REFLECTIONS
ON "ETERNITY - THE VISION OF MARIETTA DAVIS"
Many
people have spoken to us about "Eternity" since
we rewrote and released it a year ago. In that time the
print run of 3000 has sold out and we are about to reprint.
Obviously the story has created interest - in the secular
book world of Australia a book is rated in the best seller
list when sales reach 5000.
Typically
people have asked - do you believe these things about heaven
and hell, some of them seem very weird? Are we allowed to
look into these things this way? Do the stories match the
Bible?
There
are a number of books of this kind that have been published
over the years. I have several on my shelves. The Marietta
Davis story is my favourite but after that comes "Visions
Beyond the Veil" by H.A Baker. It tells the story of
a missionary couple who took in 40 street urchins in the
Yunnan Province in China. I gather this was before the communist
revolution.
The
Holy Spirit fell on these uneducated children and they experienced
extraordinary visions of heaven and hell and described to
the missionaries many things they could not have learned
that were written in the Bible. The fact that children were
involved, and a large number at that, gives the story powerful
credibility.
The
Bible indicates clearly that God gives visions to his people.
It is a specific promise related to the Holy Spirit in this
age (see Acts 2). Peter and Paul had visions. The book of
Revelation is a vision. There is so much clear Biblical
evidence of these things that our only question should be
- how do we handle them?
The
answer to that is found in 1 Thessalonians 5:20,21 - we
should test prophetic revelations. They originate from God,
who is infallible, but they are conveyed to us via fallible
men and women so they must be judged. Our standard is, of
course, the Bible.
Where a vision conflicts with the Bible we must reject it.
When it has no conflict, if it encourages us in our faith
then we have every reason to accept it as a God given gift
for our benefit.
The
overwhelming majority of readers of "Eternity"
have found it to be enormously encouraging and challenging
and without serious conflict with the Bible. This was certainly
our feeling when we first read it and more so in the work
of rewriting.
We
trust it will be so for you too.
Dennis
Prince
