The longer that I am a Christian and the more that I mature in the things of God, it seems that my longing for heaven and the physical presence of my Saviour grows. No longer do the things that previously seemed so desirous and so pleasant to my eyes attract my attention as they did. Perhaps part of it is because I am weary of the world, because I have experienced suffering, because I see the transience of this life, or because I am disgusted with my flesh. Yet I do know that I “do groan, being burdened: not for that [I] would be unclothed, but clothed upon…”

The Word of God speaks of the desire for heaven as a manifestation of the Holy Spirit’s presence in our lives. The Spirit is spoken of as our “earnest” or our down payment. His indwelling in our hearts is our guarantee that we will be with Christ in heaven. He is our seal whereby we are kept unto the day of redemption (Eph. 1:13-14). The Holy Spirit’s presence, however, is not the only reason that we groan for heaven in our souls.

One of the wonders of creation is the caterpillar. Through the act of metamorphosis, the humble and homely little caterpillar is transformed into a beautiful butterfly through the means of the cocoon. Although science may be able to explain the process whereby the caterpillar experiences this change, no man can explain why it occurs. Why does the caterpillar wrap itself up into the cocoon and come out after some time as the butterfly? The only reason is that God created the caterpillar for this end.

Read again the sentence in verse 5, “Now he that hath wrought us for the selfsame thing is God…” Notice the preposition “for.” God has wrought, that is, He has created us for this transformation from sinful flesh into a glorified body. This is the end that He has saved us to reach. He has saved us so that He may bring many sons unto glory (Heb. 2:10). When He saved us and made us a new creation, He gave us an expected end. Those longings for heaven come from the very core of our new man. We desire heaven because that is why we were created. That is our guaranteed destiny.

Christian, are you weary? Have you experienced a recent tragedy in your life? Are you disgusted with your sinful flesh? Look heavenward. As sure as God turned again the captivity of Israel after the seventieth year, so does God assure us that when we put off this mortal, we must put on immortality. This is our end. This is why we were created. “Even so come, Lord Jesus.”