YR#4 - The Eternal Kingdom (Revelation 21)
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[SLIDE 1] Introduction
Please turn in your Bibles to Revelation 21.
Last night, Josiah preached a rather weighty and sobering message on the eternal punishment, the eternal hell, the Lake of Fire, which is a needed message especially when we think about Eternity.
When I assigned Josiah to preach on hell, I did so not because I didn’t want to preach it, but you know, I just wanted to give him an opportunity.
I don’t recall our conversation, but I told him to preach and use as many Bible references to highlight the reality of hell.
And I think he told me, “Don’t worry, Pastor Tommy. I won’t make it any worse than what the Bible already says.”
Which is really true, isn’t it?
If we simply preach what Scripture says about eternal punishment, we don’t need to exaggerate or dramatize it.
God’s Word is sufficient to tell us everything we need to know about the eternal hell.
It is especially needed in our modern churches because majority of churches, unfortunately, avoid this topic even though Jesus spoke about hell more than anyone else in the Bible.
Hell is surely a place for those who reject the gospel who will suffer eternal conscious torment.
This morning, we’ll explore the other side or the other chasm of eternal destiny, which is for those who have repented of their sins and placed their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
I was contemplating how best to title this message.
The Eternal Heaven?
The Eternal Home?
But, I have decided to settle with The Eternal Kingdom because I borrowed this title from several places in Scripture.
11 For in this way there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
So, today, we’re going to talk about the eternal kingdom, the eternal home for genuine believers of Jesus Christ.
It’s a home that is freely given to you to live in for all eternity.
Of course, living in an expensive city like Vancouver, it’s nearly impossible for anyone to just to give you a home for free, unless you’re the next Mr.Beast.
Let me ask you some questions to think about:
When was the last time you have pondered about heaven?
What do you think we’ll be doing when we’re in the New Heaven and the New Earth?
Sadly, I think many Christians don’t often think about their eternal heaven.
Many may be more focused on the earthly things in life to the point that they forget about the heavenly things.
The church may have become more worldly.
Others have a misconception or wrong ideas about what heaven is going to look like.
Many get their ideas about heaven from movies or advertisements.
They think we’ll be floating in heaven like angels with wings, and playing harps all day.
If we’re going to live in heaven for all eternity, honestly, that sounds rather boring.
That doesn’t sound like heaven at all.
So, because of wrong ideas and misconceptions about heaven, it makes heaven a less desirable place to live in.
And perhaps, that’s the work of the evil one.
He wants to distract us from the true beauty and glory of heaven...
Instead, he wants to attract us to the fading pleasure of this world.
But, Christians in history have often been preoccupied with their eternal destiny.
They have longed to be there because they’re loosely tied to this world.
Christians in the past suffered heavy persecution for their Christian faith.
Therefore, it would make sense for them set their minds on their future.
But, Christians living in North America are too comfortable and too complacent that they less preoccupied with their eternal destiny.
I hope to give you a picture of what the eternal kingdom looks like in the future.
I hope to address and even correct many of the misconceptions that people have about the eternal destiny of believers.
Now, just to clarify, we won’t be touching on the topic of heaven.
What I mean by that is there is a heaven where we’ll be in the presence of the Lord after we die in this life, and await for the physical resurrection of our bodies in the future.
This is known as “the intermediate state.”
We won’t be focusing on that because that’s not John’s focus in Revelation 21.
What John wants us to focus on the ultimate heaven, which is The New Heaven and the New Earth and the New Jerusalem...
Which will all happen after the events in the book of Revelation, such as the Great Tribulation, the Antichrist, the Millennial Kingdom, the resurrection of the dead, and so forth.
Regardless, those who are in Christ will eventually be in the Eternal Kingdom.
This is known as “the eternal state.”
So, with that said, let’s read the entire chapter of Revelation 21.
1 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. 2 And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 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.” 5 And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” 6 And he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment. 7 The one who conquers will have this heritage, and I will be his God and he will be my son. 8 But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.” 9 Then came one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues and spoke to me, saying, “Come, I will show you the Bride, the wife of the Lamb.” 10 And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great, high mountain, and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, 11 having the glory of God, its radiance like a most rare jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal. 12 It had a great, high wall, with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and on the gates the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel were inscribed— 13 on the east three gates, on the north three gates, on the south three gates, and on the west three gates. 14 And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. 15 And the one who spoke with me had a measuring rod of gold to measure the city and its gates and walls. 16 The city lies foursquare, its length the same as its width. And he measured the city with his rod, 12,000 stadia. Its length and width and height are equal. 17 He also measured its wall, 144 cubits by human measurement, which is also an angel’s measurement. 18 The wall was built of jasper, while the city was pure gold, like clear glass. 19 The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with every kind of jewel. The first was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, 20 the fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the twelfth amethyst. 21 And the twelve gates were twelve pearls, each of the gates made of a single pearl, and the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass. 22 And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. 23 And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb. 24 By its light will the nations walk, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it, 25 and its gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there. 26 They will bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations. 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.
If you were to describe (or even create) a kingdom, what elements would you include?
Well, a kingdom should include things like these:
A king:
You can’t have a kingdom without a ruler or a king.
Citizens or subjects.
You need to have people living in the kingdom.
A law.
You need to have laws and rules in the kingdom so that crimes would be punished, and righteousness would be rewarded.
A land or territory.
If you think about the United Kingdom, they have a land.
The Apostle John saw a long series of vision throughout the book of Revelation.
Back in Revelation 20:11, John saw a Great White Throne.
