“Behold, I will create new heavens and a new earth. The former things will not be remembered, nor will they come to mind. But be glad and rejoice forever in what I will create, for I will create Jerusalem to be a delight and its people a joy…Before they call, I will answer; while they are still speaking, I will hear. The wolf and the lamb will feed together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox, but dust will be the serpent’s food. They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountains, says the Lord.” (Isaiah 65:17-8, 24-25, NIV). “But in keeping with His promises, we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness.” (2 Peter 3:13, NIV). “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. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘Now 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. 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.” (Revelation 21:1-4. NIV).
A new heaven and a new earth are the ultimate hope of redemptive history. The description by the prophet Isaiah became the prototype of the Messianic Kingdom of John’s vision in Revelation. We still await this blessed hope. God who created the first heaven and the first earth has the power, wisdom and authority to create a new heaven and a new earth. And it will be beyond any human ability to describe it. Even Isaiah with lofty metaphors and John with exceptional visions could not picture fully the glory of the coming new heaven and new earth. The promise is there, solid and secure, for Christians to grasp and believe. God has promised and He will fulfill. His sovereign promise came to pass in the birth of His only begotten Son. Likewise, His sovereign promise will yet come to pass in “the new heaven and the new earth.”
God’s new heaven and earth will not be a place of mourning and sadness. All tears will be eliminated. Death and separation will not be known in the new heaven and earth. Those who on earth as we now know it follow the Lord in faith and fellowship, will dwell in peace and harmony with one another throughout eternity. Death, which began because of the sin of humanity, will be completely defeated in the new heaven and earth. No more will we know sad aspects of human existence: death, tears, mourning, crying and pain. No fear will overtake us, for those once at enmity with each other will be at peace. The redeemed will finally become what God had in mind for His people all along. Limitations and problems of life as we know them will be no more. And even with the beautiful description, it will be better than we can imagine!
c Ethelene Dyer Jones; Sunday, December 18, 2010
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