II Corinthians 5: 1-5
For we know that if the earthly tent which is our house is torn down, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the Heavens.
We know that our physical bodies are only temporary, and will not last very many years. Even if we live to be a hundred years old, it's just a drop in the bucket of Time. And when this body wears out, we already have a spiritual body that God made, waiting for us in Heaven.
For indeed in this house we groan, longing to be clothed with our dwelling from Heaven,
While we live here in our mortal bodies, we are vulnerable to sicknesses and injuries and malfunctions of our systems. We wear out and wear down. We're looking forward to having that spiritual body that is not subject to any of these weaknesses.
inasmuch as we, having put it on, will not be found naked.
We don't want to be without our bodies, we need them to express our thoughts and emotions and to do actions, to live our lives. We need bodies to live in.
For indeed while we are in this tent, we groan, being burdened, because we do not want to be unclothed but to be clothed, so that what is mortal will be swallowed up by Life.
We have to have some kind of body, in order to live a life; but we want for these frail, temporary bodies to be superseded by the strong, invulnerable, eternal, spiritual bodies we will be getting.
Now He who prepared us for this very purpose is God,
God is the One who planned for us to be His own children, before He made anything, with the perfect, spiritual bodies He's built for us already. That's why He created us. That's His purpose for each one of us. That's why He's working in us to grow us in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ, into His very image, His character and perfection, which is the same as God the Father.
who gave to us the Spirit as a pledge.
A pledge is a down payment of what is to come. God's Holy Spirit gives us God's Life, to make our dead human spirits alive while we live here now in this World.
This divine Life in us gives us the power and authority to do God's work here now, and to overcome temptation and the enemy in the authority of His Name.
We are already, right now, children in the divine family of God (I John 3:2). We are not to consider ourselves gods now, because we are still little children in school; but when we "graduate" and receive the spiritual bodies He has for us, then we will be His kings and queens, sitting with King Jesus on His throne, as He sits with His Father on His throne. That means we will have His authority to rule. But we will always be under His authority over us, as God the Father is over the Son.
Understanding this order of authority is the kernel of faith; the central, most important part of what our faith is. It's putting ourselves into submission to our Lord, and in extension, to one another. It's loving God and loving each other as He has loved us. It's the basis for all of the Law and the Prophets.
And it's why God created. He made this whole Universe to put the Earth here, and He made the Earth to be the ideal environment for Mankind, putting in it everything we could ever need in living here. And to use it as an institute of learning for us, with His Word as our central textbook. Every other book we would add to our curriculum must concur with this divine tome.
And when we've finished our schooling, learned every lesson, passed every test; then we will "graduate" into being His adult children, with His authority to run His family business. This is the Kingdom of God.
This was God's plan from the beginning. He wanted a large family (Romans 8:29), an enormous family, because His Kingdom will never stop growing! (Isaiah 9:7.)
So it's up to us, brothers and sisters, to share with as many others as we can what God has done for us, as His witnesses (Acts 1:8). And to pray the Lord of the Harvest that He send more workers into His fields (Luke 10:2), His missionary fields, that are full of ripe hearts (Luke 4:35), ready to receive and respond to the Good News.
Because when every living being has heard and understood the Gospel well enough to make an informed decision whether to accept or reject His gracious offer, then the end will come (Matthew 24:14). The last trumpet shall sound (Revelation 11:15-18), and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed (I Corinthians 15:52, see September 12, 2019.
O my Father, You are our good, good Father! You made us to be Your own children, and You have done everything possible and impossible to make us fit to live with You and reign over Your Kingdom! You have done it all, Father!
You have made us, You have saved us, You have sacrificed Your very best, most precious, for us; and you ask us to also give our best back to You. You made us to be like You, in Your image and likeness, and Your plan will be completed, without fail.
You, my Father, are the maker of promises and keeper of promises. You have told us the whole story, and how we are to respond to it, and to You. And You have given us the power and authority to do Your work, both now and forevermore.
Please continue to work in each one of us, Father; to wake us up, to enable us to accomplish Your will each day of our lives, submitting to You and to one another.
And You take pleasure in our progress, for You do all things according to Your will; and we receive the benefit. Father, smile down on us as we toil in Your service; help us to focus on what You have planned for each of us, not getting distracted by what draws us away from Your plan.
And every eye shall see, every knee will bow, and every tongue will confess that Jesus is our Lord God Almighty, our King of the Universe, to the credit and glory of Almighty God the Father, forever and ever, Amen.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
