Nine Days in Heaven: A True Story (24 page)
“…
FOR THROUGH THE
M
EDIATOR
, G
OD
SHALL BE JUST IN THE SALVATION AND
JUSTIFICATION OF HIM THAT BELIEVETH
.”
“So be it!” replied Justice.
“Hallelujah, so be it!” echoed the response from spirits, angels, and seraphim.
Jesus called out to a man in the crowd. He was the one who, at His arrest, had asked why He had come into the world. “This is why I came into the world,” Jesus now said to him, “so that the world might be saved.
7
Since no man can come to the Father except by Me,
8
I am now submitting Myself to whatever happens to Me as a consequence of My mission.”
With great emotion, Mercy lifted her eyes to heaven and said, “O God, how great is Your goodness. The Redeemer has entered the dominion of death to rescue sinners.” Then, approaching Justice, she extended her hand and said, “Is this offering sufficient? Do you accept it?”
At this, the dying man appeared once again, and Justice leaned over his form. He took the extended hand of Mercy and said, “When the offering has completed His mission, then the sinner will be restored. He will obtain this through repentance toward God and faith in the Lord Jesus.”
Support From
the Word of God
1.
Apollyon
is one of the several names of Satan. It appears in Revelation 9:11 and means
destroyer
.
2.
“Then they spit in his face and struck him with their fists. Others slapped him” (Matt. 26:67).
3.
“So Pilate asked Jesus, ‘Are you the king of the Jews?’ ‘Yes, it is as you say,’ Jesus replied” (Luke 23:3).
4.
This was prophesied of the Messiah in the Book of Isaiah:
He was oppressed and afflicted,
yet he did not open his mouth;
he was led like a lamb to the slaughter,
and as a sheep before her shearers is silent,
so he did not open his mouth.
—I
SAIAH
53:7
5.
“Yet it was the L
ORD’S
will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the L
ORD
makes his life a guilt offering, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the L
ORD
will prosper in his hand” (Isa. 53:10).
6.
“He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all peoples, nations and men of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed” (Dan. 7:14).
7.
“For the Son of Man came to seek and save what was lost” (Luke 19:10). See also 1 Timothy 1:15.
8.
“Jesus answered, ‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me’” (John 14:6).
T
HE SCENE CHANGED, AND
I
SAW A COMPANY OF ANGELS DESCENDING
from far above. They seemed to be on an urgent mission of mercy. Proceeding to a palace in the city, they paused above it before one of them entered a room where I saw a woman of great beauty. She had been thinking about the events surrounding the arrest of Jesus and was deeply disturbed by them.
She could not see the angel, but it began to soothe her and quiet her nervousness, inducing a soft and gentle sleep. I was intrigued to see how quickly she became quiet and peaceful under the influence of the angel. She rested as the angel breathed on her.
After a time she awoke in the spirit and dreamed that she had entered paradise. She stood by a gently flowing river with beautiful flowers on each bank. The waters of the river were bright and clear and reflected the beauty of the surrounding landscapes. Birds sang softly in the trees and flew above the flower-covered plains.
Captivated with delight, she raised her eyes and saw countless companies of angels. They had just been singing a great anthem, and the echoing melody filled the skies. She stood enraptured for some time but gradually became aware that their song, and the melody of the thousands of birds, had ended. A deathlike stillness gripped the whole realm.
She looked around to see what had caused this and noticed that gloom now obscured the river. The flowers had folded shut. The forests stood still. Not a leaf moved. Even the breezes had completely died away.
The angelic hosts above had veiled their faces, and a weak, pale light now took the place of the bright glory that had shone previously.
Her heart became faint, her face pale, and her eyes dull. Her hands fell lifelessly by her side. It seemed that she was dying, but an angel touched her, saying, “Why are you disturbed? Aren’t you from the city of Jerusalem, on gloomy earth?”
“P
ILGRIM, WHEREFORE DOST THOU
WONDER
? A
RT THOU NOT OF THE
CITY OF
J
ERUSALEM, IN THE LAND
OF SHADOWS AND OF NIGHT
?”
Startled by the voice of the angel, she turned to run away, but the angel said, “Don’t be afraid. No harm will come upon you in this place. I am a messenger. I came from the large company of angels you saw above you to explain what you have just seen.
“You have been experiencing the glory and harmony of paradise. All those who are pure and blessed live like this forever. Never-ending praise flows from all these rivers, fountains, flowers, and from all living beings. But then it all changed suddenly, and you want to know why. Listen to me.
“All of paradise is suffering with our Lord Jesus, who is being accused today before a depraved and vindictive tribunal. He is God in the flesh, but the Jews want to crucify Him. However, it is necessary for Him to die. This has been written of Him. But woe to those who accuse Him! “You have a vital interest in this. Pilate, your husband, knows Jesus is innocent, but because of the demands of the crowd he has been pressured into bartering with Jesus’s innocent blood. Go to him quickly! Warn him of his danger in opposing the Lord God! Tell him what you have seen. Tell him that while Jesus stands before this demonic tribunal, every tree, plant, and flower in this place is bowed in sorrow and that all heaven waits in awful suspense. Tell him that angels have put down their crowns and dropped their lyres, their voices silent. Go! Do not wait, or a moment lost may doom Pilate. You must try to save him from any part in this.”
The angel who had soothed her into sleep then said, “Wake up!” Startled and terrified by her vision, she got up immediately and rushed to her husband.
“Have nothing to do with that righteous man,” she said, “for I have suffered many things in a dream today because of Him.”
1
But Pilate disregarded her pleas and gave in to the demands of the people, condemning Jesus to the cross. He gave the order for Him to be whipped and then crucified.
2
So the sentence was passed, and Jesus was led away.
Support From
the Word of God
1.
The events of this chapter are mentioned in only one verse in the Bible—Matthew 27:19:
While Pilate was sitting on the judge’s seat, his wife sent him this message: “Don’t have anything to do with that innocent man, for I have suffered a great deal today in a dream because of him.”
2.
Matthew 27:20–26 states:
But the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowd to ask for Barabbas and to have Jesus executed. “Which of the two do you want me to release to you?” asked the governor. “Barabbas,” they answered. “What shall I do, then, with Jesus who is called Christ?” Pilate asked. They all answered, “Crucify him!” “Why? What crime has he committed?” asked Pilate. But they shouted all the louder, “Crucify him!” When Pilate saw that he was getting nowhere, but that instead an uproar was starting, he took water and washed his hands in front of the crowd. “I am innocent of this man’s blood,” he said. “It is your responsibility!” All the people answered, “Let his blood be on us and on our children!” Then he released Barabbas to them. But he had Jesus flogged, and handed him over to be crucified.
T
HE VEIL THAT HAD BRIEFLY HIDDEN THE DEMONIC SPIRITS FROM
our view was removed, and once again the arch demon Apollyon and his hosts could be seen. He lifted his hand, and a massive sheet of sulfurous flame blazed from it like a banner. On it were written the words: