The School of the Hereafter

Behold, the dwelling of God is with men. He will dwell with them. Revelation 21:3, R.S.V.
Between the school established in Eden at the beginning and the school of the hereafter there lies the whole compass of this world’s history—the history of human transgression and suffering, of divine sacrifice, and of victory over death and sin. Not all the conditions of that first school of Eden will be found in the school of the future life. No tree of knowledge of good and evil will afford opportunity for temptation. No tempter is there, no possibility of wrong. Every character has withstood the testing of evil, and none are longer susceptible to its power…. Restored to His presence, man will again, as at the beginning, be taught of God.
Our lifework here is a preparation for the life eternal. The education begun here will not be completed in this life; it will be going forward through all eternity—ever progressing, never completed.
Every right principle, every truth learned in an earthly school, will advance us just that much in the heavenly school. As Christ walked and talked with His disciples during His ministry on this earth, so will He teach us in the school above, leading us beside the river of living waters and revealing to us truths that in this life must remain hidden mysteries because of the limitations of the human mind, so marred by sin.
The history of the inception of sin; of fatal falsehood in its crooked working; of truth that … has met and conquered error—all will be made manifest. The veil that interposes between the visible and the invisible world will be drawn aside, and wonderful things will be revealed.
Every faculty will be developed, every capacity increased. The acquirement of knowledge will not weary the mind or exhaust the energies. There the grandest enterprises may be carried forward, the loftiest aspirations reached, the highest ambitions realized; and still there will arise new heights to surmount, new wonders to admire, new truths to comprehend, fresh objects to call forth the powers of mind and soul and body.
Maranatha p. 363
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Prayer Requests
—– Please keep my mom in your prayers. Her name is Judi. She is having a lot of pain in her stomach and back. She said it feels like she is having a gallbladder attack or like it did when she had an abscess. She doesn’t have a gallbladder. It hurts worse when she lays down. She doesn’t want to go to the ER because they don’t usually do much of anything. She plans to go to the doctor tomorrow. She hasn’t made the appointment yet though. Please pray that they can get her in tomorrow. M
—— Thanking the Lord the shot in the knee has worked! I could walk around the house without a cane and go to sleep without crying. Dr. said it could last two days, two weeks or up to 4-5 months. Praying it will last as long as possible! Carol
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Dear Friends,
When my father-in-law was in his late forties, he had a very bad accident. Because of this, he was unable to continue his painting business. Since he had many children still at home, the state of Michigan put him through college to become a teacher.
He often spoke about his experience with the various students and teachers. One of his professors used to grind on his nerves. Mr. Henry had an unusual way of speaking that made him the laughing stock of the school. He repeated everything he said three times each time saying his thought in a slightly different manner. No doubt he started doing this to make sure that his students understood what he said in his lectures. In this way even the slowest writers could take notes with ease. However, it had become such a habit that even in normal conversation he still repeated everything he said three times.
The students laughed about his unusual habit, for they could see no reason for his odd behavior and thought that he was a bit eccentric. Behind his back they called him “Mr. Henry, Mr. Henry, Mr. Henry.? When they got together in the student lounge, they often thought up possible scenes in Mr. Henry’s life such as the simple act of going to the gas station. They decided that he would say to the attendant , “Fill her up. Fill up the car with gas. My fuel tank is almost empty, fill it with gasoline.” Or if he went to the bakery, they imagined he would say, “I would like three cookies. I’ll take one-fourth dozen cookies, please. Please give me a half of a half dozen cookies.” Then the students would laugh heartily. If Mr. Henry ever knew that he was the object of their jokes, he never said. His motive was good, and although the students might not have realized it, they did have an easier time learning in his class.
Just as Mr. Henry’s redundancy had a purpose, so our Heavenly Teacher must often deal with us. Our Dear Creator leads us down paths in our experience that are hard to bear, but it is the very thing that we need. Often God brings us into the same or similar situations during this chastening process, because we failed to learn the lesson the first time. It is like learning school lessons by repetition. Having to travel the same “path” over and over again, makes us almost despair, but God has His hand in it, leading, guiding, urging us to make the right decision, so we do not have to repeat that lesson again.
Solomon advises, “My son, despise not the chastening of the LORD, neither be weary of his correction: For whom the LORD loveth he correcteth, even as a father the son in whom he delighteth. Prov 3:11,12 Paul reminds us, “despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him: For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons, for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not? But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons. Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live? For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure, but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness. Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: neverthelessafterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby. Heb 12:5-11
May we cooperate with our Heavenly Teacher as He uses the circumstances of life to mold us into His image. May we determine to learn the lesson He has for us the first time, so we do not have to go through the same trial over and over again. May we thank Him for His patience with us, His erring children is my prayer.
Rose