In Genesis 1, again and again we read that God’s creation was good. But, then sin entered and, like a virus, it spread into every part of creation. Every part of creation. It spread into man’s DNA, our very existence, our nature. But it also spread into the soil (blood), into the plants (weeds), into the rocks and streams and waters and air. It spread into space, into the universe. It spread into everything animate and inanimate. It spread into the spiritual realm with the serpent and demons and fallen angels. It is so invasive and so corrosive that the ultimate proper response is not to control or manage it, but simply to remove it.
In Revelation 21, we read that is what God does. Every part of creation dies. The living and the inanimate. The mortal and the spiritual. The earth and the cosmos. All of it simply goes away and exists no more. And, God starts a-new.
A new heaven and a new earth. A new existence that in which God is fully present, where there is no more hurt or pain or sadness or separation.
We get fleeting glimpses of this in our present day. The joy and innocence in a child’s eyes. The shiver of the spirit when we feel God move in our life. The peace that comes in the midst of prayer in a dire situation. While we long for these flickers to light into raging fires, they are too quickly gone, smothered in the sin of the world.
But these glimpses are not mirages, they are real. They are embers of the fire that burns in our God’s heart that He wants to place in ours for eternity. It is the warmth and peace and joy that surpasses all understanding and keeps our hearts and minds on the truth, on the Word, on Jesus Christ.
The challenge for us, as believers, is not in finding the words to say to share the good news of Jesus Christ. It is not in finding the spirit and conviction to talk to others. It is not in our prayer lives. The challenge is in our witness for Christ. All of those others things impact it, but our loudest witness is in living a life noticeably different than the rest of the world. A life that, despite the trials and tribulations, the pain and persecution, still shines with joy and assurance and peace. Too often the witness that people see is one of hypocrisy of lip-service and compartmentalization of our faith to an hour on Sunday morning. We are sinners and do not have the ability to shine this living witness on our own, but through prayer, reading the word and the power of the Holy Spirit, the reflection of God’s holiness can shine through us.
My Answers:
7.
Our current existence – because it has been corrupted by sin – all of creation, not redeemed directly by the saving power of Jesus Christ, must suffer death and destruction
8.
During the time in the garden God walked and talked with man daily. In isolated instances after He did the same (Enoch, Moses). He spoke to and through the prophets. He revealed himself in visions and direct signs and through angels (Lot, Daniel). He became man and dwelt among us (Jesus). He is coming again to reign for 1000 years after which time all creation will be purged and replaced with a new heaven and a new earth and only those who have committed their lives to Him will live for eternity in peace.
9.
a.
God’s answered prayer – Also that God has revealed Himself through circumstances that simply cannot be described in any other way than divine intervention.
b.
Because of the peace of the presence of the Holy Spirit – it is a feeling, but also a comfort and consolation and contentment that can be described in no other way than “from God”
The Notes are Good 