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May 23, 2022 6:00 am
Dad has scarred human existence from the beginning God said to Adam and Eve in the day that you eat thereof, you will surely die. Since that disobedience, we have experienced having some of everything.
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Second thing you know about heaven feel on familiar, there are certain things that are not there that are here in earthly experience because of that will feel unfamiliar and one of them is found in verse one. I just sort of passed over this because I don't like this verse says I saw a new heaven and new earth first heaven and earth passed away. Also there was no more sea. I have wrestled with this verse for years. This to me is so harsh, almost to the Excel Rigo dry have to go there minute.
This is heaven a brand-new world with no ocean enough. I'm writing the script on heaven is knocking to read this one by writing the script on heaven's sinusitis. There were no more cities, but there was lots of beach and a whole bunch of ocean palm trees galore. But he says there's no more's see I got to I have wrestled with this so much that over the years. I even early on, rationalize the interpretive process of this why I thought perhaps see is a metaphor for nations that are not in covenant with God that are described in the Bible like a troubled sea. So, for example, Isaiah 17 the uproar of many peoples.
They roar like the roaring of the seas. Isaiah 57 the wicked are like the troubled sea when it cannot rest a Revelation 13. The Antichrist comes out of the sea. I really research this revelation 17 events as the waters which you saw, where the harlot sets are peoples, and multitudes and nations and times. I thought there spoke maybe it's just a metaphor for lots of angry people will be there but now I've resigned myself to a more literal approach. I just think what John is saying in in a few words so short it's profound is that the earth is going to be at a different earth not to be anything like this earth to be a water-based environment can have a different climate altogether the world that we live in now is three fourths water three quarters of the earth surface is ocean size that there's other water sources in the earth itself. We have our own hydrological cycle on this planet.
We depend on that. Your your mostly water. 90% of your blood is water 65% of your flesh is water.
If you don't drink enough water you dehydrate you die to offer this short little pity statement and there was no see indicates the new earth would be a completely different environment. Not like carbon-based life on this earth is required to have the water that it has. It operates on a different principle on the new earth were in glorified bodies, we won't require the same things now that still bums you out in your laundry me there's no water at all didn't say that by the time you get to Revelation chapter 22. John said, and I saw a pure river of the water of life, something else about oceans oceans are barriers that separate people in the old days before jet aircraft that was a big deal. You are thousands of miles and your crepitus journeys apart by boat from other people's Rubino separation like that in the newer, something else is unfamiliar is all of that to sound sort of weird that this gets really good and I want you to know as we go on that John had the right about heaven in the negative, not the positive and negative. He wants you to know what else isn't there. So verse two I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband and I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, behold, or check it out.
The tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.
There shall be no more death.
Imagine that no death, nor sorrow. We can even imagine that, nor crying, there shall be no more pain for the former things have passed away. John is saying is Mitch. I would have is to be like it's not going to be like here is to be unlike the experiences we have on the so working with you the list. God will wipe away every tear.
No tears in them. No Kleenex in heaven. I think back on my life. There is a lot of days that I cried in my life, some that are very memorable days for me might surprise you that the first day of school public school kindergarten. I cried like a baby and I was the boy who when the teacher said what's wrong cried and I said I miss my mommy. I had to live with that for ever the boy who began school by saying I miss my mom.
That was me days filled with tears. Very sad. There were other days filled with tears day my brother died and days afterwards day my father died the day my mother died the day my other brother died.
We all have stories like that we all have tears. Life is filled with tears. Tears of misfortune, tears of loneliness tears of poverty. Tears of sympathy, tears of regret, no tears, and have that will be absent. Notice it says no more death no the 57 million people every year die covert or no Kovic that's the going rate 57 million people die a year.
That's about 150,000 people every single day.
Death has scarred human existence from the beginning when God said to Adam and Eve in the day that you eat thereof, you will surely die. Ever since that disobedience, we have experienced that, but not in heaven never have to go to the cemetery in heaven.
There are no cemeteries in heaven.
There, there are no tombstones. There are no caskets.
