A house,Not a tent

Title: A House, Not a Tent
Author: Tony Beckett and Woodrow Kroll
Proverbs 13-15, 2 Corinthians 5 Key Verse: 2 Corinthians 5:1
It is not unusual to see a canopy tent set up in the cemetery near our house. These are temporary structures, providing some relief from the weather during a graveside service. Soon after the burial, the tent is removed.
I like those tents for two reasons. One is obvious they do keep the sun, snow or rain off of those gathered by the grave. The other is not so obvious, but I would point it out if I were leading the service. At the committal I would reach up and grab hold of the tent. "We don�t live in tents," I would say, "but in houses." Tents are fine for times such as that, but most people would not want to live in one. They would rather have a house. I like the tent because it was a reminder of the truth that we all will one day move out of current residences and into our permanent home in heaven.
Where we live now is one sense a tent. That is what Paul calls our body, which will one day be destroyed. Until then we look forward to the building we have that is from God, "an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands" (5:1). A tent over a grave is a vivid picture of this truth. It serves as a reminder that we will leave the earthly tent behind for the home we have in heaven.
All that is around us is temporary, even our aches and pains. Rejoice that one day you will move out of the tent and into the house, the one prepared for you by God.
Daily devotions courtesy of Devotions.org, a ministry of Back to the Bible.