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 Sermon > Official Service |
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Title |
Revelation Lectures(86) - Revelation Lectures (86) |
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Speaker |
Rev. Jaerock Lee |
Bible |
Revelation 21:1-7 |
Date |
2009-01-09 |
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Scripture
Revelation 21:1-7
[1] Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea.
[2] And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband.
[3] And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, "Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them,
[4] and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away."
[5] And He who sits on the throne said, "Behold, I am making all things new " And He said, "Write, for these words are faithful and true."
[6] Then He said to me, "It is done I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end I will give to the one who thirsts from the spring of the water of life without cost.
[7] "He who overcomes will inherit these things, and I will be his God and he will be My son.
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ.
After the Final Judgment, those saved souls go to their own dwelling place in heaven and enjoy eternal happiness.
Apostle John saw heaven, especially New Jerusalem, where they would enter after the Judgment. He wrote about it in tonight's scripture.
Revelation 21:1 says, "Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea."
The first heaven and the first earth refer to the sky and the earth here where we experience human cultivation.
The 'new heaven' and a 'new earth' refer to the sky and the earth of the third heaven.
Since the 'new' comes after the first heaven and the first earth, they might have been called either "the second heaven and the second earth," or "the other heaven and the other earth."
However, they are called "a new heaven and a new earth,' because the first heaven and the first earth which were created for human cultivation now has no use once the cultivation is over.
That's why it says, "the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea."
However, it doesn't mean that this fleshly world would cease to exist only because they are of no use any longer.
The first heaven, which is the physical world, cannot become non-existent because it is a space which was divided from God's original space in the beginning.
Therefore, even though it will serve no purpose any longer, it will surely remain in existence, but God will shut the door of this space.
The new heaven is the sky of the third heaven, but what kind of a sky is it?
Hebrews 8:5 says, "[They] serve a copy and shadow of the heavenly things."
As said, on this earth are many things given by God so we can have a sense of what heaven is like.
So, the sky of this world is blue similar to the sky of heaven and, as in heaven, there are clouds in the sky.
Just as the physical existence of something is different from its shadow, the sky of heaven is much more beautiful than the earth's.
Unlike the sky of this world, the sky of heaven is not and never will be polluted. It is a crystal clear, crisp and clean blue.
It is a color of blue that makes everything appear much deeper, higher, and clearer.
As we gaze at the blue sky, it gives us the desire to have a clean heart.
Gazing into a clear blue sky makes you feel like living a more righteous and honest life, a life that is as clean and clear as the blue of the sky.
What if the whole sky were yellow or even red?
Of course, when the sky is lit up with the glow of the sunset, many people are amazed at the beauty of what is seen.
When the saints in heaven desire to see a sunset God will show them a far more spectacularly glowing sunset in the sky of heaven.
There are shining white clouds in the sky of heaven, and God can show the saints a beautiful scene with those clouds as if they had been splashed with the colors of a setting sun.
If the sky were to become permanently red or yellow and not just an exception as in this special case, it would cause the emotional state of people to become unstable.
Their hearts might be confused and it may well cause mental anxiety.
When the sky is covered with dark clouds, people's hearts tend to become gloomy, and their dispositions become negative.
They become depressed over nothing.
On the other hand, when the lengthy rainy season ends, and clouds disappear and the blue sky appears, people feel refreshed.
Likewise, God has made the new sky of heaven blue which positively impacts our hearts.
God considers His children who look up into the sky so that they can live a happy life forever with a heart that is as clear and beautiful as crystal.
The sky of heaven is much more clean and blue, and there is no sun, no moon, and no stars.
Revelation 22:5 says, "And there will no longer be any night; and they will not have need of the light of a lamp nor the light of the sun, because the Lord God will illumine them; and they will reign forever and ever."
In heaven, the light of God's glory brightly shines from New Jerusalem to the edge of Paradise.
There is no need of the sun or the moon; not to mention a lamplight.
