[0:00] that we're going to read about. So I'm going to read, we're just going to look at the first eight verses because they're full of stuff. We found that out downstairs.
[0:14] Gives us a glimpse of heaven, the new heaven and the new earth, the place for the bride. Really is not describing the place so much as the environment, what it will be like to be with God next week, Lord willing, we get to more of the place.
[0:33] He calls it the bride, but then he describes a place. Here he calls it a place and describes a bride. So a little bit of a mixing here.
[0:43] So if you're able, please stand as I read from Revelation 21, verses one through eight. John says, 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.
[1:04] And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride, adorned for her husband.
[1:17] And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man.
[1:28] He will dwell with them. They will be his people. And God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes and death shall be no more.
[1:45] Neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore. For the former things have passed away.
[1:57] 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.
[2:13] 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.
[2:31] To the one who conquers, he will have this heritage and I will be his God and he will be my son. But, as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the immoral, the sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.
[3:08] So reads the word. Let us pray. Father, grant us your sight, grant us your eyes, give us ears to hear and especially hearts to receive.
[3:21] May we both, Lord, hear the glory and the promise, the gifts that you give, that you promise, that you, in fact, guarantee.
[3:33] Help us as well to hear the warning, Lord. Help us to make sure we are yours. This we pray in Christ's name. Amen. Please be seated.
[3:45] To those of you who are married, remember your wedding day?
[3:59] Do you remember getting ready for the wedding day? It is different for the bride and groom, isn't it?
[4:11] You know, if you're a groom, preparing for the, I mean, I'm reflecting for myself. If you're a groom, preparing for the wedding day means, okay, show up on time, you know, get dressed, bring some friends, stand where you're told, say the words, walk the aisle and definitely behave.
[4:34] That's pretty much your job. Right? But if you're the bride, preparing for the wedding day often takes months, maybe years.
[4:47] You've got to find the right dress. Find the right cake. Order flowers.
[4:59] What kind of flowers? How many flowers? What kind? Organize the ceremony, the music, make a guest list. I don't know, because I wasn't involved in it.
[5:12] Lots of things, apparently. Order china. No, I don't know. Food. Band. DJ. I don't know.
[5:23] What do they do now? Right? I tried to get involved. I was told, stay over there. No. Not helping. So, yeah, so we think of that, you know, we prepare for the wedding day.
[5:38] It's a big, big day. We look forward to it. Do you know that Jesus and the Father prepared for a wedding day as well?
[5:51] They prepare for the marriage of the Lamb. They prepare for the supper of the Lamb. They didn't prepare just, you know, a few months before.
[6:01] They prepared from eternity. They chose a bride. They prepared a bride, and then they adorned a bride for the day.
[6:18] They adorned a bride in righteousness and in beauty and glory. We'll see more of that description next time. But here, even in our text, talks about adorning her.
[6:33] Having prepared a bride and having adorned her. So, here in Revelation 21, we introduce the new home for the bride.
[6:46] What is it like? What can we expect eternity to be like? What can we expect home, the new home, to be like? Before the wedding, there's a preparing of the bride.
[6:59] Jesus came to earth. The design for marriage was declared by God all the way back in Genesis chapter 2. Remember, God created everything in chapter 1.
[7:12] Chapter 2 expands on day 6 where He created man. And then He created woman. And He sets up that whole help meet that she is a corresponding equal to Him, a counterpart to Him.
[7:28] That it's not good for Him to be alone. That she becomes His completion. And remember the words when He reveals Eve to Adam. He wakes up from a little surgery, right?
[7:39] And He sees her and remember what He says. Wow! Man! It's just translated woman. But He's like, this!
[7:52] Remember, He had already seen and named every creature. And now He says, this is my my Isha to my Isha.
[8:07] She's my counterpart. She's from me, so she shall be called woman. Man, woman.
[8:19] And then God declared, therefore, a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold to his wife and the two shall become one flesh.
[8:32] So God declares in the garden marriage. even though there had not yet been a father and mother yet. He says, a man shall leave his father and mother cleave to his wife and the two shall become one flesh.
[8:47] Emphasizing the intimacy. So, what is that referring to when it talks about Adam and Eve? Why would God say it there when we don't have the concept yet, or at least the history of family yet?
[9:04] We just have two. Well, Paul says he was talking about Jesus and the church in Ephesians chapter 5.
[9:15] You see, the son leaves his father in heaven and comes and cleaves to his wife who is, in the beginning, just a group of disciples and a bunch of women and then it grows and grows and grows.
[9:32] Paul said this about Jesus that he loved the church. He gave himself up for her for a purpose that he might sanctify her, set her apart, and having cleansed her by the washing of the water with the word so that he might present her to himself in splendor without spot or wrinkle that she might be holy and without blemish.
[10:02] that's what he did. He did not die for her just for her. It is for her that she's washed and forgiven and cleansed and sanctified, but he did it for himself.
[10:15] Did you see that? That he might present her to him. He might prepare her so she would be his bride, that she might be washed and cleansed and set apart and splendor.
