The Prophesied Kingdom in Eternity

Transcript

GRM 995
12/30/2007
The Prophesied Kingdom in Eternity
Selected Verses
Gil rugh


As God's people, it is glory. As we'll see at the end of I Corinthians 15, death is the last enemy that will be destroyed, but it will be destroyed. God has set forth his purposes and plans for us.

We've been talking about the kingdom that God has promised to establish on this earth, and it is the goal toward which every believer is heading. Ultimately all who come to place their faith and trust in Jesus Christ alone as their Savior will come to reside in the kingdom that God is going to establish on this earth. In fact as we will see shortly, heaven itself will come and reside as part of a new heavens and a new earth, and in a very real sense heaven will be on earth. God's throne will be in the kingdom on this earth.

We've looked at a number of factors relating to the kingdom. I want to focus our attention on a couple of things and then look at the kingdom as it moves through eternity. But first just a couple of reminders. Turn in your Bibles to I Chronicles 17, it's not a book we go to often. I Chronicles 17 has basically the same material in it as II Samuel 7. It contains an account of the covenant that God established with King David saying that it would be a descendant of David who would sit on the throne ruling over Israel for all eternity. We'll break into this. Nathan the prophet is sent by God to David with this message. The end of verse 10 says, moreover I tell you that the Lord will build a house for you. When your days are fulfilled that you must go to be with your fathers, I will set up one of your descendants after you who will be of your sons. I will establish his kingdom. Remember in a previous study we talked about the genealogies in Matthew and Luke which clearly establish that Christ was born a descendant of David. Both Mary His mother, and Joseph His adoptive father, if you will, were descendants of David. Because God has promised to David that I will set one of your descendants, I will establish His kingdom, I will establish Him on your throne. He shall build for me a house, a kingdom. I will establish His throne forever. Verse 14, I will settle Him in My house and in My kingdom forever. His throne shall be established forever.

And there are many other places we could go with this emphasis. You'll note that the throne of David is said to be established forever. Ultimately there is coming a King who will sit on the throne of David, that was an earthly throne centered in Jerusalem. And He would rule over a kingdom that would have no end. Now keep that in mind. We've talked about the millennium, I'll say more about that in a moment, that 1000-year period that is the first phase, first step in the eternal kingdom. But be careful, the millennium is not all there is to the kingdom—1000 years isn't forever. God did not promise David that one of his descendants would sit on his throne for 1000 years. He said He would sit on his throne forever. So the millennium is not all there is to the kingdom, the millennium is the first step, the first phase of a kingdom that is endless, that will go on forever.
Also the establishing of the kingdom will come about with the return of Jesus Christ to the earth to set up that kingdom. We've looked at some of these matters previously. Come to Zechariah, we will just review a passage here. And Zechariah 12-14 are amazing prophetic chapters regarding the future of Israel and the nations of the earth. And it speaks of the time of coming trial and tribulation for Israel that will be climaxed by the divine intervention of Jesus Christ in bringing deliverance to Israel and establishing His throne upon the earth. Something of the troubles, we don't have time to read chapter 12-13, but just look at chapter 13 verse 8. It will come about in all the land, declares the Lord, that two parts and it will be cut off and perish, but the third will be left in it. The devastating judgments preceding the return of Jesus Christ to this earth will be so severe that two-thirds of the Jews are going to die and one-third will survive. And He promises, verse 9, to bring the third part through the fire, refine them as silver is refined, test them as gold is tested. They will call on my name, I will answer them, I will say they are My people and they will say the Lord is my God. You see Romans 11 must be brought about, thus all Israel will be saved. A surviving remnant will turn and call upon God as their Savior.

