The Christian does not think God will love us because we are good, but that God will make us good because He loves us.
- C.S. Lewis
Please see our reprint of R. A. Torrey's essay entitled, Love Of God for an excellent introduction to the Bible's handing of this all important topic.
In this article we explore the quantum spiritual nature of God's love for fallen mankind. Truly as expansive as it is misunderstood. More beautiful and costly than a universe of the finest gems, it’s radiance reflects nothing less than the blazing heart of Omnity’s glory. Yet the Bible’s context and content, when taken as a whole, makes it abundantly clear such “unapproachable light” hold’s the key to both humanity’s greatest promise and peril.
For those interested in honestly investing the necessary time and energy to tackle life’s ultimate questions, the centrality of faith becomes self evident. Armed with compelling reasons to believe in God as presented by Scripture, further issues emerge. To what degree is God good and fair? Supreme in transcendence, how knowable and approachable is Omnity? Given God’s apparent silence and distance, particularly in the face of overwhelming human pain and suffering, how assured can we be of Divine mercy and faithfulness?
Unfortunately a thorough handling of the topic of God’s love, Scripture’s most meaningful message to mortal man, is problematic for a variety of reasons. Topping the list is our vastly limited and subjective understanding and experience of both God and love.
While the Bible explicitly reinforces God’s immanent and imminent nature and presence throughout the history of eternity, humanity’s limited capability and interest often obscures our understanding of the all wise God who alone is eternal and incorruptible, immortal and invisible. Like nature, religion abhors a vacuum. More often than not mankind has opted for the easier path of creating God in our image. Such subjectivity accounts for not only a plethora of world religions but various divisions and denominations within modern Christianity often preaching a variety of Christs and versions of the gospel.
Often confused with sentimentality and emotionalism, both of which have a proper place, the Bible warns the evidence of experiencing God’s love is the incremental yet complete conversion and transformation of mind, heart and will. Yet given a growing litany of acts of aggression and atrocity, not to mention a host of lesser evils and neglects, mankind’s and even Christendom’s track record displays an all but wanton disregard when it comes to loving our neighbor as ourselves. As the Bible explains:
- “And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. We love because he first loved us. Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen.” 1 John 4:16-17,19 NIV
Utilizing the concrete revelation of Scripture to navigate the abstract nature of spirituality is always wise. Let us continue by offering the idea that the Apostle John may qualify as the recipient of the greatest experience of the love of God among all Biblical authors, if not humanity itself. One of Christ’s favored three among the twelve, the “disciple whom Jesus loved” wrote John 3:16 as well as the “love epistles.” Tellingly, it was to this same John that from the cross Jesus entrusted the care of his mother Mary and then that of Scripture’s greatest Revelation of the judgment of God.
Further complicating matters is our conception and/or misconception of love, particularly godly love as expressed in Scripture. Herein lies our dilemma. By nature and costly atonement, Christ is clearly the model mediator between a Holy God and sinful man. Nevertheless, humanity frequently fails to recognize, much less meet, the necessary conditions to receive the free gift’s Jesus graciously offers. Consider the contemporary rendering of the most beloved passage in all of Scripture:
- “This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life. God didn’t go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to put the world right again.” John 3:16-17 The Message
Great so far. But finish the passage, as few are want to do, and a problem becomes clear:
“This is the crisis we’re in: God-light streamed into the world, but men and women everywhere ran for the darkness. They went for the darkness because they were not really interested in pleasing God. Everyone who makes a practice of doing evil, addicted to denial and illusion, hates God-light and won’t come near it, fearing a painful exposure. But anyone working and living in truth and reality welcomes God-light so the work can be seen for the God-work it is.” John 3:19-21 The Message
Issues with God can be touchy subjects. Consciously or not we all have them. Our unanswered questions, sorrows and complaints may be clearly on our minds and evident in our behavior, or buried in the recesses our soul. They shape our relationships and worldview, influencing the course of all our lives. Few have the courage to open such a can of worms and examine deep and universal challenges to faith. Billions feel trying to understand or relate to Omnity's already such an impossible assignment, any additional effort is a waist.
Billions of others appear to justify God in word and song, all the while living lifestyles suggesting their hearts are actually far from Him. Still others protest God transcends human experience, rendering the subject of disappointment with God moot. Thankfully God continues to extend His gracious offer to all of mankind, “Come now, and let us reason together..."
