“From his throne, Jesus declared, ‘I am making all things new!’ … Creation, like our bodies, will be resurrected, healed, and brought into the fullness of beauty and goodness. Our tears will be wiped and their pain redeemed… The kings of the earth will bring their splendor into the New Jerusalem (Rev.21:1-4, 24)… Abba’s children will reign as curators, cultivators, and cherishers of the new heaven and new earth. God will be worshiped, adored, and served forever.” (Paraphrase Rev.22:3-5; 2 Cor.5:17).
Dear Jesus, I have had so many bone-headed, sentimental, boring notions of heaven. In my childhood, heaven seemed more like a metaphor and an adjective than an actual place. My generation actually created “Heavenly Ham.” But heaven will be 100,000 times more knee-buckling and heart-enthralling than we can imagine.
For starters, we will see you as you are, and we will become 100% like you (Hallelujah!). Every relationship will be perfect. Every longing for intimacy you’ve written into our DNA will be fulfilled and over-filled. We will finally love as you love as you deserve. Every tear will be wiped, and the pain of every tear will be redeemed.
Jesus, because you are making all things new—not all new things, there will be a lot of continuity with this world and the world to come. Places dear to us now will become even dearer. Everything broken will become a better version of its original, for your Story is a story of redemption not replacement. Truly, Eden was just a hint, whisper, foretaste of things to come.
So, what is the “splendor of the kings” and what will we do with all those accumulated treasures? As your Word suggests, the best of the art, culinary flavors, culture markers, music, artifacts, truth, goodness, and beauty of every nation will be celebrated and blended to reveal even more of your glory. It’s hard to wrap our heads around that, but not hard to say, “Thank you!”
We will “reign” forever as worshipers, builders, adventurers, creators, and “enjoyers” New Creation culture. Jesus, thank you for a heaven that’s way more “heavenly” than we ever imagined. So Very Amen.