[10:31] See all that? This is the picture. Begins in Genesis, a man shall leave his father, cleave to his wife, and they become one flesh.
[10:46] Jesus says in the upper room, I'm going. This very evening I will be going to prepare a place for you. I go to the cross so that I might go and prepare a place for you, and then I will return and take you to your new home.
[11:03] And that was Jewish tradition. Right? That was Jewish tradition. A man prepares a house, whether he adds on to dad's house or whatever, he's preparing a house before he's married.
[11:17] He has a place to bring her to. Once that's done, then he makes the procession over to the brides where, remember, all the virgins are waiting with their lamps, how long we've got to wait, is he done yet, is he done yet, right?
[11:29] So, they're waiting, picture that Jesus gives, and then once he comes, they proceed back to the new home. This is the picture. Jesus has gone to prepare a place.
[11:43] Now we get to hear, what's that place like? We don't get to hear what it looks like yet, we'll see that next week, but here we get to hear, what's it like, though?
[11:53] What will it be like? What do we look forward to, to be with him? What's that like? That's what he's going to show us. Planning a home for his bride.
[12:05] He gives some promises, some assurances, two in fact. We have two voices singing out here, two voices declaring here, a voice in verse 3 and 4, and then another voice again in verses 5 to 8.
[12:21] Declaring, first of all, what kind of place is it? It's a place with unhindered relationship with God. It's about a relationship.
[12:31] It's about me and God. That's not hindered by pain, crying, mourning, tears, any of that earthly kind of threat. It's no longer broken by those things that we're afflicted with here.
[12:48] It's unhindered. And then secondly, we see in verse 5 to 8, he talks about this spring, this spring that keeps coming with the water of life without cost.
[13:01] So there's a picture there of an abundant life, a life to the full, a life that's constantly replenished.
[13:13] Not that has to be revived. Oh, get me back up. It's constant flow, overflow of life, life, life, life, life. We can only kind of imagine.
[13:26] It's hard to describe all of this, but here's two pictures he gives us. So first of all, verses 1 to 4, he gives us the assurance of unhindered and unbroken fellowship with God.
[13:40] He begins by talking about a new creation. creation. So we know this is all new now. This is not part of this existence. In verse 1, chapter 21, 1, he says, I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth have passed away and the sea was no more.
[13:57] So we're not talking about this existence. existence. We're talking about the next existence. Okay? So the final battles have happened, chapter 19.
[14:11] The judgment has happened. The millennium's behind us. All of that has happened already. The resurrection has taken place. So we are, the last trumpet has sounded, right?
[14:22] So now we have come to be with Christ. Okay? So he's describing our heavenly existence. Okay? That's what he's describing. New heaven. New earth.
[14:33] Brand new. New in what sense? New in quality. Now he doesn't give us a lot of description. We go back to Genesis 1 and we get a description of the first heaven and earth.
[14:45] We get pictures there were separations of things, right? There's light and then separation of darkness and light and there's separation of expanse from expanse and separation of land from sea.
[14:57] All these kind of things going on and then he, so he creates the environment and then he fills it, right? He fills it with fruitfulness and he fills it with, with animals and he fills it with people.
[15:10] So this is different. Because all of a sudden we get to notice that, oh, there's no more sea. It's like, what's that about? No more sea. No more separating.
[15:21] We're also going to find out there's no darkness. There's no, there's no night. See, back in Genesis 1, it's separating night and day. You've got the sun and the moon.
[15:32] We don't need the sun and the moon anymore because we never sleep. Barely. We don't need to sleep because we don't get tired. What?
[15:43] I don't even know what that looks like. So all these, so things are different. The quality is new though. This one passes away. This is an earth that is dying.
[15:56] Now it's got thousands, you know, we project it's got, our sun is dying, right? But not for a long time. But it is dying. It's going to burn out. It'll end. Right?
[16:09] This earth will end. It's falling apart. Paul talks about the earth itself is suffering and agonizing for the new, the new, right? So, so this one's temporary.
[16:20] That one will be permanent. This one is, it has affliction on it ever since sin, right? There's thorns on the, on the rose bushes. There's sweat in the, and toil in our work, right?
[16:34] All of that is part of this earth. The new one will be different. So, no sea. So somebody asked me, I think, was it last week or somewhere?
[16:47] Somebody says, does that mean there's no more surfing? No more sea, no more surfing? I don't know. I got a lot of surfers here that are worried about that. Oh, Diane? Okay. I mean, I love to scuba dive, but, you know, I, you know, I'd love that, but, but there'll be a river of life, and I imagine it'll be pretty amazing.
[17:06] Right? Surfing on the, I don't know. I think it's more of a picture. It's, the sea is a symbol in scripture of, of evil.
[17:16] Proverbs talks about how God created a boundary for the sea that it might not pass over and transgress. See, the picture is a, sea is a picture of rebellion, restlessness, and, and even in Revelation, we saw the sea is where the dragon stands.
[17:36] The sea is where the, the beast comes from. The sea is where all the worldly trade takes place. So it's more symbolic that that's not there anymore.
