Part 3: The Return of the Eagles

Part III- THE RETURN OF THE EAGLES

On the horizon I saw a great white cloud approaching. Hope rose in me just from seeing it. Soon it had filled the whole atmosphere with hope, just as the rising sun chases away the darkness of night. As it grew closer, I recognized the great white eagles that had flown from the Tree of Life. They began landing on the mountain, taking their places on every level beside the companies of warriors.

I carefully approached the eagle that had landed near me because his presence was so awesome. When he looked at me with his penetrating eyes, I knew I could hide nothing from him. His eyes were so fierce and resolute that I trembled. Chills ran through me just from looking at him. Before I could even ask, he answered me.

“You want to know who we are. We are the hidden prophets who have been kept for this hour. We are the eyes of those who have been given the divinely powerful weapons. We have been shown all that the Lord is doing, and all that the enemy is planning against you. We have scoured the earth, and together we know all that needs to be known for the battle.”

“Did you not see the battle that just took place?” I asked with as much irritation as I dared to express. “Couldn’t you have helped those warriors who were just taken captive?”

“Yes,” the eagle responded. “We saw it all, and we could have helped if they had wanted our help. We would have helped them by holding them back, telling them to sit and be still. But we can only fight in the battles that the Father commands, and we can only help those who believe in us. Only those who receive us as prophets can receive the prophets’ reward, or the benefit of our services. Those who were ambushed did not yet have the mantle you are wearing, and those who do not have that mantle cannot understand who we are. We all need one another, including these here who are still wounded, and many others whom you do not yet know.”

The Eagle’s Heart

As I talked to the eagle, I started to think like him. After this short discussion I could see into the eagle’s heart and I began to know him like he knew me. The eagle recognized this.

“You have some of our gifts,” the eagle noted, “though they are not very well developed. You have not used them much. I am here to awaken these gifts in you, and in many others like you, and I will teach you how to use them. In this way, our communication will be sure. Unless we have sure communication, we will all suffer many unnecessary losses, not to mention missing many great opportunities for victory.”

“Where did you just come from?” I asked.

“We eat snakes,” the eagle replied. “The enemy is bread for us. Our sustenance comes from doing the Father’s will, which is to destroy the works of the devil. Every snake that we eat helps to increase our vision. Every stronghold of the enemy that we tear down strengthens us so we can

soar higher and stay in the air longer. We have just come from a feast, devouring the serpents of Shame which have bound many of your brothers and sisters. They will be here soon. They are coming with the eagles we left behind to help them find the way and to protect them from the enemy’s counterattacks.”

These eagles were very sure of themselves, but not cocky. They knew who they were and what they were called to do. They also knew us and they knew the future. Their confidence was reassuring to me, but even more so to the wounded who were still lying all around us. Those who had recently been too weak to talk were actually sitting up, listening to my conversation with the eagle. They looked at him the same way lost children would look at their parents who had just found them.

The Wind of the Spirit

When the eagle looked upon the wounded, his countenance changed as well. In place of the fierce resoluteness he had previously exhibited, he became like a soft, compassionate, old grandfather. The eagle opened his wings and began to gently flap them, stirring up a cool, refreshing breeze that flowed over the wounded. It was unlike any other breeze I had ever felt before. With each breath I was gaining strength and clarity of mind. Soon the wounded were standing and worshiping God with a sincerity that brought tears to my eyes.

Again I felt a profound shame at having scorned those who stayed on this level. They had seemed so weak and foolish to those of us who were ascending the mountain, but they had endured much more than we had and remained faithful. God had kept them, and they loved Him with a great love.

I looked up at the mountain. The eagles were all gently flapping their wings. Everyone on the mountain was being refreshed by the breeze they were stirring up, and we all began to worship the Lord. At first there was some discord between the worship coming from the different levels, but soon everyone on every level was singing in perfect harmony.

Never on earth had I heard anything so beautiful. I never wanted it to end. Soon I recognized it as the same worship that we had known in the Garden, but now it sounded even richer and fuller. I knew this was because we were worshiping in the very presence of our enemies, in the midst of such darkness and evil surrounding the mountain.

I do not know how long this worship lasted, but eventually the eagles stopped flapping their wings and it ceased. “Why did you stop?” I asked the eagle I had been talking with.

“Because now they are whole,” he replied, indicating the wounded who now were all standing and appeared to be in perfect condition. “True worship can heal any wound,” he added.

“Please do it again,” I begged.

