We are in Isaiah. The very end of Isaiah, chapter
65. There are 66 chapters, so it's next to the
last one. And we'll be looking at this glorious
new creation. The Word of God, beginning of verse
17. For behold, I create new heavens and a new
earth, and the former shall not be remembered
or even come to mind. I'll be glad and rejoice
forever in what I create. For behold, I create
Jerusalem as a rejoicing and her people a joy.
I will rejoice in Jerusalem and joy in my people.
The voice of weeping shall no longer be heard
in her. nor the voice of crying. No more shall
an infant from there live but a few days, nor
an old man who has not fulfilled his days. For
the child shall die one hundred years old, but
the sinner being one hundred years old shall
be accursed. They shall build houses and inhabit
them. They shall plant vineyards and eat their
fruit. They shall not build houses and another
inhabit. They shall not plant and another eat.
For as the days of a tree shall be the days of
my people, and my elect shall long enjoy the
work of their hands. They shall not labor in
vain, nor bring forth children for trouble, for
they shall be the descendants of the blessed
of the Lord and their offspring with them. It
shall come to pass that before they call, I will
answer, and while they are still speaking, I
will hear. The wolf and the lamb shall feed together,
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 the
Lord, says Yahweh. Let's pray. Father, help us
this morning, Lord, to make much of your Son
and his salvation. Oh, God, comfort your people,
Lord. Lord, we are in the Advent season, a season
of hope and comfort and expectation and longing.
But Lord, there's also a sadness for many. God,
give your people, Lord, hope and peace and joy
as we anticipate the future that we will live
because of Christ and because he lives. It's
in the name of Jesus, your blessed son, we pray.
Amen. It was Christmas Day, 1863. The United
States was in the midst of a very bloody civil
war. This man was grieving the recent loss of
his wife in a tragic fire, and he himself was
also injured in this fire. The war had also left
his son seriously injured. And on that Christmas
day, he heard the church bells ringing out, and
he was struck. He was struck by the dissonance
between the promise of peace on earth and the
terrible violence and the personal suffering
that he was now experiencing. So then this poet,
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, picked up his pen
and he wrote the poem, Christmas Bells. It was
later put to music with the title, I Heard the
Bells on Christmas Day. Some of you may be familiar
with it. I'll read the first stanzas, I only
put the last two on the wall, but he writes this,
I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day. Their old
familiar carols play. And wild and sweet the
words repeat, Peace on earth, goodwill to men.
And how, as the days had come, the belfrys of
all Christendom had rolled along the unbroken
song of peace on earth and goodwill to men. Till
ringing, singing on its way, the world revolved
from night to day. A voice, a chime, a chant
sublime, a peace on earth and goodwill to men.
Then from each black, accursed mouth, the cannon
thundered in the south, and with the sound the
carols drowned of peace on earth, good will to
men. It was as if an earthquake rent the heart
stones of a continent and made forlorn the households
born of peace on earth and good will to men.
And in despair, I bowed my head. There is no
peace on earth, I said. For hate is strong and
mocks the song of peace on earth goodwill to
men Then peeled the bells more loud and deep
God is not dead nor doth he sleep The wrong shall
fail the right prevail With peace on earth and
goodwill to men. I actually love this carol.
I love the song Because it relates to us how
our present experience does not negate our ultimate
reality. In other words, how things are right
now is not how things will always be. Today's
the second Sunday of Advent and the focus is
on peace. The promise of peace, sounds good doesn't
it? It offers hope, it offers comfort. What?
Comfort and hope that better days are coming
to a people who are worn down by life. This present
life is hard. Job said that man who is born of
woman is a few days and full of trouble. Jesus
our Lord said, in this world, in this age, you
will have tribulation. But be of good comfort,
be of good cheer, for I have overcome this world.
If the world allows me to see January, this particular
January will mark the beginning of my 17th year
here as the pastor. It'll actually, in February,
mark the 22nd year that I came and joined pastoral
staff here at Mamory, February of 2004. And of
all those years, and they've been good, this
past year, 2025, was one of the saddest I've
ever experienced. There were so many funerals,
and so many sudden deaths, and it left us, and
it left me reeling, and it left us shaken. And
yet at Christmas at Advent, we're going to hear
the familiar promise in Luke 2, and I love Luke
2. For there is born to you this day in the city
of David a Savior who is Christ the Lord. And
this will be the sign to you. You will find a
babe wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in a
manger. And suddenly there was with the angel
a multitude of the heavenly host praising God
and saying, glory to God in the highest and on
earth peace, good will. toward men. It's funny.
