Revelation 21, verse number 1. The Apostle John sees this vision from the Lord, this revelation about the future, and he says, And I saw a new heaven and a new earth. For the first heaven and the first earth were passed away, and there was no more sea. And I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself shall be with them and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes, There shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain, for the former things are passed away. And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write, for these words are true and faithful. And he said unto me, it is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is a thirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. He that overcometh shall inherit all things and I will be his God and he shall be my son. But the fearful and unbelieving and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone, which is the second death." In this scripture, we find a contrast of destinies. Some are going to be separated from God forever and ever in a place called the lake of fire. But for those who know Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior, we have a bright future to look forward to. We've got a heavenly city that has been prepared for us. There are some tremendous blessings coming in our future. I don't know if you have looked at what houses are going for these days in our city. This week, Terry and I were looking around and even looking in Queens Village to see what's available. And it's amazing because that's one of the places where it seems things are somewhat affordable in this city. But it is just amazing how little you get for so much money. And if you move out to Long Island, you may get nicer property and a bigger house, but the taxes you pay are very insurmountable for many of us. But the houses that we dwell in today, the houses that you may buy, no matter how fancy it may be, you may be able to afford a nice, beautiful home with a cathedral ceiling. Maybe you have the money to get a big giant backyard and a jacuzzi and a swimming pool. And maybe you've got the money that you can afford just humongous rooms and a big dining room and a full finished basement. There are some amazing pieces of property in our city, but none of them compare to what is yet ahead. Not the best house in this city. And it's amazing how many houses go for over a million dollars around here. Over a million dollars. When I tell people that the house we're living in, the Swansons and the Sawyers, have been renting a two-family house there in flushing, and how the landlord was considering selling us that property. And I told them a price, $365,000. And they said, wow. But you know, that's the Big Apple. The dirt's not cheap around here. They said, you know what you could get in some little rinky-dink town and Florida or wherever. You can get a mansion for $300. You're right. You can. But around here, you don't get that. But I'll tell you what. Up there, we've got something that surpasses infinitely anything you could buy in this life. And in this chapter, God tells us all about it. That's our real estate up there in glory. He describes a new heaven and a new earth and a new Jerusalem. And it is so beautiful. Next week or next time we study, we will see more of its beauty. Today, we are just going to, by the grace of God, encourage you to keep your eyes on that future inheritance. I want God to help us to see heaven today and to see what is in store for the child of God. Notice the Scripture says in Revelation 21 verse 1, And I saw a new heaven and a new earth. God promises to create a new heaven and a new earth. As a matter of fact, in Isaiah 65 and verse number 17, The Lord uses a word which means to create something out of nothing. Barah is the word. I believe God is going to create a brand new heaven, brand new sky, brand new outer space, brand new earth, and He's going to make them to last forever, according to Isaiah 66, 22. And so, just as God created this earth out of nothing, so God's going to create a new heaven and a new earth out of nothing. And God can do that. You know, the Bible teaches, by faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the Word of God, so that the things which are made were not made of things which do appear. God just spoke and it was done. And I'll tell you, this earth has a lot of beauty. If you've traveled some, I know many here are from the islands of the Caribbean, and you live in a beautiful place or have lived in a beautiful place. I had the opportunity once to go there and preach on the island of Dominica, which is a very beautiful tropical island. And many of you know what it is like to see crystal clear ocean water. and to see beautiful mountains and beautiful trees and clear springs of water and rivers. And if you've traveled and seen the Rocky Mountains, or perhaps you have traveled out west and saw the huge sequoia trees or the beauty of the Pacific coast, you know that around this world there's some real beauty. but nothing compared to what God's going to do in the future. This earth is nothing compared to what God has in store. He says, I'm going to make a brand new heaven and a brand new earth. You see, the scripture teaches, and I've got to reconcile this with what I'm saying because it is my belief that after the rapture, that there will be, as we saw last week, a thousand-year kingdom in which will reign peace and righteousness. This present earth will be renovated for that time period. However, I believe this earth one day is going to pass away, as Jesus said it would. And God's going to create a brand new one. Now, but the Scripture teaches In Ecclesiastes 1 and verse 4, one generation passeth away and another generation cometh, but