December 29/19 HEAVEN AND EARTH TOGETHER AGAIN

This morning is the first Sunday after Advent, a time when the church slows down and reflects on the gift of Jesus who came to earth to become human like us.  We also look forward to Jesus’ return during Advent.  This morning we are wrapping up our journey through Revelation by reflecting on Revelation 21:1-7, Heaven and Earth Together Again.  This passage is all about hope and renewal, about victory over sin and death, and about heaven and earth coming together again, as a reversal of what happened in Genesis 3 when Adam and Eve were kicked out of the garden.  It’s about how history begins with chaos before creation and how Jesus brings order and peace into our chaotic lives and hearts.  There’s the picture of us being made new again, of all our hurt and brokenness being left behind as we move forward into an eternal future with Jesus healed and forgiven.  Even after Jesus returns, there is still work for us to do to continue the task of discovering and releasing the potential that God has placed in creation, a task that got sidetracked by the fall into sin, but can be renewed again, but now with the entire universe/creation open to us.