By David ReayThursday 29 Dec 2022LifeWords DevotionalsDevotionsReading Time: 2 minutes
For we know that when this earthly tent we live in is taken down (that is, when we die and leave this earthly body), we will have a house in heaven, an eternal body made for us by God himself and not by human hands. We grow weary in our present bodies, and we long to put on our heavenly bodies like new clothing. (NLT)
There was an old song which had words along the lines of “this world is not my home; I’m just passing through.” Such words highlight the temporary nature of our existence on earth. We must not misunderstand this so as to neglect the earth, or dismiss the significance of our time on earth. After all, what we call “heaven” may well be very much like this present world with all the bad removed and all the good intensified.
And yet it is true that what we hold dear on earth is a sort of preview of the deeper, richer beauties and treasures of the new heavens and new earth. Entering eternal life won’t have us mourning the loss of what we once had. Rather it will have us celebrating what we will then possess, which includes much that is treasured from our earthly life.
We live this life thankful for its blessings, and longing to be free of its burdens. We have wonderful tastes of heaven, and at times scary glimpses of hell. We both value our earthly bodies and realise they wear out and so cause us much trouble.
The writer C.S.Lewis got the balance right when he said that God refreshes us on our earthly journeys with some pleasant inns, but will not encourage us to mistake them for our real home.
Blessings
David