Chapter 14 begins with God gathering the nations. Verse 2, I will gather all the nations against Jerusalem to battle. The city will be captured and there will be all kinds of devastation. And in this setting of turmoil in Israel Jesus Christ descends from heaven. Verse 3, then the Lord will go forth and fight against those nations as when He fights on a day of battle. In that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives which is in front of Jerusalem on the east and the Mount of Olives will be split from east to west by a very large valley and so on. You see Jesus Christ is going to return from Heaven to the Mount of Olives. We're talking about a physical return to a physical place. If you take a tour to Israel you will go to the Mount of Olives, you will stand on that mount, same mount. No question, nobody disputes. That's the Mount of Olives. You'll look over and behold the temple setting, today with the Dome of the Rock there and so on. That's where Jesus Christ will return, and it's His return that will bring about the kingdom.

Verse 9, the Lord will be King over all the earth. In that day the Lord will be the only one, His name the only one. Verse 11, people will live in Jerusalem, they will no longer be accursed. Jerusalem will dwell in security. What about those armies that have been assembled against Him? Well verse 12 has a rather gruesome picture. This will be the plague which the Lord will strike all the peoples who have gone to war against Jerusalem. Their flesh will rot while they stand on their feet, their eyes will rot in their sockets, their tongues will rot in their mouth. Not pretty, you do not want to be the Lord's enemy, you do not want to be the object of His wrath. People want to talk about, well, I think the Lord's love is His prime attribute. The Lord doesn't have a prime attribute, all of His attributes are His attributes. We appreciate in a great way His love that is a redeeming love and has brought us salvation. But you understand, His holiness is just as much an attribute of His as His love, His righteousness, and so on.

So Christ will return visibly, personally to this earth. I want to look at several passages just to remind you this is what it will take to establish the kingdom on the earth. We are not in the kingdom now, Jesus Christ has not returned to the Mount of Olives, the Mount of Olives has not been split, the topography of that region has not been changed as is described here, Jerusalem does not dwell in security, Jesus Christ does not reign from Jerusalem. We are not in the kingdom. We talked about how did the idea that this is the kingdom, we're in the kingdom, it exists in the hearts goes back to Augustine who believed like I've been teaching, a premillennialist, that Christ would come to earth and establish the kingdom. But after living in the Roman world where Constantine had declared Christianity to be the religion of the empire and all of that going on, he thought, we must be in the kingdom. So he stopped interpreting the Bible literally on these things, changed his view and said it must be a kingdom in the hearts and we're in the kingdom. And it doesn't take the personal bodily return of Christ to the Mount of Olive. And once you move away from interpreting the Bible literally, normally, must for what it says, doesn't mean there aren't figures of speech and so on, but we recognize those in our language all the time. But there must be actual fulfillment of what is said.

Come to the New Testament, Matthew 24. I want to say something in our next study about the preceding time leading up to the return of Christ to the earth, the 70th week of Daniel, the tribulation. Now I want to talk about the return of Christ to the earth and then some subsequent events. Matthew 24, the end of verse 3, the disciples are asking Him, and where are they? They are on the Mount of Olives, sitting on the Mount of Olives. And the disciples came to Him privately saying, tell us when will these things happen? What will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age? In the context of Israel as being rejected for their rejection of the Messiah. He goes on to speak about the events of that 70th week of Daniel, that seven-year period leading up to His return to earth. We'll say more about that in a coming study. Then at the end of that time Christ will personally return to earth. That period of time preceding His return, verse 21, tell us will be a time of great tribulation, such as has not occurred since the beginning of the world until now nor ever will. We haven't seen anything. In fact it's so bad verse 22 says, no life would be saved except that Christ would intervene. The destructions taking place on the earth are so massive, people are dying, billions of people are dying, that if Christ did not intervene and come back to earth to put an end to it, no one would survive. But He comes back for the sake of His chosen ones, the elect.

He warns them during that time there will be false christs, false messiahs, don't pay any attention. That's talking about that seven-year period leading up to His return. If they come and tell you, verse 26, behold He, referring to Christ, is in the wilderness, don't go out; He's in the inner rooms, don't believe them. In that period of time there will be false messiahs trying to get a following, don't pay any attention. Well maybe they're right, maybe He has come back. How will we know? Well you'll know. Look at verse 27, just as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so will the coming of the Son of Man be. Verse 29, immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, the moon will not give its light, the stars will fall from the sky, the powers of the heavens will be shaken, and then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky. Then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory. We are not in the kingdom. Jesus Christ has not come.

