A Heavenly Home

Introduction:

The prince of preachers, Charles Spurgeon, was known to love John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress. The preacher loved the book's imagery and, as centuries of Christians before and after him have, found it incredibly relatable to his own walk. On the book’s relation to his preaching ministry, he said this:

“I am occupied, in my small way, as Mr. Great-heart was employed in Bunyan’s day. I do not compare myself with that champion, but I am in the same line of business. I am engaged in personally-conducted tours to Heaven; and I have with me, at the present time, dear Old Father Honest: I am glad he is still alive and active. And there is Christiana, and there are her children. It is my business, as best I can, to kill dragons, and cut off giants’ heads, and lead on the timid and trembling. I am often afraid of losing some of the weaklings. I have the heart-ache for them; but, by God’s grace, and your kind and generous help in looking after one another, I hope we shall all travel safely to the river’s edge. Oh, how many have I had to part with there! I have stood on the brink, and I have heard them singing in the midst of the stream, and I have almost seen the shining ones lead them up the hill, and through the gates, into the Celestial City.”

If you have read the book you know precisely what he speaks of. As a minister of the Gospel, he saw himself as a guide to that great celestial city, the prize that awaits all Christians throughout time who persevere to the end. He is to lead his congregation through the hurt that is all too present in this age, those dragons that threaten the weak, and to see people to the river's edge, that is death, as they ascend the final hill into the promise that awaits.

Today my goal will be similar, to dive into this book, Revelation, that has been clouded with mystery and perhaps been misused, to encourage and reveal to you what was revealed to John first. The promise of the age to come of the prize that awaits all of us who are in Christ. To, as Mr. Spurgeon did, be a humble tour guide of Heaven, to spur us on in the midst of this groaning world into the heaven that is to come. So that as we endure the current order’s pining away, we might just peer into the hope that awaits us. Perhaps you have ideas of what Heaven may be like, streets of gold, a feast fit for the noblest of our day, reunion with those you love. Our text today from Revelation chapters twenty-one and twenty-two offers three categories of expectation in the new earth for us to eagerly anticipate.

Maybe you’re the dad of three who's struggling to make ends meet. You’ve got two daughters in elementary school and a son in middle school, they make you so proud. Your daughters love to dance and so you want to enroll them in dance classes your son has really shown promise on the basketball team and he needs a new pair of shoes. Yet, each week as you work long hours outside on a construction site you feel like you’re never getting ahead on your finances, and with each bill you see your savings dwindle. You’ve been a faithful giver to your church but you’re starting to wonder what the purpose is. Isn’t life for the here and now? Why should I invest in eternal things when this is my life now?

Or maybe you’re the couple whose adult children want nothing to do with you. You did your best to raise them well, they went to church, they did well in school, and they always had a meal waiting for them when they got home. But they got old and they got bitter and they began to resent what they didn’t have. Years go by and you’re all getting older and you aren't sure there will ever be restoration. You wonder will there ever be a day when relationships don’t feel so tense?

In his Revelation, John offers hope to the hurting through the promise of new life. Our first expectation is . . .

A New Order:

Heavenly Surroundings Revelation 21:3-4:

Of all the theories and dreams that surround what Heaven will be like, what can be certainly agreed upon is this, that our surroundings will be different. If we are to persist in our current world for eternity that would perhaps discourage us. When we consider our current surroundings perhaps we find a mixed bag of beauty and pain, a sense of glory in that we see God revealed through our surroundings but an overwhelming sense that this is not how things ought to be. We see the mountains and the beauty and majesty that they represent and we are in awe that God could speak and they appeared, yet those same mountains have taken the lives of thousands throughout history. We look at the beauty of the ocean and its vast expanse and it reminds us of the greatness of God, and His uncontainable nature, yet each year hurricanes, and storms damage and destroy everything in their path. Or consider the sun, it gives and sustains life on earth, without it, scientists say everything would cease in a matter of minutes. It in some small way reveals the glory of God to us, it cannot be looked at, approached, or touched yet it warms and comforts us. But even the sun can be covered by clouds for days or months and for months a year its distance is felt in the bitter cold of winter. Yes, creation is beautiful but as Paul tells us “creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now” (Romans 8:20-22). This isn’t how things ought to be. I remember standing at the top of the Sears tower in Chicago and looking out at the expanse of the city taking in the diverse landscape all around me. Of course, it is no secret that the city of Chicago has major socio-economic struggles. I had lived in the city for a few months and I had seen the disparity of some parts of the city and the wealth of others, but it wasn’t until I looked out of the windows one hundred seven stories above the city that I saw the differences between these areas. Looking to the north there were buildings of great magnitude and density. It was full of life and evident prosperity. However, when I turned to the south the landscape was flat and desolate. There was even a stark difference in color. The north was bright and the south was dark brown and gray. It looked like the difference between life and death.

