Thursday, September 4, 2008
Philippians 3:20-21 For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself.
THE CHRISTIAN COURSE: THE FINAL, DESIRED DESTINATION
A person like me could be in a boat in the middle of the ocean and feel afraid and lost, never to see land again, but another who has been trained in the ways of ancient Polynesian navigation, for example, could face the same set of circumstances and feel confident that he will reach his final desired destination even in the face of a daunting sea -- even if it might be some days before he actually sees this destination with his own two eyes.
The same thing applies to this life. There are many in this world who hope to see some kind of "heaven" when their earthly course is run, but speak of this hope with a tone of uncertainty, not truly knowing the way. The words of Holy Scripture clearly show the way to heaven for sinners. It is through faith in Jesus Christ alone. As Jesus Himself has told us, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me."
Without being trained with the knowledge and the answers found in the Word of God, we will be lost in this life and we will not find the way to our desired destination. But as Christians we are like the one who has been taught how to navigate the sea, and even though we may not see our final heavenly destination with our eyes for some time, we can be confident that we have been set on the proper course and it's only a matter of time until we reach that glorious shore.
