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Chapter 10

Creation and the Eternal Kingdom

The Creator, being both omniscient and omnipotent, cannot fail in His purpose in creating the universe, life and man. He has allowed sin and death to come in for a little time, but these will soon be removed, and all the redeemed will have the endless ages of eternity to enjoy the fellowship with God for which they were created. “In the ages to come, he [will show] the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus” (Eph. 2:7). Because our Creator has loved us so much that He died for our sins, and then rose from the dead, our future (if we have believed on Him as our Savior and Lord) is secured. “Because I live,” He has promised, “ye shall live also” (John 14:19).

The Bondage of Decay

Right now, the world doesn’t look very promising, however. In addition to the moral chaos that seems to be engulfing the earth, the very earth itself is in the grip of what the Bible calls “the bondage of corruption,” or decay (Rom. 8:21). The great curse pronounced on the earth in the garden of Eden, because of Adam’s sin (Gen. 3:19), has taken a terrible toll over the years. As noted earlier, this “bondage” is actually recognized by scientists as a law of nature, the law of increasing entropy, or the second law of thermodynamics. By any definition, this is one of the best-proved and most widely applicable laws of science.

According to the second law of thermodynamics, this planet on which we live is going to die. The sun which supplies its energy will someday burn out and the entire solar system will then quickly perish. Indeed, so far as we can tell, the universe itself is dying. The great agnostic Bertrand Russell sadly commented, many years ago:

Some day, the sun will grow cold, and life on earth will cease. The whole epoch of animals and plants is only an interlude between ages that will be too cold. . . . This, at least, is what science regards as most probable, and in our disillusioned generation, it is easy to believe. From evolution, so far as our present knowledge shows, no ultimately optimistic philosophy can be validly inferred.1

Long before the sun grows cold, as a matter of fact, the earth could die biologically. The hydrosphere and atmosphere are becoming polluted, the soil is being eroded, the nutrients in the soil are being leached away, and food supplies are increasingly contaminated.

Man has long been aware that his world has a tendency to fall apart. Tools wear out, fishing nets need repair, roofs leak, iron rusts, wood decays, loved ones sicken and die, relatives quarrel, and nations make war.2

Somewhat more recently, the environmentalist and socialist Jeremy Rifkin pointed up this problem very sharply.

The entropy law will preside as the ruling paradigm over the next period of history. Albert Einstein said that it is the premier law of all science; Sir Arthur Eddington referred to it as the supreme metaphysical law of the entire universe.3

Later in his book, Rifkin made the following observation:

Now that the environment we live in is becoming so dissipated and disordered that it is apparent to the naked eye, we are beginning for the first time to have second thoughts about our views on evolution, progress, and the creation of things of material value.4

This universal tendency toward decay and death seems obvious to everyday experience, but was only formalized as a law of science a little over a century ago. It is significant, therefore, that this principle has been noted in the Bible for thousands of years.

Of old hast thou laid the foundation of the earth: and the heavens are the work of thy hands. They shall perish, but thou shalt endure: yea, all of them shall wax old like a garment; as a vesture shalt thou change them, and they shall be changed. (Ps. 102:25–26).

For the heavens shall vanish away like smoke, and the earth shall wax old like a garment, and they that dwell therein shall die in like manner (Isa. 51:6).

Heaven and earth shall pass away (literally “are passing away”), but my words shall not pass away (Matt. 24:35).

For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now (Rom. 8:22).

This universal law of decay is considered today as among the most certain of all scientific principles. As the second law of thermodynamics, or the law of increasing entropy, it governs all natural processes. It is also called “time’s arrow.” As time goes on, the arrow points down!

But the same law that prophesies eventual disintegration also testifies of primeval creation. Instead of a message of consummate pessimism as interpreted by Bertrand Russell and Jeremy Rifkin, therefore, the entropy principle really speaks of ultimate divine purpose in creation. Since the universe is now “running down,” it must once have been “wound up.” There must be a great First Cause able to create a universe. Thus the real message of the second law of thermodynamics is: “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” (Gen. 1:1).

