What will we do in the new creation?
The new creation is not an endless rest with nothing to do; it is the healing and renewal of all things. Scripture shows God dwelling with His people, every tear wiped away, the curse gone, and His people serving Him, reigning with Him, seeing His face, and living in a world of righteousness, abundance, and joy without end.
This question arose from studying What is the new heaven and new earth?.
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What the Scripture says
It is the healing of the world, not a leaving of it
John saw 'a new heaven and a new earth,' and the prophets pictured the same: God says, 'I create new heavens and a new earth,' and Peter says we look for a new heavens and earth 'in which righteousness dwells.' The earth is not to be discarded; it is to be renewed, the fallen world made whole and set free at last.
I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth have passed away, and the sea is no more.
“For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth; and the former things shall not be remembered, nor come into mind.
But, according to his promise, we look for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells.
God Himself will dwell with us
The center of the new creation is not a place but a presence: 'God's dwelling is with people, and he will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God.' And He will wipe away every tear; there will be no more death, mourning, crying, or pain, for the first things have passed away. The One on the throne declares, 'Behold, I am making all things new.' The God we have loved from afar will at last be with us face to face.
I heard a loud voice out of heaven saying, “Behold, God’s dwelling is with people, and he will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God.
He will wipe away from them every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; neither will there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain, any more. The first things have passed away.”
He who sits on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” He said, “Write, for these words of God are faithful and true.”
We will serve Him and reign with Him
The new creation is full of purpose, not of empty time. In the new Jerusalem there is 'no curse any more. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants serve him,' and John says, 'They will reign forever and ever.' The great multitude is 'before the throne of God, they serve him day and night in his temple.' Our created purpose, to know God and serve Him, finds its full, unbroken expression there.
There will be no curse any more. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants serve him.
There will be no night, and they need no lamp light; for the Lord God will illuminate them. They will reign forever and ever.
Therefore they are before the throne of God, they serve him day and night in his temple. He who sits on the throne will spread his tabernacle over them.
We will see His face
Scripture's highest promise is intimacy, not scenery: 'They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads.' Where we now 'see in a mirror, dimly,' then we shall see face to face and know even as we are known. To see God, to be with Him, to bear His name: this is the deep rest and the deep joy that no earthly happiness can satisfy, and that the new creation will give fully.
They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads.
For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I will know fully, even as I was also fully known.
I heard a loud voice out of heaven saying, “Behold, God’s dwelling is with people, and he will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God.
A world of abundance and peace
The prophets paint a renewed world of real life: people build houses and inhabit them, plant vineyards and eat their fruit, and 'the wolf and the lamb shall feed together... They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain.' The river of the water of life flows from the throne, and the tree of life bears its fruit for the healing of the nations. Scripture says that no eye has seen and no ear has heard what God has prepared for those who love Him. We will work without exhaustion, delight without decay, and live in a world where nothing is broken anymore.
They shall build houses, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and eat their fruit.
The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, and the lion shall eat straw like the ox; and dust shall be the serpent’s food. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain,” says Yahweh.
He showed me a river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb, in the middle of its street. On this side of the river and on that was the tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruits, yielding its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.
But as it is written, “Things which an eye didn’t see, and an ear didn’t hear, which didn’t enter into the heart of man, these God has prepared for those who love him.”
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I heard a loud voice out of heaven saying, “Behold, God’s dwelling is with people, and he will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away from them every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; neither will there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain, any more. The first things have passed away.”
But, according to his promise, we look for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells.
“For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth; and the former things shall not be remembered, nor come into mind.
They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. There will be no night, and they need no lamp light; for the Lord God will illuminate them. They will reign forever and ever.
But as it is written, “Things which an eye didn’t see, and an ear didn’t hear, which didn’t enter into the heart of man, these God has prepared for those who love him.”
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