God is not calling us out of the earth but out of the spirit of the world, out of the kingdom of Satan. The sins and enemies against which we are wrestling originate in the heavenlies. The earth, and our own flesh and bones, are good. The physical creation is good. But the spirit in the world, and in our own flesh also, is wicked.

God has called us out of the wicked spirits that control the world—and that control our flesh if we allow them to do so. Our life in the wilderness is our struggle against sin and unbelief in God. We are striving to serve God in a rebellious, unclean spiritual environment while we yet are limited by a physical body in which the spirit of death is dwelling. Our inner man is alive in Christ but our physical body is dead—cut off from the Life of Christ by the sin abiding in it.

Our land of promise includes the whole creation of God, especially the earth; for it is the earth and the nations of the earth that are the inheritance of Christ, and our inheritance also because we are coheirs with Him. One day the kingdoms of the world will be ruled by Christ and His saints.

We are not marching from the earth to Heaven, we are marching from eternal death to eternal life.

The original message of salvation preached by the Lord and His Apostles was the offering of the gift of eternal life to a spiritually dead mankind. Since that time the Gospel has been changed into a means of entering Heaven after we die.

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (John 3:16)

This is what was preached by the Lord Jesus. The gift is not Heaven but life—the eternal life, spiritual and physical, that was lost to Adam and Eve because of their disobedience.

One might inquire, "But what difference does it make whether we say ‘Heaven' or ‘life'?"

It makes a great difference!

If we conceive of Heaven as the goal of our salvation we may live our life in the pursuit of fleshly goals, waiting to enter Heaven when we die. If we accept Jesus and are saved by grace we will go to Heaven. We obtain salvation and life by dying. Tomorrow is the day of salvation. These are the concepts held currently.

But if we conceive of eternal life as our goal, then we are not waiting for our physical death to usher us into salvation. We are making the transition from spiritual death (the absence of God) to spiritual life (the Presence of God) now. We are conquering sin and attaining the resurrection (the spiritual aspect of the resurrection) from the dead now—today. Eternal life is eternal living in the fullness of God's Presence and Glory.

Indeed it does make a great difference whether we view our goal as Heaven or eternal life.

To be continued.