Radical with David Platt
Consummation of the Kingdom
Death will be replaced by life. In the presence of God, there will be no more sin, sorrow, sickness, and separation. For eternity, we will glorify God with people of every tribe, tongue, and nation. In this message on Revelation 21:1–22:5, Pastor David Platt reminds us that we live between two worlds as Christians.
From unexpected olympic champion to martyr in China. This year marks the 100th anniversary of Eric Liddell’s win in the 1924 games.
In Glory Road, Radical’s new narrative podcast, we’ll follow Liddell’s remarkable journey, and discover the current state of the gospel in the countries he knew best.
Start listening to this 6 part series now everywhere you listen to podcasts or find out more at radical.net/gloryroad
Death will be replaced by life. In the presence of God, there will be no more sin, sorrow, sickness, and separation. For eternity, we will glorify God with people of every tribe, tongue, and nation. In this message on Revelation 21:1–22:5, Pastor David Platt reminds us that we live between two worlds as Christians.
From unexpected olympic champion to martyr in China. This year marks the 100th anniversary of Eric Liddell’s win in the 1924 games.
In Glory Road, Radical’s new narrative podcast, we’ll follow Liddell’s remarkable journey, and discover the current state of the gospel in the countries he knew best.
Start listening to this 6 part series now everywhere you listen to podcasts or find out more at radical.net/gloryroad
You are listening to Radical with David Platt, a weekly podcast with sermons and messages from pastor, author and teacher David Platt. Revelation 21 reminds every one of us in this room that this world is not our home. This country is not our destination. We're living for another country. Paul says Philippians, chapter 3, verse 20, our citizenship is in heaven and we await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ. Hebrews, chapter 11, verse 13,. We're strangers in exile here, looking for our homeland. We desire a better country that is a heavenly one. We're looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God. And Revelation 21 captures our minds and our hearts with a vision of that city, of that country to come. And when our eyes are fixed on that city, that country, it changes how we live in this city and this country.
Speaker 1:Cs Lewis once said if you read history, you will find that the Christians who did most for the present world were just those who thought most of the next world. The apostles themselves who set afoot the conversion of the Roman Empire, the great men who built up the Middle Ages, the English evangelicals who abolished the slave trade, all left their mark on earth precisely because their minds were occupied with heaven. It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this one. We live between two worlds and we live between two times. So part of the point of this journey as a faith family over this year, starting with Matthew and now with Revelation, is to illustrate this reality. We're living between two times. The first began with the birth of Christ. The king has come. Matthew announced the birth of King Jesus. John the Baptist declared the kingdom of God is near. Jesus himself declared that in him the kingdom is here. So in one sense, the kingdom of God is a present reality. God has broken into this present world. God has come in the form of Christ, god in the flesh. Through him, through Christ the King, god has made a way for sinful men and women to be reconciled to himself through his Son. You and I and everyone who turns from sin and trusts in Jesus as God and King and Lord and Savior can be reconciled to God. And today, as a result of being united with Christ, we have power over sin and we have strength in the middle of suffering and we have Holy Spirit power to spread news of salvation to the ends of the earth, all because the kingdom of God is a present reality. The king has broken into history. The kingdom of God is a present reality in our hearts, in our lives, in the church.
Speaker 1:At the same time, we're waiting. We're waiting for the return of Christ, for we know the king is coming back. This king who came 2,000 years ago is coming back soon. We're waiting for the return of Christ, for we know the king is coming back. This king who came 2,000 years ago is coming back soon. We just sang about it and in this sense, the kingdom of God is our future hope. We're living in anticipation of the day when Jesus will return and he will usher in full and final redemption and restoration. He's going to make all things right and we live between these times.
Speaker 1:Therefore, in view of these two worlds and two times that we live between, we live for one purpose, one purpose we live to experience the consummation of God's kingdom, the culmination, the climax of it all. That's what we live for, that's what we long for. This is what Jesus taught us to pray for right. Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. You're what your kingdom come. We want to see the king, we want to experience his kingdom in all of its fullness.
Speaker 1:Now, some might say we live for one purpose. Wait a minute, wait a minute, dave. I thought our one purpose in this life was to live for the glory of God. I thought that was our purpose. Isn't that what the Bible says? Isn't that what you say all the time? 1 Corinthians, 10, 31. Whatever we do, whatever we eat or drink, do it all to the glory of God. Well, yes, that is the purpose the Bible says we live for, and today I want to show you that living for the glory of God means living to experience the consummation of God's kingdom. I want to show you that God is most glorified. God will be most glorified when his kingdom is fully and finally consummated on this earth.
