See...I make all things new!

“What does God have against dead bodies?” I asked myself this when I came across the rules of a Nazirite (someone who sets themselves apart to the Lord for a special time and purpose, ie. Samson) in Numbers 6:6-7a (NLT):

And they may not go near a dead body during the entire period of their vow to the LORD, even if their own father, mother, brother, or sister has died.

Whoah! That seemed harsh! And...truthfully? It bugged me. After my dad had passed into the presence of the Lord, I said good-bye with a kiss on his forehead. The idea that, as a Nazirite, such a daughterly gesture would have made me unclean was difficult to digest. But...because I have a God who's willing to give up His godly form to become human and die an innocent death in my place, I sucked it up and decided to dig deeper. What was REALLY going on? What DOES God have against dead bodies?

After ruminating, I realized: it's not dead bodies but death that is the real issue. Death grieves God (Ps. 116:15). Anything with the stink of death on it automatically carries with it the stink of sin (Rom. 15:12). Death puts a face on sin. We can try to hide our shortcomings (like the Pharisees) behind a veneer of good works. However, we are not Dorian Gray: the toxin inside us that makes us essentially self-serving little beasts is revealed in the cracks in our skin and the frost in our hair. To a Holy God, who is everything good and perfect, and who sees things as they really are, death is evil. It's an aberration, an intrusion into His good plan.

But, God also had a contingency plan to undo the destruction of sin and death.

Redemption is not just about being good. It's about not being dead. How can WE mere mortals hope to defeat such a colossal foe as Death? With wrinkle creams, hair dyes, the proper diet and exercise? Or maybe by guarding our tongues, loving our neighbors and feeding the poor? That's like trying to put out a forest fire with only kindness and a dazzling smile.

We need a champion. We need Jesus. Only the Giver of Life (Heb. 1:2) can be the Slayer of Death (1 Cor. 15:55-57). His holiness is the natural enemy of unholiness. God's inherent glory consumes anything that is less than glorious (Matt. 3:11-12; Heb. 12:28-29). He has taken our sin and death upon Himself, devoured it, and given us His holiness in its place (Col. 1:20-22).

Seven years ago, I went to see the film The Passion of the Christ. The audience sobbed aloud as the Savior was beaten mercilessly and crucified. However, it wasn’t the brutality depicted that drove me to tears. That was just too hard to watch. What got me was something Jesus said to His mother, Mary, as He struggled up the hill to be crucified:


[Please watch the film clip now, or read the synopsis* below.]

*Synopsis: In the scene, Jesus is staggering along the path through the outskirts of Jerusalem carrying His cross, gasping under the weight of its awful burden. His blood-smeared hands struggle to support its bulk, and the blood streaming down His forehead robs Him of sight. But, still, He stumbles on. The clamoring crowd lines both sides of the way. Some faces display grief, but most are yelling in hateful anger. Then we see His mother, Mary, following His progress with unsure feet and tortured eyes. A specter in black mirrors her movements on the other side of the road, but with stealthy steps and eyes devoid of human feeling. A manifestation of Satan. With a shudder, Mary urges her companion, the disciple John, to help her get closer to Jesus. 

As the crowd's emotions flare, the guards respond by whipping Jesus yet again. When He collapses, Mary remembers an incident from His boyhood. The film cuts back and forth between the Boy and then the Man falling to the ground. She reaches His side at last and murmurs “I’m here! I’m here!” She still wants to protect Him. But the Son of God touches her face with His bloodied hand as this revelation convulses from His parched throat,

“See, mother, I make all things new!"

With renewed determination, He rises again to His feet, continuing the ascent up the hill to our salvation. 

I was undone! The tears in my eyes obliterated the ensuing violence on the screen and flushed out a granule of fatalism that had been lodged in my heart. Even though I accepted Christ's gift of salvation years ago, I continue to contend with my old nature and, consequently, with feelings of failure. But to hear Christ say those words from Revelation in relation to the cross gave me a new way to look at my struggle. Christ is making me new even now. When I fall, I just need to remember He is doing the work. Then I can get right back up, following in His steps!

As soon as I got home from the movie, I looked up the passage in Revelation. John, now an apostle, is speaking about a vision he had of a new heaven and a new earth. It’s our “happily ever after”:

I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, “Look, the home of God is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them. He will remove all of their sorrows, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. For the old world and its evils are gone forever.” And the one sitting on the throne said, “Look, I am making all things new!” (Rev. 21:3-5a, NLT)

“Ain’t It a Pretty Night!”

