Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea. Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, ‘Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.’
Fire in this world is seen as such a bad thing. It causes so much destruction. No one wants to be burned or be involved in a fire. No one wants to lose everything they own to fire. But there are many ways that fire can be very beneficial.
Agricultural burning helps farmers remove crop residues left in the field after harvesting grains, such as hay and rice. Farmers also use agricultural burning for removal of orchard and vineyard prunings and trees. Burning also helps remove weeds, prevent disease, and control pests. There are other reasons as well that farmers may burn fields.
Burning old fields controls saplings and woody vegetation and improves grasslands for use by nesting wildlife and grazing livestock. Forest openings can be manipulated with burns to benefit more than 150 wildlife species. Upland nesting cover used by pheasants, waterfowl, and songbirds will remain productive if periodically burned.
Similar benefits are found for forest fires. Fire can clean the underbrush and stimulate new growth. It also helps with decreasing diseased insects. More trees die from insects than from fire. It can also help with opening pinecones, so they drop their seeds and sprout new growth.
When reading Revelation, as well as other parts of the Bible such as Isaiah, we read about the final judgement and God sending fire to destroy the earth. God will use fire to cleanse the earth and make all things new. How glorious will it be to see God’s new earth and the new Jerusalem! All the things of this world will be wiped away and replaced with God’s Glorious city! Praise His Holy name!