Heaven -- 8/6/06 (Eternal Realities)

Sunday, August 6, 2006

HEAVEN
Rev. 21

Our text this morning is the 21st chapter of Revelation. We will start in chapter 20 in order that we might appreciate the contrast between the only two final destinations of mankind.
Read Rev. 20:10-21:27
As we have stated before, our Lord Jesus talked more about hell than He did about heaven. Considering the truth that the redeemed will spend forever and ever in heaven, it is amazing how little the Bible tells us about the place. I don’t know all the reasons for that. Perhaps it is because those who go there will have all eternity to explore its riches. Surely the Lord reveals enough about heaven that any sensible person will want to go there.
From this text, let’s explore just a few facets of heaven. Let’s be reminded of what a wonderful place it will be.

I. Heaven Will Unite Jesus Christ with His Bride

Yes, in heaven, Jesus will be united with His bride. What glory that will bring to the Lord Jesus. This is what we read in the first two verses of this chapter. Rev 21:1-2, "And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. 2. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband." And we read again in Rev. 21:9-11a…
And there came unto me one of the seven angels which had the seven vials full of the seven last plagues, and talked with me, saying, Come hither, I will show thee the bride, the Lamb's wife. 10. And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, 11. Having the glory of God…
A couple of weeks ago someone asked a question concerning heaven, the new heavens and the new earth, and the new Jerusalem. How does all that fit together? I don’t have all the answers for that. However, it seems quite clear that what is described here as the holy city, the new Jerusalem, is what we know as heaven. And the very first thing we are told here is that John saw the new Jerusalem coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.

Please hear me and hear me well. We need to make sure we learn the proper order of things. It is always God first and then man. When we began this series of studies, we emphasized that. In our study of the great realities, we don’t begin with man, as the psychologist and sociologist does. No, we begin with God, as the Bible does. And so it is with heaven. Though it will certainly be a glorious place for the men and women who are there, the first order of things is to see that it brings glory to God. It is in the new Jerusalem that Jesus will finally be rewarded with His bride.

We live in a society which has lost its appreciation for waiting. Instant gratification is the order of the day. And that is true even in the relationship between men and women. It is becoming increasingly uncommon for a groom to wait patiently until the wedding day for his bride. But many of you can remember that special day, while others of you are looking forward to it. Husband, do you remember that day when you beheld your pure and spotless bride, adorned for you, her husband? Was that day worth waiting for? Was that bride worth waiting for? Is there a husband here who regrets waiting for that day before taking his bride to himself? No, there are no such regrets. We experienced a joy that is difficult to express.

What multiplied joy and gladness will belong to our Lord Jesus when He beholds His pure and spotless bride on that day! He has waited for His bride longer than any of us had to wait. And the cost to Him was greater than any of us could ever pay, for He purchased His bride with His own blood (Acts 20:28; Rev. 1:5). He is sanctifying and cleansing that bride with the washing of water by the word, that he might present her to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that she should be holy and without blemish (Eph. 5:26-27). O what a day that will be when our Savior and Lord is rewarded with a pure and holy bride.

According to 21:11, this bride, who becomes the Lamb’s wife, will have the glory of God! Yes, the bride will be a perfect match for her Lord!

Does this picture make you want to be a part of that pure and spotless bride? It should. No earthly wedding celebration will be able to hold a candle to the joy that will belong to our Lord (and to His bride) on that day.

II. In Heaven God’s People Will Be with Their Creator and Redeemer

Now look at verse 3, "And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God." Isn’t that interesting – "the tabernacle of God is with men." Why is this "tabernacle" language used here? Think about that – "the tabernacle of God is with men."
Let’s go all the way back to Exodus 25, and let’s read Ex. 25:1-3,8-9…
And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 2. Speak unto the children of Israel, that they bring me an offering: of every man that giveth it willingly with his heart ye shall take my offering. 3. And this is the offering which ye shall take of them; gold, and silver, and brass…. And let them make me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them. 9. According to all that I show thee, after the pattern of the tabernacle, and the pattern of all the instruments thereof, even so shall ye make it.

God’s desire was to have His people make Him a sanctuary, a holy place, a set-apart place. Then in verse 9, that same set-apart place is called "the tabernacle." That word "tabernacle" means "a dwelling place." From the rest of the book of Exodus and numerous other Old Testament references, we know that the people did indeed build the Lord a tabernacle, a dwelling place. Now remember the purpose of this set-apart place. The purpose is found there in vs. 8, "that I may dwell among them."

From time to time, we go back over the basic structure of the tabernacle. The entire complex was enclosed within a 7-foot fence and the outer part was referred to as the "outer court." The tabernacle proper (the actual building) was divided into two parts – the holy place and the most holy place, also called the Holy of Holies. The holy place was twice as large as the most holy place. While the people could come into the outer court, only the priests could enter into the holy place. But not even the priests could enter into the most holy place, or the Holy of Holies. The only one who could enter was the High Priest, and that was only once a year, and even then he had to take blood as an atonement for his own sins and the sins of the people.