Speaker 1:Now, when you think about kingdom and if you've been around Brook Hills for a while, we've talked about kingdom at different times. But for those of you who have not been around Brook Hills for a while, or as a reminder for those of you who have been, we need to think about what a kingdom is, particularly because kingdom is not imagery that we are personally familiar with. Most, if not all, of us in this room have never been ruled by a king as a part of a kingdom on this earth. But if you're a part of a kingdom, if you've got a kingdom, there's three essential elements that are going to be involved in that kingdom. First, in a kingdom you're going to have people who are ruled by the king. You're going to have citizens, residents, members of the kingdom, and these citizens or residents or members of the kingdom are gonna be subjects of the king. So first you got people who are ruled by the king. Then you have a place where the king has dominion. So where does the king rule? Where does the king reign? The king rules and reigns in the kingdom. So a kingdom involves the people who are ruled by a king, a place where the king rules over his people, and a purpose for the king and his kingdom. So what's the king, what's the kingdom accomplishing? What's the goal, what's the aim, where's this kingdom moving toward? Any kingdom is going to have all three of those components.
Speaker 1:So I want to invite you to consider with me then God's kingdom all over scripture. I want you to think with me today about how God is bringing his people, his subjects, his children, his citizens to his place, under his rule, his reign, where he is accomplishing his purpose. Now this is where I want you to turn with me, to the chart that's on the front of your notes. And again, if you've been around Brook Hills for a while, you may recognize this chart. We've used it on a couple of different occasions, in one secret church and then a few years ago at the end of our Chronicles of Redemption series.
Speaker 1:But I want to remind you today how Revelation chapter 21 is the culmination and a very real sense of the entire story of Scripture. What we just heard read in Revelation 21 and the first part of Revelation 22, is, in a sense, the culmination of 65 books and 20 chapters right before this. All of biblical history has been pointing forward to this and there is so much imagery that's here in Revelation 21 and 22 that is tied to the entire biblical story that's been told before this. So what I want to do is I want to fly through secret church style this chart and just remind you of how this is the culmination of it all and help connect some dots that you might not otherwise connect here in Revelation chapter 21. I want to show you that Revelation 21-22 is the consummation of the kingdom of God in all of history, god bringing his people to his place for his purpose.
Speaker 1:So think in those categories, going all the way back to the beginning of the Bible Creation, genesis 1 and 2. Think about creation, a lot of these three facets. God's kingdom that we just talked about You've got people in light of these three facets. God's kingdom that we just talked about, you've got people in the beginning. You've got God's blessing on his people. God creates man and woman as the summit of his creation. He's their king. They are his beloved man and woman.
Speaker 1:Created to know God, enjoy God, walk with God to experience unhindered communion with God, the King and God's kingdom, not just a people, but a place of perfect fellowship, the Garden of Eden, the very best place of all. Every relationship perfect in Eden. God's relationship with man perfect. Man's relationship with woman perfect. Man and woman in the world's relationship Perfect. This is a blessed people in a perfect fellowship, created for one purpose God's glory, multiplied to all peoples Genesis 1, 26 to 27.
Speaker 1:God creates man in his own image and then in verse 28 he says be fruitful and increase in number, fill the earth and subdue it. In other words, spread my glory through my image all over the earth. And he gives man, in Genesis 1, 28-31, dominion and rule over the earth to reign and multiply the image of God. So that's the picture from the very beginning God's kingdom as it was designed to be God's people experiencing God's blessing and perfect fellowship with him in the perfect place where his glory is multiplied throughout the earth yes, but then comes the fall. Fellowship with him in the perfect place where his glory is multiplied throughout the earth yes, but then comes the fall. And as we walk through this, I've I've left blanks empty, particularly when it comes to place, because I want you to focus in particularly there we're going to hit the others. So when the fall occurs, everything changes.
Speaker 1:Instead of only God's blessing on his people, when the fall comes, we see both God's blessing and judgment. Through this picture of Adam and Eve immediately after they sin in Genesis, chapter 3, we see the judgment of the king upon his people. Now, that's judgment that's mixed, mixed with mercy. The fact that they're still alive at the end of chapter 3 is the sheer mercy of the king. Genesis 2,. The king had said if you eat of this fruit, if you sin, you shall surely die. Yet man is still breathing at the end of Genesis, chapter 3.
Speaker 1:Instead of man immediately dying, the king brings death upon an animal. Instead, god uses the death of that sacrifice to cover over the shame of man and woman. So we see both blessing and judgment through Adam and Eve, now in a place of disrupted fellowship, no longer perfect. Man's relationship with God, now filled with guilt and shame and fear. Man's relationship with woman, now filled with strife. Man's relationship with the environment, now totally changed. Man and woman are cast out of the garden from the presence of God and there's a flaming sword that separates man and woman from the tree of life. Curse is now evident all over the world and, and one day from here on, every man and every woman will die as a result of sin in their lives. God's glory now marred in all peoples and every man and woman in this room has felt the effects of that day. Every single one of us in this room born with a heart and rebellion against God. That rebellion has played out in 2,000 different ways across this room, but in all of us we are born with a heart that hates God, that is running from God, running into self-indulgence or running into self-righteousness, whatever it may look like, clear in Genesis, chapter eight, in the flood, and Genesis, chapter 11, in the Tower of Babel.
