The king is coming home! The days of darkness are soon to pass away, and our glorious king is soon to reclaim his rightful authority over all things! Every tear will be wiped away, every sorrow will be turned to gladness, and everything sad will become untrue when he returns in all his glory. That great day is coming soon!
Okay, I should clarify. This has nothing to do with the recent election. Candidly, the winner of the presidency has no eternal impact. That’s not to say it doesn’t matter or that we shouldn’t care! We should continue to pray, thanking God for the good work he will do through President Trump, mourning the inevitable problems that will come from his sinful human nature, and asking the Spirit to fill our leaders with the wisdom to lead well. But don’t forget to also keep your eyes fastened further ahead. Our nation, with all its strengths and weaknesses, will pass away. But our eternal citizenship is in Heaven, and our eternal destiny is in the glory of the Lord—and he, our eternal king, is coming home!
Remember earlier in Ezekiel (chapter 10 to be exact) when the glory of God departed from the temple in Jerusalem because of the people’s sin? One of the coolest things about God is that he leaves no evil thing unredeemed. As he promises here toward the end of Ezekiel, he’s coming back to the temple. But it will be utterly new and beautiful and indescribably perfect. God has always loved temples, because a temple is the place where he can dwell close with his people. That’s the part of his promise God gets excited about: he will dwell with us, his beloved people, forever.
Our citizenship is there, surrounded by God’s glory, and not this temporary, horrifyingly evil world. There’s a wonderful song by Jon Guerra called “Citizens” in which he sings in the chorus, “I need to know there is justice, that it will roll in abundance, and that you’re building a city where we arrive as immigrants and you call us citizens and you welcome us as children home.” God promises us that he will do exactly that. This world is not our home. Our home is the glory of the Lord. And someday, Lord knows when, we will all be welcomed home, to enjoy his unimaginable, glorious goodness forever.