the earth abideth forever. He says the earth will remain forever. In Psalm 119.90, the Bible says, Thy faithfulness is unto all generations. Thou hast established the earth and it abideth. It abides. It remains. Psalm 104, verse 5 speaks about the Lord who has laid the foundation of the earth, that it should not be removed forever. And so there's some scriptures that describe the earth as abiding forever. Now, God on the one hand says that this earth is going to last forever. On the other hand, He says He's going to make a new heaven and a new earth. How can that be? How can God make a new one and yet keep the existing one? Well, it's my belief that God is going to, from scratch, create a brand new earth and He will remove this present globe and replace it with a new one. I did not say God's going to just cause this planet to go boom out of existence. But I believe what's going to happen to this planet is it's going to be removed from His holy presence and God's going to have a brand new one and a brand new city of Jerusalem. See, God will renovate or remodel or reconstruct the earth's surface for the millennial kingdom. but God is going to remove and replace this existing earth for the eternal state. Let me give you some scriptures. First of all, if we notice in verse 1 of Revelation 21, it says that the first heaven and the first earth were passed away. That means that this present earth and the heaven, the sky, are going to go away." That's what that word, passed away, means. Ap-erkhomai is the Greek word. It means to depart. Now, God never says that this earth, this globe, is going to be annihilated into nothingness, but God does teach it's going to go away. As a matter of fact, we remember last time in Revelation 20 and verse 11, the Bible says, From whose face the earth and the heaven fled away, and there was found no place for them. I believe what's going to happen to this planet is it's going to flee away from God's holy presence. This place which has been defiled by the presence of sin is going to run away like a fugitive. It's going to flee in terms of distance away from the new one that God creates. Jesus promised. He said, Heaven and earth shall pass away. But my Word will not pass away. And so this planet is passing away. And the word pass away means to go away. Hebrews 4.26 speaks about the removing of those things which are shaken. The word removing means to change position. So this earth will have a change of location. It will be removed beyond view. It will be a useless, uninhabited planet, perhaps light years removed from the new creation of God. It's going away. It's going to pass away. God's going to make a brand new one. In this new one, the Bible says there will be no more sea. Now that's pretty amazing. No more ocean. No more ocean waters. And you say, what's significant about that is that the new one will not have the ocean, which has been a natural barrier that has prevented people from reaching other people. You know, if you want to go overseas, you've got to fly to get there unless you're going to take a long boat ride. But in the new Earth, there's not going to be any more sea. This globe, three-fourths of our Earth's surface is made up of water. Did you know that? Three-fourths of this Earth is water. There's a lot of ocean out there. But when God says that there will be no more sea, I believe that the sea which has formed a natural boundary that has separated or divided people from each other, that there will be no division in the new earth. Now, in the millennium, we saw there will be a sea. Ezekiel 47 verses 1 and 8 through 12 speak about waters flowing into the Mediterranean Sea and into the Dead Sea. But there's coming a time when there will be no more sea. And then he describes in verse 2, notice this now, saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband." And so, John sees a new city coming down out of heaven from the Lord. And he calls it the new Jerusalem. Today, we want to focus on this new city. a city that is going to be unlike any city that man has ever built. Men have tried to build tremendous cities like New York City, one of the most famous cities in the world, but this place is absolutely nothing. If you took it, all the splendor of New York, all of its skyscrapers, all of its lights, all of its glamour, all of its money, all of whatever it is, it is nothing compared to what God has built for the future. Today we're going to learn about the heavenly city that you will be in one day if you're saved. If you are God's children, you're going to inhabit the new Jerusalem, this tremendous future city of God. Notice several things about this new city, this new Jerusalem. First of all, in verse 2, He describes it as a new Jerusalem. And I want to emphasize the word new. It will be a new city. To match the new heaven and the new earth, God is going to create a new capital city. Anybody know what the word Jerusalem means? It means the city of peace. Jeru, city, Salem, peace. Jerusalem means the city of peace. However, we know that the Jerusalem on this planet, located in Israel, has not been a city of peace. Unfortunately, it's been a city of turmoil, a city of war, a city of bloodshed. But Jerusalem that God builds will fit its name. It's going to be a new Jerusalem. It'll be a true city of peace. God is going to create a new capital city for the world, and this new city will require a new heaven, a new sky in space, because its height will be over 1,300 miles higher than our present ozone layer, which surrounds our earth. As a matter of fact, we won't look at it in detail today, but when John measures this city in Revelation 21, versus 16 and 17, we find that this city is a little bit shy of 1,500 miles. Now, that's a long city. Now, you