As Below, So Above

You are witnesses of these things. . . . but tarry in the city . . . until you are endued with power from on high.

– Luke 24:48-49

The Roman paganism of Jesus’ day taught that the actions of gods in the heavens above affected the earth below.  If Zeus got angry, thunderbolts shot out.  “As above, so below,” went the ancient formula.

Jesus, though sometimes inverted that formula.  He taught: As below, so above.  A believer prays, and heaven responds.  A sinner repents, and the angels rejoice.  A mission succeeds, and God is glorified.  A believer rebels, and the Holy Spirit is grieved.

I believe these things, yet somehow I keep forgetting them.  I forget that my prayers matter to God.  I forget that the choices I make today bring delight or grief to the Lord of the universe.  I forget that I am helping m neighbors to their eternal destinations.

The good-news message of God’s love that Jesus brought to this earth we can now bring to others.  That was the challenge He have His disciples before ascending to His Father.  We who follow Jesus serve as an extension of His incarnation and ministry.  It is why He came to earth.  Before He left, He told His disciples that He would send His Spirit from above to them below.  He did not leave us alone.  He fills us with His power that we might touch lives here below to affect eternity.  –  Philip Yancey