He saw the dead in verse 12.
Now, John sees what the future heaven is going to look like, and he’s going to describe what he sees.
It is a long chapter, and I don’t intend to cover everything in detail, but really give you a taste of what the future will look like.
There are four things that John saw.
First, John saw the Appearance of the New Heaven and the New Earth. (v.1)
What you need to know is that God did not randomly come up with the idea of the New Heaven and the New Earth in Revelation.
Did you know it’s predicted in the Old Testament?
17 “For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth, and the former things shall not be remembered or come into mind.
22 “For as the new heavens and the new earth that I make shall remain before me, says the Lord, so shall your offspring and your name remain.
Isaiah predicted or prophesied that there will be a New Heaven and a New Earth, which became a reality in John’s vision.
What does it mean that there is a NEW...heaven and earth?
Imagine a Nike Jordan Basketball shoes.
Your parents bought you a new pair of shoes.
They’re fresh, clean, and in perfect condition.
But if you use it long enough - on the basketball court, in the rain, through the dirt - they wear out, right.
You could try to clean or fix them.
However, eventually you’ll need a completely brand new pair to replace those shoes.
Now, the analogy falls apart because those new pair then will wear out.
But, my point is that in order to have a new, there has to be an old, right?
The old heaven and earth is where we’re currently living right now.
It was the world that God created back in Genesis 1:1: “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.”
However, sin entered into the world through Adam and Eve.
Thus, the world that God created experience the Fall.
It became a world filled with sin, decay, and corruption.
But, God will create the new heaven and the new earth.
It’ll be brand new and fresh.
No one has ever seen it before.
And it will never ever become “old.”
It will never wear out.
And John also saw the disappearance of the first heaven and the first earth.
John says that they had passed away.
It will cease to exist.
Our old home on this earth that we’re living in will cease to exist.
Vancouver will pass away.
Quite possibly, Thetis Island might cease to exist.
The Oakridge Neighbourhood might cease to exist.
The 49th and Elliot might cease to exist.
Prince Albert and 27th Avenue might cease to exist.
Now, John also makes an interesting note at the end of verse 1: “And the sea was no more.”
This seems odd.
Some of you may enjoy swimming in the sea.
Some of you enjoy sea animals.
But, I think the new heaven and the new earth will be so different that we might no longer need the sea.
Now, it doesn’t mean that there is no water source because there will be the “water of life” in Revelation 22:1.
Additionally, the absence of the sea might also represent the absence of evil and wickedness.
That’s because the devil, the antichrist and anti-Christian values are all depicted as sea monsters.
Here’s an example:
1 And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, with ten horns and seven heads, with ten diadems on its horns and blasphemous names on its heads.
Thankfully, in the new heaven and earth, evil and wickedness will not exist.
In fact, they’re thrown into the lake of fire.
Second, John saw the Capital City of the New Heaven and the New Earth. (v.2)
2 And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
The New Jerusalem will be the Capital City in the New Heaven and the New Earth.
This city will come down out of heaven.
This city will be the place where the saints - God’s people - will live.
This city is described like a bride adorned and prepared for her husband.
What’s amazing and hopeful about the ultimate Heaven is found in verse 3.
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.
Heaven is heaven not because we will be there and merely rest in peace.
Heaven is heaven because God is there. Heaven cannot be heaven without God.
Heaven is also heaven because God’s redeemed people will be there.
God promises that He will dwell and be with His people for eternity.
You know this verse should familiar to you if you know your Christmas story?
What does Immanuel mean? It means God With Us.
So, the new heaven and the new earth is the ultimate fulfillment of the meaning Immanuel, God with us.
He’ll be with us forever. We’ll be with Him forever in the New heaven, new earth, and the New Jerusalem.
We’ll jump to verses 9-21 because John will describe what the New Jerusalem will look like.
When you read the description, I strongly believe that they are to be taken literally.
So, when read you the measurements, such as 12,000 stadia, it should be understood as 12,000 stadia.
This doesn’t mean that there’s no symbolism behind the real numbers.
For example, I have a real and literal wedding ring, but it symbolizes my loyal and covenant to my wife.
But I only mention it because there are genuine believers who don’t think these measurements are literal, but rather just purely symbolic.
We will see the gates of the New Jerusalem in verses 12-13.
12 It had a great, high wall, with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and on the gates the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel were inscribed— 13 on the east three gates, on the north three gates, on the south three gates, and on the west three gates.
We will see the dimensions of the New Jerusalem in verses 15-16.
15 And the one who spoke with me had a measuring rod of gold to measure the city and its gates and walls. 16 The city lies foursquare, its length the same as its width. And he measured the city with his rod, 12,000 stadia. Its length and width and height are equal.
We will see the walls of the New Jerusalem in verses 14, 17-21.
14 And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
17 He also measured its wall, 144 cubits by human measurement, which is also an angel’s measurement. 18 The wall was built of jasper, while the city was pure gold, like clear glass. 19 The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with every kind of jewel. The first was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, 20 the fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the twelfth amethyst. 21 And the twelve gates were twelve pearls, each of the gates made of a single pearl, and the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass.
Third, John saw the Unique Features Of The New Heaven and the New Earth.
There will be no more evil and wickedness (v.1b)
There will be no more death.
There will be no more mourning.
There will be no more weeping.
There will be no more pain.
There will be no more curse.
There will be no more night.
In verses 9-21, John will describe what the New Jerusalem will look like. When you read the description, I strongly believe that they are to be taken literally.
What about the intermediate state?