say, but that's not so big. That's like from here to Minnesota. about from here to Minnesota, a city that big? Well, what's amazing about it is it's not only width-wise from here to the Midwest, but length as well. But here's the intriguing part about this city, is it is just as high as it is long and wide. Now that is a lot of territory. This new Jerusalem is going to be humongous. It'll be a four-square city. We will learn more about it in our next study. But it is so much higher. You know, man has always tried to build an empire state building. People have always tried to build a Tower of Babel whose height may reach unto heaven. But man has never been able to do it. But God one day is going to create a city that is enormously high. As a matter of fact, I gave you a little example in your outline of the dimensions of this new city. This is just a little scale model of the height dimension of this city. If you were on the earth at sea level, Here we have the present ozone layer at 9 miles above the Earth's surface. 9 miles above the Earth's surface you have the present ozone layer. You go up to 50 miles high and you get a dust belt around the Earth. You go up to mile 100 and you have meteors traveling around. That's only 100 miles. This city here is some 1380 miles high. If you were to take this model and double what I am showing you here, make it two times this high, that gives you a dimension of the enormous size of this New Jerusalem. It is going to be the most amazing city that could definitely house all of the redeemed. No wonder Jesus said, in my Father's house are many mansions. If it were not so, I would have told you. Behold, I go and prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you unto Myself, so that where I am, there you may be also. And so this city has been in the making for over 2,000 years. Now, if God spoke this present world into existence in six days, and everything on this planet, can you imagine what is yet in store that has been worked on by the Lord? Not that He needs time. He doesn't sweat when He does His work. He doesn't get tired when He does His work. He is omnipotent. But the Lord has something that is beyond our wildest imagination. I mean, we can't even imagine. As the Scripture says, "...Eye has not seen, neither has ear heard, nor has it entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for them that love Him." But God gives us a glimpse of this by His Spirit. By the Holy Spirit, we get a little foretaste of what the Lord has in store for His children. What a tremendous city! It's a new city, a new Jerusalem. The word new means new in quality. It'll be totally different from the old Jerusalem. The Bible says, behold, in verse 5, I make all things new. just as God does for the Christian. Remember, if any man be in Christ, he is a new creation. Just as He does for the Christian, so He will do for creation. God is going to make a brand new city. Not only is it called a new city, but number two, secondly, it's called a holy city. In verse 2, He says, And I, John, saw the holy city. It's a holy city. Now, when John says, and I, John, saw that new city." That's the first time that he refers to himself by name in terms of what he saw in this book. He kept saying throughout the book of Revelation, and I saw, and I saw, and I saw. That comes up all the time. But now he says, and I, John, saw the new city, the new Jerusalem. It's like he is in awe that he would be counted worthy to see such a tremendous revelation from God. He's ecstatic at what he's seeing. He is excited with inexpressible joy. He says, I, John, with my very own eyes, saw something that no man has ever seen. He is joyfully overwhelmed at what he experienced with his eyes. As a matter of fact, it's 22 in verse 8. He said, And I, John, saw these things and heard them. And when I had heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel which showed me these things. And of course, the angel is going to say, Don't worship me. I didn't make this. Worship God. But John is so amazed at what God gives him the privilege of experiencing that he falls down in worship. And perhaps he momentarily forgot to write. But he says, I saw the holy city, a set-apart city. A city that is totally pure. A city that is of spotless purity. A city like no other. No other city compares to this. This is the city of cities. A city whose builder and maker is God. Hebrews 11 verse 10. Boy, that's got to be something. Man attempts to build cities. And you know, you can travel abroad and you can see man's attempts at building cities and you can say, wow, Paris, wow, London, wow, whatever city you want to mention. But you know, none of those cities are anything compared to the one God is making. They all pale in comparison. This is a city that is holy, that is set apart from all other cities. Jesus has been preparing such a place where there will be no defilement, there will be no sinful people, as we see in verse 8. None who are unsaved will inherit. In chapter 21, verse 27, He says, And there shall in no wise enter in anything that defileth, nor whatsoever worketh abomination or maketh a lie, but they which are written in the Lamb's book of life, This will be a holy city. There will be no immoral people coming into it. There will be no riffraff. In this new city, there will be no mafiosa. In this new city, there will be no child molesters, no rapists, no muggers, no con artists. In this new city, there will be nothing that defiles. It is a holy city. And boy, that'll be wonderful. Do you know, no matter where you go in this world, you will always find that there's an emptiness still in your heart. You went with anticipation, expecting to see something or experience something so wonderful, and then you say, well, it