“Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.” (Prov. 13:12)
It’s Easter Monday, the day after Resurrection Sunday! Here we are at the beginning of another lockdown. It’s been over a year now of the same thing; the same bad news report, day after day. People have had enough! Tensions are rising and defiance is at an all time high, especially with the arrival of Spring. Crocuses have broken through the once frozen ground, and daffodils display their glory to passersby. Life has emerged; beauty and joy abound! What a great time of year! For a year the world has been in angst, awaiting some form of hope, good news. The vaccine for this virus has seemed to bring that. A momentary solution to the current problem. What about the next problem? The next plague? The next war? The next disaster? Is that what life on planet Earth is…hoping for a solution to every problem that arises. Surely there must be more to life than living between the problems and the hope of solutions?
That’s what Easter is about! Resurrection Life! Hope of a glorious future where there is no more pain, nor sorrow, nor wars, nor pandemics, nor death. It is not a hope, where we “hope” something good will happen, it is an assurance, a certainty that it will happen! Why can we be so sure? Because the grave is EMPTY! The stone is rolled away! He is Risen! We will be too! The blessed hope we wait for is the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ (Titus 2:13). He will once for all, free us from the trials of this world, and take us to be with Him, to that glorious Kingdom, where He has been preparing a place for us (John 14:1-4). Death is no longer an issue, because in Christ we have eternal life…we live forever! “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?”
Until that great day, we are homesick. Why? Because this is not our home. We are just passing through (1Peter 2:11), waiting for that heavenly city that is to come (Heb. 13:14). “Deferred” means dragging on, delayed, drawn out – it’s coming; it’s just taking a long time to get here! This delay causes us to desire it even more. There is a longing in our heart for release from this world and its problems. Like the captured Israelites, taken captive to a foreign land, longing to go back to Zion, to the house of the Lord in Jerusalem (Psalm 137:1-6). Oh! How sweet to the soul (Prov. 13:19) will be that day we are reunited with our Lord in that heavenly Jerusalem!
So here we find ourselves, in that state of deferred hope. How ought we to wait for that day of deliverance to come?
- Use your tongue wisely. There is a blessing for the one who does (vs. 2, 3)
- Work hard and you will prosper (vs. 4)
- Be godly. It brings a life full of light and joy and blessings (vs. 9, 21, 25)
- Be wise. Get instruction and advice – it’s like a life-giving fountain (vs.13-16, 18, 20)
If Heaven is our future home, why can’t we live like we are already there? If our hope is the return of Jesus, why can’t we live like we are already in His presence? Is that not the role of the Church – to live beyond the temporal, material world; and live in the hope of the world to come (Read 1John). Let’s be a homesick people, longing to get back home to our Father. But let’s live like we are already in the Father’s house – righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit!
This song sums it up: (2) The Cathedrals – Come On Home – YouTube
Have a great week!
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