Peace on earth. Is there peace on earth right
now? I mean, look around. What do we see? The
war between Russia and Ukraine drags on. The
conflict between Israel and Palestine there in
Gaza. Christians, God's people, are ruthlessly
attacked in Nigeria, Sudan, as well as the Congo.
It's this year, just this past year alone, over
7 ,000 Christians have been martyred for their
faith in Nigeria. Look around, there's poverty
and hunger, human rights violations in many,
many parts of the world. Greed and corruption
exist at the highest offices on the land. We
don't even have to talk about human trafficking.
injustice, abuse of power, or ubiquitous. So
given this current situation, are we naive to
believe in the promise of peace? Are we gullible?
Are we just fooling ourselves that this angel's
declaration is true? I mean, what exactly did
the angel mean when he announced peace on earth?
Good will to men. I suppose if I were to give
you a one -sentence summary, here's what it would
be. Jesus, the Divine Son of God, took on flesh
and was born of the virgin's womb to reverse
the curse of sin. Peace on earth will be a reality
because Jesus came. God was born from that virgin's
womb. So this is what gives us hope. We live
in hope in the midst of a very sorrowful world
with our with the knowledge that our God will
ultimately banish in. That day's coming and He
will ultimately banish sorrow forever as well.
So what we currently experience, and we're not
denying it, there is sorrow, there is death,
there are trials, but that's not the way it will
always be. And that's the promise of our text
this morning in Isaiah 65. A new beginning is
on the horizon. A new realm of existence that
is so radically different from our present one
that the curse of God upon mankind, upon all
creation, upon all that we currently know will
be taken away. This is so pervasive. It is so
intense that it's called a new heavens and a
new earth. Now we're in Isaiah 65 this morning.
It's the final section of Isaiah, and Isaiah
is focusing on the consummation of God's plan.
So these verses, they help us, they move beyond
the present reality, the one which we currently
live in, to show this cosmic renewal that's already
begun. It's already started because God's final
plan began with Christ's first coming and it
will be fully realized or consummated at His
second coming. So what we see in Isaiah 65 is
a picture, a poetic picture of the consummated
kingdom of God. It shows us the eternal state.
Now when we talk about the kingdom, we can say
the kingdom of God is already here. Jesus said
the kingdom of God is within you. The kingdom
of God is present on the earth in seed form in
the lives of the believers, in the lives of the
church. But that's not the fruition. That's just
the beginning of the kingdom. It will be brought
to fruition. It will be brought to consummation
when our Lord returns again. But as we think
about that, The final age of the world is already
with us. The renewal of the world is already
underway. For when Christ, when He ascended into
heaven, the plan of God entered into its fulfillment.
This is why, if you look at the New Testament,
it says we are living in the last days. The last
days are the time between Christ's ascension
and Christ's return. In these days, Christ is
reigning. We're not waiting for Christ to reign.
He's reigning, but He's reigning in His church.
in word and sacrament. But this present day,
the one in which we currently live, is still
marked by suffering, pain, and heartache. The
evil one still attacks. Yes, he's already been
defeated at the cross, but he's still attacking
the church. So this present time, it's a time
of waiting and watching and witnessing to the
world of the gospel of Christ. I think about
right now life. We are still engaged in trials,
disappointments, true suffering, true grief,
true heartache, and we are waiting anxiously
for our Lord's return in power and great glory
and ushering in that final, eternal kingdom.
