Here on earth, we are surrounded by the beauty of God’s creation. My personal favorite place to marvel at the beauty of God’s creation is the beach at sunrise. As I stare at the vast ocean and marvel at the beautiful colors in the sky as the sun rises, I cannot help but celebrate God’s creativity and the beauty surrounding me. What is truly remarkable is that Scripture teaches that, as beautiful as God’s creation here on earth is, nothing can compare to what God has planned for us in eternity if we have placed our faith in Christ, and as a result, we can look forward to Jesus’ return and the future with great expectation.
Throughout Scripture, we are taught to look to the future with confidence and anticipation because of what God has in store for those who have placed their faith in Him. Paul reminds us of this truth in 1st Corinthians 2. He explained in this passage of Scripture that God had a plan to rescue humanity from the very beginning of time (verse 7). From the moment Adam and Eve brought sin into the world in Genesis 3, God set forth a plan in motion to send Jesus at just the right time to rescue us from sin and death if we place our faith in Him. As he wrote about this plan, Paul quoted Isaiah 64:4, saying, “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love Him” (verse 9). This promise holds remarkable truths about the future. What God has in store for those who love Him and have placed their faith in Him does not compare to even the most glorious and magnificent thing we have seen on this earth. Indeed, we cannot even imagine what eternity will be like because we cannot compare anything here on earth to eternity with Christ and what He has prepared for us. The most beautiful sunset or the most stunning ocean pales in comparison to what awaits followers of Christ. What a remarkable promise we have to claim!
While we do not know the future, we know who holds the future. We know God’s plans for the future are good. They are not just good; they are perfect. We can look forward to that day with eagerness and anticipation. We have nothing to fear about the future if we have placed our hope in Christ. Instead of fear, we have the hope and anticipation of what life will be like with Christ forever when we have placed our faith in Him.
After reading the verses in the Going Deeper section, read Revelation 21:1-7, which gives us a glimpse of what eternity with Christ will be like. Make a list of the things Jesus reveals about the future with Him in this passage of Scripture. Then, pray. Thank God specifically for the hope we have for an eternity with Him one day, which He reveals to us in Revelation 21.
“God, I know what You have in store is greater than anything I could imagine. I praise You because…”
When I first came to you, dear brothers and sisters, I didn’t use lofty words and impressive wisdom to tell you God’s secret plan. 2 For I decided that while I was with you I would forget everything except Jesus Christ, the one who was crucified. 3 I came to you in weakness—timid and trembling. 4 And my message and my preaching were very plain. Rather than using clever and persuasive speeches, I relied only on the power of the Holy Spirit. 5 I did this so you would trust not in human wisdom but in the power of God.
6 Yet when I am among mature believers, I do speak with words of wisdom, but not the kind of wisdom that belongs to this world or to the rulers of this world, who are soon forgotten. 7 No, the wisdom we speak of is the mystery of God—his plan that was previously hidden, even though he made it for our ultimate glory before the world began. 8 But the rulers of this world have not understood it; if they had, they would not have crucified our glorious Lord. 9 That is what the Scriptures mean when they say,
“No eye has seen, no ear has heard,
and no mind has imagined
what God has prepared
for those who love him.”
10 But it was to us that God revealed these things by his Spirit. For his Spirit searches out everything and shows us God’s deep secrets. 11 No one can know a person’s thoughts except that person’s own spirit, and no one can know God’s thoughts except God’s own Spirit. 12 And we have received God’s Spirit (not the world’s spirit), so we can know the wonderful things God has freely given us.
13 When we tell you these things, we do not use words that come from human wisdom. Instead, we speak words given to us by the Spirit, using the Spirit’s words to explain spiritual truths. 14 But people who aren’t spiritual can’t receive these truths from God’s Spirit. It all sounds foolish to them and they can’t understand it, for only those who are spiritual can understand what the Spirit means. 15 Those who are spiritual can evaluate all things, but they themselves cannot be evaluated by others. 16 For,
“Who can know the Lord’s thoughts?
Who knows enough to teach him?”
But we understand these things, for we have the mind of Christ.
