Absent from the Body

                                                                                                                              

“..absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.” (II Corinthians 5:6b)

For many years, this section of scripture has been used to say that when we die, we go right to heaven to be with the Lord. But as we have learned, we can’t just take a scripture out of the Bible and not consider it’s context. This is not being a good student of the Bible. If this scripture agreed with what God had already revealed to us about life and death, then we could take this scripture at face value. But this scripture, taken by itself, contradicts other scriptures on this topic, and therefore must be examined more carefully to discover its true meaning.


To grasp what this verse is referring to, we must go back to II Corinthians 4:14 to pick up the context.

14 “Knowing that He which raised up the Lord Jesus shall raise up us also by Jesus, and shall present us with you.” Paul is speaking of the time when Jesus Christ will return for his church. Just as God raised Jesus from the dead, He will also raise up US also. When? At Christ’s return.

16 For which cause we faint not (we are not discouraged); but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.                                                                                                         

Our physical bodies tend to grow old and feeble the longer we live, nevertheless, our inward man (the Christ in you) is renewed daily. It is renewed daily when we realize that one day Christ will return for us.

17 For our light (weight of) affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory;                                                                                                                
Here we have a comparison. The first part of the verse should read “our light weight of affliction” and is compared to our “eternal weight of glory”. If we had a balance scale, and we placed on each side these weights, our “weight of glory” would far out-weigh the other. Whatever afflictions or tribulations we may face in this life, our future reality of the joy we will experience cannot even compare. Like Romans 8:18 informs us, “I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.”

18 While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal (temporary); but the things which are not seen are eternal.
We are all encouraged to look at (envision) the things that are not seen yet (what God has in store for us when Christ returns), instead of considering what we are going through in life, for it is just temporary.

                 Verse 5:1 starts a new chapter but does not start a new thought. This verse and the verses that come after, should actually be part of the preceding verses. (Remember, that chapter divisions were added by man. Even though they are helpful at times, they are not Godly inspired).          

                1 For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle (tent) were dissolved (or taken down), we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.

The Apostle Paul now starts to make a comparison between our earthly tabernacle or tent and our eternal bodies that we will receive at the return of Christ. Our earthly bodies are considered to be just a tent that is not a permanent structure but mobile and is easily taken down. In contrast we have in the future a permanent building of God. This represents our future incorruptible body that we will all one day receive.

                2 For in this (this earthly body) we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven: 3 If so be that being clothed we shall not be found naked (unclothed).
The ones who will be found unclothed are the ones who do not have eternal life and the promise of new spiritual bodies. These are the unsaved. When these people die, they will remain dead.

4 For we that are in this tabernacle (this present physical body) do groan, being burdened: not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of life.
We would groan and be burdened if we did not have the promise of a future life with the savior. But we do and we know that one day our “mortality shall be swallowed up of (eternal) life”.

5 Now he that hath wrought us for the selfsame thing is God, who also hath given unto us the earnest of the Spirit.
The reason we can be sure that we will have this eternal future is that God has given us His spirit. The spirit is our guarantee that we will one day live with Christ in a future paradise with new spiritual bodies.  

6 Therefore we are always confident, knowing that, whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord:
As we have already seen, this verse does not refer to being with Christ immediately after death, but upon Christ’s return.

7 (For we walk by faith, not by sight:) 8 We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord (one day). 9 Wherefore we labor, that, whether present or absent, we may be accepted of him.
                Whether we are present with the Lord (at his return) or absent (in this present physical body) we may be accepted of him. And we are.