1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:02,000 If you wanna find it, I'm sure you could. 2 00:00:02,920 --> 00:00:04,660 I know a lot of you are just as excited 3 00:00:04,660 --> 00:00:08,400 to be done with Revelation as probably I am. 4 00:00:08,400 --> 00:00:12,240 It has been heavy lifting for 12 weeks. 5 00:00:12,240 --> 00:00:14,740 What has been amazing in talking with my elders 6 00:00:14,740 --> 00:00:17,380 a couple weeks ago at our elders meeting 7 00:00:17,380 --> 00:00:19,540 was just the amount of conversations 8 00:00:19,540 --> 00:00:21,080 that we are having as a church, 9 00:00:21,080 --> 00:00:25,420 not just the one that's going on in the CLC after service, 10 00:00:25,420 --> 00:00:27,520 which again, we're gonna take a break for Advent, 11 00:00:27,520 --> 00:00:29,960 but then that'll be back in there in room B 12 00:00:29,960 --> 00:00:34,960 classroom B for the sermon series starting in January, Logos. 13 00:00:35,500 --> 00:00:37,740 And so not only those conversations, 14 00:00:37,740 --> 00:00:40,340 but just the different pockets of conversations 15 00:00:40,340 --> 00:00:41,900 that are had or the ones that you're having 16 00:00:41,900 --> 00:00:44,540 throughout the week, either the text messages I get, 17 00:00:44,540 --> 00:00:46,900 emails, or just conversations I know 18 00:00:46,900 --> 00:00:48,720 one of our small groups is studying it, 19 00:00:48,720 --> 00:00:51,480 I know BSF is studying it, and I've always thought 20 00:00:51,480 --> 00:00:55,060 for these past 12 weeks, God, there's something bigger 21 00:00:55,060 --> 00:00:57,820 you're doing here, and I just wanna know what it is. 22 00:00:57,820 --> 00:01:00,420 He has not yet told me, but I think there's this 23 00:01:00,420 --> 00:01:04,060 understanding of preparation, that the thing that we pull 24 00:01:04,060 --> 00:01:06,300 from the book of Revelation, I think, 25 00:01:06,300 --> 00:01:11,000 as kind of a high 10,000 foot view application 26 00:01:11,000 --> 00:01:13,940 is that the church needs to be prepared. 27 00:01:13,940 --> 00:01:15,180 And what does that mean? 28 00:01:15,180 --> 00:01:18,280 That the church should be prepared in its understanding, 29 00:01:18,280 --> 00:01:21,480 in its knowledge, in foundation of Christ, 30 00:01:21,480 --> 00:01:24,820 but then the church needs to be the ones going out 31 00:01:24,820 --> 00:01:27,180 shining that light, because one of the things 32 00:01:27,180 --> 00:01:30,660 that we see clearly, and it has been a lot like 33 00:01:30,660 --> 00:01:33,560 kind of a rated R movie over the last month, 34 00:01:33,560 --> 00:01:35,820 is the things that are happening to those 35 00:01:35,820 --> 00:01:40,440 that are not in Christ, those that are going to be 36 00:01:40,440 --> 00:01:43,800 forever in hell, and I know that there's some of you 37 00:01:43,800 --> 00:01:47,000 that you don't like that, it's hard to reconcile 38 00:01:47,000 --> 00:01:52,000 that a God that is that good has a place that bad 39 00:01:52,320 --> 00:01:54,720 prepared for people, but understand, 40 00:01:54,720 --> 00:01:57,080 that's been in the story the entire time. 41 00:01:57,080 --> 00:02:00,820 This is now just the fulfillment, but for a lot of us, 42 00:02:00,820 --> 00:02:03,620 we like that, we like when the hero comes in at the end 43 00:02:03,620 --> 00:02:06,260 and conquers and all of that, and we're gonna see that 44 00:02:06,260 --> 00:02:08,660 last week, and we're gonna see it today, 45 00:02:08,660 --> 00:02:11,660 but then we see what life's gonna be like. 46 00:02:11,660 --> 00:02:14,840 And I don't think we spend a lot of time there. 47 00:02:14,840 --> 00:02:17,360 A lot of us don't spend a lot of time thinking like, 48 00:02:17,360 --> 00:02:20,340 what are the activities we're gonna do in heaven? 49 00:02:20,340 --> 00:02:22,240 I know in the early, when we were talking about that, 50 00:02:22,240 --> 00:02:23,940 it's just gonna be a bunch of worship, 51 00:02:23,940 --> 00:02:27,380 and there's a lot of you that weren't thrilled. 52 00:02:27,380 --> 00:02:31,040 Like, pastor, all we're gonna do in heaven is worship? 53 00:02:31,040 --> 00:02:33,880 And I go, and you have a problem with that? 54 00:02:33,880 --> 00:02:35,380 Do you not wanna go there? 55 00:02:35,380 --> 00:02:37,980 Like, that's a much deeper question, 56 00:02:37,980 --> 00:02:42,460 but one of the things we're seeing today is this word new. 57 00:02:43,960 --> 00:02:48,400 Now, when you think of the word new, what comes to mind? 58 00:02:48,400 --> 00:02:51,800 Just right off the bat, new what? 59 00:02:51,800 --> 00:02:53,240 New baby, absolutely. 60 00:02:53,240 --> 00:02:55,540 You're experiencing a lot at this church 61 00:02:55,540 --> 00:02:57,180 the last six years, and it's awesome. 62 00:02:57,180 --> 00:03:00,180 New baby, new shoes, just as important. 63 00:03:02,940 --> 00:03:05,440 You know, yep, new home, yep. 64 00:03:08,380 --> 00:03:09,980 I see this list could get long. 65 00:03:09,980 --> 00:03:14,160 New bike, new life, sorry, that was a way better answer 66 00:03:14,160 --> 00:03:15,220 than my bike one. 67 00:03:15,220 --> 00:03:17,220 New life in Christ, absolutely. 68 00:03:17,220 --> 00:03:20,760 For some reason, I went to new car in my head. 69 00:03:20,760 --> 00:03:22,300 Not that we buy new cars, really, 70 00:03:22,300 --> 00:03:24,460 but there's something about having a new car. 71 00:03:24,460 --> 00:03:26,340 You get excited about it, and you get excited 72 00:03:26,340 --> 00:03:28,600 because of the new car. 73 00:03:28,600 --> 00:03:30,300 You all said it, I didn't, okay? 74 00:03:30,300 --> 00:03:34,400 But understand that when we have things new, 75 00:03:34,400 --> 00:03:36,640 there's something exciting about it. 76 00:03:36,640 --> 00:03:39,580 Think about this upcoming Christmas, 77 00:03:39,580 --> 00:03:41,220 and you're there, say you're, 78 00:03:41,220 --> 00:03:44,460 let's put us all eight years old, okay? 79 00:03:44,460 --> 00:03:46,420 Some of you, that's a bigger leap than others, 80 00:03:46,420 --> 00:03:48,860 but understand we're all eight, 81 00:03:48,860 --> 00:03:50,900 and you open up your Christmas gifts, 82 00:03:50,900 --> 00:03:52,900 and it is all used toys. 83 00:03:56,500 --> 00:03:58,800 Someone had a visceral reaction in the back. 84 00:03:58,800 --> 00:04:00,140 Did you throw up? 85 00:04:00,140 --> 00:04:01,940 It sounded like you might have thrown up. 86 00:04:01,940 --> 00:04:05,580 How are you feeling as a kid if you open up, 87 00:04:05,580 --> 00:04:08,920 eight years old, and it's all used toys? 88 00:04:10,720 --> 00:04:11,540 Depressed. 