All Things New

Read: Isaiah 65:17-25

[The Lord said,] “Look! I am creating new heavens and a new earth, and no one will even think about the old ones anymore.” Isaiah 65:17

IN WORD

If God has gone to such trouble to restore the “icons” of His presence—transforming us to look like His image once again—doesn’t it make sense that He would restore the cosmic Temple in which He placed those icons to begin with? If the world was designed as a temple for Him, the Garden was the Holy Place within the temple, and the image-bearers were placed in the Holy Place to reflect Him, wouldn’t He restore the world and the Garden just as He is restoring the image-bearers?

Of course, and that’s exactly what we see in Scripture. The prophets foretold a new heaven and a new earth, and at the end of Revelation we see a restoration of Eden. It’s now more than a garden—it’s also the City of God—but the river of life and the tree of life are there. Eden makes a return.

Even in the days of Noah, when God promised destruction of all He had made, it wasn’t a complete destruction as we might expect. The earth remained, and a family was preserved as a remnant. God doesn’t throw away first drafts like a writer does; He knows from the beginning how things will go, and He has a plan. His plan for this planet is not ultimately for destruction but for restoration. There will be times of cleansing, but not of annihilation. Our King is making His Kingdom new.

IN DEED

That’s what God does. He makes things new. Whether it’s an individual life, a dead and decaying dream, a broken relationship, or an entire rebellious planet, He has a plan for renewal and restoration. He transforms broken images back into their right design. He heals broken bodies and relationships. He restores the years the locusts have eaten. He makes beauty out of ashes, turns mourning to dancing, and gives double blessings in places where a curse has done its devastation. In every area of life, He has a solution. Hang on to that promise. It flows from His nature, and His nature never changes.

ADDITIONAL READING: Revelation 21:1-5; 22:1-5

Christianity is not a system of doctrine but a new creature.

JOHN NEWTON