At Home With The Lord (2 Corinthians 5:8)

Introduction

It’s awesome to be home. Luke 16 this morning. Luke 16, verse 22. We’ll begin reading there in a second. Bill and Lauren Olson have worshipped with the Lord’s people several hours ago in Italy. Bill actually preached this morning in Italy. And it was Lauren who pointed out to him that he was preaching in the same place that the Apostle Paul had preached. And observed that those are some large shoes to fill. And then said, No pressure. They should be flying back stateside here in a day or two. I’ve been asked the question what happens to a person when death occurs? Request was made for this lesson. And so I want to talk about that briefly this morning, beginning in Luke chapter 16, in a story that is sometimes called a parable, but may not necessarily fall in that genre.

1. What Happens When Death Occurs?

But it is a story that Jesus tells. And in the midst of that story about two individuals, a very wealthy man who did not share with the very poor man who actually is named in the text, Lazarus, while the rich man is not. It came about, verse 22, that the poor man died, and he was carried away by the angels. We just sang about that. Angels waiting and watching. Carried away by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. And the rich man also died and was buried. And in Hades, he lifted up his eyes, being in torment, and saw Abraham far away and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried out and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me. Send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool off my tongue.

For I am in agony in this flame. But Abraham said, Child, remember that during your life you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus bad things. But now he is being comforted here, and you are in agony.

And besides all this, between us and you there is a great chasm fixed, in order that those who wish to come over from here to you may not be able, and that none may cross over there to us. And then he makes a plea on behalf of his five brothers who are still alive. Send Let him warn them that they might not come to this place of torment. And Abraham said, They have Moses and the prophets, let them hear them. Oh, but if someone rises from the dead, they will repent. He affected. But again, Abraham says to him, If they did not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded if someone rises from the dead. This compelling story says so much to us about life beyond.

So the answer to the question, what happens to a person when death occurs? Nothing pleasant if you are spiritually unprepared. In fact, something horrific occurs. As I was preparing these thoughts, I noticed these notes around the edge of this story in my Bible. Death.

The rich man did not make friends with the man of unrighteousness, Luke 16, the previous context. Verse 9. The afterlife is a reality. Hell is hot. Last breath. Last opportunity. Eternal torment makes a missionary out of you. We have adequate tools. God’s best. God’s word is good enough. So many don’t think they want it or need it. The devil doesn’t want us to think about hell. Sobering thoughts. And then this from our psalm book. He has not forgotten thee. He remembered Lazarus. Yes, a compelling story. What happens to a person when death occurs? According to James chapter 2 and verse 26, the spirit without the body is dead. The inner person, the spirit, really what makes you. That involves your conscience, your conscience, your attitude, your character, the inner person, the spirit of man vacates the material body.

2. Today You Shall Be With Me in Paradise

And so I say that to lead us to the story from which I will launch further in Luke chapter 23. We are given insight into what happens when a person dies from this wonderful story of grace, this poignant story that is told in the midst of Jesus suffering for the whole world, as he is the propitiation for the whole world. We have this one individual, a thief who is dying because of crimes he indeed committed. As he says to the other thief, rebuking him in verse 40, do you not even fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? And we indeed justly, why are you railing at him? And we indeed justly, for we are receiving what we deserve for our deeds. But this man that you’re railing against, this man has done nothing wrong.

He knew enough about Jesus to know he was not guilty as charged, that he was an innocent man being put to death. And he knew even more. As he was saying, Jesus, remember me when, not if, remember me when you come into your kingdom.

That death was not necessarily going to prevent the establishment of his kingdom. And he says, Jesus, I don’t know what he thought beyond that, but he said, Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom. And we might think that Jesus, in the midst of his suffering and great pain, would be too busy dying for the sins of the world to respond. But this is the very reason that he came. To seek and to save the lost, as Luke would point out earlier in Luke chapter 19 and verse 10. Or the parables of lost things in Luke chapter 15. And so this thematically is exactly where Luke wants to go. And so Luke tells this story.

Wow. Today, you shall be with me in paradise.

