From The Ashes
Revelation 21:1-6
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "See, the home of God is among mortals. He will dwell with them as their God; they will be his peoples, and God himself will be with them; he will wipe every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more, for the first things have passed away." And the one who was seated on the throne said, "See, I am making all things new." Also he said, "Write this, for these words are trustworthy and true." Then he said to me, "It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give water as a gift from the spring of the water of life."
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Have you ever spent time with a loved one or close friend or even time by yourself and realized that time could move in ways you didn't expect? I'm talking about the moments where you think only one hour has passed, but in reality, it was more like four… I'm talking those special occasions where you have quality time, and you find that you are so wrapped up in whatever it was you were doing you discover that morning has quickly turned to dusk. We might describe those experiences as being the very definition of a "good time." As we look at the passage for today, we find ourselves asking, "Have we been intentional about having those kinds of good times with God as well? Are we living with God as Christ lives with God and with each other as Christ is with us?"
This past week during a Bible study, I mentioned how we often associate the Book of Revelation with apocalyptic images that are reminiscent of modern interpretations such as the "Left Behind" series. But we don't find any of those things in this morning's reading… There is no fire, no brimstone, no separation of the chaff from the wheat. Instead what we find is a much more confusing scene… Instead of there being a violent cleansing of the world, God comes down from heaven to be with a hurting world. God makes a home among the messiness and the chaos and claims that there will be a new creation, a home where there will be no more death, no more mourning and crying, a home where the "first things have passed away."
When we hear those words, the promise of God making all things new, we might think that they are some far off distant musing about what the future is going to look like. We might not believe that those words carry any significant weight in the here and now. This tension isn't new, in case you're wondering, people across the ages have wrestled with what it means to live with the future promises of the divine and the current situations they find themselves in their daily lives. And it isn't easy to reconcile these things when we're concerned about things like finances, work, relationships, or find that you are wrapped in a cloud of grief.
We are living in what is commonly known as the "in-between" time that falls somewhere in the middle of the present and the future. It truly is a brain teaser and if you have the answer let me know, but I don't believe there is a clear and concise reply to those who find themselves asking how the promises of God speak to us in the here and now and the days to come. But add into the mix then the turbulence of life, and it's many ups and downs, and it can be hard to see how this new creation is going to come into existence. It takes faith, which is easier said than done sometimes, but perhaps it requires a persistent faith and persevering, a faith that can adapt to our rapidly changing world and meet the needs of not only our souls but the souls of those around us as well.
John, who is traditionally thought to be the writer of this book, was in a quite a predicament when he wrote the Book of Revelation. It was said that John was exiled to the Island of Patmos by the Romans during a time of conflict between the government and the growing religious diversity within the empire. If we were in John's place, it would be tempting to think that the world was going to burn and turn into a pile of ash, but John saw something different. John saw beyond the imminent threat and fear and sets a focal point for us to set our eyes upon when we struggle with the complexities of life and our souls.
It can be hard living as people who exist "in-between" the time of the present and future promises of God. And what complicates the matter, even more, is that the future isn't some far off time, but like I said before it is also now! From the ashes, from death and chaos, God makes all things new today and tomorrow. If it sounds confusing, don't worry. What's essential is that we live in faith, knowing that God is with us as the "Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end." Everything around is always going to be in some flux, but the love, the commitment of God, has been steadfast for generations. It is what has allowed new things to come out from the ashes and bloom into the beautiful new something that God is doing in our lives, in our world, today!
Recognizing these things there are a couple of points in this morning's reading that we should indeed take to heart as we go about our daily lives… The first is that the author is asking whether or not we are going to side with God and be a part of the new creation. It's a vital question… God can cast the vision, but if there isn't any buy-in from all of us, then what's the point? So let us reconsider these word you heard earlier, "Ἰδοὺ καινὰ ποιῶ πάντα" (Behold, I make all things new). "Πάντα," it's the Koine Greek word meaning "all." But this word, πάντα, doesn't mean "all" in a way that comes with stipulations and conditions… It means "all" in the purest sense of the word (every part, every piece, everything that makes up the whole).
The love that God has for the creation and all of us should be something that isn't shocking or new… I mean it is unfortunate that we have to remind ourselves that God loves us just the way we are, but this passage from Revelation should bring us back to the very beginning of the Book of Genesis where we find that after God had created the world, it was pronounced to be "good." Except for this time things are different… We are meeting God, being with God as the people we were created to be. Unlike the story in the beginning in Genesis, we can be with God entirely even after having obtained knowledge from the forbidden tree. All of these things, and I mean all of it, are a part of God's new creation, and this vision is set before us, and we are asked whether or not we are going to buy in as disciples who bring their own unique stories and experiences to the table.
Moving to the second point that is important for us to remember this morning is that once we commit ourselves to this new creation, there is a responsibility to be an active participant, a steward, a disciple. In our first reading this morning we heard Jesus speak these words, "Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this, everyone will know that you are my disciples if you have a love for one another." (John 13:34-35) The new creation requires not only buy in but an investment as well. It's one thing to say that you're a part of the new creation, but it's another to say that you are an active participant.
I think that this is something we have a harder time understanding when compared to faith communities around the world, especially those in the global South… Most of us here probably think of the new heaven and new earth as being something that is not connected with the world we live in right now. But for many who come from places like South America and Africa the new heaven and new earth are likened to that of a village where all people are free to walk in and commune with the physical world and the spiritual. It sounds like something out a fantasy book while in reality, this is a picture of how we should and are interacting with the world around us! We communicate with the physical, but at the same time, we interact with the sparks of divine that exist within you, me, and all of creation!
This passage is telling the tale of the changing of seasons, the different phases we go through in life while remaining in the arms of God. From the ashes comes new life, from new life comes new opportunities, and from those new opportunities, we discover where God is calling us to go. There's an old hymn, "I Sing a Song of the Saints of God," that ends with a verse that I think ties it all together:
"They lived not only in ages past, there are hundreds of thousands still, the world is bright with the joyous saints who love to do Jesus' will. You can meet them in school, or in lanes, or at sea, in church, or in trains, or in shops, or at tea, for the saints of God are just folk like me, and I mean to be one too.
The saints of God, the merging of the physical and spiritual, the rising of new life from the ashes, happens every day. While we hold fast to the promises of God that are to come, we also hold just as fast to the hopes of the future that are with us today, tomorrow, and the day after tomorrow. So let us carry onward as people who offer what they have, embrace who they are, and grow with the community of saints and creation as God makes all things new forever and ever. Amen.