Let us now turn to the word of God. First of all, reading from Revelation chapter 21, reading verses one to eight. John is in the isle of Patmos, exiled for the word of God, for his faithfulness to the gospel. And there, as you know, he was given a picture of heaven depicting things to come. And so that's what we have here in chapter 21 of the book of Revelation. Reading from verse one, let us hear the word of God. Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a light voice from the throne saying, behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them and they will be his people. And God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. And death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain, any more, for the former things have passed away. And he who was seated on the throne said, behold, I am making all things new. Also he said, write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true. And he said to me, it is done. I am the alpha and the omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment. The one who conquers will have this heritage. And I will be his God, and he will be my son. But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death. And then we turn back to John chapter 14, John chapter 14, a reading from verse one. Jesus is speaking to the disciples. It's just a matter of hours before the crucifixion, which will take place the following morning. He says to them, let not your hearts be troubled. You believe, believe in God, believe also in me. In my father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am, you may be also. And you know the way to where I'm going. Thomas said to him, Lord, we do not know where you're going. How can we know the way? Jesus said to him, I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the father except through me. If you had known me, you would have known my father also. From now on, you do know him and have seen him. Philip said to him, Lord, show us the father, and it is enough for us. Jesus said to him, have I been with you so long and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, show us the Father? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? In the words that I say to you, I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe on the count of the works themselves. Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do. And greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father. Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask me for anything in my name, I will do it. If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another helper to be with you forever, even the Spirit of Truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans. I will come to you. Yet a little while, and the world will see me no more, but you will see me. Because I lived, you also will live. In that day, you will know that I am in the Father, and you in me, and I in you. Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him. Judas, not Iscariot, said to him, Lord, how is it that you will manifest yourself to us and not to the world? Jesus answered him, if anyone loves me, he will keep my word and my father will love him. And we will come to him and make our home with him. Whoever does not love me does not keep my words. And the word that you hear is not mine, but the father's who sent me. These things I have spoken to you while I was still with you. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you, not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. You heard me say to you, I am going away, and I will come to you. If you loved me, you would have rejoiced, because I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I. And I have told you before it takes place, so that when it does take place, you may believe. I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming. He has no claim on me. But I do as the Father has commanded me, so that the world may know that I love the Father. Rise, let us go from here. Amen, so reads God's holy word. The title I've given to the sermon this evening is The Way to Heaven, The Way to Heaven. 30 years ago when Sandra and I and the children were heading off for a camping holiday. We would invariably take a route map with us. Nowadays, you would be depending on your sat-nav. We had planned our holiday destination, usually a campsite in a secluded spot. But in order to get there, we needed to know the way. Left to ourselves, we would invariably have got lost. But thanks to the map, we always find our way. Tonight our minds are going to be focused not on the holiday or a holiday destination, but on that eternal dwelling place that resides for all of God's people, the destination we call heaven. Now heaven is where most people want to end up when they die. or if a family member dies, the hope is entertained that they will be in heaven. But people are often not sure, because their hope of heaven is not based on any objective reality. As well as that, they know very little about heaven. But we don't need to be vague or uncertain about heaven. For the Bible, God's word, has objectively revealed to us all we need to know about heaven and the way to heaven. Before we set off on holiday, we like to know something about the destination, some facts about the climate, some facts about the amenities, some facts about the scenery, what is to see when we get there. And these details we find in brochures, or in books or on the internet. Likewise, the Bible is full of information about heaven. Not all that we would like to know, but all that we need to know. The passage of scripture we come to this evening is John 14 and verses one to six. The text reveals many things about heaven and clearly and unmistakably, sets before us the way to heaven. I remember there is no time lapse between the end of chapter 13 and the beginning of chapter 14 of John's Gospel. In chapter 13 Jesus had revealed to the disciples some distressing news. This was the night prior to his crucifixion and the reality of Christ's impending death had begun to dawn on the souls of the disciples. Also Jesus had informed them in verse 21, truly, truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me. Now this was shocking news to the 12. Which one of them would it be? Jesus had then identified Judas. He left the upper room to go about his devilish work. No one had suspected Judas for a moment. That was something that upset them. Then there was their master's announcement about his departure. Cleared in explicitly in verse 33, little children, yet a little while I'm with you, you will seek me. And just as I said to the Jews, who now I also say to you, where I'm going, you cannot come. This information brought forth a protest of loyalty and devotion from Peter. Verse 37, Lord, why can I not follow you now? I will lay down my life for you. Jesus gave Peter startling news, news which greatly perturbed him, and not only him, but the others as well. Verse 38, he said to Peter, will you lay down your life for me? Truly, truly, I say to you, the rooster will not crow till you have denied me three times. All this disturbing news and Jesus knowing how they were feeling, immediately said to them, and this takes us into chapter 14, let not your hearts be troubled. How were the 11 to counteract the trouble that they felt so keenly? Well, Jesus provided the remedy and it's twofold. He said, believe