...from the desk of Rande Wayne Smith D.Min., Th.M., M.Div.

Heaven – 3

HEAVEN

The Revelation 21:1

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth. The first heaven and the first earth disappeared, and the sea vanished.
 

May the Lord grant that we may engage in contemplating the mysteries of His Heavenly wisdom with really increasing devotion to His glory and our edification.  Amen.

What’s so great about Heaven? What’s so great about Heaven? Truth be told, the way many of us picture it … we’re not too excited about getting there.

Gary Larson, in a Far Side cartoon, pictures a guy sitting on a cloud, wings coming out of his back, bored expression on his face, absolutely nothing to do, and the caption reads … “Wish I’d brought a magazine.” Is that what you think Heaven is going to be like? Well, Scripture gives us a number of characteristics; we’re going to look at 5 of them this morning.

#1 … Heaven will have earth’s features. “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth. The 1st heaven and the 1st earth disappeared, and the sea vanished.”

Heaven is not just Heaven. According to The Revelation there will be “a new heaven and a new earth.” So, if you haven’t been looking forward to sitting on a cloud and playing a harp for all eternity … good news! There will be a new earth. In fact, Scripture teaches that Heaven’s permanent residency is going to be earth. God will come and dwell among us, and not visa versa.

The ultimate Heaven is not a non-earth, but rather a new earth. Now Scripture wouldn’t call it earth if it wasn’t going to be characterized with earthly features.
And Scripture wouldn’t call it a new earth if it wasn’t going to be an improved earth. That’s what new means in the original language … qualitatively superior.

Some of you have heard me use my airline analogy. You arrive for your flight and discover that the airline has bumped you up from economy to 1st class. Generally speaking, it’s the same flight, right? However, there are major differences aren’t there?

All of a sudden you go from a little leg room to a lot of leg room. You go from an uncomfortable seat where you’re packed in, usually between 2 people who are overlapping, to a comfortable chair, which really reclines. You go from a tiny little bag of pretzels, to a real meal, served on real plates. And the flight attendants wait on you. And they refill your drink. And when you’re all done, they take tongs and give you a hot towel. Now do you see the analogy? A flight in 1st class is far superior to a flight in economy … but it’s still a flight.

The features of the new earth will be a zillion times better than the features of the present earth … but they will still be earthly features. And I’m really looking forward to that.

If I were extremely wealthy, I’d live 4 months a year in Rockport, MA; 4 months in Sanibel Island, FL; and 4 months in Oberammergau, Germany. Beautiful places. But the new earth will be so much better. No bugs … no storms. There will be perfect harmony in nature. Beautiful sunsets, majestic mountains, white sand beaches, roaring waterfalls, congenial wildlife, gorgeous flowers, even the deserts will bloom.

Imagine all that without pollution. Imagine all that without wars. Imagine all that without poison ivy. Imagine all that without danger. That’s the new earth.
Heaven is marked by earth’s features.

2ndly … Heaven is marked by God’s presence. And this is, by far, the most important characteristic, because this is what makes the new earth Heavenly.

“I heard a loud voice speaking from the throne: ‘Now God’s home is with people! He will live with them, and they shall be his people. God himself will be with them, and he will wipe away all tears from their eyes. There will be no more death, no more grief or crying or pain. The old things have disappeared. …

“‘Those who win the victory will receive this from me: I will be their God, and they will be my children.’ …

“The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will worship him. They will see his face, and his name will be written on their foreheads.”
The Revelation 21:3-4,7; 22:3-4

In the new earth we’re going to get God big-time. And His presence, according to these verses, is going to be both awesome and intimate.

It will be awesome … “Now God’s home is with people! He will live with them.” Can you think of some occasions in Scripture when God appeared to people? …
(Jacob … Moses … Isaiah … in the Temple … the transfiguration)
And when that happened, His glory took people’s breath away. And now God is going to live with His people!

And the flip side of this awesomeness will be His intimacy. “God himself will be with them, and he will be their God.” “I will be their God, and they will be my children.” We’re going to be on intimate Father/child terms with God. We “will see his face.”
What makes that so amazing is that all through Scripture people were forbidden to see God’s face. God said, “No one can see me and stay alive.” Exodus 33:20 Even Moses, when he specifically asked God for a glimpse of His presence, is only allowed a quick look of God’s backside. Exodus 33:23

Scripture tells us repeatedly that we can’t handle, in our present state, a direct gaze into God’s brilliant face. But all that will change with the new earth because we will be changed. We will have a face-to-face relationship with God. Can you imagine what that will be like?

And “(God’s) name will be written on (our) foreheads.” That’s simply a sign that we belong to God.