God is omniscient and omnipotent, and He certainly cannot fail in His purpose in creation. Even though the whole creation is groaning and travailing together in pain, its present “bondage of decay” cannot possibly continue forever. Long before it reaches ultimate death, God will intervene, and “the creation itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God” (Rom. 8:21).

Just as the study of present processes cannot tell us anything about the past events of the creation period, neither can present processes give us any information about the future events of the deliverance period. The processes of the present are the only processes accessible to the scientific method, and they all operate within the framework of the second law. Thus, present processes can give us no information about any processes of creation, past or future, since they are diametrically opposite to the decay processes as specified by the second law. Biblical revelation is required for information about both the first creation and the new creation.

Happily, however, “we have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts” (2 Pet. 1:19).

The Eternal Earth

Much is revealed in Scripture about the future of planet Earth, but we first need to resolve what seems initially to be an apparent contradiction in these prophecies. That is, the Bible teaches both that the earth is to last forever, and also that the earth is to be destroyed. As is always true with apparent conflicts in Scripture, however, the contradiction is only superficial. There is complete harmony when both biblical and scientific considerations are more carefully analyzed.

Such passages as the following speak of the eternal permanence of the earth and of the entire created universe:

And he built his sanctuary like high palaces, like the earth which he hath established for ever (Ps. 78:69).

Who laid the foundations of the earth, that it should not be removed for ever (Ps. 104:5).

Praise ye him, sun and moon: praise him, all ye stars of light. Praise him, ye heavens of heavens, and ye waters that be above the heavens. Let them praise the name of the Lord: for he commanded, and they were created. He hath also stablished them for ever and ever: he hath made a decree which shall not pass (Ps. 148:3–6).

One generation passeth away, and another generation cometh: but the earth abideth for ever (Eccles. 1:4).

And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever (Dan. 12:3).

There are many other Scriptures to the same effect, but it should not surprise us that when God creates anything, it will endure forever. Otherwise, His purpose in creation would have been defeated, and that is impossible for the Creator.

I know that, whatsoever God doeth, it shall be for ever: nothing can be put to it, nor any thing taken from it: and God doeth it, that men should fear before him (Eccles. 3:14).

As far as the physical creation is concerned, its permanence has been confirmed by the most important and universal of all scientific laws. The first law of thermodynamics, or the law of conservation of matter and energy, states that the total amount of matter and energy stays constant with time. Nothing can be created, but neither can anything be annihilated. For the earth to be annihilated, it would require a miraculous intervention by the Creator to uncreate His creation! But He is the Creator, not the annihilator, so this He will never do.

The Destroyed Earth

But, then, what about such Scriptures as the following?

Heaven and earth shall pass away (Mark 13:31; Luke 21:33).

And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them (Rev. 20:11).

But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up (2 Pet. 3:10).

The reconciliation of these two apparently contradictory teachings of the Scriptures is obvious when the relation of matter and energy is considered. The first law of thermodynamics states that it is the totality of matter and energy which is conserved. When matter is converted into energy (as per the Einstein equation E = mc2, c being the velocity of light), matter is not annihilated, but merely transformed into other kinds of energy.

The marvelous prophecy of 2 Peter 3:10 possibly speaks of such a nuclear reaction on a gigantic scale, when the earth’s “elements” will be “dissolved” (literally “unloosed” — 2 Pet. 3:12). Thus, although the earth did not begin with a “big bang,” as evolutionist astronomers allege, it will indeed end (in its present form) with a big bang! There will be a great noise and fervent heat, as the elements of earth disintegrate in a great explosion, converted into tremendous sound and heat energy, with light and radiation as well!

The earth and its heaven (i.e., atmosphere) will thus “flee away” (Rev. 20:11). This, however, is not their annihilation, but their purification! The very “dust of the earth” — that is, the very elements out of which God formed all things, even man’s body, in the primeval week of creation — was placed under the great curse (Gen. 3:17) when man sinned. The sedimentary crust of the earth is also the burial ground of vast numbers of animals fossilized in the great Flood, not to mention the human and animal bones buried since the Flood. All this evidence of suffering and death and the curse must be purged out, and the only way to do this is by disintegration of the very elements themselves.

