| Good morning everyone, Our theme for this month: “Salvation past, present, and future” Our Bible verse for today: “But based upon his promise, we wait for new heavens and a new earth, where righteousness dwells.” 2 Peter 3:13 (CSB) Our thought for today: “Earth will still be earth, only new” As we continue to consider what life in eternity is going to be like for us in our resurrection bodies, it really is important to understand that the new earth is going to be like the current earth, only perfect. Author Randy Alcorn did a good job explaining this in his excellent book “Heaven”: “By calling the New Earth “earth,” God emphatically tells us it will be earthly, and thus familiar. Otherwise, why call it Earth? … the word “new” is an adjective describing a noun. The noun is the main thing. A new car is first and foremost a car. A new body is mainly a body. A new Earth is mainly an Earth … The Earth spoken of in Scripture is the Earth we know – with dirt, water, rocks, trees, flowers, animals, people, and a variety of wonders. An Earth without these things would not be Earth.” Christian poets, authors, and songwriters have often described this earth as just a shadow of the one to come and that in this world we get glimpses of the next. Biblically that is accurate. This world gives us a foretaste of what’s to come. Think about the things that bring you the most pleasure and joy in this world – the beauty of a sunset, the magnificence of the Grand Canyon, colorful flowers, laughing babies, the taste of ice cream. Now magnify those joys and pleasures millions of times and you begin to get a feel for how great eternity on the new earth in a resurrection body is going to be. I once read a statement written by “The Old Country Preacher” Dr. J. Vernon McGee. He was commenting on what he believed eternity will be like for us in our resurrection bodies. Dr. McGee was fascinated by outer space – the planets, stars, and galaxies. He always wanted to be an astronaut who could explore deep space. So, his fantasy for eternity was to spend the first 10,000 years just enjoying being in the presence of Jesus, and the second 10,000 going from planet to planet, star to star, galaxy to galaxy, exploring the wonders of God’s amazing universe. I don’t know if Dr. McGee will get to do that or not, but I think he is probably not far off in his imaginings about the possibilities that will be available to us in that day. Next, we will consider who we will get to do all those amazing things with. God bless, Pastor Jim (If you like what you are reading in these daily devotionals, and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00, in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville |
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