The River to the Tree of Life

We had a river behind my childhood home. My brothers and sisters and I would spend most days of the summer down there. Finding crayfish under rocks, skipping stones against the current, scratching out games of tic tac toe on rocks, catching minnows, laying in the sun, and laughing. I learned to swim in that river. It was central to my childhood life and was a symbol of summer; a time when there was nothing to do in the best possible way.  

I took my kids down to see it when we were in New York a couple years ago, because, you know, YOLO, and it had all changed. It was sad going back. The river was so small and dirty. The plot of land across the river had been developed and the river had not benefitted from that progress. It looked so pitiful. I had hyped the river and all the stories from my childhood to my kids so when they saw it, they were not impressed. They were like, “Oh, yeah, nice creek dad…I can see why you loved spending time here.” 

That is the way of the world, it’s fallen! Things are always drifting toward decay. That’s why we have to mow our lawns (or have them mowed) every week. We’ve got to trim our trees and cut back our bushes regularly. We’ve got to keep the house picked up, change the oil in our cars, and regularly connect with people we want to have good relationships with. If we don’t, things will drift toward decay. 

But, this is only how the world we know is. It's not the world God created, and it’s not the world He will restore once again. In Revelation 22:1-5, we get a glimpse of the new earth God will unveil at the end of the age. There is a crystal-clear river flowing from the throne of God, watering the tree of life that is loaded down with fruit. 

When we are in Christ, we are a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17) and the things that were old, fallen, and decaying are made new. And God is not going to do this with us but leave us in a broken and decaying world. No, He will bring us into a new heaven and a new earth (Revelation 21:4) where there is no more sickness and decay, and all there is to do is enjoy God and worship Him forever. 

In my childhood, I sat beside a river in the beautiful warmth and joy of summer and got a glimpse of heaven. But today that river is decayed and broken, and those memories are faded and filled with sorrow and loss. But that’s because this is not my home and it’s not yours either. There is a day coming when all who know Jesus as Lord and Savior will sit together by the crystal-clear river, basking in the beautiful warmth of God’s radiant glory, eating of the tree of life. And this will never fade to memory or fall into decay, it will simply be perfect joy, forever. 

YOLO is actually true. You do only live once, and it’s for eternity. Our bodies will die, but our souls will go into eternity. Either to spend eternity with God in heaven or, having spent our earthly life turning away from Him, without Him in hell. 

Jesus is our Lord, is he yours?