Messages

The New Jerusalem

Date:4/24/22

Series: Revelation

Passage: Revelation 21:6-27

Speaker: Jeff Thompson

John is shown more details of the glorious and eternal future home of all who love the Lord, the New Jerusalem.


Transcription (automatically-generated): 

Well, can you believe it? There are still those who are saying that the book of Revelation is hard to understand. But flimflam say we and I apologize is for my language. But you see, the thing is, the word revelation itself means that something has been revealed. And the first words of this book tell us exactly who it is that's being revealed.

It's the revelation of Jesus Christ. And God wanted us to read this book so much that he promised anyone who would take the time to read and respond to it a special blessing. And we find that blessing in Revelation chapter one, verse three, let's claim it together. It says, "Blessed is he (or she) who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy and keep those things which are written in it for the time is near."

But God knew there would still be those who would say, it's just too hard to follow. So, to make it easy to understand, he also included a simple outline. And we find that in Revelation chapter one, verses 19, Jesus gives John three things to write about. Firstly, John, I want you to write the things which you have seen that was the resurrected and glorified Jesus in chapter one. Secondly, John, I want you to write the things which are that's a reference to the Church aides which began around 32 Ad at the feast of Pentecost, is documented in Acts chapter two and continues up to the present day.

And then lastly, Jesus says, John, I want you to write about the things which will take place after this. After what? After the Church age. Now, when does the Church age come to an end? That happens in Revelation chapter four, verses one, let me read it to you.

John says, after these things, I looked and behold a door standing open in heaven. And the first voice which I heard, that was the voice of Jesus in chapter one was like a trumpet speaking with me, saying, Come up here and I will show you things which must take place after this. And up John goes, serving as a picture of the Church who will be raptured to be with the Lord. And just to make it Crystal clear what's happening, the Lord will take all of chapters four and five to show us the Church with Him in heaven before he begins pouring out his wrath upon the Earth. And when he pours out his wrath, the incredible thing is that verse is like Revelation 616 tell us that those on the Earth will know that it's God doing it.

They will identify it as the wrath of the Lamb. And in the Scriptures, the Lamb is who it's Jesus. So chapter one gives us the focus of this amazing book, Jesus Christ. Chapters two and three take us through the Church age up to the present day. The Church goes up in chapter four, verses one, we see her safe and secure with the Lord in heaven for chapters four and five before wrath comes down on the Earth in chapter six.

That wrath continues for seven years across a time period known as the Tribulation, and is documented in chapter six through 19, after which Jesus returns to the Earth with His Saints in the event known as the Second Coming. Jesus will then rule and reign on the Earth for the thousand years known as the Millennial Kingdom, a golden age when the Earth will be restored to an Eden like state and everything wrong with the world will be undone. After those thousand years, our universe will be destroyed and Jesus will create new heavens and a new Earth free from every source of sorrow heaven itself. The city called the New Jerusalem will descend to the new Earth where it will serve as our home for the ages to come. And though you may not understand all the details just yet, I can tell you this.

If you love Jesus, then your story is destined to end with the words and they lived happily ever after. We spend most of our previous study dreaming together about how incredible it is going to be when God declares, Behold, I make all things new as we pick things up in verse is of chapter 21, we hear God speaking from his throne. Both Jesus and the Father are on the throne together at this moment, and we can safely assume the Holy Spirit is there with them too. They speak with one voice. In verses six through nine, John writes, And He, God said to Me, It is done.

Underline that in your Bible, it is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. What a moment on the cross, Jesus cried out, It is finished here, God declares, it is done. The redemptive work that began with the cry of a new born baby in the little town of Bethlehem reaches its Zenith and concludes with these triumphant words, It is done. Truly.

His ways are higher than our ways, his plans unfathomably greater, his vision infinitely more glorious, and his wonders beyond comprehension. We can enjoy new spiritual life right now. But verse six is the moment when God declares that all things have been made new, physically, spiritually, biologically, all things have been made new. This is the moment Paul spoke of when he wrote this in his first letter to the Corinthians. It's on your outlines.