wasn't really all that I thought it would be. Because there's nothing in this life that can really satisfy the craving of man except God. And that which God does and God makes, only what God does satisfies. That's why the scripture says we ought to lay up for ourselves treasure in heaven. We ought to seek those things which are above. Because this earth will never satisfy you. And nothing on this earth will ever satisfy. Only that which God does will meet the needs of your heart. He sees this holy city, notice it says, coming down from God. Because God has created this perfect city. Man's attempts have been utter failures. But God's city coming down out of heaven is going to be a holy city. Third, we find that this city is a beautiful city. He says at the end of verse 2, it is, as it were, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. This new city is so beautiful. He says it is prepared, it is made ready. As Jesus said, I go and prepare a place for you. He says it is adorned. It means it's properly arranged, it's put in order, it's decorated, it's beautiful, it's attractive. Now in the Bible days, in preparation for a marriage and the arrival of the groom, the bride would get herself ready, she would get bathed. She would be oiled, perfumed, her hair fixed. She would be adorned in her wedding garment. She would look her best. She'd be so beautiful for her wedding day. You know what God is telling us by using this imagery here? He is saying that this city is so beautiful, it is like a bride beautifully attired for her groom. for her husband to think that God loves us so much, that He has prepared a dwelling place for us so beautiful that it will satisfy every aspiration. It'll surpass every imagination we ever had. It'll be the sum total of our every heart's desire. and then some. It'll be more beautiful than the most majestic mountain, more sparkling than the water of the freshest spring or the most invigorating waterfall, more serene than the most calm of peaceful lakes, more clean than the most remote land in the world. The heavenly city will be the most beautiful sight we ever set eyes on. And God's people will be there. And I believe You know, this city here, we're not just talking property. I believe that this city involves God's people that make up that city. And the Bible calls God's people the Bride of Christ. And you know what's very interesting is that in this chapter, the Scripture teaches in verse 9, And there came unto me one of the seven angels, which had the seven vials full of the last plagues, and talked with me, saying, Come hither, and I will show you the bride, the Lamb's wife. Now notice verse 10, And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, having the glory of God. And then he goes on to describe the beauty of it. But you say, what is this? This is not only a city in terms of a location or a mansion. In my father's house are many mansions or many beautiful dwelling places. But what he sees here is the beauty of the saints, the bride, the lamb's wife, the redeemed of all of history that make up that city. And the beauty that is in that city is a beauty that is imparted to us by the Lord Himself. And so when you think of that beautiful city, it's beautiful because the occupants are the saints of God who are the bride, the Lamb's wife. And so this is wonderful, this city. It is a beautiful city. Number four, it's a God-indwelt city. In verse 3 he says of this chapter, and I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, pay attention is what he's saying, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them and be their God. This is a God-indwelt city. The tabernacle of God is with men. That word tabernacle means dwelling place. where everyone is under the same roof. We will forever be in the direct presence of God. He says the tabernacle of God is with men. Right now, we're down here on earth and God's up there in heaven, but there's coming a day when God will dwell with His people personally, visibly. The heavenly city will be a place of intimate closeness to God. He will dwell with them. We will enjoy the fellowship with God like Adam had before the fall. The heavenly city will be a place of abiding relationship with God. They shall be His people. And we will be related to Him as His people. And by the way, I've said it before, but we have a lot of people referring to certain races, that's my people. No, your people are the people of God. So many say, well, you know, the black people, if you're black, that's my people, my people. If you're white, some say, this is my people. No! You're Spanish, these are my people. No, your people are God's people if you're saved. And the Bible here says that they shall be His people. And the heavenly city will be a place of abiding relationship with God. They will be His people. And the heavenly city will be a place of personal fellowship with God. God Himself shall be with them. And you know, the Bible teaches that that's where fullness of joy is. Psalm 1611, in thy presence is fullness of joy. You know, as we're here on this earth, we have a lot of grief, a lot of sorrow. We don't have the joy like we once will at one day. But do you know, in His presence, that's where fullness of joy is. See, the greatest thing about heaven is not the property, if you will. It's being with God. That's what it's all about. And the scripture teaches that in His presence is fullness of joy. You will never know fullness of joy unless you have the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior and you are related to God. And then one day we will be in His personal presence. Right now we see through a glass darkly, the Bible says, but then face to face. Right now, folks, we only get a dim reflection of the glories that are coming. But one day we will see Him face to face, the Bible says. Then there will be fullness of joy in this God-indwelt city. Fifth, we find it's a joy-filled city. It is a city filled with joy, not sorrow. Look at verse 4. