August 17, 2021
Elijah appeared to them along with Moses, and they were talking with Jesus. (Mark 9:4)
Most of the people in the world never think that there is another, unseen world. Blinded by this earth’s physical attractions, they are consumed with its delights. They spend their entire earthly existence pursuing more of this earth, utterly oblivious to the Kingdom that matters most.
THE NEARNESS OF GOD
But the kingdom of God, Jesus said, is near them. It has come and is accessible. In one Divine moment, recorded during Jesus’ time on earth, we see the time/space, earth/heaven continuum opened. Suddenly, the earthly Jesus is communing with two heavenly residents, Elijah and Moses. “They were talking with Jesus” is recorded by Mark with a statement that is as natural as a stroll in the park. It is written as if it happened every day.
And, of course, it does. The Kingdom of God has been entered by those who have come to know and believe in Christ and been saved by His overwhelming grace. These new Kingdom-residents can talk with heaven constantly through the means the King has given us called prayer.
We can call down heaven’s resources, find the King’s agenda, and see “His kingdom come and His will be done on earth as it is being done in heaven.” We can have conversations with Jesus just as naturally as if he were sitting beside us on a park bench.
OUR OPPORTUNITY
We have access, but few believers avail themselves of the vast possibilities. Following this Divine moment in Mark 9, a needy man comes to the disciples to find help for his son, possessed by demons. The disciples are helpless to deliver him. But Jesus (who lived perfectly in these two worlds) showed us the reality. He spoke to the demons, and they ran from the boy like a retreating bully scolded by the school principal.
When the disciples questioned Jesus about their inability, He said to them, “This kind cannot come out by anything but prayer” (Mark 9:29). Jesus was reminding them that you must tap into the spiritual Kingdom when you are dealing with stubborn spiritual forces. They cannot be defeated by humanistic means and impotent, earth-bound weapons.
If you are united with Christ, you have been “transferred from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of God’s dear Son.” You have immediate and continual access to this new realm. You can talk with Jesus and, in prayer, ask Him to do what is impossible in the realm of this earth. When you do, the barrier is broken, and you will see the reality of the glorious, redeeming, all-powerful, life-changing Kingdom of God.
Father, open my mind to understand the nearness of Your kingdom. Help me access it through prayer and see it brought right into my present world today. Give me greater faith to believe. Remind me of what is at my fingertips in every moment of the common day. Deliver people by Your power and create a thirst in them for this unseen world. And as you open the windows of heaven, let me boldly tell them what is happening and what is available if they will believe.
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