89 00:04:11,540 --> 00:04:13,720 Oh, that was my kid, okay. 90 00:04:17,320 --> 00:04:18,160 Others. 91 00:04:18,160 --> 00:04:20,000 Angry. 92 00:04:20,000 --> 00:04:21,580 Disappointed, sure. 93 00:04:23,940 --> 00:04:27,880 Yeah, that would totally change the feel of the day, right? 94 00:04:27,880 --> 00:04:30,920 If all of a sudden you opened up all your gifts, 95 00:04:30,920 --> 00:04:33,220 and they were all used toys. 96 00:04:33,220 --> 00:04:36,760 Now, I'm not gonna turn this into a thing for angel tree 97 00:04:36,760 --> 00:04:40,360 or anything like that, but there's something about new, 98 00:04:40,360 --> 00:04:41,560 and what we see in scripture, 99 00:04:41,560 --> 00:04:43,460 like I said at the beginning of service, 100 00:04:43,460 --> 00:04:47,000 we see Paul saying the old is gone, the new has come. 101 00:04:47,000 --> 00:04:48,460 We see in the book of Corinthians, 102 00:04:48,460 --> 00:04:50,440 what we see lit dimly in a mirror, 103 00:04:50,440 --> 00:04:52,640 we will one day see face to face. 104 00:04:52,640 --> 00:04:53,900 Friends, we've made it. 105 00:04:53,900 --> 00:04:55,440 We're here now. 106 00:04:55,440 --> 00:04:59,600 We are here to where we're going to see face to face God. 107 00:05:00,680 --> 00:05:01,680 We're going to see Christ. 108 00:05:01,680 --> 00:05:04,380 We're gonna see that relationship. 109 00:05:04,380 --> 00:05:07,820 So as we conclude the book of Revelation, 110 00:05:07,820 --> 00:05:10,360 one of the things we're gonna see is a new vision, 111 00:05:10,360 --> 00:05:12,620 a stunning vision of hope. 112 00:05:12,620 --> 00:05:15,800 And that hope, as we know, will not disappoint. 113 00:05:15,800 --> 00:05:18,060 We're gonna see the new heavens, the new earth, 114 00:05:18,060 --> 00:05:20,940 the eternal reign of the lamb. 115 00:05:20,940 --> 00:05:24,940 This is the redemptive story of salvation, 116 00:05:24,940 --> 00:05:28,840 the messianic covenant, Genesis chapter three. 117 00:05:28,840 --> 00:05:32,340 Now, we're going to see it in fulfillment. 118 00:05:32,340 --> 00:05:35,380 And so one of the things we have to reconcile 119 00:05:35,380 --> 00:05:38,120 is the thousand year reign. 120 00:05:38,120 --> 00:05:40,180 And you have a bunch of different camps, 121 00:05:40,180 --> 00:05:42,780 and you have a bunch of different camps 122 00:05:42,780 --> 00:05:46,220 of how we interpret the thousand year reign. 123 00:05:46,220 --> 00:05:48,260 You have your pre-millennials, 124 00:05:48,260 --> 00:05:49,700 so you have your post-millennials. 125 00:05:49,700 --> 00:05:52,260 More of the reform view, we take an ah millennial, 126 00:05:52,260 --> 00:05:55,740 that it's not a specific, it's more of a symbol 127 00:05:55,740 --> 00:05:58,600 that we stand on and we hold to, 128 00:05:58,600 --> 00:06:00,000 but then you get into, well, 129 00:06:00,000 --> 00:06:02,080 what about the left behind series? 130 00:06:02,080 --> 00:06:03,780 Okay, well, what about all of these things 131 00:06:03,780 --> 00:06:05,880 that one day, the DC Talk song, 132 00:06:05,880 --> 00:06:07,180 for all those that know it, 133 00:06:07,180 --> 00:06:09,480 two guys walking up a hill, 134 00:06:09,480 --> 00:06:13,320 one disappears and one's left standing still, 135 00:06:13,320 --> 00:06:16,220 and that's rapture theology. 136 00:06:16,220 --> 00:06:20,260 But understand that the reigning is the important thing. 137 00:06:21,360 --> 00:06:23,720 And where DC Talk encourages us, 138 00:06:23,720 --> 00:06:26,160 I wish we'd all been ready. 139 00:06:26,160 --> 00:06:30,660 Regardless of pre, of post, ah millennial, 140 00:06:30,660 --> 00:06:32,900 or my kind of cheesy way of looking at it, 141 00:06:32,900 --> 00:06:36,500 pan-millennialism, it all pans out in the end, 142 00:06:36,500 --> 00:06:40,080 is an understanding that Christ is the one reigning. 143 00:06:41,040 --> 00:06:43,080 Well, you know, if it's the pre, 144 00:06:43,080 --> 00:06:47,220 then I don't have to live through the hell on earth 145 00:06:47,220 --> 00:06:49,720 for that thousand years, okay? 146 00:06:49,720 --> 00:06:51,560 If you wanna look at it that way, that's fine, 147 00:06:51,560 --> 00:06:54,760 but the hope is you are set in Christ, 148 00:06:54,760 --> 00:06:56,760 you have assurance of salvation, 149 00:06:56,760 --> 00:07:00,600 and when the Lord reigns, the Lord is going to call you up 150 00:07:00,600 --> 00:07:06,640 to be in glory with him if you are not already there. 151 00:07:06,640 --> 00:07:10,380 John Calvin, founder of Reformed Theology, 152 00:07:10,380 --> 00:07:13,880 one of the foundations of the faith that we subscribe to 153 00:07:13,880 --> 00:07:18,780 here in his Institutes of Christian Religion says this, 154 00:07:18,780 --> 00:07:22,380 God has not appointed a day of judgment without reason, 155 00:07:22,380 --> 00:07:26,520 and he has also fixed it by his secret counsel, 156 00:07:26,520 --> 00:07:30,600 to the end that we may be unwearied, 157 00:07:30,600 --> 00:07:34,700 or with unwearied minds, continue to watch out for it. 158 00:07:34,700 --> 00:07:35,760 So what does that mean? 159 00:07:35,760 --> 00:07:37,940 That God has appointed a day. 160 00:07:37,940 --> 00:07:42,540 Stop using your energy to figure out when that day is, 161 00:07:42,540 --> 00:07:45,720 but live your life under the Lordship of Christ, 162 00:07:45,720 --> 00:07:48,020 shining the light of the gospel, 163 00:07:48,020 --> 00:07:49,620 in your thoughts, your words, your deeds. 164 00:07:49,620 --> 00:07:52,480 That's basically the Christian life in a nutshell. 165 00:07:52,480 --> 00:07:54,920 What Calvin is saying, and if you continue to read, 166 00:07:54,920 --> 00:07:57,720 in his book three, especially in that chapter, 167 00:07:57,720 --> 00:08:01,120 is he's talking about the church getting so tied up 168 00:08:01,120 --> 00:08:04,100 and trying to put it in our Google calendar 169 00:08:04,100 --> 00:08:07,460 when this is all going to go down. 170 00:08:07,460 --> 00:08:10,000 Luther, Zwickley, Calvin, 171 00:08:10,000 --> 00:08:13,500 all of your kind of Protestant reformers 172 00:08:13,500 --> 00:08:18,680 all land in a place of stop trying to figure it out, 173 00:08:18,680 --> 00:08:20,780 because you're going to miss things. 