Day 4 - Verse 98 - "Then I saw the Holy City, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband." Revelation 21:2

This morning as I read this verse one more time (after repeating it in my head throughout this past week), I couldn't help but say, "Jerusalem! Jerusalem!" and the "Holy City Hymn" by Frederick Weatherly started resounding in my mind.  I looked up the lyrics and read through the last verse...this is where Weatherly depicts the Jerusalem that John saw in his vision:

And once again the scene was chang'd

New earth there seem'd to be,

I saw the Holy City

Beside the tideless sea

The light of god was on its streets

The gates were open wide,

And all who would might enter

And no one was denied.

No need of moon or stars by night,

Or sun to shine by day,

It was the new Jerusalem

That would not pass away

"Jerusalem! Jerusalem

Sing for the night is o'er

Hosanna in the highest

Hosanna for evermore!"

Jerusalem! Jerusalem, sing for the night is o'er!  Jerusalem has held such a special place in God's history of our world.  It IS His Holy City and will be restored as His crown jewel in the new earth when it comes down from heaven, from God Himself.  

I often think that if I were an atheist, just the course of world events over the past 60 years would cause me to stop and ponder!  Why, for almost 2,000 years did the Middle East, the area of mankind's origin according to the Bible, lie in almost total obscurity, and then in the mid- to latter part of the 20th century rise to become the center of the world's attention?  Why was Israel, a nation obliterated and its people scattered throughout the world, able to be resurrected into a nation in 1948, retaining its own native language, something that's never before happened?  Why, now, in 2016, is the United Nations sanctioning Israel, above all of the other world's nations including North Korea and Iran, five times over for human rights violations?  

Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father's house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” Genesis 12:1-3

"He will raise a signal for the nations and will assemble the banished of Israel, and gather the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth."  Isaiah 11:12

"Then say to them, Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will take the people of Israel from the nations among which they have gone, and will gather them from all around, and bring them to their own land."

Ezekiel 37:21

"O God, do not keep silence; do not hold your peace or be still, O God! For behold, your enemies make an uproar; those who hate you have raised their heads. They lay crafty plans against your people; they consult together against your treasured ones. They say, “Come, let us wipe them out as a nation; let the name of Israel be remembered no more!” For they conspire with one accord; against you they make a covenant— ..."  Psalm 83:1-18

The reason, for me, is clear to see.  It is God's plan being fulfilled.  We get to witness these things after the fact and compare them to Biblical prophecy and realize that our God is faithful and true, and the Bible holds up in all of its knowledge of things to come.  

But, in the end...in the end of this old earth story...Jerusalem is glorious!  And as Weatherly's song suggests, I believe we will go in and out freely to enjoy its beauty and its radiance.  For then it will have become truly God's Holy City...a city as we've never seen before!  

Hosanna in the highest! Hosanna for evermore!

Day 3 - Verse 98 - "I also saw the Holy City, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared like a bride adorned for her husband." Revelation 21:2

It's hard to imagine, isn't it, a whole city coming down from the sky?  And not only a city, but a glorious shining city, radiating like a beautiful bride coming down the aisle!

John MacArthur describes John's vision like this, "As John watches....an entire city, magnificent in its glory, descends whole from heaven and becomes part of the new earth.  Heaven and earth are now one.  The heavenly realm has moved its capital city to the new earth."

Amazing!!!  Isn't that a vision to behold!?  Heaven and earth truly united, becoming our eternal home.  Earth will still function.  I don't think we think about that a lot.  We usually picture eternity in a cloudy existence "up yonder" somewhere.  But God shows John that heaven and earth will be brought together...into a new, and absolutely improved, version for our new, and absolutely improved, lives.

Eternity will never be boring.  We will be doing things we never imagined with capabilities that we cannot even begin to fathom in our earthly minds and with our present bodily limitations.

