Based on Revelation 22 (New King James Version)
“And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb. In the middle of its street, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life, which bore twelve fruits, each tree yielding its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. And there shall be no more curse, but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His servants shall serve Him. They shall see His face, and His name shall be on their foreheads. There shall be no night there: They need no lamp nor light of the sun, for the Lord God gives them light. And they shall reign forever and ever. Then he said to me, ‘These words are faithful and true.’ And the Lord God of the holy prophets sent His angel to show His servants the things which must shortly take place. ‘Behold, I am coming quickly! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.’ Now I, John, saw and heard these things. And when I heard and saw, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel who showed me these things. Then he said to me, ‘See that you do not do that for I am your fellow servant, and of your brethren the prophets, and of those who keep the words of this book. Worship God.’ And he said to me, ‘Do not seal the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is at hand. He who is unjust, let him be unjust still; he who is filthy, let him be filthy still; he who is righteous, let him be righteous still; he who is holy, let him be holy still.’ ‘And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last.’ Blessed are those who [g]do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city. But outside are dogs and sorcerers and sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and whoever loves and practices a lie. ‘I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things in the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the Bright and Morning Star.’ And the Spirit and the bride say, ‘Come!’ And let him who hears say, ‘Come!’ And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely. For I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds to these things, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book; and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the Book of Life, from the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book. He who testifies to these things says, ‘Surely I am coming quickly.’ Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus! The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.”
I think we can all agree that this world is not perfect, that it is far from perfect. We may have some pleasant moments in this life, but in general, no matter where you live, you have had, you have, or you will have many challenges. For some people, hunger and poverty are their challenges. For others, it might be health problems in family or friends, or even within themselves. Others struggle with loneliness. Others struggle with crime or violence. But no matter where you live, or how much you have, there's always something, or some things, that are not easy to deal with. And this has nothing to do with not being grateful for all that God gives us, because we should be grateful for everything, as Job said: “Shall we indeed accept good from God, and shall we not accept adversity?” Job 2:10b. But the Lord Himself said: “…In the world you will have tribulation…” John 16:33b. And if we read about the Lord's life here, even before experiencing the sacrifice of the cross, and all that preceded that event, we would realize that God Himself did not have an easy life. They conspired to kill Him at birth and on other occasions as well; He was poor, persecuted, troubled, always facing confrontations with religious authorities, despised, and He felt weariness and even pain, like when He wept for His friend Lazarus who had died. He had a very difficult life. And if this happened to Him, what can we expect for ourselves?
Now, why is this world the way it is? Because of sin. Sin corrupted everything, even nature itself and human life. That is why we suffer all that we suffer today. I was asked the other day: Why are there diseases in places where food is supposedly healthier than in other places, since food is thought to be the root of many of our physical illnesses? And I answered: Because of sin. A person may not be experiencing an illness because of something wrong they directly committed, although we are all sinners without exception, even those of us who try to legitimately follow the Lord. But sin is in the environment, all around us, and of course, deep within our being. So, sin spoils everything in the present. This is why even children die, beings who are completely innocent, because they sin without being fully aware of their wrongdoing. And although the Lord was perfect even in His carnal state (because He never sinned), He suffered all the consequences that sin brings on this earth: hunger, thirst, pain, brokenness, sadness, tiredness, etc., because sin is everywhere and affects everything.
So, what can we take away from all this? Blessed be the Lord for all He has done, is doing, and will do in the future for those who choose to love Him despite sin, despite corruption, despite everything they experience now. As we read today, we know through faith that this entire present world, which is temporary and corrupt, will pass at some point. All the decadence we experience while living in this age will one day end, and we will receive eternity from the Lord, according to our faith and love for Him. We understand very clearly what we are going through today, but we also know and have the certainty in Christ that this is not eternal. You may have problems, suffering, trials, and even tribulation today, but it will pass. And most importantly, we know how it all ends. Those of us who have genuinely decided to love the Lord have conviction in the world to come. We know how the story ends. Our story does not end in sickness, suffering, pain, sadness, or tribulation. And when we die, it is not the end, but quite the contrary, it is the beginning of an incorruptible eternal life, after passing through the great judgment of our God. This is what we read: “Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea. Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, ‘Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.’ Then He who sat on the throne said, ‘Behold, I make all things new.’ And He said to me, ‘Write, for these words are true and faithful.’” Revelation 21:1-5. That is why the true Christian does not live for this world, nor do they define the direction of their life in this manner. Rather, they live by faith, with their eyes fixed on Christ, seeking to do His will, with their sights set on the future, as it is written: “…‘The just shall live by faith.’” Romans 1:17b. So then, do you live in a way that your future with Christ is the most important thing? Lord bless! John. God bless Israel!