The goal of the whole story
May God continue to bless us;
Let all the ends of the earth revere him. Psalm 67:7
Read Revelation 21:9—12,21—27
I must admit that when I read my Bible I read the stories of Israel. I read of the twelve tribes who received such stupendous promises from God that gave them a significance for the whole world and all of history, and even cosmology, yet, for all I can see, they blew it. They devalued every promise. Way before I close my Old Testament ten of those twelve tribes have disappeared from any active part in the story. They exist as memory and as lost tribes. They are remembered as warning. They seem to have exhausted all hope. Yet here I read the vision of the culmination of all God’s purpose, and I cannot miss it! Twelve! Twelve gates! And gorgeous decorations as though for a faithful bride! Surely the whole story is a story of human failure highlighting God’s unbreakable promise of himself, overcoming all.
All glory, praise and honour to you, redeemer King. You order all things according to your promise. You will let nothing of your purpose fall to the ground. What I regard as waste and discarded will all be redeemed. So let me rest secure in your purpose this night, and rise tomorrow, ready to participate, my story in your story.