March 18, 2001

Behold; I Make All Things New

Rev. 21 & 22

Today we finish up in our study of Revelation. How many of you enjoyed it? How many of you understood it and thought it made sense? How many of you used to think Revelation made sense before I got up here and started teaching it?

Last week we read about the second coming of Jesus Christ, the marriage supper of the Lamb and who is going to be there, the millennium, and the great white throne judgement. Today we get to the end of the book, and discover that God is going to make everything new. Some things He is going to keep, some things He is going to get rid of, and some things He is going to replace. He is going to get rid of this earth and the sky that surrounds it, and replace it with a new one. He is going to get rid of time, and replace it with eternity. And he is going to keep everyone that belongs to Jesus with Him forever.

If you have your Bibles with you today, and I hope you do, turn to Revelation 21, verse 1. " And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea."
There are three different heavens mentioned in the Bible, the first one is the atmosphere around us, that the rain falls out of and the birds fly around in. The second heaven is the stars and planets, and the third heaven is the habitation of God. I believe that what is referred to here is the earth and it's immediate atmosphere.

How does this happen? 2 Peter chapter 3 and verse 10 tells us: "But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the 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.
2Pe 3:11 Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness,
2Pe 3:12 Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat?
2Pe 3:13 Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness."
Also, Isaiah tells us in chapter 65 and verse 17: "For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind." God is going to destroy everything that would ever remind Him or us of sin, and replace it with a fresh clean environment. The sea will be gone, the mountains will be leveled. It will be entirely different.

Verse 2: "And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband."
During the tribulation, Jerusalem becomes so corrupt that God refers to it as Sodom. Now all that is gone, in it's place is a new city, a new Jerusalem that is perfect. Also, we had read about Satan's whore, the harlot of Babylon, and his city, also called Babylon. Both his city and his consort were totally evil, and even shared the same name. In contrast to that, here we see the city of God, coming down out of heaven, totally pure, and identified with His church as with a pure bride, the bride of Christ. Totally opposite.

Verse 3: "And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.
Rev 21:4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; 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 21:5 And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful."
This is one of those places that doesn't need a whole lot of explanation: it means what it says, and it says what it means. God is going to make all things new, and He tells us that we can take it to the bank. It is guaranteed. His words are true and faithful, this is how it will be.

Verse 6: "And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.
Rev 21:7 He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son."
I believe it is at this point that we make the transition from time to eternity. Time is done away with. Jesus Christ is from eternity past to eternity future, He is the one that created time for his own purposes, to bring a people to Himself, to love and to fellowship with and to enjoy Him. And now that His purposes are completed, He doesn't need time anymore, He gets rid of it. Time can be measured, eternity can not. He is the beginning and the end, and if we are with Him, if we are His children, His life keeps us secure for all eternity. This is the blessing that is promised to believers forever.

There is also something promised to unbelievers forever, and it is pretty awful, verse 8: "But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death."
I want us to think about how the Lord puts this list together. The first two descriptions noted here are the fearful and the unbelieving. The word for fearful means timid, easily scared, and along with unbelieving, it gives us a good idea of what keeps a lot of people from becoming Christians. Jesus us tells us in Matthew 10:32: "Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven.
Mat 10:33 But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven." In Luke 12:8 He tells us: "Also I say unto you, Whosoever shall confess me before men, him shall the Son of man also confess before the angels of God:
Luk 12:9 But he that denieth me before men shall be denied before the angels of God."

A lot of people never get saved because of what they think their friends might say. There are people in the world that will get up on the Jerry Springer show and wash their dirty laundry out in front of a million people for $2500, but the opinion of their unsaved friends is worth more than their souls. The Greek philosopher Demosthenes said: "Nothing is easier than self deceit. For what each man wishes, that he also believes to be true." Self deceiving people. They fear the opinions of their friends more than they believe the Word of God. They know the truth, but pretend it doesn't matter. They make themselves into liars, fearful, unbelieving liars.

Look where they will be for eternity, verse 8. They deceive themselves, they never received Christ, they are don't want to confess Him as Savior, and look where they spend eternity. They go to the same place as the abominable, those that are so into the things of the flesh, those that so deliberately defile themselves that they literally stink, that's what abominable means.