Quantum Entanglement
While few care to fully admit it, the spiritually quantum nature of the dual revelation of God’s love and wrath is a consistent Biblical theme. The interplay of the importance and propriety of the fear of and love for God is found throughout Old and New Testaments, up to and including Christ’s harsher teachings and Jesus judging His church. Not surprisingly, if we take another look at John 3:16-17 as often expressed by less contemporary versions, we find this pair as bookends of what may be Scripture’s most famous and beloved passage:
- “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” John 3:16-17 NKJV
- “Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.” John 3:18-21 NKJV
Here we see this promise of all promises has three primary conditions:
1. Believe in the Name: Here, as elsewhere in Scripture, we are warned that the quality of belief that saves requires living faith that greatly surpasses mere mental assent. A point on which James, Christ’s half brother and head of the First Church Council of Jerusalem, is emphatic:
- “…You can no more show me your works apart from your faith than I can show you my faith apart from my works. Faith and works, works and faith, fit together hand in glove. Do I hear you professing to believe in the one and only God, but then observe you complacently sitting back as if you had done something wonderful? That’s just great. Demons do that, but what good does it do them? Use your heads! Do you suppose for a minute that you can cut faith and works in two and not end up with a corpse on your hands?” James 2:18-20 MSG
2. Come into the Light: Both an event and process, willingness to diligently develop the kind of expertise and experience necessary to fully enter and embrace God’s light is an essential condition of profiting from Divine forgiveness and love. Tragically, such virtues appear hard won and in increasingly short supply:
- “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad and easy to travel is the path that leads the way to destruction and eternal loss, and there are many who enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow and difficult to travel is the path that leads the way to [everlasting] life, and there are few who find it.” Matthew 7:13-14 AMP
- “First off, you need to know that in the last days, mockers are going to have a heyday. Reducing everything to the level of their puny feelings, they’ll mock, “So what’s happened to the promise of his Coming? Our ancestors are dead and buried, and everything’s going on just as it has from the first day of creation. Nothing’s changed.” They conveniently forget that long ago all the galaxies and this very planet were brought into existence out of watery chaos by God’s word. Then God’s word brought the chaos back in a flood that destroyed the world. The current galaxies and earth are fuel for the final fire. God is poised, ready to speak his word again, ready to give the signal for the judgment and destruction of the desecrating skeptics.” 2 Peter 3:3-7 MSG
3. Live by the Truth: As the Way, the Truth and Life, following Christ’s commands and example is imperative for all those who would be saved, much less develop actual rather than presumptive Divine intimacy. This aspect of benefiting from the brilliant love of the Creator of fifty billion trillion blazing suns is reflected in innumerable verses including:
- “Knowing the correct password—saying ‘Master, Master,’ for instance—isn’t going to get you anywhere with me. What is required is serious obedience—doing what my Father wills. I can see it now—at the Final Judgment thousands strutting up to me and saying, ‘Master, we preached the Message, we bashed the demons, our God-sponsored projects had everyone talking.’ And do you know what I am going to say? ‘You missed the boat. All you did was use me to make yourselves important. You don’t impress me one bit. You’re out of here.’ Matthew 7:21-23 MSG
- “As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love. If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.” John 15:8-10 NKJV
- “God means what he says. What he says goes. His powerful Word is sharp as a surgeon’s scalpel, cutting through everything, whether doubt or defense, laying us open to listen and obey. Nothing and no one is impervious to God’s Word. We can’t get away from it—no matter what.” Hebrews 4:12-13 MSG
- “This, in essence, is the message we heard from Christ and are passing on to you: God is light, pure light; there’s not a trace of darkness in him. If we claim that we experience a shared life with him and continue to stumble around in the dark, we’re obviously lying through our teeth—we’re not living what we claim. But if we walk in the light, God himself being the light, we also experience a shared life with one another, as the sacrificed blood of Jesus, God’s Son, purges all our sin. If we claim that we’re free of sin, we’re only fooling ourselves. A claim like that is errant nonsense. On the other hand, if we admit our sins—make a clean breast of them—he won’t let us down; he’ll be true to himself. He’ll forgive our sins and purge us of all wrongdoing.” 1 John 1:5-9 MSG
As is clear from these and a host of other verses, no individual Divine attribute supplants another. For example, the previously quoted verse from 1 John declares God is love. A beautiful promise often preached. Yet a Scripture getting far less air time is equally adamant that God is a consuming fire:
- “See to it that you do not refuse him who speaks. If they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, how much less will we, if we turn away from him who warns us from heaven? At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.” The words “once more” indicate the removing of what can be shaken—that is, created things—so that what cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our “God is a consuming fire.” Hebrews 12:25-29 NIV
And our response to all this? Declare God’s love unconditional, a term and concept not appearing once in the Bible cover to cover. Promote eternal security and a pre-tribulation rapture, all Scripture to the contrary. We Protestants add the further mistake of exchanging being the Church for merely attending seeker friendly fellowships most of which espouse cheep grace all the while singing the most inappropriate intimate worship songs in human history. And as if all this were not enough, we contemporary Charismatics go the extra mile by playing fast and loose with the truth in regards to spiritual gifts up to and including personal and corporate prophecies of “peace, peace when there is no peace.”
