NEW JERUSALEM- THE CITY OF GOD
The Revelation of the Lord Jesus Christ • Sermon • Submitted
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The New Jerusalem
Revelation 21:1-22:6
ETS: The New Jerusalem will be a place of unspeakable beauty and joy.
Related Bible passages:
2 Peter 3: 7-13
Isaiah 65: 17
John 14:1-6
Psalm 30: 5
I Corinthians 15:26
I Corinthians 13:12
Romans 8: 19-22
Hebrews 12: 22-23
Micah 7:19
Thesis: the new Jerusalem has been prepared for all who are saved.
INTRODUCTION:
When Marco Polo, the renowned explorer who had spent 20 years in ancient China, was on his deathbed, his friends pleaded with him, for the peace of his soul, to retract some of the seemingly incredible stories he had told in his book of travels. His reply to their entreaties was, “I have not told half of what I saw!”
In reading the account of that heavenly city, new Jerusalem, given by the aged apostle John, his awe is clear seen. Human language, as descriptive as it can be, cannot begin to tell of the wonders of that city. How aptly Paul put it when he said, “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, neither has entered the heart of man, the things which God has prepared for those who love him.” (1 Corinthians 2:9)
My friend, I pray that as we look at the splendors of the New Jerusalem, that you will make sure that this is your eternal destiny.
I. THE BEAUTY OF THE NEW JERUSALEM (Revelation 21:1-2, 9-25)
I. THE BEAUTY OF THE NEW JERUSALEM (Revelation 21:1-2, 9-25)
A- It’s beauty is indescribable. (Revelation 21:1-2)
1 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and the old earth had disappeared. And the sea was also gone.
2 And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven like a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.
1. It is described in terms of a beautiful bride adorned for her wedding day!
a. John had seen many sights, including the spectacular Jewish Temple and the Ephesian Temple of Diana (one of the seven wonders of the ancient world), but none to compare with the sight of the Heavenly city!
B- Its beauty surpasses anything on Earth! (Revelation 21:9-25)
1- Refracting walls. (Revelation 21:9-11, 17-18a)
9 Then one of the seven angels who held the seven bowls containing the seven last plagues came and said to me, “Come with me! I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.”
10 So he took me in the Spirit to a great, high mountain, and he showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God.
11 It shone with the glory of God and sparkled like a precious stone—like jasper as clear as crystal.
17 Then he measured the walls and found them to be 216 feet thick (according to the human standard used by the angel).
a- Jasper = diamonds. Walls of diamond!
b- Refracting the glory of God!
2- Resplendent gates. (Revelation 21:12, 13, 21a)
12 The city wall was broad and high, with twelve gates guarded by twelve angels. And the names of the twelve tribes of Israel were written on the gates.
13 There were three gates on each side—east, north, south, and west.
21 The twelve gates were made of pearls—each gate from a single pearl! And the main street was pure gold, as clear as glass.
a- Each gate of one pearl - a reminder of the pain that bought our salvation!
(1) Pearls are produced through the pain of the oyster.
3- Breathtaking Foundations (Revelation 21:14, 19-20)
14 The wall of the city had twelve foundation stones, and on them were written the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
19 The wall of the city was built on foundation stones inlaid with twelve precious stones: 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.
a- Jasper = diamonds
b- Sapphire = Blue
c- Chalcedony = sky blue
d- Emeralds = green
e- Sardonyx = red & white
f- Sardius = fiery red
g- Beryl = sea green
h- Topaz = sea green
i- Chrysoprase = purple
j- Jacinth - red
k- Amethyst = violet
4- Beautiful streets of gold. (Revelation 21:18b, 21b)
18 The wall was made of jasper, and the city was pure gold, as clear as glass.
21 The twelve gates were made of pearls—each gate from a single pearl! And the main street was pure gold, as clear as glass.
a. here gold is precious, there we will walk on it!
