The bible calls it a ‘foretaste’ - like sampling the cooking before tea is served. It may be what Jesus is saying in the line of the Lord’s prayer, when he says we should pray, ‘Give us today our daily bread’. It could be translated something like, ‘Give us the bread of that day today’. In other words, ‘Your will is always done in heaven, Lord; please give us enough taste of it now to keep us looking forward to it.’
That is what church is for. We meet to keep each other looking forward to the new creation, where there’ll be perfection for ever. We can’t imagine that very well. But we can get a taste of it by meeting with other people who worship Jesus. When we miss church, for whatever reason, we miss out on that foretaste. What a privilege! So when we tell each other to make it a priority, it’s not nagging - it’s loving!
