When Jesus described the significance of a sinner on earth accepting Christ, His words shifted to heaven of all places. Jesus offered an intriguing glimpse into heaven at the moment a sinner repents:
Just so, I tell you, there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents. Lk 15:10
Let's see, the angels in heaven actually rejoice and celebrate when one person accepts Christ? Well...yes. I suspect if you or I scripted this phenomenon we might entertain the thought of angelic rejoicing if a nation, city or continent would turn to Christ. But heaven throws a party when one person makes that decision!
Earlier this afternoon a 24 year old man prayed with one of our counselors and accepted Christ. As soon as he left the counseling office he told our administrative assistant what happened. She repeated what his counselor had already told him: Luke 15:10. His response was, "That's awesome! It's hard to believe!"
Yet it's true; we are that important to God -- He values each of us that much.
Max Lucado asks: "When you hear of a soul saved, do you drop everything and celebrate? Do our chests burst with joy? Do we feel an urge to call out the band, and cut the cake and have a party?"
Heavenly angels did that very thing earlier this afternoon ---They joyously had a celebration. May the same be said about us.
Now that's the heart of the matter.
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Awesome news! I'm reading "Churched" by Matthew Paul Turner. He recalls a conversation from his childhood on this topic where he asked if the angels actually danced. His conservative Baptist Sunday School teacher replied, "No, angels do not dance. That would make them demons." :)
ReplyDeleteFor my part, I think they dance, too.