See, I Make All Things New

Homily for the Fifth Sunday of Easter

Last week’s reading from the book of Revelation came from chapter seven. This week’s reading comes from chapter twenty-one. The fourteen chapters that intervene are filled with all sorts of death and destruction – wars, plagues, even a fire breathing dragon. Perhaps it is these chapters that have given the word “apocalypse” the connotation of the end or destruction of the world. Consequently, I want to begin this morning by reminding you that the word “apocalypse” or “revelation” does not refer to the end of the world. Rather it refers to the unveiling of the truth; namely, God will prevail.

The vision that John sees today is written in a poetic form that is called a chiasm. In a chiasm the last line of the poem mirrors the first line, the second last line mirrors the second line, and so on until we come to the middle of the poem. In the case of the hymn that we hear today, the middle line is “the city descends as a bride – God dwells with the people.” This is the message which John wishes his readers to remember. This is the central point of all the Scriptures. God dwells with God’s people. It was the message of the Hebrew Scriptures, and it is certainly the message of the Christian Scriptures which feature God’s incarnation in the person of Jesus.

The first and last line of this hymn focus our attention on something new. The second and second last line of the hymn focus on the former heaven and earth and former things. The third and third last line of the poem speak of the end of the sea which the Israelites regarded as death. “And the sea will be no more.”

The disappearance of the sea is significant. In ancient Near Eastern mythology, the sea was one of the most frequently employed symbols for chaos. In the opening verses of the book of Genesis, we are told that God brought order to the chaos through the creation of the universe. The sea represented the primordial forces of evil that were defeated and restrained at the time of creation but never thoroughly destroyed, as evidenced by the fact that sin entered the Garden of Eden just two chapters later. Throughout human history from Adam to Jesus, God made every effort to bring humanity back to its original innocence. God’s efforts included covenants with Noah, Abraham, and Moses and Israel. It also included the establishment of the Kingdom of Israel led by David. David was followed by Solomon who built a beautiful Temple which became God’s dwelling place among God’s people. As the people continued to drift away from God, prophets came among them to call them back and to renew them in their covenant relationship with God. We are reminded of these prophets, especially the prophet Isaiah, who foretold the new heaven and the new earth of which we hear today.

All of God’s efforts at renewal culminated in the person of Jesus, the Lamb of God who was slain for our salvation. In the Fourth Eucharistic Prayer, the presider prays the following words: “And that we might live no longer for ourselves but for him who died and rose again for us, he sent the Holy Spirit from you, Father, as the first fruits for those who believe, so that, bringing to perfection his work in the world, he might sanctify creation to the full.” The death of Jesus not only redeemed the human race; but also brought to perfection the entire world and sanctified creation to the full. Jesus put death itself to death by his dying and renewed our human life by his resurrection.

The old order has passed away, along with death and tears. In fulfillment of the prophetic promises of Isaiah, God will comfort the people who mourn, wiping away their tears. This reading ends in a summary note: “All things are made new.” However, this mystery, this newness, is both present and yet to come. As we make our pilgrimage through life, the new heaven and the new earth stand as a promise for those who believe. One day we too will be standing around the throne of the Lamb, singing God’s praises. Death has no claim over those who believe in the new Jerusalem, the holy city where God and God’s people will dwell together.