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| Event 7 - New Earth |
| Overview |
Key Text
"And I
saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the
first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea." Revelation 21:1 |
"I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first
earth were passed away" (Revelation 21:1). The fire that consumes the
wicked purifies the earth. Every trace of the curse is swept away. No eternally
burning hell will keep before the ransomed the fearful consequences of sin.
One reminder alone remains: Our Redeemer will ever bear the marks of His crucifixion.
Upon His wounded head, upon His side, His hands and feet, are the only traces
of the cruel work that sin has wrought. Says the prophet, beholding Christ in
His glory: "He had bright beams coming out of His side: and there was the
hiding of His power" (Habakkuk 3:4, margin). That pierced side whence flowed
the crimson stream that reconciled man to God--there is the Saviour's glory,
there "the hiding of His power." "Mighty to save," through
the sacrifice of redemption, He was therefore strong to execute justice upon
them that despised God's mercy. And the tokens of His humiliation are His highest
honor; through the eternal ages the wounds of Calvary will show forth His praise
and declare His power.
"O Tower of the flock, the stronghold of the daughter
of Zion, unto Thee shall it come, even the first dominion" (Micah
4:8). The time has come to which holy men have looked with
longing since the flaming sword barred the first pair from
Eden, the time for "the redemption of the purchased possession." Ephesians
1:14. The earth originally given to man as his kingdom, betrayed
by him into the hands of Satan, and so long held by the mighty
foe, has been brought back by the great plan of redemption.
All that was lost by sin has been restored. "Thus saith
the Lord . . . that formed the earth and made it; He hath established
it, He created it not in vain, He formed it to be inhabited" (Isaiah
45:18).
Key Text
"And
the parched ground shall become a pool, and the thirsty land
springs of water: in the habitation of dragons, where each lay,
shall be grass with reeds and rushes." Isaiah
35:7 |
God's original purpose in the creation of the earth is fulfilled as
it is made the eternal abode of the redeemed. "The righteous shall
inherit the land, and dwell therein forever." Psalm 37:29.
A fear of making the future inheritance seem too material has led many to spiritualize
away the very truths which lead us to look upon it as our home. Christ assured
His disciples that He went to prepare mansions for them in the Father's house.
Those who accept the teachings of God's word will not be wholly ignorant concerning
the heavenly abode. And yet, "eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither
have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them
that love Him." 1 Corinthians 2:9. Human language is inadequate to describe
the reward of the righteous. It will be known only to those who behold it. No
finite mind can comprehend the glory of the Paradise of God.
In the Bible the inheritance of the saved is called "a country." Hebrews
11:14-16. There the heavenly Shepherd leads His flock to fountains of living
waters. The tree of life yields its fruit every month, and the leaves of the
tree are for the service of the nations. There are ever-flowing streams, clear
as crystal, and beside them waving trees cast their shadows upon the paths prepared
for the ransomed of the Lord. There the wide-spreading plains swell into hills
of beauty, and the mountains of God rear their lofty summits. On those peaceful
plains, beside those living streams, God's people, so long pilgrims and wanderers,
shall find a home.
Key Text
"But the meek shall
inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace." Psalm
37:11 |
"My people shall dwell in a peaceable habitation, and in sure dwellings,
and in quiet resting places." "Violence shall no more be heard in thy
land, wasting nor destruction within thy borders; but thou shalt call thy walls
Salvation, and thy gates Praise." "They shall build houses, and inhabit
them; and they shall plant vineyards, and eat the fruit of them. They shall not
build, and another inhabit; they shall not plant, and another eat: . . . Mine
elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands." Isaiah 32:18; 60:18; 65:21,
22.
There, "the wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them; and
the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose." "Instead of the
thorn shall come up the fir tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the
myrtle tree." "The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard
shall lie down with the kid; . . . and a little child shall lead them." "They
shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain," saith the Lord. Isaiah
35:1; 55:13; 11:6, 9.
Pain cannot exist in the atmosphere of heaven. There will be no more tears, no
funeral trains, no badges of mourning. "There shall be no more death, neither
sorrow, nor crying: . . . for the former things are passed away." "The
inhabitant shall not say, I am sick: the people that dwell therein shall be forgiven
their iniquity." Revelation 21:4; Isaiah 33:24.
