Day 2 - Verse 99 - "He who testifies about these things says, "Yes, I am coming quickly." Amen! Come Lord Jesus!" Revelation 22:20

Jesus is our Promiser --- He promises His return!  Three times in Revelation He makes this same promise, in verses 7, 12, and here in 20.  "Look, I am coming quickly! Blessed is he one who keeps the prophetic words of this book...Look! I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me...Yes, I am coming quickly!"

When the Bible states something in threes it is a point of emphasis.  Jesus wants us to hear His promise and know deep within us that it is true and sure...He IS coming soon!

Robert Morgan states, "The immediate response of John in verse 20 was "Amen!" This is a term of agreement, meaning, "so be it!"  Then John offered the Bible's concluding prayer, "Come, Lord Jesus!" This is the equivalent of the Aramaic term Maranatha.  It's a prayer for us to repeat frequently  What a tragedy that Christians seldom pray specifically for the Lord to return.  Let's start including Maranatha in our prayer vocabulary."

Join with me today in praying for Christ's return, praying that His church will be prepared for Him like a bride waiting for her bridegroom, praying that He will find us faithful and anxiously awaiting His arrival!  Pray that every person that is to hear His Word hears it soon and that we take seriously the responsibility of proclaiming His coming...both His first arrival as a baby, teacher, suffering servant, Son of Man, crucified Son of God and risen Savior, and His second as our victorious King and Lord of Lords!

Every day we are given here on this earth is a day of opportunity to share Jesus' promise...every morning that we see dawning could bring with it the day of Jesus' return.  "Come, Lord Jesus!" Maranatha!

We need to review our last set of verses of the Alpha and Omega...starting with Isaiah 9:6 and going through Revelation 22:20....

Isaiah 9:6  "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be on His shoulders.  And His name shall be called Wonderful Counselor,The mighty God, The eternal Father, The Prince of Peace."

Luke 2:10   "But the angel said to them, 'Do not be afraid, for I bring you good news of great joy, which will be for all the people.' "

Luke 2:11  "For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord."

Luke 2:12  "This will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped snugly in a cloth and lying in a manger."

Acts 1:11 "Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up into heaven?  This Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come in the same way that you have seen Him going into heaven."

Revelation 21:1  "Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea existed no longer."

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

Revelation 22:20 "He who testifies to these things say, "Yes, I am coming quickly." Amen! Come, Lord Jesus!"

Day 1 - Verse 99 - "He who testifies about these things says, 'Yes, I am coming quickly.' Amen! Come, Lord Jesus!" Revelation 22:20

What can you say about this next to the last verse of all of Holy Scripture?  The final verse adds John's benediction, "The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God's people. Amen."  So the very last things that Jesus leaves us with (as He is the one testifying to John throughout the book of Revelation) is to remember that He is coming, and coming quickly.  And John's response is, "Amen! Come, Lord Jesus!"

First, do we still truly believe that Jesus is coming, or have we fallen into a state of semi-disbelief, and join in with the scoffers that are described in 2 Peter,  "Above all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. They will say, “Where is this ‘coming’ he promised? Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.” 2 Peter 3:3

It is easy to listen to those who say that the world has been going on for a kajillion billion years and that it will continue on for another kajillion billion years, if we take good enough care of it.  Biblical truth tells us that our earth was created for a specific purpose, and once that purpose has been served, it will cease to be and will be replaced with God's perfect new earth as we learned in Revelation 21:1. One of the reasons that I do not believe the earth is as old as secular scientists claim is that it takes away from the truth that the earth was created for a finite time...it had a beginning and it will have an end.  But secular scoffers see the world through a different view, and that everything we see here and now will continue on through the ages, with no end in sight.

We, as Christians, need to hold fast onto the truth that Jesus proclaims in His parting sentence to John, and to us.  "Yes, I AM coming quickly!"  Jesus IS coming.  Just because He hasn't made His reappearance in the past 2,000 years, does not mean that He will not return.  He will come at the precise moment His Father gives Him the nod, and not a moment sooner.  "Now concerning that day and hour no one knows-neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son -except the Father only." Matthew 24:36

Remember that our ways are not God's ways and our thoughts not His, and that a thousand years to us, is like a day unto the Lord.  (Isaiah 55:8 and 2 Peter 3:8)  So let us not grow weary, and let us not give up our hope...Jesus IS coming again, and if He said quickly to John, then we are 2,000 years closer to His soon return!

Second, do we respond as John did to Jesus' pronouncement of His return?  "Amen! Come, Lord Jesus!" or have we grown so comfortable in this world, that we are not anxious for Jesus to come and transport us to the next?  Would we be disappointed that our earthly plans have been upset?  Have we grown comfortable living in ways which would cause us shame if Jesus returned right now?  If we looked up into the sky today and saw Jesus descending from the clouds, on a white horse of glory, would we run toward Him or run the other way to try to hide ourselves from His judgment?

John's response shows no hesitancy...he is ready!  This is a good tool for self-examination of our spiritual lives.  How do you respond to Christ's proclamation that He is coming quickly?  Are you ready?  Have you embraced Him as your Savior and asked for His blood to cleanse you from all your unrighteousness?  Are you living in a way that proclaims that truth in your life...living to bring God glory in response to His graciousness to you?