The Earth Renewed

But then God’s great creative power will be exercised once again, as in the original creation!

For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come to mind (Isa. 65:17).

Behold, I make all things new (Rev. 21:5).

Because the [creation] itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of decay into the glorious liberty of the children of God (Rom. 8:21).

Disintegration of the present earth, then, is soon to be followed by atomic integration of the new earth, as God causes the unleashed energy to reassemble into new material substances by His creative power. In the new (or, more literally, “renewed”) earth, there will be “no more curse” (Rev. 22:3), and everything in the creation will be “very good” once again (Gen. 1:31).

These will be the “times of [restoration] of all things” (Acts 3:21), and “there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away” (Rev. 21:4). All of God’s purposes in the first creation will finally be accomplished in the new creation, one that will never again be interrupted or polluted by sin and death. “We, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness” (2 Pet. 3:13). The new earth will last forever. “The new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me, saith the Lord” (Isa. 66:22).

The new earth will actually be, therefore, the renewed earth, the old earth made new again. There will be certain significant differences, however. The first earth was suitable for human probation; the new earth is planned for full human occupation. Thus, in the primeval earth, there was a division between night and day (Gen. 1:4–5), but in the new earth, there will be “no night there” (Rev. 22:5). In the first earth, there was a division of land and sea (Gen. 1:9–10); in the coming earth, there will be “no more sea” (Rev. 21:1). That is, there will be human activity, everywhere and always, on the earth. “His servants will serve him” (Rev. 22:3).

Nor will this glorious service of the redeemed for their Savior need to be limited to the earth. Even though interstellar space travel will continue to be impossible in this present order of things (even the nearest star is four light-years away from the earth!), it will not be impossible in the future age. Our present bodies and all other physical systems are limited in movement by the ever-present gravitational and electromagnetic forces that govern their behavior. All believers will then, however, have new bodies that are spiritual bodies (1 Cor. 15:44), no longer subject to the constraints of these present forces, and, therefore, we will be able to fly throughout the universe unimpeded by gravity, lack of oxygen, or any other physical restriction of the present.

Yet these bodies will be as real and physical as was the body of Jesus Christ in His resurrection (Phil. 3:20–21). The resurrected Christ could move rapidly from earth to heaven and back again (John 20:17; Acts 1:9–11), could pass through closed doors (John 20:19), and yet was recognizable as in the same body He had possessed before His death and resurrection (John 20:27). He was capable of eating food (Luke 24:43), handling objects (Luke 24:30), and uttering speech (Matt. 28:19, 20); and our immortal bodies will be like His (1 John 3:2).

Perhaps it is appropriate, therefore, to look forward, in Christ, to exploring and developing God’s created universe extending into infinite space, throughout the ages continuing through eternal time. We can now only dimly see this wonderful life of the eternal future, and there is, no doubt, far more than we even dream of. One thing is certain, however! The infinite God who created the magnificent universe in which we live, surely has a glorious purpose in mind for those who were created in His image and whom He died to redeem. “But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) and hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us, through Christ Jesus” (Eph. 2:4–7).

All of this, and no doubt far more, is promised in the future to those who have believed on Christ and have been redeemed by His shed blood and justified before God through His resurrection. “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him” (1 Cor. 2:9). We can say, with the apostle Paul, that “the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us” (Rom. 8:18).

Christ’s Final Coming

At Christmas, the Christian world rejoices in the glorious fact of the first coming of Christ, when “the Word was made flesh and dwelt [literally ‘tabernacled’] among us” (John 1:14), and when men “beheld his glory.”

But His tabernacling was for only a little while. He came down from heaven, and heaven was on earth, but earth would not receive her King, and the glory departed. “He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens, that he might fill all things” (Eph. 4:10).

