A Day in the Life

A Day in the Life

As we wait for our Lord to return, we live a day at a time. We seek to reach the lost and strengthen the saints. We pray and worship. Some call living a day at a time “the daily grind” and there are pressures within and without that can potentially cloud our vision of an eternal perspective. The following thoughts are intended to provide some practical help in living in the moment. We are in a high-pressure generation; having an understanding of what’s happening to us, as well as around us, can help immensely when life threatens to undo us. The enemy seeks to wear us down; the Lord desires to build us up. In order to keep His perspective fresh in our minds we must have clarity on His ways with us.

In Matthew 6:25-33 Jesus tells us that we need never worry about food or clothing. In Psalm 37:25 David adds, “I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread.” Yet, in 1 Corinthians 4:11 Paul writes, “Up to this present hour we are both hungry and thirsty and are poorly clothed, and are roughly treated and are homeless.” And in 2 Corinthians 6:4-6 he adds, “. . . in afflictions, hardships, distresses, in beatings, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labors, in sleeplessness, in hunger…” Jesus does not appear to be fulfilling His promises; at least not for Paul.

In John 14:27 Jesus said, “My peace I give to you, not as the world gives”. What’s different from the peace He gives and the peace the world gives? The world’s peace is based on circumstances. If things are going well, we have peace. If life is falling apart, our peace is gone. It would appear on the surface that Jesus is doing a poor job of taking care of Paul, so apparently Paul’s peace is not based on being cared for. As a matter of fact, listen to what Paul says in Acts 20:22-23, “I am on my way to Jerusalem not knowing what will happen to me, except that the Holy Spirit has shown me that in every city, bonds and afflictions await me.”

Not only does the Lord not take care of Paul, but instead, He promised Paul that the only thing he had to look forward to was suffering. How could Paul have peace knowing that? How much peace could you and I have knowing that even with God’s faith-giants like Paul, this is the way God might “take care” of us? Paul had no clue what was coming in life except the promise of “afflictions in every city”. He didn’t know anything about his future on earth except this. Yet consider what he wrote in Philippians 4:6-7, “Don’t worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be known to God. And the peace of God which surpasses all comprehension will guard your hearts. . “

Yes, that does surpass all comprehension. Paul knew first hand that we can send our supplications to God and still face a life of hunger, homelessness, sleeplessness, loneliness and affliction. But in spite of complete uncertainty about the future, Paul has a difficult time finding words to express how incredible the peace of God is in him.

That makes no sense. Is it a contradiction?

Jesus has promised us protection and provision, and then He has shown us that the life of His greatest apostle was characterized primarily by persecution and deprivation. And we’re supposed to figure out how both can be true at the same time?

In Philippians 4:12 Paul says, “I have learned the secret . . .” What secret? “The secret of being filled and being hungry . . . of having plenty and suffering need.” There’s a secret in this!? He says he learned the secret of peace in all circumstances. This is not the peace the world gives – this is unique.

Consider Abraham in this context:

"By faith, Abraham, when he was called, obeyed by going out to a place which he was to receive for an inheritance; and he went, not knowing where he was going. By faith he lived as an alien in the land of promise . . for he was looking for the city which has foundations, whose architect and builder is God.” (Hebrews 11:8-11)

Abraham’s confidence or inner assurance did not come from anything he saw here on earth. Hebrews 11:1 says, “Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” If it’s “not seen”, what good is it?

Again, in Hebrews 11:10, “. . . he was looking for a city whose architect and builder is God.” What Abraham did see is a different city; an invisible city. Hebrews 12:2 says we are to “(fix) our eyes on Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy set before Him, endured the cross. . .and is now sat down on the throne of God”. Perfect faith, perfect peace, even extreme joy, in the midst of the worst suffering possible. How? He saw the throne. He saw another city, another reality. Not of this world. No city here for Abraham – no throne here for Christ.

Just faith.

Abraham saw, but never entered the city until after he left earth. Jesus saw, but didn’t attain the throne until after the cross.

