2 Corinthians 5:1-10

1: 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.
2: For indeed in this house we groan, longing to be clothed with our dwelling from heaven,
3: inasmuch as we, having put it on, will not be found naked.
4: 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.
5: Now He who prepared us for this very purpose is God, who gave to us the Spirit as a pledge.

6: Therefore, being always of good courage, and knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord—
7: for we walk by faith, not by sight—
8: we are of good courage, I say, and prefer rather to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord.
9: Therefore we also have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him.
10: For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.

*** 

Paul called our bodies an earthly tent. It’s temporary. Once it is “torn down” we have a building from God—an eternal dwelling place. Yet as long as we are in our earthly body we groan. Its burdensome. We’re longing for our heavenly dwelling.

Paul said we don’t want to be unclothed—which is to shed our present body, or die—but we want to be clothed with our heavenly body so this body will be swallowed up by life. Many of them in that day thought the Lord would return in their lifetime, and it was a more appealing thought to be alive at His return than to go through the unclothing or dying process.

Yet God is the one who has set this all up, preparing us for this, even giving us His Spirit as a promise or taste of what’s to come. So, while we’re here in our earthly body, we don’t see the Lord, we appear to be absent from His presence, yet by faith we know He’s always with us. We know it would be better to be absent from this body and be at home with the Lord, yet we live our life by faith, not by the appearance of things.

Either way, whether in this body or not, we want to please the Lord. One day, we will all appear before the judgement seat of Christ, and everything will be open and revealed--all of the things we’ve done in the body whether they are good or bad. Our actions and motives will all be made manifest, and we will be compensated accordingly. This is our ambition, and our motivation, for pleasing the Lord while we are in this body on the earth.



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