The earth would not receive Him, but it was made by Him, and His people long for Him. “For the earnest expectation of the creation waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God” (Rom. 8:19).

Therefore, there will be a second coming of Christ! “For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord” (1 Thess. 4:16–17).

But even that is not the end, and the earth will continue in travail, groaning in pain to be delivered. The nations in the four quarters of the earth must gather to battle against God one more time. He came down to them out of heaven, first in grace and patience, but this time it will be said that “fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them” (Rev. 20:9).

Finally, there will be a third coming of Christ — a last coming of Christ, this time with His Holy City — to the earth, made new in its fiery cleansing and now ready to serve eternally as the home of the glorified Christ, with all His saints.

“Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them” (Rev. 21:3). This time His tabernacling among us will be forever, and His glory our unending light. We shall dwell with Him and serve Him in Immanuel’s land, world without end!

Does such a prospect seem unreal and far away? Just as His first coming was real, and His second coming is soon, so His last coming is sure! “Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast” (Heb. 6:19).

That is the real world, the eternal world, for which we must prepare in this present world. As we look back to His first coming, we must also look forward to His final coming, for “when Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory” (Col. 3:4).

The Creationist Testimony in Heaven

An amazing scene appears before our eyes in the fourth chapter of the Book of Revelation. The throne of God is unveiled in the heavens, and around the throne appear four wonderful and mysterious beings. Because the Greek term is zoon (a word from which we derive such words as “zoology”), the King James translators called them simply “beasts”; other versions call them “living ones.” Their respective appearances are said to be those of a lion, a calf, a man and an eagle (Rev. 4:7), and this fact identifies them with the four mighty cherubim of Ezekiel 1:10 and 10:14.

Whenever these remarkable creatures are mentioned in the Bible, they are closely associated with the personal presence of God in His glory. But first of all they are encountered at the gates of Eden, with flaming swords keeping the way of the tree of life after the expulsion of Adam and Eve (Gen. 3:24) from the garden.

These are the highest creatures in all the angelic host of heaven. Once there were apparently five cherubim, and the highest of all, the “anointed cherub that covereth” (Ezek. 28:14), was none other than Satan himself. Until iniquity was found in him, this “covering cherub” had been perfect in all his ways. When he rebelled, however, he was “cast to the earth” (Ezek. 28:15–17). After his fall, though his ultimate doom was assured, his created eminence was still so exalted that even Michael the archangel dared not rebuke him directly (Jude 9). Therefore, the unfallen cherubim must be indescribably lofty and majestic!

It is these highest beings among all the heavenly “principalities and powers,” created originally by the eternal Son of God (Col. 1:16), whom the apostle John saw in his great revelation vision of the last days. There, around the throne in the heavens, John heard a great testimony of thanksgiving and praise, led by the cherubim themselves!

“And when those [cherubim] give glory and honor and thanks to him that sat on the throne . . . the four and twenty elders fall down before him . . . saying, Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created” (Rev. 4:9–11).

Whether or not the 24 elders represent all the redeemed men and women who will be in heaven, as most expositors believe, it is fitting for us even today to practice this great testimony of thanksgiving, anticipating the sure day to come when we will appear in His presence, where the cherubim dwell, and where they also give thanks to God! If the highest angels worship and rejoice as they thank God for His great creation, so should we.

Then, one day, when God’s great curse on the creation, first occasioned because of the rebellious cherub Satan, is finally removed forever, the four faithful cherubim will swing open the gates of Eden once more, and there will be free access eternally to the tree of life (Rev. 2:7; 22:1–4) and to the presence of our Savior. And so,

Know ye that the Lord he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name. For the Lord is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations (Ps. 100:3–5).

1 Bertrand Russell, Religion and Science (New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 1961), p. 81.

2 Van Rensselaer Potter, “Society and Science,” Science (Volume 146, October 20, 1964), p. 1018.

3 Jeremy Rifkin, Entropy: A New World View (New York, NY: Viking Press, 1980), p. 6.

4 Ibid., p. 55.