There are no funeral home start, there's no funerals in heaven and you will never age in the new heaven and new earth. Never age because if there is no death, and there's no conditions that bring death. There is no disease right there's no surgery there's no hospital ministers, nor sorrow, are you ever sorrowful, ever moody ever to Skinner in a mood, thinking – what would it what's wrong is got a mood just got a go on all day at an attitude going on and I notice a lot of people have a lot of those this last year. Everybody does. Everybody does.
At some point. This is why we love the book of Psalms so much we read it. I relate to that Psalm six is one Psalms that I'm weary with my groaning why I waste away because of grief.
We relate to that. There's coming a day when you won't be able to relate to be so foreign. There's no sadness there's no depression here's another stupid thing to say in heaven.
Hope you never say you can never say in heaven. Have a good day is like the dumbest thing you could ever say.
Have a good day. Every day is a good day.
It's always good. There's no sorrow.
It says nor pain. That's a big one. There's a lot of aspirin sold. I read the other day that just a little over 20% of all Americans suffer chronic pain. That's 1/4 of all people to live in our country for over one fourth suffer from chronic pain. So much so that by the year 2023. The painkiller market will reach a $5.9 billion industry. No pain.
In heaven you'll have a perfect body. Some of you who work out in the young.
You might Artie have the perfect body. Just wait wait a few years keep looking in that mirror honestly and things will catch up with you.
It's called entropy called gravity those things are real but in heaven will be absent so so heaven comes in phases and it will feel unfamiliar in terms of what we are used to here. The third thing that most people don't know about heaven is that it will have a capital city and it's called new Jerusalem in verse two he sees it. I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, get this coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband and I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, behold, the tabernacle of God is with man, and he will dwell with them, they will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God, go down to verse 10 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, so John sees it coming down toward the new earth, having the glory of God. Her light was like a most precious stone, like a jasper stone, clear as crystal. John gets his crazy vision of this luminescent city coming down out of heaven toward the earth and we discover from this chapter next chapter. This is HQ in heaven. This is headquarters.
This is the capital city of heaven new Jerusalem. There are really no landmarks given about the new earth, except for one, that there's no see no other characteristics are given but a lot of detail is given about this new capital city, new Jerusalem, and I want you to see how big it is.
Verse 15 and he who talked with me had a gold read the measuring stick to measure the city its gates and its wall. The city is laid out as a square. Its length is as great as its breath, and he measured the city with the reed 12,000 furlongs so 12,000 furlongs is between depending on how you reckon ancient measuring between 1380 miles to 1500 miles… Call at 1500 miles. Its length, its breath and its height are equal. So were dealing with a Q that is 1500 miles in all directions 1500 miles. That's like the distance from Maine to Florida is like. The distance from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to Dallas Texas.
Let's like the distance from Albuquerque New Mexico to Spokane, Washington and is shaped like a cute notice is kind of weird. What Ư because II think you know I think a planet sitting around right sphere. Think of a new earth. I'm thinking of the sphere, but you got this square city coming down this cube city, and I Ư I can't be definitive, but I just have an idea my ideas you member says that is right here says behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, the tabernacle of God in the Old Testament is a thing called the tabernacle tabernacle is where God met with people and there was an out-of-court that's for sacrifices were made, there was an inner court. That's were priests only hung out and in the inner inner court it was called the holy of holies. Nobody went in there except the high priest once a year because that's where God dwelt with his people in the holy of holies what's interesting about the holy of holies it is a perfect cube 15 feet wide 15 feet deep and 15 feet high, was the tabernacle. This is the tabernacle of God is with men. If you have an Old Testament reckoning kinda go. I can see that. So it seems like you have a city that is shaped like a Q and I would infer from that that the streets are not just horizontal but also vertical in the you'll have the ability to travel quickly in all directions. Like Jesus, who in his resurrected body could be here one moment and there.
The next moment, and when he wanted to visit the disciples in the upper room didn't have to knock on the door, he just went through the water showed up here is right.
That's quite a capability. Wouldn't you love to do that.
I think you'll be able to do that now. In going through this. Inevitably, somebody is going to at least think it not say it goes like this. Are you sure this is literal think is intended to be letter.