“We will do this many times, but it is not for us to decide when. The breeze you felt was the Holy Spirit. He directs us; we do not direct Him. He has healed the wounded and has begun to

bring about the unity that is required for the battles ahead. True worship also pours the precious oil upon the Head, Jesus. The oil then flows down over the entire body, making us one with Him and with each other.

“No one who comes into union with Him will remain wounded or unclean. His blood is pure life, and it flows through us when we are joined to Him. And when we are joined to Him we are also joined to the rest of the body, so that His blood flows through us all. A wound is healed by closing the wound so blood can flow to the wounded member and bring regeneration. When a part of His body is wounded, we must join in unity with that part until it is fully restored. We are all one.”

In the euphoria still left from the worship, this brief teaching seemed almost esoteric. Yet I knew it was very basic. When the Holy Spirit moved, every word seemed glorious, regardless of how elementary it was. I was so filled with love that I wanted to hug everyone, including the fierce old eagles.

Then, like a jolt, I remembered the mighty warriors who had just been captured. The eagle sensed this but did not say anything. He just watched me intently. Finally, I spoke up, “Can we recover those who were just lost?”

“Yes. It is right for you to feel what you do,” the eagle finally said. “We are not complete and our worship is not complete until the whole body is restored. Even in the most glorious worship, even in the very presence of the King, we will all feel this emptiness until all are one because our King also feels it.

“We all grieve for our brothers in bondage, but we grieve even more for the heart of our King. Though you love each of your children, you would be particularly concerned for the one who was sick or wounded. The King loves all of His children too, but the wounded and oppressed have most of His attention now. For His sake, we must not quit until all have been recovered. As long as any are wounded, He is wounded.”

Faith to Move the Mountain

Sitting down by the eagle, I pondered his words. Finally I remarked, “I know that Wisdom now speaks to me through you because I hear His voice when you speak. I was so sure of myself before that last battle, but I was almost carried away with the same presumption that they were carried away with. I could very easily have been captured with them if Wisdom had not stopped me.

“I was motivated more by hatred for the enemy than by the desire to set my brothers free. Since coming to this mountain and fighting in the great battle, I now think that most of the right things I did, I did for the wrong reasons, and many of the wrong things I did, I had good motives for. The more I learn, the more unsure of myself I feel.”

“You must have been with Wisdom a long time,” the eagle responded.

“He was with me a long time before I began to recognize Him, but I am afraid that most of that time I was resisting Him. Somehow I now know I am still lacking something very important, something I must have before I go into battle again, but I do not know what it is.”

The great eagle’s eyes became even more penetrating as he responded, “You also know the voice of Wisdom when He speaks to you in your own heart. You are learning well because you have the mantle. What you are feeling now is true faith.”

“Faith?” I shot back. “I’m talking about serious doubts!”

“You are wise to doubt yourself. True faith depends on God, not on you and not even on your faith. You are close to the kind of faith that can move this mountain, and move it we must. It is time to carry it to places where it has not traveled before.

“However, you are right; you are still lacking something very important. You must yet have a revelation. Even though you have climbed to the top of the mountain and received from every truth along the way, and even though you have stood in the Garden of God, tasted of His unconditional love, and seen His Son many times now, you still understand only a part of the whole counsel of God, and that only superficially.”

I knew this was true, and it was actually comforting to hear it. “I have judged so many people and so many situations wrongly!” I exclaimed. “Wisdom has saved my life many times now, but the voice of Wisdom is still a very small voice within me, and the clamor of my own thoughts and feelings is still far too loud. I hear Wisdom speaking through you much louder than I hear Him in my own heart, so I know I must stay very close to you.”

“We are here because you need us,” the eagle replied. “We are also here because we need you. You have been given gifts I do not have, and I have been given gifts you do not have. You have experienced things I have not experienced, and I have experienced things that you have not. The eagles have been given to you until the end, and you have been given to us. I will be very close to you for a time, and then you must receive other eagles in my place. Every eagle is different. It is together, not individually, that we have been given to know the secrets of the Lord.”

The Doors of Truth

The eagle then rose up from the rock on which he had perched and soared over to the edge of the level on which we stood. “Come,” he said. As I approached him, I saw steps that led down to the very base of the mountain, and a small door.

“Why have I not seen this before?” I asked.

“When you first came to the mountain you did not stay on this level long enough to look around,” he answered.

“How did you know that? Were you here when I first came to the mountain?”

“I would have known if I had not been here, because all who miss this door do so for the same reason, but in fact, I was here,” he responded. “I was one of the soldiers you so quickly passed on your way up the mountain.”

