Communauté et discipulat

The City of God (Rev 21:9-22:5)

2010.12.12Rev. Eddie Byun

The city of God, the New Jerusalem, will be filled with the beauty of God's glory, the light of his presence, and the life that flows from the throne of the Lamb. God restores all things to be better than before, so the best is always still ahead of us.

The city of God is filled with great beauty (vv. 9-14)

John is taken up a great high mountain and shown not a bride but a city, the holy Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven with the glory of God and clear as crystal. The high walls are no longer for defense, since evil is gone; they display the glory of God's grace. The twelve gates bear the names of the twelve tribes of Israel, and the twelve foundations bear the names of the twelve apostles. Entrance into the city comes only through the gospel found in both the old and new covenants, which all point to Jesus Christ.

God's dwelling is vast and beautiful beyond imagination (vv. 15-21)

The city is shaped like a cube, the same shape as the inner sanctuary of the temple described in 1 Kings 6:20, which marks it as the place of God's holy presence. Its measurements are immense, about 12,000 stadia in length, width, and height, so the whole city of God stretches across a vast land. The gems in its foundations nearly match the stones on the high priest's breastplate, which signals that all of God's people now have intimate access to him. The twelve gates are made of single pearls, reminding us that access to God's home comes only through the sacrifice of Christ at Calvary.

God's own light fills the city (vv. 22-27)

John sees no temple in the city, because the Lord God and the Lamb themselves are its temple, so the symbol is no longer needed when the reality is present. The glory of God gives it light, so it needs no sun or moon, and there is no night there. Nothing unclean will enter it, only those written in the Lamb's book of life, so the city is a place of complete safety. There is no crime, no loneliness, and no fear, and we will shine God's light and enjoy his light in one another.

Life flows from the throne of the Lamb (22:1-2)

The river of the water of life flows from the throne of God and the Lamb, and the tree of life bears fruit every month, with its leaves for the healing of the nations. Just as Genesis speaks of a tree of life in the garden, the Bible ends by returning us to that garden where God desires to dwell with humanity. In heaven the healing will be complete, bringing perfect health in body, perfect peace in relationships, and unbroken friendship with Jesus. Randy Alcorn describes heaven as an exploding universe of life, while hell is an imploding point of death.

God saves the best for last (22:3-5)

No longer will anything be accursed, and God's servants will worship him and see his face, which no one could do in the Old Testament. They will reign with Christ forever and ever, because God restores all things to become better than they were before. Just as Jesus saved the best wine for last and Job received more than he had lost, our best days are always ahead of us. Therefore death is not the end of a relationship but a doorway, and the real adventure of the new creation is still to come.

Apply to Life

  • Let us behold the beauty of God today and set our hearts on his presence above all else.
  • Let us give generously to those in need, knowing that we have first received everything from God.
  • Let us pray for the homeless, the hungry, and the people of North Korea, asking God to provide for them and bring them his light.
  • Let us ask the Holy Spirit to shake us out of our comfort zones and live as radical disciples of Christ.
  • Let us live with hope, knowing that God saves the best for last and that the best is yet to come.

This summary was made automatically from the sermon's captions and may differ from the sermon.

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