But what will that be like? What is the future
that you and I can anticipate? Isaiah 65, now
this is a poem. It's a Hebrew poem, but it gives
us a glimpse. There's a promise in verse 17,
if you look at it. For behold, usually in scripture
means, look, stop, this is something only God
can do. For behold, I create new heavens and
a new earth, and the former shall not be remembered
or come to mind. new heavens and new earth. Now
this, when you're talking about heavens and earth,
this is the totality of all things. The renovation
of the entire cosmos is coming. Everything, everything
in the heavens, everything on earth, is going
to be renewed. This renewal and transfiguration
is just that. It's not a replacement of the present
cosmos. What do I mean by that? Because if you
go to Revelation 21, we'll look at that later,
the word new in Greek is word kainos. Kinos is
understood as renewed in nature. It's not brand
-new in substance. That's an important distinction
here. So God is going to take what we currently
see and He's going to renew it, renovate it,
and it'll be so renewed, so absolutely remodeled,
if you will, that it's a new heaven and a new
earth. But this new creation, it began with the
resurrection and ascension of Christ. In fact,
you are a new creation in Christ. Christ is what?
He's the firstborn of all creation, Colossians
1. But all that he's doing right now will have
an end point. It will be consummated at the second
coming. And again, I look forward to this change
because it's going to be so thorough. It says
the things that are former, which is what we're
living right now, will not be remembered. And
then he goes it further, they won't even come
to mind. Former things not remembered. This does
not mean the loss of personal memory. Rather,
it's speaking of the total absence of sorrow
and sin and injustice. All that's former, all
that we currently know, the injustice and the
trafficking and the enslavement and the corruption
and the greed, all that's going to be wiped away.
Everything about the old order will be gone in
this renovation and you and I will forever live
in a completely new reality. This new reality
is paradise, what we had in Eden, restored. This
is the answer to the prayer that Christians have
prayed since our Lord taught us to pray. Thy
kingdom come, thy will be done. This is the answer
right here. This is how God's going to answer
that prayer. In the book of Romans chapter 8,
Paul talked about creation being in bondage.
All of creation. Not just humans. We know we're
in bondage to sin until Christ liberates us.
But he said the creation itself, even the land
and the animals and nature, was also subjected
to bondage. And Paul spoke about a future day
when even creation will be liberated from its
bondage. Romans 8 beginning at verse 18. Now
notice the language here. For I consider that
the sufferings of this present time are not worthy
to be compared with a glory which shall be revealed
in us. Suffering is right now. Glory awaits.
For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly
waits for the revealing of the sons of God. Now
look at verse 20, try to follow his logic. For
the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly,
but because of him who subjected in hope. Because
the creation itself also will be delivered from
the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty
of the children of God. For we know that the
whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs
together until now. Not only that, but we also
who have the first fruits of the Spirit, even
we ourselves groan within ourselves eagerly waiting
for the adoption. That is the redemption of our
body. Our present sufferings, Paul says, are
not worthy of comparison with the glory that
is coming your way. Now Paul is not a stoic.
He's not minimizing suffering. He does not tell
believers, hey, just keep a stiff upper lip and
don't ever cry and don't let them see you sweat.
No, he says you're going to suffer and you're
going to cry. But he offers hope in the midst
of it. He's saying, it'll be worth it, all friend.
It will be worth it. The pain, the tears, the
heartache, the disappointment that this age brings,
it's going to be swallowed up in glory, one second
into eternity. And every difficulty we have ever
experienced will be washed away. It will be but
a distant memory. I love that. Suffering doesn't
have the final word. Suffering is real. But glory
is real, too. Suffering, it is temporary, Paul
says. It's only for this age. It's temporary.
It has an end date. There's an expiration date.
But glory never expires. Glory is eternal. Paul
said in 2 Corinthians 4 17, for our light affliction.
Now, if anyone had affliction that was heavy,
it was Paul. And Paul said, our light affliction,
which is but for a moment, is working for us.
It's doing something. It's working for us a far
more far more exceeding and eternal weight of
glory. Affliction is light and glory is weighty.
Do you see what he's doing there? And he says,
right now, all that we seek, all of creation
is groaning under a curse, and it's crying out
for relief. And that relief will be given to
creation when Christ returns. And he says, yes,
right now you're going to suffer, friends. Even
the church, even Christians will suffer, but
don't despair, because glory is your future.
There will be that future transformation. The
curse that is currently over all of creation,
from Genesis 3 .15, will be reversed. Or Genesis,
sorry. Romans 8 .21. Because the creation itself
will be delivered from the bondage of corruption.
