Victory’s Joy

God’s Dwelling Place—And Ours!

5.25.25 [Revelation 21:1-11, 21-27] River of Life (6th Sunday of Easter)

Where’s the best place you’ve ever gone on vacation? 

Maybe it was a delightful trip to an amusement park. Perhaps you rambled through a national park and enjoyed the picturesque vistas. Maybe it was a luxurious cruise. Perhaps it was one of those all-inclusive resorts where you can play 18 holes, unwind with a massage, go deep-sea fishing, and wet your whistle at a swim-up bar.  

The location and the activities of your favorite vacation probably aren’t exactly the same as the person sitting in front of you. When it comes to a great vacation, we all have different priorities. Some like to ride all the rides—even if it means waiting in line. Some like to see all the sights—even if it means driving out of the way or hiking a long way. Some want to sail across the ocean. Others feel trapped in a cabin. Some like the idea of a relaxing massage. Others just want to be left alone. Some people love fine food. Others don’t care what they eat so long as they don’t have to cook or clean up. 

Despite our different choices, we all talk about a great vacation in the same ways. It was so relaxing. Peaceful. Secluded. Luxurious. Magical. Incredible. It was so great to just get away. 

But it’s not just what we enjoyed on vacation that we rave about, is it? What wasn’t there also stands out. No distractions. No work calls or emails or text messages. No cooking. No cleaning. No problems. No stress. No worries. 

When you go on a great vacation like that, going back home is tough. There are some trips, when it feels like a relief to be home. But those really great vacations leave you saying Let’s go back!

I have to imagine John the Apostle felt this way after our reading from Revelation 21. We didn’t read the whole chapter this morning but you got more than a taste of the new heaven and earth he saw. The Holy City, the New Jerusalem, was perched high atop a mountain. Rev. 21:11 It shone with the glory of God. Its brilliance was like a precious jewel. Its streets were paved with pure gold. Each gate was made of a single pearl. The things that are precious & prized in this world are commonplace in this new place that God has fashioned and made as a his dwelling place. 

But it’s not just about what is there. It’s also about what’s not there. 

Rev. 21:4 There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things had passed away. So much of what we know temporal life to consist of is not just a non-factor. It’s not present. It’s unknown. These are the kinds of things you and I are looking forward to in heaven. 

But there are also some strange absences. There is no temple. There is no sun or moon. There are gates, but they are merely decorative. They never need to be shut. There is no night.

Who wouldn’t want to live in a place like this? 

It sounds like the kind of place that you see in the movies or on TV or hear somebody else gush about. And then, because your interest has been piqued, you look into it and you find out how hard it is to get there and how expensive it is to stay there. Then your dreams going there are quickly put to bed. 

John told us who’s not on the guest list. Rev 21:8 But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—they will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur.

Maybe that list is one that smacks you right between the eyes. Maybe there have been times in your life when you were rightly described as one or more of those. But we must not mistake this list for being exhaustive. Just because you claim to not be these kinds of people, does not mean that you’ve met heaven’s high bar. 

Because John has told us that the standard is even higher. Rev. 21:27 Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful. Does that describe you? 

For a moment, consider how often something impure enters your mind. At times, we blame the world around us, right? Our lust or anger or greed comes from the things we see in this world. But these are not the only impurities that enter our minds, are they? What about our selfishness? What about our sinful pride? What about our fears or frustrations or anxiousness? 

Now, we tell ourselves that those are just thoughts. We cannot control them—and there is some truth to that. God tells us that every inclination of the human heart is sinful from birth. But even if we were given a pass for these thoughts entering our minds, what happens next? What do these thoughts result in? 

Does our selfishness, our lust, our anger ever lead to shameful behavior? How many times have our selfish actions put strain on an important relationship? Few things are more destructive to a person or their lives than unchecked lust or anger. But even a little lust or a little anger leads us to say and do things that we would be ashamed to be known by our friends and family. Even if no one else finds out, the Lord knows what we’ve said and done. And he is the only one whose opinion of us really matters.  

Does our greed or our pride or our anxiousness ever lead us to speak deceitfully? We claim a right to things we know we have no right to. We claim we bear no responsibility for things and people we know we really do. We exaggerate our accomplishments and delude ourselves and others when it comes to our faults and errors. 

When we are feeling frightened or anxious, we may act as if the truth doesn’t really matter. We lie because we don’t want to get in trouble or have to deal with the real world consequences of our words or actions. When we’re feeling anxious, we look for escape in self-destructive practices. We eat or drink too much. We abuse substances. We distract ourselves with gossip or trash TV. 

Do not be deceived. God cannot be mocked. He knows we are impure on our own. And nothing impure can ever enter his Holy City. So God came down from heaven on a mission to make impure sinners as pure as the driven snow. 

Jesus came into this world of seemingly inescapable impurities and shameful sins and deceitful words and he was remarkably different. He was never corrupted by his friends or family, by his people or the culture. His heart was pure—unlike anyone else. 

He had a genuine love for his God. He did not love God just so that others would think highly of him. As a young boy, he lingered behind in the Temple so because he desired to develop and grow Lk. 2:52 in the fear of the Lord, in wisdom, and in favor with God. As a young man, Jesus frequently spent late nights in prayer and made it his habit to be in the synagogue. 

Jesus had a genuine love for his neighbor. When people brought the sick to him, he healed them. When they brought their children, he blessed them. When they brought their questions, he answered them. When they brought their doubts, he put them to rest. When they came to him with hearts full of fear, he patiently reassured them. Jesus came to seek and save the lost and give his life as a ransom for many. 

Jesus sacrificed that purity for us. As the Lamb of God, Jesus shed his holy & precious blood to make us clean. Only God could do that. We are totally incapable of making ourselves clean. But remember Peter’s vision last week? God showed him a sheet full of animals that were ceremonially unclean. Peter assured the Lord that he had never eaten any of them. But a voice spoke from heaven, Acts 10:15 Do not call anything impure that God has made clean. 

This same God has made a new heaven and a new earth. Do you remember how he made the first? It was through his Word and it was perfect. It was pure paradise. God has made you perfect through his same powerful Word. Through his Word he has washed away your sins in the waters of Baptism. Through his Word he has made you to be his children, people who trust in his wisdom, his power, and his love. God has made you to be his people. 

God has made you clean. He has cleansed you with hyssop and you are clean. He has washed with the blood of the Lamb and so you are whiter than snow. Ps. 51:10 He has created in you a pure heart and renewed a steadfast spirit within you. 

God has made us victorious. God is for us and nothing in all creation can separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. We are more than conquerors. We are heirs.

The very same God who has saved you and cleansed you now Php. 2:13-15 works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose because he has made you to be his children—blameless and pure, without fault in a warped and crooked generation. Titus 2:11-14 When the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared we learned to say no to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in this present age. 

And he gives you and I this glimpse of heaven, because he knows that we need it. This world is not the way it ought to be. Whatever is pure or perfect or paradise feels out of reach. But God will bring us there. He gives us this encouragement so that we can see that the path of righteousness leads somewhere better than sin’s short cuts. He gives us this beautiful sight so that we do not grow weary in doing good or lose hope. Because one day, we will find ourselves inside that Holy City. In that place, we will be pure, and there will be no need for Temple to atone for our sins. We will dwell with God in a place that exceeds our wildest imaginations and puts our finest vacations to shame. And once we’re there, we’ll never go back. Amen.