Revelation 21:1-4 ESV
“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. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 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. 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.’”
Life on this earth is temporary. We have an eternal home
awaiting us if we, by faith in Jesus Christ, have died with him to sin that we
might live to him and to his righteousness. For, eternal life with God is
promised to those who love and obey him, and who walk according to the Spirit
and no longer according to the flesh (1 Pet. 2:24; 1 Jn. 2:3-6; Rom. 8:1-17; 1
Jn. 1:5-9).
And, here the Holy City is not physical Jerusalem. This is
the new Jerusalem, which is from above, not of this earth. And we who believe
in Jesus Christ to be our Lord and Savior are part of her (Gal. 3:10, 16,
26-29; Gal. 4:22-31).
One day soon Jesus Christ is going to return for us, his
bride, and we will be with our Lord forever. At that time, our salvation will
be complete. Satan will no longer tempt us. Sin will cease to exist. We will no
longer experience sickness or sadness or death. And, Jesus will wipe away all
the tears from our eyes. Amen!
Revelation 21:5-8 ESV
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.” And he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment. The one who conquers will have this heritage, and I will be his God and he will be my son. But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.”
All of this has been decided, and it will come to pass. God
is always true to his word. What he says he will do will be done. So, this is a
sure thing. It will not change. It will surely take place.
So, what kind of people ought we to be if we want to have this
eternal life with our Lord Jesus secured? We need to be thirsty for God. We
need to be those who long for Jesus Christ, who desire him above all else. For,
we must hunger and thirst after righteousness – purity, holiness, truth,
godliness, faithfulness, and integrity – and we must walk in our Savior’s love.
And, we must be those who conquer sin via the Spirit of God.
Daily we are to die to sin and self and to follow our Lord Jesus in obedience
to his commands. We are to be those who are putting to death the deeds of the
flesh, by the Spirit. We are to walk (in lifestyle) according to (in agreement
with) the Spirit of God and NOT according to our flesh (Lu. 9:23-26; Rom.
6:1-23; Rom. 8:1-17; Eph. 4:17-24; 1 Jn. 1:5-9; 1 Jn. 2:3-6; Tit. 2:11-14).
But, if we are cowardly, instead, and we choose to continue
in our sin, and to choose it over God, we won’t inherit eternal life with God,
but what awaits us is the lake that burns with fire. And, we need to take this
seriously! (Gal. 5:16-21; Gal. 6:7-8; Eph. 5:3-6; Rom. 2:6-8; 2 Co. 5:10; Rom.
8:1-17).
For, we are not saved from our sins and bound for heaven on
a mere confession of faith in Jesus Christ. For, the faith that is required for
salvation comes from God and therefore it submits to God, and it walks in
obedience to our Lord’s commands. Thus, we must die to these sins: murder,
sexual immorality, idolatry, and lying, etc. And, we must walk in Christ’s
righteousness and holiness, if we want to see God.
Encouragement
We live in very troubled times. At least here in America,
our lives have been turned upside down. Life is not “normal” for any of us
anymore. Some of our freedoms have been taken away from us, at least for now. Going
about our every day business is not as comfortable or as easy for us as it once
was. Everything is more complicated now.
We have to keep our distance from other people, so that is a
hindrance to socialization and to Christian fellowship, too. Many people are
wearing face coverings, so that breaks down communication, as well. People aren’t
as friendly as they used to be, for they are now afraid of germs, and thus they
are afraid of other people who might be spreading germs.
And, now we are faced with another difficulty, but not
something our nation has not faced before. But it is being ignited, I believe
on purpose, to get people afraid, and to get them angry, and to get them
fighting one another. For, the world powers want to divide us so that they can
conquer us.
But it isn’t all that it appears. Much deception and
trickery are at play here. Videos can be altered. Anything can be faked. So, we
can’t trust what we see in the news or on social media. For, they want us to
believe what will get our emotions stirred up, because, again, they want us
angry and fighting.
But there is another goal here. The way that they conquer us
is by demonstrating for us how very sick we are, as a nation, so that they can
come to us with a preconceived solution to our problem. And, that solution is
solidarity. We must all become one with them, united in heart and mind, but not
with the mind and heart of God, but of men in their deceitful scheming.
But God is in control, and he has allowed all of this for a
purpose, which I believe ultimately is to get the attention of the people of
this world, and of this nation, and to turn them from darkness to light and
from the power of Satan to God, so that they can receive forgiveness of sins
and a place among those sanctified by faith in Jesus Christ (Acts 26:18).
So, I want all of us who believe in Jesus Christ to be
encouraged that our God is with us, and that he is going to see us through all
of this trouble we are now facing. Good will come out of it, but it is going to
get worse, if not now, soon. So, don’t let it take you out. Don’t succumb to
the temptation to get angry and to take matters into your own hands. Trust the
Lord and do good. And, put your life and your future in his hands.
Eternal
Father, Strong to Save
William
Whiting
Eternal Father, strong to save,
Whose arm does bind the restless wave,
Who bids the mighty ocean deep
Its own appointed limits keep;
O hear us when we cry to Thee
For those in peril on the sea.
O Savior, whose almighty word
The winds and waves submissive heard,
Who walked upon the foaming deep,
And calm amid the rage did sleep;
O hear us when we cry to Thee
For those in peril on the sea.
O Holy Spirit, who did brood
Upon the waters dark and rude,
And bid their angry tumult cease,
And give for wild confusion peace;
O hear us when we cry to Thee
For those in peril on the sea.
O Trinity of love and pow'r,
Your children shield in danger's hour;
From rock and tempest, fire, and foe,
Protect them where-so-e'er they go;
Thus, evermore shall rise to Thee
Glad hymns of praise from land and sea.
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