Revelation 21:1-4 (NIVUK)
Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,” for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. 2 I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. 4 ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”
In this famous passage, the author of Revelation puts together Isaiah 25:8 and 65:17 to create this wonderful picture of a world put right by God, the ‘new heaven and earth’. It’s not surprising that it is so often quoted, it’s the best description of what is often called heaven that we have, and it’s something to look forward too. This future vision can change the way we see the present too. In Surprised by Hope, New Testament scholar N.T. Wright says, “Hope, for the Christian, is not wishful thinking or mere blind optimism. It is a mode of knowing, a mode within which new things are possible, options are not shut down, new creation can happen.” Knowing the future the resurrection makes possible changes how we respond to the present, offering resilience to keep going and the inspiration we need to make the present a fairer and more loving place.
Open our eyes to what you have in store for us tomorrow so that we can see today in a new, hopeful, way.
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