Then comes the end when he Jesus delivers the Kingdom to God the Father, when he puts an end to all rule and all authority and power, for he must reign till he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy that will be destroyed is death. Now, when all things are made subject to Him, then the Son Himself will also be subject to Him who put all things under Him. That God may be all in all. The words it is done announce the end of the age of our universe and the dawn of a new age.

A new chapter in the incredible book of the story of God. What happens in that next chapter? A new story begins, and all I can tell you about it is that it will be wonderful. Have you ever been out somewhere far from the city lights, looked up and caught a glimpse of the glory of the universe and seen the Milky Way like a cloud in the night sky? If Jesus could create all the stars, planets, and the beauty of this Earth in six days, what could he prepare for us?

In 2000 years, eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him. Jesus said, "I go to prepare a place for you", for you personally. For me personally. I don't know if we'll have rooms or houses, but I suspect there will be some type of space for each of us that is tailored for us individually and will reflect God's intimate knowledge of who he created us to be. I do know this with certainty.

We will realize immediately that we never knew what home felt like before we arrived in heaven. It will feel like home in a way that we have never tasted in our earthly lives. Ladies, as incredible as it sounds, you won't want to change anything about your eternal home ever. You won't want to move a couch or change a paint color. It'll just be perfect.

And all the men will praise the Lord, saying, Truly, he has done great things. God continues in verse is and tells John, I will give of the fountain of the water of life freely to him who thirsts. The water of life is an idiom for the Holy Spirit that is given to every person who places their faith in Jesus. God is telling John, "All this is for anyone who wants it. It's for anyone who wants Me."

Those who get to experience eternal life will be those who desire eternal life, those who thirst for it and long for it. Jesus promised to send the Sermon on the Mount when he said, "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled." On the last day of the feast of Tabernacles, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. He who believes in me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water." Jesus told the Samaritan woman at the well, "Whoever drinks of this water, earthly water will thirst again. But whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life." And heaven is where all these promises of Jesus are fully realized in heaven will always be full of the Spirit. We'll always be full of his peace and joy and life as water is in the air, when it's extremely humid, the water of life will saturate the atmosphere. In eternity.

There will be no striving. There will be no dry days, spiritually or emotionally or in any way. There will just be life everywhere, all the time. Verse Seven God says, he who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God, and he shall be my Son. Eternal life is for those who desire it and those who overcome.

Now, how do we overcome? Let's remind ourselves once more of the words of our brother John that he wrote in his first epistle, who is he who overcomes the world but he who does enough good works? No, it's not what it says. Sorry. Who is he who overcomes the world but he who has a perfectly consistent devotional life doesn't say that either.

Achieves mastery over every sin in their life doesn't say that. Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God? The Christian life is drinking the living water of eternal life freely offered by Jesus and then offering it to naturally sorry, then allowing it to naturally affect your life. The Christian life is drinking the living water of eternal life freely offered by Jesus, and then just allowing it to naturally affect your life. There is a difference between a dehydrated person and a hydrated person.

In the same way, there is an unmistakable difference between the person who is drunk the living water of eternal life and the person who has not. How do we Overcome? We believe that Jesus is the Son of God, and we express that belief by accepting his offer of eternal life, that's it Salvation is the gift of God. He did all the work so that none of us can boast that we earned even the tiniest part of our Salvation. The Lord did it all.

Our job is simply to believe it and receive it. So would you write this down? It's our belief in Jesus that makes us overcomers. Our belief in Jesus makes us overcomers. He won the victory on our behalf, and we need only believe and follow Him.

In response, there are multiple places in the New Testament where it refers to what awaits us in eternity as our inheritance. We've talked before about how unbelievably it's Jesus desire and intent to share all he has with us in the ages to come. God tells John that all the beauty he is beholding in this new creation belongs to those who belong to Him. We don't know what our tasks will be in this new age. We know it'll be amazing.

