Jump Start # 1120

2 Peter 3:12 “Looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning, and the elements will melt with intense heat.”

 Peter is describing in our verse today a type of divine Anticipation. We are waiting on God. There is a lot of anticipation going on in the Shouse house this week. Our daughter is due with her first baby. We are excited. Another grandchild. She has chosen not to know the sex of the baby, so that makes the anticipation even greater. There are many moments in life that are filled with anticipation. Kids get excited when school is over for the year. There is a count down to how many days are left. The holiday season brings much anticipation as families gather and presents are exchanged. Weddings, and in our case, the birth of a baby are great moments of anticipation in our lives.

Paul also talked about a divine anticipation. He told the Corinthians, “For indeed, in this house we groan, longing to be clothed with our dwelling from Heaven” (2 Cor 5:2). Longing, looking for, hastening, anticipation, wanting—there is an inner desire found within our souls that wants to be with God. This world isn’t it. There is much disappointment in this world. This world is cursed and we suffer because of that. We feel pain, sorry and the crushing affects of sin. We know of divorce. We know of indifference. We know of rebellion. We know all too well and all too much about sin. We may know more about what’s wrong than we do with what’s right.

For the righteous, these things weigh upon us. They can get us down. We know because of Scripture, that a world exists that is separated from the broken and the wrong. This is why the N.T., written almost from the perspective of an ancient mariner, speaks of looking for that distant land. We are reminded that our citizenship is not here. We are sojourners and pilgrims. This world, as we sing, is not our home. As the book of Revelation ends, “Come, Lord Jesus.”

This divine anticipation does a few things for us:

First, it motivates us and keeps us going. More bad news. More disappointments. More people doing wrong. This weighs upon us. We can feel like throwing in the towel ourselves. We sense that Satan has the upper hand. But this divine anticipation, this longing for Christ, puts us back on course and keeps us going. Someday, we are out of here. Someday, none of this will bother us. Someday we will be with the Lord and that will never change. That thought, that hope, makes us strive harder. It pushes us to tell others. It drives us to continue the journey. There is no glory for those who quit. God is counting upon us and that divine anticipation keeps us where we need to be.

Second, it keeps us from being bogged down with things that do not matter. Greed, worry, arguments that are superficial and shallow don’t distract us like they do other people. We are looking for something. This is not it. There is something better than this. There is something God has planned for us and we don’t want to miss that. It is amazing some of the current TV shows on today. Can things get any lower in the gutter? Violent, argumentative, immoral, offensive—and this is driving primetime. It’s dumb. It’s not helpful to our character. They won’t last long. We have better things to think about and be engaged in. We can become so earth bound that we forget that we are heading somewhere else. When a man interrupted Jesus and demanded that Jesus settle a family dispute about inheritances, Jesus refused. He told the man to quit being greedy. The man probably went home disappointed in Jesus. Many do today. They want the church, they want God, to dive into the trivial and superficial matters that have no impact upon our souls. Jesus wouldn’t do it. He had a mission and He stuck to that. We need to be the same. There is a wonderful, wonderful place that we are headed to, and we cannot take our eyes off of that.

Third, this divine anticipation helps us to keep our priorities in line and to remain spiritual. After Sunday, it’s easy to turn off the spiritual radar. Back to work. Back to the business of life. We forget about the spiritual until we are in the church house again. So sad. Shouldn’t be that way. Daily praying. Daily Bible study. Daily longing helps us remain spiritual. Being spiritual helps us to think about choices and consequences. Our attitudes and our words become what they should when we walk by faith. Worry is lessened when we are spiritual. What’s the worse thing that can happen to us? Jesus said do not fear the one who can kill the body and do no more. Death is not the end. The story doesn’t end at the cemetery. Because of the grace of God we live on. Death is simply a door to the next room and what a room it is. It is where God is. It’s a room that only the righteous in Christ are allowed in. Satan won’t be there. Death, sorry, tears, heartache, bad news, disappointments, frustrations—all those things are kept outside. Most of us keep our garage cans out of our living room. It may be in the garage or it may sit outside. When our waste baskets get full of trash, out it goes. Out into the trash can. The trash is kept outside, away from us. Isn’t Heaven going to be the same. The trash that smells, is ugly and is not wanted, is not allowed in where God is. This longing for Christ allows us to face terrible things with our chins up. It doesn’t matter what the doctor finds, this is all temporary. Soon, very soon, we will be with Christ. There is a joy, a hope and a divine anticipation in all of that.

Fourth, this divine longing, makes us pick the pace up. It’s easy to let temptation side track us. It’s easy to take our eyes off of Jesus. It’s easy to succumb to things we know that are wrong. Sometimes we don’t resist as hard as we ought to. Sometimes we let Satan push us. Sometimes we flirt with wrong. Keeping this divine anticipation before us will help us to remain focused, serious and sober about the things of God. We can’t miss Heaven. We get only one shot, this life. We must get serious about things. We must stop laughing at wrong. We must stop flirting with wrong. We must not wink at wrong. It’s time to stand up, stand up for Jesus. No longer taking God’s name in vain. No longer playing church. No longer sitting on the sidelines of faith. Involved. Growing. Active. Getting after things. Why? Something is coming. We long for it. We want it.

Imagine a morning when you wake up and you have never felt so well in all your life. You feel good inside and outside. You open your eyes and you realize that you are not in your bed and you are not in your house. You are not afraid. You see that you are in Heaven. You see the heavenly host. You recognize the faithful of God from long ago. You see people, righteous people, many that you remember from your life. Gone are the thoughts about bills, worries about leaky roofs, aging cars, sore knees, and lawns that need to be mowed. You’re in Heaven. You made it. You are with Christ. Things are so beautiful. Things are so nice. It is better than you ever dreamed. You don’t want to be anywhere else. For the first time you have no burdens, cares, worries or fears. You have never experienced this before. You are in Heaven. You are here to stay. It seems as if you were made just to be here. You have never felt as loved and wanted as you now do. This is so great. It is so amazing. It’s not a dream. It’s something that you have looked forward to for a long, long time. And now, you are here.

Divine anticipation. How much do you want that to be a reality for you? Would you change something in your life if it meant it could be a reality? Would you apologize and drop the ill feelings toward someone if it meant it could be yours? Would you step up your faith if it meant it could be yours? What price would you pay? What commitment would you make? What would you be willing to give up, do, become if Heaven could be yours?

Many talk a sweet game, but when it comes down to it, they are not very serious. How about you?

We are one day closer to Heaven. Live as if one foot is already in Heaven.

Roger