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Light from the Crack—Chapter 9: Anava's Message

The day dawned slowly as light cracked the darkness from the face of the earth. I dressed carefully, pondering dreams of the night, communing with the Creator of all, anxious about the message that I was to present at the Town Hall when the sun was high.

I looked at the cup of seed with continued amazement, for it took up no space in my vest and seemed to disappear altogether, but when I reached for it inside, it became visible as soon as it found my hand. It was truly spiritual seed, for it had the ability to exist in spiritual and physical dimensions, passing through the unseen veil with ease. What a marvelous gift it was.

But how was I to use it? How would I plant it? What sort of field is necessary for such seeds to bear fruit? How would this reforest the land? As I meditated on these things, searching for the Creator’s will, the small but clear voice from the tav in my ear spoke: “Joshua has prepared the field for you. The seed is good, but the condition of the field will determine the fruit.”

This word in my ear brought light to my eyes. I understood that Joshua’s message of the two covenants was given to prepare the hearts—fields, that is—for the seed that was to be planted. Those who had faith in the new covenant would become fruitful fields to feed the world. Those who continued to labor under the first covenant would find their fields cursed with briars and thorns that would render them unfruitful.

The voice in my ear unfolded into a scene before my eyes, and I saw two women in the heavens. One was called Cassiopeia, and the other Andromeda. The first was dressed in a brilliant robe and wore a crown; the second was chained to a rock and greatly distressed, for a great beast from the sea drew near to devour her. I saw then a strong man come with a great club. A great battle ensued, and the strong man killed the sea monster and set the bondwoman free. She then became one with Cassiopeia, and the strong man married her in a glorious heavenly ceremony.

The entire vision took only a fleeting moment, for time stands still in the heavenly realm. It takes far longer for those on earth to ponder and understand the meaning of such visions. But the voice in my ear again spoke in silence: “These women are two fields. They were called to bring forth fruit. But a chained woman is barren until she is set free. When she is married to the One, she may then fulfill her calling to be fruitful and multiply.”

I knew then that Kirk in past times and Newkirk today represented Andromeda, that I represented the strong man sent to deliver them, and that the seeds of life given to me were the words of truth by which the chained ones were to be delivered. It was the will of the Creator that the people of Newkirk be set free from the will of the first covenant into the glorious freedom of Cassiopeia. At the present time there are two women, but in the end, when the victory is complete, there will be only one. She will be fruitful, and her children will rule the ever-expanding universe.

It was clear, then, that Joshua’s message had been necessary to prepare the field for me to sow the good seed of Elyon in the ears and hearts of the people of Newkirk. My commission was to instill seeds of hope into plowed fields of faith in order to bring forth a love-child harvest.

I resolved to be true to the heavenly vision. Old ways of thinking, faulty ideas about the Creator, partial knowledge of His laws, and misunderstanding the two rainbow covenants had kept the people of Newkirk chained to the rock of Tyre, ignorant of a greater Rock that could be a firm foundation of freedom. I and my companions were called to replace persuasion with faith, wishful thinking with hope, and compulsion with love.

So it was that we met again at the Town Hall to present the people with a greater understanding of the Creator’s will. We knew that our biggest obstacle was the fact that years of tradition had instilled in them the belief that they already possessed the true light of freedom. They were largely unaware of their chains as they labored to retain their citizenship in Newkirk.

If men can be convinced that slaves are free, that darkness is light, that death is life, then they will remain contentedly chained. If the light that is in them is actually darkness, how great is that darkness! Our message, we all knew, was revolutionary. Once the Town Council truly comprehended our message, our very lives would be in danger, and the mortal battle between the deliverer and the sea monster would begin.

“Order, order,” the mayor shouted to the gathering crowd. “This Town Hall meeting gives the podium to Mr. Anava, who is a stranger to these parts. He is on holiday from the city where he teaches at Hardknox University.” Extending his hand to welcome me, he repeated, “Mr. Anava.”

The people applauded politely as I took my place at the podium.

“Friends, I am the second of three who were privileged to receive revelation from the Creator in order to show you a clearer vision of who He is and to clarify His laws and His purpose for all. You have had time to sleep on Joshua’s words which he spoke yesterday about the two rainbows. He urged you to place your faith in the Creator’s promise, rather than in your own vows of obedience. By this, he did not mean that we ought to make no commitment ourselves to be obedient, but rather that we must recognize our inability to fulfill such commitments. To do fairly well is the standard of Newkirk, but only absolute perfection is the Creator’s standard.”