It was then that I recognized the eagle as a man I had met and had a few conversations with soon after my conversion. He continued, “I wanted badly to follow you then. I had been on this level for so long that I needed a change. I just could not leave all of the lost souls that I was still trying to lead here. When I finally committed myself to doing the Lord’s will, whether it was to stay or go, Wisdom appeared to me and showed me this door. He said it was a shortcut to the top. That is how I was able to reach the top before you did. There I was changed into an eagle.”

I then remembered that I had seen doors like this on a couple of the levels. I had even peeked into one of them and was amazed at what I saw. I did not venture very far into it because I was so focused on the battle and on trying to get to the top of the mountain. “Could I have entered one of those doors and gone right to the top?” I asked.

“It is not quite that easy,” the eagle remarked, seeming a little irritated. “In every door there are passageways, one of which leads to the top.” Anticipating my next question, he continued, “The other ones lead to the other levels on the mountain. The Father designed each passageway so that everyone would choose the one his level of maturity dictated.”

“Incredible! How did He do that?” I thought to myself, but the eagle heard my thoughts.

“It was very simple,” continued the eagle as if I had spoken my thoughts out loud. “Spiritual maturity is always determined by our willingness to sacrifice our own desires for the interests of the kingdom or for the sake of others. The door that requires the most sacrifice to enter will always take us to the highest level.”

I was trying to remember all that the eagle was saying to me. I knew I must enter the door before me, and that it would be wise to learn all I could from someone who had preceded me and had obviously chosen the correct door to the top.

“I did not go directly to the top, and I haven’t met anyone who has,” the eagle continued. “But I went there much faster than most because I had learned so much about self-sacrifice while fighting here on the level of “Salvation.” I have shown you this door because you wear the mantle and would have found it anyway, but time is short and I am here to help you mature quickly.

“There are doors on every level, and every one leads to treasures that are beyond your comprehension,” he continued. “They cannot be acquired physically, but every treasure that you hold in your hands you will be able to carry in your heart. Your heart is meant to be the treasure house of God. By the time you reach the top again, your heart will contain treasures more valuable than all the treasures of the earth. They will never be taken from you; they are yours for eternity. Go quickly. The storm clouds are now gathering and another great battle is looming.”

“Will you go with me?” I pleaded.

“No,” he responded. “This is where I belong now. I must help these who were wounded. But I will see you here again. You will meet many of my brother and sister eagles before you return, and they will be able to help you better than I at the place where you meet them.”

The Treasures of Heaven

I already loved the eagle so much that I could hardly stand to leave him. I was glad to know I would see him again. Now the door was drawing me like a magnet. I opened it and entered.

The glory I beheld was so stunning that I immediately fell to my knees. The gold, silver, and precious stones were far more beautiful than can be described. They actually rivaled the glory of the Tree of Life. The room was so large that it seemed to be without end. The floor was silver, the pillars were gold, and the ceiling was a single pure diamond that reflected every color I had ever known and many that I had not known. Angels without number were all around, dressed in various robes and uniforms that were of no earthly origin.

As I began to walk through the room, the angels all bowed in salute. One stepped forward and welcomed me by name. He explained that I could go anywhere in the room and see anything I wanted. Nothing was withheld from those who came through the door.

I was so overwhelmed by the beauty that I could not even speak. I finally remarked that this was even more beautiful than the Garden had been. Surprised, the angel responded, “This is the Garden! This is one of the rooms in your Father’s house. We are your servants.”

As I walked, a great company of angels followed me. I turned and asked the leader why they were following. “Because of the mantle,” he said. “We have been given to you, to serve you here and in the battle to come.”

I did not know what to do with the angels so I just continued walking. I was attracted to a large blue stone that appeared to have the sun and clouds inside of it. When I touched it, the same feelings flooded over me as when I had eaten the fruit of the Tree of Life. I felt energy, unearthly mental clarity, and love for everyone and everything. I started to behold the glory of the Lord. The longer I touched the stone, the more the glory increased. I never wanted to take my hand off the stone, but the glory became so intense that I finally had to draw away.

Then my eyes fell on a beautiful green stone. “What does that one have in it?” I asked the angel standing nearby.

“All of these stones are the treasures of salvation. You are now touching the heavenly realm, and that one is the restoration of life,” he continued.

As I touched the green stone, I began to see the earth in rich and spectacular colors. They grew in richness the longer I had my hand on the stone, and my love for all that I saw also grew. Then I began to see a harmony among all living things on a level that I had never seen before. I began to see the glory of the Lord in the creation. It began to grow until again I had to step away because of the intensity.

