There’s No Place Like Home

     "There are many rooms in my Father's house. If this were not true, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. If I go and do that, I will come back. And I will take you to be with me. Then you will also be where I am.”       John 14:2,3  NIRV

        In the circle of family, Love, companionship, and warmth is worth far more than gold.  We look forward to getting “home” after a long day- it’s a place of refuge and respite.  So also in our spiritual life, we look forward to our “heavenly home”.  Paul said we have an eternal building of God not made by hands.

Read:  2 Corinthians 5:1-9         ref:  2 Cor. 4:1-18

I. v2-4  A Temporary Dwelling

*  a tent being a weak temporary dwelling is:

a)  Insecure- made of canvas type material; not a very good fortress

*  not good at keeping a wild animal out (or rain)

*  it could collapse / be blown away- life in a tent is uncertain at best

b)  The quality of rest is uncomfortable

*  in a tent it is hot and humid- bugs and mosquitoes are biting

*  the ground gets harder and harder as the night goes on

*  so too in life, there are many things which make us uncomfortable

v.1  when our earthly tent is “taken down”  we need not fear!

II. v5-9  A Confident Hope In our Eternal Dwelling

            Philippians 1:20-25  a believers body goes into the grave, but our spirit goes on to be with the Lord Jesus Christ forever

            1 Corinthians 15:45-55  our weak corruptible bodies change

*  this tent / body is just the outer casing while here on earth

v.5  the Holy Spirit is the “earnest” /  down payment of our eternal home

v.6  believers are either in heaven or on earth- not somewhere else

*  while we are in this present body/ tent, we are absent from the Lord

v.8  after the departure from this body we are then in the immediate presence  of the Lord forever in our eternal home

*  in v.2 Paul said, we groan, longing to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling

*  it’s been God’s purpose from the beginning to clothe us with a heavenly body that will not groan or fade away and die

*  God made a “deposit” on our eternal dwelling through Jesus Christ

*  Jesus has already paid the way for our dwelling while on the cross

v.1  therefore, we eagerly anticipate eternal life made by God in heaven