Eastertide

May 17, 2019

Scripture Reading: Revelation 21:1-6

And the one who was seated on the throne said, ‘See, I am making all things new.’ Also he said, ‘Write this, for these words are trustworthy and true.’ Then he said to me, ‘It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give water as a gift from the spring of the water of life. –Revelation 21:5-6

I have never experienced the devastation of total disaster that happens like the level 5 tornado that struck Moore, Oklahoma twenty years ago. The only thing left of many homes was the concrete foundation. Overhead pictures of the scene made it look spotlessly clean with those foundation slabs lined up in rows. Some victims of this storm lost their lives, some lost their livelihoods. Others were seriously injured. Those owners of foundations lost their homes and all its contents. All had to begin anew.

We need to think seriously about how much we want all things to be made new. Are we ready for the lamb to lie down with the lion? Do we long for all people to have enough—food, clothing, shelter, love, opportunity—to become fully the people God created them to be? Do we want to live among people who have no concept of greed or lust for power? Can we accept our worth as being established fully by the love of God with no comparison to any other? Until we grow into God’s love and let go of idols of our own making, we are not ready for all things to be made new.

We sing about it at Christmas time as we celebrate the birth of Jesus, but the hymn, O come, O come Emmanuel* looks forward to the day when all things are made new. Are we ready for that?

Prayer:
O come desire of nations, bind
All peoples in one heart and mind;
Bid envy, strife, and quarrels cease;
Fill the whole world with heaven’s peace.
Chorus:
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel!*, Amen.

*Seventh verse of O come, O come Emmanuel with Chorus by Latin hymn, 12th century, translated by John Neale, 1852 see at http://www.musicanet.org/robokopp/hymn/ocomeoco.html

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.