“Just keep that in mind; the Spiritual Realm can sometimes be a bit tricky. As Angels we don’t usually take the form of anything other than what God gave us. And of course what you’ve known us as until now; it was just us as youngsters. Pretty cool don’t you think?”
“Yes, absolutely cool.”
“Oh, by the way, we hope the friendly little prank we pulled on you didn’t hurt your feelings too bad.”
“No, of course not. I’ve picked on y’all for some time now, so I guess I can take it as well as I can dish it out.”
Nipper smiles, “You’ll find out that God allows His Angels to have a bit of fun… as long as we don’t really hurt someone’s feelings too bad, and follow His commandments and do His will.”
I follow Allayer and Nipper as we head off in the direction of the crowd that’s gathered by the river’s edge. Allayer whispers, “We can’t tell anyone what we are doing, where we’ve been, or where we are headed. Remember, we need to blend in.”
14
Second Chances
W hen we get within hearing distance, I’m able to make out someone preaching, and they were really going at it. Whoever this preacher is, man does he know scripture, wow!
Nipper starts heading for some benches and tables set up underneath what looked like one of my Granny’s old peach trees back home.
I ask Nipper “Hey bud, has my granny been through here showing off her green thumb, planting peach trees?”
“No, your granny didn’t have to come here, she went straight to Heaven.”
“How do you know? Did you guys take her?”
“Well he asked you, go ahead Allayer, tell him.”
“Sure, that’s a big yes. We were the ones that brought all of your bloodline to Heaven, well most.”
“Really? What do you mean, ‘most’?”
“Well, there are a few that rejected Jesus Christ and didn’t make it to Heaven. Remember the scripture Mathew 10:32-33? ‘Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father Who is in Heaven. But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in Heaven’. ”
“Yes, I remember those verses. A bit of fear would come over me whenever I heard or read that whole chapter. I would ask myself, which one of these do I fall under, deny or confess? I’m sure through my stupidity during my youth I have denied Christ somewhere along the line. As I grew older I felt the need to profess Jesus as Lord to as many people as would listen.”
“Well, we hate to tell you this, but there were some in your family that continued to reject God all the years of their lives. They were so full of pride and embarrassed about what the world would think of them if someone saw them following Christ. This is so sad, when a person would throw away an eternity with God. The God who loved them so much that He sent his only Son to die for their sins.”
“My goodness, if they could only see into the Spiritual Realm, surely all mankind would fall on their faces and be humbled before an almighty God.”
Nipper jumps in “Here’s the kicker. All the people that think they know what they’re doing and just plain refuse to believe and trust in God are going to have a big wakeup call. In the final days at the Great White Throne Judgment, God says that every knee will bow.”
“Wow that will be a scary time for a lot of folks. Hey, can you guys tell me if my dad made it?”
“Yes he made it, but it was by the hair of his chinny chin chin.”
“Oh wow, I have often wondered if he really made it. He never wanted to talk about God with me. I tried bringing up the Lord with him only a few times and he would always get mad and want to change the subject. You know, come to think of it, it seemed harder to talk to my family members about God than anyone else. I know he confessed Jesus as Lord in his last few days on Earth, but I never knew if he really meant it. Wow, what a relief, thanks guys for sharing that. I’ll get to see him, right?”
“Sure you will. ”
Allayer tells me, “Chado Cole, if it hadn’t been for your mom praying so hard all through the years for your dad, he wouldn’t have been spared. In the Holy Scripture, it tells you of God promising to save your whole household. In your dad’s case, God used Lucifer to strike him down with cancer and this allowed your dad time to realize his days on Earth were about over, in turn humbling him into submission. This is a good example of God’s mercy. He heard your mom’s prayers and God spared your dad from eternity under the rule of Lucifer and Hell. Just think if your dad had died suddenly before his sickness, when he was denying God and letting pride rule, he would not have had the chance to ask Jesus into his heart; he would have never seen Heaven’s Gate.”
“Thank you God, and thank you Mom for praying; gonna see Pop again, glory!”
* * *
“Chado, you want a peach?”
“Do I want a peach? Heck yeah! Hey, that’s right we can eat in Heaven. Well, this is not exactly Heaven, but I guess Tabula Rasa is close, right?”
Nipper laughs, “You’re in the spiritual realm and you can eat, get over it.”
While we all kick back enjoying huge delicious peaches, listening to this preacher standing waist deep in water with God’s Word flowing out of his mouth, I ask, “Well, who is this preacher anyhow?”
“That my friend is none other than John the Baptist.”
“What? Do you mean THE John the Baptist from the Bible?”
“Yes, in the flesh, or should we say in the spirit.”
“What’s he doing here on Tabula Rasa?”
“Well Chado, you’re looking at it and hearing it. He’s been working here for a little over two thousand years preaching God’s Word.”
“What? Two thousand years? Wow! Okay, I’m confused again. I had no idea there were such a thing as a second chance after you die. You are either saved or you’re not, right?”