Speaker 1:But then you get to the patriarchs in Genesis, chapter 12 and 50, and we begin to see God's blessing and judgment through fathers like Abraham, isaac and Jacob. Well, if you remember, in Genesis, chapter 12, the very beginning of this section of the Bible God calls remember in Genesis, chapter 12, the very beginning of this section of the Bible God calls Abraham. And in Genesis, chapter 12, verse 1 through 3, he says I'm going to bless you, abraham, and you're going to be my conduit of blessing to all the peoples of the earth. Abraham and Isaac and Jacob would receive the blessing of God and would be a demonstration of the blessing of God to the ends of the earth. And he promised to give them descendants and he promised to give them land. This was key in Genesis 12, 15, 18, 22. God promised to bring them to a place of promised fellowship. It's called in the Old Testament the promised land. Leave your country, god says, and go to the land, the place that I will show you. When Abraham gets there, he says I'm gonna give you and your descendants all these lands. God makes the same promise to Isaac and to Jacob this promised land where God says I'm going to be with you in this land, and through those promises to Abraham, isaac and Jacob, god will make his glory known through his faithfulness. This section of the Bible ends with the people of God down in Egypt because of famine in the land, holding on to God's promise to be faithful to bring them back to the land, which is what then unfolds in the Exodus and conquest.
Speaker 1:From Exodus, the first part of 1 Samuel, again, god raises up new leaders and he shows his blessing and judgment through men like Moses and Joshua, people like the judges and Samuel. Blessing and judgment. Do you remember the riddle of the Old Testament in Exodus, chapter 34, verse 6 and 7? The Lord, the Lord, the gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love and mercy, maintaining his love to generations, thousands, forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet the Lord does not leave the guilty unpunished. So God, the king, is full of mercy and he's full of wrath, both and so all over Exodus and the conquest, we see his wrath, his judgment, whether it's on unbelieving Egypt and the plagues that were brought upon them, or even upon God's people in the days of the judges for their disobedience. At the same time we see the king's mercy, his blessing, as God hears the cries of his people in Egypt and delivers them out. He brings them to Egypt, on Mount Sinai, where he gives them his law and he promises he's going to dwell among them. Now this gets to Egypt, on Mount Sinai, where he gives them his law and he promises he's going to dwell among them. Now this gets to the place God says I'm going to be with you, dwell with you as my people in a tabernacle. This is the place God with his people, tabernacle. And what you see in the latter half of the book of Exodus is an outline for a tabernacle where God in his holiness, is going to dwell in the middle of his sinful people. And you follow the construction of that tabernacle and you'll see that the very center, the tent of the tabernacle, at the very center, there's a cube-like, cube-structured place called the Most Holy Place or the Holy of Holies. And this is a place where the high priest, on special occasion, would enter in. To the most holy place, the place that most represented the glory of God's presence among his people, high priest would enter in, offer a sacrifice, then move out as quickly as possible. It's a demonstration of God's holiness dwelling in the middle of his people, in this tabernacle.
Speaker 1:In the book of exodus, the book of Leviticus, god gives laws to guide and lead his people. In the book of numbers, god's people rebel against him, don't trust him to lead them into the promised land. So he leads, leaves an entire generation to die there in the wilderness and raises up a new generation, led by Joshua, to enter into the promised land where God's glory is made known to all peoples through his deliverance. And God finally brings his people into the promised land. And the nations know. 50 different times in this passage, this section of scripture, 50 different times, at least 50 different times, we see the phrase they will know, you will know that I am the Lord when I deliver you in these ways, god bringing his people to his place for his purpose. Yet his people rebel against him. Yet again they say we want a human king like other nations around us. So God gives them what they want. Don't forget it is a frightening thing whenever a holy God decides to give sinful people what they want and that leads to a united monarchy in these parts of Samuel and Kings and Chronicles, where we see God's blessing and judgment now exemplified through kings like Saul and David and Solomon. You look at all three of those earthly kings and you'll see blessing and judgment in each one of their lives. Blessing primarily in King David and the promise that through David's line would come an eternal king.