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes. And there shall be no more death, neither sorrow nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain, for the former things are passed away. In this new heaven and new earth and new Jerusalem, no more death. The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death. 1 Corinthians 15, 26. When Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 15, 23-26, he stated that the order of the resurrections are as follows. First, Christ, the first fruits. After that, those who are Christ at His coming. Those are the believers at the rapture. Then the end, when He delivers up the dead to the Father. That refers, I believe, to the resurrection at the end of the thousand year kingdom. Because death will exist during the Millennial Kingdom. Although man's life will be prolonged during that time, according to Isaiah chapter 65 and verse number 20, Isaiah 65 and verse 20, the Bible says, in this kingdom, There shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man that hath not filled his days. For the child shall die a hundred years old, but the sinner being a hundred years old shall be accursed." And so during that new heaven and earth that the Lord will renovate during the millennium, there will be death. But during this new heaven and earth, there will be no more death, For God shall wipe away all tears. There will be no more death, no more sorrow, no more crying. The Bible says God will wipe away all tears. Literally, He'll take away every tear. Every individual tear that has been shed for righteousness sake shall be removed. I don't believe he's talking here about you shedding tears for selfish reasons. You know, so many are shedding tears because of something they didn't get. I believe he's talking about tears that are shed for righteousness sake. Tears shed in the tribulation. Tears shed during times of oppression and persecution. Because of one's faith in Christ, every tear will be wiped away by the hand of God. There will be no more tears, sorrow or crying. Why? Because there will be no more events that lead to tears, sorrow and crying. Now what is it that leads to sorrow and crying? Two things. Death. and pain. Because death and pain, whether it's emotional pain or whether it's physical pain, when you think about it, that's what causes tears. What causes tears is one of two things, either death or pain. Now, if death and pain are removed completely, then that means there will be no occasion to shed tears, or to have sorrow, or to cry. As the prophet said, he shall swallow up death in victory, and the Lord God shall wipe away tears from off all faces. Isaiah 25 and verse 8. Psalm 30 verse 5 says, Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning. And so for the believer, crying is only temporary. What joy we will have forever and ever and ever. The Bible says the former things are passed away. Those that inhabit the new heavenly city will not even remember the former life on earth. The former things are passed away. The Bible says in Isaiah 65, 17, The former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind. Now in verse 5, he says, He that sat upon the throne, that's God, said, Behold, I make all things new. And He said unto me, Write, for these words are true and faithful. You know what that means? You can rely on this. I know there's some of you sitting there today saying, I wonder if that's really going to take place. I don't really think that's going to happen. Perhaps there's doubts in your mind, there's doubts in your heart, there's skepticism in your life. The Bible says this is going to happen. And there isn't a man on this earth that can prevent it from happening. Nobody can stop God from doing what He's going to do in the future. God says, what I say is true. God's promises about the future are not lies, because God can't lie. God can do everything, but God can't do one thing. God cannot lie, according to Titus 1.2 in Hebrews 6.18. That's one thing God cannot do. He can never lie. These words are true. And not only that, they are faithful. Because they are true, they are worthy of our faith. They are worthy of our trust. God guarantees us eternal life if we trust Him and what He did for us on Calvary. We can rest upon that and know that this is going to happen. You mean I'm really going to be there? If you have Jesus Christ, you will. You're really going to be there. All of you guys who are saved are actually going to be in the new city. No sorrow, no heartache, no letdowns. Former things will be done away. All the sin and all of the problems and worry and concern and difficulty and arthritis and backaches and heart problems and you name it. I won't even have high cholesterol then. No taxes, John says. You know, that's one property that isn't taxable, isn't it? No taxes. That's good. Notice, Sixley, it'll be a restricted city. It's not a city for everyone. Not everybody will be in this city. As a matter of fact, God tells us in verses 6 through 8, who will be there and who will not be there. He says, first of all, in verse 6, He describes those who will be there. Verses 6 and 7. In verse 6, And He said unto me, It is done. You say, what does that mean? What God has shown John is done. It is reality. It is so certain that God speaks of it as already being fulfilled. Much like Romans 8.30 speaks about the believer's glorification as past tense. It's like it's already done. He said it is done. God is not bound by time. He sees the future as accurately as the past and the