For in this tent we groan, longing to put on our heavenly dwelling, if indeed by putting it on we may not be found naked. For while we are still in this tent, we groan, being burdened—not that we would be unclothed, but that we would be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life.
As believers in the Lord Jesus, what awaits us at the end of this life? Paul does not answer here all the questions we might have about what comes after the death of our physical bodies. But he does assure us that what awaits is better than what we have now.
Paul refers to my current physical body as a tent, a temporary dwelling. In contrast, I have a heavenly dwelling, a permanent house, that I will one day inhabit. Essentially, the body I am clothed with is going to be receiving a massive upgrade (1 Cor. 15:35-49).
Paul also says that while we are dwelling in our tent, we groan. We might see our groaning as related to the physical issues that our bodies face, especially as we grow older. Or because of the suffering we go through as believers in a world that is alienated from God. And while those are true, what Paul is referring to here is more of a longing to move into our heavenly dwelling. It is an intense desire for something we wait for with great anticipation. Like a child groaning for Christmas to come.
What Paul describes here is our great hope as believers. That our mortality (the tent we live in now) will be swallowed up by life (the eternal house God has prepared for us). Death, for us as believers, should not be something to fear. Instead, we can look forward with confidence to the transformation and life that awaits us on the other side.
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The post When Mortality is Swallowed Up by Life – 2 Corinthians 5:2-4 appeared first on A Clay Jar.