Speaker 1:Now, part of God's promises to David then brought about completion in Solomon dealt with a place where God promised to dwell among his people, not in a tabernacle that would move anymore, but in a temple. So here we've got place, god with his people, a temple where God's glory dwells among his people. Solomon, under the direction of God, the king, built the temple where people can encounter the glory of God. And this temple has various courts. You've got an outer court, the court of the Gentiles, you've got a court of Jewish women, you've got a court of Jewish men. And then at the center of the temple once again, you have this cube-like place, structured as a cube, called the Holy of Holies. And again, this is a place where only the high priest can come in on certain occasions to offer a sacrifice. That clearly represents the glory of God's presence dwelling among his people in this temple. And the whole purpose here is that God's glory would be made known through his anointing on these kings and this place.
Speaker 1:1 Kings 8, verse 41-43 says the nations will hear of God's great name and God's mighty hand, and all the peoples of the earth will know his name and fear him. The same united monarchy, but Solomon, david and Saul all show themselves to be unworthy kings rebelling against God. All of this eventually leads to a divided monarchy where God's people are split into a northern kingdom of Israel and a southern kingdom of Judah, with all sorts of kings leading both of them, almost all of them, who are evil. And so we see God showing his blessing and judgment in these times through prophets, prophets who foretell God's coming judgment, god's coming captivity from other nations upon God's people. At the same time, they bring news of God's blessing that if the people of God will repent and turn, that he will relent and show them mercy. But the people of God continue in sin until the northern kingdom is destroyed and eventually the southern kingdom included, including Jerusalem, where the temple is located, is destroyed and God's people are scattered.
Speaker 1:But just because the temple is destroyed doesn't mean God is no longer faithful to be with his people. Now, instead of in a tabernacle temple, we see God with his people in exile, where God is strengthening them with promises and sustaining them, promising to bring them back to Jerusalem to restore his presence among his people. And in all of this we see God's glory, made known to all peoples through his discipline. Now, these prophets in the middle of exile, middle of coming exile, in the middle of present exile, these prophets are declaring that one day, soon, the king is going to come, and Isaiah talks about one who will come, and his name will be called wonderful counselor, mighty God, everlasting father, prince of peace. Malachi, the last prophet in the old testament, says the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to you. And thus the stage is set by these prophets for 400 years of silence, after which the king finally comes. Jesus, god himself in the flesh, god's blessing and judgment, exemplified through Christ Jesus, the ultimate prophet, the perfect priest and the promised king, comes to the earth. The king's here among his people. Now get this.
Speaker 1:When it comes to place, jesus comes on the scene and we see God not just with his people, but God actually among his people in the incarnation. And it's incredible some of the phrases that are used here, some of the verses that we read in John, chapter 1 when John tells us that the word became flesh and dwelt among us. That word for dwelt, for dwelled among us, is is the same word that's used in the old testament to refer to the tabernacle. Literally, the word came and tabernacled. God came and tabernacled among us. This is the presence of God with us.
Speaker 1:In John chapter two, jesus is talking about the temple and he makes clear to the people he's talking to that he is the temple A blasphemous claim to anybody who would not believe that, but it was true. He is the place where you meet with God. He is the dwelling of God, and so what we're seeing is all of these promises in the Old Testament now being fulfilled in the coming of Christ, god among his people and through Jesus, god is making his glory known to all peoples through his salvation. To non-Christian friends who are here this morning, hear this good news God has come to us in the person of Jesus. We've all sinned against God, we all deserve eternal death, but God has sent his Son Jesus, god in the flesh, to us and he's lived the life we couldn't live, a life of total obedience to God. He's died on a cross in our place for our sin, and he's risen from the grave in victory over sin, so that you, anyone, everyone who turns from sin and trusts in Jesus will be reconciled to God forever and ever. This is the good news that's announced in the Bible.
Speaker 1:Jesus is the center of it all. He's at the center of all of history. Everything before him and everything after him points to him. Everything revolves around him. God glorifies himself by saving us from our sins through Jesus. If you've not turned from your sins and trusted in Jesus to save you and reconcile you to God, then we urge you to do that today. This picture of Christ the king here, god's people, god's place, god's purpose, the kingdom here, but then he leaves. Jesus ascends into heaven after his resurrection and he sends his spirit upon his people, so that we have this picture in the present Acts to Jude and even leading up to today, this era in which we're between the times, god's blessing and judgment now displayed through his church, beginning in Acts to the rest of the New Testament, chronologically continuing today. The picture is Christ is the judge of all. Everybody's eternity has depended on their response to him, but it's the church that's been entrusted with the task of proclaiming Christ to the ends of the earth and the beauty is. Now there's no temple we go to to worship, there's no tabernacle we set up in our midst. I'm not putting on special clothes and going into some holy of holies later in our worship gathering, because now God dwells not just with his people, but in his people.
