by Ricky Doc Sauceda
Revelation 21:22-27
And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine upon it, for the glory of God is its light, and its lamp is the Lamb. By its light shall the nations walk; and the kings of the earth shall bring their glory into it, and its gates shall never be shut by day—and there shall be no night there; they shall bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations. But nothing unclean shall enter it, nor any one who practices abomination or falsehood, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life.
I really am looking forward to the eternal life with Jesus, but this reason that I am about to share is probably not what you'd expect to hear. As a child of God in Jesus Christ I look forward to His eternal presence, yes, but there is something else that comes along with that existence.
We will be free to associate with anyone and not be self conscious of relationships and connections then, as we are now. We can have a tendency to be hesitant to admit being a Christian, for having certain people in our lives and expressing goodness as a result of it.
Satan has put forth a veil of intimidation and fear upon our minds and hearts. He cloaks truth and replaces them with manmade standards, expectations and requirements. Like governments for example; although instituted by God's will, the devil has managed to instill atheism into them. (No respect/regard to religions or beliefs-only structure, policy, regulations and laws.)
In society we are cautious on all levels as commoners or people of status: all walks of life. We don't want to appear biased or associated with certain groups and people that are good, due to it possibly impacting our livelihood. It is possible to be threatened with the loss of employment or even success by doing the right thing in our way of religion or belief.
As for me I am a believer and have no religion, although the world (under Satan's influence) wants to call Christianity a religion, which it is not. It is a way to live by simple definition. To be specific it is "the Way" to live for eternity. Something I feel very happy about and love our LORD for.
We will be able to outwardly express who we know and what we believe. We will not be judged or threatened for our associations or participation in activities of our choosing. All be it that this new heaven and new earth will be a place of purity and holiness, so we could not do anything that goes against it: perversion, murder, adultery and so on. We will be light and holiness along with our LORD.
We will be able to express our love of faith, goodness and love to others and not be penalized, ridiculed or punished for it. We will be free from condemnation. We will have eternal peace and love and exist in perfection.
That is what I am looking forward to. I don't want anyone to be ashamed of being associated with me. Not my ex-wife, not my children, not my grandson, not my community, not my church, not my employer, not my friends or anyone that I come in contact with. I am looking forward to when I will be "just Ricky." Indeed.