At the origin of the light of God's glory it is very bright, however, its brightness is adjusted in each of the succeeding dwelling place of heaven.
If the same brightness of His light in New Jerusalem is shown in Paradise, the souls in Paradise will not be able to deal with it.
For them the light would be so dazzlingly bright that they won't be able to open their eyes and they won't even be able to raise their heads.
Only those who completely resembled God the Father and cultivated their heart into the whole spirit, namely those who qualify to enter New Jerusalem, can deal with the light.
Therefore, in Paradise, the brightness is adequately adjusted for the souls in Paradise.
In the 3rd kingdom of heaven, it is less bright than in New Jerusalem. The brightness becomes less and less intense as we go on to the 2nd heaven, the 1st heaven, and Paradise.
Such a light of God's glory always shines in heaven, there is no darkness at all, and thus there is no night.
Perhaps there may be someone who is thinking, "At night, we sleep and we get rested so that we can recover from the fatigue of the world. But, how can we rest in heaven if it is bright all the time? How can we sleep?" Does anyone think like this and worry?
You have nothing to worry about!
Whatever you do in heaven, you are happy and joyful. No matter how many places you visit, you don't get tired, and therefore, you don't need to rest to recover from tiredness.
In addition, the heavenly body that we put on in heaven is different from the fleshly body; it doesn't feel fatigue.
Moreover, even though the light of heaven is so bright, it doesn't make the eyes tired.
Instead the eyes are full of happiness, and fatigue never interferes with the recreation of the souls.
Of course, even in New Jerusalem, we may want to see a beautiful night sky which is full of stars just like that of this world.
Then, God can make a certain part of the space look just like the night sky.
Now, what is 'a new earth,' which is the earth of heaven, made of?
The earth of this world is composed of rocks, stones, and dust.
But the materials that compose the earth of heaven are gold, silver, and other various jewels.
In many parts of the earth of heaven there are roads which are paved with pure gold, or covered with jewels.
The banks of the rivers are lined with gold and silver sands.
The gold, silver, and jewels of the heavenly earth are not in the form of powder like dust.
They are like very tiny beads. They are not blown away by winds like dust of ground. They don't make your body dirty.
If you plant a seed in gold or jewels, it cannot live, but in heaven, they can thrive.
Moreover, just like jewels don't decay, the plants that grow from jewels don't decay, either.
The plants established and grown by God never change.
The earth of this world, which is composed of dust, teaches us the futility of this life.
All the plants that grow from the dust, and the animals and human beings that eat what is derived from the dust eventually perish and go back to the dust.
By looking at this only, you should be able to understand the uselessness of the fleshly world.
You should be able to look up to eternal heaven, without seeking the vain and useless things which perish and change.
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ.
Revelation 21:2 says, "And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband."
When something is 'holy' it means it is spotless and blameless, as well as true, faithful, glorious, and shining.
The city that Apostle John is looking at now is made of God's holiness and His light, and that's why he calls it 'the holy city.'
In this holy city, there is no darkness, no falsehood, nor abominable thing.
God has named this holy city "New Jerusalem."
Jerusalem in this world was build upon the Law.
The reason Jesus entered Jerusalem was to complete the Law of God.
Since He completed the Law with love, the seed of the Gospel was planted in Jerusalem.
To commemorate the fact that the Gospel was planted in Jerusalem, and all things that have been accomplished through this Gospel, God named the holy city "New Jerusalem."
Jesus prophesied regarding Jerusalem by saying, "There will not be left one stone upon another which will not be torn down."
Just as He prophesied, the city of Jerusalem was conquered by Roman soldiers in B.C. 70, and the Temple of God was completely destroyed.
By the way, the prophecy of Jesus did not only ferment this historical event, but it also has an implied spiritual meaning.
That is that all the Law of the Old Testament would be completed by the love of the Lord.
The collapse of Jerusalem doesn't void the Law of God in the Old Testament.
