GodReflection: A Word We Can Count On—New.
He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything New!” (Revelation 21:5).
When it comes to toys, I like New things. I love the smell of a New car. It smells dependable. A New computer every decade increases speed and reassures me I no longer will deal with years of old patches and fixes. The New is clean.
A New iPhone every few years is like an extra Christmas gets inserted into my Calendar. Large screens present letters big enough to read. I tend to like the additional crutches that serve as an auxiliary to my brain. The New is helpful.
Then there is a New television. I remember when our kids surprised us with a gift. It was the kind that no longer took both a furniture dolly and a U-Haul trailer to move! It added a New dimension to the word “color” in a color television. The New is sharp.
Not everyone in the world encounters New things. Some have never owned anything New and the hope of doing so is not within their reality. For reasons known only to God I’ve enjoyed New more times than I can count. However, if we never tire of the excitement of receiving New, we should thank Him continually.
As much as we enjoy New toys, we are smart enough to know each has TEMPORARY stamped across the manufacture’s engraved plate. Each will rust and decay.
The best news is that an eternal New is available to all who seek the heart of God. This New is no respecter of earthly privilege. It is available to the poorest of the poor. It is available to the richest of the rich.
The Apostle Paul describes a Newness that can only come from an encounter with Jesus. He remembers well his dramatic meeting on a country road. He was cleansed with the New in a manner he could never have imagined.
From his friendship with Jesus, he reminds Roman believers; we were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a New life (Romans 6:4).
And to churches in the city of Corinth, he teaches, if anyone is in Christ, the New creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here (2 Corinthians 5:17).
This is a New that God made available as a gift of grace to anyone willing to join the walk with a New Master—Jesus.
Here is what we start to notice. The word New is growing as A Word We Can Count On. It is becoming increasingly significant.
The farther down the road we walk with Jesus we become aware that the distance over life causes our shoes to wear out. Blisters appear on our feet and fatigue sets in.
So, the promises of New now take on a much deeper meaning. We can see the promise of Jesus as described by the Apostles Paul and Peter begin to gain in significance. For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands (2 Corinthians 5:1).
But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a New heaven and a New earth, where righteousness dwells (2 Peter 3:13).
On a more personal level, I don’t understand why I receive New gifts while most of the globe’s population never has the experience of the New. I can only pray for their encounter with Jesus who adds a greater New to all our lives while on earth and promises us a perfect New in the next reality.
Let us trust that whatever New we have received on our current earth serves to wet our appetite for Newness based in Jesus. May we want to seek the experience of walking in Newness with Jesus every day. May we live in hope with expectation as we anticipate the perfect New yet to come in The Holy’s restored creation. That makes New—A Word We Can Count On.
Dr. Gary J. Sorrells
A GodReflection: A Word We Can Count On—New.
God Reflection 