MY PERSPECTIVE, Gary Damron
Today brings a compelling conclusion to a three-part overview of the Book of Revelation. The first article dealt with conflicts between good and evil, and deliverance from tribulation. Last week we wrote of the reign of Babylon, contrasted with Christ as king, and a final battle on earth. Today, we reach the final chapters of the Bible, where all things are made new.
John the apostle, exiled when he was close to 90 years old, wrote in Revelation 21:1-2, “I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband.” Rather than giving a view of heaven, John was specific that this vision of transformation takes place on earth.
John’s comment that there is no longer any sea in this new earth may be startling. Most commentators believe that the sea represents separation and divisiveness, and from the beginning it has been a source of chaos, turmoil and threat.
In this new earth will be a New Jerusalem, a holy city, made ready as a bride for her husband. If we look back two chapters, John described a wedding. “‘Let us rejoice and be glad and give the glory to Him, for the marriage of the Lamb has come and His bride has made herself ready.’ It was given to her to clothe herself in fine linen, bright and clean; for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints” (Revelation 19:7-8). People representing the bride will be from all nations and generations, made righteous by faith - remember Abraham and David - and all who have overcome.
Those who will not be a part of the New Jerusalem are also described: “...nothing unclean, and no one who practices abomination and lying, shall ever come into it, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life” (Revelation 21:27). In an Old Testament passage we find more insight into things abominable to God: “Haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that run rapidly to evil, a false witness who utters lies, and one who spreads strife among brothers” (Proverbs 6:17-19).
John describes the new Jerusalem. “I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. And the city has no need of the sun or of the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God has illumined it, and its lamp is the Lamb’” (Revelation 21:22-23). Some through the centuries have held to the hope that a literal building will be rebuilt in Jerusalem, foretold in Ezekiel chapters 40 through 48. Herod did construct a magnificent second temple, but without the Spirit of God in it. The apostle Paul gave an illustration of this new temple. “So then ... you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God’s household, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple in the Lord ... “ (Ephesians 2:19-22).
There are twelve gates in the new Jerusalem, described in radiant splendor. “Its gates will never be closed”, and “they will bring the glory and the honor of the nations into it” (Revelation 21:25, 26).
There will be a change in the natural elements, including water, light, and trees. We already learned that there’s no need for sun or moon. But in the final chapter, the key emphasis in New Jerusalem is worship. John wrote, “Then 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 its street. On either side of the river was the tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations” (Revelation 22:1-2).
Spiritual life in this city will come from God himself and is available to all who have entered. We often “pant for water” (Psalm 42), but here is an abundant supply of living water, which was promised to the Samaritan woman in John chapter 4. Since Adam and Eve left the Garden of Eden, the tree of life has been unavailable to humans (Genesis 3:24). In the New Jerusalem, the tree of life is on both sides of the river, bearing fruit without limit, and providing healing from all the fears, hurts and dangers of our present earth.
Curses pronounced in Genesis 3:16-19 will be erased, and the tree of life is seen once again. “There will no longer be any curse; and the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and His bondservants will serve Him; they will see His face, and His name will be on their foreheads” (Revelation 22:3-4). More intriguing than the elements are the throne of God and the Lamb, from which all these emanate, and seeing Him face to face. Can we even imagine?
The final message is “‘Behold, I am coming quickly, ... I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end’” (Revelation 22:12, 13). The Word, born in Bethlehem, the offspring of David, bright and morning star, will come in the twinkling of an eye. Before He comes, may we answer His invitation to “Come,” and be found abiding in Him.
