We encounter them in many ways. We read what they write on social media and stand behind them in lines waiting to check out at grocery stores. Some preach at nearby churches or perhaps where we attend. In one way or another, they all have this in common: they deny the existence of Narnia.
Oh, I realize that The Chronicles of Narnia is an allegory depicting a reality that doesn’t exist. However, there’s a purpose behind C.S. Lewis’ fanciful way of depicting this make-believe realm. The world we experience in everyday life is not all there is. Other realities exist behind what we see with our eyes and touch with our hands.
For one, there’s the demonic spirit realm Paul describes in Ephesians 6:10-20. Unseen evil forces not only exist, but they also attack us. Many believers don’t perceive the nature of the war they were born into at the time of their regeneration nor the objective of this opposing force, which Jesus described in John 10:10 as that of seeking “to steal and kill and destroy.” We have an invisible enemy (1 Peter 5:8).
Another unseen reality that many saints miss is God’s kingdom. All the biblical depictions of this other-world domain, whether it be the glories of Heaven above, the earth during Jesus’ thousand-year reign, or the eternal state, far surpass the mythical Narnia in their captivating beauty and splendor. It’s this kingdom that should fill our hearts with wonder and joyous anticipation. Yet so many believers live as though the reality behind the mythical Narnia doesn’t exist of is little different from their current lives.
In short, they let others diminish their excitement for what lies ahead for them in eternity. They accept a view of God’s kingdom that’s far less spectacular and amazing than what Scripture reveals about it.
The Wonders of God’s Kingdom on Earth
Many pastors and Bible teachers tell us that God’s glorious kingdom, depicted in many of the Psalms, throughout the Old Testament prophets, and in Revelation 20, is the church age, our current lives in flesh and blood bodies. Please know that such is not the case; what we currently experience falls far, far short of how the Bible describes the Lord’s celestial realm, which will physically come to the earth at Jesus’ Second Coming and reach its full glory in the eternal state.
Notice how the biblical descriptions of Jesus’ earthly kingdom, the Millennium, differ drastically from our current lives on earth where pain, suffering, and death prevail:
Jesus reigns over all the nations for one thousand years (Psalm 2:7-9; Revelation 20:1-10).
An angel places Satan in “bottomless bit” from which he cannot escape or oppose the Lord’s agenda for one thousand years (Revelation 20:1-4).
Kings who oppose the Lord’s rule perish (Psalm 2:10-12).
Wars cease to exist throughout the duration of His rule (Psalm 46:8-10).
Christ rules the earth from Mount Zion (Psalm 48:1-8).
At the beginning of His reign, Jesus restores the earth to its original pristine conditions so that peace exists in the animal kingdom (Isaiah 11:6-9).
People enjoy long lifespans such that they will consider death at age one hundred a premature death (Isaiah 65:20-25). Another benefit of a restored creation.
Everyone in Israel knows and worships the Lord (Jeremiah 31:33-34; Psalm 47:6-7).
Justice prevails throughout the earth due to Jesus’ righteous rule (Isaiah 11:1-5; 32:1).
The above list is a sampling of how God’s Word describes the coming kingdom to which all those in Christ Jesus are heirs (1 Corinthians 15:50-21; James 2:5; Ephesians 1:11-14). It’s not Narnia; it’s something far, far better.
Kingdom Deniers
Those who identify the church as God’s physical kingdom strip away all the wonders of how Scripture describes it. In doing so, they redirect the hope of glory from God’s promised kingdom to something dismal and exceedingly bland by comparison.
Sadly, false teachers have popularized other ways of denying the splendor of what lies ahead for us in God’s kingdom for both New Testament saints and Israel.
The preterists tell us Jesus’ returned to the earth in AD 70. Its original and extreme form teaches that we now live in the eternal state (oh my!). Those who hold to a milder form believe that the last two chapters of Revelation represent the only unfilled prophecies in the entire Bible. In other words, preterists don’t believe what God’s Word reveals about His kingdom nor its splendor.
Another egregious form of kingdom unbelief exists among those who adhere to what’s known as Dominion Theology, which teaches that the church will bring millennial conditions to the earth with Jesus returning after its wonderful reign. Its advocates deny the wonder of God’s future earthly realm by making it just another human domain rather than something glorious and supernatural that only Jesus can bring to the earth. They not only scrap all that the Bible says about the future for the nation of Israel and the redeemed, but also most of what it says about the church and the role of its leaders.
All these unbiblical ways of depicting Jesus’ return to earth and His kingdom change the Scriptural account of these things into something that’s little different from our current experience where people get sick, suffer, and die. They subvert the glory that lies ahead for New Testament saints by stripping away all wonders and other-world characteristics of the realm Jesus promises to us.
Is it any wonder that the adherents of these bland depictions of our future inheritance focus on their future in this life? They view eternity as something only slightly better than their aspirations for this life. The Bible pictures our lives after the Rapture as something vastly superior to our current lives and far better than anything we can imagine.
Kingdom Encouragement
C.S. Lewis’ whimsical depictions of Narnia’s splendor pale in comparison to what Jesus has in store for all who belong to Him. When He appears to take us home, we will forever be with our Savior in immortal and sinless bodies (1 Corinthians 15:50-55; Phillipians 3:20-21). When we reach the shores of Heaven, we will find that it far exceeds the wonders of all the fictitious utopias put together.
Is this not the most encouraging and comforting message imaginable? Regardless of what happens to us in this life, we have a joyous eternity ahead for us that far surpasses all our fondest dreams for this life.
Most Christians believe in Heaven, but live as though no other realm exists apart from what they can see and touch. Either through unbelief or a lack of sound teaching about Bible prophecy, they miss the comfort and joy that come from living in anticipation of the glories and splendors of God’s kingdom. Sadly, false teaching keeps the hopes of many saints bound to vain earthly aspirations rather than the exciting and thrilling adventure that will begin the moment we meet Jesus in the air.
The Apostle Peter counters this myopic view of life with his words in 1 Peter 1:13:
Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
Maranatha!!!
My book, Invitation to a Lavish Feast – Wisdom’s Path to the Pre-Tribulation Rapture, is available on Amazon or on the SkyWatchTV website. In it, I take the reader on a journey showing how the words of Scripture verify our beliefs in not only the restoration of Israel, but also our hope in Jesus’ soon appearing to take us home to glory. My goal for writing this book was to provide believers with a solid biblical foundation for their anticipation of the Rapture before the Day of the Lord wrath overspreads the world.
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