 This phrase is used to refer to the world we will inhabit in eternity with God (2 Peter 3). It is not a mere cleansing, renewal or restoration of our present world like what God did with the waters that covered this planet in the days of Noah. Peter draws a clear contrast between the destruction of the old world and the coming destruction of the present world. Our present world is reserved for fire. “The heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up… all these things will be dissolved” (vv. 10-11). Our present world will one day be gone (Matthew 24:35); there will be no place found for it (Revelation 20:11). But we have another place Jesus has prepared for us in His Father’s house (John 14:1-3; cf. Hebrews 11:16). This inheritance is “reserved in heaven” for us and is not just new in time but in kind, “incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away” (1 Peter 1:3-5; cf. Colossians 1:5). The new world will be spiritual, heavenly and eternal not physical, earthly and temporary as is our present world (2 Corinthians 4:16-5:11).
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 Have you ever noticed how some always seem to be so upbeat and positive? It is not because everything is going great in their life, or that things are necessarily going better for them than everybody else. No, it is because they choose to be that way. They decide to look for reasons to be happy and to focus on the good things. In doing so they attract more of the same. It doesn’t just happen; they make it happen.
This is how Paul teaches us to live our lives. “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18).  “Jeff grew up in a Christian home in the West. He was involved in church and in a Christian youth group. During his teens, he had a crisis of belief and began a search for meaning and purpose. That search led him away from church and to a radical jihadist group.”
“Beyond going to church today and going to heaven later, Jeff’s Christian experience lacked a compelling vision that gave him the reason to wake up every morning. Jeff found this strong sense of world-changing mission, purpose, and challenge in the radical terrorist group."  It is a sensitive subject that has touched most all our families, and we need to bring God to it!
Marriage was His idea from the beginning (Genesis 2:18-24). It is the very foundation of our society. God calls us to stay with our mates for as long as we live (Romans 7:2-3). To find a way to make it work, and not look for a way out. He does allow divorce and remarriage for those whose mates are sexually unfaithful to them. All others who have divorced or been divorced must be reconciled to their spouses or remain unmarried. Another marriage by such persons is adultery and those involved in such marriages are adulterers (Matthew 19:1-9; Mark 10:11-12; Romans 7:2-3; 1 Corinthians 7:10-11). No matter the circumstances, divorce is always painful. No wonder God hates it (Malachi 2:16), because He cares for us so (1 Peter 5:7). |
AuthorRobert Dodson is the Preaching Minister for the Northwest Church of Christ. Archives
January 2023
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