Our Heavenly Calling (7)

For we have become partakers of Christ if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast to the end… Hebrews 3.14

Ready for partaking
We have seen that the heavenly calling is a calling from heaven, for heaven, and to heaven. It comes to us from God, speaking out of His Word. It summons us to a higher life, one that mirrors the beauties and virtues of the throne room of God. And living such a life will deliver us ultimately into the eternal bliss and glory of the heavenly rest of God.

Because to partake of our heavenly calling is to partake of Jesus Christ Himself – to know and rest in Him, to experience Him growing in us and reaching out through us, to have His words and deeds determine the course of our daily lives, and to rejoice and find the greatest pleasure being in Him.

All of this, all this glorious heavenly calling, is ready for us to partake of by considering Jesus, trusting in Him, and through knowing and obeying Him, being faithful to God. The true Christian is the one who, having professed faith in Jesus, strives each day to partake of the heavenly calling, filled with hope, joy, confidence, and resolve to honor God with all our heart, mind, words, and deeds.

And if we persist in this life, thus proving that we do, indeed, belong to Jesus, the day is coming, our writer promises, when we will actually partake of Jesus in a richer and fuller way.

The apostle John looked forward to the day when we would finally see Jesus face to face. He said that on that day we would be like Jesus – like Him, but not Him. We who believe are not on our way to becoming little gods. But we are on our way to becoming like God, and to sharing in the resurrection and glorified life of Jesus Christ in the new heavens and new earth (1 Jn. 3.1-3).

A coming day
What does this mean?

It means that a day is coming when our bodies and souls will be completely delivered from the penalty, power, and presence of sin. We will be saved to the uttermost by our great High Priest, Who is even now interceding for us and preparing a place for us to be with Him forever. All our thoughts and affections – pure! All our desires and conversations – holy! All our actions toward others – just and loving! All our interactions with God’s new creation – perfect stewardship! All our worship of God – entirely in the Spirit and truth of the Lord! No longer will guilt or shame depress or drag us down. No longer will physical weaknesses or ailments keep us from enjoying life. No longer will we have to fear the trials of life, threats of danger, or the coming grave. When we see Jesus, and begin fully to partake of His life and glory, then our heavenly calling will make complete sense, and we will be very glad – eternally glad – that we diligently pursued that heavenly calling during the years of our earthly sojourn.

What about you? Do you have the sense of being endowed with a heavenly calling, caught up in it, carried along by it, eager to realize more of it? Have you heard the Word of God calling you to leave behind your unbelieving, sinful ways, and to embark on a life of righteousness, peace, and joy in the Spirit (Rom. 14.17, 18)? Have you trusted in Jesus – really trusted in Him, so that you partake of His heavenly calling, and strive to be faithful to God every day? Do you seek the face of Jesus in His Word, for the glory revealed there? Do you cast aside all grumbling, complaining, and every self-seeking, self-serving way, to show and share Jesus with others? Is it the highest joy of your life to pursue a daily walk with Jesus, and to anticipate the day when you will share in Him fully, forever?

Are you living under the heavens, or merely under the sun, professing to believe in Jesus, but looking to the things and conditions of this world to give you peace?

Serious about the heavenly calling?
Friends, the world is weary of two-bit Christians. If you call yourself a Christian but you really aren’t serious about partaking of God’s heavenly calling, then admit right now that your faith is not genuine, not yet really real, and either lay it aside and get on with your disappointing life under the sun, or seek the Lord truly and serve Him with every ounce of your being.

There is a heavenly calling, and it is really real. If you partake of it, you know it, and you want more than anything else to know more of Jesus and His heavenly calling every day.

But if you don’t, if your experience of being a Christian is confined to one or two niches in your life, and is not the consuming passion of your every waking moment, well, it can be. Consider Jesus. Cling to Jesus. Hold fast to your profession. Work out (not for) your salvation. Run, run, run the race that is set before you, fixing your eyes on Jesus. Live this life as though eternity bliss and joy determined it and depended on it. Take up the heavenly calling of Jesus today.

The question is whether you will? Well, that’s entirely up to you.

For reflection or discussion
1.  What is heaven? What does it mean to go to heaven? What’s the difference between going to heaven and the new heavens and new earth?

2.  What’s the difference between being like Jesus and being Jesus? What was Jesus like in His resurrection body?

3.  How should knowing the destination of our heavenly calling affect our daily progress in that calling?

Next steps – Preparation, Conversation: How would you present the heavenly calling to an unsaved friend? Make a little outline, practice saying it with some Christian friends, then try it out in a conversation with an unsaved neighbor or co-worker. As you do, listen for God to guide your conversation while you listen to your friend’s responses and questions.

T. M. Moore

The Christian life is one of joy in the Spirit. We are called to be bringers of joy to the world. Our booklet, Joy to Your World!,shows why Jesus is the great Good News of Christmas. It’s the perfect stocking-stuffer for friends and coworkers. Order your copies by clicking here.

A PDF of this week’s study, Our Heavenly Calling, is available by clicking here.

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Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.