"I make all things new".

The title for this post is taken from the New Testament Book of the Revelation of Jesus the Christ, given to the apostle John while he was in exile on the island of Patmos. It's found in the 21st chapter, and the 5th verse where we read « And He Who sat upon the throne said, "Behold, I make all things new." ».

The words are spoken by Almighty God, Himself. That, to me, makes them very important. But what do these words mean? I believe that the most important word in the statement is the word "all". It has been playing in my mind for many months. What is excluded from "all"? The answer, obviously, is "Nothing!". What then is included? The equally obvious answer is "Everything"!

Doubtless, I shall (DV), at some point, preach on that statement. However, for this post, I want to suggest just three things that will be "made new" in the new heaven and the new earth.

The first of these is a new body. « Lo! » writes Paul, « I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. » (I Cor 15:51-52). This is a reference to that event - that I believe to be much closer than some are willing to admit! - that disciples of Jesus call "the rapture" (see I Thess.4:13-17). This even will, as Paul makes clear, take place in a flash - less than a nanosecond, to utilise modern terminology! However, the more important thing is not the speed at which it will happen, but the change that will take place. My mortal body - whether I be physically alive at the time, or already physically dead - will be instantaneously changed to an immortal body. Paul has already made reference to this earlier in that chapter (and see, also, Phil. 3:20-21). The physical body that I currently use will be of no use to me in the new heaven and the new earth. It is a body that is tainted with sin - and there will be no sin there! I need a "resurrection body" that is fit for the new environment in which I shall be living. Oh, and note - it will be a "physical" body, just as was the resurrection body of the Lord Jesus. He could be touched; He could eat and drink; yet He could suddenly appear in a locked room! I have my own theory as to how that might have happened - but it would take too much space in this post to explain! Suffice it to say that it has to do with molecular structure!

The second of the "all things" that I want to consider here is a new mind. I never even try to suggest that I am a perfect man - and if I ever did, a few minutes chatting to my wife, my children, other family members, and numerous friends, would quickly set the record straight! I freely acknowledge that I am a sinner. I am, it is true, a sinner who has been saved by the grace of God - but for as long as I live in this mortal body, I share the experience of Paul: « ... I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. For I delight in the law of God, in my inmost self, but I see in my members another law at war with the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin which dwells in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death ? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! » (Rom 7:21-25). However, I would claim that most of my sin is "mind-based". Not that that makes it any less sin! The Lord Jesus, Himself, made clear that, while the thought is not as bad as the deed, it is every bit as much sin! (cf. Matt.5:21ff). So, just as I need a new body to replace this body of sin and death, I need a new mind - one that has not been filled with sinful thoughts.

The third thing that I wish to mention is new relationships. When I was much younger, I thought as many still do, that when I got to heaven I would be meeting with those who had arrived there before me! Now, in my later life, I have come to the conclusion that that will not be the case! I won't be asking Paul for his personal exposition of his letter to the believers in ancient Rome. I won't be telling David, and Peter, what a great comfort each of them was to me. I won't be running around looking for my parents; my wife; my children. So what led me to that conclusion? Simply the words in the Revelation that state: « ... I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Behold, the dwelling of God is with men. He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be with them; He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain any more, for the former things have passed away." » (Rev 21:3-4; emphases added).

Now, if I were to be in the new heaven and the new earth, and knew that some of my most-loved ones were not there, I believe that I would be saddened beyond words. Therefore, I have concluded that I will not have that knowledge. I will be aware of others who are there, and who may well become my new friends. However, these will be new relationships at a level of which I am, currently, unable to perceive! Effectively, I will even have new memories!

These thoughts, of course, are my own. I have quoted God's written Word - but the ideas are not spelled out specifically. However, while I am not setting myself up beside Paul, I would dare to use his words (written in a totally different context) and: « ... give my opinion as one who by the Lord's mercy is trustworthy. » (I Cor 7:25).

Of course, all of the above is purely academic if one is not in a right relationship with Father God, through new life in the Spirit, because of the atoning sacrifice of the Lord Jesus at Calvary. If that is you, then there are links on the sidebar of the blog that may help and, of course, if I may be of any assistance, please feel free to contact me at the e-mail address at the top of the blog.

Broken things!

One of the many interesting characters in the Tanakh (what many people refer to as the Old Testament), is a man named Gideon.  You'll find the full record in the book of Judges 6-8, but the incident that has grabbed my attention is in Judges 7.  YHWH had whittled the army that Gideon had raised from some 32,000 fighting men to a mere 300!  These 300 were equipped, not with spears and swords, but with earthen jars that contained burning torches!

Right away, there is a picture of the true disciple of Jesus.  Writing to the believers in Corinth, Paul says: "... it is the God Who said, 'Let light shine out of darkness,' Who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, to show that the transcendent power belongs to God and not to us." (II Cor 4:6-7).   God the Holy Spirit dwells within every believer, and provides us with the power that we need to live victorious Christian lives.  Sadly, too many of us go through life without allowing that power to flow through us, and touch others.

The answer is found in this record of the life of Gideon.  The torches were there, but victory only came when the jars were broken!  Then the light shone out, and the Midianites (the enemy) fled in consternation.  Those of us who are disciples of Jesus also need, often, to be broken in order that the light of the Gospel might shine through us.  We complain about adversity; about challenges; about difficult situations.  Yet the written Word makes it abundantly clear that it is tried and tested individuals whom God uses most frequently!

Believers are in the light, but all too often we do not let it shine out to others.  In the home group in which I have the privilege of teaching, we are working our way through John's first letter.  It is John who reminds us, in that letter that if "... we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin." (I John 1:7).  We might well add, "and others will see Him in us"!  We may have the light of Almighty God inside - but we need to be "broken" before we become completely useful to Him!

Are you being crushed by disappointment, bereavement, pain, sickness, financial difficulties, employment problems, or whatever?  Remember that, while such experiences seem to be tragedies, they may well be God's way of getting through to you - "breaking" you in order that, by His grace, you may display more of His light to others. How could that happen?  Well, Father God deals with each of us as individuals, so I am not in a position to provide a definitive answer to that question.  However, it may be that the way in which you cope with your particular difficulty will cause someone to ask you how you do so! That provides you with an open door to share with that other person, your own testimony to the grace and power of God.

The important thing is to trust Him in spite of the trial, assured that He will give you the power to go on and win new victories for Him.  When you stand before Him, you "... shall understand fully, even as [you] have been fully understood." (I Cor 13:12), and the "why" of broken things will be made plain.

The hymn-writer put it so beautifully:

"Not now, but in the coming years;

it may be in the better Land;

we'll read the meaning of our tears

and there, sometime, we'll understand." (Maxwell N. Cornelius).