Murderers, there's some good company, how about whoremongers? That is from the Greek word porno. Given over to things related to unlawful sex. How about sorcerers? Those that use spells, potions, mixing the occult with drugs. And finally, idolators, those that worship false gods, participate in idolatrous ceremonies, or worship worldly things instead of God. People that are given over to that sort of thing are not Christians. If you think you are a Christian and you have a problem in one of these areas, you need to get serious with yourself, because God says that those who do such things are not His kids. Grape vines do not produce walnuts. The new birth by the Holy Spirit does not produce gross sin. If you think you are a Christian and you have a problem in one of these areas, something is wrong.

Verse 9, now we move into an area where we get a good look at where we will spend eternity with our saved friends; the new Jerusalem, the celestial city. And notice that it is identified especially with the church, the bride. I believe the church has a special place in it. I want to read this all the way through, and then come back and comment on a few of the details
Verse 9: "And there came unto me one of the seven angels which had the seven vials full of the seven last plagues, and talked with me, saying, Come hither, I will shew thee the bride, the Lamb's wife.
Rev 21:10 And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God,
Rev 21:11 Having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal;
Rev 21:12 And had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel:
Rev 21:13 On the east three gates; on the north three gates; on the south three gates; and on the west three gates.
Rev 21:14 And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
Rev 21:15 And he that talked with me had a golden reed to measure the city, and the gates thereof, and the wall thereof.
Rev 21:16 And the city lieth foursquare, and the length is as large as the breadth: and he measured the city with the reed, twelve thousand furlongs. The length and the breadth and the height of it are equal.
Rev 21:17 And he measured the wall thereof, an hundred and forty and four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of the angel.
Rev 21:18 And the building of the wall of it was of jasper: and the city was pure gold, like unto clear glass.
Rev 21:19 And the foundations of the wall of the city were garnished with all manner of precious stones. The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, a chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald;
Rev 21:20 The fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolyte; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, a topaz; the tenth, a chrysoprasus; the eleventh, a jacinth; the twelfth, an amethyst.
Rev 21:21 And the twelve gates were twelve pearls: every several gate was of one pearl: and the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass.
Rev 21:22 And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it.
Rev 21:23 And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.
Rev 21:24 And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it.
Rev 21:25 And the gates of it shall not be shut at all by day: for there shall be no night there.
Rev 21:26 And they shall bring the glory and honour of the nations into it.
Rev 21:27 And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb's book of life."

First, the shape: verse 16 says that the city is foursquare, and the length and the breadth and the height of it are equal. And it measures 12,000 furlongs each way. That is roughly 1,500 miles on a side. What would it look like? There are several possibilities.

Some commentators think that the city is spherical, and it is in orbit around the earth like a moon. I don't think so.

Others think it is like a cube, 1,500 miles on a side. That would be pretty awesome, and it would certainly have plenty of room inside. I did some math on that one, and if it was a cube 1,500 miles on a side, it would have 3 billion, 375 million cubic miles inside it. That means that if every believer had a room, a mansion type room one mile square and 500 feet high, it would accommodate 27 billion people. Now since I never met a Christian that wanted to dust a house a mile square and 500 feet high, probably most of us would prefer something a little smaller, so I think there will be room left over, space will not be a problem.

There is also a third possibility, and that is that it would be in the shape of a great pyramid. Yep, I'm getting THE LOOK. I expected that I would. Stay with me here, I haven't totally lost it. If you have never thought about the possibility of a pyramid before, it meets several interesting requirements. First, it is foursquare, and the length, breadth and height can be equal. Next, Jesus Christ is referred to as the chief cornerstone, and He is also the light of the city. When we get into the next chapter, we find that the river of life flows from the throne of God. If we think of His throne at the apex of the pyramid, the chief corner stone, the capstone, that shape works well with all these things. There is also a wall completely around the city which is 216 feet high and 216 feet wide. If that wall was around the base of a cube measuring 1,500 miles on a side, would you even notice it? There is something else: Satan has been trying to counterfeit the things of God for thousands of years, and what shape has he always given various religions to use? The pyramid. That doesn't prove anything, however; Satan always copycats the things of God.

On the other hand, Hebrews 9:23 speaks of the things of the tabernacle being patterns of things in the heavenlies, so very possibly the celestial city is shaped more like the tabernacle in the wilderness, a box shape with a wall around it. God's temples were always box shaped instead of pyramids.