Perhaps, when we look at our current surroundings we see death and pain. A desolate landscape. Our text today gives us cause however to look ahead at what will come, that one day we will live with God and the pains of this life will be totally foreign to us there. Revelation 21:3-4: “3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. 4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”-- Re 21:3–4. The former things have passed away, no more remembrance. All that which causes pain in this present order will cease and will be restored to its rightful stance. The Lord is creating for us a heavenly surrounding. One where we will be totally filled and satisfied by Him and His glory. We ought not to think that the world is being recreated as it was in the beginning, but instead, it is being transformed into something totally new. “But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed.”-- 2 Peter 3:10. It is easy to look to the south at the desolation and become discouraged by the chaos but this image of what is to come gives us hope that someday this pain will be replaced by worship. God is not conceding his creation to the enemy, he is taking it back in full and refining, through fire, into the fullness of what it can be.

It is interesting how John illustrates this. He says in 21:1 that there will be no sea. To understand this we must understand the reality of Hebrew and ancient culture. In our day it is easy to travel by sea for the most part. Our ships are built to last and hold up in the throws of life at sea. Beyond this, we now know more about the sea than these cultures ever could have imagined. To them, the sea represented chaos and the unknown. It was uncertain if you would make it to your destination when you set out to sea in those days. To promise that there will be no more sea is to say that no longer will you worry about the unknown, no longer will wild storms threaten to destroy you. Thomas Schreiner says, “That the sea is no more means nothing destructive and deforming will be in the new creation.” It is no wonder that there will be no more pain or suffering or death. Of course, every tear will be wiped away because surrounded by Heaven there will be no cause for these things any longer. No longer will we worry over the lives of those we love, how we will provide, where our next meal will come from, or nature threatening to take all we have. All things will be made new alas.

To the dad who can’t make ends meet and is uncertain how he can provide for his family's needs and wants and continue to invest in the things of God, this promise tells him one day there will be no more uncertainty. There is a God who is working now to make all things new this pain, this uncertainty will not last forever. Heaven is on the horizon. It's worth the wait.

To the couple who feels as though their relationship is in turmoil, one day, in the communion of the saints, with God in their midst, there will be no more pain. God himself will wipe the tears of abandonment from their eyes and he will be their prize. One day soon he will make all things new.

Indeed God is making for us a heavenly surrounding. Christ’s very promise that he is going to make a place for us (John 14:3). It is through his blood on the cross that he sealed eternity and paved the road for us to enter into the new earth and it is with him that we will enjoy eternity. However, in our current state, we cannot. We still struggle with the flesh, but if it is true that God is physically building a heavenly surrounding then it must also be true that God is building in us heavenly hearts.

Heavenly Hearts Revelation 21:27-22:5:

Perhaps you remember that period of time when Covid was finally on its downward slope and our nation began to reopen. It was a time when finally you could go out to eat or go to a show indoors, however, we were still weary of the virus. You had to be able to prove that you did not have the virus to enter many places. I remember in January of 2022 my mom and I were attending a comedy show in Kansas City but before I could go I had to get tested for Covid. I went to great lengths to secure this test. I had just arrived in Joplin and was still getting acquainted with the area and this test launched me into that. I ended up driving to Pittsburgh to get this test so I could go to the show. I had to prove that I was “worthy” of entry into the theater.

There is an issue in the hearts of men, no matter how hard we try, the depravity that exists within us from birth keeps us from pleasing God. Paul testifies, “None is righteous, no, not one; 11 no one understands; no one seeks for God. 12 All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one.” (Ro 3:10–12). Again Paul says, “For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. 8 Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.” (Ro 8:7–8). This poses an issue, John declares this in our passage, Rev. 21:27: “But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life.” (Re 21:27). What can we do? We are unclean and unworthy to approach God let alone enter into the heavenly realms where he is glorified forever. There must be another way.

Rev. 22:1-5: “Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2 through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. 3 No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him. 4 They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. 5 And night will be no more. They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever.” (Re 22:1–5). The hope of the Christian faith rests in that the “all things new” includes us. That he himself will write his name on our foreheads. And through his Spirit he will conform our hearts to his image.

Water is a consistent theme throughout scripture and specifically Jesus’ ministry. He tells the woman at the well that he will give her living water and she will never thirst again. Again he says that his followers' hearts will flow with rivers of living water that well up to eternal life. Water is purifying and is often spoken of alongside the Spirit, the agent that sanctifies us. This section of Revelation is a call back to the book of Ezekiel 47 where water flows from the temple replenishing the earth. We, the bride of Christ, are now the temple and in the new heaven the presence of God will dwell in the midst of us and replenish the whole earth.

