The Day of the Lord is over. Eternity has started. This devotional reading looks at the the events at the beginning of eternity.
Nuggets
- The corrupt earth was replaced by a new earth and heaven.
- John saw something real, a new Jerusalem descending.
Sin has been vanquished. It is time to start eternity.
Earth has been destroyed, so something has to replace it. Let’s see what does.
Let's Put It into Context
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Devotions in the Eternity Begins series
The New Heaven and Earth
“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” (Rev. 21: 1 ESV)
The corrupt earth was replaced by a new earth and heaven.
The current earth was destroyed in Revelation 20: 11. “… From his presence earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them” (Rev. 20: 11 ESV).
No, we don’t really know what the current Heaven looks like. We just have John’s description in Revelation 4.
Isaiah prophesied the creation of a new earth with new heavens.
- “For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth, and the former things shall not be remembered or come into mind” (Isa. 65: 17 ESV).
- “And some of them also I will take for priests and for Levites, says the Lord. ‘For as the new heavens and the new earth that I make shall remain before me, says the Lord, so shall your offspring and your name remain. From new moon to new moon, and from Sabbath to Sabbath, all flesh shall come to worship before me, declares the Lord” (Isa. 66: 21-23 ESV).
Why do we need a new world? Monod helped us with that when he talked of creation of the first world. He wrote, “The creation of the world affords us a new lesson as to the manner in which God acts in the dispensation of grace.”
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Good comes from God. Evil comes from Satan. Satan’s evil limits the good God is willing to give us.
We led evil into this world. Because of that, God had to destroy what we had and make new. What He will give us will be very good because it is – and will always be – pure.
We can never forget that what is good that comes from God is also holy. Holiness is conformity of the soul to God’s divine nature –purity from moral imperfection, intense dedication to God’s good and hatred toward evil, and commitment that lead to our being set apart through consecration to mold to God’s Will.
It is about as Peter said. “But according to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells” (II Pet. 3: 13 ESV).
Think of it this way. Earth fits us now. We will fit the new earth and heavens will our glorified bodies.
Yes, some things as we know them will be gone. But things will be better. We will have fellowship with God.
Several sermons I read said focused on what it means having no seas on the new earth. Kneeland thought that was because seas would be seen as extras.
Well, we know the seas are a graveyard. “And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done” (Rev. 20: 13 ESV).
Macmillan said that the seas suggest separation. We will no longer be separated from God. Also, there will no longer be the need for separation into nations and races. There will be no division because of socioeconomic statuses, national, and religious differences.
Paul told us about this. “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (Gal. 3: 28 ESV).
Kneeland said there will be other differences.
- No buried secrets.
- No restless existence.
- No change.
- No storms of life.
- No more sin and rebellion.
- No more opposition.
- No more uneasiness and discontent.
- No more mystery.
- No more trouble.
- No more danger.
- No more mutations.
- No more fear and terror.
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Burkitt reminded us that the first beast was going to rise out of the sea. That would have been terrifying.
Remember, this was first century. They didn’t have the technology or knowledge we have today. So, super scary.
The New Jerusalem
“And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband” (Rev. 21: 2 ESV)
John saw something real, a new Jerusalem descending.
Jerusalem was a place chosen by God.
- “At that time Jerusalem shall be called the throne of the Lord, and all nations shall gather to it, to the presence of the Lord in Jerusalem, and they shall no more stubbornly follow their own evil heart” (Jer. 3: 17 ESV).
- “But be glad and rejoice forever in that which I create; for behold, I create Jerusalem to be a joy, and her people to be a gladness. I will rejoice in Jerusalem and be glad in my people; no more shall be heard in it the sound of weeping and the cry of distress” (Isa. 65: 18-19 ESV).
- “But I have chosen Jerusalem that my name may be there, and I have chosen David to be over my people Israel” (II Chron. 6: 6 ESV).
- “Thus says the Lord: I have returned to Zion and will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem, and Jerusalem shall be called the faithful city, and the mountain of the Lord of hosts, the holy mountain” (Zech. 8: 3 ESV).
- “As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the Lord surrounds his people, from this time forth and forevermore. Jerusalem—built as a city that is bound firmly together, to which the tribes go up, the tribes of the Lord, as was decreed for Israel, to give thanks to the name of the Lord. There thrones for judgment were set, the thrones of the house of David” (Ps. 125: 2-5 ESV).
- “For here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come” (Heb. 13: 14 ESV).
Yes, Jerusalem in the country of Israel was chosen by God. But it was defective. It was sinful as the rest of the world was.
In other words, Jerusalem failed. It wasn’t pure like God.
So, Christ made the last city, a new Jerusalem.
