City Life Starter

Written by Paul Lane

The Word

21 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. ² And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. ³ And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place [tabernacle] of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people [peoples], and God himself will be with them [as their God.] ⁴ He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”

⁵ And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” ⁶ And 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 from the spring of the water of life without payment. ⁷ The one who conquers will have this heritage, and I will be his God and he will be my son.

Revelation 21:1-7 (ESV)

O Lord, you have searched me and known me!
² You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
    you discern my thoughts from afar.
³ You search out my path and my lying down
    and are acquainted with all my ways.
⁴ Even before a word is on my tongue,
    behold, O Lord, you know it altogether.
⁵ You hem me in, behind and before,
    and lay your hand upon me.
⁶ Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
    it is high; I cannot attain it.

⁷ Where shall I go from your Spirit?
    Or where shall I flee from your presence?
⁸ If I ascend to heaven, you are there!
    If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there!
⁹ If I take the wings of the morning
    and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,
¹⁰ even there your hand shall lead me,
    and your right hand shall hold me.
¹¹ If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me,
    and the light about me be night,”
¹² even the darkness is not dark to you;
    the night is bright as the day,
    for darkness is as light with you.

Psalms 139:1-12 (ESV)

²⁵ And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed.

Genesis 2:25 (ESV)

Reflection

Start with Genesis 2:25. Here you are presented with a picture of man (the created being) at the pinnacle of his being.  Or should I say a pinnacle of his being.  I’ve had this question for some time.  Now that man has fallen, is it God’s intention to restore man to where he was in Genesis 2:25, or does God intend man to be a higher creation than that?  While I don’t know, I have a feeling that it is the latter.  In 1 Corinthians 15:53-55, Paul explains that we are moving from the corruptible to the incorruptible.  Given that we were clearly corruptible in Genesis 2:25 form, an incorruptible man would be a higher being.

⁵³ For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.

⁵⁴ So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.⁵⁵ O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?

1 Corinthians 15:53-55

Also, it is my understanding that God intended that man be an eternal being, one who would live forever.  However, God intended man to have free will.  So, He was willing to risk that we might fall and not live forever, that we might be the free will creatures He intended us to be.  This is where things go a bit off track.  There seems to be a belief out there that because we sinned, we ruined God’s original plan, so now we must live out God’s Plan B.  This is the very thought I wish to attack.

You see, if we are living out God’s Plan B then Psalm 139 can not be true.  Plan B would mean that man has found a mountain top that God was not aware of, or a sea depth that had escaped God’s notice.  As a result, the thinking goes, God had to cobble together a redemption plan so that he could still have eternal fellowship with man.  I assure you; this is not the case.  There was no cobbling when God came upon Adam and Eve in Genesis 3.  Jesus was the plan for man all along.  So, did God plan for man to fall?  Is this all a setup, and we are just playing out a script that God has already written?  These are very good and interesting questions.  And they probably deserve answers at some point.  But if answers do not come quickly, what will you do?  Will you accept that man is a fallen being and just kind of get by with your life the best you can?  Or will you accept the very high plan that God has for you; a plan that involves change, struggle, and faithfulness to His call? 

Application

Shakespeare wrote that “all the world is a stage.”  Even if you were to live the rest of your life on a desert island, away from all humanity, your life would still be laid bare before the Lord.  He is our audience, and He is such a fan of our lives.  He is like President Lincoln, who loved the play McBeth, and would go to the playhouse and tell the actors which version of the play to perform.  It is to us to be faithful to the script God provides.  The story falls apart if each actor decides to be writers and they write their own version of God’s salvation.  Trust that He is on the throne and that His plan for your live is sufficient to satisfy all that you need or desire.

Prayer

Dear Lord, I rejoice that You are on the throne of my life.  I accept Your direction, Your judgements, and Your ways.  Teach me to follow Your leading always.  Grant me the grace to hear Your voice, to soften my heart, and to be faithful to follow You.  In Jesus’ name I pray, amen.