Revelation Part 30
Revelation 21:1
In Revelation 21:1-4 the Apostle John wrote,
"And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away."
In the book of Revelation the Apostle John was provided the opportunity to view with his own eyes the information he was to pen about the Lord Jesus Christ and about future end-time events. When he looked far enough into the future all that he could see were good things. The good God has good plans for the good benefit of mankind. Right now the world is not everything that it can be or will be, but God is planning and working all things together to change it all for the better.
Sometimes the best way to improve what you have is to take it and throw it all away and start over. That’s one of the reasons for revolution. And it is made clear to us that is exactly what will happen in the proper time to the heavens and the earth.
The One who created the heavens and the earth will destroy and start over. Referring to the current earth and the current circumstances, once in a while you will hear people ask,
"Why did a holy and perfect God create a world that was imperfect and had so many flaws?"
Well I am glad you asked that question, because God did not create an imperfect world. The imperfection, the sin, the disease, the death all came as a result of sin. God did not put things out of balance, man did. That is why God sent His Son Jesus as a sacrifice to save us from this wretched condition we find ourselves in. Yet sinful man is still rebellious and wicked in all his ways and many still reject the gospel message of salvation through the shed blood of Jesus. This rejection will be their ticket to an eternity in the fires of hell, doomed forever to the outer darkness and the flames that are never quenched.
We may not know the complete answer to that question, but we do know from Revelation 21:1 that a perfect God will one day do away with the imperfect world that man messed up and create a new heaven and a new earth that will be perfect.
What is wrong with our current earth which makes it necessary for God to one day replace it? What will be different about the new earth that will make it so much better than the old? The most important answer to these questions is found in Revelation 21:3 when it says about the new earth that
"the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God."
The reason that God created man was to have fellowship with us, to know us and for us to know Him. Therefore, the primary goal of life is to know God and to walk with Him. That’s why you were created. One of the greatest biographical statements that could be made about another human was what the Bible has to say about Enoch in the Old Testament:, in the book of Genesis we read,
"He walked with God and then he was not."
What is one of the biggest problems in the world today? What is the greatest reason for the sorrows and problems and failures of the world we live in? The answer is: the lack of a relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ by so many folks. If more people had a personal relationship with God, the world would be more like it ought to be. If you do not know God, then you are incomplete. You are only half a person. You do not know life as God intended your life to be known, and you are incapable of living life as it can be lived. There are too many people in this world whose life is in this condition.
The primary reason that the new heaven and the new earth will be so wonderful is because all who will be there will know God in the closest and most personal way possible. Of course, there are other reasons that the new heaven and the new earth will be so wonderful. Revelation 21:4 says,
"And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away."
In this life there will be tears, there will be sorrow and there will be crying. If not now; then later. No one can escape the sorrows that this life can bring. Some parents when they lie down in bed at night, cry themselves to sleep because of what has happened in the lives of their children. The oppressed and the persecuted know what it means to cry and to sorrow in this life. Every day there are people who have their hearts broken and their dreams dashed and their destinies trashed.
Our American History books chronicle the story of the native American indians who were oppressed and we call their journey "The Trail of Tears." Jesus took our way upon Himself and He is called a man of sorrows and well acquainted with grief. At least the Lord has provided a means for us to be able to bear our burdens because He said,
"Take my yoke upon you and learn of me. My yoke is easy and my burden is light."
It should be comforting to know that the tears and the sorrows and the crying of this life are only a temporary circumstance. None of these things will exist in the new heaven and the new earth that God has planned.
Of all the enemies that wrestle against human life on this earth, death may be the greatest. It’s certainly the last of the enemies of mankind. The finality of death and the sorrow of death and the separation of death can be so devastating to a human being, that many people just cannot face the reality of it. They put it completely out of their minds. But God has a plan whereby the sharp edge of death is taken away. Through Christ, death is simply the passing through a door into a far better place. Through the plan of God the day will come when death and pain shall be no more. Jesus said that pain will be ended. He was undoubtedly talking about physical pain as well as emotional and spiritual pain. Some people have a burden of pain to bear in this life. There are people who cannot get an hour of sleep because of pain unless they take medicine to ease the pain. But thank God, that’s only a temporary circumstance. There is an old hymn of the church that goes like this:
"O they tell me of a land where no storm clouds rise, and they tell me of a home far away. They tell me of a land where pain and death have died. Oh, they tell me of an unclouded day."
The Bible says in Revelation 21:5,
"And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful."
Where did the Bible come from? It came from God. God inspired, God directed, God led certain men to "write." That’s why we have the Bible. It’s God’s truth written for mankind to know what is, what was, and what shall be hereafter. Notice that God said to John,
"These words are true and faithful."
Not just the ideas are true, but the very words are also true. Jesus said,
"Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away."
The method that God has given so that all mankind might know is truth are the written words, the book that we call the Bible. That’s why the Bible is the greatest and most important book in the world. Your education as a person on the earth is not complete unless you understand and read the Bible. It’s the Word of God. It’s no wonder that Jesus said,
"Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God."
In Revelation 21:6 the Bible says,
"And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely."