So why was the Holy of Holies so sacred? Because it was there that the Lord chose to place His presence in a special way. You will recall that there was only one piece of furniture in the Holy of Holies. And what was that? Yes, the Ark of the Covenant, that box in which was placed the tablets upon which were written the Ten Commandments. Upon the lid, the covering of the ark, were fashioned two cherubim. These were angelic creatures made of gold. They stood guard over the presence of God above the mercy seat (the lid of the ark). While the scriptures make it clear that God can never be confined to one place, it was here that God placed His presence in a special way, that He might dwell among His people.
Now let’s move forward to John 1. Let’s read Jn. 1:1-5,14…
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2. The same was in the beginning with God. 3. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. 5. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not…. 14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

Notice the words in verse 14, "and dwelt among us." The Word was made flesh and dwelt among us. Keep that in mind, as we look again at Ex. 25:8, "And let them make me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them." Literally, "Let them make me a sanctuary, that I may tabernacle among them." The word "dwell" in verse 8 and the word "tabernacle" in verse 9 are the same, the one being the noun and the other the verb. That makes sense. Because God dwelt among them in the tabernacle, it is natural to say that He tabernacled among them. He pitched His tabernacle with men. Now when we come back to John 1:14, we find the exact same thing. You can read it, "And the Word was made flesh and tabernacled among us." The word translated "dwelt" is the verb form of the noun "tabernacle."

Do you see the beauty of that? The tabernacle in the Old Testament pictured a greater tabernacle to come, the Lord Jesus Himself. While Jesus isn’t specifically referred to as a tabernacle, remember what He said in John 2, "Destroy this temple, and I will raise it up in three days." How can it be? John tells us that He was talking about the temple of His body. And we know that the temple which God instructed Solomon to build was constructed on the same model as the tabernacle. Just as with the tabernacle, God chose to set His presence in the Holy of Holies above the ark of the covenant. But when Jesus came into the world, what was pictured in the tabernacle and the temple became a reality in Jesus. God set His presence in the Word, in His Son, in the Lord Jesus Christ. That is why Jesus could refer to Himself as the temple. In Jesus, God tabernacled among men.

But now come back to Rev. 21:3, "And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God." We saw the tabernacle of God with men out in the desert in the days of Moses. We saw the tabernacle of God with men, when Jesus walked on the earth, for in Him the Word was made flesh and tabernacled among us. And now again we are told that the tabernacle is with men.

Now let us hear the Lord speaking through His Word. We know from the scriptures that when Jesus tabernacled among men, it was a great advance upon the tabernacle that Moses built in the wilderness. While that physical building was constructed in order that God might dwell/tabernacle among men, we know that in Jesus God dwelt among men in a much greater way. While the old tabernacle was made out of wood and precious metals, Jesus could say, "He that has seen me has seen the Father," and "I and my Father are one." Praise God that His name was called Immanuel, which means "God with us."

So what about the tabernacle of God being with men here in Rev. 21? As Jesus’ tabernacling among men was superior to the physical tabernacle in the wilderness, so this final and perfect tabernacling with men here is superior to Jesus dwelling among men while He was on the earth. Listen to me, you who are true children of God. Make the most of your fellowship with God through Jesus Christ. Rejoice in it both today and tomorrow and the day after. You are blessed to be able to walk with God in the Spirit. Right now, in this present world, every true child of God has been blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ. Don’t make light of your privilege in this present age. BUT make no mistake about it – our present fellowship with the Lord is pale to what it will be in the heavenly Jerusalem, when God pitches His tabernacle with men.

I love Psalm 16:11, "Thou wilt show me the path of life; in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures forevermore." I don’t believe we can rule out the fact that we can stand in His presence here and now. Back in verse 8, David says, "I have set the Lord always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved." David experienced pleasures because the Lord was at His right hand. But the day was coming when he and all of God’s true children would be at the Lord’s right hand. Then there will be pleasures forevermore. Praise God that right here and now in His presence there is fulness of joy, but the fulness is going to be so much fuller for those who as a part of His spotless bride finally meet Him face to face. I John 3:2, "Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be; but we know that when he shall appear, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is."

Now come over to Rev. 21:22-23. After giving a description of the layout of the new Jerusalem, John then says: "And I saw no temple therein; for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it. And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it; for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof." We had the tabernacle, and then we had the temple, but in heaven there will be no temple. Why? Because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it. We won’t need any representation of the Lord’s presence, because we will have the Lord Himself. Praise God!

