Worn Out Jeans
“And Thou, LORD, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of Thine hands: They shall perish; but Thou remainest; and they all shall wax old as doth a garment; And as a vesture shalt Thou fold them up, and they shall be changed: but Thou art the same, and Thy years shall not fail.” Hebrews 1:10-12
Jesus has always been. He was in existence when the world was created and will be in existence forever. Genesis 1:26 verifies that Jesus was with the Father at creation: “…let Us make man in Our image”. Jesus did not become the sinless Son of God at His birth in Bethlehem but has always been and will always be the sinless, perfect Son of God. Why God chose to introduce Him to the world as a Baby is a mystery, but had God chosen for Jesus to just appear one day on earth as a grown Man, He likely would have been less accepted by the people than He was because of a lack of background. Even so, people were skeptical of Him, particularly many who had watched Him grow up in Nazareth, but the skeptics would have been a far greater number, suspicious of a Man who appeared out of seemingly nowhere. God has His reasons and purposes for all He does and doesn’t have to explain his reasons to us mortals. And even if He did explain, we most likely would not understand His reasons. Isaiah 55:8 states: “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways, saith the LORD”.
When God the Father and God the Son created the heavens and the earth, their foreknowledge of the fall of man decreed that their creation would not exist forever. This old world will eventually be destroyed. II Peter 3:10: “…the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.” However, the Lord Jesus Christ will live on forever. The writer of Hebrews compares the wearing out or wearing down of the earth as a garment wears out with years of use. When a pair of jeans becomes threadbare with tears and holes in them to the point of making them indecent to wear (even though it is fashionable to wear worn out jeans, they will eventually become unwearable), they are thrown out. How long can the earth survive in its present state? I doubt that it will be a lack of natural resources that destroys mankind, but mankind himself because of the wickedness of man’s heart which will bring God’s judgment upon the world.
Gold will fold up this old world like an old coat that’s moth eaten and frayed and create a new heaven and a new earth (Isaiah 65:17; Revelation 21:1). However, while this original creation is gone, Jesus Christ will always be here no matter what sort of world or heaven will exist a million years from now. Even if eternity comes to an end and everything goes back to its original state, an earth without form, empty, and darkness upon the face of nothingness (Genesis 1:2), Christ will still exist. He will never fail. There is nothing in this old world upon which we can count. We develop relationships with other folks, but eventually those earthly relationships end through death or from drifting apart. We find that materialism and wealth never really satisfy. All the money in the world can’t repair a broken heart. Work, even “good works” may give us momentary satisfaction, but, as the old saying goes, “One can’t rest on one’s laurels”, that is, yesterday’s achievements are soon forgotten, and we must continue to strive toward bigger and better goals. There’s always someone who can top what we have accomplished. Solomon said that there is “no new thing under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 1:9). We spin our wheels and have nothing to show for it. However, for the man or woman who has made Christ his or her Lord, time spent with or for Him is never wasted time. We know that there is a “better country” (Hebrews 11:16), which awaits us after our time here in this sin-cursed world, and that this world is not the end.
I can picture in my mind’s eye what the new earth could look like. I think that it is possible that it will be much like the Garden of Eden, except that there will be a lot more people living in it. It will be a paradise where Jesus reigns in righteousness, and no one ever has to face the death of a loved one, illness, pain, depression, or worry. Some folks think that this is all some sort of fantasy that believers cook up to help themselves overcome this present world of troubles and sorrows, but I believe it is just as real as I am sitting here typing this blog. Why do I believe that it is real? I believe because God has told me so in His word, and His word has proven to be true over and over again. I have personally experienced His truths and His help in my life countless times. They, whoever they are, say that experience is the best teacher, and my experience with the Lord has taught me that He is real, His word is real, and He is coming again for all those who have committed their lives to Him. I am looking for Him to come any day now.