And we also know that how we live our earthly lives will impact what we are entrusted with in eternity. We're all in training. That's why James is not blowing smoke when he says, My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. Are you in a trial? Rejoice.

You are in training for the ages to come. Set your heart and your mind on the task of passing this trial. Understand that how we walk through our trials has eternal ramifications. We're destined to rule with Jesus. We are destined to reign with Christ.

We're destined to inherit all things. The assignment awaiting us is significant, to say the least. Therefore, it makes sense that our preparation and training would also be significant. Paul writes in Romans eight, you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the spirit of adoption by whom we cry out Abba, which is Aramaic for Father, Father. The Spirit himself bears witness with our Spirit that we are children of God.

And if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ. If indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together. So make a note of this. This life is preparation for our eternal inheritance. This life is preparation for our eternal inheritance.

We need to learn how to be about our Father's business and reflect our Father's value so that we can serve Him faithfully and successfully in the ages to come. Verse seven ends with this beautiful promise. I will be his God, and he shall be my Son. What an amazing thing it is that the Almighty God of heaven and Earth has adopted you and me as his children. Out of all the relationships he could have constructed for us, the one he chose was the one where we call Him dad for all eternity.

Jesus suffered and died so we could become his brothers and sisters through adoption. If you haven't figured it out yet, God really, really loves you. He really loves you. If you've been blessed with a good Father in your life, then you may be able to recall those few golden years when, as a child, the presence of your Father made you feel completely safe. Those years when you didn't ever worry if your dad was around because you knew that if a gang of murderer shows up to try and harm us, my dad will just single handedly beat all of them up and cart them off to jail.

There's nothing to worry about. We're going to feel safe like that. We're going to feel secure like that forever. But not out of ignorance or naivete, but because our Heavenly Father really will have created a reality free from anything that could cause sorrow. We'll never look over our shoulders again, ever.

We know and understand that God lacks nothing. He needs nothing. But that doesn't mean nothing can bless Him. In fact, God made us to be his children for eternity because as staggering as it sounds, God is blessed by his children. If you're a parent, then you know your kids have the capacity to bless you in an incredible way.

When you see them overcome a fear, overcome a challenge. When you see them win, it blesses you. We get that from being made in the image of God. Truly, we will be blessed in eternity. But incredibly, we will also bless God in eternity.

He, our loving and gracious Heavenly Father, will be surrounded by his children and will be blessed by them as he watches them create, build, manage, overcome, and win. And we don't have to wait for heaven to be a blessing to God every time we choose his will over our own will. We bless God every time we choose to praise Him in difficult circumstances. We choose to bless God every time we soften our hearts and repent instead of hardening our hearts. We bless God.

And if you love the Lord, you want to bless Him, you just do because you love Him so much. So make a note of this. Our Heavenly Father created us with the ability to bless Him as his children. He created us with the ability to bless Him as his children. After revealing to John how wonderful heaven is going to be, God takes a moment to remind the reader of the importance of taking their Salvation seriously so that they get to spend eternity in God's blissful new creation.

He doesn't want anybody to deceive themselves into thinking that all we must do is raise our hand in Church and say we want to be saved in order to punch our ticket to heaven. We cannot say yes to Jesus and then live the rest of our lives as our own God. Such a life proves that we never actually said yes to Jesus. We never actually drank the living water that he was offering. And to underscore this point, God lists a series of behaviors that highlight the lack of Salvation in a person's life.

Please understand the issue is not whether you've fallen into any of these sins after you became a Christian. We all sin and sometimes backslide. This list is talking about people who engage in these behaviors as a lifestyle, as their regular pattern of living. It's talking about people who don't agree with God that these are sins. They're not grieved when they fall into these sins, they don't hate their sin, and they don't attempt to change.

