“And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.”
(Revelation 21:5)
I don’t see this much anymore (probably because I don’t watch TV!) but back in the 70’s and 80’s it seemed like almost every company was advertising its products as “new and improved.” I remember one man asking, “Geez, what were we using before, ‘old and lousy?’” Much like the Athenian philosophers of Paul’s day (Acts 17:21), we often find ourselves enamored of things that are new. Perhaps this is because God has built into us an awareness that, even when things are going well, everything on earth could be better. This goes in spades for us fallen image-bearers of God. Our thought lives could be godlier. Our motives could be purer. Our speech could be more gracious, and our conduct more fruitful. If all we had were these God-given intuitions on the matter, we could easily slip into a depression. We praise the holy God of heaven for granting us much more. We have His solid and dependable word, which promises us that stupendous change is coming. All things, including ourselves, will be “new and improved.” In fact, God has already begun this great work. Our original progenitor, Adam, has been replaced. The Lord Jesus, the Last Adam, stands as the new and (infinitely) improved representative of the (believing!) human family (1 Corinthians 15:45-49). He is the Mediator of a new and “better covenant, which was established upon better promises” (Hebrews 8:6).Christ has granted a new birth to those of us who have trusted in Him for salvation (John 3:1-8; Titus 3:5). Spiritually we are new creatures (2 Corinthians 5:21) who have been “created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:10). This is what it means to “walk in newness of life” (Romans 6:4). As New Covenant priests (1 Peter 2:5, 9), we serve our God “in newness of spirit, and not in the oldness of the letter” (Romans 7:6). With our new minds (Romans 12:2) came a new perspective, new wisdom, new insights and a new purpose (Matthew 28:19). Though we stumble and fail from time to time walking through this life (James 3:2), we remember that God’s mercies are new for us every morning (Lamentations 3:22-23). Our new citizenship is in heaven (Philippians 3:20-21), and we eagerly await our new, fully redeemed and glorified natures (Romans 8:14-19; 1 John 3:1-3). One day, as today’s verse passage reminds us, God will make all things new. Current struggles, trials, disappointments, and frustrations will be wiped from the earth, along with our tears (Revelation 21:4). The created order will be “new and improved,” in ways too wonderful to imagine (1 Corinthians 2:9). May this devotion be a help and an encouragement to you today, dear saints.
God bless,
Pastor John
English