Friday: The Return: We will be heirs to the PURPOSE forever

The events of Holy Week that we have been reflecting on together leave many of us simply amazed. What Jesus did, and fought through in obedience to his Father and to our benefit is a perfect picture of love. Through his life, death, and unfathomable resurrection, Jesus fulfilled the purpose that He was called to.  While the purpose has been fulfilled, the truth is that the impact of this week in history hasn’t faded, and will not fade for the rest of eternity.

As each of us encounter the Gospel message, the hope brought to the world through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, we are immediately affected by the change that this brings to our hearts. As we each have the opportunity to confess our sinfulness and declare our need for Jesus as Savior, the indwelling Holy Spirit begins changing us.  God literally begins the transformation process in our hearts!  The Scriptures remind us, though, that this moment of change in us, brought about by what Jesus did in this moment in human history, is not the end of the story.  Jesus’ promise that He is coming again is purposeful. He’s coming for his people, his church.

 

In Romans 8:17 Paul says

“Now if we are children, then we are heirs- heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.”

  Our newfound freedom in Christ is not limited to earth. We have an eternal inheritance waiting for us, all the benefits of being a child of the King!  But what are we to do with this call to share with Christ in his sufferings?  If you’re like me you might be puzzled by this call to suffer. I like how John Piper addressed this issue: “As you face the pleasures and the pain of the remainder of your life, what are you hoping in, beyond this life, that will make these pleasures seem incredibly small and these pains seem manageable?” As a matter of fact, in the very next verse Paul says “I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.” (Rom. 8:18)  In Luke 9:23, Jesus says that anyone who wants to follow him “must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.” Suffering is a temporary part of following Jesus, but as Piper states, we are placing our hope and trust in God who is at work in us enabling us to see past temporary suffering to the hope of eternity, secured for us by our living Savior.

  

The remainder of your life is temporary. It has an expiration date. But the purpose for which Jesus came was not limited to our earthly lives. If you are a child of the King you are an heir, and eternity with Him awaits. I thank Jesus that He saw past temporary suffering and was obedient to the Will of the  Father, changing my eternity.

 

Pastor Ryan Drew