All Things New (Part 1)
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· 7 viewsJohn is finally shown the glorious future of all the saints with God in the New Creation. We are to take present strength and encouragement from this vision.
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Introduction
Introduction
Welcome to the New Age (1-8)
Welcome to the New Age (1-8)
A Perfect Universe
A Perfect Universe
1Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea.
John is taken straight from his terrifying vision of the Lake of Fire to the extreme opposite. He is taken to see a universe reborn. Welcome to the new heavens and the new earth.
This is not a new idea. God had been promising to bring this about since the Old Testament.
“For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth;
And the former things will not be remembered or come to mind.
“For just as the new heavens and the new earth
Which I make will endure before Me,” declares the Lord,
“So your offspring and your name will endure.
This world needs to be purged of its sin and remade in glory. Again, this is not a new concept. God had been telling His people for a long time that the world would be destroyed.
The earth is also polluted by its inhabitants, for they transgressed laws, violated statutes, broke the everlasting covenant.
“Of old You founded the earth,
And the heavens are the work of Your hands.
“Even they will perish, but You endure;
And all of them will wear out like a garment;
Like clothing You will change them and they will be changed.
We read of this destruction in 2 Peter 3:7-13.
But by His word the present heavens and earth are being reserved for fire, kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.
But do not let this one fact escape your notice, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day.
The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.
But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up.
Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness,
looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning, and the elements will melt with intense heat!
But according to His promise we are looking for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells.
John instantly knows that the world he is viewing is different than our own. We see a world very different than our own.
Our world bears such visible scars from the flood - the entire topography of earth and the fact that 71% of its surface is still covered by water all points back to the effects of sin. John is shown a new heaven and a new earth, and the first thing he notices is, “Hey! The sea is gone!” But before he can comment on anything else, his attention is grabbed by another incredible sight.
A Perfect City
A Perfect City
2And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband.
This is the final a greatest city that will ever exist. We will see a very detailed description of this city in a little bit, but I want to just note a few things quickly here.
First, there are some amazingly beautiful cities in the world designed by some incredible architects.
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But this city is designed and built by God Himself. You cannot imagine how beautiful this city will be.
for he was looking for the city which has foundations, whose architect and builder is God.
Second, notice that John isn’t shown the perfect hippie utopia. This isn’t a return to the Garden of Eden. He is shown a city. This may seem like a simple observation, but it has an important application. Cities are the ultimate culmination of society and technology. By creating this New Jerusalem, God is showing us that both society and technology can be incredibly good. However, notice what is true of our world today - cities are where evil is often the most prevalent, and technology is often used as a means of inflicting suffering or spreading wickedness. In fact, the first city, founded by Cain, began the long process of people trying to create their own “New Jerusalem” apart from God, apart from His Creation, and made in the image of man. Be very aware and thoughtful of how the technology you use shapes the way you think and the way you act.
Speaking of you, notice what John hears next. His vision is interrupted by a voice introducing officially what John is seeing.
A Perfect People
A Perfect People
3And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them,
4and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.”
5And He who sits on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” And He said, “Write, for these words are faithful and true.”
It is best to understand the voice of v.3 to be angelic and different than the voice of God in v.5.
These verses are hard to convey properly because they contain the fulfillment of all of history.
Think about the long journey it has taken to get here.
God used to walk with man in the garden until Adam and Eve sinned, and since that time, our interaction with God has been mediated - meaning there is a separation.
God spoke to the earliest believers in visions and prophecies.
He sent angels.
He appeared in forms like the burning bush.
Finally He began to manifest His glory in a pillar of smoke and fire.
Then He caused His glory to rest, first in the Tabernacle, and then in the Temple, behind layers of veils and protection.
When His people continued to reject Him, He withdrew His glory from the earth and fell largely silent.
The coming of Jesus shattered that silence and became the greatest manifestation of God on earth since the Garden of Eden. Jesus, John Himself wrote, was God tabernacling with man again. But even this was through a human veil. We still could not behold the glory of God and live.
After the ascension of Jesus, His primary presence on earth is through His Holy Spirit living within believers, but still this is veiled glory.
Here, for the first time, God the Father is about to cause His perfect glory to manifest inside creation. He will be with His people perfectly and permanantly.
John’s heart would have leapt to here these words as the testimony of Scripture rushed back into His mind.
‘Moreover, I will make My dwelling among you, and My soul will not reject you.
‘I will also walk among you and be your God, and you shall be My people.
‘I will give them a heart to know Me, for I am the Lord; and they will be My people, and I will be their God, for they will return to Me with their whole heart.
‘You shall be My people,
And I will be your God.’ ”
“At that time,” declares the Lord, “I will be the God of all the families of Israel, and they shall be My people.”