We know that light is an absolute necessity for life. We can’t live without life. That is why God created the sun, moon, and the stars in the beginning. Spiritually, we must have light. That is why we read in Ps. 119:105, "Thy word is a lamb unto my feet and a light unto my path." In I John, we see the importance of walking in the light. We must turn to the Lord and let Him expose the darkness in us. But the day is coming, when the true believer enters the holy city, there will be no more sun or moon. There will be no necessity to strive to walk in the light. Why?
Because God’s glory and the presence of the Lamb will continually provide all the light that is needed. Remember that God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all (I Jn. 1:5). In that day, we will see the glory of that truth as we have never seen it before.

So the greatest characteristic of heaven will be the presence of Almighty God and the Lamb. Don’t miss it. God has always desired to tabernacle with, to dwell with, man. His desire will be completely fulfilled when He brings His people into the heavenly city. And what glory that will be for us…
O that will be glory for me! O that will be glory for me!
When by His grace I shall look on His face,
That will be glory, be glory for me!

III. Heaven Will Contain Nothing that Defiles

We have been walking through Rev. 21. And what have we seen so far? In verse 2, we see that heaven will unite Jesus Christ with His bride. Jesus will get His proper reward. And we have seen that in heaven, God’s people will be their Creator and Redeemer (verse 3). Now come to the next verse, verse 4-5a, "And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain; for the former things are passed away. And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new…"

Child of God, doesn’t that want to make you say, "Even so, come, Lord Jesus!" Even when we are abiding in Christ, walking in the Spirit, experiencing that blessed fellowship with Him, there are still those things that hinder. We are still well aware of the tears, the sorrow, the crying, and the pain. And even if we have been set free from the fear of death, we still watch loved ones taken away from us through death. O for the day when all of these will be done away with forever and ever, and the sooner the better!

Notice that the former things will have passed away. God will say, "Behold, I make all things new." Think about that for a moment. Hasn’t God already made all things new? Do you remember II Cor. 5:17, "If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature. Old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new." You can find that term "new" in many New Testament passages. Jesus said we must put the new wine into new bottles. When He ate the last Passover supper with His apostles, He said, "For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission (forgiveness) of sins." Hebrews speaks of Jesus as the mediator of the new covenant. Paul described himself as an able minister of the new covenant. Jesus gave us a new commandment, that we should love one another, as He has loved us. Are not all things new in Christ even now? If true children of God have become new creatures, how can there be anything new beyond that?

Hear me. I am a new creation, in comparison with what I was before I met Christ. That was the old; this is the new. As this new creation is far superior to the old, so will be superior the newness when God makes all things new in heaven. John has already stated that he saw a new heaven and a new earth (vs. 1). And he saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven. And now God declares that He Himself makes all things new. They are new, for they are now without tears and sorrow, without pain and death.

Child of God, rejoice in the fact that you are a new creation. Don’t ever forget that God took you when you were dead and made you alive. BUT neither can you forget that the day is coming when there will be another great renewal, when God makes all things new. Then all the old sorrows and pains will be completely gone and swallowed up in the newness of God’s perfection.
Now come over to verse 27, "And there shall in no wise enter into it anything that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie; but they which are written in the Lamb’s book of life." Not only will pain and sorrow, tears and death be removed, but so willevery hint of a lie, of pretense, of deception. All will be truth, for Jesus is the truth. There won’t be any abomination there. That is, there will be nothing that is detestable, none of the things that God hates—such as pride, discord, etc.

Notice especially the first statement – "And there shall in no wise enter into it anything that defileth." The word translated "defile" is the simple word that means "common." It is sometimes set opposite of "holy," because the common is that which has not been set apart. In heaven, there will be nothing that is common, nothing that hasn’t been set apart by God for His own purposes. No, there will be nothing common in heaven. Everyone there will be totally sanctified, set apart, by the Lord Himself.

We mentioned that statement from the Stranger and Lamb studies: "Only perfect people can live with a perfect God." Here we see the fulfillment of that truth. Those in heaven have been perfected by the Lord Himself.

IV. Heaven’s Beauty Will Be Beyond Anything Known to Man

In verses 11-21, we have a description of the heavenly city, the new Jerusalem. What a place it will be. It will be about 1400 miles long, 1400 miles wide, and 1400 miles high. Its walls are some 200 feet high (or thick, as in NIV). The foundation of the walls were of twelve different precious stones (each one named). Each of the twelve gates is made out of a single pearl. And the city itself is made of pure gold. That’s right – not only is the street gold, but the city itself is made of pure gold. What a place.

Now hear me. I don’t want in any way to take away from the physical beauty of heaven. After all, God has given us an appreciation of beauty even in this present world. Who can fail to get a little bit excited about one of the beautiful sunsets that God gives us. And have you been watching some of these awesome lightning storms? What beauty. But all of that will be nothing compared with the beauty of heaven. Nevertheless, I remind you that this aspect of physical beauty is last.