In our Women's Bible Study last night we talked about Abraham and his continual pursuit of a deeper and greater relationship with God.  Throughout our earthly lives we should make the knowledge of God our ultimate goal.  But, in this life, we will always "see through a glass darkly"...we will never be able to completely understand all that God truly is.

But when we see the Holy City, and we begin our eternal lives, the unveiling will begin.  We will see the glory of the God we have pursued and every bit of our hunger for Him will be satisfied.

For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known .  1 Corinthians 13:12

I long to see God face to face.  But I will not abandon my quest for more of Him now.  The journey doesn't begin in the new Jerusalem, the new heaven and new earth...the journey begins now.  When He calls to us to come to Him, to start our lives with Him here, on earth, this old earth.  Here is where we make our decision as to what we will hunger after.  Here is where God is constantly seeking those whose hearts are turned to Him.

"For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to show Himself strong for those whose hearts are completely His." 2 Chronicles 16:9

Turn your heart to Him now, He will strengthen you in your journey.

And then, one day, we will say, "Amazing!"

Day 2 - Verse 98 - "I also saw the Holy City, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared like a bride adorned for her husband." Revelation 21:2

It is Easter morning 2016 and I'm looking out my window at my yard covered with snow!  What a beautiful picture to think about the whiteness of snow against the blood of Jesus.  With the resurrection taking place on Easter almost 2,000 years ago, the disciples will come to understand that the blood they saw shed on the cross on Friday has made each one of them bear their sins no more. For those of us who believe, the same is true today, "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool." Isaiah 1;18

What a Savior we serve!  Death could not hold Him, Satan could not defeat Him...He is risen! He is risen indeed!!

And with His resurrection we have the assurance of His power over our physical death as well.  We will one day leave this earth, whether by death or by His coming, but oh the promises that we have been given!

John visually saw the promise of our new eternal lives...and in this verse he tells us of the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God! Throughout Revelation 21-22 John describes more and more of this new Holy City.  As Robert Morgan writes in 100 Bible Verses Everyone Should Know by Heart, John...

"takes us on a tour of this celestial city of Foreveropolis.

1. The city from a distance (Rev. 21:9-11) Standing atop a mountain, John watched this massive diamond of a city descend to the new Earth.
2. The city up close.  (vv. 12-14) As it grew nearer, he marveled at the massive walls, foundations, and gates.
3. The size of the city. (vv. 15-17) Fourteen hundred miles in all directions!
4. The construction of the city. (vv. 18-21) The building materials included gold, jewels, pearls and crystal.
5. The interior of the city. (vv. 22-23) John was impressed by the light illumining the city and by the absence of a temple.
6. The commerce of the city. (vv. 24-27) Its gates are never shut as the produce and commodities of the new Earth flow in and out of it.
7. The city center. (vv. 22:1-2) At the heart of the city are the throne, the Crystal River, the Golden Boulevard, and Tree of Life Park.
8. The city's inhabitants. (vv. 3-5) God's children will be there worshipping, serving, reigning, and ruling forever with Him."

The new Jerusalem is a REAL place...God gave John a preview of it...but one day John will actually see it and experience it as he walks its streets.  And all who believe in Jesus' name as their Savior will be there too...walking along with John, with Peter, with Paul...with Jesus!  I want to be there, I long to be there.  I want all those I love to be there.

Two thousand years ago God made the way for us to join Him in this beautiful new world of eternity. His name is Jesus, and He died for our sins so that we could be found righteous and acceptable for a world that is free of sin, free of our sinful, self-centered desires.  And after Jesus died, He rose from the dead as proof that God IS victorious, and that we can have confidence in His ability to bring us from this "old world" into the new, forever world.

Jesus told His disciples that He is the Way, the Truth and the Life...God gave us the escape route from this world that is temporary into His world that is forever.  Isn't that proof of God's wonderful grace...He came to tell us how to get there.  The Way is Jesus.

Walk with me on the streets of the new Jerusalem...believe in God, believe in the One He has sent...

"You believe in God; believe also in me." John 14:1
"Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the One He has sent.”" John 6:29