The Heavenly Atmosphere
Bringing heaven down in the home means that the atmosphere or mood in the home is reflective of the atmosphere or mood in heaven. That might sound like a near impossible feat, but it is quite possible. The Apostle Paul showed us how. He gave us what most call the nine fruits of the spirit, but we could just as well call them the nine displays of heavenly life because these are the fruits that flow from spiritual beings – those who are born of spirit and those who are led by spirit.
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.”
- Galatians 5:22-23
It is possible for one to exhibit ‘spiritual fruit’ here and there, but to become truly spiritual people, it requires repetition of enacting all nine displays of spirit. It must become a way of life – a course that we do not deviate from.
We note that all nine displays of spirit are positive and uplifting. It reminds us of Paul’s counsel to the congregation in Philippi:
“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.”
- Philippians 4:8
We are counseled to keep a positive frame of mind. Instead of finding what’s wrong with the world, find what is right and good and true and virtuous, and talk about these types of things in the home. For example, the Father gave us the ability to display and appreciate art, music, and culture. While some of it is not beneficial, there is still a great deal of it that brings honor and praise to our Creator, uplifts our spirit, and draws us closer to the Father as the originator of those gifts.
Also our physical world can be a source of joy and discovery now, in spite of its current weather anomalies and instabilities. About our physical world, the psalmist wrote:
“You open your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing.”
- Psalms 145:16
We can learn a lot about the power of God by an examination of our physical world with the naked eye and through the eye of science:
“For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.”
- Romans 1:20
As such, parents should encourage a study of music and art and science. Children should be allowed to explore our world as it allows them to get to know more about their Creator. Learning and growth should never be stifled. As Jesus commanded:
“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.”
- Matthew 7:7-8
The glimpses into heaven that we have been given in the Bible reveal that music, singing, beauty and grandeur are abundant in heaven.
“And I heard a sound from heaven like the roar of rushing waters and like a loud peal of thunder. The sound I heard was like that of harpists playing their harps. And they sang a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders. No one could learn the song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth.”
- Revelation 14:2-3
“And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God. It shone with the glory of God, and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel, like a jasper,clear as crystal. It had a great, high wall with twelve gates, and with twelve angels at the gates. On the gates were written the names of the twelve tribes of Israel.”
- Revelation 21:10-12
“The wall was made of jasper, and the city of pure gold, as pure as glass. The foundations of the city walls were decorated with every kind of precious stone. The first foundation was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, the fifth onyx, the sixth ruby, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth turquoise, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst. The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate made of a single pearl. The great street of the city was of gold, as pure as transparent glass.”
- Revelation 21:18-21
Learning to enjoy the gifts from our Creator in the areas of art, beauty, music, culture, gives us refreshment and fortifies us to be able to continue in our temporal journey while we await our adoption into heaven. While others choose to take a negative ‘us against them’ attitude toward the world, as sons of the kingdom and citizens of the heavens we should allow ourselves the opportunity to explore these avenues in order to build up the spirit in the home.
Yes, we are living in the last days of a certain system of things, but the system is changing right before our eyes. People are waking up and shaking off the old chains of an antiquated system that binds the spirit and imprisons the mind. The sons of the kingdom should be ambassadors of the heavens, promoting its spirit and its good will. We cannot do that if our outlook is all doom and gloom.
The family is the fundamental building block of society. If we want to change our world, it begin in the home. If we can get families to bring heaven down, we can start a wave of hope that leads to a tsunami of faith that culminates in the salvation of our world. We hope you will join with us in this lofty endeavor.