When young lovers gush eloquent tributes to the objects of their affections, some listeners might smile reminiscently, while others snort knowingly, depending on each one's own experience. However, the powerful sense of well-being that overwhelms you when encountering the glorious beauty of nature, which causes you to quote Robert Browning — “God’s in his heaven, All’s right with the world” — is hard to argue against, if you yourself have ever witnessed a night like the one Susannah did.

“Ain’t It a Pretty Night!”

by Carlise Floyd, from the opera Susannah

Susannah:

Ain't it a pretty night!
The sky's so dark an' velvet-like, and it's all lit up with stars.
It's like a great big mirror reflectin' fireflies over a pond.
Look at all them stars, Little Bat! The longer y'look, the more y'see.
The sky seems so heavy with stars that it might fall right out of heaven
an' cover us all up in one big blanket of velvet all stitched with diamon's.

Ain't it a pretty night!
Just think, those stars can all peep down an' see way beyond where we can:
they can see way beyond them mountains
to Nashville an' Ashville an' Knoxville.
I wonder what it's like out there, out there beyond them mountains,
where the folks talk nice, an' the folks dress nice,
like y'see in the mail order catalogs.
I aim to leave this valley some day an' find out fer myself:
to see all the tall buildin's and all the street lights
an' be one o' them folks myself.

I wonder if I'd get lonesome fer the valley, though,
fer the sound of crickets an' the smell of pine straw,
fer soft little rabbits an' bloomin' things
an' the mountains turnin' gold in the fall.
But I could always come back if I got homesick for the valley.
So I'll leave it someday an' see fer myself.
Someday I'll leave an' then I'll come back
when I've seen what's beyond them mountains.

Ain't it a pretty night!
The sky's so heavy with stars tonight
that it could fall right down out of heaven
an' cover us up, an' cover us up
in one big blanket of velvet and diamon's.

Another songwriter, named David, also exploded with joy upon seeing the glory of the night sky:

Psalm 19 (NLT)

The heavens tell of the glory of God. The skies display his marvelous craftsmanship. Day after day they continue to speak; night after night they make him known. They speak without a sound or a word; their voice is silent in the skies; yet their message has gone out to all the earth, and their words to all the world. 

The sun lives in the heavens where God placed it. It bursts forth like a radiant bridegroom after his wedding. It rejoices like a great athlete eager to run the race. The sun rises at one end of the heavens and follows its course to the other end. Nothing can hide from its heat.

If you embrace and agree with David's words, allow that same feeling of joy and well-being to continue as you read his words that follow those:

The law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul. The decrees of the LORD are trustworthy, making wise the simple. The commandments of the LORD are right, bringing joy to the heart. The commands of the LORD are clear, giving insight to life. Reverence for the LORD is pure, lasting forever. The laws of the LORD are true; each one is fair. They are more desirable than gold, even the finest gold. They are sweeter than honey, even honey dripping from the comb. They are a warning to those who hear them; there is great reward for those who obey them. 

How can I know all the sins lurking in my heart? Cleanse me from these hidden faults. Keep me from deliberate sins! Don't let them control me. Then I will be free of guilt and innocent of great sin. May the words of my mouth and the thoughts of my heart be pleasing to you, O LORD, my rock and my redeemer.

The Word of God, aka “The Law,” is not meant to drag us down but to draw us up to Him. It reveals the dark recesses of our souls, where selfishness and self preservation abide and consume us. God never intended us to be the centers of our own lives. His glory is the fire around which we should dance. Self-centeredness induces anxiety and keeps us hiding in the bushes in fear, like the newly-fallen Adam and Eve did when they heard the approaching footsteps of their All-Good Creator-God. 
There are three ways God has revealed Himself to us:

• Through the glory of His creation
• Through the wisdom of His Word
• Through the sacrificial love of His Son, Jesus Christ

Allow the beauty of God's creation to inform you of His good and loving intentions, which He has also declared in His Word and demonstrated in the life, the works, the death and resurrection of His Son Jesus. Don't buy into the nonsense that Bible is a drag and that God is the great, big spoil sport in the sky. The only thing He wants to spoil is the destructive power of sin, death and selfishness, which Christ has already done by selflessly taking our sin and death upon Himself when He died on the cross. Then He trumpeted His victory by rising again.
The next time your heart glories in the beauty of the night sky, remember: that feeling is only a glimmer of what God can do in your heart through His Word and His Son — if you let Him!