A VIEW FROM HEAVEN'S SIDE!

In case you don't realize it, Heaven is already quite populated.  God drops hints of this in Revelation chapter five where He tells us of many angels, numbering thousands upon thousands, and ten thousand times ten thousand (v.11).  To help you grasp this grouping of angels, let me remind you that ten thousand times ten thousand equals one hundred million!  Quite a crowd!  And, they are not all alike.  Some are angels, others archangels, still other are seraphim or cherubim!  

It's difficult to imagine what a normal day in Heaven must be like, but I can tell you about a day in Heaven that was NOT normal.  It was the day that the angel visited a young, Jewish girl named Mary. During his visit, the Holy Spirit came over Mary and she conceived a holy son.  In that instant, Heaven was changed in a way it had never been changed before!  It had always been inhabited by the triune God:  Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  But for this season, the Son willingly vacated the halls of Heaven and took up residence in the womb of a virgin girl in Nazareth.  

That's right!  The Lord and Creator of the universe...[Philippians 2:6,7]

Who, being in very nature God,
    did not consider equality with God something to be grasped;

but made himself nothing,

    taking the very nature of a servant,
    being made in human likeness.

Just like you and me!  The same process.  Totally dependent on the mother!  Little wonder that this young girl has been so elevated in history:  Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear!  [Luke 1:42].

As difficult as it is to imagine, Heaven was changed for a season.  For a period of nearly thirty-four years it would experience the absence of the Son of God!  Was there mourning in Heaven at this absence?  We know there are no tears in Heaven, but surely there must have been a different feel for this period of time.  

But I'm particularly intrigued by a line from Luke chapter two that rarely gets explained.  I think there was a moment in our well-known story that brought all the inhabitants of Heaven to alert.  Let's review the story. 

• Mary is visited by an angel and conceives through the Holy Spirit!
• Joseph is visited by an angel and is told about the immaculate conception!
• Ceasar Augustus issues a decree that causes Joseph and Mary to have to travel from Nazareth to Bethlehem.
• While they were there, (probably living in a cave or stable, since there was no room in the inn)  the time came for the baby to be born...  [Luke 2:6]
• At or near the time of the birth, an angel appeared to shepherds in the fields outside of Bethlehem announcing the birth of a Savior!

Aha!  Now comes a divine moment often under-emphasized!  

Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,

"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests." 

Here's the way I envision it with my childlike mind and faith.  I think there had been a lull in Heaven for nine months!  I think all the angels, seraphs, cherubim and Godhead had dearly missed the presence of the Son!  But they knew the plan and the purpose of His mission.  There was a growing sense of excitement and anticipation for what this all would mean!  They knew that an intricate plan was unfolding on earth that would impact millions of lives for endless millions of years!  They knew an angel had been dispatched to make a vital announcement to a group of shepherds - although they certainly did not understand why.  The containment of all these feelings and emotions was difficult even for the heavenly host!  

But what's this?  Suddenly, God opened a fissure between Heaven and earth and gave a nod of permission for them to join their angel messenger.  And in an instant, millions of angels rushed through the fissure to join a massive angelic choir singing praises to God with hearts overflowing with love!  It was for every inhabitant of Heaven, a moment to remember!  They were only visible to this group of lowly shepherds.  No one else heard or saw their presence!  It was a DIVINE MIRACLE!  Excited, exuberant faces glowed down from the heavens on these humble men who epitomized the role of the One just born!  Like them, He would care for His sheep - each and every one - especially the lost ones!  

It didn't last long.  Upon the conclusion of their message, they rushed back through the opening and returned to the eternal glory of Heaven!  Imagine the excitement as they talked among themselves of what had just happened!  This had been the first time some of them had visited earth!  The chatter must have lasted for a long time as they reflected on this moment of glory!

But the shepherds...they were left standing in the dark!  What had been a brilliance indescribable and a scene beyond imagination, was suddenly renewed with the blackness of the night - except for the STAR!  Like three others who were making a journey, they too made a journey just as they had been instructed by the angel.  So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger.  [Luke 2:16]

Even Steven Spielburg would be challenged to portray the magnificence of these moments!  Events like this are best left to the imagination - itself a gift from the awesomeness of God!  

Do yourself a favor.  At some point today when the turmoil and excitement has concluded, take a moment to envision what the shepherds saw and heard.  It's the most downplayed moment of the Christmas story; yet it holds tremendous fascination for those who will meaningfully reflect on it!  As you do so - let YOUR "Glory to God in the highest" join in with the song of all the heavenly host!  

Have a blessed Christmas!