Why So Serious?
Admittedly the above analysis is far removed from the spiritual world view being offered by the vast majority of modern Christendom. So much so that it is all but immediately rejected by even somewhat well meaning and informed believers. And so it should be, were it not for two undeniable facts. First and foremost, this unfortunate evaluation is not only in keeping with the warnings of Scripture but built upon them as demonstrated by the tenor of those already quoted and myriads more. Particularly those describing conditions in the last days:
- “In the confusion, lying preachers will come forward and deceive a lot of people. For many others, the overwhelming spread of evil will do them in—nothing left of their love but a mound of ashes. Staying with it—that’s what God requires. Stay with it to the end. You won’t be sorry, and you’ll be saved. All during this time, the good news—the Message of the kingdom—will be preached all over the world, a witness staked out in every country. And then the end will come.” Matthew 24:11-14 MSG
- “ The Spirit makes it clear that as time goes on, some are going to give up on the faith and chase after demonic illusions put forth by professional liars.” 1 Timothy 4:1 MSG
- “Don’t be naive. There are difficult times ahead. As the end approaches, people are going to be self-absorbed, money-hungry, self-promoting, stuck-up, profane, contemptuous of parents, crude, coarse, dog-eat-dog, unbending, slanderers, impulsively wild, savage, cynical, treacherous, ruthless, bloated windbags, addicted to lust, and allergic to God. They’ll make a show of religion, but behind the scenes they’re animals. Stay clear of these people.” 2 Timothy 3:1-5 MSG
- “Let no one in any way deceive or entrap you, for that day will not come unless the apostasy comes first [that is, the great rebellion, the abandonment of the faith by professed Christians], and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction [the Antichrist, the one who is destined to be destroyed], who opposes and exalts himself [so proudly and so insolently] above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he [actually enters and] takes his seat in the temple of God, publicly proclaiming that he himself is God…For the mystery of lawlessness [rebellion against divine authority and the coming reign of lawlessness] is already at work; [but it is restrained] only until he who now restrains it is taken out of the way.” 2 Thessalonians 2:3-4, 7 AMP
- “The coming of the [Antichrist, the lawless] one is through the activity of Satan, [attended] with great power [all kinds of counterfeit miracles] and [deceptive] signs and false wonders [all of them lies], and by unlimited seduction to evil and with all the deception of wickedness for those who are perishing, because they did not welcome the love of the truth [of the gospel] so as to be saved [they were spiritually blind, and rejected the truth that would have saved them]. Because of this God will send upon them a misleading influence, [an activity of error and deception] so they will believe the lie, in order that all may be judged and condemned who did not believe the truth [about their sin, and the need for salvation through Christ], but instead took pleasure in unrighteousness.” 2 Thessalonians 2:9-12 AMP
The second evidence is the disastrous effect the distractions and temptations, deceptions and demonic resistance of modern life has and continues to unleash upon Churchianity. And the world we've been commissioned to reach. Simply put, the disconnect between 1st and 21st Century life is so profound as to make genuinely following Christ incredibly problematic. Evidence of this tragic fact is not only everywhere but growing. From the unrelenting secular assault against God’s existence to the wholesale rejection of Biblical authority. From modern Christianity’s unprecedented worldliness to doctrines of me-ism undermining obedience to Scriptures commands.