174 00:08:20,780 --> 00:08:22,820 You're going to get weary of that. 175 00:08:22,820 --> 00:08:25,720 And as John, him and I are on first name basis, 176 00:08:25,720 --> 00:08:28,520 as John wants to encourage us, 177 00:08:28,520 --> 00:08:33,420 don't be wearied about it, but be ready for it. 178 00:08:33,420 --> 00:08:35,360 Whether it's tomorrow, 179 00:08:35,360 --> 00:08:38,560 or the dust from your bones is long gone, 180 00:08:38,560 --> 00:08:41,800 it doesn't matter, because how this comes to an end 181 00:08:41,800 --> 00:08:45,240 has nothing to do with you or me. 182 00:08:46,140 --> 00:08:47,340 Let me repeat that. 183 00:08:47,340 --> 00:08:51,340 How this book, how life culminates at the end, 184 00:08:51,340 --> 00:08:54,520 has nothing to do with Jim Holland owner 185 00:08:54,520 --> 00:08:57,180 or insert your name here. 186 00:08:57,180 --> 00:08:59,860 Insert this church here. 187 00:08:59,860 --> 00:09:02,180 Insert your position in the church. 188 00:09:02,180 --> 00:09:03,320 None of that matters. 189 00:09:03,320 --> 00:09:05,100 This has all been appointed. 190 00:09:05,100 --> 00:09:08,200 This is all going down the way God wants it to go down. 191 00:09:08,200 --> 00:09:13,200 So, let's jump into Revelation 20, the first six verses. 192 00:09:14,000 --> 00:09:16,240 Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, 193 00:09:16,240 --> 00:09:18,600 holding his hand, the key, 194 00:09:18,600 --> 00:09:21,200 to the bottomless pit and the great chain. 195 00:09:21,200 --> 00:09:23,880 Then he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, 196 00:09:23,880 --> 00:09:25,880 who is the devil and Satan, 197 00:09:25,880 --> 00:09:28,020 and bound him for a thousand years, 198 00:09:28,020 --> 00:09:29,680 and threw him into the pit, 199 00:09:29,680 --> 00:09:31,880 and shut it and sealed it over him, 200 00:09:31,880 --> 00:09:34,920 so that he might not deceive the nations any longer, 201 00:09:34,920 --> 00:09:37,120 until the a thousand years were ended. 202 00:09:37,120 --> 00:09:41,020 After that, he must be released for a little while. 203 00:09:41,020 --> 00:09:43,460 Then I saw thrones, and seated on them 204 00:09:43,460 --> 00:09:47,000 were those whom the authority to judge was committed. 205 00:09:47,000 --> 00:09:50,340 Also, I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded 206 00:09:50,340 --> 00:09:53,040 for the testimony of Jesus and the word of God, 207 00:09:53,040 --> 00:09:56,040 and those who had not worshiped the beast or his image, 208 00:09:56,040 --> 00:09:58,740 and had not received its mark on their foreheads 209 00:09:58,740 --> 00:09:59,980 or their hands. 210 00:09:59,980 --> 00:10:03,820 They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. 211 00:10:03,820 --> 00:10:06,280 The rest of the dead did not come to life 212 00:10:06,280 --> 00:10:08,820 until the thousand years were ended. 213 00:10:08,820 --> 00:10:10,920 This is the first resurrection. 214 00:10:10,920 --> 00:10:13,300 Blessed and holy is the one who shares 215 00:10:13,300 --> 00:10:15,220 in the first resurrection. 216 00:10:15,220 --> 00:10:18,400 Over such, the second death has no power, 217 00:10:18,400 --> 00:10:21,400 but they will be priests of God and of Christ, 218 00:10:21,400 --> 00:10:25,200 and they will reign with him for a thousand years. 219 00:10:25,200 --> 00:10:26,480 What does this mean? 220 00:10:26,480 --> 00:10:29,000 How do we interpret this data? 221 00:10:29,000 --> 00:10:33,180 This section describes Satan being bound for a thousand years, 222 00:10:33,180 --> 00:10:37,220 symbolizing Christ's triumph over evil. 223 00:10:37,220 --> 00:10:41,360 Again, the thousand years is debated even to this day. 224 00:10:41,360 --> 00:10:42,480 Is it literal? 225 00:10:42,480 --> 00:10:44,220 Is it symbolic? 226 00:10:44,220 --> 00:10:47,420 But again, from the reformed perspective, 227 00:10:47,420 --> 00:10:50,020 it signifies the current reign of Christ 228 00:10:50,020 --> 00:10:54,300 following his resurrection and his ascension. 229 00:10:54,300 --> 00:10:57,200 That we look at this as a symbolic understanding 230 00:10:57,200 --> 00:10:59,700 of Jesus' reign now, 231 00:10:59,700 --> 00:11:04,540 because we believe there has been no gap to Jesus' reign. 232 00:11:04,540 --> 00:11:09,540 That everything, if every square inch belongs to Christ, 233 00:11:10,080 --> 00:11:13,820 then his reign has been, is, and will be 234 00:11:13,820 --> 00:11:15,560 forever and ever, amen. 235 00:11:15,560 --> 00:11:17,760 And it just makes it a lot easier, 236 00:11:17,760 --> 00:11:19,760 because then you don't have to get so caught up in it. 237 00:11:19,760 --> 00:11:23,800 Now, some of you will, and you just, you need to know. 238 00:11:23,800 --> 00:11:25,600 God's gonna let you know what you need to know, 239 00:11:25,600 --> 00:11:26,760 when you need to know it. 240 00:11:26,760 --> 00:11:30,640 That's his role of being sovereign, and ours not. 241 00:11:30,640 --> 00:11:32,600 If we had all the knowledge of the world, 242 00:11:32,600 --> 00:11:34,700 if we had all of those things, 243 00:11:36,380 --> 00:11:37,540 I may be so bold to say, 244 00:11:37,540 --> 00:11:40,940 I think some of us would logicalize my word, God, out of it. 245 00:11:42,480 --> 00:11:44,720 It's what we have faith for, 246 00:11:44,720 --> 00:11:47,320 dependence on God for. 247 00:11:48,720 --> 00:11:51,280 So Satan's binding reflects for us, 248 00:11:51,280 --> 00:11:55,760 his inability to prevent the spread of the gospel. 249 00:11:55,760 --> 00:11:57,960 We see that in Matthew chapter 12. 250 00:11:57,960 --> 00:11:59,800 And the first resurrection points 251 00:11:59,800 --> 00:12:02,860 to the spiritual regeneration of believers. 252 00:12:02,860 --> 00:12:07,680 If Christ is not reigning, hear this, 253 00:12:07,680 --> 00:12:11,640 if Christ is not reigning, you are not saved. 254 00:12:11,640 --> 00:12:13,340 Sit with that for a minute. 255 00:12:13,340 --> 00:12:15,980 Some people think that Christ's reign is coming, 256 00:12:15,980 --> 00:12:17,180 that it's not now. 257 00:12:18,280 --> 00:12:20,240 I don't want that, I would not want that, 258 00:12:20,240 --> 00:12:21,980 because that means we probably have the license 259 00:12:21,980 --> 00:12:23,120 to do whatever we want, 260 00:12:23,120 --> 00:12:26,180 and there would be, in some ways, no consequences. 261 00:12:26,180 --> 00:12:28,580 Because if the king is not in authority, 262 00:12:28,580 --> 00:12:30,820 then there's no keeper at the zoo, 263 00:12:30,820 --> 00:12:32,860 and the animals can do whatever they want. 264 00:12:32,860 --> 00:12:35,620 Sorry, those are completely two metaphors mixed together, 265 00:12:35,620 --> 00:12:36,800 but you get it. 266 00:12:36,800 --> 00:12:40,440 So understand that the saints reigning with Christ, 267 00:12:40,440 --> 00:12:45,440 highlights the victory you and I have in life. 268 00:12:45,440 --> 00:12:47,840 That if you are a member of the church, 269 00:12:47,840 --> 00:12:49,840 meaning you've made that profession of faith, 270 00:12:49,840 --> 00:12:51,040 you've gone through that, 271 00:12:51,040 --> 00:12:53,240 not that that signifies your salvation, 272 00:12:53,240 --> 00:12:57,120 but that means you're standing on your own faith. 