With or Without You

Scripture: And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. Revelation 21:3

Observation: After the final destruction of Satan, sin, and death, God creates a new heaven and earth. The hallmark of this new forever is unhindered fellowship with God. God with us, is now a reality like never before. God with us has always been the goal, from the garden to eternity. But sin has kept us from this. Jesus came to be God with us, but still our fellowship was challenged by the world, the flesh, and the devil. Now that all three are gone, the ultimate goal of all of God’s promises—God with us, can begin.
Ephesians tells us that our sin has separated us from God, leaving us without hope and without God in the world (2:12). In the end, all of life comes down to the question: Am I with or without God in this world? To be without God in this world means we are without hope, because we face an eternity apart. To be with God in this world holds great hope that we will experience God with us forever.

Application: I want to start seeing people the way Jesus saw them—helpless and harassed, without a shepherd (without God) in this world.

Prayer: I pray you help me see people the way you do—either with or without You in this world. And give me opportunity to share the shepherd with them.