So right now we know something. Creation is not
as God intended it to be. It wasn't just mankind,
Adam and Eve, that were cursed when they sinned.
So was the land. So was the animal kingdom. The
entire cosmos. Everything was put under a divine
curse. And we can easily see the effects of that
curse in nature. In some parts of the world there
are droughts. Other parts of the world there
are floods. In some parts of the world there's
famines. In some parts of the world there's pestilence.
There's natural disasters. All those things come
because there was a curse. What about the animal
kingdom? We see violence right now in the animal
kingdom. You have predators kill and devour and
eat their prey. And Paul said all of this is
a sign that all of creation is under bondage.
It's frustrated because it is unable to attain
what God originally designed for it. Let me put
it this way. Creation itself knows that the things
which are currently are not how they should be.
This is not God's design. When man sinned, when
Adam fell, the entire created order was cursed,
and now we live in this frustrated, incomplete
state. But one day that's all going to change.
the present order will be transformed to a perfect,
pristine environment for the redeemed children
of God to forever live in. And it's so thorough,
this overhaul, that Isaiah and John in the book
of Revelation called it new, new heaven, new
earth, kainos, renovated. Instead of sorrow,
there will be only joy. Look at verses 18 and
19 of our text. But be glad and rejoice forever
in what I create for behold I create Jerusalem
as rejoicing her people a joy I will rejoice
in Jerusalem and joy in my people the voice of
weeping no longer heard nor the voice of crying
Notice that the terms that Isaiah uses here be
glad rejoice forever Jerusalem is a rejoicing
her people are joy God rejoices in Jerusalem
God takes joy in his people Two verses, many
times, over and over, he's letting us know something.
Here's what's going to happen in this new, created
kingdom. Everywhere you look, everywhere you
turn, there will be joy. You know what will not
be found? Sorrow. There won't be a sorrowful
person. Everyone will be full of joy. Now, can
you imagine living in a dwelling like this? Can
you imagine if this is your forever home? Every
sorrowful, painful, hurtful event, moment, and
memory are forever behind us. Everywhere. There's
only Forever joy. That means you're not going
to get that dreaded phone call. You're not going
to get that text that's bringing bad news. All
of that is going to be behind you. Your present
reality will only be forever full, overflowing
joy. Isaiah and John later would write, weeping
is no more. The sound of someone crying will
never again be heard in the renovated cosmos.
You ever been there when someone gets the news
of death and you hear a guttural cry like you've
not heard? I have. You ever been there when someone
has personally taken their last breath and the
family begins to weep? I have. And there'll be
no more broken -hearted tears that are shed.
Broken hearts are gone. because it's only joy
because of Jesus. See, man's greatest enemy will
also be missing. No more hospitals, praise God,
no more funeral homes, for death will be absent.
Now notice verse 20, and let me explain this
because some of you are going to pick up on something
right away. No more shall an infant from there
live but a few days, nor an old man who has not
fulfilled his days, for the child shall die one
hundred years old, but the same sinner being
one hundred years old shall be accursed. Now
you're saying, hey, how do you say death is missing
if there's talk of death if it doesn't exist
in this consummated kingdom? Couple points. First
of all, you have to remember something. Isaiah
65 is a Hebrew poem. It's conveying truths poetically.
Isaiah is using familiar earthly images to describe
realities that transcend our present categories.
So he's couching eternal realities in present
world categories. And this is a literary device.
It's known in Hebrew poetry. It's called the
prophetic idiom. Well, what's a prophetic idiom?
A prophetic idiom is when the author speaks of
the eternal in terms of the temporal so that
we can relate to it, so we can understand. This
is why, and this explains why he mentions death
and then long life, he's simply expressing blessing
in earthly terms. He is not implying that there's
mortality in the final state. Now, because if
you look closely, and this is so important context,
if you look closely at the text, you're going
to see what Isaiah is doing, and it's beautiful.
He is showing that the curse that God put on
man is being reversed. What was the curse? Death.
Death is being reversed. He's using imagery to
show that the age to come is marked by a life
that is free from those covenant curses of Deuteronomy
28. So notice, in the coming age, sorrow gives
way to joy, verses 18 and 19. Premature death,
a child, gives way to longevity, verse 20. Futility,
we'll look at that moment, gives way to productivity.