The Greek word for paradise represents the idea of a beautiful park. Basically, Eden. Or any ideal and beautiful existence. I think of all the works of Solomon and the beauties that he made and all the foliage that he planted that he talks about in Ecclesiastes chapter 2. A garden paradise. Or as in Eden in Genesis chapter 2 and Genesis chapter 3, before Adam and Eve were expelled from that glorious lifestyle that they were living in the garden. Paul talks about being transported into paradise in 2 Corinthians chapter 12. And the messenger of Satan being given as to bring his humility because of the great things that he had heard and saw, but he was not permitted to speak. In Revelation chapter 2 and verse 7, in the first letter to the seven churches, in Revelation 2 and verse 7, the letter to the church at Ephesus, he says, He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches, to him who overcomes, like Lazarus, to him who overcomes, I will grant to eat of the tree of life which is in the paradise of God.

One word. Paradise. Well, I was planning this sermon and tonight’s sermon last week. I really didn’t get too busy on those until the plane on Friday, flying back from Nashville, and finished them yesterday. But in the meantime, there has been a tragic and horrific fire in the state of California, and many lives have been lost as that fire suddenly rapidly moved across the landscape. And I could not help but notice that one of the towns affected was paradise. California. Well, it was anything but paradise this week. And I don’t know how it got that name, and I don’t know what kind of a place it was, though there are a lot of pretty places in California and other places. Trust me, those of us that live here in Houston, yes, there are pretty places.

3. All Earthly Concerns Will Be Vanquished

As we go, we have it fine here, more on that tonight. But there are some places that are prettier than others, and I don’t know how beautiful California was, the city of paradise, the town of paradise, but I do know this. There is not anything on this earth, no matter how beautiful and picturesque and breathtaking and wonderful to behold, that will match or that will endure like the paradise of God that penitent thief received on that special day. Will you one day, perhaps even today. Will you one day be a resident in the paradise of God? One thing that occurs to me in what we have read so far. If we find ourselves, as Lazarus did in Luke 16 in such a place of comfort, or as the thief found himself on that special day in Luke 23, the day of Jesus’ death, one thing that is found is that all earthly concerns will be vanquished.

Everything that plagued and troubled us here in a carnal world of suffering and toil and pain and weariness and evil will be completely vanquished, never to be experienced ever again. I think the reason why the question came up, what happens to us when we die is because there is a fear of something that we’ve never experienced before. Will we know people? Will we know our family? Brethren who have preceded us in death. What will we know? Whom will we know? What will the experience of heaven for all eternity? Which you cannot spend eternity as we sing. What is all eternity? It’s just an unceasing existence. Don’t spend too much time thinking about that. Spend a little. I remember being in upper division in North Cottage at Florida College when I took an extra semester of biblical studies before I went off into preaching in the spring of 1984.

4. Absent From the Body, At Home With the Lord

And I remember me and my roommates having a discussion about heaven and about eternity. And we started talking about, I don’t know why the discussion went on for about 30 or 45 minutes, but none of us could sleep afterwards. All we could do is try to wrap our minds around the concept of eternity. And how challenging that is. We’ve never experienced that. We’ve only known this place and this time and our brief existence here. There must be more than this existence here, this very short tenure here that we have. What else do we learn? I think of the text in 2 Corinthians chapter 4 and chapter 5. And time would fail me to go into this entire context, but it really all goes together, and I wanted you to see that four actually flows into five.

And you start, if you start in chapter 5, you miss the preceding about this treasure in earthen vessels that we are. That the surpassing greatness of the power maybe of God and not of ourselves. So God is working in us to his glory, as we often say. And as Paul would say, death works in us, but life in you. You know, he says, I die daily in 1 Corinthians chapter 15. I mean, there’s sacrifices being made to advance the cause of Christ, but the end result of that is people receiving spiritual life. And he says, our momentary light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory. Far beyond all comparison. Maybe my favorite verse of the New Testament. Our momentary light affliction. And I would say Paul’s momentary light affliction far exceeds my own.

