All Things New (Part 1): Made Complete
Photo Courtesy of Andrea Natali
Picture perfect
It’s ironic how a new year can usher in “old things”. Sure, the dynamics of our situations change & the goals get altered accordingly, but fundamentally, we’re often still working the same old puzzle.
Still trying to create the ideal picture for our life.
If your every goal and aspiration were represented by puzzle pieces, what would it look like if you brought them all together? Better yet, how would it look if you let God put the pieces together instead? In Ephesians Ch. 5, we’re given an illustration that helps answer that question.
Ephesians 5:25-27 says:
“Husbands love you wives just as Christ loved the church [God’s people]. He [Jesus] gave his life up for her [the church] to make her holy and clean, washed by the cleansing of God’s Word. He did this to present her to Himself as a glorious church without a spot or wrinkle or any other blemish.
Instead, she will be holy and without fault.”
In the verses prior, we’re given a description of how it looks for a husband & wife to sell out to one another in marriage. We’re shown how the devotion of a Godly-marriage is designed to bring out the absolute best in each other. At which point, God ties this into His relationship with us. We see that when we join together as One with Jesus—
god brings out the best in us.
You see, God’s not interested in just giving you a better picture for your life. His Son Jesus gave His life so you could have one that’s brand-new. One in which every piece is made “holy and without fault”. Make no mistake about it, God has a picture for your life. And His Presence—
makes it picture-Perfect.
closer to the goal
Life is a constant process of making decisions that either pull us backward or propel us forward.
We can never take hold of “what can be” if we refuse to part ways with “what used to be”. God has called us to turn this page in our life & to embrace a new chapter. Romans 12:1 gives us insight for how this takes place in the Christian life:
“…give your bodies [the entirety of who you are] to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him.”
Everything you do is a result of what you choose to think & believe. That’s why “being a living sacrifice” begins from within. It’s about surrendering every muddied area of your thought-life to God.
Letting Him replace areas dominated by worldly-thinking with His Kingdom’s mentality. Replacing religious-based thinking with relationship-based living. It’s recognizing that the ultimate goal isn’t to move closer to “our goals”—
it’s to move closer to our God.
If we don’t draw closer to God this year, then nothing else matters. If we do draw closer to God this year, then nothing else matters. Keeping your aim set on God’s heart is how you honor Him with your part. That’s how you grow closer to Christ, that’s how God makes you complete.
“…Be made complete [be what you should be], be comforted, be like-minded, live in peace [enjoy the spiritual well-being experienced by believers who walk closely with God]; and the God of love and peace [the source of lovingkindness] will be with you.”
All Things new
“Making preparations” and “being ready” are two themes you find repeatedly in the Bible. The reason these are significant is because these are often a signal that God is going to reveal Himself in a meaningful way.
John the Baptist was referred to as a “forerunner of Christ”. What do forerunners do? They prepare the way. Just as John the Baptist prepared the way for Jesus, God is now preparing His church (Believers) for God’s Greatest Homecoming. Revelation 21:3-5 (NLT) gives us a glimpse into this beautiful reality:
“…Look, God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them. He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.”
And the one sitting on the throne said, “Look, I am making everything new!…”
The end has already been written because the One who wrote it has already declared it. May our present lives reflect the unchanging hope of our future reality. Our God is preparing us as we prepare the way for Him. As we await the day in which the King makes His Triumphal Return. The day in which God makes—
all things new.
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today’s Takeaways
Jesus brings out the best in us.
Being a living sacrifice is about living sacrificially.
God is making all things new.