273 00:12:57,120 --> 00:12:59,120 So what do we do with the kids in the room? 274 00:12:59,960 --> 00:13:01,520 That's another sermon series, 275 00:13:01,520 --> 00:13:03,360 but understand, I believe Jesus 276 00:13:03,360 --> 00:13:06,160 calls the little children to himself, 277 00:13:06,160 --> 00:13:08,460 and if they've not had that understanding 278 00:13:08,460 --> 00:13:10,960 of the regeneration of the Spirit, 279 00:13:10,960 --> 00:13:14,000 then they are in the love of Christ. 280 00:13:14,000 --> 00:13:17,040 They are in that, much like we see in the gospels. 281 00:13:17,040 --> 00:13:22,040 But understand that Christ needs to be reigning, doesn't he? 282 00:13:23,480 --> 00:13:24,980 Think about your life for a minute, 283 00:13:24,980 --> 00:13:29,980 and if you have the knowledge that Christ isn't in control, 284 00:13:29,980 --> 00:13:31,780 how are you taking that? 285 00:13:32,780 --> 00:13:36,780 It's chaos, because there's that thing called hope 286 00:13:36,780 --> 00:13:39,960 that you won't have, and I don't know about you, 287 00:13:39,960 --> 00:13:44,460 but hope is what gets us through our days. 288 00:13:44,460 --> 00:13:47,660 Hope is what gets us through the trials of life. 289 00:13:47,660 --> 00:13:49,660 Hope is what gets us through 290 00:13:49,660 --> 00:13:52,800 the events of the book of Revelation. 291 00:13:52,800 --> 00:13:57,300 Christ's authority is unshaken, and his kingdom advances. 292 00:13:57,300 --> 00:14:01,820 So we see Satan's final defeat in verses seven through 10. 293 00:14:03,320 --> 00:14:05,220 And when the thousand years were ended, 294 00:14:05,220 --> 00:14:07,120 Satan will be released from his prison 295 00:14:07,120 --> 00:14:09,680 and will come out to deceive the nations 296 00:14:09,680 --> 00:14:12,460 that are at the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, 297 00:14:12,460 --> 00:14:14,800 to gather them for battle. 298 00:14:14,800 --> 00:14:17,320 Their number is like the sand of the sea, 299 00:14:17,320 --> 00:14:20,460 and they march up over the broad plain of the earth 300 00:14:20,460 --> 00:14:23,540 and surround the camp of the saints in the beloved city. 301 00:14:23,540 --> 00:14:26,100 But fire came down from heaven and consumed them, 302 00:14:26,100 --> 00:14:28,800 and the devil who had deceived them 303 00:14:28,800 --> 00:14:31,540 was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur, 304 00:14:31,540 --> 00:14:34,620 where the beast and the false prophet were, 305 00:14:34,620 --> 00:14:39,620 and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever. 306 00:14:39,620 --> 00:14:44,620 So this symbolizes the final surge of rebellion against God. 307 00:14:44,620 --> 00:14:47,920 We've seen this, this rebellion. 308 00:14:47,920 --> 00:14:49,720 We saw it last week, we saw it two weeks ago, 309 00:14:49,720 --> 00:14:51,660 saw it three weeks ago. 310 00:14:51,660 --> 00:14:54,160 And the imagery of Gog and Magog is drawn 311 00:14:54,160 --> 00:14:59,160 from Ezekiel 38 and 39, representing forces of evil, 312 00:14:59,160 --> 00:15:02,000 uniting to oppose God. 313 00:15:02,000 --> 00:15:07,000 Yet God's power is seen and divisively destroys them 314 00:15:07,020 --> 00:15:09,020 with fire from heaven. 315 00:15:09,020 --> 00:15:12,020 Notice how fire is used in this. 316 00:15:12,020 --> 00:15:14,020 We see the fire of the Holy Spirit, 317 00:15:14,020 --> 00:15:17,020 we see the fire purifying things in scripture. 318 00:15:17,020 --> 00:15:18,320 That is not what this is. 319 00:15:18,320 --> 00:15:22,820 This is the destroying eternal fire of damnation, 320 00:15:22,820 --> 00:15:24,820 fire of the abyss. 321 00:15:26,260 --> 00:15:28,660 This is where we get the understanding that hell is hot. 322 00:15:28,660 --> 00:15:31,160 It's we get the fire of the abyss. 323 00:15:31,160 --> 00:15:34,180 It's not, we pull it from here, right? 324 00:15:34,180 --> 00:15:38,180 That there's fire is used to torment for eternity. 325 00:15:41,180 --> 00:15:43,180 Verses 11 through 15 breaks down 326 00:15:43,180 --> 00:15:46,180 the great white throne of judgment. 327 00:15:47,180 --> 00:15:49,180 Then I saw the great white throne and him 328 00:15:49,180 --> 00:15:50,680 who was seated on it. 329 00:15:50,680 --> 00:15:53,200 From his presence earth and sky fled away, 330 00:15:53,200 --> 00:15:55,200 and no place was found for them. 331 00:15:55,200 --> 00:15:59,200 And I saw the dead great and small standing before the throne. 332 00:15:59,200 --> 00:16:02,200 Books were opened, then another book was opened, 333 00:16:02,200 --> 00:16:04,200 which was the book of life. 334 00:16:05,200 --> 00:16:08,200 And the dead were judged by what was written in these books 335 00:16:08,200 --> 00:16:10,200 according to what they had done. 336 00:16:10,200 --> 00:16:13,200 And the sea gave up the dead who were in it. 337 00:16:13,200 --> 00:16:16,220 Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them. 338 00:16:16,220 --> 00:16:19,220 And they were judged, each one of them, 339 00:16:19,220 --> 00:16:21,220 according to what they had done. 340 00:16:21,220 --> 00:16:25,220 Then Hades, death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. 341 00:16:25,220 --> 00:16:28,220 This is the second death, the lake of fire. 342 00:16:28,220 --> 00:16:31,220 And if anyone's name was not written in the book of life, 343 00:16:31,220 --> 00:16:35,240 he was thrown into the lake of fire. 344 00:16:38,240 --> 00:16:41,240 All right, we're ending with a bang, aren't we? 345 00:16:43,240 --> 00:16:45,240 So what do we do with this? 346 00:16:45,240 --> 00:16:47,240 How do we reconcile this? 347 00:16:47,240 --> 00:16:50,240 Well, it's really everything you guys have known 348 00:16:50,240 --> 00:16:52,240 if you've grown up in the church. 349 00:16:53,240 --> 00:16:56,260 That one day we are going to be judged. 350 00:16:56,260 --> 00:16:59,260 One day we are going to be held accountable 351 00:16:59,260 --> 00:17:03,260 for the things we have done in life. 352 00:17:03,260 --> 00:17:07,260 Collectively, 90% of a statistic I just made up, 353 00:17:07,260 --> 00:17:10,260 our bodies just froze. 354 00:17:11,260 --> 00:17:17,260 Fear not, because in Christ there is no condemnation. 