The whole idea of “heaven” seems a bit remote sometimes. Pearly gates and golden streets seem abstract. We can’t help but imagine the never-ending tedium of our childhood Sundays when we here the word eternity. The idea of “no more tears” seems like a good plan, but our vision of the New Jerusalem has been trivialized by popular culture. We need a vision to stir the heart and honor the mind, to combat the Challenge of the Trivial.
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Tags: Malala Yousafzai, I Am Malala, Pearly Gates, New Jerusalem, City of Zion, Shangri-La

Political cartoons can provide welcome relief for our weary brains. They can make us laugh if we understand the meaning but more than that, they provide sharp and serious critique, making us rethink our assumptions about the way things are. The word pictures in Revelation work in much the same way as political cartoons. John uses them to expose the shortcomings of first century society to the scrutiny of his readers, and his cartoons still apply all these years later.
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Tags: New Jerusalem, Babylon, Political Cartoons, Josh Garrels