In the O.T. there was only one individual who could personally encounter the presence of God, and that was the High Priest. Every year, on the Day of Atonement, he would enter the Holy of holies, the innermost sanctum of the Temple, and meet with God, so to speak. And when he went into the Holy of holies, he wore a special outfit which included a turban with a gold plate on the front, with these words, “holy to the Lord.”

In the new earth believers will be marked as “holy to the Lord” and have direct access into the very presence of God. The new earth will be characterized by God’s presence … it will be awesome and intimate.

3rdly … Heaven will be marked by community’s perfection. Do you understand that God has designed you to experience and enjoy community? In the opening chapters of Genesis we learn that we’ve been made in the image of God. And part of what that means is that we have been made by a God who, as part of His very nature, is relational. He’s a Trinity. He’s a 3-in-1 God. He’s Father, Son, and Spirit. And when He made you in His image He made you as a relational being. You crave community just by the very nature of how God designed you.

When God made Adam and before He made Eve, He looked at Adam and said, “It is not good for the man to live alone.” Genesis 2:18 Now Kathy tells me what God really said, after making Adam, but before making Eve, was, “I can do better than that.” (It doesn’t really say that in Scripture.) But Adam finds this complimentary partner, a totally different gender, created for him. And together they become a family … and then the family becomes a community.

Scripture tells us that God has made us to enjoy community. Even when God calls you to follow His Son, it is not an individualistic decision. And it’s one of the reasons you become a member of a congregation. Every metaphor that Scripture uses to describe corporate believers is a community metaphor.

Scripture says that you’re part of an army with fellow soldiers; you’re part of a family with brothers and sisters; you’re part of a body with interconnected parts; you’re part of a temple cemented together with building stones. Every metaphor screams community.

But unfortunately, even though God has designed us for this togetherness, our sinful nature has a way of spoiling it. Stop and think about it … sin at its’ very core is anti-relational, isn’t it? Whatever sin you can think of … pride, selfishness, anger, prejudice, lust, impatience, materialism; any sin you can think of … they’re all community busters.

In fact, there’s probably not a single person here this morning who hasn’t experienced some kind of relational strife or conflict in the course of this past week … maybe in your marriage, maybe at work, at school, maybe even here at Community Church! You and I crave community … but on this earth we get it in limited doses.

But on the new earth we’re going to experience community’s perfection. John says, “I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared and ready, like a bride dressed to meet her husband.” The Revelation 21:2

The new Jerusalem, the Holy City, comes down out of Heaven from God. What’s the new Jerusalem?
Let’s play 20 questions … is it a person, place, or thing? … You’re tempted to say immediately, well it’s a city so it’s got to be a place, it’s a location, it’s a spot on the map. But look again at the passage. The city is “prepared and ready, like a bride dressed to meet her husband.” The city is a person, or I should say, it’s a community of persons.

Now who is the bride of Christ in Scripture? … Believers! It’s those who have come to faith in Jesus. Together we become His bride. And Christ’s bride is a beautiful city. The same thing is repeated a few verses later. “One of the 7 angels who had the 7 bowls full of the 7 last plagues came to me and said, ‘Come, and I will show you the Bride, the wife of the Lamb.’” The Revelation 21:9

So, John’s getting ready to see a person, right? “The Spirit took control of me, and the angel carried me to the top of a very high mountain. He showed me … (what?) … Jerusalem, the Holy City, coming down out of heaven from God.” The Revelation 21:10 Let me show you the bride of Christ … oh, it’s a city … no wait; it’s a person … no, it’s a perfect community.

It’s important that you understand this. This is not a description of a literal city; this is a picture of a perfect community, of perfect relationships. Don’t make the mistake that some readers of The Revelation do as they try to imagine Heaven looking like this.
If you think of Heaven only with gates of pearls and streets of gold and all sorts of strange measurements, it probably won’t appeal to you as a place you’d like to spend all of eternity. To most of us it will sound pretty gaudy, pretty ornate.

However, if we understand that this is a symbolic picture telling us something about community on a new earth, then it’s going to connect with our innate longing for significant lasting relationships. With that in mind, listen to these words.

“The city shone like a precious stone, like a jasper, clear as crystal. It had a great, high wall with 12 gates and with 12 angels in charge of the gates. On the gates were written the names of the 12 tribes of the people of Israel. There were 3 gates on each side: 3 on the east, 3 on the south, 3 on the north, and 3 on the west. The city’s wall was built on 12 foundation stones, on which were written the names of the 12 apostles of the Lamb.”
The Revelation 21:11-14

Let me explain some of this symbolism. (By the way, the paragraph that I just read to you in the original Greek language is one long run-on sentence. It’s almost as if John starts describing what Heaven is going to be like and he gets so excited that he doesn’t stop to take a breath because he wants to get it all out.)

