II Corinthians 4:16-18
(NIV)
Therefore we do not lose heart. Though
outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.
For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that
far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is
unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
Paul wrote these verses after describing
the fact that he was facing death every day.
He is making an appeal that the way you ultimately conquer death, the
way you ultimately triumph in the face of death, the way you ultimately do not
lose heart in facing death is to see it not from a physical perspective, but
from a spiritual one. The Bible tells us in Hebrews 2 that Satan holds men
bondage to the "fear of death" all their life long. When you come to the place where you have
conquered that fear, you have conquered the ultimate enemy. Spiritual growth involves the gradual
transformation from viewing life from a temporal perspective to viewing life
from an eternal perspective. It is the
perspective of the sincere and mature Christian to see beyond what is visible
to the eye and perceive the great spiritual reality.
True Christians do not lose heart after the
death of a Christian loved one or in facing our own deaths because we do not
look at what is temporal. People tend to
put too much emphasis on the temporal rather than the eternal. We spend too much time on things that don’t
last. We work at jobs 60+ hours a week
and work at ministry a few hours or less.
From an eternal perspective it should be the opposite. It is interesting that funerals, for a
believer, focus on relationships, not on accomplishments. Very little is said about a litany of
achievement in the life of a Christian.
Perhaps at the funeral of an unbeliever, where accomplishment has been
the focus rather than relationships, that’s all you can talk about. However, the only real reward that matters is
that which we did through our ministries for God in his kingdom. May you figure out how to fix your eyes on
what is unseen and has eternal value in this life.
Rick
Warren writes that your life on earth is only a temporary assignment[1]. Life on earth is just passing through as
you aim for your eternal destiny. In order for you not to become too attached
to earth, God allows you to feel a significant amount of discontent and
dissatisfaction in this life….longings that will never be fulfilled on this
side of eternity. You are not completely
happy here because you’re not supposed to be.
Your life in your perishable body on this perishable land is not your
final home; you have been created for something much better.
May you rejoice and thank God
for this wonderful life He has given you and for the assurance you have as a
believer in Jesus Christ, that glory without comparison is ahead for you. And if you are not a believer, all you have
to do to become a believer is to confess your sins and invite Jesus to take
over your life and serve Him as your Savior and Lord.
[1] Taken
from Purpose Driven Life , pp. 47-50 by Rick Warren. Copyright © 2002 by
Zondervan. Use by permission of
Zondervan. www.zondervan.com
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