present. And He says, it's done. I am Alpha and Omega. You say, what does that mean? Alpha and Omega is the first and last letter of the Greek alphabet. Alpha being the first, Omega being the last. What God is saying is that it is done because I am the beginning and I am the end. The One who is the Originator and the Concluder, the One who is the Initiator and the Completer, the One who is the Origin and the Final Goal of all things, the Author and Finisher, says, it is done. And by the way, that Alpha and Omega is none other than who? The Lord Jesus Christ. And so the One who makes all these things is the Lord Jesus Christ. Revelation 1.8. Jesus there describes Himself as the Alpha and Omega. Revelation 1.8. And now you come to this passage and He says, I am the Alpha and Omega. And then if you go down to verse 9, He that overcometh shall inherit all things. I will be His God. There are people who say Jesus is not God. They say the Bible doesn't teach that Jesus is God. Well, look at it. It's in black and white print. Jesus says, I will be His God. The One who is the Alpha and Omega, who is Jesus according to Revelation 1 and verse 8, says, I'll be His God. And then He says, I will give unto him that is a thirst of the fountain of the water of life freely." So who is this city prepared for? For those who are thirsty. It is not for everyone. The Bible does not teach universalism. The Bible does not teach, as many would say, well, God is a good God, and a good God will never allow anyone to go to hell. Everybody's going to go to heaven. Not according to the Bible. According to the Bible, only the thirsty are going to be part of that city. He says, I give to him that is a thirst of the fountain of the water of life, freely. You say, why won't everybody go up to that city? Because not everybody is thirsty. And nobody gets saved until they become thirsty. Nobody becomes a child of God until, first of all, there is a thirst in their heart for Him. That's why the Bible says, you know, Jesus on the Sermon on the Mount described, Blessed are those which hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled. What will they be filled with? They'll be filled with that which they thirsted after, righteousness. but only the thirsty will be there. See, most people in this world are not thirsty for God. They've got their mansion, and they've got their money, and they've got their security, and they've got their relationships, so they think, and they've got everything. They think. So, thirsty for God? I gotta go play golf today. Well, not today. We'll go skiing today. Today's a day for skiing. Imagine that. April 9th. Wow. But people don't have time for God. They're not thirsty for God. But you will never be part of that city unless you are thirsty. And you will never be thirsty unless God creates a thirst in you. The Bible teaches no man seeks after God which means no man independently seeks God. Unless God works in a heart like God opened Lydia's heart, unless God creates within you a thirst for Him, you'll never see your need for Him. But God does that. God in His mercy and grace allows some people on this earth to see their desperate situation, their depravity and their sinfulness, and they are thirsting, I want to know God, I want to have release from my sin, I want to have forgiveness, I want to have a relationship with the Lord, and there are only some that have that thirst. This water of life, by the way, is none other than Jesus Christ. He's the one who gives this water of life. As a matter of fact, Jesus said to the woman at the well, you drink of that water, you'll thirst again. But if you drink of the water that I give you, you will never thirst. But the water that I give will be a well of water springing up into eternal life. Now notice, The Alpha and Omega says, Jesus says, I will give unto him that is a thirst. The source of salvation is Jesus Christ. He is the only one who can give you the water of life. I cannot give it to you. A church cannot give it to you. Your religion cannot give it to you. Jesus gives it. And He gives it to those who are thirsty. The recipient of salvation is the sinner who sees his need. And He gives the water of life, just as physical water is essential to physical life. And they say, what is it, 70% wolf of your body is made up of water? I heard that figure. 70% of your body is water. If you don't drink water, you die. You can go on a food fast and go quite a while without physical food, but you can't live without physical water. Just as you need physical water to survive physically, you need spiritual water from Jesus Christ in order for you to live spiritually. And the water He's speaking here is spiritual water that He gives to those that are spiritually thirsty. And He gives it freely, at no charge. on our honeymoon. Remember, Terry, driving through the badlands of South Dakota and seeing signs that said, Wall Drug. There was this place out there called Wall Drug. It was this one store out in the middle of nowhere that said, Stop by and get your spring water. free water. And it was ridiculous because for a hundred miles before you get there, they're advertising on big billboards, get your free water at Waldrug. Stop in. And you're driving on this hot desert-like flat terrain over there in South Dakota. And there's all these signs for this water. Stop and get a drink. Anything to get you in the store. But do you know nowadays in our city they put water meters on our houses and you pay for your water. And in the future if there's a water shortage they could just shut off some of your water, but you pay for your water. This water here is free. He says, I give the water of life freely. The cost of salvation is no charge. Like Isaiah 55, verse 1, Ho, everyone that