Temptation and Eternity

“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 minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.” ~Colossians 3:1-2

I want to introduce you to arguably my all-time favorite hymn: “Lord, It Belongs Not to My Care” (to the tune Belmont). Someone, please make sure this is sung at my funeral! A bit of background on the hymn: It was written by the Puritan Richard Baxter (1615–1691), a prolific author and renowned pastor in Kidderminster, England. Baxter’s life was plagued by ill health, and in 1646, during severe sickness, his physician pronounced his condition terminal. Baxter was to be isolated for months, waiting to die.

During this time, unsurprisingly, Baxter began to think much about heaven. He wrote down his musings, which later became one of his most important books, The Saints’ Everlasting Rest, published four years later. However, Baxter actually recovered! And he determined to spend the remainder of his life — 45 years — devoting 30 minutes daily to thinking about heaven. 35 years after his “terminal” illness, he wrote the aforementioned hymn. Notice how it all bends towards eternity.     

Lord, it belongs not to my care
Whether I die or live;
To love and serve you is my share,
And this your grace must give.
If life be long, I will be glad,
That I may long obey;
If short, yet why should I be sad;
It shall have the same pay.

Would I long bear my heavy load
And keep my sorrows long?
Would I long sin against my God,
And His dear mercy wrong?
How much is sinful flesh my foe,
Which does my soul pervert;
To linger here in sin and woe,
And steals from God my heart?

Christ leads me thru' no darker room
Than He went thru' before;
He who into God's kingdom comes
Must enter by this door.
Come, Lord, when grace has made me meet
Thy blessed face to see,
For if your work on earth be sweet,
What will thy glory be?

Then I shall end my sad complaints
And weary, sinful days,
And join with the triumphant saints
Who sing Jehovah's praise.
My knowledge of that life is small;
The eye of faith is dim,
But it's enough that Christ knows all,
And I shall be with Him.

Isn’t it interesting that after 35 years of reflecting on heaven daily, he could say of heaven, “My knowledge of that life is small”? Heaven is vague to us, but the one thing we do know about heaven is the most important thing: Jesus is there, and we will be with Him.

But I want to give a nod to stanza two. As you know, the whole point of Solomon’s sermon, Ecclesiastes, is to live in light of eternity. If life is a mere breath, and we stand on the precipice of eternity, live accordingly! And that affects every compartment of our lives — everything from how we steward our time and money, to being assertive in sharing the Gospel, to dying to self daily (so that our last death is merely one more death). But it also alters how we face temptation!

Temptation to sin can be so extremely strong. Earthly desires can feel, at times, almost overwhelming. The temptation to love what (or who) we ought not to love, or to love lawful things too much, can be profound. But what if we look at temptation wearing glasses with eternal lenses? Surely, as Baxter recognized, if we are around the corner from heaven, the temptation to sin against God is severely weakened. If life is fleeting and eternity near, “Would I long sin against my God, and His dear mercy wrong?” Would I “linger here in sin and woe, and steal from God my heart”? Brothers and sisters, I exhort you, as I most certainly exhort myself, when faced with temptation, to wear glasses with eternal lenses.

Rev. Rob Dykes, Pastor of Preaching & Congregational Care