Consciously or not, believers and their counterparts often intuitively ask two obvious questions:
1. Why should a merciful and loving Creator and Savior place strenuous requirements on mankind?
2. Given Christ’s fantastic and costly atonement, Pentecost and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, the compiling and mass distribution of Scripture (6 billion printed copies) not to mention millennia of Church history… how could the afore mentioned spiritual holocaust be remotely true?
In a word…Satan. The original sinner and arch deceiver. Once the supreme Arch Angel Lucifer, his rebellion is rumored to have caught 1/3 of Heaven’s ancient and brilliant, glorious and holy angels in its wake! According to Scripture, his marring of the history of eternity has and will continue to spill onto Earth’s in undetected yet increasing ways. As “accuser of the brethren” his indictments over the growing litany of the sins of mankind, including those of modern Christianity, fill the Supreme Court of Heaven. His impending expulsion from Heaven to Earth can only serve to exponentially magnify the Devil’s influence as the “god of this world” and “prince and power of the air.” The installment of his Antichrist, “the spirit of which is already at work” means the deception of the entire world as well as war against and the martyrdom of the Church.
Rarely given his due, marginalizing the Devil is an act of presumption masquerading as faith. One that has proved devastating to both Churchianity and the whole of mankind to whom we are called to be salt and light:
- “You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste (its strength, its quality), how can its saltness be restored? It is not good for anything any longer but to be thrown out and trodden underfoot by men. You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do men light a lamp and put it under a peck measure, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. Let your light so shine before men that they may see your moral excellence and your praiseworthy, noble, and good deeds and recognize and honor and praise and glorify your Father Who is in heaven.” Matthew 5:13-16 AMPC
- “And that about wraps it up. God is strong, and he wants you strong. So take everything the Master has set out for you, well-made weapons of the best materials. And put them to use so you will be able to stand up to everything the Devil throws your way. This is no afternoon athletic contest that we’ll walk away from and forget about in a couple of hours. This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his angels. Be prepared. You’re up against far more than you can handle on your own. Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has issued, so that when it’s all over but the shouting you’ll still be on your feet. Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation are more than words. Learn how to apply them. You’ll need them throughout your life. God’s Word is an indispensable weapon. In the same way, prayer is essential in this ongoing warfare. Pray hard and long. Pray for your brothers and sisters. Keep your eyes open. Keep each other’s spirits up so that no one falls behind or drops out.” Ephesians 6:10-18 MSG
War Is Upon You!
The Bible is so directly and indirectly emphatic on this point that those failing to obey Christ and Scripture’s commands are considered not merely disobedient but dead, casualties of a spiritual war:
- “Once you were dead because of your disobedience and your many sins. You used to live in sin, just like the rest of the world, obeying the devil—the commander of the powers in the unseen world. He is the spirit at work in the hearts of those who refuse to obey God. All of us used to live that way, following the passionate desires and inclinations of our sinful nature. By our very nature we were subject to God’s anger, just like everyone else.” Ephesians 2:1-3 NLT
- “The servant of the Lord must not participate in quarrels, but must be kind to everyone [even-tempered, preserving peace, and he must be], skilled in teaching, patient and tolerant when wronged. He must correct those who are in opposition with courtesy and gentleness in the hope that God may grant that they will repent and be led to the knowledge of the truth [accurately understanding and welcoming it], and that they may come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will.” 2 Timothy 2:24-26 AMP
- “Little children (believers, dear ones), do not let anyone lead you astray. The one who practices righteousness [the one who strives to live a consistently honorable life—in private as well as in public—and to conform to God’s precepts] is righteous, just as He is righteous. The one who practices sin [separating himself from God, and offending Him by acts of disobedience, indifference, or rebellion] is of the devil [and takes his inner character and moral values from him, not God]; for the devil has sinned and violated God’s law from the beginning. The Son of God appeared for this purpose, to destroy the works of the devil.” 1 John 3:7-8 AMP
