“I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God Almighty and the lamb are its temple.” Revelation 21:22

Each time I come to the final two chapters of the Bible in my reading my heart is lifted to heights of faith and expectation not often felt otherwise. The emotion and passion of these chapters when God is at last able to dwell with men is enormous and awe inspiring. That I will be there is too wonderful for words.

Man is at last able to access the tree of life (22:2 & 14) which has been forbidden for thousands of years and drink the water of life freely (22:17) provided his name is written in the Book of life (22:19), the Lamb’s Book of life (21:27). It is not simply God who will be the source of all at that time but the water of life that proceeds from the throne of God and the Lamb (22:1 & 3).

Having completed reading the entire Bible and reading this justified end for this world and the glorious commencement of the new earth, there is a strange sensation in returning to Genesis. Here we read of a very good or perfect world created by God without sin or the curse. I cannot help but wonder what might have been had Adam not sinned.

A moral creature such as man must be tested to see if he will believe God to be the way, the truth and the life (John 14:6).

All that comes after Genesis 2 until the end of Revelation 19 is due to the fact that man chose, and still chooses, to believe Satan’s lie about being able to be a god (self-sovereignty) and rebel against his Creator.

How fortunate and blessed we are that God has provided a way of escape (1 Corinthians 10:13) so that we need not continue in sin and suffer its consequence but rejoice in the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! (John 1:29)

Without the cross of Jesus Christ and His shed blood there can be no forgiveness of sin, no new creation and no resurrection. We are indeed most blessed as Jesus tells us in the Beatitudes (Matthew 5:1-12).

“Rejoice and be exceedingly glad” (Matthew 5:12)