Life in a Fog: 4th Week of Advent, Day 4

Week 4 Day 4: Revelation 21:1-4

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and the old earth had disappeared. And the sea was also gone. And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven like a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.

I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, “Look, God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them. He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.” (NLT)

Jesus came as Immanuel, God with us. Jesus is the best representation of Who God is. More than prophets or laws or poetry, Jesus fully expresses the nature of God. But, there is still something missing. God is with us, but we are not yet with God.

As I look out my window this morning, I see the skeletons of trees shrouded in translucent white. The fog obscures the sun. It’s mysterious. Or, as my two-year-old daughter would say, “It’s ‘pooky.”
What we know of God is only what is right in front of our face, just like being in a thick fog. We know what the Bible says about God. At least, we think we do. We know what we have experienced of God. God is with us.

One day, we will be with Him, and all of our questions, fears and doubts will be cleared away. One day, faith will be unnecessary, because we will have “sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7).

Today, we have faith and Immanuel, God with us. We look forward to a day when death, sorrow, crying and pain will be gone forever. In the meantime, we need to take the tools that God has given us and fulfill His purpose on this earth.

What you are facing today is only temporary? It may seem like it will last forever. But, for the believer, only Heaven lasts forever.

Copyright © 2009 by Allen White

All Scripture quotations taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation. Copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.