Revelation 22: 1-2

"Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city.  On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month.  And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations."  (NIV)

Reflection by Kenneth L. Samuel

If Revelation 22 is a symbolic depiction of heaven, have you ever wondered why anyone would need healing in heaven?  Mind you, not just healing from the scars and tribulations inflicted in an earthly lifetime, but continuous healing—healing from the leaves of the tree of life which bears fruit monthly.

Maybe heaven is not a place where no one ever experiences the reality of pain.  Maybe heaven is a place where everyone has ample access to healing from pain.  Maybe heaven is a place where everyone realizes his/her frailty and makes him/herself available to the flowing fountains of forgiveness and restoration that God places within our reach.  Maybe heaven is a place where everyone realizes that eternal life requires eternal revival.  Maybe heaven is a place where we all come to the realization that perfect places do not necessarily make for perfect people, for perfection itself is a continuous process.

Heaven must be like a bitterly divided nation coming together and drinking from a shared fountain of life and liberty for all.  Heaven must be like the nations of the world making a universal commitment to ensure that even the poorest of developing nations have access to the leaves of the tree that produce abundant life.  Heaven must be like two or more hostile enemies, who look to God for strength to forgive and then look to one another for support in beginning again, as the hurts which once separated them begin to give way to mutual healing and sustained health.  Heaven must be like anyone with the audacity to forgive him/herself—based  on faith in God's declaration—"You are forgiven."  Heaven must be like this.

Prayer

Dear God, we don't know all that heaven is, but we do know that heaven is a place of healing.  Give us a foretaste of that place as we avail ourselves of the healing processes you provide here and now.  Amen.

About the Author Kenneth L. Samuel is Pastor of Victory for the World Church, Stone Mountain, Georgia.

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