All Things New

Would you rather live in the city or in the country? The countryside is a great place to get away from people and noise, connect with God and nature, and be yourself. But then you lose the luxury, comfort, and convenience of the city. It would be ideal to have both—to enjoy all the good things the city offers without the darkness and oppression that usually accompany them.

Living in a utopia—a perfect city—is a dream as old as time. It has remained a dream because humans can’t create such a place without messing it up. But God can, and that’s what Revelation 21 is all about.

John describes a vision of the old Heaven and Earth passing away and being replaced by a union of the two, in which God lives in a spectacular city with His people. Heaven and Earth aren’t being destroyed. They’re being renewed, like how Jesus died and rose again, and how we die and are born again when we are baptised in His name (1 Corinthians 15:35-44).

And in this new city where Heaven and Earth are one, people can finally live in the utopia of ordered freedom that everyone wants. This is only possible after God destroys evil forever, which John describes as an absence of the “sea” the beast came from (Revelation 21:1). People always lie, manipulate, and oppress. Once God ends that forever, we can, at last, live at peace with each other and our Creator.

As Christians, we are citizens of God’s holy city even though it hasn’t fully manifested yet. We stand between our sinful world and the paradise Jesus wants to create. Our mission today is to live out that citizenship and call others to join us.

Watch the full sermon here.