New and Improved part 1
I think we underestimate the cross sometimes. Most of the time. It was literally the biggest event in the history of history. And it changed EVERYTHING. Look at Revelation 21:5, "And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful." Now think about that for a minute. "Behold, I make all things new." Such an important idea. And there's actually quite a bit there. So let's unravel some of it. First things first: Behold. You have to SEE it. Because what you see is what you be. What you magnify is what manifests. What you behold is what you become. So if we set our affection on things on the earth we can easily get buried with the memory of the old. And I say "the memory" because Jesus said, "It is finished." He's not GOING to make everything new. He done did it. He MADE everything new. And, yes, I understand the idea of progression. All things are new. All things are becoming new. All things will become new. I get that. But it's the same idea as in 2 Corinthians 3:18, "But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord." We see the glory, and we're changed into that same image FROM glory TO glory. It starts with glory. It starts with complete. It starts with finished. (Jesus is the start AND the finish, right?) And the next thing I think it's vitally important to understand about Revelation 21:5 is that He made all things new. He didn't make all new thinigs. He didn't give up on you and start over. He took you from where you were--trapped in the bondage of sin and death--and He brought you to where He is--seated on the right hand of the Father. And He didn't just make YOU new, He made ALL things new. All of creation. The Messianic rebirth of the WORLD. And thats why, "...all creation is waiting eagerly for that future day when God will reveal who his children really are" (Romans 8:19 NLT). The KJV says, "For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God." The manifestation. When we stop trying to be someone we're not and embrace who we really are. Who we really are in Christ. Who Christ is in us. When we stop trying to BECOME new and just start to BE new. When we start to walk in newness of life. When we shake off the graveclothes of the old (dead) man, and stop dragging his corpse around. When we stop looking at the things on the earth but set our affectoin on things above. That's when we see clearly. That's when we stop trying to overcome everything in sight and we see that HE overcame the world (for us and as us) and there is nothing left to overcome! That's when this life becomes new and improved. Abundant. And I've said it before and I'll say it again: The only thing that makes abundant life abundant... is love. This new life--HIS abundant, everlasting, eternal, Resurrection Life--is a life of love! Being loved by God and loving each other with that same love!