A Very Present Salvation

The saved of soul,

Who are commended to the goal,

To that which they may enjoy,

Are done with the past,

And have achieved peace at last,

Their present is enlivened to deploy.

***

The older we get the more we tend to hanker for heaven. Yet, there is an additional thought. The older we get the more we, also, lament the brevity of our lives.

We lay in a wasteland full of fleeting treasure. Our lives are abundant with so much spoil, yet so much sadness. Our lives cannot be adequately described in words; they are too full and too empty for that. With all of what is in the here-and-now, we may pass over thought of heaven. Only when a loved one departs do we wonder if we’ll be reunited one day. These, among a myriad of thoughts, are a smattering on life, and like life, persist dishevelled.

But salvation is very different. It can be adequately described. And it is certainly more than the ultimate destination: Heaven.

Heaven is a very present reality for the saved, just as much as an eternal homecoming, or deliverance from the ghosts of past.

Released From The Past – Safe For The Future

Just as there are at least three relational dimensions—God, others, and ourselves—there are at least three dimensions of heaven that we access. Within life we’re conscious of these dimensions: past, present, and future.

To be saved means we’re released from the past, which is a thing we can know. We remind ourselves regularly. If God has released us, to go back there involuntarily is not of God’s doing.

To be saved means our futures are assured. Though we’ll doubt the promises of God regarding eternity, because we’re human, we can reassure ourselves anytime. God has prepared a place for us. Our Mediator of the New Covenant, Jesus, has paved our way.

The Very Liveable And Divine Present

If we’ve reconciled the past as done and we’re at peace with it, and we see the future hope we have as assured, we’re left with a thin and easily digestible concept.

The present, without the baggage of the past or doubting for the future, is beautifully liveable. And great is God that the average life has thousands of beautifully liveable days. Trillions of tiny moments lay spangled like stars for us to experience. And although we do not sense it, each of these moments is divine, and for each of these moments we’re saved—if we’ve chosen the Father’s Son.

Through the harrowing bad to the majestic good, and all between, each moment has its purpose. The Lord will show us at our appointed time. When we imagine every moment as eternal, every moment is both divine and liveable.

***

Never is there a better thought than this: God releases us from our pasts and we’re safe for the future, and because of that salvation is a very present thing. Being saved from ourselves is the very best thing.

Life is now.

© 2012 S. J. Wickham.