FromNowUntilForeverBook8.5x5.5 REV.indd

Lazarus’ finger could be dipped in water. Obviously, “side” and “finger” allude to some type of physical presence. In John’s vi- sion, he witnessed martyrs underneath the altar in white robes (Revelation 6:11). They could not be wearing robes unless their spirits had some time of material consistency. Also, will we recognize one another in intermediate heaven, during our disembodied state? Although we still won’t have glori- fied, resurrected bodies, I believe God has provided a means for us to know one another. At theTransfiguration, Moses and Elijah appeared in recognizable, physical form to Jesus, Peter, James, and John. Perhaps one could argue that this Old Tes- tament pair was given temporary bodies for their return to earth. It’s more likely, however, that they possessed some type of incarnate presence, one that they maintain to this day. Billy Graham tells the story of his grandmother’s final moments on earth. While in her dying state, “She sat up in her bed, smiled and said, ‘I see Jesus, and He has His hand out- stretched to me. And there’s Ben and he has both of his eyes and both of his legs.’ My grandfather had lost a leg and an eye at Gettysburg.” 185 In Valladolid, Spain, where Christopher Columbus died in 1506, stands a monument commemorating the great dis- coverer. Perhaps the most fascinating feature of the memorial is a statue of a lion destroying one of the Latin words that helped make up Spain’s motto for centuries. Before Colum- bus launched out, the Spaniards thought they had reached the earth’s outer limits. Thus, their motto proclaimed “Ne Plus Ul-tra,” which means “No More Beyond.”The word being strippedaway by the lion is “ne” or “no,” making it read “Plus Ultra.” Columbus proved that there was indeed “more beyond.” 196 Life on this fallen planet is but a mere dot on the radar screen of eternity. “Plus Ultra,” something better, a paradise of

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