[17:51] Then he portrays a bride in verse two. So he saw, it begins with a new heaven and new earth, so we have a new environment. Then, excuse me, then he says it's our new city, a holy city, a new Jerusalem coming down out of heaven.
[18:07] So it was in heaven. It's a, it's now becomes heaven on earth. This city, it's described as a city, and the new Jerusalem.
[18:18] So it's not the old Jerusalem, the old Jerusalem, which became corrupted. This is a new one of new quality coming down out of heaven from God, having been prepared as a bride, having been adorned for her husband.
[18:35] So it's a city and yet it's a bride. Is it a, is it a city or is it a bride? Is it a place or is it a person?
[18:47] People. Yeah. We get down to verse nine and he's going to say, come, I'm going to show you the bride. I'm going to show you the wife. And then when he shows us the wife in chapter 21, verse nine, what he describes is walls, foundations, gates, right?
[19:11] So he didn't describe a person, he describes a city. So in other words, they're the same. What he's describing is a bride and a home.
[19:23] Now we'll talk about that a little bit more next week because it's kind of like, can he not make up his mind? Is it one or the other? So, it's both. Remember that Jerusalem, in the Old Testament, Jerusalem is where God chose to make his name dwell.
[19:41] He picked a place and he picked one place on earth to cause his name to dwell and that place was the place that David captured. The place that David cleared.
[19:54] The place that David built for God. because God said, my name will dwell there. Put the tabernacle there.
[20:05] This will be my permanent place where I will dwell. He dwelt, dwelt, dwelt, dwelted, dwelt in a tent.
[20:17] Remember David went, oh, I'm living in this beautiful house. I just built this beautiful house of cedar. I got to build God a house. And God said, no, no, no, no. You really think I, have I, how, how many times did I tell you I wanted a house?
[20:31] No. Besides, I don't, you know, I'm a little big to go, actually. So, but that lasted how long?
[20:47] How long after Jesus died did the temple last? Forty years. Forty years. Jesus said one generation. Not one rock will be found on another on this temple mount.
[21:02] And it's never been rebuilt in 2,000 years. The temple was destroyed. Its purpose was done. Because Jesus fulfills all of what the temple was.
[21:17] He fulfills all of the sacrifices. He fulfills the dwelling of that place. So now there's a new heavenly, godly city prepared as a bride.
[21:30] It's obviously a people. We'll see more of next week what it looks like. Now, in verse 3, a voice interprets what he sees. So, verse 1, he saw new heaven, new earth.
[21:41] Verse 2, he saw a holy city, the new Jerusalem, like a bride. Now, a voice comes and says, behold, this is what that means. When we see in Revelation a vision, and then there's a voice that follows, the voice is describing and interpreting what we just saw.
[21:59] What is this new heaven? What is this new earth? What is this new Jerusalem coming as a bride? What is it? Verse 3 tells us what it is. It is the voice from the throne saying, behold, the dwelling place of God is now with man.
[22:15] He will dwell with them and they will be His people and God Himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more. Neither shall there be any mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore.
[22:28] For the former things have passed away. So, this new heaven and new earth, here's one of the new things. All the stuff that went with the old are gone. The death, the mourning, the sadness, the pain, all of that's gone.
[22:41] And here's the other thing. More importantly, what it means is because she's a bride adorned for her husband, it's about relationship. It's about something brand new. It's about a new quality of communion with God.
[22:55] We've always had communion with God. We've always had relationship. Well, when we come to know Him, we've always had relationship. We're able to walk with Him. But this will be different.
[23:06] This is a whole new level that it's kind of hard to, okay, how do I grasp that? And He says it by saying, you know, God dwells with man.
[23:17] He literally, He tabernacles. Interesting. He uses the word for tent. He tents. So, wait a minute. When we get to heaven, we're going to be camping? Ron's like, yeah.
[23:32] My wife's like, kind of camping. Clamping? Yeah, yeah, yeah. So, word.
[23:44] It's a word that God has used all through Scripture. Tenting. Tenting. It's a word for tabernacle. Right? Huh? So, he lives. Yeah, let's see this.
[23:54] So, he's living, he's tenting with us. So, the word we have three times in verse 3 says, behold, the dwelling place of God is with man.
[24:07] Okay? He will dwell with them. They will be his people and God himself will be with them. So, three times this word with. It's much more than with.
[24:19] It means among. It means in the midst. It means in association. It means with us, among us, in a new way.
[24:32] So, consider this. Okay? So, God has, back in Eden, back in the Garden of Eden, how did Adam and Eve relate to God?
[24:48] Was it through a prophet? Was it through written word? How did they commute with God? How did they relate to God in Eden before they fell?
[25:00] They walked with him. He heard the Lord walking in the garden and the Lord came and found him and talked to him face to face.
[25:12] Like that. Back to Eden. Okay? After Eden, how did God relate to man?
[25:22] Well, he appeared to Abraham but not constantly. Once in a while and when he did, Abraham set up a place that's a remembrance stone of where God met with me.