Allayer explains “Well it’s not a place you could actually call a second chance. This is the first time the souls of these immortals have been taught about the truth of God. You see, you were brought up in a nation where the beliefs were set on God’s Word and Law. Just about everywhere you turned there was opportunity to understand about our Maker, whether it was a Bible in a motel dresser or a church you pass on the road or maybe even a Christian boldly sharing the Gospel. Let me put it to you like this, if you have knowledge of God and then turn away; you are in a world of hurt. But these souls that you are looking at were less fortunate and never had the opportunity or knowledge that God even existed.”
“Okay?”
“Do you see the little teenager third in line from being baptized?”
“Yes, the dark skinned kid.”
“Well, he was born into a family of desert people, belonging to a tribe that has worshipped idols for centuries, doing blood sacrifices unto their pagan gods. The kid has never known anything else other than what he was taught by his tribal leaders.”
Nipper asks “Are you starting to get the picture?”
“Yes, so if a person on Earth doesn’t have any knowledge of the one true God, they get to come here where they are taught the truth.”
“That’s right.”
“Okay, so why didn’t God send missionaries to teach the truth about Jesus to that tribe?”
Nipper boldly stated “He did, and the fools cut the missionaries heads off. ”
Allayer jumps in, “Nipper, calm down. Don’t be so graphic.”
Nipper mumbles, “Well they did, and I remember being there to transport both missionaries to Heaven. It was an awful sight, everyone in the tribe running around all painted up with their eyes rolled back in their heads chanting some crazy demonic language. And the heads of the missionaries stuck up on a couple poles in the center of the village. I wanted to kill them all and let God sort them out.”
“Nipper, you need to cool it. You know God won’t allow you to have that attitude but for a few seconds.”
“I know. You’re right Allayer. I get a little wound up when God�
�s people are hurt. I know that little boy we’re talking about would have never made it if God hadn’t laid everything out so perfect. So Chado, do you understand now?”
“Okay, let me see. So if you have absolutely no knowledge of God, a soul gets to come to Tabula Rasa and then taught like a child the truth about God. Then what? Does everyone that comes here eventually go on to see Heaven?”
Allayer explains, “ Well no, not everyone. Even here, God still gives a soul free will to choose. You see, everyone that comes here falls under a spirit of illusion and they think they are still alive and are on Earth. That’s one of the reason we told you we can’t let anyone know who we are or what we’re doing.”
“So the souls here at this stage can end up in Hell?”
“Yes, and you would be surprised at how many even after being taught still choose to rebel against God.”
Nipper says, “Most of the older ones choose wrongly. The younger are easily taught. Sort of like back on Earth.”
All of a sudden, I notice John the Baptist stops preaching and starts heading up the hill out of the river bottom in our direction. I whisper, “ Hey guys check it out. John the Baptist is heading right for us. Do you think he wants to talk to us? “
Nipper says, “Be still and listen.”
John walks straight up to where I was sitting and mumbles, “ Hey bud, excuse me” then places one foot on my bench and with ease completely jumps over my head, landing directly on top of the stone table, barely missing my forehead with one of his sandals. I’m thinking, what the heck. I look over at Allayer and Nipper and they are laughing pretty hard at this point.
When I look back at preacher John, I wonder, What’s this guy going to do now? All of a sudden he throws me a huge peach, then turns around picks three more; one for himself and the other two for Allayer and Nipper.
John tells Nipper, “My throat is dry and these peaches really hit the spot after a morning sermon.”
Then he asks Allayer, “Who’s the new guy?”
Allayer says, “John meet Chado Cole, he is our special assignment, God is up to something and we don’t have a clue.”
“So, Mr. John, Sir…”
John quickly states “Hey, new guy, I am a nobody, doing the work of the Lord. Don’t call me Mr. or Sir, please just call me John. So what’s your question?”
“So you guys all know each other?”
Nipper joins in “Yup, yup, yep. We had a hand in bringing John to Heaven.”
“John, do you mind me asking, why you chose to live here instead of Heaven?”
John takes a deep breath, looks around at Nipper then back at me with a smile and says: “God designed this place for a special purpose; I am just a tool designed by God to teach the Gospel, so that the unknown will be known and the unsaved will be saved. He desires that no man would perish, but all who love Him would have everlasting life. The mortal would put on immortality, and all who have breath, look on the One that is greater than all, the Lamb, the Most High, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, Jesus Christ. God has overflowed my soul with the gift of preaching, and every morning He gives me a renewing power for the Word of God to flow freely from my lips. If there were no souls to preach to and I was the last one here, I would preach to the rocks, the trees, the birds of the air. I say the Word of God will pour from my soul for eternity.”
“Amen, John. I am speechless. I thank God I had the opportunity to meet you. I hated the way the Pharisees and Herod treated you back in those days.”
“Chado Cole, it was a pleasure to meet you. Don’t sweat King Herod; I know now he wishes he had listened back in those days. He stands where the worm never dies and the thirst is never quenched. Nipper, Allayer, if God reveals this mystery, let me know, I might be able to use it in a sermon.”
John the Baptist walks away heading in the same direction as a few stragglers from the crowd were heading. He slowly turns around, looking back in our direction and with a big smile, winds up like a baseball pitcher and throws his peach seed at me, almost hitting me square in the chest.
