Eden Restored and John with the Angel

Eden Restored

Revelation 22:1-5 ⁽¹⁾Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb ⁽²⁾down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. ⁽³⁾No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. ⁽⁴⁾They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. ⁽⁵)There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever. (NIV)

 

            John was shown the river of life that flowed from the throne of God and the Lamb. It was clear as crystal. There was not impurities in the water that would produce a cloudiness as in some of the water that we see today. It was clear and ran down the middle of the Holy City. Jesus promised that if we were to believe in Him, water would flow through us as well. He is the living water where we can drink freely from now and forever more. A water where we will never be thirsty again. John 7:38 Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them. (NIV)

            On each side of the river was the Tree of Life. It had 12 kinds of fruit on it and the leaves were good for healing. Every month, it produced new fruit. In the garden of Eden, there was the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, but in this garden, there will no longer be a need for anything that is evil to bring about death. Genesis 2:17 But you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die. (NIV) Only life is offered and will be given. Where one tree tested man’s obedience to God, another tree will reward those who remained faithful to Him.

The Tree of Life is not like other trees where they only produce one type of fruit. There are 12 different kinds of fruit on that one tree, which can be eaten unlike in the Garden of Eden. Genesis 1:11 Then God said, "Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds." And it was so. (NIV) The leaves are good for the healing of the nation because there will be no more sickness, death, misery or pain. God will wipe all tears from our eyes. Ezekiel 47:12 Fruit trees of all kinds will grow on both banks of the river. Their leaves will not wither, nor will their fruit fail. Every month they will bear fruit, because the water from the sanctuary flows to them. Their fruit will serve for food and their leaves for healing. (NIV)

No longer will we be under a curse. We will be able to see God face to face and have His name on our foreheads. Galatians 3:13-14 ⁽¹³⁾Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a pole.” ⁽¹⁴⁾He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.  (NIV) No curse that we were under while on earth will exist in the new heaven and earth because Jesus paid the price for our sins so that we may have eternal life.

 

          There will be no more need for sleep because the sun and moon will not exist. Jesus is the only light that we will ever need and His light will last forever and ever. Isaiah 60:19-21 ⁽¹⁹⁾The sun will no more be your light by day, nor will the brightness of the moon shine on you, for the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory. ⁽²⁰⁾Your sun will never set again, and your moon will wane no more; the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your days of sorrow will end. ⁽²¹⁾Then all your people will be righteous and they will possess the land forever. (NIV) What a glorious day it will be when we will forever be able to be with our Lord and Savior.

John and the Angel

Revelation 22:6-11 ⁽⁶⁾The angel said to me, “These words are trustworthy and true. The Lord, the God who inspires the prophets, sent his angel to show his servants the things that must soon take place.” ⁽⁷⁾ “Look, I am coming soon! Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy written in this scroll.” ⁽⁸⁾I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I had heard and seen them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who had been showing them to me. ⁽⁹⁾But he said to me, “Don’t do that! I am a fellow servant with you and with your fellow prophets and with all who keep the words of this scroll. Worship God!” ⁽¹⁰⁾Then he told me, “Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this scroll, because the time is near. ⁽¹¹⁾Let the one who does wrong continue to do wrong; let the vile person continue to be vile; let the one who does right continue to do right; and let the holy person continue to be holy.” (NIV)

            The angel let John know that the words that were written in this prophecy was true. Whatever comes out of the mouth of God will come to pass as He has spoken. Isaiah 55:10-11 ⁽¹⁰⁾As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, ⁽¹¹⁾so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it. (NIV) God stands by His word because He can only swear by Himself since there is no one greater than He.

          All scripture that is given comes from the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. God did not want His children to be clueless as to the things that would take place in the last days, so He gave the prophetic word to John in order for him to give it to the Body of Christ. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 ⁽¹⁶⁾All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, ⁽¹⁷⁾so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. (NIV) Jesus let John know that His coming is soon and there was a blessing for those who kept the words of this prophecy. We are not only to be hearers, but doers of the word of God. James 1:22 Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. (NIV)

          John fell down to the feet of the angel to worship him, but the angel rebuked John by letting him know that only God is to be worshipped. No one else deserves our worship but the Almighty God. Nehemiah 9:6 You alone are the Lord. You made the heavens, even the highest heavens, and all their starry host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them. You give life to everything, and the multitudes of heaven worship you. (NIV) God is a jealous God. He alone is to be worshipped. All of Heaven know their place when it comes to the Lord and even the angels are subservient to His will.

 

            John was not to seal up the words of the prophecy unlike Daniel. Daniel 12:4 But you, Daniel, roll up and seal the words of the scroll until the time of the end. Many will go here and there to increase knowledge. (NIV) The time of the prophecy given to John was for the times that we now live in. Therefore, God wanted it to be revealed to all who read it. If there was ever a time to understand this prophetic book, it is now. The words of this book are coming to life in real time and we as the Body of Christ must be prepared for what is and what is to come. Those who have decided to follow Jesus must continue to do so, and those who have made a choice for Satan, the time of Salvation is short where no one will be able to switch sides. Hebrews 3:15 As has just been said: "Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion." (NIV)
 

Join us tomorrow for our final day in the book of Revelation.