thirsteth, come ye to the waters. And he that hath no money, come ye. He says, you don't need money for this water. He says, I give it to you free of charge. The best things in life are free. Salvation is a gift. The gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. And so who is going to be part of the city? The thirsty. Verse 7 says that those who will be part of the city are the overcomers. He that overcometh shall inherit all things, and I will be his God, and he shall be my son. The overcomers will be part. of that New Jerusalem. What does it mean to overcome? It means to conquer. It means to be victorious. And the Bible says we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us, Romans 8.37. It's not speaking here about your works that will get you saved, but the believers overcoming is not what saves him, but it is the result of our salvation. When we are saved, we will overcome. We'll overcome the devil. We will overcome the lies of Satan. We will overcome denying him. We will not deny him. We will endure unto the end. The Bible says that those who endure to the end shall be saved. And he that overcometh shall inherit all things. And in the context of the book of Revelation, we know that in the future some believers are going to have to overcome a lot. There is going to be persecution like was never since the beginning of the world coming in the future. And God's people are going to overcome that pressure, that temptation, that trial, that tribulation. But the overcoming is not the root of salvation, but it is the fruit of salvation. The overcoming is not the reason we are saved, it is the result of our being saved. Our overcoming is not the entrance into salvation, it's the evidence of salvation. Overcoming is not the way to purchase salvation, but it is the proof of salvation. And if you are saved, you are an overcomer. You will overcome, and you will inherit that city. And He says you'll inherit all things. Our inheritance is based on the fact that I am married to Jesus Christ, and as His bride, because He owns everything, I will own everything. And that's why the Bible calls us joint heirs with Christ. How many married people do we have in here today? You married people? You know, when you got married, you and your wife share everything, or that's the way it's supposed to be. I know there are some marriages where she has her checking account and her goods, he has his, but that's not the way it's supposed to be in a godly home. It's supposed to be everything together. It's the way it's supposed to be. And if you marry into a rich family and you marry a rich person, and by the way, you should never marry someone for their money. They better be saved and know the Lord and love the Lord. Don't marry them for their money. But do you know something? When we got married to Jesus Christ by faith in Him and we said, I do to Him, that day we called upon Him, Romans 10, 13 says we were saved. Now that day we were married to Him, we became one with Him, one in relationship. And now I own everything he owns by virtue of my relationship with Jesus Christ, my groom. The Bible says that the overcomer shall inherit all things. I may not own much in this life, but in the next I'll own it all. And so will you. if you know Jesus Christ and have Him as your personal Savior. And He says, and I will be His God, and He shall be my Son. Another evidence of His deity, that He is God. But not only that, He's my God. Like Thomas said, my Lord and my God, he said to Jesus Christ. But see, not everybody is going to go up. In verse 8 he says, but, here's a contrast now. He contrasts those who will enter with those who will not enter. He says, but the fearful, and that means the cowardly, those who were afraid of what others might say or what others might do. There are many who don't come to Christ because of fear. Maybe fear of loss of revenue or maybe fear of oppression or persecution or maybe it's fear that their family will not like them anymore. Whatever the fear is, folks, it's not worth it. Some fear, I'm going to lose my joy, I mean my fun in life. If I get saved, I'll lose all my fun. Boy, isn't that the biggest lie of the devil. The Bible teaches that the real fun comes to those that know God. God is not a killjoy. God is the only one who can give you real joy. But the devil says, if you come to God, He'll take away all your fun in life. The real fun is in knowing Him and living right with Him. And He gives real joy and real fulfillment and real contentment to the person who is submitted to His will. But there's many who are afraid. They're perhaps fear of man rather than a fear of God. And the fear of man brings a snare, but whoever puts his trust in the Lord will be safe. There will be those in the future tribulation who will not take a stand for Christ when the pressure is on. They will draw back onto perdition because they were never saved to begin with. And during that time, there will be the greatest test for people to deny Christ. There will be many fearful. And the unbelieving, which means those that don't trust God's Word and do not trust Christ for salvation, these are the atheists who say, there is no God. Or the agnostics who say, you cannot know for sure if there's a God. Or the hypocrites who give a false profession of faith, the unbelieving. And the abominable. The abominable are those who are polluted. Their lives are defiled. They are detestable. These are people who let the devil saturate their lives with the monstrous and unnatural vices of heathendom. These are people that are so sinful that their lives stink with rottenness. Just despicable people. But then he says, and murderers. which are people who take the life of innocent people. And there's no more innocent people in