Text: “And He that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And He said unto me, ‘Write, for these things are true and faithful...”
Revelation 21:5.
Good morning, renewed Christian! For you and for me, the Lord Jesus Christ has made all things new. Praise God! What a Saviour! What a Lord! Amen.
A New Invitation: (V.17) Verse seventeen of our selected Bible passage contains a new invitation to all elect mankind who will, by God’s grace, respond to it. The verse contains a new invitation; a new obligation; a new contemplation; and praise God, a whole new occupation. These wondrous ‘new things’ are all commenced by the Lord’s exhortation to “Come...”.
The One who makes all things new invites sinners to come to Him and receive His Eternal blessings.
“Come unto Me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me, for I am meek and lowly in heart; and ye shall find rest unto your souls.” (Matthew 11:28-29)
A New Obligation: (V.17) The absolute grace shown by Christ in His invitation to partake of Salvation, the terrible cost of which was His infinite sufferings and death at Calvary, brings with its acceptance a new obligation from the person thus saved. This new obligation is to come ‘...after...’ Christ, or to follow Him; walking in His ways; obeying His teachings; witnessing to His Holiness and truth. This is merely the reasonable obligation of every born again Christian who accepts Christ’s new invitation to come and be saved.
The One who makes all things new commands a new obligation. (Ephesians 5:8-20)
“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.” (Romans 12:1)
A New Contemplation: (V.17) To successfully fulfil our new obligation, we Christians must daily contemplate (i.e., look intently at; gaze in reverence at; think deeply about; and seek to emulate) the Christ who has called us to follow in His service. We do this by a daily, continual, contemplation of Christ Jesus as He is portrayed within the pages of God’s inspired Scriptures. We contemplate the Lord Jesus, and are continually renewed in His image as we conform in obedience to His Word. (1 Peter 1:13-23)
“Therefore, if any man be in Christ, he/she is a new creature; old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” (2 Corinthians 5:17)
The One who makes all things new deserves renewed contemplation daily. (2 Corinthians 3:17-18)
A New Occupation: (V.17) Christ’s new invitation brings a new obligation to dwell in new contemplation of Him. All this is necessary if we are to take up a new occupation in our lives. In our new occupation we become ‘...fishers of men/women.’ (2 Timothy 4:1-5)
“So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.” (Romans 10:11-17)
Having responded to God’s blessed invitation to receive Eternal Life in Christ, we are given that same Divine invitation to minister unto others who are yet still “...dead in trespasses and in sins...”. (Ephesians 2:1-5) (Titus 1:1-4)
We who have been given the treasures of God’s Kingdom are obliged to share that Eternal treasure with all who, by God’s grace, will receive it. Our new occupation is to ‘fish’ for the souls of men and women. The One who makes all things new adds the blessings in our new occupation - the Salvation of other immortal and precious souls. (Proverbs 11:30)
J.C. Ryle Comments:
“Let us notice, in the third place, the occupation of those who were first called to be Christ’s disciples. We read that our Lord called Simon and Andrew, when they were “casting a net into the sea,” and James and John while they were “mending their nets.”
“It is clear from these words, that the first followers of our Lord were not the great of this world. They were men who had neither riches, nor rank, nor power. But the kingdom of Christ is not dependent on such things as these. His cause advances in the world, “not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, saith the Lord of hosts.” (Zechariah 4:6) The words of St. Paul will always be found true: “Not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble are called. But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise, and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty.” (1 Corinthians 1:26-27) The church which began with a few fishermen, and yet overspread half the world, must have been founded by God.” (J.C. Ryle’s Expository Thoughts on the Gospels 1816-1900)
Take heart then, Christian! The extraordinary Lord God Almighty is continually making “...all things new...”, especially for ordinary believers like you and me. Hallelujah! Victory in the Lamb!
Thought: Trust the Lord Jesus Christ - He makes ALL things new!
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