[25:39] Right? So, that was, then with Moses, God said to Moses, build me a tent so I will dwell among the people. And how did God dwell in the tent with the people?
[25:50] He was among them, right? The tabernacle was right in the middle. They camped all the way around all for 40 years through the wilderness and then in Jerusalem they make the tent, the tabernacle.
[26:03] So, he's among them, he's with them but in what way? Wasn't there a curtain? And then wasn't there another wall?
[26:18] And then wasn't there another wall? Well, here, you're going to dwell with me, just stay back there. Stay out, stay alive. Right? So, he's with us but we're not real close.
[26:34] We're not real close. There's all these barriers. Then what happens? Jesus comes. In the beginning was the word and the word was with God, with God and the word was God and the word became flesh and dwelt tabernacled, tented.
[27:00] Okay, that's different. Jesus, the very God of gods takes on flesh and now lives, dwells, tents with them.
[27:16] They walk with him and they talk with him and they sleep with him and they watch him and they are frightened by him and enraptured by all that.
[27:26] They see everything. They were with him. They saw it all. They heard it all. They didn't believe it all but they wanted to. So there's a picture of what it is.
[27:42] After Jesus leaves, how does God dwell with men? He says, it's good for you that I go away because if I go away, I will what? I'll send the helper who is exactly like me.
[27:59] Which means I will never leave you or forsake you because he will be with you. And he uses several terms. He will be with you. He will be in you. He will be alongside you.
[28:10] He's going to be, you know, you're good. He's not just tagging along. You know, he's not just in, around, with.
[28:22] So then the church becomes, right, the temple's destroyed and now the church becomes what? God is building a church and he's using stones and he puts the stones together and we become what?
[28:37] A holy temple. We become the temple because each of our stones, we're all different stones but we're all, he puts us together so that we're, we fit.
[28:49] it's a beautiful picture and we become the possessor, the dweller of God. That's why we're the body representing him on earth because we truly do represent him.
[29:04] He is with us and in us. Okay? So now we go to a whole another level. Now when we go to Revelation 21, so we've had walking with him in Eden, we've had tenting among the people but not really close to them, then we have Jesus dwelling and living with people so we get to touch him and handle him and so that, that's really pretty close but it's a select group, right?
[29:32] And then comes the church which in a symbolic form is the body, we are the visible Christ to the world but then heaven.
[29:46] Now it's he's among us, he's among us, he's in the midst of us, he's not in the midst of us separated, he's in the midst of, I can't imagine what that is.
[30:03] Is he going to be walking around, how are you doing Debbie? How are you doing this fine new day? Well is it a new day? Because I don't know, do we have new days in heaven? I don't know, because there's no night. what's it like?
[30:17] Well, we can imagine living with Jesus on earth, okay? We kind of imagine that, right? What was it like for those guys? It's like that but better.
[30:30] Because those guys had lots of this world stuff. Those guys had lots of afflictions, you know, they got tired. And so they couldn't be, so when Jesus needed them to pray with him, remember that night?
[30:46] They were so tired, they kept falling asleep. We won't do that in heaven. I won't get tired of being with them. You ever get tired of good things?
[30:57] You ever get tired of singing? Probably some of you don't, yeah, I know. I do, because I like to, when I sing, I want to sing and then it wears me out. Sorry, it's just, I'm weird that way.
[31:12] But in heaven, I'll never get tired of it. I'll never get tired of it. My fingers, Ron, the calluses will be there for playing the little thing there, that little liar.
[31:26] It lies when I play it, right? Yeah. Right here. Just imagine, this is what we're talking about. Tavern. And then notice, verse 4, he removes all the obstacles.
[31:41] He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Where do the tears come from? He doesn't say. Is it from failing him?
[31:56] Because we've all failed him? Is it because, or is it just from tears, from pain and sadness and anxiety and losses that we've experienced?
[32:12] It doesn't say what the tears, but the tears, he himself, it actually says he himself, will wipe them away. So he's going to come up to each one, apparently, you know, just, let me get you in.
[32:25] I got you. John, I know, you're crying, you're crying, I got you. It's going to take a while with me because I bawl. So, I'll just keep crying because that way he's with me longer, maybe.
[32:41] I don't know. Will you be selfish in heaven? I don't think you will, so maybe not. No pain, instead peace. No sadness, instead joy.
[32:55] Unhindered. Imagine your best day spiritually. with the Lord. I don't know. Imagine those days, you know, you've surrendered everything, you're yielded, you're prayed up, you've confessed everything, you're just right with him, and you're filled with the Spirit because he's given you peace, and he's given you joy, and you start to feel all that.
[33:24] Imagine being that way all the time. Yeah, I just be flying up here. I don't know, how do you, yeah.
[33:38] Sadness gone. Oh, those of us with, well, sorry, I want to exclude others, but I know for me, my soul gets sad a lot, my soul struggles with depression, it gets disturbed, you know, I get easily disturbed.
[33:54] I'm too sensitive to my soul. imagine not having that anymore. Wow, because my soul drags me down a lot, because it's my feeler, it's my, you know, it's what I want to listen to, which Jesus says, don't listen to that soul, right?