So what’s the significance of “a great, high wall”?
Walls in the ancient world were a city’s security system. Later on we’re told that these walls are 216 feet high. That means that nothing is going to get over them. Nothing is going to disrupt this community. None of the evils that destroy relationships in this life … not divorce, not abandonment, not selfish ambition, not arguments, not abuse, not loneliness … none of that is going to penetrate our eternal community.

Now if this were a black congregation you’d be saying “Amen!” right now. …

“The names of the 12 tribes of the people of Israel,” were written on the gates because Israel gave us the Messiah as Savior, and He is the gate to this community.

“The angel who spoke to me had a gold measuring stick to measure the city, its gates, and its wall. The city was perfectly square, as wide as it was long. The angel measured the city with his measuring stick: it was
1,500 miles long and was as wide and as high as it was long. The angel also measured the wall, and it was 216 feet high, according to the standard unit of measure which he was using. The wall was made of jasper, and the city itself was made of pure gold, as clear as glass. The foundation stones of the city wall were adorned with all kinds of precious stones. … The 12 gates were 12 pearls; each gate was made from a single pearl. The street of the city was pure gold, transparent as glass.” The Revelation 21:15-21
Once again, some people read this description and then try to imagine literally what this place must look like. But this is a symbolic picture.

I love the story about the guy who’s very wealthy in this life, and he heard that when you die you can’t take it with you. But he was determined to do everything possible to take it with him. And so as he lay on his deathbed he arranged to have all his vast wealth converted into gold bricks, and the gold bricks were placed in a suitcase, and the suitcase was right next to his bed. He would sleep with his hand on that suitcase.

Sure enough, one day he died, and found himself at the gate of Heaven. Peter asks, “What’s this?” The guy responds, “Well, I brought it with me.” Peter shrugs and opens the suitcase, and a puzzled expression crosses his face, and he looks at the guy and asks, “paving stones?” … (I’m going to give you a moment to explain that to the person next to you.)

What does Scripture mean when it says that the streets of the city are paved with gold? It’s a picture of perfect community, of rich relationships. This point is underscored by the precious gemstones that make up the foundation of the city, and the gates of enormous pearls. Rich relationships, even the dimensions of the new Jerusalem say perfect community … it’s “perfectly square.”
The older I get, the more I long for genuine, satisfying, lasting community. And somehow in this life relationships never live up to my expectations. Even in my closest relationships … there are things like busyness and distance and miscommunication and exhaustion and sin … they all spoil community. I crave the sort of community that’s described here in The Revelation. And it’s one of the reasons I’m looking forward to Heaven.

#4 … Heaven will be marked by life’s fullness. When you hear the expression … eternal life … what thought comes to your mind? Most of us think of life that goes on and on and on and on and on and on and on. Isn’t that what’s meant by eternal life … forever life? Actually, when Scripture talks of eternal life it’s speaking as much about the quality of life as it is about the quantity of life. Scripture says, “Eternal life means to know (God), the only true God, and to know Jesus Christ.” John 17:3

You see, eternal life is about a forever relationship with God. It’s about a quality of life with God. Jesus says, “I have come in order that you might have life – life in all its fullness.” John 10:10 Life to the max is what eternal life is all about. Paul talks to Timothy about “the life which is true life.” 1 Timothy 6:19

Who wants to live forever if the quality of that life is going to be boring or disappointing or frustrating or unsatisfying?
It makes me think of Bill Murray in his movie, “Groundhog Day.” If you saw it you remember that he was forced to live the same day over and over and over and over and over and over again. The alarm rings at 6:00 in the morning and it’s the same day all over again.

Well, The Revelation 21 & 22 not only describes life on the new earth as lasting forever, but it also tells us that we’re going to experience life to the max, to the full. Life is going to be ultimately satisfying.

And it presents 2 pictures of that life. The 1st is of a spring/river of water. The 2nd is of a fruitful tree. “Then the one who sits on the throne said, ‘And now I make all things new!’ … And he said, ‘It is done! I am the 1st and the last, the beginning and the end. To anyone who is thirsty I will give the right to drink from the spring of the water of life without paying for it.’”

And, “the angel also showed me the river of the water of life, sparkling like crystal, and coming from the throne of God and of the Lamb and flowing down the middle of the city’s street. On each side of the river was the tree of life, which bears fruit 12 times a year, once each month; and its leaves are for the healing of the nations.” The Revelation 21:5-6; 22:1-2

The images here of the water of life and the tree of life remind us of a scene in the 1st book of the Bible.
God creates Adam and Eve and places them in a virtual paradise called Eden.