5- Brightly lighted. (Revelation 21:22-25)(Revelation 22:5)
22 I saw no temple in the city, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple.
23 And the city has no need of sun or moon, for the glory of God illuminates the city, and the Lamb is its light.
24 The nations will walk in its light, and the kings of the world will enter the city in all their glory.
25 Its gates will never be closed at the end of day because there is no night there.
5 And there will be no night there—no need for lamps or sun—for the Lord God will shine on them. And they will reign forever and ever.
6- Bountiful room (Revelation 21:15-17)
15 The angel who talked to me held in his hand a gold measuring stick to measure the city, its gates, and its wall.
16 When he measured it, he found it was a square, as wide as it was long. In fact, its length and width and height were each 1,400 miles.
17 Then he measured the walls and found them to be 216 feet thick (according to the human standard used by the angel).
a- The walls of the new Jerusalem are 200 feet high and 216 feet thick.
b- The city is 1400 miles cubed. This means that it is 1400 miles high, 1400 miles wide and 1400 miles long. This equals 2,744,000,000 cubic miles.
c- In order to get a picture of the size of that city, it would take 23.3 hours to travel from side to side or top to bottom at 60 mph.
d- The size of the city, but accommodate 1,372,000,000 People if each person received 2 cubic miles per inhabitant.
e- At 1/2 cubic mile there would be enough room for 5,488,000,000 people.
f- If each person were allowed 1/4 cubic mile to live in, the city would house 10,976,000,000 People.
g- If New Jerusalem is laid out in multi-level format with streets and houses, there would be enough room to house every person who has ever lived.
7- The River of Life will flow freely. (Revelation 22:1-2)
1 Then the angel showed me a river with the water of life, clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb.
2 It flowed down the center of the main street. On each side of the river grew a tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, with a fresh crop each month. The leaves were used for medicine to heal the nations.
8- The Tree of Life will bear its fruit. (Revelation 22:2-3)
2 It flowed down the center of the main street. On each side of the river grew a tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, with a fresh crop each month. The leaves were used for medicine to heal the nations.
3 No longer will there be a curse upon anything. For the throne of God and of the Lamb will be there, and his servants will worship him.
II- THE INHABITANTS OF NEW JERUSALEM. (Revelation 21:3-5)
II- THE INHABITANTS OF NEW JERUSALEM. (Revelation 21:3-5)
A- The Lord will be there. (Revelation 21: 3-5)
3 I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, “Look, God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them.
4 He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.”
5 And the one sitting on the throne said, “Look, I am making everything new!” And then he said to me, “Write this down, for what I tell you is trustworthy and true.”
1- God’s home will be with his people forever!
2- All reasons for tears and sadness will be gone!
3- Everything will be made new!
4- All of the sin and decay of the old world will one day be gone. (2 Peter 3:10-14)
10 But the day of the Lord will come as unexpectedly as a thief. Then the heavens will pass away with a terrible noise, and the very elements themselves will disappear in fire, and the earth and everything on it will be found to deserve judgment.
11 Since everything around us is going to be destroyed like this, what holy and godly lives you should live,
12 looking forward to the day of God and hurrying it along. On that day, he will set the heavens on fire, and the elements will melt away in the flames.
13 But we are looking forward to the new heavens and new earth he has promised, a world filled with God’s righteousness.
14 And so, dear friends, while you are waiting for these things to happen, make every effort to be found living peaceful lives that are pure and blameless in his sight.
A. Heaven and Earth will be remade according to God’s standard of perfection.
5- We will see the Lord! (Revelation 22:4)
4 And they will see his face, and his name will be written on their foreheads.
B- God’s people will be there! (Revelation 21:3)
3 I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, “Look, God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them.
1- Sin will not be present there! (Revelation 21:27)
27 Nothing evil will be allowed to enter, nor anyone who practices shameful idolatry and dishonesty—but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.
2- The rebellious will not be there. (Revelation 21:6-8)
6 And he also said, “It is finished! I am the Alpha and the Omega—the Beginning and the End. To all who are thirsty I will give freely from the springs of the water of life.
7 All who are victorious will inherit all these blessings, and I will be their God, and they will be my children.
8 “But cowards, unbelievers, the corrupt, murderers, the immoral, those who practice witchcraft, idol worshipers, and all liars—their fate is in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.”
CONCLUSION: