The world in which we live is an insecure place. This reality has caused much concern and angst in the neighborhoods where we live. The need to feel secure has caused many men and women to seek out any source to provide them with the promise, or at least the illusion of security.
There are certain experiences that have such a strong impact on each of our lives that we remember them with great clarity. Momentous events in the lives of our family such as weddings and births stay with us throughout our lives. Outside of personal experiences, there are also national news events which stay with us. We can remember the place we were and the things we were doing when we heard startling news.
We truly live in a blessed age. This statement does not focus upon the modern age (although our conveniences and technology are great wonders), but instead on the Messianic age. We live in the time the Hebrews of the Old Testament would call the “Last Days”. We live in the age of the church – the time when all has been revealed. When we look at Biblical characters, especially those who lived in the Old Testament times, it is important to remember how blessed we truly are.
In truth, it is impossible for man to fully comprehend the ramifications of eternity. We can attempt to use metaphors and illustrations to describe such a concept, but for man, who is trapped in the happenings of time, the concept of limitlessness is beyond our own experience. It is into this realm that God not only promises, but has purposed for His created beings to enter. While we are not eternal beings in the ultimate sense having had a beginning (unlike God who has no beginning), a part of us is created to last beyond the coil of this earthly frame.
According to the ancient writer Plutarch, “When Alexander heard from Anaxarchus of the infinite number of worlds, he wept, and when his friends asked him what was the matter, he replied, ‘Is it not a matter for tears that, when the number of worlds is infinite, I have not conquered one?’” (Life of Alexander). This quotation describes an interesting attitude in a man who had conquered much of the known world at a young age. His weeping betrayed a glimpse of reality that not even Alexander likely truly appreciated.