There is a view developing somewhat of a following among professing Christians called being a preterist, preterism. Preterist means the past. They are saying this passage and others like it were fulfilled in 70 A.D. with the destruction of Jerusalem, when Christ came in judgment. He didn't come physically and stand on the Mount of Olives, but He came in judgment. Well you can make up fairy tales about the Bible just like you can make up fairy tales on anything. But that's not what the Bible says. The Bible says that all the tribes, the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming.

Come over to Acts 1. Jesus has spent forty days following His resurrection from the dead teaching and instructing His disciples. Verse 3 we're told that He spent forty days speaking of the things concerning the kingdom of God, that kingdom that had been promised and prophesied by the Old Testament prophets, that kingdom that He had spoken about during His time on earth. He instructs them concerning the kingdom of God. And what is their response after forty days of being taught? What did He teach them? He taught them how the Messiah must first suffer and die and be raised from the dead to provide redemption. Then the kingdom can be established. He didn't change the concept of the kingdom because what do the disciples ask at the end of verse 6? Lord, is it at this time you're restoring the kingdom to Israel? They only have one kind of kingdom in mind—the kingdom that was promised to Israel in the Old Testament prophets. After forty days of Christ instructing them on the kingdom following His resurrection, there is no different kind of kingdom. There is no spiritual form of the kingdom, there is no mystery form of the kingdom. There is only the kingdom prophesied in the Old Testament prophets for Israel. Jesus doesn't say, what am I going to do with you men? Forty days I've been teaching you, you understand you are already in the kingdom. You don't have to wait any longer, it's already started. No, He just tells them you don't need to know when it will be established. The exact timing of that kingdom is not for you to know, you don't need to have that information. They didn't know at this time it would wait until the Apostle Paul gets saved and God reveals to him the mystery of the church. The church would begin in Acts 2, but the full understanding of the church is not given until the Apostle Paul receives revelation on it from God, according to Ephesians 2-3. They didn't realize, now we understand. Isaiah 53, the Messiah had to suffer and die and be raised from the dead. Peter will preach that in Acts 2. Now we can have the kingdom. You're right, but the parables in Matthew 13 revealed there would be a delay, but He didn't say how long, a gap of time between the first coming and the Second Coming to establish the kingdom. Now we know that it's some 2000 years since Christ came the first time and He has not yet returned the second time.

What will happen when He comes again? Well as Christ finished instructing them He ascends in a cloud. And verse 9, after He said these things He was lifted up while they were looking on and a cloud received Him out of their sight. Then two angels appear and in verse 11 they say, men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This Jesus who has been taken up from you into heaven will come in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven. How did He go into heaven? A cloud received Him out of their sight. How did Jesus say He would return in Matthew 24? The clouds of heaven. Does somebody not get this? I mean, what did the angels say? What are you men stargazing for? You understand Jesus Christ is going to return and He'll return exactly the same way He went. Nothing has changed from Zechariah's prophecies, from Isaiah's prophecies, from an of the prophet's prophecies. Nothing has changed concerning what Jesus taught. The kingdom is going to come and He will return in power and great glory.

Turn over to II Thessalonians 1:5. Paul was writing to the believers at Thessalonica and referring to the tribulations and persecutions they are going through, because they are standing faithfully for Jesus Christ. And what does he say in verse 5? This is a plain indication of God's righteous judgment, so that you will be considered worthy of the kingdom of God for which you are suffering. You are not in the kingdom, you're on your way to the kingdom, and part of God's preparation is your faithful endurance. For after all it is only just for God to repay with affliction those who afflict you and to give relief to you who are afflicted and to us as well. When will all this happen? When the Lord Jesus will be revealed from heaven with His mighty angels in flaming fire, dealing out retribution to those who do not know God, to those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. These will pay the penalty of eternal destruction away from the presence of the Lord, from the glory of His power, when He comes to be glorified in His saints on that day. You see the connection and the picture? Jesus Christ is going to return with a display of power and glory, pouring out judgment on His enemies. What did we see? Their tongues will rot in their mouths, their eyes in their eye sockets in Zechariah 14. These enemies are going to be consigned to an eternal hell and we will enter into the kingdom. So we're going through sufferings, we're going through tribulations because we're going to the kingdom, and this is just part of our journey.

