4 Things That Will Vanish In The Kingdom

What are 4 of the most terrible things on this earth that will disappear after Jesus returns?

Mourning

In the Book of Revelation, which is really not John’s revelation, but the Revelation of Jesus Christ (Rev 1:1-2), John writes that he “saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband” (Rev 21:1-2), and then, he “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” (Rev 21:3). I think the greatest things about these verses is that we will see Jesus Christ, face to face, for the very first time, but surely the fact that there will be no more mourning will be wonderful too. Today, we mourn for the lost, those we’ve lost, and those who are presently mourning with the everyday burdens of life. It’s not easy to be a Christ-follower, but it’s infinitely worth it if you read the last two chapters of the Book of Revelation.

Crying

When God brings an end of mourning, He will also bring an end to the crying, for God says, “He will wipe away every tear from their eyes” (Rev 21:4a). And when God wipes away tears, they stay wiped away. Part of the reason that there will be no more tears is because there will be no more crying (Rev 21:4). You can’t have tears without crying, but maybe some of our tears will come from an inexpressible joy at seeing Jesus for the first time and falling at His feet. What joy that will be my friend, so if there’s one last, good cry in us, let it be tears of joy at being in the presence of Jesus, and see our Lord and Master. When Jesus comes, “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” (Rev 21:3). This verse is one of the most beautiful verses in the Bible, and very much like the Apostle John writing God’s children “will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads” (Rev 22:4).

Pain

The older I get, the more I appreciate the verse that says there will be no more pain. For now, it’s more pain every day, and sometimes new ones. Old age catches up to everyone, but these aches and pains will cease someday. It’s going to put the doctors out of business. They’ll have to find a new occupation, because there’ll be no more sorrow, suffering, disease, cancer, and other such things that we go through in life. Probably you or someone you know has a serious disease right now, but if they’ve trusted in Christ, then they will have a new body someday, and the former things will all have passed away. Speaking for myself, pain cannot pass away fast enough. When I do feel pain, it makes me think of the coming kingdom, so in a way, pain has its purpose by planting our eyes on the future. The day is coming when pain will be ancient history, and aren’t you glad for that?

Death

After having presided over a few funerals by now, I cannot wait for this type of service to vanish. The end of death means the end of pain, the end of pain means the end of suffering, and the end of suffering, means the end of death. For me, it means the end of funerals, and that can’t be quick enough for me. For now, I grieve with those who are grieving, but for those who have died in the faith, I have the same hope that they died with, so it’s not really burial ground where we stand…it is resurrection ground (Dan 12:2-3). Jesus said that the Father “has granted the Son also to have life in himself. And he has given him authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of Man. Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment” (John 5:27-29). When Jesus came to raise Lazarus from the dead, He said, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this” (John 11:25-26)? That’s a question everyone should be asked or ask themselves. Do we believe Jesus when He says that whoever dies, if they believe, will live again? The answer to that question assigns one to their eternal destiny; fixed in eternity.

Conclusion

Near the end of the Book of Revelation, John writes down more encouraging words, writing about the end of pain, sorrow, suffering, mourning, and death, but it gets better, because we finally get to see God (Rev 21:3). John writes that the children of God “will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. And night will be no more. They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever” (Rev 21:4-5). What new name will you have in heaven? I have no idea, but we know that God names people for how they are, but what your name will be, I have no clue; I just know you’ll have one. One final time, let’s turn to the writings of the Apostle John who writes of the day when we see Christ: “Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is” (1st John 3:2).