Key Text
"And I heard a
great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with
men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God
himself shall be with them, and be their God." Revelation
21:3 |
There is the New Jerusalem, the metropolis of the glorified new earth, "a
crown of glory in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of thy
God." "Her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper
stone, clear as crystal." "The nations of them which are saved shall
walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and
honor into it." Saith the Lord: "I will rejoice in Jerusalem, and joy
in My people." "The tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell
with them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself shall be with them,
and be their God." Isaiah 62:3; Revelation 21:11, 24; Isaiah 65:19; Revelation
21:3.
In the City of God "there shall be no night." None will need or desire
repose. There will be no weariness in doing the will of God and offering praise
to His name. We shall ever feel the freshness of the morning and shall ever be
far from its close. "And they need no candle, neither light of the sun;
for the Lord God giveth them light." Revelation 22:5. The light of the sun
will be superseded by a radiance which is not painfully dazzling, yet which immeasurably
surpasses the brightness of our noontide. The glory of God and the Lamb floods
the Holy City with unfading light. The redeemed walk in the sunless glory of
perpetual day.
Key Text
"And they shall
build houses, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and
eat the fruit of them. They shall not build, and another inhabit; they
shall not plant, and another eat: for as the days of a tree are the days
of my people, and mine elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands." Isaiah
65:21-22 |
"I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the
temple of it." Revelation 21:22. The people of God are privileged to hold
open communion with the Father and the Son. "Now we see through a glass,
darkly." 1 Corinthians 13:12. We behold the image of God reflected, as in
a mirror, in the works of nature and in His dealings with men; but then we shall
see Him face to face, without a dimming veil between. We shall stand in His presence
and behold the glory of His countenance.
There the redeemed shall know, even as also they are known. The loves and sympathies
which God Himself has planted in the soul shall there find truest and sweetest
exercise. The pure communion with holy beings, the harmonious social life with
the blessed angels and with the faithful ones of all ages who have washed their
robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb, the sacred ties that bind
together "the whole family in heaven and earth" (Ephesians 3:15)--these
help to constitute the happiness of the redeemed.
There, immortal minds will contemplate with never-failing delight the wonders
of creative power, the mysteries of redeeming love. There will be no cruel, deceiving
foe to tempt to forgetfulness of God. Every faculty will be developed, every
capacity increased. The acquirement of knowledge will not weary the mind or exhaust
the energies. There the grandest enterprises may be carried forward, the loftiest
aspirations reached, the highest ambitions realized; and still there will arise
new heights to surmount, new wonders to admire, new truths to comprehend, fresh
objects to call forth the powers of mind and soul and body.
Key Text
"The heavens declare
the glory of God; and the firmament showeth his handiwork." Psalm
19:1 |
All the treasures of the universe will be open
to the study of God's redeemed. Unfettered by mortality, they
wing their tireless flight to worlds afar--worlds that thrilled with sorrow at
the spectacle of human woe and rang with songs of gladness at the tidings of
a ransomed soul. With unutterable delight the children of earth enter into the
joy and the wisdom of unfallen beings. They share the treasures of knowledge
and understanding gained through ages upon ages in contemplation
of God's handiwork. With undimmed vision they gaze upon the
glory of creation--suns and stars and systems, all in their appointed order circling
the throne of Deity. Upon all things, from the least to the greatest, the Creator's
name is written, and in all are the riches of His power displayed.
Key Text
"And
every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth,
and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and
all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honor,
and glory, and power, be unto Him that sitteth upon the
throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever." Revelation
5:13 |
And the years of eternity, as they roll, will bring richer and still more glorious
revelations of God and of Christ. As knowledge is progressive, so will love,
reverence, and happiness increase. The more men learn of God, the greater will
be their admiration of His character. As Jesus opens before them the riches of
redemption and the amazing achievements in the great controversy with Satan,
the hearts of the ransomed thrill with more fervent devotion, and with more rapturous
joy they sweep the harps of gold; and ten thousand times ten thousand and thousands
of thousands of voices unite to swell the mighty chorus of praise.
"And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the
earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying,
Blessing, and honor, and glory, and power, be unto Him that sitteth upon the
throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever." Revelation 5:13.
The great controversy is ended. Sin and sinners are no more. The entire universe
is clean. One pulse of harmony and gladness beats through the vast creation.
From Him who created all, flow life and light and gladness, throughout the realms
of illimitable space. From the minutest atom to the greatest world, all things,
animate and inanimate, in their unshadowed beauty and perfect joy, declare that
God is love.
Dear Reader,
God wants you to be a part of His soon coming kingdom and live with Him for eternity.
Do you want to be with Him? If your answer is yes... continue on with "Entering
the Kingdom"
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