Grip of the Groan

by Victoria Gaines
Published March 13, 2007

"For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." ~ Matthew 6:21

"...but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is." 1 John 3:2

Let's face it. We all groan--but for what? After finishing the last chapter of Ten Questions to Diagnose Your Spiritual Health, thoughts of heaven swell my heart with joy. Donald Whitney says that growing Christians are groaning Christians. Paul clearly expressed this when he said, "For in this tent we groan, longing to put on our heavenly dwelling" (2 Corinthians 5:2, ESV).

Ah, yes, and we all want new bodies! But that's just one aspect of our heavenly hope. Paul's focus was this: "We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, for we walk by faith, not by sight. Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord" (2 Corinthians 5: 6-8). For this reason we don't grieve like the rest of the world when a believer dies. My husband's mother, now worshiping God face to face, is pain-free, yes, but she sees Jesus!

And so I'm moved when Whitney shares from the Life and Diary of David Brainerd (1718-1747) who died from tuberculosis at age 29, a missionary to the American Indians:

"Spent much time in prayer this morning, and enjoyed much sweetness. Felt insatiable longings after God much of the day. I wondered how poor souls do to live that have no God. The world with all its enjoyments quite vanished. I see myself very helpless, but have a blessed God to go to. I longed exceedingly to be dissolved and to be with Christ, to behold His glory. Oh, my weak, weary soul longs to arrive at my Father's house!"

I think of departed loved ones, now living in heaven. Naturally, I hope to escape this life of sorrows eventually and see them. But wanting relief from suffering, and desiring to be reunited with loved ones is about as common among nonChristians as Christians, Donald Whitney says. "Realistically, it's not a mark of faith at all, but of nothing more than natural affection."

Think about it. "Even the eagerness to be with Jesus is not necessarily a confirmation of knowing Christ, much less growth in His likeness. Some people want to see Jesus in the same way they would like to see the Virgin Mary or King David. Natural curiosity, or simply the desire to see someone so well known, may be the only motivation," Donald Whitney tells us.

Our spiritual check-point question: Do we yearn for Heaven and Jesus? Hopefully, we yearn for more than relief from our troubles. "Growing Christians increasingly long for a holy Heaven, not just a restful one," Whitney reminds us. As we become more and more uncomfortable in this sin-ridden world, we ache for a more holy heart, a holy place, and our Holy God.

Jonathan Edwards expressed it this way: "But neither a. . . longing to be in Heaven, nor longing to die, are in any measure so distinguishing marks of true saints, as longing after a more holy heart."

David Brainerd: "I longed to be perfectly holy, that I might not grieve a gracious God..."

Martyn Lloyd-Jones: "The person who looks forward to death simply wants to get out of life because of his troubles. That is not Christian; that is pagan. . . to stand in the very presence of God----'to gaze and gaze on thee.' Do we long for that? Is that Heaven to us? Is that the thing we want above everything else?"

Jonathan Edwards: "The enjoyment of God is the only happiness with which our souls can be satisfied. To go to Heaven, fully to enjoy God, is infinitely better than the most pleasant accomodations here. Fathers and mothers, husbands, wives, or children, or the company of earthly friends, are but shadows; but God is the substance. These are but scattered beams, but God is the sun. These are but streams, but God is the ocean."

Joni Eareckson Tada: "Most people will continue to think that getting a new body is my focus. But I can't wait to be clothed in righteousness, with not a trace of sin. . . For me, that will be the best part of Heaven."

What could be more valuable or powerful than thinking about our redemption, Heaven, and the Lord Jesus Christ? Set your mind on things above:

"If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth" (Colossians 3: 1-2).

"Beloved, we are God's children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when He appears we shall be like Him, because we shall see Him as he is. And everyone who thus hopes in Him purifies himself as He is pure" (1 John 3:2-3).

J.I. Packer wrote: "The hope of a holy Heaven, to be enjoyed in the company with our holy Savior, is a potent motive to holiness now."

Has this hope affected the way you live your life?

Are you in the grip of the groan?

Resources:
Center for Biblical Spirituality
Sample chapters from Whitney's books
About Donald Whitney

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