A New Future

Today, let us review the intricate layers of biblical prophecy, focusing on "a moment in time." Have you ever created a time capsule? What is the significance of making a time capsule? A time capsule consists of a container that preserves information for the future to capture a moment in time. For example, my wife captured a moment in time by creating a miniature garden lined with bricks in which she writes dates of significant events like our first grandchild's birth or my father's transition. These events hold value, so the writings on these bricks serve as a snapshot of a specific moment in time experience.

God, in His infinite wisdom, orchestrated a profound experience for the Prophet Jeremiah during a turbulent period in Israel's history. While shut up in King’s jail, God presented the Prophet Jeremiah with a unique opportunity to claim his ancestral property at Anathoth, even as the Babylonian Army was seizing the land around Jerusalem. God assured Jeremiah that this purchase held immense value in this extraordinary circumstance. So much so that Jeremiah was inspired to create a time capsule, burying the deeds in the ground to immortalize this moment in time, guided by God's hand.

Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel; Take these evidences, this evidence of the purchase, both which is sealed, and this evidence which is open; and put them in an earthen vessel, that they may continue many days.

Jeremiah 32:14

Because of the crisis occurring to the people of Judah, God uses the Prophet Jeremiah to demonstrate the value of their crisis and the opportunity for God’s plan to unfold. Therefore, I gained a new perspective as I contemplated the totality of the circumstances around Jeremiah’s land purchase. For instance, life provides experiences, whether negative or positive. Reviewing each experience from God’s perspective while acknowledging the value and benefits in the now (eternity-present) will uncover a different outcome. Therefore, during eternity-future, we will see our life experiences (negative and positive) as part of a more extensive operation to reveal God’s glory.  In other words, if we capture a moment in time with our experiences, we will see how our one piece of the puzzle fits perfectly into the giant puzzle for God’s glory.

So, I encourage you to accept your experiences, whether negative or positive, as a time capsule to grab a moment in time for God’s glory. Afterward, when eternity-future occurs—you will grasp another understanding that your moment in time fits perfectly to unfold God’s glory in eternity (present and future). Since the Prophet Jeremiah could not enjoy the land he purchased during his lifetime, he captured this moment in time in the time capsule to experience it with God during eternity-future.