Cloud carriage

Part 34 of 35 Coming with the clouds

As Jesus's friends stood staring into the sky where he had gone, two men dressed in white stood beside them. "Men of Galilee," they said, "why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen Him go into heaven" (Acts 1:11).

The Bible promises: "Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him" (Revelation 1:7). "The Lord Himself will descend from heaven… with the trumpet of God," and his people will meet him, "and so we will always be with the Lord" (1 Thessalonians 4:16–17). No one knows the day or the hour (Matthew 24:36), so Jesus told his followers to be ready.

Bible Clouds as chariots

A psalm praises God for "making the clouds His chariot, walking on the wings of the wind" (Psalm 104:3).

Imagined The carriage

With no wheels, the carriage never bumps or rattles. It glides wherever its passengers want to go.

Real world Floating for real

Maglev trains really do float: powerful magnets lift them about a centimeter above the track and push them along, so there are no wheels to rub. A maglev line has carried passengers in Shanghai since 2004, and in 2015 a test train in Japan reached 603 kilometers an hour.

Think about it

1. What did the two men in white promise?
2. Why do you think Jesus told his followers to be ready?
3. How can magnets lift a whole train?

Key words

Maglev

Short for magnetic levitation: floating on magnets.

Carriage

A vehicle for carrying people.

Promise

Saying you will certainly do something.