Come over to II Peter 3. Peter is reminding them of what the prophets had preached, the Old Testament prophets, what the apostles had preached and taught. Verse 2, remember what the Lord spoke through the holy prophets and through the apostles. Knowing this, verse 3, first of all that in the last days mockers will come in their mocking, following after their own lusts and saying, where is the promise of His coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue just as it was from the beginning of creation. Some people say, you talk about the coming of the Lord, people have been talking about that for thousands of years. When are you going to get over it? You understand it's time and chance, we're just evolving, we're just part of an ongoing evolution. Well, when they maintain this it escapes their notice that by the Word of God the heavens existed long ago. And the earth was formed out of water by water. You know interesting here Peter, who is speaking under the inspiration of the Spirit of God, takes the creation account in Genesis absolutely literally. That the world was formed out of water by water, because when God created the earth it was covered by water and the Spirit of God hovered over the face of the deep. He moved on the waters and then He divided the waters and created this earth.

Through which the world at that time was destroyed being flooded with water. When you get to Genesis 6-8 God destroys the earth with a flood. You understand, the God who created it all brought about its destruction. God will bring about destruction again. So people ignore the fact, they think all things continue as they were, time and chance. Just the process goes on. Well they choose to be ignorant, they choose to reject what God has said and for that they are accountable. They will be brought into judgment. We oughtn't to be confused by it, we oughtn't to think well maybe we ought to redo our thinking, maybe the creation account of Genesis 1 isn't exactly literal. I'll tell you what, the devil attacks both ends—the beginning and the ending. He tries to say, you can't believe the account of the creation, that's not literal. And then what do we do with the ending and the kingdom? Well you can't take that literally. Because you destroy the beginning and you destroy the ending and the middle will collapse on itself. I mean, we're answering something that is just a myth. Romans 5 says that by one man sin entered into the world and death by sin, that one man being Adam, we're told. And so Christ is one Man who brings righteousness. But if Adam wasn't a literal one man in the Garden whose sinful act brought sin to the human race, maybe Christ didn't literally bring righteousness to the race. I mean, I don't know why ............ Well you know science says .............. Well then it's wrong. Augustine changed his view on the millennium because he thought when he looked around the evidence was he was in the kingdom. He was wrong, he should be here today to look around. We're not in the kingdom. We need to be careful we don't change what the Bible says to try to fit what men would be more comfortable with. We're off the subject, but we're on it.

Verse 7, by His word the present heavens and earth are being reserved for fire, kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men. Just like the flood destroyed the world, there is coming a judgment of fire that will destroy the world. Do not let this fact escape your notice, one day with the Lord is like a thousand years, a thousand years is as one day. The Lord is not slow about His promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish, but for all to come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief in which the heavens will pass away with a roar, the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, the earth and its works will be burned up. If all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness. Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, all these things will be added unto you. Concentrate on holiness, concentrate on godliness. The world is on a pursuit of things, the world is all consumed about being happy, being healthy, enjoying life. God's people are on their way to a kingdom of endless joy and happiness, blessing and righteousness. Our concern right now is holiness and godliness, faithfulness to Him. This earth is going to be destroyed by fire, He's not going to destroy it with water again, He's going to destroy it by fire. Keep that in mind because Isaiah 65 says there is going to be a new heaven and a new earth. Revelation 21 says there is a new heaven and a new earth. Nothing has changed.

