You Can live in God's Peaceful New World

Chapter 48
God’s Peaceful New World—You Can Live There
GOD put Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden. Even though they became disobedient and died, God has made it possible for their children, including us today, to live forever in Paradise. The Bible promises: "The righteous themselves will possess the earth, and they will [live] forever upon it."—Psalm 37:29.
The Bible tells about a "new heavens" and "a new earth." (Isaiah 65:17; 2 Peter 3:13) The present "heavens" are made up of today’s human governments, but Jesus Christ and those who rule with him in heaven will make up the "new heavens." How wonderful it will be when this new heavens, which is God’s righteous government of peace, rules the entire earth!
What, then, is the "new earth"?— The new earth will be good people who love Jehovah. You see, when the Bible speaks of "the earth," it sometimes means the people who live on the earth, not the land itself. (Genesis 11:1; Psalm 66:4; 96:1) So the people who make up the new earth will live right here on this earth.
The present world of wicked people will then be gone. Remember, the Flood of Noah’s day wiped out a wicked world of people. And, as we have learned, this present wicked world will be destroyed at Armageddon. Let’s see now what it will be like to live in God’s new world after Armageddon.
Do you want to live forever in Paradise in God’s peaceful new world?— No doctor can make us live forever. There is no pill that will keep us from dying. The only way we can live forever is by drawing close to God. And the Great Teacher tells us how to do that.
Let’s get our Bibles and open them to John chapter 17, verse 3. Here we find these words of the Great Teacher: "This means everlasting life, their taking in knowledge of you, the only true God, and of the one whom you sent forth, Jesus Christ."
So, what did Jesus say we need to do to live forever?— First, we must take in knowledge of our heavenly Father, Jehovah, and also of his Son, who gave his life for us. This means that we need to study the Bible. This book, Learn From the Great Teacher, is helping us to do that.
But how will learning about Jehovah help us to live forever?— Well, just as we need food every day, we need to learn about Jehovah every day. The Bible says: ‘Man must live, not on bread alone, but on all the words that come from Jehovah’s mouth.’—Matthew 4:4.
We also need to take in knowledge of Jesus Christ because God sent his Son to take away our sin. The Bible says: "There is no salvation in anyone else." And the Bible also says: "He that exercises faith in the Son has everlasting life." (Acts 4:12; John 3:36) Now, what does it mean to ‘exercise faith’ in Jesus?— It means that we really believe in Jesus and know that we cannot live forever without him. Do we believe that?— If we do, we will continue to learn from the Great Teacher every day, and we will do what he says.
One fine way to learn from the Great Teacher is to read this book over and over and to look at and think about all the pictures. See if you can answer the questions found with these pictures. Also, read the book with your mother or father. If your parents are not with you, read it with other grown-ups and with other children. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if you could help others to learn from the Great Teacher what they need to do to live forever in God’s new world?—
The Bible tells us: "The world is passing away." But then the Bible explains how we can live forever in God’s new world. It says: "He that does the will of God remains forever." (1 John 2:17) So how can we live forever in God’s new world?— Yes, by taking in knowledge of Jehovah and his dear Son, Jesus. But we also have to do, or practice, what we learn. May your study of this book help you to do these things.
[Box/Picture on page 251]
As you read Isaiah 11:6-9 and Isaiah 65:25, you learn about animals living in peace. Look at these pictures. See the lamb, the little goat, the leopard, the calf, the big lion, and the children with them. Can you name the other animals here that the Bible talks about?— Look at that boy playing with the cobra! No one living in the new world needs to be afraid. (Hosea 2:18) What do you think about that?—
[Box/Pictures on page 252, 253]
Now, see the peace among people of all kinds. They all love one another, as Jesus said his followers would. (John 13:34, 35) Weapons of war are being made into tools to take care of the earth. The Bible tells about the wonderful peace and security that people will enjoy in God’s new world. We can read about this in such scriptures as Psalm 72:7; Isaiah 2:4; 32:16-18; and Ezekiel 34:25.
See the people on this page. They are caring for the earth, making it a beautiful place. Look at the nice house they are building and all the good fruits and vegetables shown here. People are at peace with the earth, so it has become a paradise like the garden of Eden. We can read about these wonderful things at Psalm 67:6; 72:16; Isaiah 25:6; 65:21-24; and Ezekiel 36:35.
[Box/Picture on page 254]
As you see here, everybody is healthy and happy. People can jump high like a deer. Nobody is lame, blind, or sick. And see those people who have been raised from the dead! The Bible tells about these things at Isaiah 25:8; 33:24; 35:5, 6; Acts 24:15; and Revelation 21:3, 4.