Is producing for us an eternal weight of glory. And that’s not all he says. He says, far beyond all comparison. What can you compare it to? The paradise of God. And then he talks about being in this earthly tent and groaning in this tent, and ultimately this earthly tent will be jettisoned. It will be left behind. And then he says, he makes the observation in chapter 5, as we walk by faith and not by sight, verse 7, he says, to be absent from the body is to be at home with the Lord. And that we have as our ambition, whether absent or present, to be pleasing to him. Because we’re all going to stand before the judgment seat of Christ to receive the things done in our body, whether those things be good or bad, verse 10.

And then he says, finally in verse 11, before he moves on to a discussion about reconciliation that flows out of this. In verse 11, he says, knowing the terror of the Lord. What we read about in Luke 16. What we can read about in Hebrews chapter 10. It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God, knowing the terror of the Lord, we persuade men. That’s what I’m here to do today. To remind you of what’s coming. And your need to prepare. The devil doesn’t want you thinking about hell.

Absent from the body. Paul says to the believers, to those reconciled to God, to those who are treasure in earthen vessels. To be absent from the body is to be at home with the Lord. Just like Paul said in 1 Thessalonians chapter 5, be comforted by these words as he spoke about the Lord descending from heaven with a shout. I would make this observation if you have concerns about what happens when you die. The pain that you experience in this world is fleshly, it is material, it is related to this world. And at the moment that you die and your spirit vacates the body, that pain is done. I talk about the sting of death and the pain of death, that most of that occurs just prior to your exit.

5. When Destiny Is Determined, It Is Determined

Once you exit, it’s over. It’s done. And then you have these two passages that suggest what immediately follows is paradise at home with the Lord. That’s comforting to me. I don’t know everything that’s going to happen in the next realm. I’m not sure we’re supposed to press Jesus’ story too much in Luke chapter 16. I think it is more likely intended to emphasize the horrific results of a life of materialism, which is what the context talks about in Luke 16, that they were lovers of money. The Pharisees were, the religious leaders. I think he’s emphasizing the horrific results of a life of materialism rather than attempting to explain exactly what the next world will be like. I mean, is there really going to be a conversation that takes place between someone who is lost, like the rich man and Abraham on the other side?

Oh, I think the idea of a great gulf fixed is telling us, like Abraham says, when destiny is determined, it is determined. There will be no going from one realm to the other or somehow getting out of this horrible condition in which you now find yourself. There will be none of that. The time for decision, and the latter part of the text is saying this. As he says, they have Moses and the prophets. Hear them. The time to make those decisions. 2 Corinthians 5 says that. Knowing the terror of the Lord, we persuade man. Act now. Because there will be no second opportunity when life concludes. So what kind of state was Lazarus in? Hades, the abode of departed spirits. Represented in the book of Revelation as man’s enemy.

Death and Hades are enemies in the book. Introduced early on, they are the last to exit in chapter 20. When they’re finally thrown to the lake of fire with everything else that is opposed, God in the book. Hades, the realm of departed spirits, existing, it seems, because of man’s sin. When the spirit leaves the body, we have a result caused by sin. A spiritless, I mean a bodiless spirit, if you will. This was not God’s intention. This is what man caused. Hades was the realm, the waiting place of the dead, and is often spoken of negatively in Scripture. But the question that is raised is because of Jesus’ work, is Hades still an issue? Is that a spiritual realm to which we go where we wait until the last trump and all of this is concluded on earth, and then everybody then marches before God for a final day of judgment?

Is that what we’re learning from these texts? I would just tell you, I don’t know. I don’t know. Maybe not. Maybe Jesus’ death and resurrection does away with some of the elements of the Luke 16 story. I don’t know that. But it really doesn’t matter. Because if you’re with the Lord, what else matters? Nothing matters. What’s the state of that existence? How is it different before I actually receive that immortal body? More on that in a second. How is that different than what will follow it after the day of judgment? I don’t think you need to worry about that. I don’t think we need to worry about the fact of who or what we will know. I think sometimes we say things about that we cannot possibly know.

