Heaven Opened Up Today

My father passed into eternity today. Heaven opened up and received one its own.

Born again in his teens, my father walked with God for 70 years. Along with many blessings, there were also trials and afflictions. Though these might have been opportunities for a man of lesser faith to doubt and even turn aside from God, he never did—remaining faithful, even when God’s reasons were not clear. But through these, his understanding of “Christ in us, the hope of glory” became more real to him; and the reality of heaven more real to him as well. As we all know, comprehension of the heavenly realm—where heaven is more real to us than the things of earth— is always elusive.

Jesus said to Nathaniel “If you believe, you will see the heavens opened” (John 1:51). In saying this, Jesus foretold the time when He would open fellowship (the Holy of Holies) to believers—heaven and earth would be united. Accordingly, the first martyr Stephen gazed into heaven and saw the glory of the Lord; saying “I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God” (Acts 7:56). From the moment of our new birth, the heavens are open to us, where Jesus—accessible, available, approachable— bids us come to Him boldly (Heb 4:16; 10:19).

By faith we press on to attain to this higher truth. And some day the veil over our eyes will be removed, and we shall “see.” Today, the “hope” became “real” for my dad—no more straining to see beyond the veil of his flesh. Today the heavens opened; he has been received; and now, like Stephen and the many who are there now, he is unhindered in seeing the glory of God.

The heavens opened up for my father today—the invisible becoming visible, the perishable exchanged for the imperishable (1 Cor. 15:52). And someday soon, heaven will open up for us “who are still alive and remain on the earth [and we] will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air and remain with him forever” (1 Cor. 4:17 NLT). Until then let’s keep our focus on the “things above” [so that heaven becomes more real to us than] “the things on earth” (Col. 3:1).