Great Expectations
Photo by Taylor Van Riper
“Earth has no sorrow that Heaven cannot heal.”
Have you read the novel, Great Expectations, by Charles Dickens? I remember reading it in High School and I loved it. The main character, Pip, has great expectations for his future. He wants to become a kinder person and an educated member of the upper class. He’s a dreamer, on his way to a better life.
So many of us have great expectations for our lives. In our youth, we embrace idealism, believing we will create the lives we choose. We aspire for successful careers, happy families, and enriching hobbies. We imagine finishing our last days satisfied, and full of years.
Yet do you know anyone who has led a dreamy life, their whole life? I think that’s only for Hallmark movies. Occasionally, our great expectations meet disappointment… and that is a part of life.
There is, however, a superior kind of “expectation” told of in the Bible:
“Now we live with great expectation, and we have a priceless inheritance - an inheritance that is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay.”
This “great expectation” is the hope of eternal life because of what Jesus has done. Knowing we have such wonderful joy ahead; we can truly be glad. This is what we hold on to, it’s what keeps us going… going through all our hardships. Heaven is waiting!
Sometimes we receive an inheritance on earth when parents leave their possessions to their children. It can be a big blessing. But this verse says, our heavenly inheritance will be priceless! I can’t imagine a priceless inheritance on earth, and I really can’t imagine one in heaven.
Have you ever watched the Antique Road Show? It’s been one of my mother-in-law’s favorite programs. People bring their treasures to the show for an expert history lesson and appraisal. They are always amazed by what their antiques are worth; one person was so blown-away they fell to the ground! This makes the viewers cheer in amazement and wonder if they’ve got any valuable treasures laying around. What if they owned something that was priceless?!
PRICELESS – That describes what is kept in heaven for us. Our inheritance is pure (nothing on earth is that kind of pure), it’s undefiled (we’ve pretty much defiled everything around here because of sin), and it’s beyond the reach of change and decay (look at our cities – our massive creations are wearing out). But the inheritance God has prepared for his followers will last forever. It is gloriously beautiful, pure, undefiled, and incorruptible. There won’t be a need for an Antique Road Show appraisal because everything is priceless! And there won’t be any fixer-upper shows either, as much as we like to watch them, because remodeling will never be needed. This inheritance is perfect now and will be perfect forever … and it’s just waiting for us! We have such joy ahead on so many levels we can’t even comprehend it. In fact, we might just fall over when we get there!
If your dreams have been dashed, will you look forward with hope? Life doesn’t always work out as it should. God has good ahead for you, in this life and the life to come.
What if you put your “Great Expectations” in what Christ has done for you? In Him, you will be satisfied with an eternal inheritance, that can never perish, spoil, or fade.
Great Expectations… there was a reason I always loved that title!
“So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”