355 00:17:17,260 --> 00:17:19,260 What does that mean? 356 00:17:19,260 --> 00:17:21,260 That means when Christ died on the cross, 357 00:17:21,260 --> 00:17:23,260 his righteousness was imputed, 358 00:17:23,260 --> 00:17:25,260 drenched all over us like a fire hose. 359 00:17:25,260 --> 00:17:31,260 And that when God sees you, he sees his son. 360 00:17:31,260 --> 00:17:34,260 That's what you want. 361 00:17:34,260 --> 00:17:36,260 That's what salvation is. 362 00:17:36,260 --> 00:17:40,260 Because if we think that it's what we've done, 363 00:17:40,260 --> 00:17:42,260 that we've climbed up the mountain, 364 00:17:42,260 --> 00:17:44,260 we've beat the drum of church, we've volunteered, 365 00:17:44,260 --> 00:17:46,260 we've done all of these things, 366 00:17:46,260 --> 00:17:49,260 what you're doing is you're trying to get dad or heavenly father 367 00:17:49,260 --> 00:17:52,260 to see you in your works. 368 00:17:52,260 --> 00:17:56,260 And friends, I love you, and I say this first to myself, 369 00:17:56,260 --> 00:18:01,260 our works mean nothing without Christ. 370 00:18:01,260 --> 00:18:04,260 Without Christ in our life, they mean nothing. 371 00:18:04,260 --> 00:18:07,260 That judgment will go wrong for you, 372 00:18:07,260 --> 00:18:11,260 for those of us that are not in Christ, 373 00:18:11,260 --> 00:18:14,260 who do not have Christ's complete victory 374 00:18:14,260 --> 00:18:16,260 over sin and death in our lives. 375 00:18:16,260 --> 00:18:19,260 But humanity will be judged. 376 00:18:19,260 --> 00:18:22,260 And I know there's some of you that engage us and go, 377 00:18:22,260 --> 00:18:24,260 I'd really love to know when that is, 378 00:18:24,260 --> 00:18:26,260 so then I'll make it right the day before 379 00:18:26,260 --> 00:18:29,260 like I'm cramming for some test. 380 00:18:29,260 --> 00:18:31,260 Friend, that's not how it works. 381 00:18:31,260 --> 00:18:33,260 Grow up. 382 00:18:33,260 --> 00:18:36,260 Understand that a life lived in Christ is, 383 00:18:36,260 --> 00:18:39,260 though it has its mountaintops and its valleys, 384 00:18:39,260 --> 00:18:42,260 Christ remains. 385 00:18:42,260 --> 00:18:46,260 This is an understanding of just how important it is 386 00:18:46,260 --> 00:18:51,260 to be made right with Jesus. 387 00:18:51,260 --> 00:18:55,260 And for some of us, we're playing with fire. 388 00:18:55,260 --> 00:18:57,260 We're living in a certain sin. 389 00:18:57,260 --> 00:19:00,260 We're flirting with this God or this God, 390 00:19:00,260 --> 00:19:03,260 you know, this lust or this, like we talked about last week, 391 00:19:03,260 --> 00:19:06,260 that there are so many things in life 392 00:19:06,260 --> 00:19:10,260 that would much rather have you end up in a lake of fire. 393 00:19:10,260 --> 00:19:13,260 Yeah, it may give you momentary pleasure 394 00:19:13,260 --> 00:19:16,260 for a minute, five minutes, a year, 395 00:19:16,260 --> 00:19:17,260 but where does it end up? 396 00:19:17,260 --> 00:19:19,260 It ends up here. 397 00:19:19,260 --> 00:19:21,260 It doesn't end up in glory. 398 00:19:21,260 --> 00:19:23,260 You don't make it to the New Jerusalem. 399 00:19:23,260 --> 00:19:25,260 You don't get in the New Creation. 400 00:19:25,260 --> 00:19:31,260 Those not in Christ, this is the end. 401 00:19:31,260 --> 00:19:33,260 I don't know other way to say it. 402 00:19:33,260 --> 00:19:35,260 This is hell. 403 00:19:35,260 --> 00:19:38,260 This is the reality of no God in your life, 404 00:19:38,260 --> 00:19:44,260 no hope of resurrection, no hope of anything. 405 00:19:44,260 --> 00:19:47,260 Now, I know we all try not to have enemies in life, 406 00:19:47,260 --> 00:19:50,260 but I wouldn't wish that on my worst enemy. 407 00:19:50,260 --> 00:19:52,260 So what do we do with that? 408 00:19:52,260 --> 00:19:56,260 Is we go into chapter 21, which we're finally, 409 00:19:56,260 --> 00:19:59,260 okay, now we're gonna be sitting in the good stuff. 410 00:19:59,260 --> 00:20:03,260 But look at all of the bad stuff we had to wade through. 411 00:20:03,260 --> 00:20:05,260 I guarantee you that every one of us 412 00:20:05,260 --> 00:20:08,260 knows somebody in our lives that are not saved. 413 00:20:08,260 --> 00:20:10,260 And if everybody in your life is saved, 414 00:20:10,260 --> 00:20:13,260 you need to do a better job of engaging the world. 415 00:20:13,260 --> 00:20:14,260 Okay? 416 00:20:14,260 --> 00:20:17,260 Because I guarantee you we all know somebody in our life 417 00:20:17,260 --> 00:20:22,260 that this is their, this is their eternity. 418 00:20:22,260 --> 00:20:29,260 How are you, how am I, how is Munster Church okay with that? 419 00:20:29,260 --> 00:20:31,260 Man, they're not in Christ. 420 00:20:31,260 --> 00:20:34,260 They're gonna end up in the fire. 421 00:20:34,260 --> 00:20:36,260 Stinks to be them. 422 00:20:36,260 --> 00:20:38,260 We gotta do more than that, church. 423 00:20:38,260 --> 00:20:42,260 I'm encouraging us to do more than that. 424 00:20:42,260 --> 00:20:48,260 Because now we get to the final, amen. 425 00:20:48,260 --> 00:20:50,260 We get to the new creation. 426 00:20:50,260 --> 00:20:53,260 The new creation, chapter, Revelation 21. 427 00:20:53,260 --> 00:20:56,260 Then I saw a new heaven and new earth, 428 00:20:56,260 --> 00:20:59,260 where the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, 429 00:20:59,260 --> 00:21:00,260 and the sea was no more. 430 00:21:00,260 --> 00:21:02,260 And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, 431 00:21:02,260 --> 00:21:05,260 coming down from heaven, from God, 432 00:21:05,260 --> 00:21:08,260 prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 433 00:21:08,260 --> 00:21:10,260 And behold, a loud voice from the throne saying, 434 00:21:10,260 --> 00:21:17,260 Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. 435 00:21:17,260 --> 00:21:18,260 Hang on to that. 436 00:21:18,260 --> 00:21:20,260 He will dwell with them. 437 00:21:20,260 --> 00:21:22,260 They will be his people, 438 00:21:22,260 --> 00:21:26,260 and God himself will be with them as their God. 439 00:21:26,260 --> 00:21:30,260 He will wipe every tear from their eyes, 440 00:21:30,260 --> 00:21:32,260 and death shall be no more. 441 00:21:32,260 --> 00:21:38,260 Neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, 442 00:21:38,260 --> 00:21:44,260 for the former things have passed away. 443 00:21:44,260 --> 00:21:45,260 Amen. 444 00:21:45,260 --> 00:21:47,260 That's not the end of the sermon. 445 00:21:47,260 --> 00:21:49,260 We still have more to do. 446 00:21:49,260 --> 00:21:51,260 But there it is. 447 00:21:51,260 --> 00:21:55,260 Your life, my life, the life of the church. 448 00:21:55,260 --> 00:21:58,260 This church has had a life for 154 years, right? 449 00:21:58,260 --> 00:22:00,260 It's gone through a fire. 450 00:22:00,260 --> 00:22:02,260 It's gone through ups and downs. 451 00:22:02,260 --> 00:22:03,260 It's gone through pastors. 