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Feeding Our Desire For Heaven
by Jeremiah Cox
“Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:12-14).
To press toward the goal of heaven our desire to be there must be ever increasing. This is our responsibility. There are tools provided us by God to stimulate the spiritual man toward this end. In the 63rd Psalm – “A Psalm of David when he was in the wilderness of Judah” – there are a few things David mentions which we can use to feed our desire for heaven.
Seek God Early. “O God, You are my God; Early will I seek You; My soul thirsts for You; My flesh longs for You in a dry and thirsty land where there is no water” (verse 1). We must seek God early in the sense of priority. He should come before anything else. We must seek Him first (cf. Matthew 6:33). We should also seek Him first every day. It is beneficial to the soul to start each day out in God’s word, and before His throne in prayer.
Worship God Often. “So I have looked for You in the sanctuary, to see Your power and Your glory. Because Your lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise You. Thus I will bless You while I live; I will lift up my hands in Your name. My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness, and my mouth shall praise You with joyful lips” (verses 2-5). God has created man to seek Him, and worship Him (cf. Acts 17:26-27). We need worship! With it our souls are satisfied as we receive spiritual sustenance. God has commanded the worship assembly for a reason. “And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching” (Hebrews 10:24-25). Those who neglect the worship assembly not only neglect the rest of the members, but themselves. We should take advantage of every opportunity to worship our God with those of like precious faith. When the doors are open we should be there, and we should be glad to enter in. “I was glad when they said to me, ‘Let us go into the house of the Lord.’” (Psalms 122:1).
Remember God Constantly and Meditate. “When I remember You on my bed, I meditate on You in the night watches. Because You have been my help, therefore in the shadow of Your wings I will rejoice. My soul follows close behind You; Your right hand upholds me” (verses 6-8). God does not want us to simply start our day by reading His word, and then place our Bibles back on the night stand leaving our spiritual thoughts there with them. We are to have our minds filled with His word throughout the day. We are to meditate on praiseworthy things. “Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy – meditate on these things” (Philippians 4:8). It is helpful to dwell on God’s ways and rejoice.
Grasp God’s Judgment. “But those who seek my life, to destroy it, shall go into the lower parts of the earth. They shall fall by the sword; They shall be a portion for jackals” (verses 9-10). David recognized that the men who sought his life (whether during his escape from Saul, or his son Absalom), would receive their just reward. They were opposed to God, and God would have His vengeance (cf. Psalms 94:1-3). “For the Lord knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the ungodly shall perish” (Psalms 1:6). We should often reflect upon the fearful thought of falling into the hands of the living God (cf. Hebrews 10:31), and “be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless” (II Peter 3:14).
Anticipate Glory. “But the king shall rejoice in God; Everyone who swears by Him shall glory; But the mouth of those who speak lies shall be stopped” (verse 11). Those who swear by God; i.e. dedicate their lives in service to Him and none other (cf. Deuteronomy 6:13-15), will have glory. God has given us the hope of heaven to motivate us toward faithfulness. The more we anticipate the glory that awaits us the greater our desire for it will grow.
“They Shall Still Bear Fruit In Old Age”
by Joe Price
“Those who are planted in the house of the Lord shall flourish in the courts of our God. They shall still bear fruit in old age; They shall be fresh and flourishing, To declare that the Lord is upright; He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him” (Psalms 92:13–15, NKJV).
Old age does not prevent bearing fruit for the Lord. When one’s life is rooted in God’s house (a Christian in His church, I Timothy 3:15), age does not prevent us from declaring the righteousness of God and the solid foundation of security we have in Him. When age is coupled with faith in the living God we do not lose heart, for “even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day” (II Corinthians 4:16-18). There is much you can do in the kingdom as an elderly Christian. You can pray earnestly and keep your hope firmly fixed on the Lord (Psalms 71:1-14). You can rejoice in God’s salvation and worship God continually (Psalms 71:8, 22-23). Like Simeon and Anna, you can speak God’s truth to others and tell the next generation of God’s strength and mercy (Psalms 71:18-20; Luke 2:25-32, 36-38). What a marvelous and encouraging influence older Christians have as they faithfully assemble for worship, wisely teach and counsel from God’s word, and live in the hope of eternity! Although our bodies are growing drier and weaker, our faith will be fresh and flourish as we trust the Lord and do His will each day. The legacy you will leave is a life of faith and heavenly treasures in the Lord (Matthew 6:19-21). (Sword Tips #1802 - September 9, 2019)