“For God is my witness, how greatly I long after you all in the affections of Jesus Christ.” – Philippians 1:8
Prison and distance made Paul long all the more for the family of God. He wrote to the Romans, “I long to see you.” To the Corinthians, “We long after you.” To Timothy he wrote, “I am greatly desiring to see you, being mindful of your tears, that I may be filled with joy.” This love that caused Paul to write, “My brethren, dearly beloved and longed for, my joy and my crown” was the very love of Christ for each one of us.
This brings us to a great truth: Jesus longs for us more than we know. He is not detached to our longing for Heaven, Home, and Him, because this yearning is from His Spirit. It’s His love filling our hearts. He prayed before the Cross, “Father, I will that they also, whom You have given Me, be with Me where I am; that they may behold My glory, which You have given me.”
The longer we live and serve Christ, while enduring hardships, the stronger these mutual longings become. And it’s a whole-body experience… “My soul longs, yes, even faints for the courts of the Lord: my heart and flesh cry out for the Living God!” So strong is the Lord’s yearning for us that He vowed… “I will drink no more of the fruit of the vine, until that day that I drink it new with you in My Father’s kingdom.” Even in Heaven, He won’t touch a drop until we’re together.
When Rebecca’s journey toward Isaac was almost over, she lifted up her eyes and said, “Who is this coming in the field to meet us?”
We won’t have to ask.
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