More Than Just a Pipe Dream | 11/9/25
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“Everything will be okay in the end. If it’s not okay, then it’s not the end.” How does this statement connect with your understanding of Christian hope.
Revelation 21 describes a time when there will be “no more death, mourning, crying, or pain.” What “no mores” do you long for in your own life or in our world today?
The phrase “I am making all things new” repeats throughout Scripture. In what ways do you see God bringing newness or renewal into your life or community?
What good do you see happening in our church, your family, or your neighborhood that deserves celebration?
The Circles Gainesville story showed transformation through relationships. How have relationships, within or outside the church, helped you experience God’s renewing work?
Transcript:
The Kingdom of God is where our Scripture passage for the day points us—specifically to a vision of that kingdom in all its fullness, at the end of all time. We find this in the very last book of the Bible, in the book of Revelation, where the author is offering it up as a means of hope and good news.
Oftentimes, we hear this passage at funerals or memorial services as a reminder of God’s care and God’s love for us, even beyond the grave. But it’s a passage that speaks to so much more than just that context. So today I invite you to receive it as the good news that is ours on this occasion.
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the former heaven and the former earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. I saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. I heard a loud voice from the throne say, “Look, God’s dwelling is here with humankind. God will dwell with them, and they will be God’s peoples. God’s own self will be with them as their God. God will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more. There will be no mourning, crying, or pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”
Then the one seated on the throne said, “Look, I am making all things new.” He also said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” Then he said to me, “All is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will freely give water from the life-giving spring. Those who emerge victorious will inherit these things. I will be their God, and they will be my sons and daughters.”
This is the Word of God for the people of God. And God’s people say, “Thanks be to God.”
Would you pray with me? Come, Holy Spirit, and breathe life into the words that I speak, that they might carry a word from you into our hearts and lives this morning. Amen.
There’s a saying that perhaps you have seen on a t-shirt or a poster, one that’s sometimes attributed to John Lennon, even though there’s no conclusive evidence that he originated it. But the statement goes like this: “Everything will be okay in the end. If it’s not okay, then it’s not the end.” Everything will be okay in the end. If it’s not okay, then it’s not the end.
The author of Revelation in our passage today casts a vision of the end—a picture of what that will look like at the end of all time. He is writing in the original context to a group of people for whom life is not okay. Those who were part of the early Christian church were experiencing all kinds of hardship, distress, persecution, fear, confusion, and disillusionment. In the face of all of that, Revelation’s author composes this vision as a means of encouragement and comfort and hope—because everything was not okay.
Perhaps in this present moment, you feel some of that yourself. Because as we look around, there is so much that seems like it is not okay. So both for those who received this message originally from Revelation’s author and for us, isn’t it good news that Scripture doesn’t only speak to those who originally received it, but can keep speaking to us down through the ages?
And so for them and for us, this passage today is a vision that fosters hope and a call to action. It’s worth noting that the early Christians who received this letter were actively practicing their faith, even at great cost. They were willing to sacrifice in remaining true to their identity in Christ and not to succumb or bow down to an alternate vision of their day.
This vision that we see in Revelation 21 is grounded in three refrains that we hear throughout these few verses. The first refrain that we hear is “no more.” The first time we hear it is when he says, “The former heaven and the former earth had passed away, and the sea was no more.” The sea, in biblical times and in Jewish apocalyptic literature, was the source of chaos. And so what the author is saying here is: chaos will be no more.
So go back with me for a moment and remember, if you will, the very beginning of Scripture. We’re at the very end today, but go back to the very beginning. In the first chapter of Genesis, when God starts creating, remember that line that says, “The Spirit was hovering over the waters.” At the very beginning, God was making order out of the chaos. And now, here at the end, there is no more chaos. The author tells us, in this vision for what the end will be like: no more.
And because there is no more chaos and the sea is no more, therefore there are other “no mores.” Death is no more. There is no more mourning, no more pain, no more crying. I wonder this morning, as you hear that refrain, what is the “no more” that you are feeling in this particular moment? Whether it’s for you or for someone you love, or for our community, or for our nation, or our world—what is the thing that comes to mind for you that you long and hope to be no more, when the good news of the vision for God’s will and way in the world to come to full fruition?
The author says the second refrain is the word “new,” which also repeats several times in this passage today and becomes a really powerful moment when we hear him quote the one who is on the throne saying, “Behold, I am making all things new.” There is a newness that is springing up. Things are changing. The former has passed away, and the new comes into reality as God’s will is coming into full fruition.