Speaker 1:When it comes to the body, the body of Christ. Ephesians, chapter two, says the church is the place where God dwells, but not just the body of Christ. Every one of our individual bodies is Christian. 1 Corinthians, chapter 6, says that our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit. Just let that blow you away. Where you are sitting right now, this whole picture of tabernacle and temple that we've seen in the Old Testament. Now it's you. Or on the temple that we've seen in the Old Testament, now it's you Christian. Your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. That's why 1 Corinthians 6 says flee sexual immorality. Don't you know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit of God? He dwells in you, christ, in you.
Speaker 1:Colossians, chapter 1, verse 27. What a glorious picture. His Spirit in His people. Now the nations don't come to these temples, our bodies, to see the glory of God. The picture we've got in the New Testament is our bodies going to the bodies to see the glory of God. The picture we've got in the New Testament is our bodies going to the nations to show them the glory of God, to proclaim the glory of God to all peoples. Go, make disciples of all nations, baptizing them, teaching them. I am with you always. Give your lives, making the glory of Christ known to all peoples.
Speaker 1:Do you realize, brothers and sisters in Christ, that we are in a long line, a line that began with creation? You just look at this chart as an illustration. This began with God bringing his people, establishing his people in a place for purpose, and that leads to now what we're a part of. We're a part of a kingdom that's advancing. We're his people, his place with his purpose in our day. This is what we live for. So we don't waste our lives here on this country. We're living for another country. We don't live for the pleasures and pursuits and possessions of this country. We've got a pursuit and pleasure and possession in a country to come. It changes the way we live here. So now, now, bring it all together. We give our lives then for the consummation of God's kingdom.
Speaker 1:We want to experience the end of this story. This is what drives us when we get out of bed in the morning. We want his kingdom to come. We want to see the culmination, the climax of this whole story, and this is what Revelation 21 gives us a picture of God's people. Final blessing and judgment. God's final blessing and judgment here in what we've just heard read. This is where we're going to kind of go back and forth a little bit between the chart and the inside of your notes.
Speaker 1:But you go to Revelation, chapter 21, verse 6, and God speaks. You haven't seen God speak directly like this. It's the beginning of the book and he speaks and he says I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. Mark it down. God had the first word in history and God will have the last word in history. It is done, god says in Revelation 21.
Speaker 1:God, the never-ending Alpha and Omega. Don't miss this. Every single person in this room, you will one day face God as the Omega. He is the end of where your life is headed, of where your life is headed and as the Omega. There are two different ways where he will be the end for us, for all who have revered this king. In the Omega, we will find inexpressible joy Forever. Did you hear it, verse 6, to the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life, without payment, joy that is full and joy that is free forever. So it's psalm 16, 11. The psalmist says in your presence is fullness of joy at your right hand, our pleasures forevermore. And in Revelation, chapter 21, what we have is God's people experiencing it, not just as servants. Did you catch verse seven? The one who conquers will have this heritage and I will be his God and he will be my what. He'll be my son. This is not just servants of a king here, this is sons, daughters of a father.
Speaker 1:And so last night in our family worship, we were about to pray and I shared with the kids what I was going to be preaching on today, and they've been learning about eternal life in heaven and everlasting death in hell and how Jesus is the difference between the two. And so I said tomorrow Daddy's going to be preaching on heaven, there'll be mention of hell as well, because it's here in the text. And so I said let's pray, guys, that God will tomorrow, through his word, draw people to trust in Jesus and know everlasting eternal life in heaven instead of hell, and so we prayed for that. They prayed for you, even as you're listening this morning.
Speaker 1:And then, after we pray, that's our song time, and so first song that came to my mind just kind of it's not theologically correct. So, matt Mason, forgive me for this, but there's a lot wrong with it actually theologically, this, but it's there's a lot wrong with it actually theologically. But I, I, uh, I looked at, I looked at the fam and I said, well, mommy's five weeks from having a baby, so she can stay seated on this, but everybody else up. And so we got up and we start singing, uh, that old hymn I'll fly away. And so we, we dance and we clap during the verses, but then, when it gets to the chorus, I'll fly away, I'm not gonna sing it. That's when we pull out our wings and we just start flying all around the room into each other, and so that's what we just sang the chorus I'll Fly Away. We're laughing and dancing. We get to the end and the three kids following me in this mountain, we kind of all fly and crash at the same place and they're on me and they're laughing and they're joking around and I just I get this picture in my mind, this picture in Revelation 21 of the gladness of a family with the Father.
Speaker 1:This is what we're headed toward. If you think heaven's going to be boring, then you missed the point of Revelation 21. This is a picture of a glad family before a glorious Father enjoying Him as their king. Inexpressible joy. Heaven exemplifies God's eternal blessing for conquerors who have turned from this world to Christ. So that's what verse 7 says.