Who knows? The important thing is, when we see it, we will like it. When we moved from Florida to Georgia back in 1973, the Lord answer my prayers in a wonderful way, and led me straight to the house that we purchased and lived in the whole time we were there. Little brick ranch house, about 1200 square feet. Barbara had never seen it, she was still working in Miami. But when she got to come up to Georgia, I took her to see it, and when we stopped out in front of it, she said: "Wow, it's beautiful." Someday Jesus is going to show us this city, this New Jerusalem, and we're all going to say: "Wow, it's beautiful."

Notice in verse 12 that the city has twelve gates, three on each side, and each gate is named for one of the twelve tribes of Israel. In verse three, it said that the tabernacle of God was with men. Does this remind us of anything? Back when Israel came out of Egypt, the tabernacle, the tent of God, was always pitched in the middle of the camp of Israel, three tribes on each side, and here we find the same thing. God was painting a picture way back then for the way that He would do things in eternity to come.

Notice that each one of the twelve gates is one giant pearl. The jews did not consider pearls to be worth very much. Pearls come from shellfish, shellfish are unclean, so the jews didn't have much to do with pearls. Gentiles were the ones that valued pearls. When Jesus told His parables about the Kingdom Of God, one of the parables was about the pearl of great price. Matthew 13:45 tells us: "the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls, who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it." That pearl of great price was the church, mostly of gentiles, and Jesus sold all that He had to buy us.

Now here we have twelve gates, one gate for each of the twelve tribes of Israel, and each gate is a pearl. Ironic that the gentiles have never particularly valued Israel, and Israelites never valued pearls or gentiles.
Do you remember when we studied Ephesians, Paul was explaining how Jesus has abolished in Himself the wall that kept gentiles out of the temple in Jerusalem, and now both jew and gentile worship God on the same basis through Christ? What Paul was teaching in Ephesians, we now find completely fulfilled in the gates of this city. Both jew and gentile finally have equal access in all things to God.

Keep your place in Revelation and turn to Ephesians 2:13 "But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off - speaking of gentiles - are made nigh by the blood of Christ.
Eph 2:14 For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us;
Eph 2:15 Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain -two- one new man, so making peace;
Eph 2:16 And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby:
Eph 2:17 And came and preached peace to you which were afar off, and to them that were nigh." Both gentiles far off, and jews close at hand.
Eph 2:18 "For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father.
Eph 2:19 Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God;
Eph 2:20 And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone;
Eph 2:21 In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord:
Eph 2:22 In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit."

I believe that the city brings together the bride of Christ, the church, and the Old Testament saints, the friends of the Bridegroom. A habitation for two different peoples being made one as Paul says.
In Hebrews 11:8 we are told: "By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went.
Heb 11:9 By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise:
Heb 11:10 For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God." This is the city that Abraham looked for, and since it is identified with the church, and with Abraham, I believe that the people that live here will be both the Old and New Testament saints. All those that took part in the first resurrection and live forever in glorified bodies.

Back to Revelation, look at verse 23: I don't think it means that we no longer have a sun or a moon, I think it means that we no longer need them, we have something better. Christ is the light of the city.
Verses 24 and 26 speak of nations and kings bringing their glory and honor into the city. Apparently there are other people that live outside the city. Probably these are the people that live through the 1,000 year millennium in their natural bodies, who are saved and love the Lord, and this is where they end up. The Bible is not clear on this, there is no detailed mention of them that I can find. So this is my opinion as to where they come from. One thing is for sure, verse 27 tells us that everyone written in the Lamb's book of life has access to the city, and no one else.

Chapter 22, verse 1: "And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.
Rev 22:2 In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.
Rev 22:3 And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him:
This is the third time that we find other nations mentioned in this section, so I believe that the rest of the earth, outside the city will be inhabited. Also it says that there will be no more curse. And we have already been told that there will be no more death, so I guess one question at this point is, will people continue to reproduce? I think probably not, I think that will be part of God making all things new. Part of several other radical changes in the physical world. But that is just my opinion, the Bible does not say, and my opinion is not worth any more than your opinion.

Verse 1 speaks of a river of life, proceeding out from the throne of God, watering the tree of life. In the middle of the city, we get back to Eden. Jesus Christ returns to us everything that Adam lost for us, and a lot more besides.
Verse 4: "And they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads."
1John 3:2 tells us: "Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is." Every believer in eternity will bear the likeness of God. Just like when you look at a child, and you can tell who the parents were, that's what it will be like then.

