A STRANGE JOURNEY (By J. Ben Avraham)
The young man found himself in some sort of tunnel. It was a swirling tunnel that seemed to be made up of radiant light. This radiant tunnel of light seemed to revolve around and around, pointing to some kind of distant vortex which seemed to grow nearer and nearer.
At first, he felt himself being pulled through this strange tunnel rather slowly, then the speed picked up. He managed to see through the sides of the tunnel, the blackness of the night sky filled with an array of heavenly stars. These were the same stars he saw night after night, now; they seemed closer, even closer still.
He thought back to the warm, summer nights when he often lay down in the grassy hills near the olive groves. He would look up into the sky and imagine he was Father Abraham, seeing the same evening stars, those twinkling, tiny lamps that gave testimony to God’s splendid creation, the same God whose promise was fulfilled so many thousands of years ago, that through him, a nation would be born.
Now, these same stars became a white blur as they rushed passed him, or perhaps it was he who was rushing past them through this strange tunnel of light.
As he looked to the far distant radiant vortex, he noticed a star which was brighter than all the others that were around him. The star grew in size as he moved through the tunnel, faster and faster.
The star seemed to take on a certain shape as he got nearer. He saw that the shape took on the appearance of a four-square city of a whitish-golden glow. He saw a wall, a wall that seemed to stretch for miles and miles and appeared to have no end.
Beyond the walls lay the city itself in a dazzling array of multi-colors. The tunnel of light ended suddenly, and the young man found himself suspended high above the city, looking down.
Gazing down upon the golden city, he observed a multitude of heavenly hosts arrayed in dazzling white tunics with golden belts around their waists. Their feet were shod with golden sandals encrusted with all sorts of precious stones. No doubt these beings were angels as they also had enormous white wings which were folded behind their backs.
The angels were all busy at work, building and inlaying precious stones in mansions of all sorts and sizes. As far as his eyes could see, there was construction work going on. It seemed that this entire city was getting prepared, prepared for some event, a very special event.
As the young man continued to look out over the golden celestial metropolis, he saw one of the angels looking up at him. The angel opened up his radiant white wings and flew upward towards him. In a matter of seconds, they were face to face, both suspended above the glowing city of golden white light.
“Peace and blessings to you, Son of Adam,” spoke the angel with a resounding voice.
“And to you, angel, blessings and peace,” replied the young man at the wonder of this entire splendor.
“Welcome to the Kingdom of Heaven, the great city of the King,” continued the angel.
“I’ve heard that name before,” replied the young man, “I’ve heard it mentioned by a dear friend of mine. To whom does this city belong?”
“It is the city of the King,” spoke the angel with pride, “The KING of kings and LORD of lords, the creator of the universe and all that is in it. It also belongs to all who are HIS and to all who believe on HIS name.”
“I see,” spoke the young man, “I see all the heavenly hosts down there busy building all those glorious mansions. Are they not for you who believe on HIS name, you, who indeed belong to HIM?”
“Indeed,” replied the angel, “we do belong to HIM and we believe on HIS name who is HOLY, but this city is built for all redeemed mankind, for all men and women, great and small who have trusted and who will trust in the complete redemptive work of the LAMB.”
“Redemption?” questioned the young man, “Redemption from what?”
“From the curse of sin,” replied the angel, “the sin which all mankind has inherited from Adam, who is the father of all who breathe the breath of life, Oh Son of Man.”
“And how,” questioned the young man, “is this redemption to be fulfilled?”
“The blood,” replied the angel, “for without blood there can be no remission of sins.”
“But that is the reason for the sacrifices,” answered the young man, “We have daily sacrifices at the temple. The priests and Levites take bulls and goats and…”
“They are but shadows, oh man,” interrupted the angel.
“Shadows?” questioned the young man.
“Yes,” replied the angel, “shadows of things to come, mere shadows of He who has come to fulfill all the prophecies of the Torah and the Prophets. It is He who walks among you this very day.”
The young man stood there, wondering, wondering, and marveling at the words of the angel. Just who could this be, he thought? Did he know him? The angel seemed to know his thoughts.
“It is He who teaches in the synagogues, the essence of the Torah and the Prophets. It is He who makes the words of Moses come to life, gives sight to blind eyes, and strengthens the legs of the lame. It is He who heals all sorts of infirmities. He is the one who comforts the sorrowful and who embraces the children.” The angel stood there gazing into the eyes of the young man, hoping that the words would enlighten his soul.