This really doesn't mean an actual city coming out of heaven to the earth. Well I guess I'll respond that by saying it if it's not literal then I have no idea what he's talking about and neither do any of you is that at the point where you say is not literal you have to say. I'm just start making things up of what I think they could mean. And then I would wonder why would God spend a whole book of Revelation just to tell us what's not going to have right I know Revelation is given in symbols but the symbols .2 realities literal events. John Chow Revelation chapter 1 geysers a revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave to him to show to his servant John, which he signified by an angel. The word signified means given in signs so we have symbols we have signs but they point to a reality.
And if you start saying what this is an L of the millennium is a letter is not really a thousand years and pray tell what is as if a thousand doesn't mean a thousand, then what does a thousand mean because you have a lot of numbers in the book of Revelation that are very, very detailed you have. For example, seven churches maybe did mean seven churches. You have 12 tribes maybe did mean 12 tribes of 12 apostles.
Lorraine is mean 12 apostles. You see the problem you have.
You have one third of mankind being destroyed your two witnesses you have the discussion of 42 months, then it even says 1260 days. Why the detail and now you have 12,000 furlongs. So if you start saying well I interpret the Bible literally, except for prophecy, to save you on what basis and what authority do you have to dissect description safe while I believe this literally, but I don't believe that's literal because then you're gonna start getting into other areas like salvation and you don't really have to believe in Jesus says that but maybe didn't really mean that. So you open up you go down a bad interpretive Street. However, if you look at it at face value, then you have a real kingdom in Israel and Jerusalem with the real Messiah on the throne of David for a thousand years followed by a destruction followed by the creation of a new heaven and new earth. New Jerusalem and a 1400 1500 mile cube city.
I can't wait to check it out.
So that's what most people don't know about heavenly can then give you forth in this is the saddest one. Not everyone will be there.
Not everyone goes to heaven.
The prevailing ideology among most people on earth is that all you have to do to go to heaven if there is one is get born on earth you're born, you die you haven't people do and according to Job sets with cat and mice do as well, but not everybody goes, there is only a city of believers. Verse seven he who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he will be my but the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death is pretty clear right down to verse 24 and the nations of those who are saved shall walk in its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory and honor into it.
It's gates shall not be shut at all by day there will be no night there they shall bring the glory and honor of the nations into it, 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. Not everybody goes to heaven and everybody will be in heaven says in verse seven he who overcomes what is that means simply a statement of believing in Jesus. That's all it is.
It's another way of saying somebody who believes in Jesus and believes all the way through and endures all the way through, and that faith first John chapter 5 everyone who is born of God overcomes the world.
This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith so you believe you overcome the world's and if you are not a Christian, you need to know the worst is yet to come. If you are a Christian, you need to know the best is yet to come, can only be said to the believer best is yet to come here an unbeliever. I can imagine anything worse than growing old. As an unbelieving person as you get old you go through all the typical stuff we all go through as we age the aches and pains.
The heart aches the hardships the only thing you have are memories of your past because your future is not bright, but as a believer as bad as it has ever been.
It's only going to get some no pain, no sorrow, no tears, is something else. Notice that the Jerusalem is called the holy city people all the times I wanted on one of your holy land tours. I want to see the holy city of Jerusalem. Technically, you have to wait till the new Jerusalem because I I would tell you, even in the holy city of Jerusalem. Today there are places you don't want to walk at night because they're not there. Feel very unholy people will say well know about a whole new earth to miss my old earth I'm in a miss my old home.
I'm going to miss the ocean.
I'm in a miss the west side really. Isaiah 65 answers that, behold, I create new heavens and new earth. It is, and both former shall not be remembered, nor even come to mind. You will not miss it, you won't even think about Sylvia. I miss my cat. I miss my little garden you won't miss it.
I make all things new.
CS Lewis said if I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy the most probable explanation is that I was made for another. This is the world you were made. That is the world you are going to Skip six message from the series 2022. Skip to share how you can keep these teachings coming to you while connecting others to the Lord. The Bible tells us that God has put eternity in your heart that is a longing that points you back to him. But you don't have to wait for heaven to draw near to him today we want to equip listeners like you and help you connect to his truth. That's why we share these Bible teachings and through your generosity.
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