“Therefore we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. We live by faith not by sight. We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord. So we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad. “
2 Corinthians 5:6-10
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Yesterday, we considered our bodies and life on earth as a tent. Here on earth, we are at home in our bodies, these good gifts of God which form an important part of our identities. We know and love one another by and through our bodies. But while at home in the body, we are away from the Lord, which Paul implies is not our ideal. There is something much better.
In a similar vein, there is a better way of living this earthly life than we often see: dependence upon God and not upon visible material things which are temporary and passing away. Living by faith and not by sight.
To live by faith is a continual challenge for each of us, because of the comforts and security that surround us today. Do we really prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord?
It is a wonderful thing for God to place within our hearts the desire to please Him, even though we often miss the mark. This goal of pleasing the Lord is impossible if we live merely by sight. Living by faith puts the gospel at the center of everything. The gracious and compassionate Creator is redeeming all Creation and invites us to be part of this work. My sin is forgiven, and the perfect righteousness of Christ has been granted to me as a free gift by the grace of God. I am saved through the love of God who laid down His life for me. These are the most important facts of my existence. Yet living by sight requires a degree of denial about these truths.
There is a day coming when deeds performed in this earthly life will be judged by Christ, and each of us will receive from Him according to what we have done. What is the dominant influence in my life choices? Is my passion the gospel of the unseen God, or does my life consist of living only within the visible material world seeking its rewards and what it has to offer?
Questions for reflection and discussion:
- Paul made the claim that we live by faith and not by sight. Can you or I claim the same?
- How can this world and all the material things that surround us be seen from a perspective that places the realty of the unseen living God at the center of our attention?
- Are we more affected by the praise of other humans and success within society, or the approval of God?
Church Reading Plan: Song of Solomon 5; Hebrews 5