Losing Track of Time

It occurred to me that I had no idea how long I had been there. I did know that my comprehension of God and His universe had grown substantially as I merely touched these two stones, and there were many, many more to touch. There was more in that one room than a person could have absorbed in a whole lifetime. “How many more rooms are there?” I asked the angel.

“There are rooms like this on every level of the mountain you climbed.”

“How can one ever experience all that is in just one of these rooms, much less all of them?” I asked.

“You have forever to do this. The treasures contained in the most basic truths of the Lord Jesus are enough to last for more lifetimes than you can measure. No man can know all there is to know about any of them in just one lifetime, but you must take what you need and keep proceeding toward your destiny.”

I started thinking about the impending battle again, and the warriors who had been captured. It was not a pleasant thought in such a glorious place, but I knew I would have forever to come back to this room. I had only a short time to find my way back to the top of the mountain and then back to the battlefront again.

I turned back to the angel and said, “You must help me find the door that leads to the top.”

The angel looked perplexed. “We are your servants,” he responded, “but you must lead us. This whole mountain is a mystery to us. We all desired to look into this great mystery, but after we leave this room we will be learning even more than you.”

“Do you know where all the doors are?” I asked.

“Yes. But we do not know where they lead. There are some that look very inviting, some that are plain, and some that are actually repulsive. One is even terrible.”

“In this glorious place there are doors that are repulsive?” I asked in disbelief. “And one that is terrible? How can that be?”

“We do not know, but I can show it to you,” he responded.

“Please do,” I said.

We walked for quite a while, passing treasures of unspeakable glory, all of which were difficult to bypass. There were also many doors with different biblical truths over each one. When the angel had called them “inviting,” I felt that he had quite understated their appeal. I badly wanted to go through each one, but my curiosity about the “terrible door” kept me moving.

Then I saw it. “Terrible” had also been an understatement. Fear gripped me until I thought it would take my breath away.

Gethsemane

I turned away from that door and quickly retreated. There was a beautiful red stone nearby, which I almost lunged at to lay my hands on. Immediately I was in the Garden of Gethsemane beholding the Lord in prayer. The agony I beheld was even more terrible than the door I had just seen. Shocked, I jerked my hand away from the stone and fell to the floor in exhaustion.

I wanted so badly to return to the blue or green stones, but I had to regain my energy and my sense of direction. The angels were quickly all around me, serving me. I was given a drink that began to revive me. Soon I was feeling well enough to stand and begin walking back to the other stones. However, the recurring vision of the Lord praying finally compelled me to stop.

“What was that back there?” I asked.

“When you touch the stones we are able to see a little of what you see and feel a little of what you feel,” said the angel. “We know that all these stones are great treasures, and the revelations they contain are priceless. We beheld for a moment the agony of the Lord before His crucifixion, and we briefly felt what He felt that terrible night. It is hard for us to understand how our God could ever suffer like that. It makes us appreciate much more what an honor it is to serve the men for whom He paid such a terrible price.”

The angel’s words were like lightning bolts straight to my soul. I had fought in the great battle. I had climbed to the top of the mountain. I had become so familiar with the spiritual realm that I hardly noticed angels anymore, and I could speak on nearly equal terms with the great eagles. Yet I could not bear to share even a moment of the sufferings of the Lord without wanting to flee to a more pleasurable experience. “I should not be here,” I almost shouted. “I, more than anyone, deserve to be a prisoner of the evil one!”

“Sir,” the angel said apprehensively, “we understand that no one is here because he deserves it. You are here because you were chosen before the foundation of the world for a purpose. We do not know what your specific purpose is, but we know that it is very great for everyone on this mountain.”

“Thank you,” I replied. “You are helpful. My emotions are being greatly stretched by this place, and they tend to overcome my understanding. You are right. No one is here because he is worthy. Truly, the higher we climb on this mountain, the more unworthy we are to be here and the more grace we need to stay. How did I ever make it to the top the first time?”

“Grace,” my angel responded.

“If you want to help me,” I said, “please keep repeating that word to me whenever you see me in confusion or despair. I am coming to understand that word better than any other.

“Now I must go back to the red stone,” I continued. “I know now it is the greatest treasure in this room, and I must not leave until I am carrying that treasure in my heart.”

The Truth of Grace

The time I spent at the red stone was the most painful ordeal I have ever experienced. Many times I simply could not take any more and had to withdraw my hand. Several times I went back to the blue or green stone to rejuvenate my soul before I returned. It was harder to return to the red stone each time, but my love for the Lord was growing more through this than anything I had ever learned or experienced.

