Pleasing God Podcast
Pleasing God Podcast
Strangers on Earth: How an Eternal Perspective Transforms Daily Living
What would change in your life if you truly lived for eternity? Most of us get caught up in the immediate concerns of daily existence—work deadlines, family worries, health issues, and material possessions. These horizontal aspects of life quickly consume our attention while the vertical dimension—our relationship with God and eternal realities—fades into the background.
The transformative power of an eternal perspective cannot be overstated. Everything shifts when we begin seeing our temporary existence through heaven's lens. As Paul reminds us in Colossians 3, we're called to "seek the things that are above" and set our minds on heavenly realities rather than earthly concerns. This doesn't mean disengaging from our present responsibilities but rather understanding them in the proper context. As dual citizens—belonging to earthly nations and heaven—we navigate this tension daily, recognizing that "our citizenship is in heaven" (Philippians 3:20).
Living with eternity in view reshapes our priorities in profound ways. We begin investing in what truly lasts—relationships, discipleship, and kingdom work—rather than accumulating what moth and rust destroy. Our suffering takes on new meaning as we recognize, with Paul, that these "light, momentary afflictions" are preparing us for an "eternal weight of glory." Even our most difficult trials become endurable when viewed against eternity's backdrop. Perhaps most importantly, an eternal perspective frees us from the tyranny of worldly attachments. Like Moses, who considered "the reproach of Christ greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt," we can learn to hold loosely what the world values highly. As you listen to this episode, consider: what area of your life needs a perspective shift from the temporary to the eternal? Your answer might change everything.
Please send your questions to questions@pleasinggodpodcast.org and join us in pursuing what lasts forever.
Stock Music provided by wolfgangwoehrle, from Pond5
Hi and welcome back to the Pleasing God podcast, a show focused on helping Christians to think biblically, engage practically and live faithfully for the glory of God. I'm your host, jonathan Soul, and on this episode I want to talk about living with an eternal perspective. Let me ask you a question what would change in your life if you truly lived for eternity? It's so easy in the world that we live in to get caught up in the temporary. We think about work, worries, our material possessions Some of this stuff can keep us awake at night or constantly occupying our thoughts and driving our actions and our attitudes. We might worry about our health, our family members, the political landscape, all things that are temporary. But again, it is so easy, because we live in the here and now, to get caught up in the things that we see the horizontal aspects of life and we forget about the vertical, about heaven, about eternity, and so the goal of this episode eternity. And so the goal of this episode is that I want to help us to focus on what truly matters in light of eternity, and I pray that you're encouraged. So what does it mean to live with an eternal perspective? What does that look like in our lives? Well, an eternal perspective means that we are seeing life in the immediate, in the temporary, through the lens of eternity.
Speaker 1:In Colossians 3, paul says 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 mind on the things that are above, not on the things of earth. And so here Paul's call is, because you are a Christian, because you have been raised with Christ kind of a picture of our baptism being raised up with him we are to seek the things that are above, where he is at the right hand of God. So we're talking about heavenly things. So our perspective we should see all of life through the hand of God. So we're talking about heavenly things. So our perspective we should see all of life through the lens of eternity. Well, this also means that we need to understand that this world is not our home. It is, in a sense, our home, but it is not our eternal home, it is not our forever home, and we should think of ourselves as Christians, as dual citizens While we are citizens of, maybe, the nation that we belong to, we are also citizens of heaven, and this is important to help us not get caught up so much in the temporal, but also to recognize our eternal home. Philippians, chapter 3, verse 20, reads but our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, paul writing to the Philippians he's writing to an old Roman outpost where many retired Roman soldiers would go into their retirement, and so they were very understanding of what it means to be a citizen, what it means to care for your state, your nation, and he's telling them that, listen, our primary citizenship is one in heaven, not on earth.
Speaker 1:Hebrews, chapter 13,. Not on earth. Hebrews, chapter 13, verse 14 tells us for here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come. This is so important. When we get caught up so much with the horizontal, our kind of view of where we live, our citizenship here and there, and at the expense of our eternal, we get things out of whack. We are not living with an eternal perspective. If we are living for this life only, our citizenship is in heaven. Here we have no lasting city. Also, to live with an eternal perspective means that we recognize the brevity of life compared to eternity. What is your life but a vapor? It's here one day and gone tomorrow. So when we think this way, we see things through the lens of eternity, we understand that this place is not our home and life is short compared to eternity. This helps to shape and fashion us to think and to live with an eternal perspective. So, with this perspective, how does this transform us for everyday life? Well, let me give you a few things. I think that thinking with an eternal perspective, living with an eternal perspective, helps us prioritize God's kingdom, where we invest in the things that matter.
Speaker 1:Jesus, in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew, chapter 6, verses 19 through 21, says Do not lay up for yourselves treasure on earth, where moth and rust destroy, where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy and thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. And here Jesus is saying do not make that. Your treasure is that which you value. Do not make your supreme values the things on earth, the things that can be stolen, the things that fall apart, the garments that you know moth destroys and they become worthless. None of that stuff lasts. So the things that we are to value are the treasures in heaven. Well, what are those? These are the rewards for righteous deeds, for faithful living, for obedience, and when we prioritize God's kingdom through serving him, sharing the gospel, loving our neighbors, loving God, we are storing for ourselves those treasures in heaven. So we prioritize God's kingdom and this will transform our lives in the here and now.
Speaker 1:Also, an eternal perspective transforms our lives because we are able to endure trials with hope. We know that the suffering of this life is temporary, although it might be excruciating, although it might be extremely challenging for us and we think, man, there might not seem to be an end to what I'm going through. Let me encourage you, there is, and the scriptures are very clear on this. In 2 Corinthians 4, verse 16, paul says so we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light, momentary affliction is preparing us for an eternal weight of glory, beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen, for the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal. Paul says whatever he's going through, it's a light, momentary affliction in comparison to the eternal weight of glory. Wow, that should encourage us. We can endure these trials with hope. They will cease. These inward trials will not last forever. These inward trials will not last forever, but heaven does, and our glorified state with Christ will be our final place.
