As Earth Churns…19a. Throne Room

The palace was deserted as the Father and Son walked into the large throne room where they sat in their respective places in close proximity. Jesus eyed his father expectantly, respectfully waiting for the dialog to begin. He didn’t have long to wait.

“Son, I have many things to tell you today,” God began. “I appreciate your patience over these last months. I also am proud of the way you have accepted your lack of omniscience during this time. You’ve been very tolerant, while I’ve sorted things out. Now it is time for you to know the plan.”

“The plan for mankind?” Jesus asked.

“Yes, someday many humans will come to live with us here in heaven,” God explained.

“That’s what Gabriel’s building project is about, isn’t it?” Jesus inquired.

“That’s right, there will be well over a million rooms for human occupants in heaven,” the Father continued.

“Wow! A million?” Jesus was amazed. “That’s why you told Gabriel to start with 144,000. If he knew the rest of the story, he might collapse.”

God went on, “That will be many centuries from now, but I thought it best to keep the angels occupied with this lengthy project. We don’t need their being too curious about the happenings on earth just now. Lucifer doesn’t need any more recruitment opportunities, and Adam and Eve don’t need any more curious onlookers.”

“And Gabriel doesn’t need to know the full extent of the project, does he?” Jesus questioned.

“No, Son, he doesn’t,” God agreed. “It’s enough for now that he knows this is phase one and there will be more to come. Now I want to tell you about the years to come on Earth and the part you will play in them. For the next several thousand years, you and various trusted angels…”

“Like Michael and Gabriel?” Jesus interrupted.

“Yes, and Allen and Zerub and a few others,” God added. “You and these select angels will occasionally act as my messengers to take my word to mankind. The doings of man will have ups and downs during this time. Most of mankind will choose evil more than good. We have Lucifer and his cohort to thank for that. We could stop him, as you know; but when we decided to give man free choice, we agreed to a position that would keep us from interfering too much in his history. After awhile, a pretty long while as man’s lifetime goes, you will take on a great mission for me.”

Jesus eagerly exclaimed, “Whatever it is, Father, I’m willing and able!” After several moments of anticipatory silence, Jesus blurted out, “What is it?”

God commenced again, “You know that your name means Savior, don’t you, Son?”

“Yes, Father,” Jesus became even more attentive, guessing that he was about to learn something very significant.

“Well, Jesus, that won’t be your only name in the future,” God detailed. “You will be called Emanuel, Prince of Peace, Bread of Life, Alpha and Omega, Son of Man, the Word, among other references too numerous to mention just now.”

“When will this be, Father?” Jesus persisted.

“When you go to Earth to live…” God enlightened. “Several thousands of years from now, when most of mankind has lost faith in me almost completely, I will send you to Earth to live among man. You will be born of a human woman who will conceive you with help from the Holy Spirit. You will grow up pretty much as any human child. You will have an Earthly father and will learn the trade of carpentry from him. Your dad and mom will be good parents. Eventually you will leave their home, select some men to accompany you, and journey around the countryside teaching people about heaven and how to get here. Some will listen; most will not. They will capture you, condemn you to die a painfully horrid death, and forget about you. But you will rise from the grave where you are laid and return here to heaven. This will take about 33 years and you will be back at my side. These are just the highlights of those days. It will a difficult time for both of us, but it must be this way.”

“Father? Will I be able to at least talk with you while I’m on Earth?” Jesus asked hesitantly.

“Yes, my Son,” God assured him. “You will speak with me often. The angels will come to you and help you on some occasions; and some of the humans will be best friends to you. There will be many good and happy times, I promise.”

Jesus sat quietly, not a little awe-struck. Then he hesitantly added this query, “Once I return here to you, what then?”

[to be continued]