How is your night vision? If you were to hike on a moonlit night, would you head out without a flashlight? You might be willing to try if you knew the terrain and weren’t going very far – like to the campsite washroom. Even then I doubt you would walk very quickly, as your eyes would strain to pick out feet-tripping rocks and roots. A nighttime hike would be much easier with a flashlight, or better yet, with a pair of night-vision goggles. But I don’t suppose many here own a pair of night-vision goggles. We just don’t have a real need to be able to see that well in the dark. Most of us are sleeping then or are at work in well-lit buildings.
It might not be imperative that you have good night vision but it is crucial for everyone to have good faith-vision. Faith-vision? Isn’t that an oxymoron considering faith is blind? Many people may think that faith is blind but it’s not. In fact, like a pair of night-vision goggles, faith helps us see what our eyes cannot. With the Apostle Paul’s help this morning we’re going to sharpen our faith-vision so that we can see better our permanent home, and see clearly God’s judgment throne. Let’s find out why it’s important for us to see these two things.
The first important truth faith-vision helps us see is that this world is not our home. Paul put it like this: “Now we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. 2 Meanwhile we groan, longing to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling… so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life” (2 Corinthians 5:1, 2, 4b). Paul compares the life we have now – our body, our home, our situation in life – to living in a tent. Now I like tent-camping as much as the next outdoor enthusiast, but no matter how great the campsite, no matter how spacious the tent or how comfortable the air mattress, tent-camping can never deliver the restful sleep your own bed does at home. In fact I’d have to say that the best part of camping is coming home!
Isn’t it wonderful to hear Paul tell us then that this life is just temporary and that we have a better home, an eternal home we’re headed to? This heavenly home is so great because it’s built, not with human hands which all too often deliver shoddy workmanship, but by God himself. Now the purpose of this sermon is not to describe the glories of heaven. Paul doesn’t do that in our text. Instead he urges his readers to sharpen their faith-vision so that they don’t forget that this world is not their home. That’s both a warning and an encouragement.
It serves as a warning because when our faith-vision is not sharp, we treat this life as if it’s the only one we’ll have. We become more concerned about building up our bank account than building up our faith in Jesus. We browse dozens of websites to diagnose our latest ailment and to find a cure but don’t show that kind of diligence for the study of God’s Word which will strengthen our souls. We’ll spend an afternoon every week fixing things around the house and caring for the yard but don’t give a passing thought to how well our family’s spiritual life is running. But this life and all its tinselly glitter will be discarded like broken Christmas ornaments. Compared to what’s coming, living conditions here are like a stopover in an unfurnished shack! Sharpen your faith-vision so that Satan doesn’t dupe you into thinking this shack is home sweet home. There is more to come: heaven! But you won’t enjoy it if you put down the treasure of your faith to wallpaper this shack in an attempt to make it your home.
It’s also encouraging to know that this world is like living in a tent. Because it’s only temporary so are all the aches and pains you’ll have to endure. Paul said that we will continue to groan as we endure this life. We groan because our body doesn’t work the way it should. We groan because the person we married turns out to be a sinner and not the Mr. or Ms. Perfect we thought. We groan because our children disappoint us or because our parents seem to care more about their work than they do about us. A Christian may groan but should never despair. Paul said: “…we are always confident... 7 We live by faith, not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:6a, 7). Even while we suffer we have the confidence that this groaning will one day give way to grateful singing when Jesus takes away all that causes hardship. A sharp faith-vision helps us see that and motivates us to persevere.
But how can we be certain that we really have something better coming? Listen again to Paul. “Now it is God who has made us for this very purpose and has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come” (2 Corinthians 5:5). God really wants you to live with him in eternal glory. That’s why he made Adam and Eve, to and put them in the beautiful Garden of Eden to begin with. That’s why he made you. And now he gives us the Holy Spirit as a deposit guaranteeing his intentions. It’s an interesting thought, isn’t it? Normally when you stay at a five-star hotel, you have to put down a deposit to guarantee your reservation. But God not only builds this awesome future life for us he’s paid for it and now gives us the Holy Spirit as a deposit guaranteeing his commitment to keep his promise.
But how do we know whether or not we have the Holy Spirit? We can’t see him, can we? Some will tell you that you can feel his presence. Maybe. But emotions are a fickle thing. It’s much better to rely on God’s promises. God says that those who have been baptized have received the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38, 39). And if I have not continually rejected God’s Word since my baptism, I can be certain that the Holy Spirit is still with me.
Because we are going to a permanent home in heaven which God is graciously building for us, it is now our goal, explains Paul, to please this wonderful God. Paul wrote: “So we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it. 10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad” (2 Corinthians 5:9, 10).
A sharp faith-vision not only sees our permanent home in heaven, it sees the judgment throne that we must first stand before. Sounds scary doesn’t it? But it doesn’t have to be. Consider whose judgment throne it is: Christ’s! That’s exactly what Paul said and I find that choice of word interesting. He could have said that we have to stand before the “Lord’s” judgment throne. Instead he said that we will stand before the judgment throne of Christ – that is the one appointed to save us from sin! Our judge is also our Savior - the one who once stood before Pilate’s judgment throne and received a “guilty” verdict so that we would not have to.
Of course we can squander Jesus’ forgiveness now by ignoring his warnings against sin. If we do this until our dying day, Jesus will not have anything comforting to say to us when we stand before him. Someone with sharp faith-vision understands this and will live his life accordingly with the goal to please Jesus.
One way we please Jesus is by serving others. But when our faith-vision is fuzzy we tend to think that it should be everyone’s goal to serve us and we get annoyed when they don’t. Isn’t that especially true on our birthdays? My family, perhaps like yours, had the tradition that on your birthday you didn’t have to do chores. Others were supposed to pick up the slack for you…and it was kind of fun to remind them of this. But as I pondered this text (on my birthday) I realized that it should really be the other way around. What better day to recommit yourself to serving others than on your birthday? After all this is why God put us in the world: to serve others. If not on your birthday, then recommit yourself to serving others on your baptismal day. For in baptism you not only received forgiveness, you received the Holy Spirit who empowers you to serve.
Night vision goggles can help you see in the dark but is that really necessary? I suppose it is if you’re a soldier on night patrol. As soldiers of Christ you are walking through a sin-darkened world. But night-vision goggles won’t help; only faith-vision will. It allows you see to that this world is not your home. So don’t get caught up in it. And don’t despair when things get rough. It will all pass away soon enough like an early morning fog. And when the fog clears you’ll find yourself standing before Jesus. Will you cower in fear? Not if your faith-vision has been sharp. You will see Jesus as your Savior-God - the one who paid for your room in the eternal mansions of heaven. There on his hands are still the scars, the proof of payment made for your sins. Keep sharpening your faith-vision to see and believe this, and make it your goal to serve him. Amen.
