In his book, The Pursuit of God, A. W. Tozer wrote about the reality of God and a spiritual world that we cannot see. Because the world we live in is so “real” and capable of being experienced by our five senses, we are quick to claim it as our reality. What mankind struggles with, however, is the unseen spiritual world.
Tozer proposed that the term “other-worldly” has been met with scorn. I agree. It seems our culture has become even more skeptical of faith in an unseen God. Sometimes people mock our belief in a heavenly realm. Most often, others would like us to keep our beliefs to ourselves.
To that end, Tozer wrote this in 1948, but I think it holds true today:
“If we truly want to follow God, we must seek to be other-worldly. This I say knowing well that the word has been used with scorn by the sons of this world and applied to the Christian as a badge of reproach. So be it. Every man must choose his world. If we who follow Christ, with all the facts before us and knowing what we are about, deliberately choose the kingdom of God as our sphere of interest, I see no reason why anyone should object. If we lose by it, the loss is our own; if we gain, we rob no one by so doing. The “other world,” which is the object of this world’s disdain and the subject of the drunkard’s mocking song, is our carefully chosen goal and the object of our holiest longing” (Tozer, The Pursuit of God, page 63).
Is faith in God and belief in a heavenly realm your “carefully chosen goal?” Is God and the unseen spiritual world “the object of your holiest longing?”
I cannot wait for the day when all eyes will see and all ears will hear the glory of our God. I long to be physically reunited with God in heaven. How about you?
PS ~ if you haven’t read The Pursuit of God, I highly recommend it. Just click here or on the titles above to order it!