For example, the sacrifice of a living animal offered in the Old Testament, is the offering of the worship service in the New Testament.
The procedures of this worship service contain the spiritual meanings of the Old Testament sacrifice.
The Holy God, the Lord, the Holy Spirit, and those who had become completely cultivated according to the Word can live New Jerusalem which was built as the Lord completed the Law.
Tonight's scripture says this New Jerusalem is "coming down out of heaven from God."
It doesn't mean that it is actually coming down out of heaven. It means God is the foundation of everything.
New Jerusalem is the city that God Himself has prepared for His beloved children.
The city is prepared with the great love and heart of the Lord as though it was "made ready as a bride adorned for her husband."
Generally, 'the bride and the bridegroom' in the Bible refers to the relationship between the Lord and the saved souls.
While they are being cultivated in the earth, they diligently adorn themselves to meet with the Lord, their bridegroom.
But in tonight's scripture, it appears that the saved souls are the bride, and New Jerusalem is the bride.
Even in this fleshly world, just how well does a bride adorn herself for her bridegroom?
Sometimes, it takes weeks or even months to adorn themselves so that their bridegroom will love them.
Each dwelling place in New Jerusalem is adorned as each person desires.
Those who enter New Jerusalem are the Lord's brides who are adorned without any blemish.
They are those who completely denied themselves, and lived completely by the Word so that the Lord, their bridegroom will love them.
They are those who loved God and the Lord so much that they gave even their lives.
In exchange for it, God prepares the best of the dwellings places for them exactly as they want .
In other words, in order to enter New Jerusalem, which is like an adorned bride, they should meet the proper conditions.
A dwelling place in New Jerusalem is given according to strict justice.
Now, Revelation 21:3-4 says, "And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, "Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them, and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.""
Originally, God occupied the 4th heaven, which is the original heaven. He also established His dwelling place in New Jerusalem for after the Final Judgment.
He will remain in New Jerusalem with His people and wipe away every tear from their eyes.
It doesn't only mean that God wipes away actual tears, but it also means that God solves all the fundamental problems that caused them shed tears.
In heaven, there is no death, sorrow, or mourning. There is no pain from diseases or disasters.
These were necessary for human cultivation. Since God has earned true children, He doesn't need to allow death or pain to exist any longer.
Next, Revelation 21:5 says, "And He who sits on the throne said, "Behold, I am making all things new " And He said, "Write, for these words are faithful and true.""
When 'the throne of God' is mentioned, it is to reveal His authority as the Judge.
But in tonight's scripture, the Judgment had already concluded, and thus it is no longer describing God as the Judge.
Through the term, 'throne,' it means that God confirms His word as if He sealed it.
Just as a document with King's seal on it cannot be altered, it emphasizes the faithfulness and truthfulness of the word that God that is now spoken.
All the perishable things that can decay have disappeared, and all things are made new in God's will and providence.
Revelation 21:6 says, "Then He said to me, "It is done I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end.""
When Jesus died on the Cross, He said, "It is finished." It means that He finished the project of redemption.
When God says, "It is done" in tonight's scripture, it means that He has finished all the procedures of human cultivation, earned His true children, and made a new heaven and a new earth, and made all things new.
"I am the Aloha and the Omega" means that, as explained in Revelation 1:8, God is the beginning and the end of civilization.
Also, "the beginning and the end" is with regard to the providence of salvation.
Our Lord is the first fruit of resurrection, and His Second Advent will put an end to the project of redemption.
Therefore, Jesus Christ is originally the beginning and the end of salvation. However, tonight's scripture says God is the beginning and the end.
Eventually, it shows that it is God Himself Who has managed all this providence of salvation.
The rest of Revelation 21:6 says, "I will give to the one who thirsts from the spring of the water of life without cost."
Water is necessary for man to survive.
Spiritually the water is the word of God and it is a necessity to maintain the life of our spirit.
