Tears On Earth

Tears in Heaven, originally uploaded by Memories by Shari.

The member who posted this to our group today titled this grave marker, "Tears in Heaven." I had to change the title for my blog since it's a tremendous error. There are not tears in heaven save the one's God collects in His bottle (see Psalm 56:8). Heaven is the place where the tears of earth are wiped away (see Revelation 7:17 & 21:4).

Tne anguish captured in this headstone illustrates the torment of pain that comes with Adam's Curse. The separation between us and heaven is the worst aspect of the human condition. To compound matters, Adam's disobedience not only separates us from heaven, but also permeates our condition and creates great multitudes of heartache. This is the nature of sin and death.

But in spite of that pain of separation, Resurrectionists believe that one day we will have a new heaven and a new earth; that we will get to have the human experience without the anguished separation of heaven. John's gospel expounds on a teaching by Jesus Himself regarding the opening up of graves and the cemeteries emptying their dead (see John 5). As butterflies in their chrysalis come forth from their shell, so too shall our DNA will come forth from the grave--new creatures, yet of the same substance. John later tells us that we will know Him as He is (see 1 John 3)

So, while I have known, and continue to know, the great anguish depicted by this marker--goodness knows that I have filled many flasks of tears for God's collection--unending rivers of tears. Of one thing I know, and that is that there are no tears in heaven. This is an earthly gravemarker for our sorrowed time before the Resurrection, not a heavenly one.