Finally, when I saw the presence of the Father depart from Jesus on the cross, I could stand it no longer. I quit. I could tell that the angels, who were also experiencing what I was to a degree, were in full agreement with me. The willpower to touch the stone again simply was no longer in me. I did not even feel like going back to the blue stone. I just lay prostrate on the floor, weeping over what the Lord had gone through. I also wept because I knew that I had deserted Him just like His disciples. I failed Him when He needed me the most, just as they did.

After what seemed like several days, I opened my eyes. Another eagle was standing beside me. In front of him were three stones: one blue, one green, and one red.

“Eat them,” the eagle said. When I did, my whole being was renewed, and great joy and great soberness flooded my soul.

When I stood up, I caught sight of the same three stones set into the handle of my sword and on each of my shoulders.

“These are now yours forever,” the eagle said. “They cannot be taken from you, and you cannot lose them.”

“But I did not finish this last one,” I protested.

“Christ alone will ever finish that test,” he replied. “You have done well enough, and you must go on now.”

“Where to?” I asked.

“You must decide, but with the time getting shorter I will suggest that you try to get to the top soon.” The eagle then departed, obviously in a hurry.

I then remembered the doors. I started toward those that had been so appealing. But when I reached the first one, it did not appeal to me anymore. Then I went to another, and it felt the same. “Something seems to have changed,” I remarked out loud.

“You have changed,” the angels replied at once.

I turned to look at them and was amazed at how much they had changed. They no longer had a naive look about them, but were now more regal and wise-looking. I knew they reflected what had also taken place in me, but I now felt uncomfortable just thinking about myself.

“I ask for your counsel,” I said to the leader.

“Listen to your heart,” he said. “That is where these great truths now abide.”

“I have never been able to trust my own heart,” I responded. “It is subject to so many conflicts. I am too subject to delusions, deceptions, and selfish ambitions. It is hard for me to even hear the Lord speaking to me above its clamor.”

“Sir, with the red stone now in your heart, I do not believe that will continue to be the case,” the leader offered with uncharacteristic confidence.

Judgment’s Door

I leaned against the wall, thinking that the eagle was not here when I needed him the most. He had gone this way before and would know which door to choose. But I knew he would not come back, and I knew it was right that I choose. As I pondered my options, the “terrible door” was the only one I could think of. Out of curiosity I decided to go back and look at it. I had departed from it so fast the first time that I had not even noticed which truth it represented.

As I approached it, I could feel the fear welling up inside me, but not nearly as intensely as the first time. Unlike the other doors, it was very dark around this one, and I had to get very close to read the truth written over it. Mildly surprised, I read “THE JUDGMENT SEAT OF CHRIST.”

“Why is this truth so fearful?” I asked aloud, knowing that the angels would not answer me.

As I continued looking at it, I knew that it was the one I should go through.

“There are many reasons it is fearful,” the familiar voice of the eagle responded. “I’m very glad you came back,” I replied. “Have I made a poor choice?”

“No! You have chosen well,” the eagle assured me. “This door will take you back to the top of the mountain faster than any other. It is fearful because the greatest fear in the creation has its source through that door. The greatest wisdom that men can know in this life, or in the life to come, is also found through that door. Even so, very few will go through it.”

“But why is this door so dark?” I asked.

“The light of these doors reflects the attention that the church is presently giving to the truths behind them. The truth behind that door is one of the most neglected of these times, yet it is one of the most important. You will understand when you enter. The greatest authority that

men can receive will be entrusted only to those who will go through this door. When you see Christ Jesus sitting on this throne, you will be prepared to sit with Him on it, too.”

“Then this door would not be so dark and foreboding if we had just given more attention to this truth?” I asked.

“That is correct. If men knew the glory that is revealed behind that door, it would be one of the most brilliant,” the eagle lamented. “However, it is still a difficult door to pass through. I was told to return and encourage you because soon you will need it. You will see a greater glory, but also a greater terror than you have ever known.

“Because you have chosen the difficult way now, it will be much easier for you later.

Because you are willing to face this hard truth now, you will not suffer loss later. Many love to know His kindness, but very few are willing to know His severity. If you do not embrace both, you will always be in danger of deception and of a fall from His great grace.”

“I know that I would never come here if I had not spent the time I did at the red stone. How could I keep trying to take the easy way when that is so contrary to the nature of the Lord?” I asked.

“But now you have chosen, so go quickly,” the eagle told me. “Another great battle is about to begin, and you are needed at the front,” he said.

As I looked at the eagle and saw the great resoluteness in his eyes, my confidence grew.

Finally, I turned toward the door.