Speaker 1:Also, an eternal perspective transforms daily life through making disciples and sharing the gospel Evangelize in light of eternity. We only have one life to live now and we are to give that over to what matters to prioritize the things that God has called us to do, to make disciples, to share this gospel, knowing that an eternity is coming and that we desire to be faithful until that day in which God takes us home. So we're to make disciples and share the gospel. This is a priority of those that are living in light of eternity. It also helps us to live with purpose.
Speaker 1:Our work in light of eternity takes on a different perspective Our relationships, our decisions that we make. Ephesians, chapter 5, verses 15 and 16. Paul says you see, we need to prioritize and make the best use of the time that we have, because time is temporary, time is finite, time is fleeting and a day is coming when we will step out of time and into eternity, and so we're to be stewards of the time that we have. Our work is supposed to be done in light of eternity, so we think about not working unto man but unto God. We work in a way that pleases Him. Our relationships do we see them as just temporary times of fun, or are we making investments in our relationships that last for eternity? Do we spend time with people or do we invest time with people? All of these things are influenced by our perspective on eternity and, ultimately, one that I think is really important, even to me as I think about living a life with the eternal perspective, is that it helps me let go of worldly attachments. It helps me to avoid the distractions that pull away from eternal things.
Speaker 1:In luke 12, verse 15, we read take care and be on guard against all covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions. What can I take with me when I go? Not my stuff, not where moth and rust destroy, where thieves break in and steal, but what can go with me? The investments maybe I made in others, the things that last for eternity, the impact we made for the gospel on earth, the glory of God that we committed our lives to. Let's hold our worldly things very loosely, as we have an eternal perspective. This transforms our life day to day.
Speaker 1:I want you to think about a couple biblical examples of an eternal mindset, looking at three of the most prominent figures in all of scripture. Think of Jesus and his eternal mindset. We read in Hebrews, chapter 12, verse 2, that for the joy that was set before him, he endured the cross, despising the shame, and is now seated at the right hand of the Father, the Father. Jesus endured the cross because of the outcome on the other side. It was the joy that was set before him. He knew that he had to go through the trial to get the reward on the other side. And what's the reward of his suffering? The redeemed of God, the people of God, the souls for whom he died. And he endured the cross for that joy. It was an eternal perspective. It would only have been an eternal perspective that could have taken the son of God through his passion, through the cross. If it was only temporary, the garden of Gethsemane would have been the end. But as he cries out, not my will but your will be done, he looks beyond what is hard to what is eternal. Jesus endured the cross for the joy that was set before him.
Speaker 1:Paul is another example and one of my favorite passages of scripture in Philippians, chapter three, verses seven and 8. He says he considers everything as a loss compared to knowing Christ, all of his accolades, all that he has done, all that was meaningful to him. As he gives his own pedigree, he was of the tribe of Benjamin. He was circumcised on the eighth day. The people of Israel, hebrew of Hebrewsised on the eighth day. The people of Israel, hebrew of Hebrews. As to the law of Pharisee, as to zeal of persecutor of the church, as to righteousness under law, blameless, he says whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus, my Lord. Again, here's an example. Compared to Christ, nothing else matters. We can only say this with sincerity of heart if we are living with an eternal perspective.
Speaker 1:Again, Moses, here's someone with an eternal perspective from the Old Testament, hebrews in the Faith Hall of Fame, as they mention Moses. It's such a great passage. It says that Moses in Hebrews 11, verse 24, it says by faith, moses, when he was grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter, choosing rather to be mistreated with the people of God than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin. He considered the reproach of Christ greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking to the reward. The author of Hebrews makes it clear he considered the reproach of Christ, who was not going to be born into this world for another 1,400 years. But Moses looked forward in faith, and he would be rather mistreated with the people of God than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin. Why? Because he was looking to the reward. Only an eternal perspective can forsake the pleasures of this world for the life to come. And so Jesus and Paul and Moses together show us a picture of what it looks like to live for eternity. And isn't it a wonderful picture. So let me encourage you as we think on this subject.
Speaker 1:Living for eternity changes everything. We will think differently about how we spend or invest time. It helps our relationships to be more meaningful, our love to be more genuine, because we're not just thinking about the temporary and the here and now. Even our decision making will this affect not just the temporary, but what are the eternal ramifications of this choice? Is this the thing that I'm supposed to be doing, and make our decisions by setting our mind on things that are above. So we're not making irrational, fleshly decisions, but we're consulting the Word of God, we're thinking about how God has revealed himself and how we are to make decisions in light of that.
Speaker 1:So let me challenge you what is one area of your life where you can shift your focus towards eternity? Maybe there's an area in your life where you've just been struggling. It might be your work or your relationships. It might be in the pursuit of advancement possessions, something that might be ruling in your life that you know is not driven by an eternal perspective, but by a temporary one.
Speaker 1:I want to challenge you that to shift your focus when you think about that in a way that honors God and is consistent with Colossians 3, 1 and 2, to set your mind on things above, where Christ is, the things of heaven, the things that last, and in light of that, let us spend our time, our talent, our resources on matters of eternal significance. I pray that God gives us wisdom to live with this eternal mindset while we are still strangers and sojourners here on earth, awaiting our eternal city. I want to thank you for listening to the Pleasing God podcast. If you have any questions, I'd love to hear from you. You could reach out at questions at pleasinggodpodcastorg. And remember 1 Thessalonians 4.3,. This is the will of God, your sanctification.
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