Now, just to spice things up, let’s look at another confusing verse. “No one has ascended into heaven except He that came down from heaven, even the Son of man who is in heaven.” (John 3:13). Jesus was on earth and in heaven at the same time? What’s He telling us? He’s saying that we don’t just live here. This isn’t our world. Remember, Jesus told us in John 15:19 that we are “not of this world”. And in Ephesians 2:6 Paul wrote, “God has raised us up with Christ and seated us with Him in heaven.” Has He? Is that where we are? In Colossians 3:1-4 Paul wrote,

"If you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth. For you have died and your true life is hidden with Christ in God."

Where do we live? Earth or heaven? Physically, we’re on earth; but what about spiritually? There’s another explanation of how this works found in 2 Corinthians 4:16-5:5,

"We do not lose heart (i.e. we have peace), even though our outer man is decaying, our inner man is being renewed day by day. For this temporary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison. While we look not at the things which are seen but at the things which are not seen; the things which are seen are temporal, the things which are not seen are eternal. For we know that if the earthly tent which is our house is torn down, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands eternal in the heavens (remember what Abraham was looking for?). For indeed in this house we grown, longing to be clothed with our dwelling from heaven. . . for while we are in this tent, we groan, being burdened . . . that which is mortal will be swallowed up by life. Now He who prepared us for this very purpose is God."

Many Christians think our primary purpose is here. We do have work to do here, but God’s purpose for us reaches far beyond this planet and this life. Where was Paul’s focus? On that which is decaying and burdensome, or on that which can’t decay?

I suppose another question that might surface is simply: Why does it have to be this way? Why the emphasis in Scripture on faith in the unseen over, for example, victory in conquering the ‘seen’? You know, like, ‘Come to Jesus and solve your problems’. It might happen and it’s great when it does, but God’s ultimate purpose isn’t fulfilled here.

Time to unveil the secret.

For the past 2000 years God’s Spirit has been calling out a people from among all the nations to be the bride of Christ, to co-rule with Him in the age to come. Romans 8:18-24 says,

"I consider the sufferings of the present time not worthy of comparison to the glory that is to be revealed in us. For the longing of creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God. . . for in hope we have been saved, but hope that is seen is not hope, for who hopes for what he already sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we wait eagerly for it."

And what is that hope? Revelation 20:6, “Blessed and holy is the one who has a part in the first resurrection (the church); over these the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with Him for a thousand years.” That is what God is preparing us for. We are pre-occupied with our successes and failures here, but God is looking beyond this life to the next. Everything we are going through here is to prepare us to share the throne of Christ. And how are kings and princes made? By intense training. Here, then, is Paul’s “secret” – it’s shown perfectly in what happened to our Lord as described in Philippians 2:5-11,

"Have this attitude in yourselves that was also in Christ Jesus. Although He existed in the form of God, He did not regard equality with God something to hold onto. But instead He emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant and being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. Therefore, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the Name with is above every name."

Jesus trained for the throne through suffering and servanthood. The greater the testing in this life, the greater the exaltation in the world to come. To rule under God’s authority, one must become a servant that God can trust with His will. That’s why Jesus said He came to do the will of the Father and only His will. Now, Jesus is on the throne of the universe.

No one suffered more and still remained obedient; and now no one has greater authority or a higher Name in eternity than Him.

The circumstances of your life on this side of eternity are all planned specifically to prepare you as a co-ruler with Christ during His millennial reign. If in your daily activities and ministries you rarely think of the next life, you aren’t living in Paul’s understanding of Christianity.

You can tell by the way many pastors teach, by the topics they choose, and the programs they plan, that this life is paramount. Things seen are much more important to them than things not seen. With Paul it was exactly the opposite.

If your focus is here, nothing makes sense. Why the constant pressure? Why the unfulfilled promises and unanswered prayers? But if you see with the eyes of faith and understanding, as Abraham and Paul and Jesus did, everything makes sense. And the result? A peace that this world can’t give. One that comes only from seeing through and past this age and this life to that which is eternal. The intent is to see ourselves every day, in Christ, in training to share His throne. No matter where you live or what your circumstances, this is exactly what God is doing in your life.

It helps immensely to know what is happening and fortunately God has graciously explained it to us in His word. Those who know God and who know what He is doing, and why He’s doing it, can find inner rest in circumstances that terrify and confuse most Christians. We are ‘sons of the light’ and do not need to walk in darkness. Knowing the truth can set us free from the inner restlessness this world is filled with. We can have rest in the midst of adversity in this life and glory in the age to come.