It’s the largest home in America. Can you name it? It’s Asheville’s Biltmore estate.
When railroad and shipping magnate George Vanderbilt first visited Asheville in 1888, he fell in love with the place and promptly amassed land to construct his sprawling residence. Forget acres. The Biltmore sits on nearly 11 square miles!
Any sense of scale was out-scaled in the construction of this home. To ship in the raw materials and labor, a special railroad spur was created. Every day for nearly seven years, hundreds of workers plopped themselves on top of timbers, tile and stone bound for the construction site.
By Christmas Eve, 1895, the home was finally opened. And what a home!
Imagine 250 rooms, including 35 bedrooms, 43 bathrooms, 65 fireplaces, three kitchens, a bowling alley, and even an indoor pool. While you and I speak in terms of square footage, this estate boasts of four acres of floor space. Truly, Mr. Vanderbilt…built more.
But even as we mounted the stairs, trekked through the halls and gawked at the opulence, I heard the voice of One whose estate will dwarf anything Mr. Vanderbilt ever conceived.
Jesus said, “In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also.”
And if Jesus is the architect and builder, it’s a safe bet those dwellings will be nothing less than spectacular:
What no eye has seen,
what no ear has heard,
and what no human mind has conceived —
the things God has prepared for those who love him
–1 Corinthians 2:9
Here’s to living forever in the house that Jesus is building!