[34:13] David says in Psalm 42, talk to your soul, don't listen to your soul, tell your soul to knock it off, right? Take hold, you know, you can't follow your soul, because it's all those feelings and affection.
[34:25] Sometimes it's great, because those are, that's where I thirst for God too, but a lot of times it's that other. So, man, I don't know, I don't know how to describe it.
[34:40] So, this fellowship, God promised that from the beginning, do you know that? If we go all the way back to Genesis, God's promise to Abraham, he said to Abraham, I will establish my covenant between me and you and your offspring, singular by the way, they're your seed, your certain descendant after you, throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant.
[35:06] So, when God made a covenant with Abraham, it wasn't temporary, it was everlasting, it's eternal, it's from the beginning to the end. So, what he promised Abraham is for all of us. To do what?
[35:19] What's the covenant? covenant to be God to you and to your offspring after me. That's the same thing he talks about here. I will dwell with you, I will be your God and you will be my people.
[35:31] To be God to you. This is fulfilling Abraham's covenant. And remember Abraham, the promise to Abraham, remember it wasn't just for Jews. It was for Abraham and that all the families of the earth will be blessed through Abraham.
[35:50] Alright, so that's that, God intended all of it. Ezekiel, who repeats the same kind of promise, Ezekiel 37 says, I will make them one nation in the land. Now, by the way, this is long after the kingdom divided.
[36:03] This is long after, long after David. David had a united kingdom, right? And then Solomon, his son, had a united kingdom, right? And then Solomon made big mistakes, so God said, I'm going to separate, I'm going to divide the nation.
[36:16] But not until after Solomon dies. As soon as Solomon dies, it becomes two nations. Israel to the north, ten tribes, and Israel to the south, the two tribes. And they were divided.
[36:26] And remember, not shortly after that, that the ten tribes to the north were taken away and never returned. So when he's talking this, he's talking to the tribes that are left, which are southern tribes.
[36:42] So when he's talking about the Israel, and Israel is the name for the northern tribes, Judah is the name for the southern tribes. So when he talks about Israel and bringing them back, who is he talking about?
[36:59] I think he's talking about Gentiles. Because when the northern tribes came back, they're Samaritans. They're mixed.
[37:09] Christ. Right? They're no, yeah, we don't even go there. Those aren't real Jews. Got it? Okay, so here's what he's saying.
[37:20] So they shall no longer be two nations and no longer divided into two kingdoms. They shall not defile themselves anymore in their idols and their detestable things or with any of their transgressions.
[37:32] In other words, they're never going to sin again. Huh. But I will save them from all their backslidings in which they have sinned. I will cleanse them and they shall be my people and I will be their God.
[37:45] There's that language again. And my servant David shall be king over them. David died long before this was said. So what David is he talking about?
[37:56] Is he going to bring King David back again? I love David. He is a man. And he is a notorious sinner.
[38:16] Is that the David he's talking about? No, there's another David we're talking about. David shall be king over them and they shall have one shepherd. They shall walk in my rules and they are careful to obey my statute.
[38:30] They shall dwell in the land that I gave to my servant Jacob where your fathers lived. They and their children, their children's children shall dwell there forever and David my servant shall be their prince forever.
[38:44] I will make a covenant of peace with them. It shall be an everlasting forever covenant with them. I will set them in their land and multiply them and I will set, here's this language again, I will set my sanctuary, my holy of holies, my holy place.
[38:59] I will set my tent, my sanctuary in their midst forever, my holy place. Not just the big tabernacle, he's talking about the holy of holies without the veil.
[39:11] In other words, my presence will be in their midst and I shall be with them and I will be their God and they will be my people. There's that language again. I will be their God and they will be my people.
[39:22] This is about relationship. This is about fellowship. Then the nations will know that I am the Lord who sanctifies Israel, when my holiness is in their midst forever more.
[39:35] He will live among them, dwell in their midst. This is our eternal hope. So first, God is promising to us unhindered, unbroken fellowship with himself.
[39:51] We see a second assurance in verses five to eight. He also ensures, and I didn't know how to say this because it's like so much trying to, I'm trying to, eh, kept changing the words and I probably still got the wrong words.
[40:03] But anyway, this is what I said, or how I'm trying to capture this. He ensures free and overflowing supply of abundant life with the Father.
[40:17] There's a lot of different ways we could say this. It is free because he says, remember, it's about without cost. It's free. And it's overflowing because it's a spring. It's a fountain coming forth that keeps coming.
[40:27] So it's free and overflowing, a supply, a spring, a source of life. Not just life, but abundant life, transformed life. As our brother James said this morning, transfigured.
[40:42] I like that. Remember how Jesus was transfigured before their eyes? Same but different. We're transfigured. I like that.
[40:58] Abundant life of the Father. So who's the guarantor? Verse 5, the one on the throne. The one on the throne says, write this down. Why? Because it's certain. There's no doubt about it.
