Earth and heaven as we know it will pass away. It couldn’t stand before the great white throne. It had become so sin-infested and so painful it was like the whole of creation was groaning for God to come and do something. He will. He does. John saw it.
“Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth”, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. 2 I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. 4 ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” 5 He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” (Revelation 21: 1-5)
I am making everything new! Everything.
That word ‘new’ comes from a Greek word meaning = something quite unknown, remarkable, even marvellous.
Everything? Well I guess the Greek and true meaning of the word means everything!
So what will it be like?
1. It will be sin-free
‘there was no longer any sea’
In the near Eastern mythologies and the Jewish mind the sea symbolised all that was evil, fearful and chaotic. One of the manifestations of Satan was seen in the emerging beast of the sea. But there is nothing to emerge now for there is no sea (and no Satan either!).
This place is filled with goodness, perfect holiness and justice. All our lives we battle with the temptations, the consequences and the hurt that sin brings. We are the perpetrators of sin and at the same time the victims of the sin of others. There is no sin, no stain, nothing to mar our lives. There is a perfect new body created with no sin.
2. It will be the presence of God in perfection
“the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.”
The word dwelling is also the word ‘tent’ or ‘tabernacle’. John in his gospel spoke of the tabernacle of God as Jesus the Word dwelt amongst us and that is what we celebrate at Christmas. In the OT the ‘tent of God’ was where God revealed His presence. In the new place God reveals His presence. In that revelation our questions will be answered. The full revelation on everything that ever happened to us will be given.
3. It will be pain-free
He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain
No sickness, no disease. Your life may be marked with suffering and in many different ways. It is hard to imagine an existence without pain. All our past hurts, causes of hurt, they disappear. Tears of grief and pain belong to the past. Sorrow is replaced by happiness.
This is just a fleeting moment. Whatever this new heaven and earth will really like, it is what we have been created for. Some people pass through this stopping place for only a split second, some stay longer, but the journey really begins in the new creation. Eternity is not the end of time, it is the start of endless time. Life on this earth is the entrance porch, the waiting room, the door to our destiny, eternity.
The take-home for us is vast but the voice from the throne bellows with a command and one we do well to listen to. LOOK! This is the command throughout the Revelation. One that John obeys throughout and one that you and I are similarly called to position our lives in such a way that we look for what God will do. He will come and dwell again but in a way we have never known!
Missions Paul 