II Corinthians 5:4-8 “For we that are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened: not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of life. Now he that hath wrought us for the selfsame thing is God, who also hath given unto us the earnest of the Spirit. Therefore we are always confident, knowing that, whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord: (For we walk by faith, not by sight:) We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.”

Paul tells us that we “have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens” (vs.1). When using the word “house”, he is speaking of a residence or an abode that awaits those that have been redeemed by the blood of the Lamb. Within the text we see Paul’s desire, “do groan . . . that mortality might be swallowed up of life” (vs.4). Paul finds himself “in a strait betwixt two” (Philippians 1:23), “being burdened: not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon.” This serves to motivate him to sigh so as to pray inaudibly to go there. What kind of place would create such a longing that it would cause one to be willing to pass through the portals of death to get there? The answer is in the destination, “to be present with the Lord.” Paul declares that the saint’s abode is synonymous with the Saviour’s abode; Jesus said, “where I am, there ye may be also” (John 14:3).

Within the Word of God, there is a word often used when referring to the abode of God; it is the word “paradise.” When closely examining of the word’s usage we quickly discover what makes our future abode so desirable! In Luke 23:43, we discover the appeal of companionship, “Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.” The word “paradise” means a park, forest or orchard; especially an Eden, the place of future happiness. It is a Persian word written in Greek and has a reference to a Royal Garden. When a Persian King wished to confer a very special honor on someone especially dear to him, he made him a companion of the garden and gave them the right to walk with him in intimate companionship. One day we will enjoy an eternal companionship as we walk through eternity in intimate fellowship with our God.

In II Corinthians 12:4, we discover the appeal of conversation, “caught up into paradise, and heard unspeakable words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter.” Note that Paul’s emphasis is not on sight, but sound; “heard”, and subject of the conversation is overshadowed by the splendor of the conversation! Paul said of the words, they were “unspeakable” and “not lawful.” The subject was inexpressible for he had never heard it before and while it was right, such a conversation had never been spoken out in public. Once again we will hear “the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day” (Genesis 3:8).

In Revelation 2:7, we discover the appeal of communion, “To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.” Everything we lost in the first Adam, we regained in the Last Adam; one such thing was access to the garden, but what garden? Paradise is a reference to a royal garden, especially an Eden. In paradise there is no longer “Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life” (Genesis 3:24), but an invitation to freely enter in where we can once again commune with God; a place where “God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God” (Revelation 21:3).

Paul said “to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.” It is a place of companionship, conversation, and communion; it is a place called “Paradise”; Our Future Abode!