New/Renew

“Behold, I am making all things new.” (Revelation 21:5)

Happy New Year!  I love this time of year.  It’s the one holiday that people all around the world seem to celebrate, regardless of culture, background or religion.  Many take the opportunity to reflect on the previous year (or “put the last nail in the coffin” as it were) before turning to look forward to the new year and all the hopes and doubts which accompany the unknown.  It may well be the most hopeful time of the entire year as people dream and plan and wonder what’s in store.  There are the goals, the wishes and the resolutions.  “I resolve to do more of this, or less of that, or eat less cake after 8:00pm.”  

For a long time I simply thought of this as a silly ritual – a way for people to temporarily feel better about themselves, or a ploy for local gyms to bolster memberships for a couple of months.  Because surely we can set new goals anytime of the year.  Surely we can dream and wish and aspire anytime of the year.  And yes, that’s true.  But you know what?  That doesn’t change the air of anticipation and hope which palpably permeates the atmosphere this time of year.  And so, arbitrary or not, I’ve come to appreciate the good in this season – this special holiday and all it symbolizes.

In Scripture, we are often reminded that Creator God is in the business of making all things new (Rev. 21:5), which is another way of saying that God is in the business of renewal.  Jesus’ conversation with Nicodemus (John 3), His earthly ministry with the disciples, the Great Commission, and the insights of Paul and others in the epistles constantly reinforce this idea that God does not give up on His creation, but rather seeks to renew it.  We, His Church, are then invited to join in this ministry of reconciliation (2 Cor. 5:18) as Christ’s ambassadors and kingdom of priests (Her. 5:6).

Seen in this light, the New Year then represents a profoundly Biblical value – the value of renewal.  And indeed, when we really break down the nature of our goals, our hopes, wishes, fancies, aspirations and resolutions, we find that at their center is the vision of renewal.  We are refusing to give up on ourselves, even as God refuses to give up on us.  We are committing to ourselves the ministry of renewal, a subconscious partnership with our creator.  

And so may we find joy in the cycles of renewal rather than fatigue and cynicism.  Sure you may have broken your diet yesterday, but today is a new day.  Sure you may have broken your habit of daily prayer, but today is a new day.  Sure you may have neglected God’s word for days, weeks, months, years, but today is a new day.  Let us forsake our cynicism, forsake our apathy, and once again partner with God in the ministry of renewal, to others, and even to ourselves.