TODAY’S SCRIPTURE Revelation 21:4
We live in a broken world that is far different than what God originally designed. The paradise of Eden was a place of perfect peace, harmony, and joy. God, the source of all life, was present in the garden. The tree of life was there. Adam and Eve knew no pain or sorrow in that place.
But all of that changed. The first couple surrendered to the allure of the serpent. And his fangs inject pain and death into this world. No longer would the Evil One alone know separation from God. He poisons the human family with the misery of his death. And Adam and Eve would soon be the first of us to experience unimaginable grief. Their oldest son Cain would murder his brother Abel. And we have been grieving death ever since.
Yet, God’s love for us endured through the darkness. God would send a person to crush the head of the serpent (Genesis 3:15). Like Adam and Eve, God Himself would know the pain of losing a son. God’s own Son, Jesus, would come into this world to die. But by His death, eternal life is injected back into those who believe. Jesus came to bring an end to grief.
Even now, Jesus is designing a new world for His followers. It is the new Heaven and new earth. It is paradise restored, a place of perfect peace, harmony, and joy. God Himself is there among His people. The tree of life is there. It is a place where grief is forever ended. We get a glimpse of this place when John writes, “He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away” (Revelation 21:4).
It is natural that we would grieve now in this world of brokenness and loss. But all these things will pass away. A morning of joy is coming. It is will be a bright new day. A new paradise. A place we might call “the end of grief.”
Today, I will…allow my imagination to run wild as I consider the glories of Heaven. I will fix the affection of my heart fully on my hope so that I might endure anything I encounter in this broken world.