God will not destroy any of His Creation.
When the Lord sent Jeremiah to the Potter’s house (Jeremiah 18:4) he observed (Charles Price) “that the clay was marred in the Potter’s hand but not by the Potter, it was self-inflicted. That clay could not become what the Potter originally intended but he didn’t throw it away. He reworked it into something else, something different, something that could be useful, as it seemed good to him”.
Why is there so much spoiled clay, so much wicked sin, so much brutality, so many disasters and heart-breaking tragedies? Jesus told us (John 12:31, John 14:30, John 16:11) that Satan is the prince, the evil genius ruler of the world system and culture. But he is on a leash, his time is limited and his doom (Revelation 20:10) is sure. God has never relinquished His Sovereign control. Christians are the clay in the hands of the Master Potter. There is (Jeremiah 17:12) a high and glorious throne which is the place of our sanctuary. But if we choose, like Judah (Jeremiah 19:15) to be stiff necked, stubborn, not pliable, hard-hearted, resistant to God, we will be broken.
Several years ago, a friend told me about a woman who knew that God called her to be a missionary, but she refused and lived for years to please herself. Later she repented, but then it was too late to be a missionary. That door was closed, leaving only missed opportunities and long-lasting consequences. God will always forgive if we truly repent, but He does not cancel the consequences of our choices. It’s the principle of sowing and reaping. She asked if God had a second-best. God has no second-best, all He has to give is Jesus and that is His very best. God does not discard us or throw away any of His creation. If we spend years in disobedience inflicting ourselves with the damage caused by sin, we can never undo the past. But we can be truly forgiven and God will work us into something not like the original plan but something the Lord can use for His glory. By the limitless power of his Blood, Jesus can restore us to fellowship with God.
Back in Noah’s time (Genesis 6:7) the world was so filled with evil wickedness that God decided to destroy it and everything in it. But He did not (Genesis 8:21-22 annihilate the world. It was a world cleansed and refreshed and (Genesis 9:13-17) now having a rainbow of promise. In the last days when the sins of this present world mount up to heaven (2 Peter 3:6, 10) the elements of the universe will be dissolved with fire and the earth and all its works will be burned up, but the world will not be annihilated or come to an end.
The new heaven and earth (Revelation 21:1) will not be new in the sense of never having existed before. God will take the original elements of the earth and remake them into an earth with no sin, no pain, no sickness, no sorrow, with nothing contrary to perfection and beauty. Don’t be discouraged as you see wickedness increasing in the world, continue to pray for the lost and always remember that God is going (Revelation 21:5) to make all things new. What God will burn up will never exist in the world again forever. Not annihilation - - God will not destroy any of His Creation. God’s original plan for the earth was marred but the Master Potter will remake it in full accord with His original plan and purpose. It will be a world made new in which we will see the full radiance of the Shekinah glory of God’s holy Presence.
Adam inflicted damage on the clay that he was because he did not align himself with God’s original purpose and he destructed God’s plan. The Lord didn’t discard him but remade him to be the ancestor of Abraham who was the ancestor of the Savior of the world. This is the marvel of God’s grace. He takes what begins as evil and out of it brings holy and good. Adam brought sin into the world and ONE of his descendants (John 1:29) took away the sin of the world. Every descendant of Adam who trusts in Jesus for eternal Life, through His shed Blood and atoning death is born anew into the family of God.
Salvation is God’s certified cheque of forgiveness which He offers to every individual. It is a certified cheque because it has already been charged to God, the full enormous cost, through the shed Blood of Jesus. Genuine repentance is cashing the cheque.
All things in this fallen world cannot work for good. BUT GOD (Romans 8:28) works in those very all things for our good. Jesus said (John 14:2-3) that he was going to prepare a place for us. That place is the New Jerusalem, (Revelation 21:2) the immense capital city of the rejuvenated world. It is a city where righteousness dwells, in accordance with (Genesis 1:21) God’s original intention. The Lord can make and remake, mold and remold. He can do all things (Job 42:1) and none of His thoughts and purposes can be restrained or thwarted. It may take thousands of years, as from (Genesis 1:21 to Revelation 21:2) but every Word God has spoken is definite, certain history just waiting to happen at God’s fore-ordained and perfect time. God will fully restore the World to the perfection and loveliness and fragrance of Eden. We can trace the Divine strategy of Sovereign wisdom throughout the scriptures and in our own lives. We can learn a lot if we accompany Jeremiah as he goes to the Potter’s house.