They don't confess, ask for help, or battle their sin in any way. God says in verses eight, but the cowardly those who turn their backs on Jesus when following him becomes inconvenient unbelieving. Those who don't actually believe in Jesus abominable. Those who do evil and wickedness in general, murderers sexually immoral, those who live and practice sexual behavior outside of God's design, which is marriage between a man and woman. Sorcerers seeking to interact with the spiritual realm outside of the instructions given in scripture.

And the original Greek word is Pharmacos, which points to the inclusion of using mind altering substances to pursue a spiritual experience, talking about stuff like ayahuasca and things like that. Idolaters those who live their lives for any God other than Yahweh and all liars shall have their part in the Lake which Burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death. The phrase have their part is an intentional contrast to the language God uses with Israel when he refers to how each tribe will have their part in the Promised Land. God tells Israel, you'll each have an area that will be yours and terrifyingly. God says that those who reject him will each have their own area in the Lake of fire.

If you ever find yourself engaging in any of these sins that God lists unrepentantly as a lifestyle without any hatred of your sin, you need to reflect and ask yourself questions like, Have I really given my life to Jesus? Have I really accepted him as the master of my life? Is that how I view my life? That's how serious this issue is. God gives this list out of love because he doesn't want anyone to miss out on heaven.

If you're caught up in any of that stuff, stop repent. It's not a small thing. Make whatever changes you need to make and make them today. Battle your sin. Find a brother or sister and confess to them.

Pray with them. Ask if you can meet with them for accountability. We're talking about the issue of Salvation. It doesn't get more serious than that. Verse nine Then one of the seven Angels who had the seven bowls filled with the seven last plagues came to me and talked with me, saying, Come, I will show you the bride, the Lamb's wife.

The same angel who held one of the bowls of wrath now shows John the place that Jesus has prepared for his people. This is an example of what Holiness is because Holiness manifests as both love and wrath, Grace and wrath. Holiness doesn't just deal with the good things, it brings justice to the evil and wicked things as shown in the actions of this angel. Holiness loves what is good and hates what is in verse is and he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain and showed me the great city, the Holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God having the glory of God. Her light was like a most precious stone, like a Jasper stone, clear as Crystal.

It seems that John sees the new Jerusalem, heaven itself, descending to the new Earth and resting upon a great and high mountain. It is made of what most scholars agree is something like diamond. The whole city is made of diamond. It's radiant, it's emanating and refracting light in every direction, yet also perfectly transparent, clear as Crystal. I think the material is apt because diamonds are worthless lumps of coal that have undergone years and years of heat and pressure which transformed them into something beautiful and valuable.

That's the history of the people of God. To be a Christian, you must first realize what you are outside of God's Grace. A lump of coal good for nothing but burning, but God. But God loved us, and so he saved us, redeeming us at the cost of the life of Jesus and making us beautiful through the process of sanctification, which will be completed in his presence amid the pressure in the midst of the heat of life trials. Don't forget that the Lord is doing something amazing in you.

You're in process. You are being transformed. You are being made into something different than what you currently are. Verses Twelve Also She The city had a great and high wall with twelve gates underlined twelve gates and twelve Angels at the gates and names written on them, which are the names of the underlying this twelve tribes of the children of Israel, three gates on the east, three gates on the north, three gates on the south, and three gates on the west. New Jerusalem will be the home of not only the Church, but all of God's people.

Paul explained more than once that the concept of God's spiritual children began with the patriarchs like Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, then continued through the prophets until the Church was created by Jesus and grafted into that lineage like a wild branch into an already living tree. One of the ways this spiritual lineage is commemorated in the New Jerusalem is in the form of twelve city gates that each bear the names of one of the twelve tribes of Israel. When Jesus was talking with the Samaritan woman at the well, she was taking a bit of a dig at the Jews and Jesus didn't say, oh, don't get me started on the Jews. He said, Salvation is of the Jews. In other words, it covet from them.