Let me remind you of the order in this chapter. First, Jesus will receive His spotless bride. The glory of God is before everything else. Then we read that the children of God will be forever blessed with the presence of God and the Lamb. Then we read of God making all things new, removing pain and sorrow and crying and death. There will be nothing that defiles. Then we read the description of heaven’s beauty.

That should tell us something. Relationships are primary. They come first. Remember that God made man in His own image. God made man with the capacity to establish and enjoy intimate relationships, especially a relationship with God Himself. (Jn. 14:1-3)

John 14 is a passage that is often read at funerals, when a child of God has died. Jesus said…
Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. 2. 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. 3. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.

Whatever these mansions are, they are not sprawling multi-million dollar homes that we think of in this world. The word isn’t used today like it was in 1611. These mansions are simply dwelling places. They do not call attention to themselves. If you want to know the glory of the "mansions" Jesus is preparing in heaven, just read the rest of verse 2 and verse 3, "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 unto myself, that where I am, there ye may be also." The glory of my mansion is that it is next to Jesus. Whatever my mansion is, it is a dwelling place in the presence of my Lord Jesus.

Now if you don’t hear anything else this morning, hear this: The glory of heaven is the presence of the Lord. That’s it. You could take away the gold and precious stones and no one would complain about the glory of heaven. But you take away the Lord, and it would no longer be heaven. It would then be more hell than heaven.

I don’t want to get on a soapbox. My purpose is not to offend anyone. But some of the songs we sing about heaven miss the point. You might want to look at your hymnal. One of the all-time favorite songs about heaven is "Mansion Over the Hilltop" on page 536. Yes, I like to sing it too. The tune is hard to get out of your mind, but did you ever look closely at the words? There is no mention of the Lord Jesus Christ. The glory of heaven is a gold mansion that’s silver-lined, the fact that we’ll never grow old but will walk on golden streets. That is not the glory of the place Jesus is preparing for His own. It isn’t that the song says anything that is false; the problem is in what it leaves out.

Or consider another old favorite, "How Beautiful Heaven Must Be."
We read of a beautiful heaven, Prepared for the pure and the free;
These truths in God’s Word He has given, How beautiful heaven must be.
In heaven no drooping or pining, No wishing for elsewhere to be;
God’s light is forever there shining, How beautiful heaven must be.
I’m longing to go to fair heaven, To be with the happy and free;
To spend the long ages in singing, How beautiful heaven must be.
The angels so sweetly are singing, Up there by the beautiful sea;
Sweet chords from their gold harps are ringing, How beautiful heaven must be.
How beautiful heaven must be, Sweet home of the happy and free;
Fair haven of rest for the weary, How beautiful heaven must be.

Again, all the words are true, but where is the Lord Jesus? Where is the One who gave His life, the One who is our all and all, the One who will receive His precious bride. It’s like a wedding without the groom.

We could look at many others which have a nice sentimental ring, -- songs like "I’ll Meet You in the Morning" – but they don’t ring with the glory of the Lamb. If we are going to sing, let’s sing about Jesus, the Lamb of glory.

May I suggest one of those songs which shares the emphasis of God’s Word– "My Savior First of All" (p. 525).

When my lifework is ended and I cross the swelling tide, When the bright and glorious morning I see,
I shall know my Redeemer when I reach the other side, and His smile will be the first to welcome me.
O the soul-thrilling rapture when I view His blessed face, And the luster of His kindly beaming eye;
How my full heart will praise Him for the mercy, love and grace That prepare me a mansion in the sky.
O the dear ones in glory, how they beckon me to come, And our parting at the river I recall;
To the sweet vales of Eden they will sing my welcome home—But I long to meet my Savior first of all.
Thro’ the gates to the city, in a robe of spotless white, He will lead me where no tears will ever fall;
In the glad song of ages I shall mingle with delight – But I long to meet my Savior first of all.
I shall know Him, I shall know Him, And redeemed by His side I shall stand,
I shall know Him, I shall know Him By the print of the nails in His hand.

Glory be to God! Can you sing it with me…?
Heaven is a wonderful place, filled with glory and grace; I want to see my Savior’s face.
Heaven is wonderful, heaven is a glorious, heaven is a wonderful place. (I wanta go there…)

You will notice that we didn’t sing "When We All Get to Heaven." Why not? Because there is no guarantee that we are all going to heaven. In fact, there is a significant number in this room headed for hell. O that God would open blind eyes, that they might see.

You will notice this morning that we didn’t sing "When We All Get to Heaven." Why not? Because there is no guarantee that we are all going to heaven. As a matter of truth, there is a significant number in this room headed for hell, and not heaven.

Prayer