Speaker 1:The one who conquers, verse 7, will have this heritage, and that's a word, that's a theme that we've seen all throughout Revelation. Conquerors overcomers, people who did not love their lives in this world enough to shrink back from death. What we've seen is a picture of men and women, followers of the king, who spend, who give in some cases, who lose their lives in love for this king. On that day will be welcomed in as residents of the kingdom, heirs of the king, sons and daughters of the father. For those who turn from this world to Christ, this is what awaits you in the never-ending omega who is God. But for all who have rejected the king, instead of this inexpressible joy, there will be irreversible justice.
Speaker 1:Verse 8 says as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable. As for murderers, the sexually immoral, detestable. As for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death. That's an interesting list that contains sins that john has clearly addressed all throughout this letter. In the middle, the detestable murderers, sexually immoral sorcerers, idolater. All of that's imagery that's been used for sinful men and women, earth dwellers throughout Revelation. But did you notice the first thing in the list, the cowardly, and then next the faithless, and then bracketing at the end all liars, faithless, and then bracketing at the end all liars. I think it's abundantly clear here that John is drawing attention to people in the church that he's addressed all throughout Revelation that were addressed back in those letters in Revelation 2 and 3.
Speaker 1:People who profess to be Christians but who cower into compromise with this world. People who profess faith in Christ but whose lives show no fruit of faith in Christ, people who call themselves Christians but are lying in so doing. And it was the case in the first century and it's the case in the 21st century. And so hell here exemplifies God's eternal judgment for cowards who have turned from Christ to this world, men and women who did not persevere through faith in Christ but who turned away from Christ to save their lives in this world. Men and women who turned away from Christ to indulge themselves in this world. Men and women who turned away from this life to cowardly compromise with this world. And the message here is clear man or woman in this room today, turn from this world to Christ. Non-christian friend, turn from this world to Christ and professing Christian man or woman do not be found among the cowardly, the faithless, who may have professed faith in Christ but who did not follow Christ in this world. He promises mercy for those who turn from this world to Him as the fountain of spring, of the water of life, without payments. Not that you need to do something in order to earn the mercy of God, that misses the point of mercy. But drink from this spring of the water of life and it will radically transform the way you live in this world. So become a part of God's people. The text is inviting us to experience inexpressible joy in God's place. So here it is in God's place, back on the chart, there in your notes, a place of eternal fellowship. And this is where I want you to see the imagery behind Revelation, chapter 21.
Speaker 1:Some people read Revelation 21 and they think all right. So here's the architectural plans for what heaven's going to look like, and they figure out the numbers and they calculate the measurements and envision this place literally like this. But that misses the point. This painting here is a collage of images that take us all the way back through Scripture. You think about all the images we've got here. We've got a city, we've got a new heaven, a new earth, We've got a bride. All of these are images that are used to describe God's people and God's place all throughout Scripture.
Speaker 1:But you'll notice, here we don't have a tabernacle, we don't have a temple. You'd think of all the places where we need a temple, certainly heaven would be it, certainly heaven. Now here's where the temple is going to be restored and god's glory dwelling among his people. We don't have a temple. There is no temple, it says. You wonder, why not?
Speaker 1:Until you begin looking at these measurements and you begin to realize that this new heaven, this new earth, this city, it's shaped like a cube and you think, well, why would that be? And it takes you all the way back to Exodus and Ezekiel and 1 Kings, the tabernacle and temple in the Old Testament where God dwelled among his people in the most holy place, the holyernacle. And temple in the Old Testament where God dwelt among his people in the most holy place, the holy of holies, that was shaped like a what? Like a cube. And you put these measurements together and you realize this picture is like one giant, massive holy of holies. And all of a sudden it hits you.
Speaker 1:We're going to dwell forever in the inmost place with God. We're going to be with him, he with us, in the inmost place with the holy God of the universe. That's the point, not that you walk away and try to draw this out. You walk away and fall on your face and say I can't wait for that day, but we're going to live. And that's what verse 3 is all about, just in case we're going to miss it. It says behold this loud voice from heaven. It's a picture of loud voice that says behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them and they will be his people and God himself will be with them as their God. That's the point of heaven, not what this wall or that gate's going to look like, but the fact that one day these skies are going to open up, this earth is going to be rolled back like a scroll and God's holy dwelling is literally going to come down to man and we will be with him. That's what makes heaven heaven, the fact that we will be with God. Eternal fellowship, we will be with him. That's what makes heaven heaven, the fact that we will be with God. Eternal fellowship, we will be with him.