452 00:22:03,260 --> 00:22:04,260 It's gone through building projects. 453 00:22:04,260 --> 00:22:10,260 It's gone through all these things for this. 454 00:22:10,260 --> 00:22:12,260 This is the goal. 455 00:22:12,260 --> 00:22:14,260 This is the end. 456 00:22:14,260 --> 00:22:17,260 The new heavens, the new earth, where there is no pain, 457 00:22:17,260 --> 00:22:20,260 there is no crying, there is no mourning. 458 00:22:20,260 --> 00:22:21,260 Why? 459 00:22:21,260 --> 00:22:25,260 Because the old things have passed away. 460 00:22:25,260 --> 00:22:29,260 Behold, the new has come. 461 00:22:29,260 --> 00:22:32,260 And who has been there from the beginning, 462 00:22:32,260 --> 00:22:38,260 everlasting upon everlasting, Jesus Christ. 463 00:22:38,260 --> 00:22:41,260 John describes a new heaven and a new earth 464 00:22:41,260 --> 00:22:45,260 because the old has passed away. 465 00:22:45,260 --> 00:22:51,260 All this junk, all the darkness, all the lies, all the division, 466 00:22:51,260 --> 00:22:58,260 all the murder, all the pain, all the destruction, all the darkness, gone. 467 00:22:58,260 --> 00:23:01,260 And the new has come. 468 00:23:01,260 --> 00:23:09,260 This image fulfills for us, people that subscribe heavily to covenant theology, 469 00:23:09,260 --> 00:23:14,260 God's covenant with His people, every time we've come to the table, 470 00:23:14,260 --> 00:23:19,260 every baptized baby, every baptized adult, every profession of faith, 471 00:23:19,260 --> 00:23:25,260 all the covenant stuff, all culminates here. 472 00:23:25,260 --> 00:23:28,260 From the Garden of Eden to the prophecies of Isaiah, 473 00:23:28,260 --> 00:23:32,260 God has always promised restoration. 474 00:23:32,260 --> 00:23:38,260 He has always promised something new. 475 00:23:38,260 --> 00:23:40,260 And what did I tell you to hold on to? 476 00:23:40,260 --> 00:23:46,260 That God Himself will be with His people. 477 00:23:46,260 --> 00:23:49,260 So what does that mean? 478 00:23:49,260 --> 00:23:52,260 And this hit me like a ton of bricks this week. 479 00:23:52,260 --> 00:24:00,260 This means there is no more faith. 480 00:24:00,260 --> 00:24:02,260 Let that hang for a second. 481 00:24:02,260 --> 00:24:05,260 Some of you are like, did he just preach heresy? 482 00:24:05,260 --> 00:24:07,260 No, I don't think I did. 483 00:24:07,260 --> 00:24:11,260 Email your elder. 484 00:24:11,260 --> 00:24:14,260 There is no need for it anymore 485 00:24:14,260 --> 00:24:21,260 because everything has become new and God is now sitting next to you. 486 00:24:21,260 --> 00:24:25,260 He is now there in your everyday life. 487 00:24:25,260 --> 00:24:28,260 Because is that not what faith is? 488 00:24:28,260 --> 00:24:32,260 Faith is the assured of things unseen. 489 00:24:32,260 --> 00:24:37,260 Heideberg Catechism, Lord's Day 7, tells us faith is the knowledge and the conviction 490 00:24:37,260 --> 00:24:41,260 that not only does God exist, but that God is at work in my life 491 00:24:41,260 --> 00:24:47,260 and I have a job to do. My faith should be active. 492 00:24:47,260 --> 00:24:50,260 And this is where it's like, I get it. 493 00:24:50,260 --> 00:24:52,260 You don't need to do that anymore. 494 00:24:52,260 --> 00:24:58,260 You are now in the presence of God forever and ever. 495 00:24:58,260 --> 00:25:03,260 So we need to live with an unshakable hope in this application. 496 00:25:03,260 --> 00:25:07,260 In a world filled with suffering and uncertainty, 497 00:25:07,260 --> 00:25:12,260 believers are called to live with hope rooted in God's promises. 498 00:25:12,260 --> 00:25:15,260 This hope should transform how we face trials, 499 00:25:15,260 --> 00:25:19,260 knowing that pain and death are now temporary. 500 00:25:19,260 --> 00:25:23,260 Encourage your family and community by being a beacon of hope. 501 00:25:23,260 --> 00:25:27,260 Share the good news that God is making all things new 502 00:25:27,260 --> 00:25:33,260 and demonstrate compassion to those who are hurting. 503 00:25:33,260 --> 00:25:37,260 There it is. It is right there. 504 00:25:37,260 --> 00:25:42,260 Everything that we've believed, everything we've strived for, 505 00:25:42,260 --> 00:25:47,260 learned about, stood on in our faith, what's got you through that ugly divorce, 506 00:25:47,260 --> 00:25:50,260 what's got you through that untimely death of a family member, 507 00:25:50,260 --> 00:25:55,260 what's got you through the hells of life, the mountaintops, the valleys, 508 00:25:55,260 --> 00:26:05,260 all of that now rests here with the hope that God sits next to you now. 509 00:26:05,260 --> 00:26:08,260 Remember when you were a kid and you had that nightmare 510 00:26:08,260 --> 00:26:12,260 and you went into your parents' room? 511 00:26:12,260 --> 00:26:15,260 How many of you went to mom's side? 512 00:26:15,260 --> 00:26:18,260 How many of you went to dad's side? 513 00:26:18,260 --> 00:26:21,260 You did it wrong. 514 00:26:21,260 --> 00:26:29,260 But you go there to be in the presence of your parent. Why? 515 00:26:29,260 --> 00:26:31,260 They're safe. 516 00:26:31,260 --> 00:26:38,260 I remember my stepdad Steve went in and punched the boogeyman in my closet. 517 00:26:38,260 --> 00:26:41,260 I don't know what he did, but I slept. 518 00:26:41,260 --> 00:26:47,260 We go to be with dad or mom. 519 00:26:47,260 --> 00:26:50,260 Now my parents made me sleep on the floor. 520 00:26:50,260 --> 00:26:51,260 Never mind. 521 00:26:51,260 --> 00:26:53,260 Okay, that was just some of my childhood coming out. 522 00:26:53,260 --> 00:26:56,260 Understand why do we do that? 523 00:26:56,260 --> 00:27:01,260 We go to get comfort because all the bad things go away. 524 00:27:01,260 --> 00:27:03,260 The parent is now here. 525 00:27:03,260 --> 00:27:10,260 The God, creator, sustainer is here now with us. 526 00:27:10,260 --> 00:27:12,260 So how do we live out this new reality? 527 00:27:12,260 --> 00:27:15,260 Let's get into the new holy city, the new Jerusalem. 528 00:27:15,260 --> 00:27:17,260 I'm going to fly through some of this. 529 00:27:17,260 --> 00:27:20,260 It would be really good for you to go back and read some of this 530 00:27:20,260 --> 00:27:27,260 because the references made here basically numerically is unbelievable. 531 00:27:27,260 --> 00:27:30,260 But let's read these verses to start, 9 through 14. 532 00:27:30,260 --> 00:27:36,260 Then came out the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the last seven plagues 533 00:27:36,260 --> 00:27:42,260 and spoke to me saying, come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the lamb. 534 00:27:42,260 --> 00:27:45,260 And he carried me away in the spirit to a great high mountain 535 00:27:45,260 --> 00:27:50,260 and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, 536 00:27:50,260 --> 00:27:55,260 having the glory of God, its radiance like a most rare jewel, 537 00:27:55,260 --> 00:27:58,260 like a jasper, clear as crystal. 