“But why would the Creator be so unreasonable?” a man shouted from the audience.

“By the first covenant,” I answered, “this standard certainly looks to be unreasonable. But the standard of absolute perfection merely reflects the nature of the Creator Himself. What other standard do you suppose He should set for us? His holiness would not allow Him to indulge any disobedience that falls short of His own nature.”

“But we are not Him,” the man objected. “How can He expect us to be like Him?”

“But you see,” I responded, “that is precisely the point. He has great expectations for all of you, and He has drawn up a plan that will succeed in making you all as righteous as He is. He intends to create a new you in His own image. The first covenant was given to prove that you could not do this by the power of your own will, no matter how many times you decided to follow and obey Him. Your vows and decisions, though well intentioned, could never succeed. The first covenant was designed to humble you, making you realize that human nature since the fall of Earthyman was incapable of rising back to the level that the Creator intended for you.”

“Harrumph!” muttered the mayor.

“You are implying,” said the old man, “that the first covenant was inadequate and a failure. Is that not blasphemy against its Author? How dare you imply that the Creator would implement a plan that was designed to fail?”

I responded, “The Creator intended this from the beginning, and as you all know, your imperfections have proven this truth. Whether you like it or not, not one of you has kept His law perfectly, for even if you were to devote your lives to the attainment of perfection, and even if you should succeed in attaining it in your golden years, you still could not erase the disobedient things that you did before you became perfect. Good deeds do not nullify evil deeds. The Creator does not weigh one’s good and evil deeds in a balance to determine who is righteous. His standard is Himself, and anyone who is not like Him falls short of His glory.”

“But that puts righteousness out of reach for the entire world,” the old man objected.

“Yes, that was the whole point of the first covenant,” I answered quickly. “It was to bring us to that very conclusion, so that we would no longer trust in ourselves but in His grace alone. It is for this reason we must transfer our faith from ourselves to the Creator alone, from our vows to His, and to lose all confidence in the flesh. Do you not understand that the purpose of the first covenant was to give us the gift of humility? This is not an easy gift to receive, for few people recognize its value while it is being granted. No one appreciates this gift until afterward.”

I continued, “It is written in the ancient historical account that by the first covenant, the Creator humbled the people of Kirk while leading them in a wilderness forty years before bringing them here. Those being humbled, however, do not have humility until they embrace the humbling and come into agreement with the process.”

“That is absurd,” grouched the old man. “I will have you know that the Creator is well pleased with my decision to follow Him, and I am proud to say that I have obeyed His laws to the best of my ability all of my life. What more could He ask from me?”

“I am glad to hear of your success,” I replied. “You have done much better than I, for my failures haunt me wherever I go, and no amount of good has given me peace. My peace came only when I placed my faith in the Creator, who vowed to make me righteous by the Council of His own will. Only then could I rest in the knowledge that He had taken the responsibility for my life into His own hands. My faith in Him gives me confidence of success in the end.”

“This brings me to the main revelation that I was asked to impart to you,” I continued, “It is important to know that the first covenant was given to regulate our behavior in earthly matters. It pertained particularly to all of us as children of Earthyman. As children of the flesh, we were required to exercise our strength of will. But the new covenant, pictured in the second rainbow, offers you a new identity as children of the Creator Himself.”

“We are already His children,” the old man stated with firm conviction. “It is written that Earthyman was a son of the Creator.”

“That is true,” I agreed, “but Earthyman lost that position through disobedience. Sons resemble their fathers, and in our ancient records, sons are those who are in agreement with their fathers. Having lost his position as a son, Earthyman was unable to pass on a position of sonship to his children. But the new covenant shows us how to become the sons of the Creator once again.”

With that, I reached into my vest and pulled out my cup of seed, holding it high for all to see. “The Creator gave to me the seeds of Elyon from the tree of life. They will implant themselves in the ears of those who have new covenant faith in the promises of the Creator.”

I then poured out some of the spiritual seeds into my hand and threw them into air, scattering them everywhere. “Lift up your heads, O gates, and be lifted up, O ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in!” I shouted. The seeds immediately took flight throughout the room, searching the crowd for hearts of faith and hungering ears. Shouts of joy went up from many in the crowd, and many thanked and praised the Creator for His wonderful gift from the tree of life.

I stepped down from the podium and walked out of the Town Hall with Joshua and Joseph following.