the world than unborn child. And yet they're murdered every day in our city. Murderers and whoremongers, which means fornicators. Those involved in premarital sex and other forms of sexual immorality. It's the word pornos. from which we get our word pornography, the whoremongers. And then he says the sorcerers. That word sorcerer is from the Greek word pharmakois. We get our word pharmacy from it. It refers to those who use drugs, those who mix and use drugs and it's used in connection with witchcraft and the occult and magic practices. drug users and occultists will not be in that city. And idolaters, which are people that worship idols, they live for that which is not God. They worship things rather than the Creator of all things. They worship maybe an idol in their life. It could be a rock star or they worship some person or something. They bow before images like many will do in the future when the image in honor of the beast is erected and people bow before it. And then he says, and all liars, these who don't tell the truth, who don't live the truth, will have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone, which is the second death." You say, what kind of lake will this be? It'll be a lake of fire. If it was a lake of water, God could have said so. But it's not a lake of water. It's a lake of fire. You say, is it literal? I take God for what He says. There are many who deny such a thing. They say, that's not literal, that's figurative. Well, if it's figurative, what is it figurative of? There is a literal lake of fire in which people will be cast who rejected the Lord Jesus Christ. They shall have their part Their part, their inheritance, their lot will be in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, fire mixed with stinking sulfur, which is the second death. Why? Because they lived. After they died the first time, they came alive again. to stand before Jesus Christ at the great white throne judgment. They were resurrected. There's a resurrection of the just and of the unjust. And there will be those who were unjust who will be resurrected before the Lord, and they will now be cast in the lake of fire to die a second time, and this time it'll be forever. And those people will not be part of that new Jerusalem. But I want to ask you a question today with all seriousness. Will you be part of that new Jerusalem? Will you enjoy that future new city, that holy city, that beautiful city, that God-indwelt city, that joyful city. Will you be part of that? The answer is found in your answer to this question. Do you have Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior? If you do, then you are saved. If you do not, then you are lost, and you need to be saved. My friend, I appeal to you today, come to Jesus. He promises that if you come to Him, He will not cast you out. The Scripture promises that whoever receives Him, to them He gives the power to become the sons of God, even to those who believe on His name. The Scripture says, for whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. Have you called upon Him and said, Lord, save my soul? Have you believed the Gospel? Let us pray together. Lord, I pray that today, everyone who is in this room who doesn't know You, that Your Spirit might touch their heart. You admonish us, dear Father, to pray for all men. And so we pray for all of the people that may be in this room that do not have You, Lord Jesus. And we ask You to please do a work in their heart. and create a thirst in their soul. Because, Lord, we know that nobody will be saved unless that thirst is in their heart. And we pray that You would draw them to the water of life, the well of salvation, that You will draw them to Yourself, so that they could drink, so that they could taste and see that the Lord is good. Blessed is the man who trusts in Him. Lord, I pray that they will come to You. And Father, I pray for all of Your children, for all who are saved, who may be going through some heartache right now. Help them to see what's coming in the future. And may they keep their attention on those things above. I pray this in Jesus' name. Amen. Let's all take our hymn books and we'll sing a song about heaven. And while we sing, I want us to think about where will you be in eternity? I want to sing two songs, actually. Let's sing one about heaven, and then we're going to sing one more. Okay, do you have one? Okay. How about, I think in our blue book, when we all get to heaven, what a day of rejoicing that will be. Let's see if we can find that page number. When we all see Jesus, we'll sing and shout the victory. Let's see if somebody can find that number. Is that in the blue? Thanks, Jeff. Open your blue hymn book to 571. And there's two songs I want us to sing. This one, which talks about when we all get to heaven, 571. And then we're going to sing one in our other hymn book in just a moment. 571. Let's all stand as we sing together. Sing the wondrous love of Jesus Sing His mercy and His grace In the mansions bright and blessed He'll prepare for us a place When we all get to heaven What a day of rejoicing that will be When we all see Jesus, we'll sing and shout the victory on the second. While we walk the pilgrim pathway, clouds will overspread the sky. But when traveling days are over, not a shadow, not a sign. When we all get to heaven what a day of rejoicing that will be when we all see Jesus we'll sing and shout the victory and of course seeing Jesus is the greatest event of heaven let's go to 839 now Because right now, you may be going through trials, but then, in His time, all of this will be distant memory. As a matter of fact, forgotten from memory. The former things will be passed away, and the Lord makes all things beautiful in His time. 839. In his time.