Living in Light of the Hope (Part 3)

Paul Tripp's latest book, Forever: Why You Can't Live Without It explores how believers are meant to live out  their earthly lives in view of eternity. In his sermon on the mount, Jesus stressed the importance of having 20/20 spiritual vision (Mt.6:22-23). Tripp writes, "The unshakable promise of the future grace of eternity does more than give you hope for the future. Embedded in the promise of a future is the guarantee of grace for what you're facing right here, right now. You see, the God of eternity enters your story in the here and now, or he couldn't guarantee your future. And that makes all the difference in the world."

Part 1 looked at the first benefit of living life in view of eternity: The resurrection of Jesus and the hope of forever tell us what is really important in life.

Part 2 covered a second benefit: The resurrection of Jesus and the hope of eternity have the power to radically change the way you approach the responsibilities, difficulties, and opportunities of your daily life. The third benefit is presented below.

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The resurrection of Jesus and the hope of eternity teach you delayed gratification.

Western culture is not a waiting culture. We sigh when we get to Starbucks in the morning and there's a bit of a line. ...We hate even the thought of being stuck in traffic. We are an instant culture. But the hope of forever calls us to a different worldview.

In God's plan, waiting is not an interruption or obstruction of the plan; waiting is part of the plan. As we are waiting for the forever that is the promise of God's grace, we are not just marking time. From an eternal perspective, waiting is about becoming. When Adam and Eve disobeyed, God immediately put in place a process that would result in redemption and restoration. God is progressively transforming us into what he created us to be, and he is preparing us for the eternity that is to follow. By his grace, every moment of waiting is, in his hands, an efficient tool for personal restoration and preparation.

Isaiah 61:3 beautifully captures this process: "They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD, for the display of his splendor." ...[His plan is] that you and I would be as strong and as durable through the seasons and storms of life as the mighty oak tree is. The things that the oak endures season after season are the things that contribute to its grandeur and strength. Oak trees don't sprout up and mature overnight. It takes scores of years to bring a mighty oak to maturity, but when it is mature, it lives with a strength and splendor that few plants in God's creation have.

Notice that the prophet Isaiah didn't write that God was working to make us toadstools of righteousness. A toadstool sprouts up overnight, but you can uproot it with a flick of your fingers.  God is calling us to live through seasons of ... process so that we will be people of enduring strength and character whose lives point to God's glory and who are ready for the forever that he has promised to his children.