And in that newness, did you notice that one part of the vision is that heaven and earth become aligned? There’s not something that we escape to that is far off from our own reality. Rather, the holy city descends down to be aligned with Earth, all as one. And notice that in this vision and in our understanding of theology as people of Christian faith, it is not a dualistic idea that Earth is bad or evil and heaven is good, but rather it is all meant to be good—because it is all God’s. And so part of the vision in the end is that it is all in alignment again.
In that alignment, we hear the third refrain: that God will be with them. God will be with God’s people and will wipe away the tears and will dwell. The literal translation of that word right there can also be translated as “God will pitch God’s tent among God’s people and reside with them.” Heaven and earth become one. And so the vision is a vision of the restoration of life as it is intended. It’s a vision that matches the future we see Paul talk about in the eighth chapter of Romans, where he says, “All creation is groaning as it looks forward to the day when suffering comes to an end and the new reality takes place in Christ Jesus.”
It’s also a vision that points us back to the Garden of Eden, when all was well, when we are reminded of the goodness of creation for which all creation was originally intended. And so, at the bookends of the Bible, in Genesis 1 and in Revelation 21 and 22, there is alignment of heaven and earth, and there is alignment of God’s goodness and God’s presence with all of God’s people.
But we are not there yet, are we? We are not there yet. There is so much that we can see that we long to be different. And today’s scripture and today’s message are meant to remind us to hold on to hope. And as we hold on to hope, to remember that the church is a part of God’s plan for the future. The church is sometimes referred to as a foretaste, a sampler if you will, an anticipation of what is meant to be of the kingdom that is breaking in. But that only happens as the church aligns itself with God’s purposes and as the Spirit is at work among us, calling us into community with each other in such a way that we practice living into the vision that God has in mind.
We, my friends, as the church, are called to participate in the healing, restoring, redeeming, forgiving, peace-building, transforming good-news work of the Kingdom. This is who we are. And as we do this good work, we find that there is hope and there are glimpses that while it’s not fully here yet, there are glimpses for us of what is to come.
So over these next three weeks, one of the things we want to do is to share some snapshots so that we can all take a moment and celebrate the good. Celebrating the good is not a denial of things that are wrong, things that need to change, or things that need to be fixed. But to celebrate the good is to catch our breath and to realize that we can be a part of the transformative work of the gospel in our world today.
And so we’ll be sharing these snapshots—examples of how Trinity is involved right now in making a difference in people’s lives, in ways that offer hope and transformation. It’s good to be reminded of the good things, isn’t it? Because those reminders can encourage us and inspire us and keep us moving toward the goal, not only of fulfilling the vision that we have for Trinity—of being a courageous witness by welcoming all people, growing loving relationships, nurturing deeper faithfulness, and doing all the good we can—but also keeping our eyes on the goal of being a part of the Kingdom coming on earth as it is in heaven, that thing we pray for every week as a part of our worship.
Pausing to celebrate the good and to notice these snapshots is also a way of remembering how generosity makes ministry possible—how our collective gifts create opportunities for us to do God’s work in our particular time and in our particular context. So the snapshot that I want to share with you today is of Circles, a ministry based at our Faith Mission campus in northeast Gainesville, a ministry that is impacting lives across all four areas of our vision that I just mentioned.
And today, I particularly invite you, in just a moment, to notice in a video that we’ll share how Circles is a space where everybody is welcomed and a space where loving relationships are formed, as people really begin to see each other and care for each other and build community with each other.
Take a look: https://youtu.be/rUexG984Prs
So this is a participatory moment in the sermon. As you watched that video, as you heard Tabitha and Susan share about their experience, and as you looked at the images, what word or phrase came to mind for you? What did you see? What did you notice? [Responses from the congregation] Success. Hope. Love. Encouragement. Progress. Kindness. And love, most of all. All of these things are there, and all of these things are descriptors of the vision that is cast in Revelation today. All of these things are descriptors of the kingdom that comes to earth as it is in heaven.
As I watched that video this week, I saw people laughing. I saw conversations happening as people shared meals and connected with each other. I saw people who, I imagine, never would have met each other if it weren’t for something like Circles to bring them together and invite them into connection and community. Friends, for me, this is a glimpse of the Kingdom of God, and this is the work to which we are called as the church in our own time, in our own space, when not everything is okay. We get to be a part of the work that God has in mind.
Thanks be to God for that, and thanks be to God for a church that pays attention to where the Spirit is leading. Amen.