- “I saw Heaven and earth new-created. Gone the first Heaven, gone the first earth, gone the sea. I saw Holy Jerusalem, new-created, descending resplendent out of Heaven, as ready for God as a bride for her husband. I heard a voice thunder from the Throne: “Look! Look! God has moved into the neighborhood, making his home with men and women! They’re his people, he’s their God. He’ll wipe every tear from their eyes. Death is gone for good—tears gone, crying gone, pain gone—all the first order of things gone.” The Enthroned continued, “Look! I’m making everything new. Write it all down—each word dependable and accurate.” Then he said, “It’s happened. I’m A to Z. I’m the Beginning, I’m the Conclusion. From Water-of-Life Well I give freely to the thirsty. Conquerors inherit all this. I’ll be God to them, they’ll be sons and daughters to me. But for the rest—the feckless and faithless, degenerates and murderers, sex peddlers and sorcerers, idolaters and all liars—for them it’s Lake Fire and Brimstone. Second death!” Revelation 21:1-8 MSG
- “So, my son, throw yourself into this work for Christ. Pass on what you heard from me—the whole congregation saying Amen!—to reliable leaders who are competent to teach others. When the going gets rough, take it on the chin with the rest of us, the way Jesus did. A soldier on duty doesn’t get caught up in making deals at the marketplace. He concentrates on carrying out orders. An athlete who refuses to play by the rules will never get anywhere. It’s the diligent farmer who gets the produce. Think it over. God will make it all plain.” 2 Timothy 2”1-7 MSG
For the fighting faithful, Awful and Awesome Omnity not only paid the ultimate price to provide salvation from Hell and the Lake of Fire but inconceivable rewards, up to and including the right and privilege of literally becoming “heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ.” In addition, as downpayment God’s love continues to extend the incomparable offer to fill yielded believers with His very fullness by the Holy Spirit:
- “Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.” 2 Corinthians 1:21-22 NIV
- “It’s in Christ that you, once you heard the truth and believed it (this Message of your salvation), found yourselves home free—signed, sealed, and delivered by the Holy Spirit. This signet from God is the first installment on what’s coming, a reminder that we’ll get everything God has planned for us, a praising and glorious life.” Ephesians 1:12-14 MSG
- “For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height—to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.” Ephesians 3:14-20 NKJV
- “Land of Zebulun, land of Naphtali, road to the sea, over Jordan, Galilee, crossroads for the nations. People sitting out their lives in the dark saw a huge light; Sitting in that dark, dark country of death, they watched the sun come up. This Isaiah-prophesied sermon came to life in Galilee the moment Jesus started preaching. He picked up where John left off: “Change your life. God’s kingdom is here.” Matthew 4:13-17 MSG
- “There was a man of the Pharisee sect, Nicodemus, a prominent leader among the Jews. Late one night he visited Jesus and said, “Rabbi, we all know you’re a teacher straight from God. No one could do all the God-pointing, God-revealing acts you do if God weren’t in on it.” Jesus said, “You’re absolutely right. Take it from me: Unless a person is born from above, it’s not possible to see what I’m pointing to—to God’s kingdom.” “How can anyone,” said Nicodemus, “be born who has already been born and grown up? You can’t re-enter your mother’s womb and be born again. What are you saying with this ‘born-from-above’ talk?” Jesus said, “You’re not listening. Let me say it again. Unless a person submits to this original creation—the ‘wind-hovering-over-the-water’ creation, the invisible moving the visible, a baptism into a new life—it’s not possible to enter God’s kingdom. When you look at a baby, it’s just that: a body you can look at and touch. But the person who takes shape within is formed by something you can’t see and touch—the Spirit—and becomes a living spirit.” John 3:1-6 MSG
- “But first and most importantly seek (aim at, strive after) His kingdom and His righteousness [His way of doing and being right—the attitude and character of God], and all these things will be given to you also.” Matthew 6:33 AMP
- “Do you see what we’ve got? An unshakable kingdom! And do you see how thankful we must be? Not only thankful, but brimming with worship, deeply reverent before God. For God is not an indifferent bystander. He’s actively cleaning house, torching all that needs to burn, and he won’t quit until it’s all cleansed. God himself is Fire!” Hebrews 12:28-29 MSG
- “I, John, am writing this to the seven churches in Asia province: All the best to you from The God Who Is, The God Who Was, and The God About to Arrive, and from the Seven Spirits assembled before his throne, and from Jesus Christ—Loyal Witness, Firstborn from the dead, Ruler of all earthly kings. Glory and strength to Christ, who loves us, who blood-washed our sins from our lives, Who made us a Kingdom, Priests for his Father, forever—and yes, he’s on his way! Riding the clouds, he’ll be seen by every eye, those who mocked and killed him will see him, People from all nations and all times will tear their clothes in lament. Oh, Yes. The Master declares, “I’m A to Z. I’m The God Who Is, The God Who Was, and The God About to Arrive. I’m the Sovereign-Strong.” Revelation 1:4-8 MSG
