All Things New

Then He who sat on the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.” And He said to me, “Write, for these words are true and faithful.” (Revelation 21:5)

This wonderful proclamation comes at the end of the Book of Revelation. It comes after God’s people have been gathered to heaven, after the Great Tribulation, after the rise and fall of the Antichrist, and after the Battle of Armageddon.

It happens after the glorious return of Jesus Christ, after the judgment of the nations, after 1,000 years of the personal reign of Jesus on earth, after the end of Satan’s evil career, after the final judgment, after the new heaven and new earth, and after the New Jerusalem.

After all that, God is not finished making things new. He says, Behold, I make all things new. This statement was so amazing to John that he apparently stopped writing and had to be specifically told to keep on writing. We’re glad John did keep writing, because it shows us how much God loves new things.

Logically speaking, when we change the calendar from one year to another, there is nothing really special about the 1^stday of the year. Still, something about the first year speaks to our God-given love of new things. It’s possible that we could take that love of new things and make it an idol, but our basic attraction for new things is because we are made in the image of the One who says, “Behold, I make all things new.”

It’s worth it to be happy about a New Year. We should be excited about it and receive it with faith, happiness, and some celebration. Simply said, God has some wonderful new things for you this year:

– New mercies, new grace.
– New blessings.
– New opportunities.
– New responsibilities.
– New conquest over stubborn sins.
– New faith replacing old fears.
– New people coming into His kingdom.

If we look carefully at Revelation 21:5, we see that it is Jesus Himself who makes all things new. It’s because Jesus is an expert at doing new things; what He did on the cross, in dying, in being buried, and rising again from the dead was all completely new.

Receive God’s new things in this New Year. Remember, you love and serve the One who said, “Behold, I make all things new.”

Click here for David’s commentary on Revelation 21