Come over to Revelation 1. Now we are at the closing book, the closing revelation of God's revelation to man. The book of Revelation, written about 95 A.D. It's addressed to seven churches in Asia, Asia Minor as we would be more familiar with the area. It's from, verse 5, Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. When will He rule the kings of the earth? In His kingdom that He establishes on the earth. That's what the book of Revelation unfolds, the getting to that kingdom. And He has made us to be a kingdom, priests to His God and Father. Verse 7, behold He is coming with clouds and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him. We could have read that verse today in Zechariah 12, not an exact quote but a reference. The book of Revelation has multiple, hundreds of references to the Old Testament. He is coming with clouds. Sounds like what Jesus said in Matthew 24, sounds like what the angels told the disciples in Acts 1. Nothing has changed. We ought to close our minds completely to these goofy ideas that the kingdom has become a spiritual kingdom, it exists in the hearts, we're not looking for an earthly kingdom, a physical kingdom on the earth. Well I am because God says there is. He has made us to be a kingdom. Doesn't mean we are in the kingdom now. The kingdom will come when He comes on the clouds. Right now He is preparing those who will be part of His kingdom. He's not desirous that men perish, so He's given this time to call men, women and young people to turn from their sin and place their faith in Christ. There is coming judgment, Christ is returning. But this is a day of salvation, a day of grace. God is being patient and we share the message of Christ so that men and women might come to believe and they are being part of those who will comprise the kingdom when He returns in clouds of glory and in fires of judgment. And we will rule and reign with Him in that kingdom.

Come over to Revelation 19. Revelation 6-19 deal with the 70th week of Daniel, the tribulation, that time of trouble that will climax with the return of Jesus Christ to earth and we've looked in Revelation 19, but I just remind you. Revelation 19:11, I saw heaven opened and behold a white horse and He who sat on it called Faithful and True, in righteousness He judges and wages war. His eyes are a flame of fire, and on it goes. Verse 14, the armies which are in heaven clothed in fine linen white and clean were following Him. He is, verse 16, the King of kings and Lord of lords, and He brings destruction on His enemies. Remember Zechariah 14? The armies of the world have been assembled at Jerusalem, and Christ now intervenes to rescue His chosen nation, Israel, destroy their enemies.

Then chapter 20 we have the first phase of the eternal kingdom, the thousand-year millennium. We noted the purpose of that was to demonstrate the absolute sinfulness of the human heart, where Jesus Christ will rule and reign on the earth for 1000 years, children will be born in the millennium. Only believers go in, but then those who go into the millennium in their physical bodies have children, they are born with a sin nature, living in this perfect world under a perfect King. At the end of the 1000 years when people are given a choice, a number like the sand of the seashore come out to attempt to dethrone Christ and establish satan as king. And they are destroyed. The end of verse 8 told us it was a number like the sand of the seashore. We must not minimize the sinfulness of the human heart. This is the problem with men and women today, is the sinfulness. The heart is deceitful and desperately wicked above all things. Who can know it? I, the Lord, search the heart, I try the motives, Jeremiah 9. Don't minimize the sin. We don't need to help, if only their conditions were better, if this only changed, if they only had enough to eat, if they only had good health, if only they could ......... Doesn't change the sinful heart. Only a dying Savior can change a heart. He has died, He is alive. Only when a person turns from their sin and places their faith in Him can they be saved.

The culmination of that 1000 years, sin is dealt with. You have the Great White Throne set up in verse 11 and following. This is the final judgment of scripture. Here all unbelievers, unsaved people, are gathered to finally be sentenced to hell. Then chapter 21 begins, then I saw a new heaven and a new earth. The first heaven and first earth passed away, there is no longer any sea. We have a new heavens and a new earth. Isaiah 65 prophesied a new heaven and a new earth. I saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband. So here we have this earth and the heaven around it destroyed. Remember II Peter 3, present heavens and earth are being reserved for the destruction of fire. There is discussion, is this a renovation of this earth or a totally new. I don't know, I couldn't find anybody else who did either, we're not told. It has connection to this earth because it's a new earth. It's new because God made this one new or He totally ................ I can't tell you for sure. But we have a new heavens and a new earth, we have a New Jerusalem coming down out of heaven. There is celebration coming from the throne of God in heaven. The New Jerusalem at the end of verse 2 is made ready as a bride adorned for her husband.