“But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” declares the Lord, “I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.
“They shall be My people, and I will be their God;
“My dwelling place also will be with them; and I will be their God, and they will be My people.
“The city shall be 18,000 cubits round about; and the name of the city from that day shall be, ‘The Lord is there.’ ”
“Sing for joy and be glad, O daughter of Zion; for behold I am coming and I will dwell in your midst,” declares the Lord.
and I will bring them back and they will live in the midst of Jerusalem; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God in truth and righteousness.’
And with the coming of God comes the dawning of perfect joy and happiness. Notice that in this new city, life is very different.
Every tear wiped away
God will end all the sadness of everything you have ever been through in the past. All the unanswered questions, personal suffering, painful memories, shame, rejection, guilt - all of it. At this time we will perfectly understand what Christ has truly done for us and who God truly is, and that reality will erase the hurt of this life as God wipes away our tears.
No death
Judgment is over, and God’s people have been made perfect. They cannot sin any longer, and therefore death ceases to exist among those who believe. This means so much more than just an end to people growing old, or sick, and passing away. This means that there will never again be anything that divides or interferes in our relationship with God or with each other.
No mourning
The relief God brings by wiping away our tears isn’t temporary. No memory will ever come back, and no even will ever take place, that will cause you to experience the deep hurt of mourning.
No crying
Complete internal peace and happiness means that your tear ducts will never again be used for anything but moistening your eyeballs. Can you imagine never hearing someone cry ever again?
No pain
Finally, in this life we have nerves that have a painful function. They warn us when there is something dangerous and harmful happening. They get our attention pretty quickly! But this function will no longer be necessary. Instead, your nerves will have one purpose - to sense and enjoy perfection. Imagine never wondering if something was going to hurt again? I think this verse also covers pain that is more than just physical. There are emotional nerves that for some of you tonight are raw. In the New Heavens and New Earth, you will never experience that again.
This all proves that the brokenness of this world is truly over, the first things have passed away. God Himself steps in here to proudly declare to John that He is in fact completing His final and greatest creational act. And He goes on to share how this wraps up His program that He began back in the Garden of Eden.
A Perfect Conclusion
A Perfect Conclusion
6Then He said to me, “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give to the one who thirsts from the spring of the water of life without cost.
7“He who overcomes will inherit these things, and I will be his God and he will be My son.
8“But for the cowardly and unbelieving and abominable and murderers and immoral persons and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their part will be in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.”
When God declares, “It is done,” I can’t help but think back to Christ on the cross crying out, “It is finished!” They are different words in the original Greek, but they form a perfect set of bookends to the Gospel Story.
On the cross, Jesus declared that the task of conquering death was finished. The word used carries the idea of a specific thing being brought to its end.
Here, God the Father, because of what Jesus has done, completes the restoration of all things and steps back to declare, “It is done.” The word here isn’t the word about a task being brought to completion, but about something new being born or created. It also is in a special tense that refers to something that has happened in the past but has ongoing effects. It is as though God is saying, “It has begun!” How cool is that.
We called this series Omega because it means the end of something. God reminds us here that He is both the beginning and the end of all things. He is the source of life, and He is the sustainer of life. He is also the sharer of life. He gives freely from the spring of the water of life without cost. Why is it free? Because that stream was paid for in full by our Savior Jesus Christ.
For those who persevere in Christ, this new world is our inheritance, and not just the world, but a close walk with God as His son or daughter.
Not everyone will be here though.
The Cowardly
Those who were like the rocky soil that seemed to have life for a short while, but fell away because it was never deep or real.
Unbelieving
Those who openly refuse to submit to the truth. Notice God doesn’t say the ignorant, but the unbelieving. Whether we reject what God has revealed in nature, or, more seriously, reject the preaching of the Gospel itself, we are condemned for refusal to believe.
Abominable
People who love their wickedness so much that they are willing to reject their Creator to keep it.
Murderers
Speaks of those who kill men created in the image of God, as well as those, as Jesus tells us, who have out of control anger and hatred towards others.
Immoral
This is the word we get pornography from. You can’t embrace sexual sin which is a perversion of the image of God and of the Gospel and expect to enter into joy of heaven. Christians can sin sexually, but Christians will never over a long period love that sin.
Sorcerers
Don’t play with the occult. It’s not cute like in Harry Potter. Do not give glory or attention to the fallen spiritual forces of darkness. This word is also the root word of Pharmacy, or drugs. It referred to taking mind-altering drugs as a part of pagan worship.
Idolaters
This is the large category of everyone who is willing to sacrifice and give glory to something or someone besides God.
Liars
Like Satan, the father of lies, those who demonstrate a hatred of truth need to beware. The Holy Spirit is never operating in the midst of lies, but Satan delights to do so.