Better Than Fiction

Revelation 21:1-5

Fiction writers have a great job.  They create new characters all the time and if they don’t like the way things are going, they can rewrite a scene and change direction.  If only life were like that – that we could rewrite our history and make everything new again.  

While fiction may be fun to read and write, we live in the real world, one that relies on truth (though nowadays, the “truth” seems harder and harder to find.)  So, what are the facts Christians know to be true?  When we accept Jesus into our lives, we are made new like never before.  We aren’t just some character in a fictional drama, with some comedy thrown in, but a true child of God.  By faith we know for a fact that when we die to self, a new life awaits.  A glorious life beyond anything even the greatest writers could dream up.

Let’s not get lost in a book full of fictional characters and places, but one filled with words that are “trustworthy and true.”  And it has a fantastic ending!  Normally I wouldn’t want to give anything away and spoil it for the reader, but this is something everyone should know… a new Jerusalem will come down from heaven and God will dwell among his people. He’ll wipe away every tear and make everything new (v. 2-4).

WOW!  That's an ending I can’t wait to be a part of; because, while I may try to be the author of my own life, ultimately, I need to give that job to Him and sit back and watch what happens.

Revelation 22:16-21

Are you sad or happy when you come to the end of a book?  Reading is one of my passions; there is nothing that entertains me like a good story.  It is fun getting to know the characters, the good guys and the not so good.  I often will pick up a large book, one with many pages, so that the experience will last awhile.  It is sometimes painful to say goodbye to favorite characters; flaws and all.

I have never been known to read a book more than one time.  I know some people will read the same book a number of times over the years, but not me.  When reading a story there are often lessons to be learned, but there the author's words only speak to me one time.  Fiction is fun to get lost in, relaxing to the mind and challenging at the same time.  As the sign on many a library will say, "Reading is fun."

Revelation 22:20 (NIV)
"He who testifies to these things says, "Yes, I am coming soon."    Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.     

We are now coming to the final words in Scripture as we read from the lesson for today.  The story is about to conclude and we are witness to God's Words being fulfilled.  How often I have heard a Christian say, "I've read the book, I know the ending. The good guys win."  While this is true, the rest of the story in the Bible changes impact for the reader with each reading.

A fiction piece is fun to read, but God's Word is alive and active and speaks into our lives and our hearts in a new way each time we read. "For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart." (Hebrews 4:12)

Let's begin this book over again!

Read Revelation 22:16-21

Listen to Revelation 22:16-21