Better than Heaven

The foolish virgins were not foolish because they were waiting, they were foolish because they were content with "enough already" and didn't take the steps they could while they were waiting.

Are you waiting for more of the Holy Spirit? The wise girls took steps to "learn" how to be "more content". They knew that in Christ's kingdom, the person who has the most gets even more Luke 8:18. We'll join them in stepping onto the bridge to more of the Spirit.

Let's look at the steps that disciples took up to Pentecost, the prototype of being filled with the Spirit.

Please read Luke 24:45-53.

To sum up Jesus says, "Your job is proclaim Me all over the world (including Toronto), but before you start you need to change your clothes. Be clothed with power (and the Holy Spirit)."

Then He was carried to heaven. They were carried away too, with joy and praise.

So what steps did they take while waiting to be filled with the Holy Spirit: Continually praising God. Thats it (at least here in Luke, they did do something else, but we'll look at that next week). The formula is simple; if you want the power of the Spirit, praise God.

Does contentment have anything to do with praising God?

Jeremiah Burroughs says, "a contented heart is always praising and blessing God."
Let's put it in context:

What is Heaven, but the rest and quiet of a man's spirit; that is the special thing that makes the life of Heaven, there is rest and joy, and satisfaction in God. So it is in a contented spirit: there is rest and joy and satisfaction in God. In Heaven there is singing praises to God; a contented heart is always praising and blessing God. You have Heaven while you are on earth when you have a contented spirit; yea, in some regards it is better than Heaven.

How is that, you will say? There is a kind of honor that God has in it, and an excellence that he does not have in Heaven, and it is this:

In Heaven there is no overcoming of temptations. They are not put to any trials by afflictions. In Heaven they have exercise of grace, but they have nothing but encouragement to it, and indeed the grace of those who are there is perfect, and in that they excel us. But there is nothing to cross their grace, they have no trials at all to tempt them to do contrary; whereas for a man or woman to be in the midst of afflictions, temptations and troubles, and yet to have grace exercised, and to be satisfied in God and Christ and in the Word and promises in the midst of all they suffer: this may seem to be an honor that God receives from us, that he does not have from the angels and saints in Heaven.

Is it so much for one who is in Heaven, who has nothing but good from God, has nothing to try him, no temptations; is it so much for such a one to be praising and blessing God, as for the poor soul who is in the midst of trials and temptations and afflictions and troubles? For this soul to go on praying, and blessing, and serving God, I say, is an excellence that you do not find in Heaven, and God will not have this kind of glory from you in Heaven.

If we want more of the Holy Spirit, if we want to stand firmly on God's Effective Structures, we must praise God. By being content in Christ, we are always praising and blessing God, better than we will in heaven.

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