I ran across this quote from John Lennon today:
“Everything will be okay in the end. If it’s not okay, it’s not the end.”
Lennon’s views on religion are questionable, but this quote
is particularly apropos for Christians. We know this world is broken, and we
all suffer in various ways, but one day it will be made right. After Christ
returns, those who belong to Him will get to experience the “new heavens and a
new earth in which righteousness dwell” (2 Peter 3:13 ESV). But until that day,
things are not okay because it’s not the end.
Today’s reading in Daily Light on the Daily Path goes along well with that thought:
“Ye are not as yet come to the rest
and to the inheritance, which the Lord your God giveth you. This is not your
rest. There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. Within the veil;
whither the forerunner is for us entered, even Jesus.
“In my Father’s house are many
mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for
you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive
you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. With Christ; which is
far better.
“God shall wipe away all tears from
their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying,
neither shall there be any more pain; for the former things are passed away.
There the wicked cease from troubling: and there the weary be at rest.
“Lay up for yourselves treasures in
heaven. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. Set your
affection on things above, not on things on the earth. (Deut. 12:9, Mic. 2:10, Heb. 4:9, Heb. 6:19-20, John
14:2-3, Phil. 1:23, Rev. 21:4, Job 3:17, Matt. 6:20-21, Col. 3:2)” -Public
domain
As we start a new year, some people may be optimistic about
the days ahead, others (like me) may be cynical, and many will be somewhere in
between. The older I get, the more I hope that Christ’s return is soon. I’ve
never exactly had any “youthful optimism,” and I’m ready for that final day to
come. There is nothing about this life that I will miss, because the things I
most enjoy here will be even better in eternity.
However, assuming that there is at least another year of
life ahead, Peter reminds us that we are to be people of holiness and godliness
as we wait (2 Pet. 3:11-12). We should proclaim Jesus Christ as Lord and let
our lights shine before men (2 Cor. 4:5-6) as we love and serve one another. We
can remind one another and share the good news that for all those who follow
Jesus as Lord and Savior there is coming a day when everything will be okay.
“We look not to the
things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are
seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal” (2 Cor. 4:18).
© 2019 Dawn Rutan. Unless otherwise
indicated all images are copyright free from pixabay.com. The opinions
stated do not necessarily reflect the views of my church or employer.
