The New Jerusalem (Day 36)

The New Jerusalem, the Bride of the Lamb

 

Revelation 21:9-14 ⁽⁹⁾One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.” ⁽¹⁰⁾And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God. ⁽¹¹⁾It shone with the glory of God, and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal. ⁽¹²⁾It had a great, high wall with twelve gates, and with twelve angels at the gates. On the gates were written the names of the twelve tribes of Israel. ⁽¹³⁾There were three gates on the east, three on the north, three on the south and three on the west. ⁽¹⁴⁾The wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. (NIV) How marvelous it is going to be to see the New Jerusalem. It will be far more beautiful than what we have ever imagined. 1 Corinthians 2:9-10 However, as it is written: “No eye has seen no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him,” but God has revealed it to us by his Spirt. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. (NIV)

            Jesus promised, while here on earth, that He had to go away to prepare a place for us. He longs to be with His children for eternity and has taken great care to ensure that He has it all prepared for when He returns.  John 14:1-4 “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, trust also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going.” (NIV) We should all long to be in fellowship with our Lord and Savior, so that we may forever live with Him in the beautiful place that He has prepared for us. This is why the devil works so hard to keep God’s children out of Heaven. Remember, he has already been there, so the devil knows what great things God has in store for us once we arrive. Isaiah 14:12 How you have fallen from heaven, O morning star, son of the dawn! You have been cast down to the earth, you who once laid low the nations! (NIV) Yes, Lucifer, now Satan, once had a place in Heaven, but pride overtook him. Therefore, because sin cannot exist in the presence of God, he was kicked out. Habakkuk 1:13 “Your eyes are too pure to look on evil; you cannot tolerate wrong….” (NIV)

 

Revelation 21:15-21  ⁽¹⁵⁾The angel who talked with me had a measuring rod of gold to measure the city, its gates and its walls. ⁽¹⁶⁾The city was laid out like a square, as long as it was wide. He measured the city with the rod and found it to be 12,000 stadia in length, and as wide and high as it is long. ⁽¹⁷⁾The angel measured the wall using human measurement, and it was 144 cubits thick. ⁽¹⁸⁾The wall was made of jasper, and the city of pure gold, as pure as glass. ⁽¹⁹⁾The foundations of the city walls were decorated with every kind of precious stone. The first foundation was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, ⁽²⁰⁾the fifth onyx, the sixth ruby, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth turquoise, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst. ⁽²¹⁾The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate made of a single pearl. The great street of the city was of gold, as pure as transparent glass. (NIV)

 

John describes the Holy City as the angel measured 0the walls. The city is made of precious gems and stones way more splendid than our earthly minds can ever imagine. The gates are made of pearls and the streets are made of pure transparent gold. No mansion on earth can compare to the one that we will have in the New Jerusalem. 

 

Revelation 21:22-27 ⁽²²⁾I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. ⁽²³⁾The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp. ⁽²⁴⁾The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it. ⁽²⁵⁾On no day will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no night there. ⁽²⁶⁾The glory and honor of the nations will be brought into it. ⁽²⁷⁾Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life. (NIV)

 

Just as the curtain ripped upon Jesus death to signify that there was no longer any need for sacrificial offerings, the same will hold true with regards to their being a temple. Matthew 27:50-51 And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit. At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook and the rocks split. (NIV) The sacrifice had been made and no longer was there any need for the shedding of blood from sheep, goats, or calves. Jesus paid it all! We will not have a need for a temple because God and the Lamb are the temple. This is why we must not focus on tangible worship houses, but our worship should be within our hearts because we are the temple of God in which He dwells. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 Do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body. (NIV)

            There will be no darkness because Jesus is the Light. John 8:12 When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” (NIV) There will be no need for lamps, flashlights, torches, or even the sun and moon. Jesus is all the Light that we will need, for in Heaven, there will be no darkness of any kind. The gates will never be locked for there will be no thieves and robbers for anyone whose name is not found in the Book of Life will not enter Heaven. Luke 10:20 However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven. (NIV)