The end of verse 9 says, come here, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb. We know the church is the bride of Christ, so this is the bride's city, it's where you and I, the church, will have our residence through eternity in the eternal kingdom, in the bride's city. It will also be the residence of angels, according to Hebrews 12, and of redeemed, glorified Old Testament saints. This New Jerusalem comes down and resides on the new earth. Outside the New Jerusalem you have the earth and the nations of the earth. We'll say more about that in a moment.

Verse 4, all tears are wiped away, no longer any death, no mourning, crying, the first things. Remember during the first 1000 years there will be sinners and sin committed. People will die. The one who dies at 100 years of age will be thought to be a child and cursed of God. But there will be death, there will be rebellion, resistance to the rule of Christ. But now we move into eternity, after the 1000 years sin is wiped out. Keep that in mind, when we get to I Corinthians 15 we'll come to a verse that tells us that at the end of the 1000 years when Christ has made everything as it should be, then He'll turn the kingdom over to His God and Father. And we move into the eternal phase where we are in chapters 20-22.

The end of verse 6, I will give to the one who thirsts from the spring of water of life without cost. Come over to chapter 22:1, He showed me a river of water of life, clear as crystal, coming from the throne of God and of the Lamb. So now we're in the eternal phase and the water of life with the tree of life in verse 2. On either side of the river was the tree of life bearing twelve kinds of fruit. You see there is going to be a connection here between the Garden of Eden at the beginning of creation and now at the end, the climax, of God's plan. And now the peoples are free to drink of the water of life, to eat of the tree of life. We'll say more about that in a moment. But he who overcomes will inherit these things, verse 7. You understand we haven't inherited them yet, we're going to inherit them. This is the coming kingdom and the eternal kingdom. The overcomer, I John 5, who is he who overcomes, but he that believes that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God. In each of the letters to the seven churches in Revelation 2-3, they concluded with the promise to the overcomer, to those who place their faith in Christ alone as Savior.

Verse 10, He carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain and showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven, having the glory of God and the description of this city and we've worked through it in our studies earlier, you could get tapes at Sound Words and work through the details. Fascinating. You ought to be familiar with it. This is your residence for eternity. Like some people, you build houses and you just delight in working through all the details and what you're going to do and how it's going to be. You ought to saturate yourself with the details here. This is where God says you are going to reside in 100 billion trillion quadrillion, forever. Here is where you will be living, where I'll be living. This is the city of the saints.

Verse 22, I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God the Almighty, and the Lamb are its temple. The city has no need of the sun or the moon to shine on it for the glory of God illumines it, its lamp is the Lamb. In this city the presence of God, you'll note, of God the Father and God the Son. The Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. Down in verse 1 of chapter 22, the river comes from the throne of God and of the Lamb. That's why I say heaven now has come and resides on earth, heaven is where God manifests the fullness of His presence and His glory. Not it's happening here, the New Jerusalem, on the new earth.

Verse 24 of chapter 21, the nations will walk by its light and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it. Wait a minute, we're in eternity and there are nations, there are kings. You understand God has promised an eternal kingdom, Christ ruling over the earth for eternity, the descendant of David. The kingdom promised to Israel is an eternal kingdom, there will be nations, there will be kings. So we have the New Jerusalem, the residence of glorified saints and outside the New Jerusalem you have the new earth, populated by the nations of the earth. I take it there will be people in non-glorified bodies. What would seem to be the explanation is at the end of the first phase, the 1000 years, unbelievers are destroyed, the sin nature is removed from believers who still live in physical bodies. The sin nature is not an essential part of being human. Remember Adam and Eve were created without sin. And now these believers in physical bodies go on through the kingdom having children, populating the kingdom forever. You say, I don't know about that, I thought it just all ended, we're in heaven, sat around and listened to harps, smoked cigars but you can't do that, that would be illegal. So just music and eat. No, it's a kingdom. There will be a place for us to serve the living God forever.

