Is God Really Going To Create A New Earth?

Heaven Series #15 

“Is God really going to create a new earth?

When the pilgrims first set out from England, they were looking and longing for a “new world”… a better world than the one they were leaving.  And thankfully for many of us, they did.  I believe God has placed a similar longing in each of our hearts… for that better world. Somehow, we know inside of ourselves, that this is not it… this is not all there is…  For our text today, let’s go back to “the beginning”.

When God first created the Heavens and the Earth, He said “It is good”. And then after creating Eve, the first woman, God actually said that it was, “very good”. So why does the Bible later tell us that He is going to create a “new” Earth?

Well, simply because after the fall, everything changed…  The curse came upon Adam and Eve… and then was extended to the ground as well. “Cursed is the ground because of you.” (Gen. 3:17) Literally, everything that was under the dominion of man, came under the curse.  That’s the bad news…, but the good news is… that everything that came under the curse because of Adam and Eve, now comes under the promise of redemption because of Jesus Christ… the “second Adam”. (1 Cor. 15:45)

Specifically, Romans 8 tells us that “all creation has been groaning… up till the present time”, along with us as God’s children, who are “waiting eagerly… for the redemption of our bodies”.  In other words, redemption does not just apply to us as believers in Christ, but also to all of creation… including the “heavens” and the “earth”.

The Bible actually tells us in three separate books that God will create “new heavens and a new earth”.

(Is. 65, 2 Pet. 3, Rev. 21).  Just prior to this event, the earth we presently live on will be destroyed by fire. 

(2 Peter 3:7) You’ll remember, God destroyed the surface of the earth once before in the flood… and then He brought a rainbow as the sign of His promise that the world would never again be flooded over.  However, God will in fact destroy it one more time… by fire… and then restore it to a place of unimaginable beauty… paradise. 

And it will be perfect… glorious! The scriptures proclaim concerning that future time, “The whole earth is filled with His glory!” This New Earth will literally be Heaven on Earth, because God Himself will dwell with us. (Revelation 21:3-4) Heaven is where God lives… and where God lives, that will be Heaven.

I really like what someone once wrote, “We have a nostalgia for Eden”.  God has placed this desire in us, and those who are in touch with His heart and His plan know this from personal experience. We long to be HOME…

I am convinced, considering the unfathomable generosity of God… and the infinite nature of eternity… that the unfilled dreams and desires of our lives here, will be perfectly fulfilled in the New Earth… “exceedingly abundantly above” all that we could have imagined!  There will be more to come on this thrilling topic… !!

Blessings, Mike