Our Great God: the Consummation of the Ages Part Three

Our Great God

Allen Snapp

February 15, 2026

Our Great God: the Consummation of the Ages Part Three

Let’s turn to Rev. 21 together. We’re talking about the consummation, or completion, of the ages. After Judgment Day when every person stands before God and gives account for their lives, we read in Rev. 21 that God begins the biggest renovation job ever!

21 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. ² And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. ³ And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. ⁴ 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.”

⁵ And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” ⁶ And he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment. ⁷ The one who conquers will have this heritage, and I will be his God and he will be my son. ⁸ But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.” Rev. 21:1-8

Pray

Everything in history comes full circle. In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. In the end God recreates a new heavens and a new earth. The serpent tempted Adam and Eve to disobey God’s command, which opened the door to sin, death, sickness, and a world of pain, suffering, and heartache. At the end of chapter 20 God casts the serpent, the devil, who is responsible for all the evil entering into the world in the first place, into the lake of fire. Along with the devil, God is going to cast all those who followed the devil and rejected God, loved the darkness and hated the light, refused God’s gift of salvation through Jesus Christ, into the lake of fire. Finally, the last enemy to be cast into the lake of fire is death.

Before we move on to happier thoughts, it would be wise to do what the Bible says and examine ourselves to see if we are really in the faith. Am I trusting in Jesus as my Lord and Savior? Do I see evidence of the Holy Spirit at work in my life? Am I growing in grace and love and kindness and holiness? If so, we can be confident if we are in Christ we are saved and our names are written in the Lamb’s book of life. If not, the Bible warns us that if we hear His voice, not to harden our hearts to block out that voice. Repent and believe in Jesus! Ask Jesus to come into your life and save you. Ask for his forgiveness of your sin and ask him to change you from inside out.

Packing Our Suitcase for the New Heaven and New Earth

As we spend a few minutes talking about the new heaven and new earth a question you might have – and to be honest I had it as I prepared this message – is how does something that’s not going to happen for thousands of years from now apply to our lives today? It’s a fair question.

Speaking of today, later today Janice and I will be packing our suitcases to go to Florida. We’re not going to be packing flannel shirts, wool socks and winter coats. We’re packing short sleeve shirts and shorts. Flip flops! Why? Because we’re not packing for where we are, we’re packing for where we’re going. The Bible gives us these amazing glimpses into the future God has planned for us and then says don’t pack your heart and mind for where you are, pack them for where you’re going. Jesus said don’t store up treasures on earth (where you are) where moth and rust can decay and thieves can steal, but store up treasure in heaven (where you are going) where that treasure can never decay or be stolen. Why? Because where our treasure is, there our hearts will be also.

Sometimes Janice gives me a packing list so I don’t forget anything. Here’s a packing list of things we should pack in our hearts this day in preparation of that day.

1. Assurance that everything that is unresolved will be resolved

If you watch much TV you know that whatever problem comes up, it will be resolved in a half hour. The mystery will be cleared up. The conflict will be worked out. The criminal will be captured. The sad moment will be turned into a happy moment.

But that’s not the way it works in real life. Things don’t always get worked out. Things that we want to see happen or want to see changed in this life that may not happen in this life.

• Miscarriages of justice might not get resolved in this life.
• Griefs might not go away in this life.
• Unfair things might stay unfair. Life is harder for some people than others. The burdens some people bear is heavier than the burdens other people bear. Why did God give me the body He gave me? Why did God give me the personality He did? Why was I born with this or that disadvantage?
• Sometimes the unresolved is harder when it’s someone we love. Parents have a harder time seeing their child face hardships than if it was happening to them.
• Then there’s mental challenges. We don’t know the things people deal with inside their heads. Depression. Loneliness. Feelings of being unloved and unlovable. Suicidal ideations.
• We could go on: regrets that can’t be undone. Relational breakdowns that can’t be fixed. There are probably unresolved things in all of our lives right now and we have no guarantee they will be resolved when we close our eyes for the last time.

But one day they will be!

⁴ 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.” Rev. 21:4

The sad things, the heartbreaks, the pain, the injustice, the regrets – whatever caused us tears will be resolved as God personally wipes away every tear from our eyes. Death shall be no more – no more goodbyes, no more separations, no more isolations.

When this assurance is packed in our heart, it helps us make peace with the unresolved things in our lives even as we ask God to bring resolution now.

1. The purifying hope that all things will be made new and some things will remain the same

21 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more…⁵ And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Rev. 21:1,5

Jesus makes all things gloriously new! And yet, at the same time, some things remain the same. There is continuity and discontinuity. We see the same thing with our resurrection bodies. There won’t be anything left over from the old. It will all be made new. Discontinuity. But we will still be the same person. We will be able to recognize each other. There will be continuity.

The earth and heavens will be made new, but it will contain many things that are familiar to us. There will be food – we will feast at the wedding feast of the Lamb. There will be wine – Jesus promised he would not drink the fruit of the vine again until he drank it with his disciples at that great feast.

There will be rivers. There will be trees and those trees will bear fruit.

Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb ² through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. Rev 22:1-2

There will be cities and nations and kings over those nations.

²² And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. ²³ And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb. ²⁴ By its light will the nations walk, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it, ²⁵ and its gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there. Rev. 21:22-25

We will enjoy many of the same things we enjoy now only in perfect form. We will be physical beings living on a physical earth. Our resurrected bodies will have arms and legs and heads just like we do now. Jesus was raised in his resurrected body and will be physical for all of eternity.

Continuity. But here’s a discontinuity: there will be no night there. God’s glory will light everything up 24/7, seven days a week for all of eternity. We couldn’t take that much non-stop light in these bodies. We need the night to rest our eyes. We need sleep. We won’t then. Can you imagine no night ever again, just day, just light, and our eyes are able to take it forever and ever? We will be very different. And in some ways, the same.

When we pack this in our bag and really believe it, we know that no matter what happens on this earth, we have a brilliant future and hope in Christ! This hope helps us right now to live for God’s glory rather than small selfish ambitions.

1. God will be with us face to face

³ And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. Rev. 21:3

³ No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him. ⁴ They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. ⁵ And night will be no more. They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever. Rev. 22:3-5

God will be with us – He will dwell with us. Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. God belongs with man. He has wanted a close relationship with man from the moment He created Adam and Eve. He would walk with them in the cool of the day talking like friends do.

We will be the bride of Christ – speaks of loving intimacy. We will be the children of God – again speaks of God’s loving care over us and close family ties with us. God isn’t about religion, He’s about relationship.

They will see His face. There’s something about seeing someone’s face – we know them from their face. We watch their expressions, read their eyes, we recognize them by their face. We will see His face – the face of God – and His name will be on our foreheads. It speaks of belonging. We belong to God. We are His. The antichrist wants to put his number on everyone’s forehead, indicating they belong to him. For all those who are in Christ, not only has God written our names in the book of Life, but He will write His name on our foreheads.

We can pack these truths in our hearts knowing they are true today. God has sealed us as His own with the Holy Spirit. God dwells in us today. We are His sons and daughters today. We are Jesus’ bride today. Because of Jesus God’s face isn’t frowning over us, His face is smiling over us with love and affection. We can claim the blessing of God’s face over us today. Let’s close with this blessing spoken over us:

“‘“The Lord bless you and keep you; ²⁵ the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; ²⁶ the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.”’ Numbers 6:24-26