Separation gives way to intimacy. And animosity,
or division, gives way to harmony. So Isaiah's
showing everything that sin brought, which is
what? Sorrow, death, futility, separation, animosity,
it's gone. Because in the coming age, the curse
is no more. The New Age is one of shalom. It's
a Hebrew word. When you go to Israel, many of
you have gone. That's how they greet each other.
They say shalom. Shalom means peace. But shalom
doesn't simply mean no conflict. Like peace in
the Middle East, or I'm not fighting with someone.
It actually means shalom means everything is
working how God intended it to work. Everything
is in harmony. Now the Lord Jesus is the Prince
of Peace. He's the Prince of Shalom. He came
to bring shalom. He came to bring peace to the
entire created order, meaning he came to bring
back God's original design. All that God originally
intended will take place. Now, how do we know
this is not talking about death here? Because
the Apostle John, in Revelation 21, he picks
up Isaiah's message and he writes even more clearly.
Now, this is not a poem here in Revelation 21.
John writing, I saw a new heaven and new earth.
For the first heaven, the first earth had passed
away, and 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 a husband. And I heard a loud voice from
heaven saying, Behold, something only God can
do. 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. No more crying, like Isaiah said. There
shall be neither no more death nor sorrow nor
crying. There shall be no more pain, for the
former things have passed away. very clear and
ambiguous terms, John says, no sorrow, no death,
no futility. So Isaiah, if you go back there,
he's saying in this new kingdom, you won't work
and then someone else enjoy your labor. Because
remember, that was part of the curse. God told
Israel, if you do what I tell you to do, I will
bless you. You will build houses and live in
them. You will plant vineyards and you eat their
fruit. But if you break that, you will build
a house, someone else will live in it. you plant
a vineyard, someone else eat its fruit. Now look
at verses 21 through 23. In the coming age, he's
writing about covenant here. They will build
houses, inhabit them. They'll plant vineyards,
eat their fruit. They shall not build another
inhabit. They shall not plant another eat. For
as the days of a tree shall so shall be the days
of my people. And my elect, my chosen ones, shall
long enjoy the work of their hands. They shall
not labor in vain, nor bring forth children for
trouble. for they shall be the descendants of
the blessed of the Lord and their offspring with
them." What Isaiah is saying is that man will
enjoy fruitful labor under God. We will forever
enjoy perfect curse -free labor and never ever
again experience frustration as Adam once did
in Eden. Sometimes we think, again, we have the
wrong view of heaven. We think of heaven in some...
I think because we get our theology a lot from
TV and movies rather than from the Bible, we
picture heaven or the eternal state is where
disembodied spirits or perhaps we're just all
in one big room on our faces for eons, for eternity.
No. We're going to work. You're going to have
lives. You're going to have a new body. You will
have a body as real as the body you have now.
But it won't ever experience frustration anymore.
There won't be any frustrated labor. Again, God
said, if you don't do what I say, then you're
going to build and not eat, or you're going to
build and not live in it, and plant and not eat
of it. But that's all going to be taken away.
That's the curse that's removed. As a covenant
breaker, life is futile. But that has ended.
John Oswald, his commentary said, instead of
tears of frustration and futility, there will
be smiles. of fulfillment and satisfaction and
songs of praise to God. We're going to be working,
but you're going to be singing while you're working
because it's going to turn out the way God designed.
You ever do a job well done and you're satisfied?
And you know that feeling. That's all going to
be. You also ever do a job and you're like, oh
my goodness, I can't stand this. That's not going
to be there, is what he's saying. And most significantly,
there will be perfect communion with God. Verse
24. It shall come to pass that before they call,
I will answer." And while they are still speaking,
God says, I will hear. You ever just sometimes
feel that God does not hear your prayers? Yeah,
everyone does, I think. You ever just feel abandoned?
I'm not saying you are, but you feel it. Like
there's a disconnect. But in that final eschaton,
in that final kingdom, we will be overflowingly
satisfied in perfect communion with the Creator.
There will be unmediated, immediate fellowship
with God. Remember how Adam used to walk with
God in the cool of the day in the garden, face
to face, walking with God? That will once again
take place. We will do that. We will enjoy that
unbroken fellowship with our Creator. And I love
this promise, before they call, I will answer.