In John 4:14, the Lord says, "Whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst; but the water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life."
If you don't have the word of God in you, you will always be thirsty and feel empty.
You may vainly attempt to obtain worldly things, but you will feel insecure no matter how much wealth you pile up.
It is the same if you know the truth only as knowledge and don't live a proper believing life although you go to church.
If you don't fill your heart with the word of truth, you will always be thirsty just like the worldly people thirst for water.
Those who truly drink the water of life that the Lord gives are those who change their hearts with the truth.
Only when you cast off untruth in your heart and fill it with the truth, can you quench your spiritual thirst.
You cannot be sanctified by a man's strength, but you will surely fill your heart with the truth in the grace that God freely gives.
To the extent you fill it with the truth, the thirst will be quenched, and you will feel true joy, peace, and satisfaction gushing from your heart.
You will overcome this world and live a victorious life, and finally enter heaven.
You will inherit a dwelling place and rewards in heaven that God has prepared for you, and you will be called His true son or daughter.
It is just as Revelation 21:7 says, which reads, "He who overcomes will inherit these things, and I will be his God and he will be My son."
Now, why doesn't God say, "I will be his Father," but "I will be his God and he will be My son?"
Doesn't it make you feel closer if God directly says He will become the Father?
This is to express that God the Father creates all things, rules all things, and manages all things.
It is emphasizing once again that God is so great, and that you will receive the blessing of being called as His son when you completely cultivate His word and overcome this world.
In the next lecture, we will look in greater detail into the place where we all should enter, New Jerusalem.
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ.
I explained that God wipes away every tear from our eyes, and thus there is no death, mourning, or pain.
What a wonderful would it be, if it was just a place with no disease!
Even though you personally don't suffer from a disease, it's natural for you to feel heartache when a family member or loved one is suffering from disease.
For example, let's say a child has a skin disease. She is scratching herself all night long, and bloody pus comes out.
Then, as her mother watches her poor baby her heart must ache for her child and her tears will fall to the point of drying up.
If this disease was to disappear, can you imagine how her heart would be put at rest and how happy will she be!
Of course, no matter what kind of diseases are out there in this world, you don't need to worry because you are healed by the power of God.
Manmin members who live by the word of God never fear of any trials or afflictions no matter what they are.
There is nothing you are afraid of since God is protecting you. Even though you undergo a trial, if you overcome it, you will receive bigger blessing, and thus you are grateful.
Therefore, how much happier will you be in heaven where there is no such pain?
Moreover, the Bible says New Jerusalem which you long for is adorned as a bride.
Not only there is no sorrow, it is also filled with the best things so that you can enjoy the greatest happiness and joy forever and ever.
God says that, no matter great our imagination, once you go to heaven and see it with your own eyes, it is amazing beyond anything you can imagine.
Of course, you have learned deep spiritual things and you've heard the Heaven lecture series.
But, no matter how much you hear and learn, how can you actually feel its happiness and joy?
When you set foot there the first time, your jaw will drop and you will become speechless at the beauty of heaven.
However, the more important thing is that heaven is given only according to Justice.
No matter how much you long for it and cry for it, if you live your Christian life carelessly, you cannot enter New Jerusalem.
Only those who love God with all their lives, and perfectly adorn themselves as a bride can enter New Jerusalem which is like a bride.
That's why you are staying up all night tonight, and you cry out to God in your prayers every day.
Not many days have passed, since we began the year 2009, the Year of Blessing.
I urge every one of you to quickly become qualified to enter New Jerusalem. Let's not let anyone be missing.
Since you have heard countless spiritual messages, I ask you to analyze yourself with the truth, and change before God.
Just as Apostle Paul said in 1 Corinthians 15:31, "I affirm, brethren, by the boasting in you which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily," may you receive everlasting glory in heaven by dying daily on earth, in the name of the Lord, Jesus Christ, I pray!
[Amen] |
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