This Christmas, look forward to Jesus making all things new.
Revelation 21:1–5 (ESV)
20:14 Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. 15 Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.
21 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. 2 And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. 4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”
5 And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”
Listen to passage & devotional:
Belgic Confession of Faith, Article 37: The Last Judgment (Part 2)
The evil ones will be convicted
by the witness of their own consciences,
and shall be made immortal—
but only to be tormented
in the everlasting fire
prepared for the devil and his angels.
In contrast,
the faithful and elect will be crowned
with glory and honor.
The Son of God will “confess their names”
before God his Father and the holy and elect angels;
all tears will be “wiped from their eyes”;
and their cause—
at present condemned as heretical and evil
by many judges and civil officers—
will be acknowledged as the “cause of the Son of God.”
And as a gracious reward
the Lord will make them possess a glory
such as the heart of man
could never imagine.
So we look forward to that great day with longing
in order to enjoy fully
the promises of God in Christ Jesus,
our Lord.
Summary
As John's vision of the future draws near to its completion, the scene he sees goes from one extreme to the other. After witnessing death and Hades thrown into the lake of fire, along with anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life, John sees that every reality we've ever known - all of what was included in the first heaven and earth - no longer exist!
In its place were a new heaven and new earth. It seems like there ought to be a grander name for this coming reality, but then again, what words could we use to adequately capture the splendor and goodness John describes? John's utilization of adjectives increases, however, to describe what he sees next.
He calls it the Holy City, the new Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God. Just the fact that an entire city descends down ought to give you enough amazement to chew on all day, but John's not finished. The scene, John writes, is like a bride, beautifully dressed for her husband. Any groom or father of the bride can appreciate the words John conveys this vision to us with!
As beautiful as this city is, the aesthetics are nowhere close to the best thing about it. It's the proximity of God's dwelling place. Finally, after 1,185 chapters (Genesis 3 - Revelation 20) spanning thousands of years, things are once again the way they're supposed to be: God's dwelling place is now with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God Himself will be with them as their God.
Dig Deeper
We have so much curiosity and so many questions about what life will be like in this new reality; everything from whether or not we'll recognize one another and maintain the same relationships to wondering what we'll do for tens of thousands of years. Our current mindset is focused on overcoming adversity, so it's hard to imagine anything different.
But John really doesn't tell us anything about what life will be like. All he passes along is what life in the new heavens and earth will not be like: death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore. John simply reports what he's been told by the One who was seated on the throne: "Behold, I am making all things new."
You're likely reading this on or around the 2,024th celebration Christmas day. You might be trying to count uncountable blessings in your life or trying to forget pain and disappointments that you've been counting for too many years. No matter where you find yourself now, thank God that when all things are made new, you will be found with Him!
ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who will wipe every tear from our eyes.
ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that you will remember in the midst of either pain or gladness that you're a citizen of this new world to come;
ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED:
Read the New Testament in a year! Today: Revelation 20
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