Speaker 1:Oh, be very careful when you think about heaven, when you talk about heaven, not to talk about mansions and golf. All right. There's total abuse when it comes to John 14. Jesus said in my Father's house and some translations say in my Father's house are many mansions. People talk we got songs, talk about my mansion, this and my mansion's gonna be next to your mansion. All this mansion talk. The point is not what your mansion's gonna look like. The word that's used there in John 14, that's translated mansion literally is dwelling place. It's the same word that's used there in John 14. That's translated mansion literally is dwelling place. It's the same word that's used here in Revelation 21. Dwelling place with God, that's what heaven's about. Put aside materialistic notions. God's not up in heaven trying to compete with the luxuries we've developed in the western culture.
Speaker 1:I think about one place I've mentioned this before One place where I stayed when I was traveling, preaching, and it was up in Nashville, and it was this home in this neighborhood. Well, it wasn't a neighborhood. The closest house to us was Faith Hill and Tim McGraw's house, so it just gives you a little hint of I mean yeah, there's Faith and Tim, then there's me and this home over here and it just oh, beautiful home, all this land with cattle, and I mean there's there's barns and stables for horses that are nicer than any house I'll ever live in. And and I go into this home, they show me my room and it's this ornate room with this really nice huge bed and this dining room huge table. We sit down for dinner that night and one of the cows from outside is placed before us and we have this feast. And I remember calling Heather. It's always on trips like this that Heather's not with me, but when I'm like at the gas station, motel, heather's like oh, yeah, thanks for bringing me to this one.
Speaker 1:So we picture heaven, like, oh, we have all this stuff, we can have all the football and the golf and the luxuries. No, when you think about heaven. Do not think about a place that has all the amenities this world has to offer. When you think about heaven, think about a place where the finest amenities of this world cannot compare with the fact that we are dwelling with God, and all the stuff that we've spent our lives running after here in this world will be faded away like dust and the only thing that will matter is that we're with him. We will have the reward of our salvation, and it's not health and wealth in this world. The reward of our salvation is God, and we will be with him, and now all these things flow from that. Death will be replaced by life in this place, death replaced by life. There will be no more sin.
Speaker 1:Verse one says the sea was no more, and the point is not that there won't be water in heaven or the sea is bad, but all throughout imagery, all throughout revelation imagery of the sea has pointed us to evil. It's one of the nations that have attacked God's people. It's pointed us to idolatry, and all of those things will be gone. No more sin, no more. God is personally pictured here as wiping every tear from our eyes. No more sin, no more sorrow, no more sickness, no more cancer, brothers and sisters, no more tumors, no more hurts, no more aches, no more pains, no more hunger and starvation and HIV AIDS. All of these things because there's no more separation. The people of God will dwell securely with God forever and ever and ever. Death replaced by life.
Speaker 1:Night replaced by light Verse 23,. The city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives its light and its lamp is the Lamb. There will be no night there. End of verse 25. God's presence, our light Night replaced by light. Corruption will be replaced by purity Verse 27,. Nothing hidden, clean, unclean, will ever enter into it, nor anyone who does, was detestable or false, but only those who are written the Lamb's book of life. Corruption replaced by purity, and then check this out. Curse will be replaced by blessing.
Speaker 1:When you get to chapter 22, then your imagery shifts here from the new heaven, the new earth, the city as a bride and even as a holy temple. Now it shifts deliberately to a garden-like scene with a river and trees, a garden that closely resembles the picture we saw at the very beginning of the Bible in Eden. And do you remember that flaming sword flashing back and forth, guarding the way to the tree of life. That's when we last saw the tree of life in scripture, genesis 3. Well, here in Genesis, revelation 22, the Bible says the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb to the middle of the street of the city, also on either sides of the river, to the middle of the street of the city, also on either sides of the river. Underline it, circle it, the tree of life that once represented curse now, with its 12 kinds of fruit yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and the Lamb will be Him and His servants will worship Him. Curse replaced by blessing, perfect fellowship restored forever. All of this leading to the five most beautiful words in all of Scripture, the five words for which all the Bible is pointing us to Verse 4,. Underline them they will see his face, we will see his face. This is the goal of redemption. No one has seen, encountered, enjoyed God in this way since the fall. Sin has kept us from his beauty. But one day we will see his face.
Speaker 1:Fanny Crosby, a famous hymn writer, blind her entire life. Remember her poem, my Savior. First of All, remember. She was blind, blind her whole life, which means the first person she would ever see would be her Savior. And she wrote when my life work is ended and I cross the swelling tides, when the bright and glorious morning I shall see, I shall know my Redeemer when I reach the other side and his smile will be the first to welcome me Through the gates of the city in a robe of spotless white, he will lead me where no tears will ever fall and the glad song of ages I shall mingle with delight. But I long to see my Savior first of all. Aren't we in a sense in the same boat on this? I in no way want to minimize blindness.
