Meditating on God's Love in the Age to Come

When we think about redeeming our time, one of the most powerful ways is to meditate on God's eternal love and the world to come. This isn't about floating on clouds in some misty heaven - it's about a glorious new creation where Eden will be restored in ways beyond our imagination.

The promise God has given us is of a beautiful new age where there will be no more death, pain, sorrow, misery, curse, thorns, or trials. A world where Jesus is at the center of everything, where perfect righteousness dwells.

Why Should We Meditate on God's Eternal Love?

Meditating on God's eternal love and the age to come serves multiple purposes:

1. It brings comfort during difficult times
2. It helps us prepare our hearts for eternity
3. It motivates us to live righteously now
4. It puts our current struggles in perspective

When God convicts our spirit about something we need to change, it's actually a sign of His great mercy. He's extending grace to help us walk in a way that pleases Him and prepares us for eternity.

The Healing Comfort of God's Love

The first aspect of God's eternal love is its healing comfort. This healing comes through Jesus taking the penalty for our sin - what theologians call "penal substitution."

Isaiah 53:5 tells us "by his stripes we are healed." This isn't just about physical healing, though that's included. It's about complete healing - body, soul, and spirit. It's healing from:

• Physical ailments
• Spiritual brokenness
• Emotional wounds
• Shame and guilt
• Mourning and grief

Many believers can remember the moment they first experienced this healing - that instant when they accepted Christ and felt the burden of sin roll away. Though we still live in imperfect bodies in an imperfect world, we've already begun experiencing this healing that will one day be complete.

The Holy Companionship of God's Love

The second aspect of God's eternal love is His holy companionship. The City of God is named, as Ezekiel says, "The Lord is there."

What makes heaven heaven is that Jesus is there. This should be our primary hope - not just escaping hell or even reuniting with loved ones, but being with Jesus forever.

Jesus promised: "In my Father's house are many rooms... I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go to prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you unto myself, that where I am, there you may be also" (John 14:2-3).

Paul concludes his teaching on the resurrection by saying, "So shall we ever be with the Lord." That's our hope - to be with the Lord forever.

In the new creation, God will be present in a living and active manner to communicate His love to His people. We will be "brimful of love" in ways we cannot now imagine. Our entire being will be filled with the eternal love of God, with nothing hindering that love.

What Will God's Presence Be Like in Eternity?

Revelation 21:3 tells us: "The tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself shall be with them, and He will be their God."

The entire new Jerusalem will be like the Most Holy Place of the temple - a whole civilization continually dwelling in God's most sacred presence. Augustine said God Himself "shall be their satisfaction... all that men honorably desire - life and health and nourishment and plenty and glory and honor and peace and all good things."

Everything we could ever want or desire will be in abundant overflow. God will be our "all in all."

The Happy Celebration of God's Love

The third aspect of God's eternal love is its happy celebration. The Lord loves the church as His bride, which provides one of the most beautiful images of eternal life revealed in the Bible.

Isaiah 61:10 says, "I will greatly rejoice in the Lord. My soul shall be joyful in my God. For He has clothed me with the garments of salvation. He has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels."

Christ loved the church and gave Himself for her, that He might present her to Himself as a glorious church, without spot or wrinkle, holy and without blemish.

How Will God Express His Love in Eternity?

Zephaniah 3:17 gives us an astonishing picture: "The Lord your God in the midst of you is mighty; He will save, He will rejoice over you with joy. He will quiet you with His love. He will rejoice over you with singing."

Can you imagine what it will sound like when God sings? God will sing over His bride at His Son's wedding, and all creation - every rock, tree, angel, star, and planet - will hear the voice of God singing over the bride of His Son.

The coming kingdom is compared to a feast where God Himself will be the host. Isaiah 25:6 describes it as "a feast of choice pieces, a feast of wines on the lees, of fat things full of marrow, of well-refined wines on the lees."

In God's presence is fullness of joy, and at His right hand are pleasures forevermore (Psalm 16:11).

Life Application

How do we apply these truths to our daily lives? Here are five practical ways:

1. Make sure you are "engaged" to Jesus - Are you truly saved? Have you been born again? Don't assume that because you're a "good person" or believe in Jesus that you're automatically part of the bride of Christ. Make sure you've genuinely accepted Him as Lord and Savior.

2. Meditate daily on God's eternal love for you - If you fear the Lord, then God's love for you is from everlasting to everlasting. Learn to see everything in the Bible, from creation to new creation, as the history of God's love.

3. Respond to God's love with works of love - The bride of Christ responds to His love with devotion and submission to His will. Your "wedding dress" consists of the righteous works done by grace. Prepare for the wedding day by living in wholehearted devotion to Him.

4. Fuel your worship with the knowledge of divine love - Ponder what God says about eternal life and His love, but recognize that understanding must eventually give way to worship.

5. Begin each day thanking God for loving you first - Start every morning by thanking Jesus for loving you and telling Him how much you love Him in return.

Questions to Consider:

• Where is your heart fixed? What are you most looking forward to about eternity?
• How does meditating on God's eternal love change your perspective on current trials?
• In what ways can you better prepare yourself as part of the bride of Christ?
• How might your daily actions change if you consistently remembered the wedding feast to come?
• What good works of love can you do this week as a response to God's love for you?