Look down at the end of verse 3 of chapter 22, His bondservants will serve Him. There will be things to be done through eternity. We won't be bored. We in our glorified bodies will be dwelling in the New Jerusalem. The nations outside the New Jerusalem will all be believers, but they will come into the New Jerusalem to worship the God who enthroned there, to bring glory to Him. Verse 25, in the daytime there will be no light there, its gates will never be closed, they will bring the glory and honor of the nations into it. Nothing unclean, no one who practices abomination or lying shall ever come into it, only those whose names are written in the Lamb's Book of Life. And at the Great White Throne at the end of chapter 20, all those whose names aren't in the Lamb's Book of Life were cast into the lake of fire to be tormented forever and ever.

He showed me a river of the water of life, clear as crystal, coming from the throne of God and of the Lamb in the middle of the street. On either side of the river the tree of life bearing twelve kinds of fruit, yielding it's fruit every month. Wait a minute, we're in eternity, I thought we wouldn't have months and seasons and nations. Now we find out we have them all. I mean, we go on. In the New Jerusalem there is no day or night, but I take it there will be the seasons, there will be the months, there will be a perfect environment, but here you have twelve months. And the tree of life bears a different kind of fruit for each of the months. We have time. People say, there will be no time in eternity. What do you mean there will be no time? God is the only timeless one, created beings can't be timeless. I have never dwelt in eternity, I will dwell eternally but I've never dwelt in eternity, I have a beginning. For me everything has to happen, one event after another. That makes time. So we'll have months, we'll have nations, we'll have people, we'll have kings, we'll have people to be administered.

The leaves of the tree of life will be for the healing or the help of the nations. That word translated healing, we transliterate it over into English. It's the Greek word therapeutic, we just carry it over into English. Something therapeutic is for our health, our healing, our well-being. Eating of this indicates the abundant provision for people. This carries us back to the Garden of Eden. You remember when God created Adam and Eve and put them in that splendid garden in Genesis 1-2, what did He tell them to do? Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth. Now they had not sin, they were sinless, we say they were in unconfirmed holiness. You know what they were to do? They were to have kids, populate the earth. He put two trees in the garden, the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. He told them, don't eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. The day you eat of it, you will die, and they did. They died spiritually and the process of physical death began.

Genesis 3, God said man has eaten of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, now he is a fallen being. What does God have to do? He says We have to remove him from the garden lest he eat of the tree of life and live forever. What's the problem? He would live forever as a fallen being, like satan, like the angels who sinned. There would be no redemption for man, confirmed in his lostness. There would be no salvation for man, confirmed in his lostness. So God excludes Adam and Eve from the garden and puts an angel with a flaming sword at the entrance so they can't come in and eat of the tree of life. It's an act of grace, until a Savior comes and provides forgiveness. And now the redeemed can eat through eternity freely of the tree of life. You say, you mean if Adam and Eve hadn't eaten of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, rather had eaten of the tree of life, they would have been confirmed in their holiness? I take it that is so. God never told them they couldn't eat of the tree of life. We're told He put two trees there and told them not to eat of one, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. All this comes out of that? Yep. The sovereign plan of God. I imagine there is going to be a long line to Adam and Eve's door in eternity, I have a few things to talk to you about. Do you have any conception of the troubles you brought on the race? It will be all right, God has it all.

So you see what has happened, now we go back, if you will, to Genesis 1-2 and God's intention for His creation goes on. And so I take it there will be people through eternity having children. You say, we're going to run out of room. Well I shared with you, I believe it's Mark Hitchcock in his book who has worked out the figures. In the New Jerusalem alone, it's a 1500-mile cube, 1500 miles square at the bottom and 1500 miles high, which incidentally, remember the Holy of Holies in the Old Testament tabernacle and temple was a cube, a square. Now what do we have? We have it greatly enlarged—1500 miles by 1500 miles. And this is the throne room of God, the New Jerusalem, the Holy of Holies, the place where God is worshiped on the earth. And the peoples of the earth will come to worship Him, enjoy fellowship with Him, see His face.

