30 December | EVERYONE
«Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea.» Revelation 21: 1
Why do you think this world will be destroyed when Christ returns? The reason is that this world is completely disfigured. God gave us a wonderful planet, and we turned it into a huge ecological garbage dump. He created happy, balanced human beings, and we became crazed, pleasure-devouring machines. There is war where there was only peace. There is death where life once reigned. Everything needs to be destroyed so that God can recreate it. It is not about improving this planet; it is about creating a whole new world. And now John sees the new Earth, without pain, without sorrow, without sickness, without death. The picture of human history is complete. In the beginning there was a perfect world. We ruined it, but Christ loved us so much that He came to seek us, save us, and restore us.
The prophet Isaiah says that in the new earth the redeemed “they shall build houses and inhabit them; they shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit. They shall not build and another inhabit; they shall not plant and another eat” (Isa. 65:21-22). Can there be more social justice than this? The struggle between capital and labor will have ended. There will be no more exploitation of man by man, no more social class struggle.
Violence will also end. “The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, the lion shall eat straw like the ox, […]. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain,” (65:25). This is the end of everything and the beginning of a life without end. Revelation ends by recounting the final victory of Jesus and His redeemed, and the complete eradication of sin. All who chose to follow Him will finally enter their heavenly home with Christ.
Take Action
You are special to Jesus. He loves you very much, He never thought you were impossible, despite the slips of your life. He waits for you with open arms. Go to Him every day. Surrender yourself into His hands bathed in the blood of His grace. Sing “I Saw a New Heaven” (if possible, with your family).