The Renewal of the Earth Is Coming - All The LORD is near Daily Devotionals for 2024

The glory of Jehovah will endure forever; Jehovah will rejoice in His works.
Psalm 104:31

The Renewal of the Earth Is Coming
A good way to spoil a beautiful drive through the countryside is to come upon an auto junkyard. All those smashed and rusting hulks of steel were once shining and glorious, a tribute to man's technology and ingenuity. But as soon as they grow old and die, they become a problem for society and a blot upon the landscape.

What a difference with the things that God has created! Have you ever walked through a forest and noticed the remains of trees which have fallen? Over a period of time they become overgrown with moss and other plants to the point where they actually enhance the beauty of the forest floor. Even the process of decay, which ultimately removes them from the scene altogether, enriches the soil and contributes to the ecological environment.

Well might God rejoice in His works! And if it be so in a sin-cursed earth whose ground produces also thorns and briers, what will it be when the creation will be set free from the bondage of corruption? Who can measure the rejoicing of God when He renews the face of the earth—when He causes the wilderness to be glad and the desert to rejoice and blossom as the rose (Isa. 35:1; cf. Acts 3:19-21)?

In anticipation of that glorious time, let us lift our hearts already in the exultant doxology that concludes Psalm 104:

I will sing unto Jehovah as long as I live;

I will sing psalms to my God while I have my being.

My meditation shall be pleasant unto Him;

I will rejoice in Jehovah.

Sinners shall be consumed out of the earth,

And the wicked shall be no more.

Bless Jehovah, O my soul.

Hallelujah!

Grant W. Steidl