It's like God says, I already, I know what you're
going to say. And before you even ask, I've already
answered it. What a beautiful promise. What a
beautiful hope. And finally, there's peace, harmony.
Look at verse 25. The wolf and the lamb shall
feed together, the lion shall eat straw like
the ox, and dust shall be the serpent's food.
They shall not hurt nor destroy in my holy mountain,
says the Lord. Wolf and lion and snake, those
are all dangerous animals. But in the final kingdom,
all that will be changed. Why? Because nature
will no longer be an enemy to man. Animals won't
fear us. There will be harmony. Shalom in all
of creation. But Isaiah, notice he mentions,
he says, but dust will be the serpent's food.
That sounds a little out of place. No. Think
what he's saying here. All the current sorrow
and heartache and hostility and pain we experience
now is all because of the serpent's interference
in the garden. He was cursed. Again, John Alliswalt
says, God announced that the snake would crawl
in the dust forever and that although that snake
would bite the heel of Eve's child, that child
would crush the snake's head. Here the snake
is finally condemned, not only to crawl in the
dust, but to eat only dust forever. When that
happens, the curse will be truly broken, and
as the Lord says, there will be none to hurt
or destroy in all his holy mountain. May God
grant it. Paradise is restored because the Messiah,
the Lord Jesus, has conquered. He's conquered
over all disorder. It's still the same heaven,
still the same earth, but renewed. Redeemed man,
we will still work. We will still enjoy culture.
We will still live in community, but without
sin, without curse, without sorrow, without death,
without futility. What are you saying? It'll
be perfect communion with God. Isaiah 65 points
forward to the glorious reality that awaits all
those who have been redeemed by the Lord Jesus
Christ. This renewal began in the incarnation,
which is what we celebrate right now when God
was born and took on flesh. But it was Christ's
victory over death. That's what inaugurated this
new creation. It was Christ's death that removed
the curse for us, Galatians 3. Christ has redeemed
us from the curse of the law. having become a
curse for us. For it is written, cursed is everyone
who hangs on a tree. What did they put on Jesus's
head? A crown of thorns. Where were thorns come
from? Because the ground was cursed. Everything
about that day was a sign of the curse. Jesus
was cursed so you and I will not be eternally
cursed. And friends, let me just close this in
my last statement here. With these truths before
us, may this Advent season Be a time of peace
as you meditate on the glorious reality that
awaits you. Eye has not seen, nor ear heard,
nor have entered into the heart of man the things
which God has prepared for those who love Him.
Amen. Can you imagine that? God said it's so
great I can't even tell you about it. You're
just gonna have to wait. No spoilers here. I
can't, I hasn't seen it, ears not heard about
it. By the way, you've not even thought about
it. It is more grand and more glorious and more
awesome and every other adjective I could think
of than you can possibly think of. So I'm not
even gonna tell you about it. Just wait and see.
But we get glimpses, we get previews of Isaiah
65 and Revelation 21. So children of God live
in peace in light of this Advent season for what
Christ has done for you. Let's pray as we prepare
our hearts to commune with Christ. Father, thank
you for your word. Lord, it's so rich. It's so
good. Thank you, Lord God, for this truth. And
Lord, I pray, Lord, my prayer this morning, Lord,
is for your people. But Lord, there are some
who are hurting, really, really hurting. Lord,
the heart is broken. Oh Lord, I know that words
sometimes can just fall deaf if we're not careful.
But Lord, I pray your spirit would use the truth
and the reality of what is to come to encourage
those who today, Lord, perhaps wear a smile,
but inwardly they're broken. Give them peace,
Lord. Grant them shalom. Father, I pray for your
church, Lord. Help us, grow us in our faith.
Make us more like Jesus. in this Advent season,
Father, let us not get caught up with all the
busyness, Lord, with all the trappings and all
the things we must do and the gifts buying and
the children's events and the school events.
But Father, help us to be quiet and still before
you and Lord God to meditate on what God has
done for us in Christ. Oh Lord, you're making
all things new. We look so forward to that day.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus. Amen. I'm going to
ask the deacons if you would come as we