538 00:27:58,260 --> 00:28:05,260 It had a great high wall and 12 gates, and at the gates 12 angels. 539 00:28:05,260 --> 00:28:10,260 And on the gates the names of the 12 tribes of the son of Israel were inscribed. 540 00:28:10,260 --> 00:28:14,260 On the east three gates, on the north three gates, the south three gates, 541 00:28:14,260 --> 00:28:16,260 and the west three gates. 542 00:28:16,260 --> 00:28:18,260 And the wall of the city had 12 foundations, 543 00:28:18,260 --> 00:28:23,260 and on them were the 12 names of the 12 apostles of the lamb. 544 00:28:23,260 --> 00:28:25,260 All right, here we go. 545 00:28:25,260 --> 00:28:26,260 Rapid fire. 546 00:28:26,260 --> 00:28:29,260 What is the significance of some of this? 547 00:28:29,260 --> 00:28:34,260 First, coming down from heaven, coming down from heaven from God 548 00:28:34,260 --> 00:28:42,260 emphasizes the new Jerusalem is not built by human hands but divine creation. 549 00:28:42,260 --> 00:28:47,260 That the new heaven and the new earth, the new Jerusalem is a gift of grace. 550 00:28:47,260 --> 00:28:48,260 What does it do? 551 00:28:48,260 --> 00:28:57,260 It contrasts the cities corrupted by sin with the perfection of God's handiwork. 552 00:28:57,260 --> 00:29:00,260 Even the ark was built by a human. 553 00:29:00,260 --> 00:29:04,260 This has been built completely by the creator God. 554 00:29:04,260 --> 00:29:06,260 Prepared as a bride adorned for her husband, 555 00:29:06,260 --> 00:29:12,260 the city is being kind of given a personality as the bride of Christ. 556 00:29:12,260 --> 00:29:14,260 What does this mean? 557 00:29:14,260 --> 00:29:18,260 It echoes the covenant relationship between God and his people. 558 00:29:18,260 --> 00:29:19,260 There's a purity here. 559 00:29:19,260 --> 00:29:22,260 This is a perfect city. 560 00:29:22,260 --> 00:29:24,260 The dwelling place of God is with man. 561 00:29:24,260 --> 00:29:28,260 This fulfills that covenant promise which we've already talked about. 562 00:29:28,260 --> 00:29:31,260 There's no more death, mourning, or crying. 563 00:29:31,260 --> 00:29:36,260 These mark the curses of Genesis chapter 3. 564 00:29:36,260 --> 00:29:43,260 Their absence signifies the complete restoration of the Messianic covenant. 565 00:29:43,260 --> 00:29:45,260 There's radiance and there's glory. 566 00:29:45,260 --> 00:29:50,260 Having the glory of God, it's radiance like the most rare jewel. 567 00:29:50,260 --> 00:29:53,260 So this city reflects God's glory. 568 00:29:53,260 --> 00:29:55,260 There is no need for sun or moon. 569 00:29:55,260 --> 00:30:01,260 The brilliance symbolizes the holiness and majesty of God's presence. 570 00:30:01,260 --> 00:30:04,260 If you continue to read what we did, it talks about its gold, 571 00:30:04,260 --> 00:30:07,260 clear as glass, made with precious stones. 572 00:30:07,260 --> 00:30:12,260 These materials associated with wealth and beauty in the first century 573 00:30:12,260 --> 00:30:18,260 signify an immeasurable value and purity in the new Jerusalem. 574 00:30:18,260 --> 00:30:25,260 The transparency of gold suggests perfect holiness and openness. 575 00:30:25,260 --> 00:30:28,260 There's 12 gates, names of the 12 tribes of Israel. 576 00:30:28,260 --> 00:30:32,260 This represents the inclusion of the Old Testament believers, 577 00:30:32,260 --> 00:30:36,260 signifying God's fulfilling covenant with Israel. 578 00:30:36,260 --> 00:30:39,260 Again, all of it is getting made new. 579 00:30:39,260 --> 00:30:42,260 All of it is being fulfilled. 580 00:30:42,260 --> 00:30:45,260 The city lies four square. 581 00:30:45,260 --> 00:30:48,260 Its length inside are the same as its width. 582 00:30:48,260 --> 00:30:50,260 We didn't read it, but it's in there. 583 00:30:50,260 --> 00:30:52,260 The numbers are staggering. 584 00:30:52,260 --> 00:30:57,260 The equal dimensions of 12,000 reflect perfect symmetry and completeness. 585 00:30:57,260 --> 00:31:01,260 The mirrors of the holy of holies of the temple symbolizing God's presence 586 00:31:01,260 --> 00:31:04,260 filling the entire city. 587 00:31:04,260 --> 00:31:09,260 The number 144 in the cubits of what was measured 588 00:31:09,260 --> 00:31:12,260 represents the fullness of God's people, 589 00:31:12,260 --> 00:31:16,260 echoing again the symbolic 144,000. 590 00:31:16,260 --> 00:31:20,260 What's interesting is you see the absence of a temple. 591 00:31:20,260 --> 00:31:21,260 For I saw no temple. 592 00:31:21,260 --> 00:31:24,260 The Lord, God Almighty, and the Lamb are its temple. 593 00:31:24,260 --> 00:31:29,260 In the Old Testament, the temple was the meeting place for God and his people. 594 00:31:29,260 --> 00:31:33,260 In the New Jerusalem, God's immediate presence. 595 00:31:33,260 --> 00:31:34,260 Think about this. 596 00:31:34,260 --> 00:31:36,260 This is amazing. 597 00:31:36,260 --> 00:31:39,260 It eliminates the need for a temple. 598 00:31:39,260 --> 00:31:41,260 We come here to worship God. 599 00:31:41,260 --> 00:31:44,260 Now, I know you can worship God every day, but whoa, whoa, whoa. 600 00:31:44,260 --> 00:31:49,260 But understand that this is representing that God is with his people. 601 00:31:49,260 --> 00:31:52,260 By its light, the nations will walk. 602 00:31:52,260 --> 00:31:59,260 That God's redemptive plan is for all, though some will not be saved. 603 00:31:59,260 --> 00:32:02,260 Its gates will never be shut. 604 00:32:02,260 --> 00:32:06,260 Ancient cities closed gates at night for protection. 605 00:32:06,260 --> 00:32:12,260 The open gate signifies eternal safety and unbroken access to God. 606 00:32:12,260 --> 00:32:14,260 I love that. 607 00:32:14,260 --> 00:32:17,260 So that's the way that it is, the foundations. 608 00:32:17,260 --> 00:32:21,260 Think about the 12 foundations are the 12 apostles. 609 00:32:21,260 --> 00:32:27,260 That their legacy is the foundation for the New Jerusalem. 610 00:32:27,260 --> 00:32:31,260 How great is it that our testimonies will be utilized 611 00:32:31,260 --> 00:32:37,260 in the face of the creation of a new place. 612 00:32:37,260 --> 00:32:42,260 And we hope and pray that it is filled with the people that we bring to the light. 613 00:32:42,260 --> 00:32:44,260 People that we bring to God. 614 00:32:44,260 --> 00:32:49,260 So what this is a call for is that we should be people of the Lamb. 615 00:32:49,260 --> 00:32:56,260 So as a church, as the church, we are called to reflect the holiness 616 00:32:56,260 --> 00:32:58,260 and beauty of the New Jerusalem. 