Sunday 26 November.    A New Heaven and a New Earth           Martin Baker

Introduction

Our reading today conludes a series on thebook of Revelation

The New Heaven and the New Earth

Revelation 21    ThenI saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earthhad passed away, and the sea was no more. 2 And I saw the holy city, the newJerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned forher husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying,

‘See, the home of God is among mortals.

He will dwell with them;

they will be his peoples,

and God himself will be with them;

4 he will wipe every tear from their eyes.

Death will be no more;

mourning and crying and pain will be nomore,

for the first things have passed away.’

5 And the one who was seated on the thronesaid, ‘See, I am making all things new.’ Also he said, ‘Write this, for thesewords are trustworthy and true.’ 6 Then he said to me, ‘It is done! I am theAlpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will givewater as a gift from the spring of the water of life.

Let us pray: May my words and our thoughtsbe acceptable in thy sight, O Lord our strength and redeemer. AMEN

Last week in the book sale we were holding,someone handed me a book that they said they thought I should read.

It was a book by the Mills and Boonepublishing company. Mills and Boon specialise in publishing romantic novels.  And the person who left it for me thought thatthere was some theme in this book that somehow I would find useful.

Reading the back cover of the book itbecame clear that it related to a successful, but cool and distant manager,  finally falling in love with his secretary ona Caribbean island where for some reason they went together for a workingholiday.Does that really happen? Do we believe stories like this?

But the presence of the book reminded of afamily story.  My great uncle was called LionelMills and he married Eva Boon. The remarkable thing about Lionel and Eva wasthat they were married for more than 75 years. When they reached their 75thwedding anniversary somehow the American based Mills and Boon publishingcompany heard about the wedding anniversary and gifted Lionel and Eva theircurrent library of romance novels.  Therewas nice photo in the Christchurch Press of great uncle Lionel Mills and Evanee Boon surrounded by hundreds of these books. Lionel and Eva both went on to heavena few months after that. Quite close to one another.

We all perhaps have stories like this aboutancestors or histories. Some of these stories relate to cause.  How did I become the person that I am today? Whatare the things that have happened to you, your stories, that you see as part ofmaking you the person you are today?

You will all have stories about people andevents that have had a real influence on you. Stories of cause are called aetiologies.Stories of causes.

You may remember a few weeks ago wecompleted a long series on the Book of Genesis. Genesis is full of causestories. How creation came into being. Why people do bad things to one anotherand themselves. The story of sin coming into the world. The story of the Towerof Babel answers the question of why are there so many languages spoken. Thestory of Abraham and Sarah .What is special about our history and origins?

So think about that the stories of originsand causes. These are etioligcal stories. And there is another set of stories thattell not where we have come from,  butwhere we are going. Stories of completion. Fulfilment. And the name for these typesof stories is eschatological stories. Stories about the culmination of ourexistence our purpose. Revelation in particular focuses on these stories.Eschatological. The end of the age.  

The simple message is that God is there atthe beginning, her now, and that God is there at the end as well.  We call the space in the middle, time. (or adash)

So an eschatological story is this: Then Isaw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth hadpassed away and the sea was no more.  Andthe sea was no more.

In Genesis we hear that God brings landfrom the promordial and chaotic seas, in Noah’s time the destructive oceanssweep over the world. God divides the sea to let the people through to freedomin the Promised Land in Exodus.  Jesuscalms the sea of Galliee and walks across the water.

 InJohn's vision here in Revelation,  thesea, and the threat it contained, was no more. At the end of history there is anew heaven and a new earth and the destructive terrifying sea was no more. AndJohn sees the holy city the New Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God andhe says,

“I heard a loud voice on the throne sayingsee the home of God is among mortals he will dwell with them as their God andthey will be his people. And God himself will be with them. He will wipe awayevery tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; mourning and crying will beno more for the first thig s have passed away. And the one who was seated on the throne said see I am making all thingsnew. It is done I am the Alpha and the Omega the beginning and the end.”

The story that tell of the end, the purposethe culmination  were once told visually morethan they were told through words.

Told especially through architecture.(Intersting to hear aobut the commitment to rebuild the Christchurch Cathedral)

You need to travel to Britain and Europe especiallyto see real Gothic churches.

 GothicCathedrals were built quite intentionally to tell the story of the Christianfaith in the visual styles and images that you would see about you. The floorplan is set out in a cross.  The archesdirect your gaze heavenward. And the church itself was quite deliberately builtlike a kind of palace

And modern day people like us might see thisfrivolous over the top architecture. But for people of another age the wholepurpose was to create a sense of another kingdom.  And that architectural statement finds itsbiblical base directly in the passage we hear from the book of Revelation.

And I saw the holy city the New Jerusalemcoming down out of heaven from God. You see the whole Ideas of the buildingstyle were to create a sense that there is another world existing in the midstof our ordinary one. Here is a building based on an affirmation of a differentauthority. A different type of kingdom. This holy city coming down from heaven. 

There are often guides that take you aroundand tell them about the dates and time and details. But there is also adifferent kind of knowledge – and often you just feel it when you walk intothese amazing buildings – knowledge being  expressed by those who built these ancientbuildings - a knowledge and experience which not just informs but transformsand changes the way we see ourselves others the world around us.

So we read and hear about a different typeof knowledge today. It is about a knowledge that transforms. We have this glimpsein Revelation I am the alpha and omega every tear will be wiped away. This iswhat the Gospel is full of.  No moredeath. Messages. No more death. That is the great transformative message of theGospel. That God’s stated intention and will for all humanity is life.  To live in a faith that helps us  live with a new kind of transformingknowledge  - a knowledge that overcomesour greatest fears, even of death and all that goes with that.

We are incredibly informed but here weencounter a knowledge that transforms. Guilt is informative; it informs you that you're not doing enough. Thegood news. the Gospel news is transformative; it empowers change in your life.Guilt says you're defective; the gospel says you're effective. Guilt says youshould be in tears; the good news says that God wipes away all tears.

Jesus does not inform us of our choices. Inhis words his actions the miracles they were all about this transformation. Signsof the kingdom.  And whenever he saw actsof love and healing and kindness he said things like, the Kingdom of God hascome near to you today.   

We all have stories we carry around withus. Maybe like Great Uncle Lionel and Eva stories.  Some wonderful memories and  stories of people who have being examples to us of love and faith andgenerosity. But we also have storeis of pain, loss,  people who might havehurt us. And maybe there are stories of blame. And sometimes for the sake ofpeace and justice and healing we need to find ways to resolve these stories ofthe past.

But our scriptrues are speaking to us inpowerful ways of  a vision which is allabout God’s ultimate purpose with us as being one of transformation.

A new heaven and earth God among us. Johnis saying be assured about your future, but live now as if this has happened.Grace love forgiveness healing assurance in our grief. Live a life ruled by thesestories. Stories and vision of the kingdom,  and remember the command given by the Lamb theruler of this Kingdom that comes,  therule of this kingdom, love one another as I have loved you.

AMEN