Verse 5: "And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever.
Rev 22:6 And he said unto me, These sayings are faithful and true: and the Lord God of the holy prophets sent his angel to shew unto his servants the things which must shortly be done.
Rev 22:7 Behold, I come quickly: blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book."
How would we go about keeping the prophecies of this book? We measure our lives by the standards of this book. We need to structure our lives so that we recognize God's glory, appropriate His grace, and yield to His government. You might want to start practicing now, because we will be doing it full time then, and you wouldn't want to look like a beginner.

Verse 8 "And I John saw these things, and heard them. And when I had heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel which shewed me these things.
Rev 22:9 Then saith he unto me, See thou do it not: for I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book: worship God."
Like I said last week, the holy angels of God will not accept our worship, only Satan and his angels will accept worship. If you ever get around something that claims to be an angel of God, and it accepts worship from anybody, it is a spiritual counterfeit. It is not from God.

Verse 10: "And he saith unto me, Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book: for the time is at hand.
Rev 22:11 He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still."
Those that go to the lake of fire will have all influence of the Holy Spirit removed from them, and what ever choices they have made for themselves, will become part of their character forever. Their consciousness, their mind, will remain corrupt forever. They might even get worse. Those that God has saved and sanctified will probably get better, I think they will continue to become more like Jesus Christ for all eternity. Since Jesus Christ is infinite in His perfections, Him being God, we will never get to the level of existence that He is at, so it will make an interesting process for the eternal future.

Verse 22: "And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.
Rev 22:13 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.
Rev 22:14 Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city."
This phrase in verse 14, "Blessed are they that do His commandments," that's one of those Greek phrases that means a couple of things. It can also be translated "Blessed are they that wash their robes," and it has the idea of living a holy, clean, and Godly life. To live a Godly life, first we need to get saved. Then we need to know what God wants, we need to do what He wants, and we need to keep ourselves clean by letting Him wash us every time we get dirty. That's what the word sanctified means; set apart, and fit for the master's use. Different from the rest of the world. Since He is speaking of having a right to the tree of life, and access to the gates of the city, He is not writing to anybody but us, asking us one more time to take a good look at ourselves. Who are we? Whose are we?

Verse 15: "For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie."
I think it is interesting that this list is similar to the one back in chapter 21, except that he uses the term "dogs" in place of "fearful, and unbelieving and abominable."
Dogs are different over in the middle east. In our culture, dogs are trained to be obedient and behave themselves, but over there, people seldom keep pet dogs, dogs are usually nasty cur animals, mean, cowardly and treacherous. All of us have seen animals like that, and that is how He describes unbelievers.

Verse 16: "I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star."
I think it is sobering to think that Jesus only sends this message to His churches. People outside the church think this stuff is fairy tales. But Jesus wants us to know it. Back in verse 10, He tells us not to seal up the prophecies in this book, He wants all His people to know about them.

Verse 17: "And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely."
God gives one more invitation, He is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to eternal life.

Verse 18: " For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book:
Rev 22:19 And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book."
God gives a very solemn warning not to tamper with His Word. Does this mean that every good, honest and sincere Christian scholar that tries to understand and translate the original languages into the common language more perfectly is in trouble? Of course not. It means that an unbeliever that tries to take the Word of God and add to it or take away from it to suit their own doctrines or pet theories is in serious trouble. A true believer would not want to add to the Word of God or take away from it, but if a person is a Christian scholar, and honestly tries to better understand what God is saying, I believe that God will lead that person in the right way, and keep them out of trouble. Nonetheless, some Bible translations are much more reliable than others.

Verse 20: "He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen." and the apostle John adds; " Even so, come, Lord Jesus.
Rev 22:21 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen."
Grace. In the last sentence of God's word to man, there is still an emphasis on grace. Grace is still God's method of saving sinners. Paul tells us in Ephesians 2: "But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,
Eph 2:5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)
Eph 2:6 And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:
Eph 2:7 That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.
Eph 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
Eph 2:9 Not of works, lest any man should boast."

If you are a believer in Jesus Christ today, if you have received Him as your Savior from sin, then you already know that it is all of His grace, and nothing of yourself. If you have never received Jesus Christ as your Savior from sin, don't worry about cleaning up your act, forget about getting things sorted out. There is nothing you can do to make yourself any better prepared to get saved than to simply believe that He died to save you. Will you bow the knee, and receive Him today? Will you do it? His grace is available for you.

Stand with me, and turn to number 164, Grace Greater Than Our Sin, lets sing that through, and then go across the page and sing the first and last verses of Amazing Grace, number 165.