In this time we live exhausted and run dry. Perhaps the most common complaint of the day is a resounding “I’m tired.” The weight of sin and the curse of the earth weighs heavy on our hearts. Our own sin ruins our intimacy with the Father and devours our soul. This will be no more. He will come and give us new hearts and no longer will anything vile reign on the earth. Christian, I know the pain and the hurt of the present order well, but it will end. God will have the final say.

Much has been said of the marks in the book of Revelation. I believe the point is this, you wear a mark, it rests on your forehead for all the world to see. There is no way to hide where your loyalties lie, with the Father or with the enemy, and in our current struggle with the old man at times we live uncertain of the mark we bear. I love this text though because unlike proving my cleanliness from Covid I will have nothing to prove on the new earth, His name will be written on my forehead and I will worship Him for eternity. And this will not be of my own doing. I will have nothing to bring on that day other than the blood of Christ which has sealed me in Him. He is making us a heavenly heart that will fit in well in our new heavenly surroundings.

And even now we are being made new.

Even now our hearts are inclined to worship him when we seek him in prayer and study, when we praise him through song, your being here today is evidence.

When you resist the temptation to have it your way and yield in peace your new heart is on display.

When you resist the temptation to sin the power that will transform this earth is in you transforming your desires, empowering you to love God more fully.

The disappointment of our struggles with sin and shame now are melting away. The promise from God is that one day you will not struggle to love and follow him. It will be all you can do.

You say now “What will we do for eternity? That's an awful long time,” well if God has created for us a heavenly surrounding, and creating in us a heavenly heart so that may be brought in, then it necessitates that we will bow down in heavenly worship for an eternity praising the one above all things and the Lamb who brought us in.

Heavenly Worship– Revelation 21:22:

“And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb” (Re 21:22). This sentence would have been mind-boggling to a Jewish audience. They lived in a world defined by ritual and sacrifice and the only way they got to the father was through one guy but once a year. But no more, for God is the temple. Schreiner says, “The whole new creation is God’s temple, in which his people serve Almighty God and the Lamb as they abide together.” The walls are broken down to such an extent that we will physically dwell in a refined physical reality with our God and he will be all we need. This is the promise presented in Hebrews, that even now we can approach God, “19 Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, 20 by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. 23 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful.” (Heb 10:19–23). But not yet. We said before that creation now reveals God's beauty, that even now we are actively being sanctified to look more like Jesus, and even now we worship God in a one on one relationship and yet this isn’t half of what it will be. It's pretty good now, but it will be so much more that our hearts and minds cannot even fathom.

To this John gives us just a glimpse of what it will be like to worship in the heavenly realm. He says, “And night will be no more. They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever,” (Re 22:5). This is taken almost directly from Isaiah 60:19 where the prophet announces the same image and that God will be our glory. This is hard to picture. A world without sun in our minds is terrible, we cannot grasp the glory of God. This glory was so great that the Israelites trembled before Mount Sinai, so terrible that when a face down Moses was passed over by the backside of God he shown himself, the glory of God is always pictured as bright, powerful, and terrifying. It is like a room that is so filled with sunlight that turning on a lamp does no good. The sun will not match even one bit the glory of God. There will be no need for sun. And in awe we will serve and worship our king alongside the saints for ever and ever.

So sing because he reigns above it all and mere words cannot express your feelings towards him and one day you will sing with a million other brothers and sisters.

Pray because your God hears you and one day you will speak to him face to face.

Seek the Scriptures earnestly to know and understand his will and his ways and one day they will not be a mystery to you, in fact, they will be so familiar that there will be nor reason to teach or be taught.

When you worship now you get a glimpse of heavenly worship.

Conclusion:

The old hymn says, “Take my heart, Lord, take and seal it, seal it for thy courts above.” Oh the joys and the glory that awaits the servants of Christ, whose names are written in the book of life. However, not yet do we live on the refined earth, we still suffer with the powers of sin and death and wrangle to keep the faith we have been given. However, we have not been called to merely wait it out and wish for the best. All of the Christian walk and struggle is sealing, chaining our hearts to him, preparing us for our heavenly homes. For our promise while not yet realized is given now. While we await our new home we tend the earth and whatever our hands find to do we do with all we have to the glory of God and for the sake of his gospel message (Ecc. 9:10; Col. 3:23-24). We ourselves do not succumb to the powers of sin for we have been given a helper who will sanctify us so we flee the devil and his lies that would tempt us (1 Peter 5:8). And even now while we wait to worship the father in physical relationship we are to be the worshipers who Jesus described “But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. 24 God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” (Jn 4:23–24). Christian do not grow weary as you walk your walk and pursue Jesus on this earth. For the prize that awaits is worth it and He who promised is faithful.