The stroll down the meadows reminded me so much of my earlier trips to Tasmania. The carpet grass was green and soft and the air was cool and fresh. A gentle breeze blew, caressing the rustling grass and refreshing my spirit. White wooly clouds drifted lazily through the clear blue sky, painting a picture of a day that could only be described with one word – Perfect.Except for one curious sight.
A few yards away, a man was crouching over the edge of the pond and peering intently into the water. He wore a robe that was whiter than the purest snow, and had lovely silky hair that practically glowed. Perhaps, I thought, he was looking at the fishes, so I went up to him with curiosity following closely behind. "Shh," the man whispered as he motioned me to come closer. He did not turn to face me, but somehow I could sense that he was smiling.
Bending slightly more, the man stretched his hand over the surface of the pool. Slowly, deliberately and gently, he reached out a finger and with a gentle grace, he touched the water, sending ripples over the surface.
I looked into the crystal clear water and caught a glimpse of shapes moving in its midst. When the ripples died down, I saw, to my wonder, a multitude of people of different race, age, gender and wealth. Some looked cheerful and bright, but there were others who wore frowns upon their soiled faces, but they all had one thing in common – a tiny glow in each heart. An eternal being. A soul.
"I'm going to give them a gift!" the man declared cheerfully in a voice so warm it could melt the polar ice caps, and so touching it could, I believed, even make rocks cry.
My curiosity got the better of me and I opened my mouth to ask, "What gift?" The man slowly rose to his feet.
"This!" he beamed as he turned around and spread his arms in a wide arc. What I saw took my breath away.
Rolls of endless meadows spread out before me, reflecting the clouds in the skies above. A brilliant light filled the place like the afternoon sun but the air was cool and refreshing. A distant chorus of angelic voices sang songs of praise and worship that was carried on the breeze as white-robed people flew through the sky. One of them, a seraph I'm sure, even flew over and folding two of his six wings over his face and another two over his body and feet, he bowed deeply to the man beside me before gliding away.
Filled with awe, I turned to the man beside me and found myself looking into two eyes that looked like wells of living love and a face so flawless and beautiful that it seemed to me that I was looking into the face of God himself.
Frightened, I fell on my face before him, but he simply picked me up. Motioning to the pool, he said, "Look." The image shifted and I saw yet another group of people. Some had shifty eyes. Others hid their faces as they stepped out of the courtroom. Some were even behind bars. Staring at their faces I recognised some of them.
Wasn't that lady the one who slaughtered her baby in cold-blooded murder? And didn't that man crash the stock market, ruining so many lives? That woman! Wasn't she unfaithful to her husband? And hey! That man owes me money!
"Them?" I recoiled in distaste. "You mean this is all for them? All this glory, all this perfection, all that is in heaven?"
I could not believe what I was hearing.
"All for them?" I said it again. Surely their reward lay in hell.
But the man just smiled and in his heavenly voice, replied, "Yes." He sighed, then added, "They only have to receive."
I just could not believe that such a wondrous gift could be bestowed on such evil people.
"But why?" I asked, unable to bear the thought.
"Because," he said in a voice so full of love, "I love them all, even as I love you."
"Ooh… that's all so mushy…" a voice hissed from the shadows behind a nearby tree. It belonged to a shady figure and sounded of horrible echoes from beyond the crypt. I caught the whiff of sulphur and brimstone. "Just too bad they're too stupid to want it," it continued. "Just look. The only god they want is themselves and their own creations!"
The figure stretched out a clawed hand over the water and splayed its crooked fingers. The pond turned dark and in it I saw crowds of people prostrated before idols and men in fervent worship.
With a snap of its fingers, the image shifted once again and there in the water was a beautiful couple made in the likeness of God Himself. I blushed at their nakedness, but the two were not ashamed. My mouth opened in a silent "No" as the woman reached out to pluck a fruit of knowledge of good and evil, choosing the forbidden fruit instead of the fruit of life. Together the couple ate it, striving against God and breaking His heart.
A tear trickled down the man's cheek.
"And the wages of sin is… DEATH!" the shadow screamed triumphantly.
"But what about the righteous and God-fearing?" I objected.
"Oh, why didn't I think of that?" the shadow replied in feigned thoughtfulness. "Maybe because… all man have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God! Ha ha ha!!"
Peals of hysterical laughter followed.
"But…" I started, but the man put his hand on my shoulder and said, "You know, he's right."
"What?"
"Because of one, sin came into the world and now stains every soul," he said sadly. I knew it hurt him because on his flawless face he wore a smile so sad that it broke my heart to look at it.
"But what about the sacrifices?" I protested. "Can't someone else die in their place?"
The man merely laughed and with a sigh, replied, "Can your tithes and offerings, or animal sacrifices wash away man's rebellion against God? Can a sinner die for another's sin?"
I stood silently beside the pool as the horrible truth sank in. I could sense the shadow smirking in the corner. "No," I finally conceded. I knew only the sinless could take a sinner's place, but there was nobody on earth who could call himself sinless!
"But… what about the gift?" I asked.
The man looked at me lovingly as if I were his own child and touched my cheek. From the corner of my eye, I saw a deep laceration in the middle of his palm that was still fresh with blood.
"All they have to do is receive," he said softly. Then he took a step into the pool and as he touched the water, he disappeared.
"No! You spoilsport!" the shadow screamed in frustration before vanishing also, leaving me standing beside the pool alone.
Looking into the water again, I wondered what this Gift was going to be like. The waters shifted once more.
It was a quiet night in Bethlehem. A bright new star looked down from the heavens as it hung silently over the city. Beside a crowded inn and in a common stable, a couple, a few lonely shepherds and three magi bent over a humble manger, looking at the newborn lying in the straw.
The mother picked him up and cradled him in her arms.
"Jesus," she whispered to the others, afraid to wake her baby.
"His name is Jesus…"