Speaker 1:The reality is we are all blinded by sin and there's nothing compared to what we will see in Revelation, chapter 22, verse 4, when it becomes reality. We will see his face and we will reign with him. Verse 22, verse 5, says the Lord, god, will be their light and they will reign. They will reign they who's? They? Us, we're to reign. I thought God reigns. Well, yes, yes, god reigns. But don't miss this. Oh, there's so much we could talk about here.
Speaker 1:But what does it mean for us to reign with Christ? Well, first and foremost it means that our bodies will be resurrected like Christ's. When Paul said in Philippians 3.20 that our citizenship is in heaven and we await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, it says he will transform our lowly bodies to be like his glorious body by his power that enables him to subject all things to himself. That's what 1 Corinthians 15 is all about. Just as Jesus was raised from the dead, bodily resurrected, so we will be, in the end, new heaven and new earth, bodily resurrected, and this is key. When you think about a new heaven and new earth, don't think about kind of disembodied spirits, kind of floating around from cloud to cloud. It's not heaven. Think of people with perfect, resurrected bodies that never ache, never hurt, never spoil, never fade. Our bodies will be resurrected with Christ and all creation will be restored under Christ.
Speaker 1:Remember in the beginning of the Bible, when God created man in his own image, he gave man dominion, rule, reign over the earth to multiply his glory throughout the earth. So the picture here is God's people who trusted in Christ, been resurrected with Christ now are restored to rule and reign and reflect God's glory all throughout the earth, which leads to God's purpose God's glory enjoyed by all peoples. This is the purpose of the kingdom. See this diverse throng. Look back at Revelation, chapter 21, verse 3. You got to see this Revelation 21, verse 3, when this loud voice from the throne says behold, the dwelling place of God is with man and says he will dwell with them and they will be his people. When it says people, people there, you might even have a note in your bible. It takes you to the bottom.
Speaker 1:Talks about how some manuscripts say they're peoples, because whether you translate it, people or peoples the reality is the. The word there in the new testament is plural and so the picture here and it's different than it's normally used all throughout scripture it's a deliberate picture here. This is a people dwelling with God that are made up of peoples from across the earth. It's exactly what we've read about in Revelation 5, revelation 7 every nation, tribe, tongue, peoples gathered around the throne here. So picture this, this diverse throne Every nation, every tribe, every tongue, every people living, working, loving and worshiping together. Every nation, people, tribe and tongue, living alongside one another, loving one another in perfect fellowship. No racism, no ethnocentric pride. One people united together from all peoples in Christ, working and worshiping together.
Speaker 1:And I emphasize, even working there. Because, yes, heaven's going to be a place of worship, it's going to be a place of continual, never-ending worship. But that doesn't mean all we're going to do in heaven is sing. It's not just singing, it's worship. Worship includes, includes singing, but it's so much more than singing. Remember Genesis, chapter 2. God puts Adam in the garden and he designed Adam to work to the worship of God. So we're going to work in heaven, but not in a way that work is a burden, in a way that work is a joy and our work will bring continual worship to our king. So see this diverse throne and hear their unified song.
Speaker 1:It's twofold. One worthy is the lamb. Worthy is the lamb. Worthy is the lamb. Isn't it interesting to note in this passage that six different times when we're seeing heaven described, six different times, the lamb is mentioned. The lamb, remember what that's imagery for? It takes us back to Revelation 5. It takes us back to New Testament, old Testament.
Speaker 1:The lamb is a picture of sacrifice. That's imagery for. It takes us back to Revelation 5. It takes us back to New Testament.
Speaker 1:Old Testament, the lamb is a picture of sacrifice that's slaughtered for sin. We saw Revelation, chapter 5. Jesus looks like a lamb that's been slaughtered and you might think well, surely when we get to heaven and when all sin and evil are gone, that's going to include all the reminders of sin and evil. But that's not the case. Instead, for all of eternity, we will look upon Christ as the lion-like lamb who paid the sacrifice for our sins. We will never, ever forget that we are enjoying the presence of God, sacrifice for our sins. We will never, ever forget that we are enjoying the presence of God Because of the Gracious sacrifice of his son and victory of his son Over death. Forever and ever, the slaughtered Lion, like lamb of of god, will be at the center of our worship.
Speaker 1:Verse 23 of chapter 21 says heaven has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of god gives its light and its lamp is the lamb. By its late light the nations will walk and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it, and its gates will never be shut by day and there will be no more night there. They will bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations. One day, people from every nation are going to bring all their honor and all their glory to the true king, god's people in God's place for God's purpose, declaring glory to our God forever and ever and ever. The consummation of the kingdom of God in all history, the glory of God one and the same, this is what we're living for. We hope you've enjoyed this week's episode of Radical with David Platt. For more resources from David Platt, we invite you to visit radicalnet.