We read, “In the middle of the garden stood the tree that gives life. … A stream flowed in Eden and watered the garden.” Genesis 2:9-10 It’s as if this twin picture of a river and a tree in The Revelation is reminiscent of how God initially created things … and now we’re going back to Paradise. We’re going back to life as it was created to be. Life not spoiled by sin.

God’s desire, as pictured here, is to satisfy our deepest longings. Are you thirsty? Well, you’re going to be able to drink the water of life. Are you hungry? Well, then eat all you want from the tree of life. It will fill you up. You’ll experience life to the full.

I don’t know if you’ve ever read C.S. Lewis’ “Chronicles Of Narnia.” It’s a 7-volume set of stories for kids of all ages. It centers on 4 siblings, 2 girls and 2 boys, who travel to the mythical land of Narnia, where they encounter a wicked witch. Now one of the spells she casts over her enemies is through the use of Turkish Delight. (Do you know what Turkish Delight is? It’s like blueberry cheesecake from The Cheesecake Factory.) Now you can eat it and eat it and eat it and eat it, and never be filled up. And you’re wondering, “What’s so bad about that?” The problem is you eat more and more and more and more and more and you’re never satisfied.
This is a picture of our cravings in this world. Aren’t we all hooked on stuff that’s a lot like Turkish Delight? We go on a wonderful vacation, and we no sooner get home than we begin planning to go away again. We go see the movie that everybody’s talking about, but then that was last week, what’s there to see this week? We wallpaper the living room, but then we want a new sofa. We always want more, we’re never satisfied.

Think for a moment … what was the highlight for you over Christmas? What were you most looking forward to? My guess is that you can hardly remember. It’s already lost its’ ability to fill you up. That’s the nature of life as we know it … always hungry, always thirsty.

I’ve got good news for you. One day on the new earth you will drink the water of life, you will eat from the tree of life, and you will experience for the 1st time ever, life’s fullness. And it will never be diminished.

Here’s a 5th characteristic … Heaven will be made up of humanity’s best. “The city has no need of the sun or the moon to shine on it, because the glory of God shines on it, and the Lamb is its lamp. The peoples of the world will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their wealth into it. The gates of the city will stand open all day; they will never be closed, because there will be no night there. The greatness and the wealth of the nations will be brought into the city.” The Revelation 21:23-26
All the nations of the earth are going to bring their wealth and greatness to the new earth. What is their wealth and greatness?

I suspect that it’s the finest cultural achievements of every race of people on this planet … the nations bring their best into the new earth. Because we’ve been made in God’s image we’ve been endowed with this ability to create, and some of what we’ve created is fantastic.

Last Tuesday morning, on the Today Show, there was a story from Harbin, China. This city, every year has an amazing ice and snow festival. They build an entire city out of ice. Hundreds and hundreds of thousands of people come to see it. It’s a fantastic cultural achievement.

That’s why I love living near a world-class city like Chicago. I know, this week with the really cold weather, some people wonder why anyone would want to live here.

Well, there’s The Museum of Science And Industry, where we can see the genius of humanities inventiveness. There’s the Art Institute, where we can walk through room after room of magnificent paintings. There’s Symphony Center, where we can hear fantastic music. We can walk through any part of the city, which is the architectural capital of the world, and see amazing building designs.
We can go to the Theatre district and see productions that will bring tears to our eyes. We can go to Wrigley Field and see a baseball team that will bring tears to our eyes. My point is … the cultural achievements of Chicago are impressive. Chicago is a fantastic place in which to live.

Now imagine, taking the very best of Chicago, and the very best of New York, and the very best of Tokyo, and London, and Rome, and Beijing, and Paris, and Munich, and Moscow, and Athens, and all of the little villages in between, and collecting all that impressive stuff for our enjoyment … because that will be the new earth.

One evening last June I was sitting on the back porch of the home we rented in the Smoky Mountains of TN. Stars filled the sky. I was looking out over beautiful mountain scenery, magnificent trees.

My wife, children, and grandchildren were inside laughing. Sinatra was singing on the CD player. Jennifer came out and asked, “Dad, are you enjoying this week?” I said, “Yes, it’s Heaven.” And you know … I was right. Heaven will be characterized by humanity’s best, and by earth’s features, and by God’s awesome intimate presence, and by community’s perfection, and by life’s fullness. Want to go? Boy, I do!
 

MARANA THA