“For while we are in this tent, we groan and are burdened, because we do not wish to be unclothed but to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life.” (2 Corinthians 5:4)
If you just take these thoughts—this verse—out of context, you might think Paul was suicidal. Or, at the very least, that he thought life on this side of heaven was nothing but constant misery. That’s not true.
Paul is the one who told the Galatians that Christians can live in this life with great joy, peace, and love. No, it’s not that Paul wanted to die. It’s that he knew he was dying, that we are all dying, that everything on a fallen world dies. This life always stinks a little of decay and death.
It’s not that we can’t live with purpose, happiness, and love in this moment. It’s that we won’t be complete until we are in that one, that we will alway sense the emptiness, the groaning, the weight of death—until everything in us is consumed by the life we were meant for in eternity. Paul couldn’t wait for that moment.
Think: Do you think it’s unhealthy to be honest about wanting to be in heaven? Do you think we can ever feel completely satisfied on this side of eternity? What does the word “groaning” mean to you?
Pray: As a Christian, thank God that everything in you that is mortal will one day be swallowed up by endless life.
Do: Look up the words “mortal” and “eternal” in an online dictionary and thesaurus.