We know by the context of this verse that this is Jesus who is speaking. In the first chapter of the book of Revelation Jesus said,
"I am Alpha and Omega."
Notice that Jesus said here in Rev.elation21:6,
"It is done."
When Jesus died on the cross He said,
"It is finished."
By dying for the sins of a corrupt and fallen world, Jesus finished the great work He had come to do, and He assured the eventual future transformation of the universe. God spoke, and the worlds were created; but God will not be finished with His creation until He makes a new heaven and a new earth. God spoke, and the universe was created: a mighty and wonderful universe, but one now that has in its very essence, mirrored in the nature of man, both limitations and a destiny with destruction because of man’s sin. But when this heaven and this earth are taken away and replaced by that which is far better, those limitations will be forever removed, and the greatest possible existence will be presented by God as a gift to His children.
How can anyone become a part of the great and wonderful eternal life that God has planned? Jesus answered that question in the last part of Revelation 21:6. He said,
"I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely."
It’s like Jesus to say something that is so important and so profound with just a few basic words. It was said of Jesus in the gospels:
"No man spake as this man".
One of the evidences of the truth of these words is the power of them. Eternal life comes from Christ. He said,
"I will give."
He paid for it on the cross with the shedding of His blood, therefore He is worthy to give it. Jesus said,
"I will give,"
and He said that He will give "freely." This tells us very clearly that salvation is a free gift. No one deserves to be saved because we are all sinners. No one can earn his way to heaven, because everyone has already sinned. There must be a Savior to save you from your sins.
If salvation is a free gift, then why isn’t everyone automatically saved? Jesus answered that question by saying that He will give,
"to him that is athirst."
A human being must desire salvation. A person must see the need of turning from their sins and turning to Jesus.
"Seek and you shall find."
Reach out to Christ and you will find Him, and He will give you:
"the fountain of the water of life freely."
If you possess this great salvation, you have an unending supply of blessings and privileges that God will shower upon you, from now unto all eternity. That’s why Jesus called it a "fountain." Jesus spoke of other benefits that will be given to those that believe on Him. He said in Revelation 21:7,
"He that overcomes shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son."
When Jesus said,
"He that overcomes,"
Jesus used the Greek word "nike" that is here translated "overcome." Nike means victory.
"He that gains the victory shall inherit all things."
There is contest going on in the world. It’s the contest for souls. If you lose your soul, you have lost everything. But if your soul is saved through faith in Jesus Christ, then you have gained everything. That which is physical and material is temporary in nature and will pass away. That which is spiritual will last forever. That’s why Jesus said in the Gospel of John,
"You must be born again. Except a man be born again, he cannot enter the Kingdom of God."
We have already identified that in this passage Jesus is speaking and he says to the person who overcomes,
"I will be His God."
This is just one of the vast number of passages in the Bible that equate Jesus to being God. In this statement Jesus claims directly that he is God. There is God the father, and there is also God the Son and there is God the Holy Spirit. Anyone who does not teach that Jesus is God, not only is a false teacher, but is also in darkness about the clear mandate of scripture. Of all the blessings that believers receive, Jesus mentioned the best in Revelation 21:7 when He said,
"I will be his God, and he shall be my son."
There is nothing better than to be a child of God. If you do not have a personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ, then you do not have anything of real value. If you have a Father who cares for you and who helps you plan for the future, then depending upon his means you will also have an inheritance one day. If God is your Father, you have the best inheritance of all waiting for you: a glorious entrance into the eternal Kingdom of God.
What about those who do not have God as their Father? What will they inherit? Jesus spoke about them in Revelation 21:8. He said,
"But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone: which is the second death."
Jesus gave eight characteristics or eight attributes to describe people who will not be in the Kingdom of God. Instead, these people will have as their eternal destiny the lake of fire and brimstone.
Notice the first kind of person that Jesus said would not be saved: "the fearful." The word that Jesus used that is translated as "fearful" is the Greek word for coward. This goes to the psychology of salvation. What is the ultimate reason that many people do not become saved? Cowardice. A thinking human knows that if they follow Christ in this world, there will be a price to pay. When Jesus taught the parable of the sower He said that the word of God will not take root in some peoples’ hearts because of the fear of persecution or tribulation. There will be no cowards in heaven, because it takes a person with a certain amount of courageous determination to say in their heart,
"I will go with Christ no matter who disapproves of me and no matter what goes against me."
"The cross before me the world behind me, the old chorus goes."
Jesus established this truth further when He stated that no man, having put his hand to the plow and looking back was worthy to enter the Kingdom of Heaven.
The second thing that Jesus said about those who would not end up in the Kingdom of heaven was that they were "unbelieving." It says in the book of Ephesians that salvation comes by "grace through faith." It says in the book of Acts, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved." John wrote in the gospel of John,
"These things are written that you might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, and that believing you might have life through His name."
The Bible says in the book of Romans, chapter 10, verses 9 and 10:
"If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thy heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved."
Belief involves a choice. A human being chooses to believe or to not believe. Be careful what you choose to believe about Jesus Christ. The choice that you make will determine your eternal destiny. Jesus gave a very clear warning because He wants you to make the right choice while you still have time …You do not want to be left behind.