“So from now on we regard no one from a human point of view [according to worldly standards and values]. Though we have known Christ from a human point of view, now we no longer know Him in this way. Therefore if anyone is in Christ [that is, grafted in, joined to Him by faith in Him as Savior], he is a new creature [reborn and renewed by the Holy Spirit]; the old things [the previous moral and spiritual condition] have passed away. Behold, new things have come [because spiritual awakening brings a new life].” 2 Corinthians 5:16-17 AMP
- “For you [who are born-again have been reborn from above—spiritually transformed, renewed, sanctified and] are all children of God [set apart for His purpose with full rights and privileges] through faith in Christ Jesus. For all of you who were baptized into Christ [into a spiritual union with the Christ, the Anointed] have clothed yourselves with Christ [that is, you have taken on His characteristics and values].” Galatians 3:26-27 AMP
- “So if you’re serious about living this new resurrection life with Christ, act like it. Pursue the things over which Christ presides. Don’t shuffle along, eyes to the ground, absorbed with the things right in front of you. Look up, and be alert to what is going on around Christ—that’s where the action is. See things from his perspective. Your old life is dead. Your new life, which is your real life—even though invisible to spectators—is with Christ in God. He is your life. When Christ (your real life, remember) shows up again on this earth, you’ll show up, too—the real you, the glorious you. Meanwhile, be content with obscurity, like Christ.” Colossians 3:1-4 MSG
- “I saw Heaven and earth new-created. Gone the first Heaven, gone the first earth, gone the sea. I saw Holy Jerusalem, new-created, descending resplendent out of Heaven, as ready for God as a bride for her husband. I heard a voice thunder from the Throne: “Look! Look! God has moved into the neighborhood, making his home with men and women! They’re his people, he’s their God. He’ll wipe every tear from their eyes. Death is gone for good—tears gone, crying gone, pain gone—all the first order of things gone.” The Enthroned continued, “Look! I’m making everything new. Write it all down—each word dependable and accurate.” Revelation 21:1-5 MSG
- “Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls filled with the seven final plagues came and spoke with me, saying, “Come here, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.” And he carried me away in the Spirit to a vast and lofty mountain, and showed me the holy (sanctified) city of Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, having God’s glory [filled with His radiant light]. The brilliance of it resembled a rare and very precious jewel, like jasper, shining and clear as crystal. It had a massive and high wall, with twelve [large] gates, and at the gates [were stationed] twelve angels; and on the gates the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel were written. On the east side [there were] three gates, on the north three gates, on the south three gates, and on the west three gates. And the wall of the city had twelve foundation stones, and on them the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb (Christ). The one who was speaking with me had a gold measuring rod to measure the city, and its gates and its wall. The city is laid out as a square, its length being the same as its width; and he measured the city with his rod—twelve thousand stadia (about 1,400 miles); its length and width and height are equal. He measured its wall also—a hundred forty-four cubits (about 200 feet), according to man’s measurements, which are [also] angelic [measurements]. The wall was built of jasper; and the city was pure gold, transparent like clear crystal. The foundation stones of the wall of the city were adorned with every kind of precious stone. The first foundation stone was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, chalcedony; the fourth, emerald; the fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolite (yellow topaz); the eighth, beryl; the ninth, topaz; the tenth, chrysoprase; the eleventh, jacinth; the twelfth, amethyst. And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; each separate gate was of one single pearl. And the street (broad way) of the city was pure gold, like transparent crystal. I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God Almighty [the Omnipotent, the Ruler of all] and the Lamb are its temple. And the city has no need of the sun nor of the moon to give light to it, for the glory (splendor, radiance) of God has illumined it, and the Lamb is its lamp and light. The nations [the redeemed people from the earth] will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring into it their glory. By day (for there will be no night there) its gates will never be closed [in fear of evil]; and they will bring the glory (splendor, majesty) and the honor of the nations into it; and nothing that defiles or profanes or is unwashed will ever enter it, nor anyone who practices abominations [detestable, morally repugnant things] and lying, but only those [will be admitted] whose names have been written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.” Revelation 21:15-26 AMP
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