The young man found himself in some sort of tunnel. It was a swirling tunnel that seemed to be made up of radiant light. This radiant tunnel of light seemed to revolve around and around, pointing to some kind of distant vortex which seemed to grow nearer and nearer.
At first, he felt himself being pulled through this strange tunnel rather slowly, then the speed picked up. He managed to see through the sides of the tunnel, the blackness of the night sky filled with an array of heavenly stars. These were the same stars he saw night after night, now; they seemed closer, even closer still.
He thought back to the warm, summer nights when he often lay down in the grassy hills near the olive groves. He would look up into the sky and imagine he was Father Abraham, seeing the same evening stars, those twinkling, tiny lamps that gave testimony to God’s splendid creation, the same God whose promise was fulfilled so many thousands of years ago, that through him, a nation would be born.
Now, these same stars became a white blur as they rushed passed him, or perhaps it was he who was rushing past them through this strange tunnel of light.
As he looked to the far distant radiant vortex, he noticed a star which was brighter than all the others that were around him. The star grew in size as he moved through the tunnel, faster and faster.
The star seemed to take on a certain shape as he got nearer. He saw that the shape took on the appearance of a four-square city of a whitish-golden glow. He saw a wall, a wall that seemed to stretch for miles and miles and appeared to have no end.
Beyond the walls lay the city itself in a dazzling array of multi-colors. The tunnel of light ended suddenly, and the young man found himself suspended high above the city, looking down.
Gazing down upon the golden city, he observed a multitude of heavenly hosts arrayed in dazzling white tunics with golden belts around their waists. Their feet were shod with golden sandals encrusted with all sorts of precious stones. No doubt these beings were angels as they also had enormous white wings which were folded behind their backs.
The angels were all busy at work, building and inlaying precious stones in mansions of all sorts and sizes. As far as his eyes could see, there was construction work going on. It seemed that this entire city was getting prepared, prepared for some event, a very special event.
As the young man continued to look out over the golden celestial metropolis, he saw one of the angels looking up at him. The angel opened up his radiant white wings and flew upward towards him. In a matter of seconds, they were face to face, both suspended above the glowing city of golden white light.
“Peace and blessings to you, Son of Adam,” spoke the angel with a resounding voice.
“And to you, angel, blessings and peace,” replied the young man at the wonder of this entire splendor.
“Welcome to the Kingdom of Heaven, the great city of the King,” continued the angel.
“I’ve heard that name before,” replied the young man, “I’ve heard it mentioned by a dear friend of mine. To whom does this city belong?”
“It is the city of the King,” spoke the angel with pride, “The KING of kings and LORD of lords, the creator of the universe and all that is in it. It also belongs to all who are HIS and to all who believe on HIS name.”
“I see,” spoke the young man, “I see all the heavenly hosts down there busy building all those glorious mansions. Are they not for you who believe on HIS name, you, who indeed belong to HIM?”
“Indeed,” replied the angel, “we do belong to HIM and we believe on HIS name who is HOLY, but this city is built for all redeemed mankind, for all men and women, great and small who have trusted and who will trust in the complete redemptive work of the LAMB.”
“Redemption?” questioned the young man, “Redemption from what?”
“From the curse of sin,” replied the angel, “the sin which all mankind has inherited from Adam, who is the father of all who breathe the breath of life, Oh Son of Man.”
“And how,” questioned the young man, “is this redemption to be fulfilled?”
“The blood,” replied the angel, “for without blood there can be no remission of sins.”
“But that is the reason for the sacrifices,” answered the young man, “We have daily sacrifices at the temple. The priests and Levites take bulls and goats and…”
“They are but shadows, oh man,” interrupted the angel.
“Shadows?” questioned the young man.
“Yes,” replied the angel, “shadows of things to come, mere shadows of He who has come to fulfill all the prophecies of the Torah and the Prophets. It is He who walks among you this very day.”
The young man stood there, wondering, wondering, and marveling at the words of the angel. Just who could this be, he thought? Did he know him? The angel seemed to know his thoughts.
“It is He who teaches in the synagogues, the essence of the Torah and the Prophets. It is He who makes the words of Moses come to life, gives sight to blind eyes, and strengthens the legs of the lame. It is He who heals all sorts of infirmities. He is the one who comforts the sorrowful and who embraces the children.” The angel stood there gazing into the eyes of the young man, hoping that the words would enlighten his soul.
