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God expressed at the foot of Mount Sinai but, by reason of the weakness of the flesh,
rendered impossible of accomplishment under the law (Exod. 19: 6).
Inasmuch as the bulk of Scripture is taken up with the history and prophecy of this
earthly people and kingdom, no attempt on our part, particularly considering the
limitations of our space, can possible do more than indicate the fact of its existence.
There is, however, unanimity among most believers regarding this first, or lowest, sphere
of blessing, and while we shall have to return to the subject, when certain of its features
will be compared with those of other spheres, we now pass on to the consideration of the
next sphere, having left nothing unproved or resting upon mere assumption. Therefore
we feel that we can safely make this statement:
The earth will be a sphere of blessing in which there shall be set up a kingdom,
over which the Lord shall be King, with Jerusalem the chosen centre, and Israel a
Kingdom of Priests. This we will call the First Sphere.
We come now to the second sphere; that which is associated with the heavenly
Jerusalem, and it must be recorded a fact of importance, that no hint of such a sphere is to
be found in the whole of the Old Testament. Yet when we study the New Testament we
learn that its existence was intimately known by Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. For this
information we turn to the Epistle to the Hebrews.
In Heb. 11: the Apostle illustrates the statement that "Faith is the substance of things
hoped for, the evidence of things not seen", by the examples of Abel, Enoch, Noah,
Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Coming to the example of the patriarchs, the Apostle pauses
to add:
"By faith he (Abraham) sojourned in the land of promise as in a strange land,
dwelling in tabernacles (tents) with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same
promise. For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose Builder and Maker is
God" (Heb. 11: 9, 10).
After speaking of Sarah's faith, the Apostle reverts to the subject of this city, saying:
"These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar
off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were
strangers and pilgrims on the earth. For they that say such things declare plainly that
they seek a country. And truly, if they had been mindful of that country from whence
they came out, they might have had opportunity to have returned. But now they desire a
better country, that is a heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God;
for He hath prepared for them a city" (Heb. 11: 9-16).
After a further and fuller expansion of the theme of Heb. 11: 1 the Apostle returns to
the subject of the heavenly city in chapter 12:, but approaches it from another angle.
We reserve comment upon the significance of this new angle until we have established
the fact of the revelation of all three spheres, and meantime pass on to verse 22:
"But ye are come unto Mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly
Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church
of the firstborn, which are written in heaven" (Heb. 12: 22, 23).