Kingdom of Heaven

You are those who have stayed with me in my trials, and I assign to you, as my Father assigned to me, a kingdom, that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel." - Luke 22:28-30

Last winter the Lord gave me a vision – an image of what the Kingdom looks like.

What I saw first was a large palace – very big, very story-tale typical - placed on a hill, surrounded by green fields. The palace itself was huge: its walls stood as tall as skyscrapers while its walls expanded for miles. It was sunny and lovely and peaceful and perfect.

The Father stays in the palace, reigning and managing His Kingdom, but Jesus goes out of the palace every dawn into the towns - preaching, healing, and loving - calling the people to repentance.

When He walks through the crowds, He is clean (for He is holy; He is God), yet every villager around Him is filthy - barely covered (if at all) with disgusting rags, wallowing in dirt and grime. They have lived their whole lives without cleansing. Their filth is their sin - the power that has ruled over them since their birth.

Many notice Him; some pretend He's not there; others ignore, insult, or avoid Him. Yet every day, there is at least one person who comes to Jesus and asks Him to make them clean + whole. That person then is completely cleansed through Christ, and now belongs with Christ, and ultimately, to the Father. The Father adopts the clean children and makes a home for them in His palace.

At sunset, Jesus and His friends (siblings), come home to the palace, and Jesus kneels by the door of the palace and cleans everyone's feet, for they had been dirty all day walking through the villages and doing the Lord's work. Only their feet are in need of cleaning since the sons and daughters themselves have already been made clean by Christ from the beginning of their adoption.

Once the children are washed, it's dinner time. The Father prepares a banquet table for all of His children to take and enjoy; their names are written on every chair. He sits at the Head of the table, with Christ on His right and the Holy Ghost on the left. Although attendance to the banquet, full of food and merriment and God's blessed presence, is expected, oftentimes the table is not filled. His children isolate themselves in the palace or in their bedrooms. Some are full of shame and believe that God doesn't have a place for them, or that He doesn't want to see them, or that they're too dirty to eat at the table. Others don't come down and eat because they're too busy with their daily commitments, whether it's accounting homework, sorority planning, studying for biochemistry, or practicing for a show next Thursday. These things take priority over spending time with the Lord and eating from His abundant table. (Luke 14: 16-24)

Some remain outside the palace entirely, claiming to know about Jesus in the castle but will not repent and let Him wash their feet. Without clean feet, they cannot enter, and do not have a place to stay and sleep. So they spend the night outside and without the bread of life.

Every night, the Father looks upon his prepared banquet, and feels sadness that His children are missing. He so desires them to join Him in celebration, yet they refuse.

The next dawn, the Lord Jesus rises and goes back to the towns, along with His brothers and sisters, delivering the good news. The children who have eaten last night are filled with energy and God's provisions to carry out His mission, while the ones who slept hungry are lacking; they struggle proclaiming the gospel without stumbling and growing faint.

I believe God wants us to join in at his table. He has prepared it for us and has invited us; who are we to refuse the Lord? He wants us despite our brokenness, He is eternal - unlike these earthly commitments - and His Presence is better than anything else. He fills us and gives us what we need; we cannot fill ourselves.

Perhaps to better advance the Kingdom is to rest in Him every evening, and humble ourselves to His power, glory, and majesty. It is His love that moves us, loves Him back, and love others. The King is calling us to eat at His table, so let us come and worship Him.
“Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also." - John 14:2-4 

Author | Caroline Beasley