His own heavenly people; not of the world, as He is not of the world; but who wait for Him to come, and receive us to Himself.
We have thus looked briefly, 1st, at heaven as in contrast with earth, in their several histories; 2ndly, at the unity of the mind, etc., of heaven at all times; and, 3rdly, at the points of contrast internally in heaven as it was, heaven as it is, and heaven as it will be.
The field is thus before us; and it has treasures of untold value in it, some of which we may examine. The fact is, that the person of our Lord being there, every title of honor and blessing and glory rests upon Him; and we can only know them as they are found in Him there; and according as His acting upon them to usward, has caused the reality of that which was contained in the titles to become apparent. These heavenly things are thus (as connected with the honor which Heaven has set upon Christ) most precious; and, inasmuch as they are made known by His acting towards us upon them, they become at once the expression of the delight which God and the Father has in Him and in us, towards whom the blessing flows forth: and they lead our souls, withal, into the relationships of Christ in heaven, and into the fellowship which we have through His being there, and sustaining there certain titles of glory, with heaven and with the God of heaven.
The first great titles which shine forth in Christ in heaven as it is, are those of LORD and CHRIST, and SON OF GOD.