For we know that if our earthly dwelling, a tent, should be destroyed, we have a building from God, a dwelling not made with hands, eternal in heaven. 2 For in this tent we groan, longing to be further clothed with our heavenly habitation 3 if indeed, when we have taken it off, we shall not be found naked. 4 For while we are in this tent we groan and are weighed down, because we do not wish to be unclothed but to be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. 5 Now the one who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a first installment. 6 So we are always courageous, although we know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, 7 for we walk by faith, not by sight. 8 Yet we are courageous, and we would rather leave the body and go home to the Lord. 9 Therefore, we aspire to please him, whether we are at home or away. 10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive recompense, according to what he did in the body, whether good or evil.
In 2 Cor. 5:1-10 Paul discusses the transient nature of human mortality, resurrection, and the hope Christians have in eternal life with God. He refers to our temporal and fragile human body as “our earthly dwelling, a tent,” but speaks of the eternal, heavenly body that believers will receive in the resurrection as a “building from God.” It is the hope of a resurrection body that sustains Christians as they bear their crosses during their earthly life. Christians yearn, with a hope that transcends death, that at the resurrection their bodies will be transformed into a glorified state. They fear being left naked during the interim state between physical death and resurrection.
God has given believers the Holy Spirit as a first installment to prepare them for the glorified state, so believers can be courageous because God will fulfill his promise. To be physically alive means to be apart from the full presence of the Lord. Believers are to live by faith, by the belief that God's promises will be fulfilled even though in their present earthly state they cannot see the fulfillment of His promises. Paul states that believers prefer death over life because it means being with the Lord, but whether they are alive or dead their Goal is to please God. It is the hope of the resurrection to a glorified state that influences the way believers live. Christians will face judgment and be held accountable for their earthly deeds.
Heavenly Father, Grant us the courage to endure our earthly trials with the sure and certain hope that you have prepared for us an eternal dwelling in heaven. Let your Holy Spirit guide us so that we might live by faith and not by sight and please you in all we do. This we pray through Christ our Lord. Amen!
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Sources:
- Brown, Raymond Edward, et al. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Prentice Hall, 1990.
- Chiu, José Enrique Aguilar, et al. The Paulist Biblical Commentary. Paulist Press, 2018.
- Faculty of the University of Navarre. The Navarre Bible: New Testament Expanded Edition. Four Courts / Scepter, 2008.
- Orchard, Bernard, et al. A Catholic Commentary on Holy Scripture. Feb. 1953.
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