If you've ever gone camping, you know a tent is fine for a weekend and miserable for a winter. It was never meant to be permanent.
2 Corinthians 5:1-10 — KJV
1 For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. 2 For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven: 3 If so be that being clothed we shall not be found naked. 4 For we that are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened: not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of life. 5 Now he that hath wrought us for the selfsame thing is God, who also hath given unto us the earnest of the Spirit. 6 Therefore we are always confident, knowing that, whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord: 7 (For we walk by faith, not by sight:) 8 We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord. 9 Wherefore we labour, that, whether present or absent, we may be accepted of him. 10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.
2 Corinthians 5:1-10 — WEB
1 For we know that if the earthly house of our tent is dissolved, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal, in the heavens. 2 For most certainly in this we groan, longing to be clothed with our habitation which is from heaven, 3 if indeed being clothed, we will not be found naked. 4 For indeed we who are in this tent do groan, being burdened, not that we desire to be unclothed, but that we desire to be clothed, that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. 5 Now he who made us for this very thing is God, who also gave to us the down payment of the Spirit. 6 Therefore we are always confident and know that while we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord; 7 for we walk by faith, not by sight. 8 We are courageous, I say, and are willing rather to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord. 9 Therefore also we make it our aim, whether at home or absent, to be well pleasing to him. 10 For we must all be revealed before the judgment seat of Christ that each one may receive the things in the body according to what he has done, whether good or bad.
Explanation
Paul knew about tents. He made them for a living. So when he wrote to the church in Corinth about the human body, a tent was the picture that came to mind. Paul had been beaten, shipwrecked, jailed, and worn down by ministry. He knew our bodies wear out, sag, ache, and eventually come down. But he also knew that when this tent comes down, God has a building waiting for us, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.
In the meantime, we groan. That's an honest word. We groan under the weight of mortality, not because we want to escape our bodies, but because we long for what's mortal to be "swallowed up of life." And God has given us His Spirit as an "earnest," a down payment, the way you put money down on a house to show you're serious about closing. So we walk by faith, not by sight, confident even when we can't see the finish line.
Then Paul says something sobering. Whether we're here or with the Lord, our aim is to please Him, because we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ. The word Paul uses pictures a raised platform where a judge sat to hear cases, or where an official handed out rewards at the games. Everyone will stand there and receive what is due for what we did in the body, good or bad. For believers this isn't about earning salvation; that's settled by grace. It's about stewardship. What did we do with the life, the gifts, the influence, and the people God put in our hands?
Sunday's passage contains a single sentence that sums up a man's whole career: "He had judged Israel forty years." Eli was the judge, but he would one day face the Judge. And the record would show sons he refused to restrain and a house of God he let slide into corruption. That's the heart of "Leadership Run Amok": leaders who forget they will give an account.
But don't hear this only as a word for pastors and politicians. Everybody leads somebody. A parent leads children. A supervisor leads a crew. A big sister leads a younger one just by being watched. And every one of us is accountable for what we do when nobody's looking: the shortcut on the job, the cruel text, the money we could have shared. The good news is that Paul says this with confidence, not dread. God made us for this very thing. We aren't trying to get away with anything. We're trying to hear, "Well done."
Thought for the Day
Live today like you'll talk to Jesus about it.
Reflection Question
If you had to give an account tonight for how you led the people in your care this week, what would you want to change?
Prayer
Lord Jesus, thank You for the promise of a home that will never wear out. Give us confidence when this tent of a body feels heavy and tired. Help us remember that we will answer to You for how we lead, love, and live. Make us faithful in the small things nobody sees, so that one day we hear You say, "Well done." In Your name we pray, amen.
This week we walk toward Sunday's lesson: The Glory Departs.