Words of Wisdom for the Weekend ~ Longing for Home

"And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, and said,  “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? 

This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven,

will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.” 

{Acts 1:9-11}

"We are all exiles longing for home. We are always travelling, never arriving. The houses and families we actually inhibit are only inns along the way, but they aren't home. Home continues to evade us . . . " The Bible says we have been wandering as spiritual exiles . . . we have been living in a world that no longer fits our deepest longings. Though we long for bodies that 'run and are not weary' we have become subject to disease, aging, and death. Though we need love that lasts, all our relationships are subject to the inevitable entropy of time, and they crumble in our hands. Even people who stay true to us die and leave us, or we die and leave them. Though we long to make a difference in the world through our work, we experience endless frustration. We never fully realize our hopes and dreams. We may work hard to re-create the home that we have lost, but, says the Bible, it only exists in the presence of the heavenly father from which we fled . . . "   "[Jesus] came to bring the human race Home . . . He came and experienced the exile that we deserved. He was expelled from the presence of the Father, he was thrust into the darkness, the uttermost despair of spiritual alienation—in our place. He took upon the full curse of human rebellion, cosmic homelessness, so that we could be welcomed into our true home . . . "   "Because Jesus paid the penalty for our sin with his death, he has achieved victory over the forces of death, decay and disorder that keep the world from being our true home. Someday he will return to make this victory complete."  ~Timothy Keller, ' The Prodigal God '

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{Words for Wisdom for the Weekend: These are words that I have been challenged or encouraged by that I have read throughout my week that I kept pondering; words that I couldn't get off my mind and heart throughout my week. 

For other Words of Wisdom for the Weekend posts see here.}