The Healing Comfort of God's Love in the World to Come

In a world filled with uncertainty, pain, and injustice, where do we place our hope? As believers, our hope isn't in this world getting better on its own. Our true hope lies in the promise of a new heavens and a new earth where righteousness dwells - a place where Jesus Christ will make all things right.

Why Our Hope Can't Be in This World

The early church didn't place their hope in abstract possibilities. Their hope was firmly anchored in the certainty of Christ's return and the new creation He promised. They understood something we often forget: this world, in its current state, will never satisfy the deepest longings of our hearts.

Unless Jesus returns:

• Injustice will continue to reign
• Wars will persist
• Suffering will remain
• Unrighteousness will flourish

Abraham looked for "a city whose builder and maker was God" because he recognized that no human system could ever fully meet humanity's needs. Only God can make this world better, and this world will not be better until Jesus returns.

Understanding God's Love for His People

At the heart of our hope is God's incredible love for His people. Paul's prayer in Ephesians 3:14-21 reveals the dimensions of this love:

"For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ... that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height—to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God."

This prayer points to a love so vast that we can only begin to comprehend it now, but will experience fully in the new creation.

The Bride of Christ: God's Gift to His Son

One of the most beautiful pictures of God's love is that the church is betrothed to Christ as His bride. You are part of this bride! God didn't redeem you because you were special in yourself - He redeemed you to be a gift to His Son.

In Ezekiel 16, we see a powerful illustration of this love. God describes finding an abandoned baby, saying "Live!" to it, washing it, clothing it, and adorning it until it became a beautiful bride. This is what God has done for us - He has taken us from our dead state in sin and is preparing us as a beautiful bride for His Son.

The Healing Comfort of God's Love in the New Creation

The bride of Christ has suffered greatly in this world. We carry wounds in body, soul, and spirit - from our own sins and from the sins of others against us. But heaven is a place of healing where God will apply His comfort so deeply that all sorrow and pain will disappear forever.

Isaiah 53:5 reminds us: "But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed."

While we experience partial healing now, the complete healing awaits the age to come. In Revelation 21:4, we read that God "will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away."

Imagine God taking you into His arms, saying, "It's okay. I know what you went through. But now I have you in my arms, and this will never be experienced again."

Freedom from Shame and Reproach

Our sorrow today is often complicated by shame, fear of rejection, and a sense of unworthiness. Sometimes this is wrongly imposed on us by others, and sometimes it's deserved because of our own wrongdoing.

But the Lord promises that He will take away the reproach of His people from all the earth. Every shame, every guilt, every horrible experience, every embarrassing situation will be remembered no more - not by God and not by you.

Instead of being like a rejected wife, God will accept you and make you beautiful, fruitful, and joyful in the new creation.

The Healing That Extends to All Creation

The healing that God pours into His people will extend outward to heal the whole world. When Adam sinned, it brought devastation to the earth. But in Christ, this is reversed. The new creation that begins in you will overflow into a new heavens and a new earth.

Ezekiel's vision shows streams flowing from God's throne that heal even the Dead Sea, making it teem with life. This symbolizes how God will heal not just His people but the very place that had fallen under His curse.

Everything that was destroyed because of the fall will be reversed at Christ's coming. When we are raised from the dead, so too will the heavens and earth be made new - a place where we will dwell and reign.

Life Application

In light of these eternal truths, how should we live today?

1. Redirect your attention: Many of us spend hours scrolling through social media or watching television, while neglecting the study of God's Word and meditation on eternal things. Challenge yourself to spend more time reading Scripture and good theological books than on your phone this week.

2. Maintain an eternal perspective: Keep one eye on heaven and one eye on hell. Remember that this world is not your home, and your ultimate destination is far more important than temporary comforts or struggles.

3. Find comfort in future healing: Whatever pain you're experiencing now - physical, emotional, or spiritual - remember that complete healing awaits you. Let this hope strengthen you in your current trials.

4. Share this hope: In a world filled with despair, you have the message of ultimate hope. How can you share with someone this week the comfort of God's love that awaits in the new creation?

Ask yourself: Am I living with my eyes fixed more on this world or on the world to come? Does my use of time reflect what I claim to believe about eternity? How might my perspective change if I truly grasped the dimensions of God's love that awaits me?

Remember, our hope is not that things will get better in this world through human effort. Our hope is in Christ's return, when He will make all things new and heal every wound with His perfect love.