He Dwells — The B'log in My Eye

How do you finish the sentence, “I am looking forward to…”?

This Saturday I am off for Disney World in Orlando Florida and while I am looking forward to spending time with the wife and kids, I am not looking forward to Disney World and it’s lines, it’s hype, and it’s expense. Suddenly the question, “How are you going to ‘spend’ your vacation, ” has a prophetic ring to it (the operative word being ‘spend’). Now consider the verses that precede 2 Peter 3:13…

But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness… 2 Peter 3:10-11

Who’s There?

Now I am one who believes in a pre-tribulation rapture of the church, therefore, Jesus is NOT going to come as a surprise to me when He comes to bring me home. On the contrary, when He comes for me, I’ll be flying as fast as I can to meet Him in the clouds. However, when I read this passage (and others like it), I am reminded that everything that is on loan from God and in my possession is going to burn up and dissolve. Dissolve–that sure sounds like something catastrophically nuclear to me! Add these prophetic words from Zechariah 14:12 and it becomes even clearer…

And this shall be the plague with which the Lord will strike all the people who fought against Jerusalem: Their flesh shall dissolve while they stand on their feet, Their eyes shall dissolve in their sockets, And their tongues shall dissolve in their mouths.

Kinda Like M & M’s

Flesh dissolving as they stand; eyes melting in their heads; tongues liquefying in the mouths…Man-oh-man, I am so glad I am not going to be around for that, but I digress. If our focus is not to be on the things of this world; the stuff we all seem to hoard with a selfish abandon, where should our focus be; what should we be looking forward to? The answer is very, very clear.

For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind. Isaiah 65:17

How does that look practically? First it is important to know that we are not being called to separate ourselves from the world—we are in fact called to minister to this world. The world is sick and in Christ Jesus we hold the cure; we might call it the Gosp-Pill. Since we are called to be good stewards with ‘all’ the Lord has provided, including the Good News, we are to offer it to every ailing person we know. Whether or not they take it is their business—we are just called to deliver it.

Needless to say, keeping our focus on Christ Jesus will give us a better perspective when we suffer the trials and tribulations of being a Christian and dealing with the world we live in (housework, traffic, bills, etc). We can choose to be miserable (and of no use to our Lord), or opt to keep our eye on the eternal prize that awaits those who know and trust in Jesus.