Read: Revelation 6:1-11
O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long? (v. 10)
Have you ever asked for something new, only to be told you don’t need it? Maybe as a child you wanted a new football or a new doll, but your dad or mom assured you the old one was just fine.
When you hear Scripture teach about a new heaven you might wonder, “Do we really need a new heaven?” Is something wrong with God’s dwelling place as it is now? And the answer to that question is, “No! There is nothing wrong with heaven as it is now.”
But when Jesus comes back to earth it will usher in a new day for God’s people both in heaven and on earth. The “how long” of the saints waiting under the altar in Revelation 6:9-11 will be answered. Their wait will be over. The evil of those who persecuted them will be over. Satan and his minions will be defeated finally and forever. Christ’s reign over all will be acknowledged (Phil. 2:9-11). The former things will pass away. Death, mourning, crying, and pain will be no more (Rev. 21:4). Those saints under the altar will have much to celebrate!
There is much we don’t know about how heaven itself will be made “new” when Christ returns. Can it be more glorious than it is now? Yet Christ’s return will usher in some new changes related to heaven. Heaven will have a new location and glorified residents, as we will see in the next few days.
As you pray, remember fellow believers in Jesus around the world who are being persecuted for their faith.
Rich Bawinkel is a retired pastor who has served churches in the Reformed Church in America and the Kingdom Network. He is married to Anne and serves as a musician in their local church, as the administrator of the Kingdom Network, and on the Words of Hope Board of Directors.
