It has often been said, “don’t be so heavenly-minded you’re no earthly good.” That is, don’t think so much about heaven that you will be of no benefit on earth to those around you.
In truth, most of us are so earthly-minded that we’re no heavenly good. We have put so much attention on the things of the earth and our daily concerns that we do not accomplish the purposes of heaven.
This was certainly the temptation of the psalmist, Asaph. Hear his complaint in Psalm 73:
- I was envious of the wicked (v. 3)
- There are no pains in their death (v. 4)
- There body is fat…their eye bulges from fatness (vv. 4, 7)
- They are not in trouble like other men (v. 5)
- The imaginations of their heart run riot (v. 7)
- They have set their mouth against the heavens (and seem to get away with their blasphemy, v. 9)
Wherever Asaph looked, there appeared to be injustice. It appeared that the wicked prospered and the righteous struggled. Where was equity?, he wondered. In fact, he even acknowledged that his ponderings of the state of the world produced bitterness within him (v. 21).
So what did Asaph do to repent and turn his heart back towards righteousness? He contemplated heaven and what awaited him with the Lord. And as he pondered, he came to this astounding conclusion:
Whom have I in heaven but You?
And besides You, I desire nothing on earth. (v. 25)
Consider the implications of that statement for the follower of God. For the one who is in right fellowship with God (which is now attainable only through the reconciling work of Christ), these truths are derived from that statement about God and heaven:
On earth we have many possessions; in heaven we have one possession. There are many things that we have on earth — material goods like homes and food and books and jobs, and relationships like husband and wife, parent and child, friend, co-worker, and neighbor. All these things are ours to have and hold and enjoy on earth. But in heaven we have one possession. Oh, we will be given our mansions by Christ (Jn. 14) and we will have much fellowship with others and we will delight to worship with the angels. But only one thing will “belong” to us — we will only possess God. He will be the one thing we possess in heaven.
On earth we possess God in part; in heaven we possess God in full . As Christians, we know on earth what it is to be filled with the Spirit. We know what it is like to do acts of righteousness and please God. We know the joy of being God’s ambassadors and seeing men reconciled to God because of our testimony. But everything we do for God and know of God on earth is still tainted by our fleshliness. We are fully His, but we only know a part of His power and strength because we are still restrained by sin. But in heaven, we will see and know Him in full. As good as our fellowship with Him is on earth, our fellowship with Him in heaven will be infinitely greater because we will see Him as He is (1 Cor. 13:12; 1 Jn. 3:2).
On earth we look for justice and equity; in heaven we have justice and grace. We are much like Asaph. We want justice and we want “fairness,” and they both seem to be elusive. But in heaven we will know and experience the fullness of God’s justice. And we will not receive what is “fair.” We will not receive what we deserve (hell), but having believed in Christ, we will receive what is gracious (heaven and the forgiveness and freedom from sin).
On earth and in heaven we are possessed by God; and we possess God. That we belong to God in heaven is revealed in His name which will be written on our foreheads (Rev. 22:4). But not only are we His, but He is also ours. We do not “own” Him, but He is our God and our Father (Jn. 20:17; Gal. 4:4-7). He belongs to us. In heaven, we are His and He is ours.
Because we have God in heaven, we should desire nothing but Him on earth. What we will be should transform what we are (1 Jn. 3:2-3). If He will be our supreme desire in heaven, then He should be our supreme desire now. Since nothing about Him will change to make Him more desirable in heaven, then nothing should be of greater desire to us now than Him. Certainly there are temptations to be bitter (v. 21) when we see injustice and inequity. But when we make temporal justice our greatest desire, then we become idolators. No matter how good our earthly desires, nothing compares with the Lord (v. 25b).
We will have God in heaven in the future; we also have Him in heaven now. That God is in heaven indicates God’s sovereign authority and rulership over all things. And God’s sovereignty never changes. He is eternally in the heavens and He is eternally sovereign. So if we belong to Him, while we have not yet experienced or known presence with him, yet we still know His sovereignty today. He is in heaven and He is for us, guiding and ordering the affairs of our lives for our good and His glory.
So as you come home from worship this afternoon, be a little more heavenly minded. Whom have you in heaven, but God?
Words of Grace 