[41:08] It's God's word. Why can't he guarantee it? Verse 6, because of who he is. He says, if I can find verse 6. He said to me, it is done.
[41:21] It's all finished. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. He is the sovereign ruler from the beginning to the end. He was there at the first creation, before the first creation.
[41:34] He's there at the beginning. The Alpha, Alpha is the Greek A, so we have A and Z beginning and the end of our alphabet. So in Greek, it's Alpha and Omega.
[41:47] So Alpha is the first letter of the Greek alphabet. Omega is the final. Right? So he's the beginning and the end. When he's saying the beginning and the end, he's also everything in between. Right?
[41:59] So I'm there at the beginning. I'm there at the end. I'm there at the first creation. I'm there at the next creation. I'm sovereign. It's done.
[42:10] My plan. We have a home. That's why he can guarantee it because he's it. He is the beginning. He is the end. Jesus will say in the next chapter, I'm the first and the last.
[42:29] Lots of ways to say it. First and the last. I'm there at the beginning. I'm there at the end. I'm the author and the finisher. And everything in between.
[42:42] So then we have the guarantee. So he has two guarantees in a sense, two dimensions of the guarantee in verse six and seven. He says, first of all, to the thirsty. To the thirsty, I'll give from the spring of the water of the life without payment.
[42:57] The thirsty. What's it mean to be thirsty? Who are the thirsty? What does he mean by thirsty? What are thirsty? What's thirsty? Thirst is, you know, you ever been really, really thirsty?
[43:14] You're a bit desperate for water. You're panting, right? He talks about panting. The scriptures talk about the deer panting because you're just desperate for the water to quench, to satisfy, right?
[43:26] You're yearning. So Psalm 42 talks about my soul thirsts for the Lord, yearns, is desperate for him because he alone can satisfy my soul.
[43:39] So I'm yearning. So thirsty, to the one who's thirsty, to the one who yearns, who pants, who knows they are needy, I will give the spring of of the water, of the life.
[44:03] Life flowing like water through a spring. I will give. Which is a picture of richness and fullness. So Jesus used this term a lot.
[44:16] He used this metaphor a lot. John 4 with the woman at the well, remember? Oh, she's coming for water. And he says, oh, I know about water. I got water that you never have to, you know, if you take my water, you never thirst again.
[44:30] Oh, where can I get that water? Because I don't want to come out here again. Well, if you knew who you were talking to, you know, you'd ask him. Because my water, he said, you never thirst again.
[44:44] It becomes a spring in you, welling up to eternal life. John 7, at the feast, he called out to anyone who's thirsty, I will give of the water that is over and over again.
[45:00] John 6, he says, I'm the bread of life if anyone's hungry. Come to me and eat. Come to me and drink.
[45:10] Come to me and, right? So Jesus keeps promising, I am, I am, I am the one to fulfill this need. So here's this picture again. Spring of water, abundant life.
[45:23] And then verse 7, he relates it in a different way. He says, now, so that's to the thirsty. Verse 7, to the one who conquers. To the one who conquers will have this heritage or actually will inherit these things.
[45:39] They will inherit the spring. They will inherit, right, all the new heaven and new earth. They will inherit this place with God where he wipes away every tear. They will inherit all of these promises.
[45:52] And I will be his God and he will be my son. They will inherit. They inherit these things. Specifically, they will inherit this God and son thing.
[46:06] Before he had said, I will be their God and they will be my people. Now he says, it gets more intimate now. Now I will be his God. He will be my son.
[46:20] He will be my son. Not just my people, my son. My family. That's why we can call him Abba. Daddy. Father. Father. He calls a son.
[46:31] It's the adoption thing. Right? So to who? To the one who conquers. Okay, now that's a different picture than the thirsty one.
[46:43] The thirsty one is the needy one. The thirsty one is, you know, doesn't have anything to give. Doesn't have, can't, you know, I'm just thirsty. I don't have anything. I'm desperate and broken. But the conqueror.
[46:55] Well, that sounds like somebody strong. The one who conquers. Right? The one who earns it. Right? The one who merits it. Right? He conquers. If you overcome, then you get it.
[47:06] Well, he just said the thirsty. So what's the conqueror? What are we talking about conquering? What does that mean? To the one who conquers. Well, remember we saw that term over and over and over again in chapter two and three when he's writing to the seven churches.
[47:23] To each of the seven churches, he ended by saying to the one who conquers. And he gave a specific promise. You'll be, you know, you have a new name. You'll be in the pillar of the temple, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera.
[47:36] You have all these promises. But to the one who conquers. So conquers what? Well, it depends on the church. So the church at Ephesus, what did they need to conquer? They had lost what?
[47:49] Their first love. That's what they had to conquer. The losing of it. They have to regain that love for God. That's conquering.
[48:02] Conquering means repenting of losing, of letting go, of drifting from God, right? Of losing that focus on him. Other ones. So, so other ones.
[48:13] Each one was told to conquer. Some had to conquer fear. Some had to conquer allowing false teaching in their church. Some had to conquer. Remember the last church, Laodicea.
