I have never been one who enjoyed the process of waiting. I like to plan and execute. However, there are some things in life that are not on our time. I think much of the time, God allows us to wait to challenge our faith in Him. Do we truly believe He knows what is best for us, and that He will orchestrate it in His time? In II Corinthians 5:1-10, Paul gives us a profound shift in perspective as he reminds us that here we wait in our “tents,” earthly bodies, for our eternal house in Heaven.
In verse 1, Paul uses the analogy of a tent to remind us that our earthly bodies are temporary, fragile, and easily weathered by the elements. When our boys were still at home from time to time, we would go camping, and our dwelling was a tent. I was always a little leery of what was outside coming inside! Even rain would penetrate through once the exterior was soaked. While we may think we are invincible, our bodies are much like the tent. The wear and tear of life, sickness, aging, or exhaustion reminds us that our bodies, like the tent, are very susceptible to destruction.
II Corinthians 5:1 “For we know that if the tent that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.”
In verses 2–4, Paul speaks of “groaning.” This isn’t just a groan from physical pain; it is the longing of the soul. It is a desire to be with Jesus in our new home. As we study and draw closer to God, we have a strong desire to be with Him. As we live with the frailty of our bodies, the disappointment of relationships, and the normal stress of life, we realize we are made for more than this broken world. This longing is not a lack of faith or an escape route to avoid the trials of life. It is actually a gift from God. It is an internal compass pointing toward our eternal home. A home that nothing in this world can affect.
II Corinthians 5:2-4 “For in this tent we groan, longing to put on our heavenly dwelling, if indeed by putting it on we may not be found naked. For while we are still in this tent, we groan, being burdened—not that we would be unclothed, but that we would be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life.”
Some may ask how we as Christians can be so sure of what our life will be like after death. It is because of the gift from God of the Holy Spirit that dwells within each believer. He brings peace, conviction, and love that gives us a taste of what is waiting for us.
II Corinthians 5:5-6 “He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee. So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body, we are away from the Lord.”
In verse 7, we find one of the greatest declarations of the New Testament: “For we live by faith, not by sight.” This is what gives us the ability to wait. We have placed our faith in the one we cannot see. We are secure in our God. If we walk by sight, we are placing our security in what we can see and feel. To live by faith, we trust in what God has said and what He promises in His word. It allows us to be of good courage, as Paul speaks of in verse 8. Courage that keeps pressing on when it seems the tent of our lives is tearing at the seams.
II Corinthians 5:7-8 “for we walk by faith, not by sight. We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.”
Until He comes, or we die, we wait. Patiently, but actively knowing that one day we will stand before Him and give an account of our lives, whether good or bad. This should be a sobering thought that prompts us to reflect on our lives and how they do or do not please God. While we wait, we work, we pray, we live life for Him to the fullest.
II Corinthians 5:9-10 “Wherefore we labor, that, whether present or absent, we may be accepted of him. So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.”