For 1700 or 1800 years before the advent of the Church, God was working on the Earth through the patriarchs, prophets, and people of Israel. If you love the Lord, then your spiritual roots trace back to them. Salvation came through Jesus, a Jew born in the line of David and spoken of by the prophets. It's interesting that in numbers two, the Lord instructed Israel to have three tribes camp on each of the four sides of the Tabernacle, mirroring the three gates on each side of the New Jerusalem that each bear the names of one of the twelve tribes. As another side note, it may surprise some to note that Peter is not checking IDs at any of these gates.

The idea of St. Peter guarding the pearly gates is Catholic folklore. It's not anywhere in the Bible. Verse 14 now the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the names of the twelve Apostles of the Lamb. The full spiritual lineage we were talking about is captured in this detail.

Each foundation of the city bears the name of one of the foundations of the Church, the twelve Apostles. These foundations could be for the city's walls, as the text says, or some Greek scholars tell us it could be referring to twelve floors or twelve levels within the New Jerusalem. In either case, the point is that the twelve tribes and the twelve Apostles are commemorated in the New Jerusalem because all are part of the story of the children of God. And I'll leave it up to you to debate whether the name of the 12th Apostle is Matthias or Paul. Verse 15.

And he who talked with me that's the angel had a gold read to measure the city, its gates and its wall. The city is laid out as a square. Its length is as great as its breadth. And he measured the city with the read 12,000 furlongs. Its length, breadth and height are equal.

That means John is seeing a Cube and its length, breadth and height each measure 1500 miles. That's around 2414 km, making it roughly twice the size of the moon. If the foundations are indeed floors, you won't need to worry about bumping your head because these floors have vaulted ceilings. In fact, every level would have a ceiling roughly 125 miles or 201 km high. Each floor would be two point 25 million sq.

Mi in size. That's 1440 acres per floor if there are 3 billion people in eternity. And I think that's being optimistic, each person would have five-point 76 acres to themselves. And if you're thinking, Well, I'm a country person, I need more space than that. Just remember, there's still all of the new Earth for stretching out even more.

The New Jerusalem is a Cube. Interestingly, so was the Holy of Holies in the Tabernacle and the Temple. And again we see that idea reinforced by the three gates on either side, the same way that God commanded the tribes of Israel to camp around the Tabernacles. Are you getting the picture that's emerging here? The Holy of Holies was the place in the Tabernacle and temple complexes where God's presence would dwell.

It was sealed off from the people by a thick curtain because God could not tolerate being in the presence of their uncleanness. The New Jerusalem is the eternal Holy of Holies. The whole thing is the Holy of Holies, except God's people, are not cut off from it. Rather, it is where God dwells among his people without any decision. He does not decrease in Holiness or glory to make this possible.

But through the work of Jesus on the cross, he will increase our Holiness and glory to the level where we can enjoy unrestricted fellowship with Him for eternity. Write this down. The New Jerusalem is the eternal Holy of Holies. Verses 17 Then he measured its wall 144 cubits according to the measure of a man that is of an angel. This is a neat little note because the Bible is telling us that the Angel's measurements are the same as earthly measurements.

There's not some wacky, heavenly symmetric conversion we need to do. It also makes it obvious that these measurements are literal, and this measurement likely refers to the thickness of the city's walls and puts it at around 72 yards or 216ft thick. Verse 18 the construction of its wall was of Jasper and the city was pure gold like clear gas is. Jasper is the same material mentioned in verses eleven. It's diamondlike in its transparency, but also somehow gold.

This allows the glory of God to radiate and refract out from the New Jerusalem, illuminating the new heavens and the new Earth. 19. The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with all kinds of precious stones. The first foundation was Jasper, the second Sapphire, the third calcedony, the fourth emerald, the fifth sardonic, the 6th Sardius, the 7th Chrysalite, the 8th barrel, the 9th Topaz, 7th Chris Appraise, the 11th Jason, and the 12th Amethyst. If your Bible gives the stones different names, don't worry about it.