Vaughan identified Jerusalem as Heaven. Alternately, Bailey linked the Church to Jerusalem. He wrote, “Jerusalem in the Scriptures signifies the Church: a New Jerusalem must therefore mean a New Church.”
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The first time I read Bailey’s opinion, I had problems with it. Didn’t we just have a discussion that the Church did not replace Israel?
But then, this isn’t talking about Israel. It is talking about Jerusalem.
If Jerusalem was the capital city, the “crown jewel” of the nation, the Church is the “crown jewel” of God’s religion/relationships.
I, personally, like the idea that the new Jerusalem is Heaven. That would be a new concept.
But then Vaughan thought Heaven wasn’t a place. He thought it was more of a state of mind.
I don’t know. John saw it. He saw it descending.
Sounds real to me.
In a way, it doesn’t really matter what Heaven is. The most important thing is that Heaven is where God and Jesus are and all will be of one heart, mind, and soul.
Remember what Paul said. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come” (II Cor. 5: 17 ESV).
I think Paul was meaning that all things passed away, and all things are made new.
Making the Connections #1
Monod said something else very important. He wrote, “This doctrine, too, is necessary in order that you should not make a false application of what you have just heard respecting the sovereignty of God.”
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This doctrine is that we should glorify God for all that is good and holy.
We don’t want to make a false application. We make a false application when we try to make Jesus a social savior. That isn’t glorifying God.
God can’t be a part of anything that has evil mixed up in it.
Satan wants us to combine his views with God’s views. That makes our actions impure.
So, yes, it is good to feed the hungry. But if we do it for their physical being, we are’t doing God’s Will. We have to feed their spiritual needs.
Making the Connections #2
Waldo had an interesting observation. He says that science proves that there will be a new Heaven and earth.
Waldo noted the effect that our planet has on the others in our solar system. It repels them and will eventually bring them to a standstill.
In addition, the core of the earth consists of heat left over from creation, frictional heating, and radioactive decay from elements. Waldo told us what that means. He wrote, “And, in addition to this, you are to remember that science points out to us the fact that in the very [center] of our globe there exists a sufficient quantity of igniting matter to burst the crust of our globe, and make it a ruin at our feet.”
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God knew before the foundation of the universe that we would disobey Him. He knew that, while He created this Heaven and earth, He would need a new one.
So, no. Climate control isn’t going to help us save this planet. We will need to be inhabitants of the new heaven and earth. Waldo described the heaven as our atmosphere, not God’s home.
Remember, we are to be like Christ. No, not that we are supposed to be 100% God and 100% man.
We are to be man and spirit as He is. “Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is” (I Jn. 3: 2 ESV).
Making the Connections #3
Wagstaff told us what he thought we would like in the future. No, we wouldn’t be invisible. We won’t be mystical or fanciful.
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Wagstaff believed that, in some way, our souls would be reunited with our bodies – albeit a glorified body. He felt we would be doing material things.
That I don’t think so. I think we will be doing spiritual things – even if those look like material things. We will be doing things God’s way.
Making the Connections #4
In a roundabout way, Parkhurst said that we can’t rely on earthly knowledge. We can’t rely on our experiences or even our vocabulary to describe what Heaven is going to be like.
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Nothing we have now can describe the Heaven that is and will be. We can’t rely on our limitations.
So, let’s not speculate too much.
Making the Connections #5
Listen to what Bailey said. He wrote, “All things — science, literature, arts, philosophies, commerce, trade, intercourse between countries and provinces, and above all, in religion — all things will be made new.”
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Oh, that is interesting. I knew all but one on the list would be new. But science, too?
Well, science is a manmade construct to understand what we cannot understand. It is man’s attempt to understand what God knows and has done.
Of course, God would make that new.
Making the Connections #6
If New Jerusalem is Heaven, and we are to go to Heaven, why do we need a new earth?
Maybe New Jerusalem is where God’s and Jesus’ thrones will be. It descends to earth, so that earth and Heaven are one.
Maybe New Jerusalem is where the angels will be. They will be serving God as they are now.
Maybe earth is where we will be. We will have access to God because we can just go into the capital city. Regardless, I don’t think we will have trouble seeing God.
I may be wrong, but I don’t think we are going to be able to visualize it through our limited experiences.
How Do We Apply This?
The ABCDs of Salvation
If you have not become a believer in Christ, please read through the
Plan of Salvation and prayerfully consider what God is asking you to do.
A – admit our sins
B – believe His Son Jesus is our Redeemer
C – confess God as Sovereign Lord
D – demonstrate that commitment by making any changes needed in our lives to live the way in which God has called us
The Disciple’s Job Description
Father God. We look forward to a new Heaven and a new earth. We want to be with You as then we will be like Jesus. Amen.
What do you think?
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