The New Earth

"AND I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the
first earth were passed away." Rev. 21:1. The fire that consumes the
wicked purifies the earth. Every trace of the curse is swept away. No
eternally burning hell will keep before the ransomed the fearful
consequences of sin. One reminder alone remains: our Redeemer will ever
bear the marks of His crucifixion. Upon His wounded head, His hands and
feet, are the only traces of the cruel work that sin has wrought.

"O Tower of the flock, the strong hold of the daughter of Zion, unto
thee
shall it come, even the first dominion." Micah 4:8. The kingdom
forfeited
by sin, Christ has regained, and the redeemed are to possess it with
Him.
"The righteous shall inherit the land, and dwell therein for ever." Ps.
37:29. A fear of making the saints' inheritance seem too material has
led
many to spiritualize away the very truths which lead us to look upon
the
new earth as our home. Christ assured His disciples that He went to
prepare mansions for them. Those who accept the teachings of God's Word
will not be wholly ignorant concerning the heavenly abode. And yet the
apostle Paul declares, "Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have
entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for
them
that love Him." 1 Cor. 2:9. Human language is inadequate to describe
the
reward of the righteous. It will be known only to those who behold it.
No
finite mind can comprehend the glory of the Paradise of God.

In the Bible the inheritance of the saved is called a country. (Heb.
11:14-16.) There the great Shepherd leads His flock to fountains of
living
waters. The tree of life yields its fruit every month, and the leaves
of
the tree are for the service of the nations. There are ever-flowing
streams, clear as crystal, and beside them waving trees cast their
shadows
upon the paths prepared for the ransomed of the Lord. There the
wide-spreading plains swell into hills of beauty, and the mountains of
God
rear their lofty summits. On those peaceful plains, beside those living
streams, God's people, so long pilgrims and wanderers, shall find a
home.