[48:24] They had to conquer self-sufficiency. I'm okay. I'm good. He says, no, you're not. No, you're not. You need to repent.
[48:36] You're self-sufficient. You need to be me-sufficient. So that, all those things. That's the conquer. Not, not somebody who's, I've overcome sin and now I'm sinless.
[48:49] No. Nobody like that. Even if people tell you that. I've had people tell me that. I'm like, I'm sorry. I'm going to believe this. Not you. We still fall.
[48:59] But what's, who is the righteous person? Righteous person is one who falls seven times and gets up. Right? That's the right. How you respond. Not, not that you fail.
[49:10] We're in the process of overcoming. We're in the process of fighting sin. The conqueror is the one who repents when they fall and fights against sin. Are you fighting sin? You're a conqueror.
[49:24] You say, yeah, but I don't feel very successful. Are you fighting sin? You're on the right road. You're fighting it. Have you given up fighting it? Okay. Okay.
[49:35] Now you need to be concerned. And we all have moments of that. So they're scary, aren't they? So then we come to verse eight.
[49:52] I thought we were in good stuff. Verse eight. I'm going to give, I'm going to give to the thirsty. I'm going to give to the conqueror. But, but to those who are cowardly, faithless, detestable, murderers, immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all kinds of liars, their portion will be the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is a second death.
[50:17] Why is he going to bring that in? So, no, but really, why here? We're talking, we're past judgment. We're in eternity. Why is he bringing it up here? He's going to do it again next chapter.
[50:34] Because it's a warning to Christians. It's a warning to Christians. Lest you think you're okay. I'm okay.
[50:45] I prayed the prayer. Great for you. Doesn't mean you're saved. Your salvation is not based on anything you do. Yeah, you participate.
[50:58] Absolutely. Yeah. Coming, praying. Absolutely. Good. Keep doing it until you know you're saved. Okay. Until you know God's answered the prayer. Because he rarely answers on the first ring.
[51:14] I've prayed lots of times. I've walked aisles lots of times. I threw sticks in the fire. I did it for years and years, years. Years and years and years. I was totally convicted. I knew I was needy. So, I did it.
[51:27] It didn't change me one bit. I couldn't do anything to save me. I was still doing the right thing.
[51:38] I was still coming. I'm still asking. That's the right thing. God was working on me. I was convicted. But he wouldn't. Why wouldn't he answer?
[51:48] Because I grew up in a church that said, if you walk the aisle and you pray the prayer, you're saved. And I needed to learn, if I'm going to pastor another church, that isn't the right method.
[52:04] That isn't the right. I don't have the right to promise somebody that. Because it's not true. If you keep praying, and you keep walking, you keep throwing the stick in the foot, you know, keep coming until he answers, then yes.
[52:20] Jesus said, keep asking, keep seeking, keep knocking. The one who keeps coming will be answered. Yes. not because you came once.
[52:31] Every time Jesus told a parable about prayer, what was it? It was like, okay, the woman coming to the judge, and the, you won't, you know, a friend coming to the friend, and I'm asleep, don't, you know, prayer is persisting.
[52:45] That's what God hears. Are you with me here? What I'm saying is, there are a lot of believers who seem to have come to Christ there are those early, right, the seed on the thorns, they're the seed in the, the, the rocky soil, right?
[53:05] They, they come, right, they come, but then something happens, and they get choked out, or, or they get burned up, and they never produce any fruit. So we see that.
[53:18] There are Christians that come, they stay for a while, and we see them, and then what happens? They go back and join the world. They go back, and they become, look at this list, in verse eight, cowardly.
[53:38] Why does he start with cowardly? That's not on any of Paul's lists. The deeds of the flesh, that's not on any other list.
[53:49] Why cowardly? Why? Because they are so-called Christians, who won't take the stand. Remember early in, in, in Revelation, it was, will you be the witness for Jesus?
[54:08] Will you suffer what it takes? In other words, will you not participate, in the idol worship, and the feast? Right? And perhaps lose your business, in the marketplace?
[54:24] Will you take that stand? Possibly even, you might be killed, and there were people, in the first century killed, for standing for Christ. Will you take, no, I won't take that stand.
[54:36] But Jesus will forgive me. Really? Because Jesus also said, if you will not confess me, here on earth, I don't know you. How can I confess you in heaven?
[54:47] I don't know you. The cowardly. You mean like Peter? He was cowardly, right? He denied Christ, three times, and if you count all the gospels, six times.
[55:06] So, he was cowardly, right? Now, because a few hours before that, he's standing up to six, hundred Roman soldiers, with his sword.
[55:18] So, he's not cowardly. Did he have a bad, evening? Yes. Was he afraid? Yes.
[55:30] Did he continue to be afraid? No. Do we have moments of being afraid, and being cowards? Yes. Do we continue to not stand for him?
[55:43] It depends on where you're at, and what he's doing, and how you're, you know, sometimes I've got to say something. Sometimes I don't have to say something.
[55:55] I don't, right? So, then they become all these other things. They're not just a coward, but then they're faithless. In other words, they don't have faith. They're not trusting in Christ. They become detestable.
