John shows us the eternal destiny for those whose names are in the Lamb’s book of Life.
Revelation 21: The New Heaven and the New Earth
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 sulphur, which is the second death."
The New Jerusalem
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, clear as 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, transparent as 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 honour 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.
Revelation 22: The River of Life
1 Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb
2 through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.
3 No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him.
4 They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads.
5 And night will be no more. They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever.
Jesus Is Coming
6 And he said to me, "These words are trustworthy and true. And the Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, has sent his angel to show his servants what must soon take place."
7 "And behold, I am coming soon. Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book."
8 I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I heard and saw them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who showed them to me,
9 but he said to me, "You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers the prophets, and with those who keep the words of this book. Worship God."
10 And he said to me, "Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is near.
11 Let the evildoer still do evil, and the filthy still be filthy, and the righteous still do right, and the holy still be holy."
12 "Behold, I am coming soon, bringing my recompense with me, to repay everyone for what he has done.
13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end."
14 Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life and that they may enter the city by the gates.
15 Outside are the dogs and sorcerers and the sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.
16 "I, Jesus, have sent my angel to testify to you about these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star."
17 The Spirit and the Bride say, "Come." And let the one who hears say, "Come." And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price.
18 I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book,
19 and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book.
20 He who testifies to these things says, "Surely I am coming soon." Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!
21 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all. Amen.
Things to think about…
1. Enter in the new heavens and the new earth, Rev 21. Some theologians (Preterists) believe we are living in the new heavens and new earth now. The first verse however says “and the sea was no more”, Rev 21:1. When you start over allegorising books like Revelation unfortunately progressive theology and a skewed interpretation is the result. The new heavens and earth will be established after the Millennial reign of Christ where righteousness truly dwells into eternity, where former things that are known on a fallen earth are no longer part of life, Rev 21:4. Why? Because all things are made new, vs 5.
2. Note that the second death occurs after the thousand years of Christ, Rev 21:8. Those who are to be resurrected to life are part of the first resurrection and are resurrected before the thousand years begin, Rev 20:4-6. They will rukle and reign with Jesus 1000 years on the earth. The second resurrection is only one to eternal death. Both soul and body united in hell for eternity. A very sobering truth.
3. The New Jerusalem is the glorified church, the Lambs bride, Rev 21:9. The walls are 12,000 stadia squared, which is around 2000klm squared. Some get confused by the meaning of 144 stadia for the wall in Rev 21:17. This measurement refers to the wall’s width. We are told in Rev 21:16 that 12,000 stadia include the height, length and breadth of the wall. The church is what Christ died for and here she is glorified. Finding ways to encourage the building up of the people of the Lord and the local church into its glorious conclusion is the privilege of everyone who names the name of Christ.
4. Note that while walls represent strength and glory they are not there for protection in this case. The gates to this city are always open, Rev 21:25. This is because the Lord of glory is there and no assault on this heavenly structure will be possible. It is worthy to mediate upon this chapter and embrace the identity that we already have in Christ. This identity is only available to those whose names are in the “Lamb’s book of life”, Rev 21:27.
5. I love my rest and I enjoy a good sleep, but there will be a time when I won’t need or desire to sleep. We will be able to enjoy every hour of the eternal day worshiping our Lord, Rev 22:5. Jesus is the Way the Truth and the Life, Jn 14:6 and here the River of Life runs through the middle of the celestial city, vs 2 that waters the tree of life which bears fruit every month. I can’t eat fruit here on earth due to a condition called sucrose intolerance, but in eternity my desire for the heavenly fruit will be most delightful.
6. Jesus recognises us and we will recognise each other in eternity. His name will be on our foreheads, Rev 22:4. No earthly picture can capture this identity, in fact trying to do so would contort the reality and essentially make a mockery of the image described in Rev 22. This will not be something crude like a tattoo on the face but a symbol of recognition and ownership that the Lord will give as part of our eternal identity and security with the Lamb of God.
7. John is so overwhelmed a second time with the visions he is being shown by the angel that he bows down and worships him a second time and a second time he is rebuked for doing so, Rev 22:8,9. This is encouraging for me. The Lord graciously forgives us when we are overcome by emotion, but the Lord knows our heart. It is a similar situation when Peter was overcome with emotion at the transfiguration of Christ, Mt 17:1-12.
8. Daniel was told to seal up the words of his book, Dan 12:4, but here John is told not to seal up the words of this book, Rev 22:10 for the time is near. Indeed this has been the case for 2000 years. But every generation needs to hear that our time is always near, vs 20 because our Lord Jesus said it is so. It is certainly more true today than it was for John.. As those who are only given a short time on the earth – 70-80 plus years at most. Christ’s message is to the 7 churches mentioned at the start of Revelation, Rev 22:16. The message is the same for us, as such we should have the same desire as John in it all and say “come Lord Jesus”, Rev 22:21. Amen.
Vision statement for CBC
CBC’s Vision :- To be a growing biblical church community, significantly influencing our city and beyond, through intentional outreach, fulfilling our mission.
Prayer Points
1. Pray for pledges for finances for the youth and young adults pastor role. $38, 600 has come in so far. Next week final week of collection.
2. Carols service 18th December – Family fun Day afternoon/evening 3pm-7pm.
3. Christmas Day Service 25th Dec – on a Sunday this year – service will start at 9:00am.
4. Pray for the leadership of our country.
5. Pray for the people of Iran and Ukraine.
6. The right choice for a full time Youth and Young Adults Pastor to start Jan 2023 and the finances to support them.
7. More young families and youth into the church.
8. Ministry leaders within the church.
9. Our One for Israel ministry.
10. Pray for other building projects – café roof, the repair of the house roof.
11. Growth, conversions, joy in the Word and Spirit to remain and increase.
Praise Points
1. Thankyou to those who have supported the church and youth and young adults role - $38, 600 raised thus far.
2. Wouk being done in the house and café. Thankyou especially to Rob Brand and James Smith.
3. New folk becoming members of CBC
4. Worship on Sunday – thankyou worship team. Thankyou for those who welcomed at the door.
5. All those who faithfully serve in ministries, Worship, Sound/Technical/Kids Church/ Cell Groups/Admin - Bulletins/Finances/Property/Welcoming/Spiritual Leadership/Cafe
6. Joy, peace and grace we see at CBC. Thankyou Lord
Announcements
1. Pledges being taken until 11Dec to assess level of support for Youth Ministry Leader.
2. Family fun day/Carols night 3-7pm 18th Dec – Book it in. Invite people flyers
3. Christmas Day service – 9am Dec 25th.
4. Remember to check your duty rosters.
5. Church bank details bsb:- 704 913 and Acc number:- 4000 4388 1
6. Tune in again this week on our youtube page. Subscribe to the CBC channel Chuwar Baptist YouTube channel.
Catechism questions for December...
Q. 3. Why did God make you and all things? A. For his own glory.
