new earth – JARRETT FLETCHER

On Friday, April 5^th at 2:26pm, my three year old nephew, Zade, entered Jesus’ presence. Though I may never know why it happened, I am confident where he is, because I believe the Bible clearly answers the question of where children and infants go when their time on earth is finished. Here are seven reasons why I believe all “little ones” go straight to heaven when they pass:

1. Children are described as belonging to God.

In the book of Ezekiel, God condemns the Israelites for offering up their children as sacrifices to foreign gods. Interestingly enough, God doesn’t call the Israelite’s children their children, but His children(see Ezekiel 16:21). God views little ones as his own possession and will take them to be with himself when their time is complete. They are His children, after all.

2. Children are viewed and treated as innocent by God.

God refers to young children as innocents in Jeremiah 19:4 (ESV). Children obviously inherit a sinful nature from Adam (no one has to teach a two year old to be selfish), so they aren’t totally innocent of sin. But they are innocent in their inability to understand their sin as rebellion against God and their subsequent need for a Savior to reconcile them to God.

Consider Deuteronomy 1:39, where God tells the Israelites who did not trust Him that they will not enter the promised land. Notice what He says about their children, “And the little ones that you said would be taken captive, your children who do not yet know good from bad- they will enter the land.” The children who “do not yet know good from bad” were not punished alongside their parents. They were allowed entrance into the promised land because God in His grace viewed them as innocent. I believe the same applies to the promised land in heaven!

3. Children are recipients of God’s protective compassion.

In Matthew 18, Jesus encourages his followers to avoid despising the “little ones.” In other words, they are not to be forgotten. The disciples were not to be so focused on their future ministry that they saw children as unimportant. Jesus even describes the little ones as having their own angels (v. 10) and states that it is the Father’s will that none of them should perish (v. 14). God’s desire is that we would follow Him in remembering and protecting children. It’s hard to imagine that He would remove His compassion and stop protecting them when their life on earth is done. On the contrary, He welcomes them into an even greater experience of His love and care for them in heaven.

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In a bible study that I had with a couple of guys last night, we talked briefly about the topic of the new earth, and how our eternity will not be spent in some foreign sky called “heaven” but that we will walk the new, transformed, perfect earth, with Jesus reigning as Lord!

Revelation 21:2-3,”Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them.“

After our discussion, I went home and broke open one of my favorite books, Eternal Perspectives, by Randy Alcorn, and I read,

“At Christ’s return, the earth will be healed from sin’s wounds. These include not only toxic waste and chemical pollution but also cultural and moral pollution. The healing of wounds implies the return to an original condition. If our new bodies will look enough like the old bodies to be recognizable, doesn’t this suggest that the New Earth will look enough like the old Earth for us to recognize it?

…The New Earth will still be just as much Earth as the new us will still be us. Our resurrection bodies will have our eyes, ears, mouth, and nose. Like Christ’s body, ours will maintain their distinguishing features. If our new bodies will so closely correspond to the present ones, won’t the New Earth just as closely correspond to the present one? Will there be a New Mount St. Helens and New Himalayas and New Alaska under the new northern lights? Will there be a New Bermuda, a New Canada, a New Australia?

…My understanding of Scripture suggests that the New Earth will include not only resurrected geographical locations but also resurrected cultures. The kings of the nations will bring their tribute, splendor, and glory into the New Jerusalem (Rev. 21:24,26) There will be not one nation but many. This reference gives us biblical basis to suppose that the best culture, history, art, music, and the languages of the old Earth will be redeemed, purified, and carried over to the New Earth.

Surely these kings and cultures who bring their “splendor” and “glory” into the new world won’t start from scratch. They’ll bring into the new world a national and personal history, an ethnic identity, and a wealth of customs, art forms, and knowledge. All these will be purified, but that leaves plenty of room for distinctive cultural celebrations, holidays, meals, sports, and many other customs.”

So much for floating around in the sky as robots!! How could we not look forward to whats coming? First and foremost, WE GET CHRIST! IN FULL! and then there are so many other amazing things such as these, yet we cannot even begin to grasp them, because “no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him.” (1 Corinthians 2:9.)

I hope this is encouraging for you today!

and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.” – See more at: http://bible.knowing-jesus.com/topics/New-Heavens-And-New-Earth#sthash.h0Pny9OU.dpuf

JARRETT FLETCHER

Tag: new earth

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