Jesus is coming, He is coming quickly.  Let the church be ready...as a bride ready for her bridegroom!

Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready.  Revelation 19:7

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

Day 1 - 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

What a vision John was given!  To actually see the new Jerusalem coming down out of heaven! Wouldn't that an amazing thing to get to see?  I want to start singing Mercy Me's "I Can Only Imagine!"

This verse comes immediately after our last verse, Revelation 21:1, "Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea existed no longer."

John has seen the old pass away to make room for the new...the new cannot be seen until the old is gone.  And now he sees God's crowning jewel, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven...the new Jerusalem, to take it's place on the new earth.  Not the Jerusalem that we have come to know --- a divided city, torn apart by strife and religious wars.  No, this Jerusalem is beautifully prepared like a bride ready for her husband and coming down the aisle, but instead coming out of heaven.

Everything will be new, everything will be better, everything will be glorious...because Jesus will now take His place as the world's King...forever!

Today is Good Friday, the day that Jesus went to the cross for our sin.  We should be mournful on this day....but we should be mournful over our sins that sent Jesus to that cross.  Not grieving over a crucified Jesus that was less than we thought He was going to be...no, we, unlike the disciples on that dark day, know that Sunday is coming.  We know that Jesus is EVERYTHING He said He was and we have the resurrection to attest to His deity and the power of God displayed.  And because of Good Friday, we can also know that Jesus' willingness to die for us, gives us the ability to claim His blood over all our sinfulness and to know that we will have life with Him forever.  I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life. (1 John  5:13)

Because of Good Friday, and then because of the miracle of Easter, we will see the new Jerusalem in all it's glory.  We will see the new heaven and the new earth that John was given the opportunity to preview.

We have a risen Savior, and we should thank God every day for that provision.  But Christ's resurrection and ascension is only part of His story of the redemption of mankind.  Just as the disciples on Friday didn't understand what Sunday would bring, I don't believe we can completely understand the rest of Christ's story: His second coming to reign forever.  But for those who believe in His name, and in His saving grace, we will come to understand just as fully as the disciples saw the holes in Jesus' side when He appeared to them.  All will be made known...all our questions answered.
All things new....and beautiful!

Let's review this section of verses as we start our 98th verse!

Isaiah 9:6  "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be on His shoulders.  And His name shall be called Wonderful Counselor,The mighty God, The eternal Father, The Prince of Peace."

Luke 2:10   "But the angel said to them, 'Do not be afraid, for I bring you good news of great joy, which will be for all the people.' "

Luke 2:11  "For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord."

Luke 2:12  "This will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped snugly in a cloth and lying in a manger."

Acts 1:11 "Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up into heaven?  This Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come in the same way that you have seen Him going into heaven."

Revelation 21:1  "Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea existed no longer."

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

Thank You, Lord God, for all of Your glorious plans...plans made for our eternal good.  Let us look back and see how Your promises have been fulfilled, and let us look forward knowing that all of Your future promises are just as sure.  Thank You for our forgivness supplied through the blood of Jesus, our Savior!  Amen!

  

Day 4 - Verse 97 - "Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea existed no longer." Revelation 21:1

We like what we know, don't we?  The familiar, the comfortable...the known.  Last night a group of women started a Bible study using Anne Graham Lotz's book, The Magnificent Obsession.  In this book, Anne shares the story of Abraham and how he became known as God's friend.  That's the goal set before us in this study...to come to truly know God and have that kind of personal relationship with Him.

Did this come easy for Abraham?  Not at all.  God told him to leave his home and his family for a place Abraham and never seen.  Abraham's willingness to do that is what led him into such an intimate relationship with God.

Does that scenario strike a chord with you?  When we talk of a new heaven and a new earth, and the first heaven and first earth passing away, is there a part of you that wants to cry out, "But I like it here!"  I think that emotion rings true in all of us...this old earth is what we know, this is where we have lived and where our friends and family are.

But just like Abraham of old, God calls us away, and asks us to trust Him that the new heaven and new earth, even though we haven't seen them, are infinitely better for our eternal life.  Like Abraham, our promised land lies ahead, sight unseen, and we have to be willing to let go of the known to take hold of the promises of God.

Did God's promises hold true for Abraham?  Every one of them.  Will they hold true for us?  Absolutely.  God proves Himself over and over in the Scriptures as being completely trustworthy.  I love when Jesus tells His disciples, "In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you", when relaying to them the wonders of their eternal destination.  It sounds like Jesus is saying to them, "I'm telling you the truth...you can trust me on this one."

As much as we may love our earthly lives with all of their trials and troubles, we should be confident enough in God to let go....to know that the new heaven and the new earth will make what we now know look ghastly pale in comparison.

It's been said, "Everyone wants to go to heaven, but nobody wants to go right now."  But we should. We should have such an anticipation for our new home that we can't wait to get there.  Not taking away from the fact that God has purpose in every day that He gives us here on earth, and we praise Him for those days as well, when we can proclaim Him to others and live under His direction, going where He calls us to go now as well...but our eyes should be on eternity, and all the new things God has in store for us there.

This is what we know...but that is what we are promised.  Abraham saw God's promises to him fulfilled...one day we will too.

Come Lord Jesus!