617 00:32:58,260 --> 00:33:03,260 We should live in anticipation of that reality by pursuing holiness 618 00:33:03,260 --> 00:33:06,260 and engaging in acts of worship and service. 619 00:33:06,260 --> 00:33:08,260 Friends, examine your life. 620 00:33:08,260 --> 00:33:12,260 Are there areas where you have let worldly distractions 621 00:33:12,260 --> 00:33:15,260 take priority over your walk with God? 622 00:33:15,260 --> 00:33:21,260 Strive to live in a way that honors the Lord and points others to his grace. 623 00:33:21,260 --> 00:33:24,260 And we're coming to it, friends. 624 00:33:24,260 --> 00:33:30,260 Now we get the river of life and the tree of life. 625 00:33:30,260 --> 00:33:33,260 And we're going to read the first five verses. 626 00:33:33,260 --> 00:33:38,260 Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, 627 00:33:38,260 --> 00:33:44,260 flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb through the middle of the street of the city. 628 00:33:44,260 --> 00:33:48,260 Also on either side of the river, the tree of life with its 12 kinds of fruit, 629 00:33:48,260 --> 00:33:50,260 yielding its fruit each month. 630 00:33:50,260 --> 00:33:54,260 The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. 631 00:33:54,260 --> 00:33:57,260 No longer will there be anything accursed, 632 00:33:57,260 --> 00:34:01,260 but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, 633 00:34:01,260 --> 00:34:04,260 and his servants will worship him. 634 00:34:04,260 --> 00:34:09,260 And they will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads, 635 00:34:09,260 --> 00:34:11,260 and the night will be no more. 636 00:34:11,260 --> 00:34:14,260 They will need no light of lamp or sun, 637 00:34:14,260 --> 00:34:17,260 for the Lord God will be their light, 638 00:34:17,260 --> 00:34:22,260 and they will reign forever and ever. 639 00:34:22,260 --> 00:34:27,260 Flowing from the throne of God and the Lamb is the river of the water of life. 640 00:34:27,260 --> 00:34:29,260 We go back to the garden. 641 00:34:29,260 --> 00:34:32,260 We now are in the new city. 642 00:34:32,260 --> 00:34:34,260 What does this symbolize? 643 00:34:34,260 --> 00:34:40,260 The water of life symbolizes the continual outpouring of God's life-giving grace. 644 00:34:40,260 --> 00:34:43,260 The tree of life bearing 12 kinds of fruits 645 00:34:43,260 --> 00:34:48,260 and those leaves bring healing to the nation recalls Eden, 646 00:34:48,260 --> 00:34:51,260 but in a more glorious fulfillment. 647 00:34:51,260 --> 00:34:59,260 Humanity's access to the tree of life signifies that final reversal of Genesis chapter 3. 648 00:34:59,260 --> 00:35:02,260 Remember, Adam and Eve were not allowed back in, 649 00:35:02,260 --> 00:35:05,260 because they had already eaten from the knowledge of good and evil. 650 00:35:05,260 --> 00:35:08,260 The tree that they had not eaten from was the tree of life, 651 00:35:08,260 --> 00:35:11,260 where they would forever be in sin. 652 00:35:11,260 --> 00:35:14,260 So what does God do? He puts the flaming cherubim there. 653 00:35:14,260 --> 00:35:16,260 No one's allowed back in. 654 00:35:16,260 --> 00:35:18,260 Now there is no cherubim. 655 00:35:18,260 --> 00:35:23,260 Now the people are allowed back in. 656 00:35:23,260 --> 00:35:26,260 The river and tree point us back to the Garden of Eden, 657 00:35:26,260 --> 00:35:29,260 but in a greater fulfilling way. 658 00:35:29,260 --> 00:35:36,260 This is the abundance and the sustenance of eternal life in Christ. 659 00:35:36,260 --> 00:35:38,260 So what does that mean for us? 660 00:35:38,260 --> 00:35:43,260 The abundant life offered by Christ starts now. 661 00:35:43,260 --> 00:35:48,260 Believers are called to be conduits of God's life-giving presence, 662 00:35:48,260 --> 00:35:54,260 sharing the gospel and working for the healing of broken relationships and communities. 663 00:35:54,260 --> 00:35:59,260 Consider ways you can be a source of healing and refreshment for others. 664 00:35:59,260 --> 00:36:04,260 This could be through acts of service, the sharing of your faith, 665 00:36:04,260 --> 00:36:08,260 or being an advocate for peace and justice in your community. 666 00:36:08,260 --> 00:36:13,260 There's activity here, friends. 667 00:36:13,260 --> 00:36:17,260 So I have these two final points. 668 00:36:17,260 --> 00:36:20,260 And friends, this has been a journey. 669 00:36:20,260 --> 00:36:24,260 And I told myself I'm not going to get emotional, so I'm going to try not to. 670 00:36:24,260 --> 00:36:27,260 But this is what I want us all to understand. 671 00:36:27,260 --> 00:36:31,260 The glory of the Lamb and our eternal future. 672 00:36:31,260 --> 00:36:35,260 As we close this powerful journey through Revelation, 673 00:36:35,260 --> 00:36:42,260 we stand in awe of the victorious Lamb and the promise of the new heaven and new earth. 674 00:36:42,260 --> 00:36:48,260 The vision we've been given is not just a hope for the future, 675 00:36:48,260 --> 00:36:56,260 but a call to live in the beauty and the reality of God's kingdom now. 676 00:36:56,260 --> 00:37:01,260 Sin, death, and Babylon's allure have no ultimate power. 677 00:37:01,260 --> 00:37:09,260 Christ has conquered, and his glory shines forever. 678 00:37:09,260 --> 00:37:13,260 If you are in the walk of choir, I'm going to ask you to come up now 679 00:37:13,260 --> 00:37:17,260 as I give us the final charge. 680 00:37:17,260 --> 00:37:20,260 Friends, we've made it. 681 00:37:20,260 --> 00:37:23,260 It wasn't easy, but we've made it. 682 00:37:23,260 --> 00:37:27,260 And you will have an opportunity to join with them in your seats as we sing. 683 00:37:27,260 --> 00:37:31,260 But with hearts full of gratitude and anticipation, 684 00:37:31,260 --> 00:37:37,260 let us turn our eyes to Jesus, the Lamb who is worthy of all praise. 685 00:37:37,260 --> 00:37:41,260 As we prepare to sing, hallelujah, salvation, and glory, 686 00:37:41,260 --> 00:37:49,260 let the words of our song be a reflection of the redeemed hope and deep worship. 687 00:37:49,260 --> 00:37:55,260 Declare today as we declare together the victory and majesty of our God, 688 00:37:55,260 --> 00:38:00,260 and let our voices join the heavenly chorus that proclaims, 689 00:38:00,260 --> 00:38:03,260 for the Lord our God is mighty. 690 00:38:03,260 --> 00:38:06,260 The Lord of God is omnipotent. 691 00:38:06,260 --> 00:38:07,260 Hallelujah. 692 00:38:07,260 --> 00:38:13,260 Let us sing, for our kingdom reigns, our king reigns forever. 693 00:38:13,260 --> 00:38:23,260 We stand if you are able.