[56:06] They become murderers, and sexually immoral, and sorcerers, and, in other words, all those things, all those next list of things, detestable, murderers, immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, liar, those are all things that we saw in Revelation 13 through 18.
[56:21] Those are all things that are, that are attributed to following the world, following the beast, all of those things. Those are those things. In other words, they've, they've rejected Christ, and come to follow the other things, but they might still think they're okay, because they prayed a prayer, because they got baptized, because they joined a church, and for a while, you know, they were there, but then, you know, you can't stick around them church people too long, right?
[56:50] They get annoying, don't they? No, actually, no. Not if you're forgiving, and forbearing, and honest, and not above them, because they're just like you.
[57:10] Okay. That's why the list is there. It's a warning, because here's a promise that the church is going to read, and they're going to go, but hang on.
[57:22] Not everybody's there, because they're in this church. Are you on this list? And you're not on this list if you keep repenting.
[57:34] Okay. Okay. When he says hello, you say, yes, Lord. Yes, Lord. I still hear you.
[57:49] I want to walk with you. Isaiah 55, this is not a new promise of freedom, right?
[58:02] The one who comes, I will give for the spring of the water of life, without cost. This has always been God's offer. It's not plan B, it's plan A.
[58:14] Isaiah 55 says, come everyone who thirsts, come to the waters. He who has no money, come buy and eat. He who has no ability, come buy and eat.
[58:26] He who has no, no, no, can't fix themselves, come buy and eat. Buy wine and milk, without money, and without price. Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread?
[58:42] And why do you labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen diligently to me. Eat what is good. Delight yourselves in rich food.
[58:56] Ooh, I like that. Don't you like that? Incline your ear and come to me. Hear that your soul may live.
[59:08] And I will make you an everlasting covenant. My steadfast, sure love for David. Behold, I made him a witness to the peoples, a leader and a commander for the peoples.
[59:24] Behold, you shall call a nation that you do not know. And a nation that did not know you shall run to you. That sounds like Gentiles. Why?
[59:36] Because the Lord, your God, and the Holy One of Israel, because he's glorified you, he's going to make you attractive. Seek the Lord while he may be found.
[59:52] Call on him while he's near. Let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts. Let him return to the Lord.
[60:04] Why? That he may have compassion on him and return to our God. Why? For he will abundantly pardon. He will forgive.
[60:16] He'll forgive your wickedness. He'll forgive your black sliding. He will forgive your rebellion. He will forgive your ignoring him. Just come.
[60:30] Just come. He will abundantly pardon. Why will he do that?
[60:42] Because God says, my thoughts are not your thoughts. I don't think like you. My ways are not your ways. I don't hold the grudge. So let me meddle with you.
[60:59] Do you thirst? Do you thirst? Do you know you're thirsty? Do you long for something truly satisfied, fulfilling?
[61:12] Does your soul yearn for something? Is your soul talking to you? Now he wants the quick fix, but it's really saying I need something real. And let me ask this.
[61:25] If you're not coming and if you haven't come, why wouldn't you come? Why would you refuse this? Too good to be true?
[61:38] No. You know it's true. He will abundantly pardon. You don't want to be pardoned. Why would you not come? It's free. Oh no, there's a, there's a, there's this clause I know that's going to send me to Africa or something.
[61:56] So what? What if he did? You'd love it. If he's sending you. I mean, is worldly, are you really happy settling for worldly food?
[62:18] Are you really happy settling for things that are not really bread, not really worth your effort? You toil, you labor, you come home and that's it. That's it.
[62:30] You okay with that? You okay with that? No, I know you're not okay with that. What prevents you? I mean, that's an important question. What prevents you from coming? What hinders you?
[62:43] It's not the Lord's offer. It's in here somewhere. Hmm? Jesus said, come to me, all who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest for your souls.
[62:59] Whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.
[63:13] I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me shall not hunger. And whoever believes in me shall never thirst.
[63:27] Are you ready for the wedding day? Are you prepared? If you're not, come. It's a very easy start.
[63:37] Well, it's a very simple start. Let's pray. Father, we thank you for this incredible word that I feel like we can't get all of.
[63:51] This, this, this, that you dwell among us. We can't fully grasp that. What it will be like to, to see you face to face.
[64:04] What it will be like to talk to you face to face. We see now darkly. Now, then we will see clearly. We walk by faith. Now, then we will see you.
[64:17] It's hard to grasp it all. But we believe it. You promise it. We believe it. We long for it. We look forward to it. Stir our thirst, Lord.
[64:29] I pray that you would help us to see the thirst we really do have. The thirst that we give, we try to quench with quick things, worldly things.
[64:40] But then we're not quenched. We're not satisfied. Help us to see, Lord, help us, help us to want something much bigger than that. Thank you, oh God, that you would choose us, that you would prepare us, and that you would make a place where you will adorn us.
[65:06] We thank you in Christ's name. Amen. Amen. Let's prepare our hearts for communion.
[65:36] The cross. The cross. Thank you.