I would like to think I’ll get to hang out with Robert and Martha. In eternity, after all, we spent all these years together here. Patience on their part. But I don’t know that. I saw that. I don’t know that. It may not matter. We may know things that it could just be beyond our ability to describe what we know and what we experience. But the concept of no tears tells us all we need to know. There’s no reason for anxiety or concern about what follows. And I would just say this about Hades and whatever involvement that might have before the conclusion of everything. If there is the need to wait for a conclusion, I would suggest to you that in the next realm, time is not an issue.

6. God Is Going to Fix What Sin Has Broken

Eternity is eternity. So perhaps it’s all one instant moment. Perhaps it’ll feel as if the judgment scene is happening right then and there. And it’s not like, well, let’s just wait around until God’s done with the earth and destroys it. I’m not so sure that time is even going to be an issue anymore. Think about that. But I do know this. God is going to fix what sin has broken. The bodiless spirit will be clothed with immortality. I don’t know about you, but I’m looking for the upgrade on this casing. And what a glorious upgrade. I’m getting too many nods of approval. It’s going to be a glorious upgrade for all of us. An eternal, immortal casing for our spirits. But even more. The joy. The eternal.

Deep and abiding joy of being at home with the Lord. This is Peter’s intention. In 2 Peter chapter 3, when he talks about an old heavens and an old earth that is being reserved for fire that will be destroyed and its elements will melt with fervent heat and things will be dissolved. But replacing it is a new existence, a new heavens and a new earth. I don’t have all the answers about that either. But it’s going to be incredible. This postmaterial realm, he’s representing an idyllic environment and the absence of evil. A new heaven and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. Don’t think of a physical globe. This is a spiritual realm. It is the new place of living for the righteous.

Our experience of paradise, of glory, of being at home with the Lord will far exceed any of the conceptions we have in our mind of it while we were here. In fact, I would even suggest that to be in the presence of God, whom no man has ever seen with his eyes while living on this earth, being in the presence of the most awesome being and in the presence of Jesus, our Savior, whom we have studied so much about and adored from afar, but again have never seen with our eyes that to be in the presence of such an awesome and perfect being, God the Father and God the Son and God the Spirit, that it will be enough. It will be enough. And it will be enough forever.

There will be no lack. Completely fulfilled in every moment forever. Not that there are even moments in eternity. Completely fulfilled forever. At home with the Lord.

Conclusion

I have a pretty good idea of what it’s going to be like because I’ve done it many times. And so it’s going to be a hustle and bustle week of a lot of preaching and fatigue and sleeping in a place that I’m not comfortable with. And somehow managing all of that and eating all those meals.

And it’s amazing. It’s a great thing. But I’ll tell you, by the end of the week, there’s an unusual kind of fatigue. And I’m just ready to get back home. And so I land at Hobby Airport on Friday afternoon, and then there was a traffic issue, of course, all the way home, which I’ll talk about tonight. And you’re just wanting to get home. And you get home. And my sister texts me and asks me where I am, my little sister. And I just texted that back. Home. Where living’s done right. Now, the way I do home may not be the way you do home, but home is home. And home is where living is done right. And that shows how blessed we are. I have Javalier coffee at my house.

In the presence of God is truly ultimately and exceedingly where living is done right. Jesus came that we might have life and might have it more abundantly. So here it is. I said I was going to persuade you with the message I preach here on a regular basis, and others preach here, the message that you have heard this morning.

It can be all yours. But Peter says, the requirement. What manner of persons ought you to be in all holy conduct and godliness. You can be what the Lord calls you to be. Have you chosen to walk his path in holy conduct? Making your attitudes, your values, your heart, your behavior. In line with his righteous precepts and the example of our Lord. Is your conduct holy? Have you been cleansed, washed, and made clean in the blood of Jesus Christ? Holy conduct. And subsequently, godliness. Choosing a life that is focused on God, serving him, loving him, pleasing him, advancing his cause. It’s within your grasp. Take it while there’s time and opportunity. Be immersed in water, repenting of your sins, confessing the name of Christ, rising to walk in newness of life, that paradise may indeed be yours.