Making All Things New

On Sunday morning Ruth spoke to us about the new kingdom, new earth and new commandment ushered in by Jesus’ death and resurrection. In Revelation 21:5 “the one who was seated on the throne said, ‘See, I am making all things new.’”

On Sunday afternoon at my mother-in-law’s birthday party I was reminded that in human lives what is new eventually becomes old. My mother-in-law is 90 and my son, born a few days after her 70th birthday, will be 20 this week. The new becomes old – we grow up and age and it’s not always an easy process. Today I will be going to the funeral of a fellow reader who I trained with and journeyed with into reader ministry – when the new does not become old it’s not easy either.

But Jesus turned what seems the natural order on its head and told us – what is old can become new and even that death will be no more. How can this be? And how does this square with our experience of ageing and pain and loss in life?



Each day I read a reflection from the writings of Henri Nouwen and this week one of the readings comes from a book he wrote called ‘Making All Things New’. It says this: ‘Friendship, marriage, family, religious life, and every other form of community is solitude greeting solitude, spirit speaking to spirit and heart calling to heart. It is grateful recognition of God’s call to share life together and the joyful offering of a hospitable space where the re-creating power of God’s Spirit can be become manifest. Thus all forms of life together can become ways to reveal to each other the real presence of God in our midst.’

Jesus’ new commandment was to love one another. By loving each other in community, in the way Henri Nouwen describes, we reveal God’s presence to each other. In being made aware of God’s presence we experience right now something of this new kingdom which Jesus promised us. At times there may still be mourning and crying (as well as the joy of birthday celebrations) but in all of this, through Jesus, God dwells with us and is with us.

‘I give you a new commandment, that you love one another.

Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another.

By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.’

~John 13:34-35