Going Home
Today is the day. It’s over! Our time out west has finally come to an end. Tonight, I’ll be in my own house, my own bed, resuming life as usual. In a way it’s bitter sweet – I have to say good-bye to cherished friends and a care-free lifestyle a vacation mindset offers, yet I get to reunite with friends and family I left behind. I’m sure you all know what I’m talking about. If you reading this are fully retired and financially able to live that lifestyle all the time with no attachments back home, enjoy! I think I envy you in a way, even though that may be sin. Tonight, I’ll fly back home!
This whole idea of “going home” has got me to thinking, with a myriad of songs running through my head, “what if this was my last day, and tonight I’m going home”. What if tonight, I’ll really “fly away, o glory”, and that train that just went by my residence was truly “bound for glory” with me on it, what would my last day on planet earth be like, before I really go home. How would I live my last day if I heard those words, “today, you will be with me in paradise” (Luke 23:43). I mean, isn’t that the longing of all our hearts, “I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am” (John 14:3). Jesus is coming back, any day now – coming back for me! Hopefully for you too! Have we been living for Him? Aren’t we all longing for His appearing (2Tim. 4:8). When you think about it, there are only two ways to see Jesus: either we die and our absence from our earthly body means our presence before the Lord (2Cor. 5:8); or Jesus returns to take us to be with Him (1Thess. 4:17). Both possibilities are imminent, meaning they could happen any time, including today. This could potentially be our last day before we “go home”. Do we even think like that? What do we really want to be doing the last hours before we see Jesus? Will it be all about our earthly relationships – our family and friends? Will it be about quickly doing all those fun things we wished we had done? Will it be about reconciling with those we have offended, trying to mend broken relationships? Will we sit and read our bible to get a glimpse of what is waiting for us on the other side? Will we try desperately to convince our loved ones who don’t have the assurance of eternal life about the necessity to put their trust in Jesus? Will we, like Paul, write a letter to our successor on how to serve Jesus wholeheartedly? (2Timothy) Will we be like Peter encouraging other Christians to live for Jesus? (2Peter 1) Or will we just go on as usual, trying to finish that last project at work or on the house? What if our last day before going home, we don’t have the opportunity to do anything because of sickness? Shouldn’t we always be living our life like today is our last day? We certainly don’t want to be worrying about earthly things, but rather seeking kingdom things (Matt. 6:25-34). And we surely do not want to be accumulating more material possessions (Luke 12:20).
I just had a conversation with a young man who is full of Jesus, totally in love with Him. That’s all he talks about. God saved him out of a terrible lifestyle, delivered him from many issues, and has called him to be a pastor. He is excited and full of zeal for the things of God, living like Jesus could return any moment. He now has a wife and two children, and goes to work ready to do God’s will, always looking for the rapture to happen. Youthful passion is so contagious. Reminds me of when I first met Jesus! I don’t ever want to lose that feeling of Jesus being the reason I exist. Satan tries to get us to take our eyes off our first love, enticing us to direct our affections towards earthly things that mean nothing in the end. It is a battle to continually be heavenly minded and kingdom focused, but obviously a battle we can win if we resist temptation and keep our eyes on Jesus.
I do believe that our time on earth is short. The way the world is going, Jesus could return soon. Scripture directs us to expect Him at any moment. So, with that reality before us, is it not right that we long for “home”, fulfilling the mission Jesus gave us (Matt. 28:18-20), while we wait. The first century Christians lived their lives ready to “go home”. Earth was a temporary residence. Do we long to go home?
- For this world is not our permanent home; we are looking forward to a home yet to come. (Heb. 13:14 NLT)
- But our citizenship is in heaven, and we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ (Phil. 3:20)
- For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is dismantled, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. (2Cor. 5:1)
Live like today was your last!
"Advancing the Kingdom of God by releasing Spirit-filled followers to serve Jesus in freedom and joy."
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