“What the heck was that about?”
Allayer and Nipper were having themselves a big hootenanny laugh. I look back at John and he gives me a big smile then held up his hand with a warm wave.
I turned back to Allayer and Nipper and ask, “Is he usually like that? When I first met him he almost kicked me; and on his departure he almost got me with a peach seed.”
Nipper laughs, “John the Bee was just checking out your reflexes and to see if you could catch.”
“What do you mean John the Bee, and why would he want to know about my reflexes” ?
Allayer looks over at me with a big smile, “The Bee is his nickname and he loves to play baseball; who knows, he might ask you to play.”
“You got to be kidding! I might get to play baseball with John the Baptist? That is awesome!”
Nipper, with excitement in his voice, “Wait till you see who else might be playing! God has a pretty good list of people you might have read about in the Bible that are here serving Him on this planet. Well not all of them play baseball, but some do.”
“So John’s not the only one here on Tabula Rasa from the ancient times, I mean the people from the Bible? That is so exciting! Who are they?”
“We aren’t going to name everyone God has assigned to Tabula, it would take all day. You have to realize this is a huge planet with millions of souls that are in transition. God has His chosen scattered all over the planet teaching and preaching.”
“Okay, I get the picture. So is John a good ball player?”
“Oh yeah, he didn’t get his nickname the Bee for nothing. You could even say he’s as good as or better than the pros on Earth. You don’t want him pitching on the opposite side. His strike out percentage is unbelievable!”
“I’ll keep that in mind if I get a chance to play.”
* * *
“Hey guys, can I ask a question?”
Nipper said, “Chado Cole have we ever not let you ask a question?”
“Well, I was just wondering, if God’s chosen have been here for thousands of years, how long will they have to stay before they move on to Heaven?”
Allayer tells me, “It’s like this. God gives everyone assignments. You do know we don’t just drop people off in Heaven and they lay around with someone serving them tea. God has carefully chosen duties that fit each ones character. He knows what they have a love or passion for.”
“Okay, but when can John the Baptist and the other teachers leave the planet?”
Allayer continues to explain, “After God destroys every living thing on Earth and all souls of men are spiritually evacuated, each to his own destination. God’s redeemed will go straight to Heaven; the unrighteous will be condemned under the rule of Lucifer to a devil’s Hell. The few people of Earth without any knowledge of God will come to Tabula Rasa. After these last few are taught and have made decisions, they will then be transported to either Heaven or Hell depending on their choice. When the last person on Tabula Rasa has made his or her decision and the planet is without souls of men, that’s when God will call all who have labored for so many years back to Heaven.”
“So do y’all have an idea how long Earth has left?”
“No, but all the Angels believe it’s very close! Nipper and I both believe the special instructions of having to show you everything has something to do with the final days.”
“Are you guys sure you’ve never had to do this with anyone else?”
“Nope, you are our first. Everyone else, go straight to Heaven.”
“Yeah, I’ll be happy to find out what God’s up to.”
* * *
After enjoying several peaches while sitting on the shaded park bench, Allayer decided it was time to move on. We start walking toward a small town that is only a few hundred yards from where the baptism had taken place. I noticed the people there were using horse and carriages for transportation. “Hey Nipper, If this was like Earth, where
were all the cars and trucks?”
“We don’t think God really cares for motorized vehicles. If you have to have fuel for everything, that leads to industrial disease. Take a look at Earth after a couple hundred years of what they call intelligent progression. Mankind has destroyed mother Earth from the inside out. I don’t know if you’ve noticed but the whole Earth groans and suffers as a woman with pain in childbirth, right along with the sickness of men’s hearts. They sacrifice the air and water for profit, even some of the ones that claim to protect the Earth are hypocrites. They embrace lies and spit at the truth. They sneer at God’s Holy Word and believe the lies of hell. These souls are brought here for a very short time, so there is no need for them to have jobs like they had back on Earth. It’s all designed for having knowledge of the truth about the Holy Trinity, not cruising in a Camaro.”
“I understand, I always have wanted to live back in the old days, you know the horse and buggy days. Well I have been spoiled to electricity and running water. I would miss that and cable TV.”
Nipper laughs, “Don’t worry God provides everything, we guarantee you will be well taken care of, and you won’t miss cable TV. Chado, if you had the power, wouldn’t you do the same for one of your children?”
“I reckon so Nipper, I reckon so.”
As we walk through a large stone gate entering the city, a group of small children came running up to us. They were all speaking in a different language, and at first, I couldn’t understand a single word they were saying. Then I noticed I was able to make out a few words in between their non-stop chatter. This language that I had never heard before was now making sense.
“Wow, I can tell what they are saying. They are telling me, ‘Welcome to our village stranger, welcome. May God bless you and keep you’. ”
I look at Allayer and he’s shaking his head yes and reminds me, “Do you remember what we told you about your thought capacity after you leave Earth?”
At that point I turn back around to the kids and to my own surprise, I tell them in their language, “Thank you guys and May God bless and keep you also.”
Scars of My Guardian Angel Page 8