I'm Not Home Yet (Hunger for Heaven - Part 2/4)

For those just starting to read this blog, this post is the second in a series I've titled "Hunger for Heaven". Click here to read the intro to this series, and click here to read the first post. Last time, we looked at what our longing for God should look like. This time we'll look at the more practical how we can cultivate this longing.

Ok, let's get to it!

There are likely many things we can do to cultivate our longing for God, but there are two main points from my study that I would like to examine here. First, we have to have a change of mindset, and secondly, we have to shift our diet. Yup, you read that right!

Hebrews 11:13-36 gives us a great example of the mindset change we need to have:

"All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on the earth. People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. Instead, they were longing for a better country - a heavenly one. Therefore, God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them." (NIV 1984)

In context, "these people" that the writer speaks of were Abel, Enoch, Noah, and Abraham - people of faith in the Old Testament. Unlike us, they had not seen the promise of the coming Messiah fulfilled, yet they held firmly to it. They were not trapped in the presence of their present state - their minds were, "Set...on things above, not on earthly things." (Colossians 3:2)

Here are some questions that will help us determine where our minds (and hearts) are:

• Do I see and welcome the promises of God for the future, or do I shy away from them?

• Do I really admit and believe that I am a stranger on this earth? How much do I try to fit in here on earth?

• Am I impatient about the future and/or frustrated when my desires aren't immediately fulfilled when coming to Christ?

• Do I really believe that the heavenly country is a better one? Really? 

If we think too much about this world, our desires, and get so comfortable here that the idea of leaving to be with God is, well, kind of boring, then we will not be able to have this mindset of faith. Remember Lot's wife, who was turned into a pillar of salt when looking back at the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah? Yeah. Let's not be like her! Instead, let's take courage from these heroes of the faith in Hebrews 11, who died without seeing the fruit of their faith, yet continued to believe.

Now, on to dieting. ;)

Just like our physical bodies need good, nutritious food to stay healthy, strong, and energized, our spiritual body needs good spiritual food to keep us going (and it needs to be exercised and trained - see 1 Tim 4:7-8). Jesus said, in Matthew 4:4 - "It is written: 'Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.'" The verse Jesus quoted was Deuteronomy 8:3, that says God fed the Israelites manna to teach them this truth. The bread He gave them was like nothing else they'd ever eaten, just like the Word He's given us is like no other! The chapter of the Bible where this fact is praised the most is Psalm 119.

A bit of background on this Psalm - its writer is anonymous, though some suggest the author is Ezra the priest after the temple was rebuilt. Its theme is obvious, however - that God's Word is true and wonderful, that we should stay true to God and his Word no matter how bad the world becomes, and that obedience to God's laws is the only way to achieve real happiness. It is also the longest Psalm (and chapter) in the Bible, with 176 verses! I've had the opportunity to read it several times over the last couple months, and realize now how much of a gold mine I was missing by avoiding it! 

Here's just a sampling of what this Psalm has to offer:

vs. 20 - "My soul is consumed with longing for your laws at all times."
vs. 81 - "My soul faints with longing for your salvation, but I have put my hope in your word."
vs. 97 - "Oh, how I love your law! I meditate on it all day long."
vs. 131 - "I open my mouth and pant, longing for your commands."
vs. 174 - "I long for your salvation, O Lord, and your law is my delight."

While these verses sound beautiful, and we realize we should probably have the same mindset, something sounds a little weird to this 21st century American - why is this guy delighting in rules? Notice Ezra (or whoever the author is) doesn't just say, "I obey all your laws" but "I love your laws". They were his delight and treasure! (vs. 14, 16, 24, 40, 47, 70, 77, 92, 97, 111, 113, 119, 127, 140, 143, 159, 167, 174)

I had to ponder this for a while. Was this just a cultural thing? Did the Israelites actually like obeying God more because it was the thing to do? But taking a peek at the rusty-trusty notes in my Bible, I realized that it's not because the cultures were different (we all have a tendency to want to do our own thing), but that God's laws are different than all others! The writer of Psalm 119 knew this.

God's law frees us from things that will cripple us and keep us from being our best, as well as keeping us from the path of destruction. Several verses speak to this:

Psalm 119:32 - "I run in the path of your commands, for you have set my heart free."
Psalm 119:45 - "I will walk about in freedom, for I have sought out your precepts."
John 8:32 - "Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."
James 2:12a - "Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom..."
And many more!

Also, in context, when Ezra speaks of God's law in Psalm 119, he uses several different words that mean several different things. The Greek word for "Law" is used 25 times, "Word" 24 times, "Laws" 23 times, "Statutes" 23 times, "Commands" 22 times, "Decrees" 21 times, "Precepts" 21 times, and "Word" or "Promise" 19 times. I won't go into all that I learned on these words, but their meanings cover everything from case laws that formed the Israelite legal system, to the Torah, to anything God has spoken, commanded, or promised.

To wrap up this section, let's go back and look at living on "every word that comes from the mouth of God". We need to have regular, fruitful time spent in the Word of God, not just to be "a good Christian", but to help us grow! Strength, wisdom, and freedom come from reading and doing - "Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says." (James 1:22)

In summary - to nurture a spirit of longing for God and our eternal home, we need to have the mindset of being strangers on this earth and have a regular time a "feasting" in the Word. Most importantly, however - we need to ask God for a heart of longing! We can prepare the fields of our heart for planting, but God is the only one who can make the crop grow!

(Click here to read part 3/4)

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All I know is I'm not home yet...



In Christ,
Ellie