Dec 30, 2012

We all think we're right, but maybe we're all wrong.

"Just as the Infinite can never be totally objectified in words, always transcending our finite definitions of God, perhaps the words themselves, at least in their totality, also always lie beyond our reach, escaping any final objective meaning."

Christians never fully agree with one another on their beliefs. There are the many denominations, and then each individual chooses to accept and reject certain teachings according to his/her own understanding of God and the faith. How we perceive God is shaped by our era, culture, and personal experiences.  Is there a physical place called Heaven and Hell? Is a more Calvinist or Armenian outlook correct? Should baptism be conducted via sprinkling or immersion? Should babies be baptised? Is it right to do this and that?

Maybe all of us are right. Maybe none of us are. Who are we, anyway, to think we can even come close to understanding the workings of His Kingdom? And do the intricacies even matter? I personally believe that regardless of whether we're all partially right or completely wrong, what really matters is the desire to seek and love God. In other words, it's the motives that God wants you to get right more than the little details. He might not want us to fuss over these questions as much as He wants us to simply commune with Him and dwell in the relationship.

 John receives a very vivid vision of Heaven in Revelations. Is only his vision the right one? If anyone else - prophets, leaders of the Church, or even any sibling in Christ - receives a vision of what they believe is God's revelation to them about Heaven, are they all wrong if it doesn't correspond with what John describes?

 Of course not! Again, I'm quite certain that we could all be right, or wrong. Who knows for certain what Heaven might actually be? Whether a place or dimension or the Kingdom here on Earth, what does it even matter? Perhaps all the visions that people have received over time is just God trying to reveal Himself to each individual in a way that they themselves can somewhat fathom. Maybe it really looks nothing like what anyone has ever received in a personal vision. But with the limitations of the human experience and understanding, it is all that God can give us to help us understand a Heaven that is magnificent, wondrous and glorious beyond our imagination.

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