Verse 3 tells us there will no longer be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the New Jerusalem. His bondservants will serve Him, they will see His face, His name will be on their foreheads, there will no longer be any night, they won't have need of the light of the lamp nor the light of the sun because the Lord God will illumine them. They will reign forever and ever. That's it, that's the closing. Now the rest of the book of Revelation draws our attention. Verse 7, behold I am coming quickly. Blessed is he who heeds the words of the prophecy of this book. Verse 12, behold I am coming quickly, my reward is with me to render every man what he has done. Verse 20, yes, I am coming quickly. Amen, come Lord Jesus. You understand the Lord Jesus, Christ is coming again to this earth. You'd better get ready. Verse 10, do not seal up the words of the prophecy in this book. The time is near. Jesus Christ is coming again. What a glorious end.

You say, I thought I was going to spend all eternity just humming with the angels. Well the angels will dwell in the New Jerusalem, God's throne will be in the New Jerusalem, God the Father and God the Son. All glorified saints will be in the New Jerusalem. The church will be the key people in the New Jerusalem, it's the bride's city. The earth, the center is the nation Israel with Jerusalem the capital of the world. So it is a Jewish kingdom, but we the bride of Christ, the church, have a key and beautiful place in that kingdom along with the glorified Old Testament saints who will share. But you'll note the distinctions are maintained. Some people come up with silly ideas. I read in theology books, they say I believe in one people of God, I believe in one people of God. I've asked some theologians, what do you mean, one people of God? Well, you know, one people of God. I don't, I believe in the peoples of God. I believe Israel is distinct from the church. Furthermore, I believe the nations of the earth will maintain their distinctions because in the eternal kingdom they will have those distinctions. And furthermore, at the New Jerusalem there are twelve gates and each of the gates, come back to chapter 21 verse 12, there are twelve gates, at the twelve gates twelve angels. The names are written on the twelve gates which are the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel. I'm not one of those tribes. I mean, we jumble our theology and then we wonder why it seems so confusing. Read it like you read the morning paper, just take it for what it says.

That doesn't mean there aren't things I don't understand what he's saying in this article. Sometimes in an article I have to go back and read further. Some of you know I like to read the end of books first. But you know that can get you in trouble. Sometimes I do have to go back to the beginning of the book to find out what they're talking about at the end of the book. So sometimes reading the book of Revelation you do have to, with s 500+ references to the Old Testament, go back and find out what he's talking about at times. But it's all there. What a glorious future.

So you know where we're going, we're going to the kingdom, we're going to the New Jerusalem. Jesus said in John 14, I go to prepare a place for you. If I go to prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to myself, that where I am, there you may be also. Where is He? Well I know for all eternity He's in the New Jerusalem because I'm told that the throne of God and the Lamb are there. And where they are, that's where I'm going to be. What a glorious future. What are we going to do? He's going to administer the earth. Well what about when we run out of room? You know how many universes.......... We can't even measure. Is God going to expand this earth? Is He going to ........... I don't know, He didn't write Revelation 23, He stopped at 22. We can be thankful for that, we have our hands full, right? And besides, it ends on the note we need to know—get ready, live as though the time is near. And for those who haven't believed, come and partake of the water of life at no cost while you can, because there will come a time of judgment.

What a great God we have. The plan hasn't changed, the kingdom is the kingdom, you and I can't lose focus. Here is what we are about, we are about proclaiming the message of the kingdom, of the king, of the crucified Lord of glory, the Savior of the world, calling men, women and young people to come to believe in Him and prepare for the coming of the Lord of glory.

Let's pray together. Thank you, Lord, for who you are. Thank you, Father, for the wonder of your power. We are in awe. Lord, we realize that satan has blinded the minds of the unbelieving lest the light of the glory of the gospel of Jesus Christ should shine in. We praise you for your grace that pierces through the darkness and brings that salvation to the hearts of men, women and young people and causes them to believe in your Son, the Savior. Lord, there is no cause for us who have become your children by grace through faith to be confused, to be disoriented. Thank you for the clarity of your Word, for its beauty, its wonder. Thank you for your Spirit who is our teacher. We end a year and look to a new year, Lord, it is with anticipation, knowing the time is near. We look forward to all you have promised. In Christ's name, amen.