All Things New
Notes
Transcript
INTRODUCTION:
What we will look at this morning, is God's final judgment.
What we will see is that everything that now exists, including this nation, will be wiped away.
V.10:
The Day of the LORD:
The day of the Lord is comprised of the whole series of events, beginning with the rapture and ending with the destruction of the current creation.
The Timing of the Destruction:
This judgment will happen after the millennial reign and the final war with Satan.
This judgment will happen after the millennial reign and the final war with Satan.
Revelation 20:1-3
Revelation 20:1-3
Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, having the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. He laid hold of the dragon, that serpent of old, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years; and he cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal on him, so that he should deceive the nations no more till the thousand years were finished. But after these things he must be released for a little while.
Revelation 20:7-10
Revelation 20:7-10
Now when the thousand years have expired, Satan will be released from his prison and will go out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle, whose number is as the sand of the sea. They went up on the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city. And fire came down from God out of heaven and devoured them. The devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
Then comes the great white throne judgment, and finally the ushering in of the new heaven and new earth.
Next is the Great White Throne judgment, then the new Heaven and new Earth.
Next is the Great White Throne judgment, then the new Heaven and new Earth.
Revelation 20.11
Revelation 20.11
Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away. And there was found no place for them.
Revelation 21:1
Revelation 21:1
Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea.
The destruction of this creation will be just prior the the new heaven and earth.
Everything that now exists must be destroyed to make room for the new creation.
It is a recurring theme in scripture, that God's judgment will fall when people least expect it, like a theif in the night.
When Peter speaks of the heavens, he is simply referencing all of the great expanse, including the sky and space.
The elements will be broken down to their most basic building blocks, the very atoms that make them up.
This will come by way of intense heat with a great noise (the big bang).
Imagine the crackling of a campfire large enough to consume the entire universe.
Make no mistake, this will not be the work of man (i.e. nuclear war).
Nor will it be an explosion of the sun.
Notice that even the heavens are destroyed. That means all matter in space, all planets all stars, etc.
This destruction is definitely the supernatural work of God!
Isaiah also mentions this final judgment.
Isaiah also mentions this final judgment.
Isaiah 51:6
Isaiah 51:6
Lift up your eyes to the heavens, And look on the earth beneath. For the heavens will vanish away like smoke, The earth will grow old like a garment, And those who dwell in it will die in like manner; But My salvation will be forever, And My righteousness will not be abolished.
Obviously, the destruction of the universe will take with it all of man's greatest accomplishments.
Everything that we are so proud of is at the mercy of God.
The truth is, nothing we create holds any eternal value.
We build from the elements that God has created.
By stripping those elements to their core atoms, God will expose the universe (lay it bare) and recreate something brand new from it.
God will break down the entire universe, and create something brand new from it.
God will break down the entire universe, and create something brand new from it.
Psalm 102:25-28
Psalm 102:25-28
Of old You laid the foundation of the earth, And the heavens are the work of Your hands. They will perish, but You will endure; Yes, they will all grow old like a garment; Like a cloak You will change them, And they will be changed. But You are the same, And Your years will have no end. The children of Your servants will continue, And their descendants will be established before You.”
Hebrews 1:10-12
Hebrews 1:10-12
And: “You, Lord, in the beginning laid the foundation of the earth, And the heavens are the work of Your hands. They will perish, but You remain; And they will all grow old like a garment; Like a cloak You will fold them up, And they will be changed. But You are the same, And Your years will not fail.”
This new creation will be the conclusion of the Day of the Lord.
V.11:
Dissolved here literally means to unbind. This further confirms the breaking down of the elements to their atomic particles.
Peter takes the opportunity to turn the discussion from the future to the present.
Knowledge of the future means nothing, if it doesn’t change us in the present.
He asks a question about how this knowledge should inspire us to live.
He then gives the answer to the question.
The answer is that we should endeavor to live a life that pleases the Creator and Judge of the universe.
All that we say and do should be done to the glory of God.
All that we say and do should be done to the glory of God.
Colossians 3:17
Colossians 3:17
And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.
1 Thessalonians 5:22
1 Thessalonians 5:22
Abstain from every form of evil.
Since none of our earthly accomplishments will last, we need to seriously look at our priorities.
V.12:
Not only that, we should be looking for and working toward the return of Christ, something that Jesus, Himself, told us to do.
Jesus told us that we should be looking for and working toward His return.
Jesus told us that we should be looking for and working toward His return.
Mark 13:33
Mark 13:33
Take heed, watch and pray; for you do not know when the time is.
We can do this by making sure that we are ready at any given time, and by being diligent to share the Gospel with others.
V.13:
The beautiful thing is that this is not doom and gloom.
We have a wonderful promise here that the judgment is not the end, but only the beginning of something far greater than we can ever imagine.
The judgment is simply a refining process, and when finished, only righteousness will remain.
CONCLUSION:
In light of this, we need to make sure our priorities are right.
Knowing that everything that now exists will one day be gone, it kind of makes you think about what's important.
Our primary focus should be to lead people to Christ, because in the end, that's all that really matters.
