A Vision of the New Heaven and New Earth | Revelation 21-22

Series: Will the Church Be on the Right Side of History?
Part 9/9

Read: Revelation 21-22, John 14:1-14

Have you ever imagined what heaven will be like? We, like our culture, are fascinated by this subject. Heaven has been depicted in every artistic form. Books on the subject are always at the top of our best seller lists. It is a subject that has been envisioned by every culture around the world. But while it is such a prominent theme in our zeitgeist, we very rarely look at the source material, the Bible, to describe what eternity will actually look like. Furthermore, we hardly ever ask the question of why any of this matters in the real world. 

At the tail end of a book that has primarily been about judgment and destruction, there is a vision of a new heaven and new earth. Revelation was written to give us hope, and to inspire us to live with the future in mind. 

A New Creation

In these final images in John’s vision, he is seeing the recreation of everything that was destroyed. This isn’t just the restoration of a scorched earth, this is a completely new creation. 

This is a fitting end to the story of the Bible, as the opening chapters describe everything that God created as good, so this new creation will be perfect. Except, where Adam and Eve brought death into the world because of their sin, this new creation will be free from death and everything associated with it. There is no more crying, mourning, or pain. All of the old things will have passed away. 

Throughout the book of Revelation we have seen God on His throne, and here we see Him again declaring, “Behold, I am making all things new.” As He commissions John to write everything down He also declares, “It is done!” Just as Jesus declared on the cross that it was finished when He drank the full cup of God’s wrath, so God will declare when the last drop of His anger is poured out on His creation. He is the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. The story starts with God and ends with God. This shows His majesty, His power, and His righteous judgments which are pure. But there is grace in this because He also says that He will give water to all who are thirsty. Do you remember when Jesus offered the woman at the well eternal water? This is the reminder that salvation belongs to the Lord, but He gives it freely to anyone who asks. 

There is a word of caution in all of this as we see those who will not be in the new creation. This list of sins covers everything from big and small sins. What we have to see is that everyone is guilty based on these categories, but we must also remember the grace of God to save us despite our failings. 

A New Jerusalem

This new creation is different from the first creation which was made out of nothing. One of the reasons we are seeing everything destroyed in the plagues and judgments leading up to these final chapters is because those elements will not be important to what God is preparing for us. We cannot take your treasures with us, and it would be foolish to try. This new city is described in beautiful opulence. The streets are paved with gold. Why would we want to bring gravel into heaven? The only thing that makes it from this world into the next is the children of God. 

This is what is being described in the next image as we see the bride of the Lamb, the New Jerusalem. Babylon was seen as a harlot, the city of this world which was destroyed. The New Jerusalem is seen as the faithful bride of Christ in the new heaven and new earth. When Jesus said that He was going to prepare a place for us, it carries the idea of a groom preparing a home for His future wife. This is the image that carries through the New Testament and shows what glory will be like as we live with God in a married union. This is not merely creator and creature, we are family. 

For those who try to interpret everything in Revelation literally, it gets a little silly when we see this city being measured. It is said to be 16,000 stadia in length, width, and height. A cube. In modern measurements, it would be 1,380 miles high. I’ve actually sat under the teaching of someone who tried to draw this to scale. It would certainly throw off the earth’s axis and extend past our atmosphere into outer space. However, there is some significance to it being a cube. There is only one other cube described in the Bible, the Holy of Holies in the temple. This is where Christ dwells among us. 

There is no temple in this city because God is right there with us. There won’t be any Church buildings, just the people of God worshipping Him from every corner of this new creation. There’s no sun or moon because God is their light. Just as the Shekinah Glory of God rested over the tabernacle as a pillar of fire, offering light to the entire encampment, so God will give light to this new city. 

Again, we are reminded that this place is full of God’s glory and He dwells among us. Therefore, nothing impure can be in this city. No sinner can enter the kingdom of God. 

The New Eden

Then we are given another image as we see the river of life flowing and the tree of life bearing its fruit. This is the contrast to the old Eden that had fallen from the curse of sin. The water here is for those who are thirsty, freely given for all to drink. It is purifying and cleanses us from all of our sin. The Tree of Life was the tree that Adam and Eve ate from in the garden to gain the knowledge of good and evil. Where it brought sin and death onto mankind, now it gives sustenance and healing to those who are given the righteousness of God. 

The significant difference is that there is no more curse in this world. Sin and death have been defeated. The land no longer grows thorns and thistles. Marriages are restored to perfect harmony without any discord. This is the way that creation was meant to be, but it is better because we are united with Christ. God no longer shows up on a schedule, in the early morning to walk with us in the garden. He lives and dwells among us. 

Then we are told that we will reign with God forever and ever. The relationship of creator and creature has drastically changed. Our righteousness exceeds that of Adam and Eve before the fall. It exceeds even above the angels who were created perfect and are without sin. We are given Jesus’ righteousness. Now we are joint heirs with Christ, children of God. We share in God’s glory and rule with Him in this new creation.

Why Does it Matter? 

The vision of the new city and new earth is a fitting end to the Book of Revelation and the Bible itself. It is the final scene that shows every prophecy ever made has been fulfilled, every storyline has concluded, all of creation has been restored. 

In the final wrap-up of this book, there is a repeating phrase, “Behold, I am coming soon!” There is an immanence to the return of Christ that should be on our hearts and minds at all times. This is our eternal hope that propels us to live for God in this present world, despite the challenges and obstacles. We must be heavenly minded if we are going to be any earthly good. 

At the beginning of Revelation we are told that there is a blessing for those who read and hear this book. Now we are told again that the blessing is for those who keep the words in this prophecy. This is a book of warning to the Church that we must persevere to be victorious. God is going to judge everyone for the deeds we have done in this life. Those whose names are not written in the Lamb’s Book of Life will be cast into the lake of fire. Everything in this world will be burned up along with everything that is wrapped up in it. We must purify ourselves so that we won’t be caught naked when Christ returns. 

So, how do we wash our garments and stay ready? We repent of our sins and confess them before God so that we might be washed in the blood of Christ and have our names written in the Lamb’s Book of Life. Come, let all who hear and thirst taste the goodness of God through the free gift of His grace. Worship God, and join with all the saints of God in praying, “Come, Lord Jesus.”

 

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Adam Miller is the president and host of Songtime Radio and serves as the pastor of South Chatham Community Church. This article is a condensed version of one of his sermons.