Precious and semi-precious stones have different names in different languages and cultures, even at different times in history as well. And that's why your Bible might have some different words for those stones. All we need to know is that there are twelve precious stones. The idea is that the glory of God shines through these stones, casting out beams of light in every color imaginable, adding to the overwhelming beauty of the New Jerusalem that John is beholding. Many Bible scholars link these stones with the twelve stones that represented the twelve tribes of Israel on the breastplate of the high priest in the Old Testament era.

That may well be the case, but we simply can't confirm that because of the issue of stones being called different names and different cultures across the centuries. Verse 21 the twelve gates were twelve pearls. Each individual gate was of one Pearl. Each of the New Jerusalem's gates is made from a single enormous Pearl. Pearls were prized and highly valued in John's day even more than they are today.

Some commentators have highlighted something interesting about the nature of pearls and how they are formed. This could be a coincidence, or it could be intentional. I'll share it with you and then you can come to your own conclusions. Pearls are not formed from metal or stone. They are formed when an irritant, usually a grain of sand, gets into an oyster.

But the living organism of the oyster doesn't deal with the irritant by spitting it out. Instead, it coats its robes. The irritant in the material of Pearl. Layer by layer, bit by bit, this insignificant grain of sand is transformed by the oyster into a beautiful and valuable Pearl. And as we pass in and out of New Jerusalem's gates, we will be reminded of this picture that when we approach God in our sin and our wickedness, he did not spit us out.

Instead, Jesus died in our place, welcomed us, and robbed us in his righteousness, transforming us into beautified Saints and treasured children of the Father. And as we pass through these gates, we'll be reminded that we're only there in the New Jerusalem, in the new creation, because God loved us and did something for us that we could not do for ourselves, and we will gladly praise them for it yet again. It goes on and says, in the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass. The main street of the New Jerusalem is made of the same gold that is also transparent, the most valuable metal on Earth. Gold is used as concrete in heaven.

When the Bible cautions us about devoting our lives to the pursuit of gold, it's not only spiritual advice but also practical advice. Even if you would he it with you, it would have no value in heaven because it's everywhere. And if you spend your life trying to get as much gold as you can, you're going to feel pretty stupid when you get to the New Jerusalem one day. The famous streets of gold. This verse is where that concept comes from.

The famous pearly gates also from these verses. Verses 22 John says, But I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. The city had no need of the sun or of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it. The Lamb is its light, and the nations of those who are saved shall walk in its light, and the Kings of the Earth bring their glory and honor into it. Don't you love those verses?

There's just something about them conceptually that makes my spirit sore every time I read them. Something in me yearns to be in the New Jerusalem. Isaiah prophesied about this and wrote, The Sun shall no longer be your light by day, nor for brightness shall the moon give light to you, but the Lord will be to you an everlasting light, and your God your glory. The term the nation is the Greek word Ethnos. In this context, it's a reference to the different ethnicities that will populate heaven.

We'll retain our ethnicity in heaven because it will testify to the glorious breadth of the saving power of the cross. The work of Jesus saves lives and turns orphans into children of God. Across nations, ethnicities, languages, socioeconomic classes, and every other human division, the gospel transcends it all. An eternity will attest to that fact. The phrase the Kings of the Earth bring their glory and honor into it speaks of the reality that all glory and Fame will return to God in the New Jerusalem.

As David prayed in one Chronicles 29, Yours, O Lord, is the greatness, the power and the glory, the victory and the majesty, for all that is in heaven and on Earth is yours. Yours is the Kingdom, O Lord, and you are exalted as head overall. Verse 25, Its gait shall not be shut it all by day there shall be no night there, and they shall bring the glory and the honor of the nations into it. The gates will never have to close, because God's people will have no enemies, and there will be nothing to fear ever a truth underscored by the next and final verse of the chapter, verse 27 but there shall by no means enter it. Anything that defiles or causes an abomination or a lie, but only those who are written in the Lamb's Book of Life.

D.L. Moody, the great pastor, and preacher was in Chicago when the Great Chicago Fire destroyed much of the city, and it destroyed his house too. Shortly after the fire, a reporter came up to him and asked, Reverend Moody, you're a Christian man, and yet your house burned to the ground too. In fact, you've lost everything. How do you explain that? D.L. Moody responded, "You are very much mistaken. I've got much more than what was lost in the fire. The reporter said. What do you mean? D.L. Moody opened his Bible to Revelation 21, verse seven, and read aloud, he who overcomes shall inherit all things.

When Jesus was hanging with his disciples, the time came when he had to tell them that he was going to be leaving them for his time, and they were discouraged. This was not the way they expected things to go. Things were turning very dark, very fast. But Jesus didn't tell them, "Hey guys, why don't you go watch an inspiring movie to make yourself feel better?" He didn't say, "Listen, check out my Facebook feed. I'm going to be posting some encouraging musical performances there." Nor did he counsel them, "Listen, have a positive attitude. Turn that frown upside down." Instead, Jesus taught them that the antidote for discouragement is to set your mind and heart on things above, on our future with Jesus. He told his boys this: "Let not your heart be troubled. You believe in God. Believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions. If it were not so, I would have told you I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to myself, that where I am there you may be also. And where I go, you know, and the way you know." Think about these things. Turn your heart and your hope toward heaven, and I promise your spirit will be lifted.

Your perspective will be rightly readjusted the believers who make an impact in this life are the ones who understand what comes in the next life. When you grasp the reality of heaven even a little bit, you'll be able to live free from the things the Bible calls the affairs of this life. Only good and fruitful things come from being heavenly-minded. In fact, it's the key to ending this life.

Because when you're freed from placing all your hope in this life, when you're freed from wanting everything to be perfect, now you're able to enjoy this life for what it is. You're able to enjoy others for who they are.

If you're playing Amen with the sins God listed in this chapter, if you're not convicted, grieved, repentant, or desiring to change, please reflect and make sure that you're actually saved. You cannot accept Jesus as your Savior without also accepting Him as your Lord, the pastor of your life. If you feel no conviction over your sin, ask the Lord to touch you and give you a heart that desires to please Him. Ask the Lord to be God over your life and then repent. Turn away from those sins, confess to somebody, a pastor or a wise and mature believer, and make a plan to stay in fellowship and encourage each other to walk in righteousness.

Don't play games with your Salvation. I've slowed down a bit for these final few chapters because they are so important. They invite us to fix our eyes on heaven and live for eternity. And that is the perspective all believers need to hold on to. Also, as we all know, the Rapture is going to take place as soon as we finish this series.

So, I wanted to give the Lord a few extra weeks to save some more people. Verse seven was true for Jesus. He who overcomes shall inherit all things. And because it was true for Jesus, it is true for anyone who believes that Jesus is the Son of God. The greatest joy in heaven won't be finally having all things.

It'll finally be having the one thing that truly satisfies fully, the Lord Himself. Would you buy your head and close your eyes and pray with me? Jesus, thank you, as always, for Your Word. Thank you for these precious glimpses of heaven, the New Jerusalem, the ages to come, the place that you have prepared for those who love you. And Lord, we do love you.

We are so thankful for your kindness and love for us that instead of rejecting us, you robed us in righteousness and beautified us, and secured adoption for us into your father's family. Thank you for loving us so well, so much more than we could ever even dare to ask for or dare to hope for. You're just wonderful, Lord. Father, I pray that if there's anyone watching or listening to this message who is not saved, Lord, would you show them that they're not saved? That they might turn to you and receive the living water that will lead to eternal life? We want them there with us and Jesus.

May we be so heavenly-minded that we live our lives with the right priority. Never discouraged that this is not heaven. Help us to live wisely. Help us to live. Profitably in light of the truth that we are going to spend eternity with You, We Love You we Bless You It's in Your Name we Pray Amen bye.

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