in God, have faith in your father in heaven who loves you, who cares for you, who makes provision for your every need. Trust God, have confidence in your heavenly father. He is working out everything for your good and his glory. And then he follows that up by saying, believe also in me. I've been with you for three years. I'm your Lord and teacher. I'm about to lay down my life for you. So trust me. That counsel given to the 11, is the counsel that Christ gives to you when trouble knocks on the door of your life, when trouble upsets the routine and balance of your life. The remainder of this Upper Room Discourse explains why the disciples could trust in God and why they could trust in God the Son. This evening we will limit ourselves to these opening six verses. of chapter 14, and here we have words that tell us about heaven and the way to heaven. First of all, heaven, a place of glory, heaven, a place of glory. In verse two of this chapter, Jesus refers to his father's house. One of the many terms that is used to refer to heaven in the Bible. The term father's house is easily understood. It is found in the familiar words of Psalm 23, verse 6 of the medical version, and in God's house forevermore, the psalmist says, my dwelling place shall be God's house, the Father's house, heaven. And heaven will be a place of glory for many reasons, principally because the Father will be there and the Son will be there and the Holy Spirit will be there. In short, God will be there. And God is the most glorious one. as the words of Psalm 8, opening verse reveal, O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth. You've set your glory above the heavens. The heavens are glorious, but the glory of God far surpasses that. What does the word glory or glorious convey to you? You may have some ideas in your mind, but have difficulty expressing them in words, because no one word in the English language can capture the full meaning of glory. The word glory, or glorious, means sublime, majestic, distinguished, preeminent, illustrious, praiseworthy, and much more besides. And God is all these in the superlative sense. And since God the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit is glorious, then their dwelling place will also be glorious. Heaven will be a glorious place to be. In fact, heaven will be so glorious that human language is inadequate to fully describe it. But God in his grace has given us information which symbolizes heaven's brilliance and describes heaven's beauty. And that is to help us understand what heaven will be like. We get this picture in the opening verses of Revelation 21 that we read. Heaven there is described as a new heaven and a new earth. For the first heaven and the first earth has passed away. We live in a fallen universe. Sin has corrupted every area and all its people from every place. Peter tells us in 2 Peter 3 in verse 10 that this universe will be burnt up and purified by fire. And so in this way, every stain and every blemish and every scar, every stain, every blemish, every scar brought about by sin will be removed. As one commentator states, out of the great conflagration, a new universe will have been born. Burnt up and a new universe is born. Forest fire leaves every blade of grass and every tree burned up and left smouldering, giving the appearance of a desert wasteland. But in a short time, with a few showers of rain, green shoots begin to appear. Young saplings begin to emerge. New life springs back into the burned up landscape. The word new in Revelation 21.1 has the sense of being renewed. It will be the same universe that was burned up, but now gloriously and wonderfully and miraculously renewed. Now with no more curse. Now with no more weeds. Now with no more thorns and thistles. Now with no more infectious diseases. Now with no more allergies. Now with no more flash floods, no more wildfires, no more damaging storms, or in the words of Revelation 21.4, death shall be no more. Neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away. Remember what the risen glorified Christ said to the Apostle John in the Isle of Patmos, behold, I am making all things new. I am making all things new. Here in the upper room, some details of the new heaven and the new earth are provided. Jesus informs the 11 and informs you and me as well. in the Father's house are many rooms. It is God's house, so it will be a place of beauty and splendor. Solomon's temple was the talk of the known world at that time because of its magnificence, but it will not be a patch in comparison to the Father's house. Heaven will also be a place of infinite proportions. a house with many rooms. J.C. Ryle makes the interesting comment, heaven is a place of many mansions. There will be room for all believers and room for all sorts, for little saints as well as great ones, for the weakest believer as well as for the strongest. The feeblest child of God need not fear that there will be no place for him. None will be shut out, but impenitent sinners and obstinate unbelievers. Heaven, a place of many rooms, a place fully prepared for you and for me and for every child of God. Jesus said, I go to prepare a place for you. And remember his preparation will be perfect. You may have had the experience of going on holiday and being told that your room is not fully prepared, you have to wait, hold on for an hour or two until that preparation is made. Jesus has gone ahead to prepare a place for you and you can be certain that there will be no waiting, there'll be no hanging about. His preparation will be thorough, it will be perfect. heaven will be a perfect place for a perfect people in fellowship with a perfect savior. And so is it any wonder that the apostle Paul had this burning desire to depart and to be with Christ for that is far better. And so as you go through this life with all its ups and downs, with all its encouragements and disappointments, I wonder, have you caught a glimpse of the glory of heaven? which Christ has gone, gone ahead to prepare for you and for all who love him. Heaven, a place of glory. Well then secondly, heaven, a place of rest. Heaven, a place of rest. Jesus in verses two and three of our text is giving us a description of the heavenly home. And in some ways it's like our earthly homes. At home we come home. to rest. There is no place where we relax better than at home. Nevertheless, there is always something to do at home. But even so, it is still a place of rest and relaxation. In the superlative sense, that is true of heaven. The voice of Christ again is heard in Revelation 14 in verse 3. Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on. Blessed indeed, says the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours, for their deeds follow them. That they may rest from their labours. Sadly and grievously, rest, in that sense, will not be the experience of unbelievers in hell. Revelation 14.11 about those who die without Christ, those who die in unbelief, and the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever, and they have no rest, day or night, these worshipers of the beast and its image, and whoever receives the mark of its name. See a similar sentiment expressed in Isaiah 4.57, 20 and 21. For the wicked are like the tossing sea, for it cannot be quiet, and its waters toss up mire and dirt. There is no peace, says my God, for the wicked. It is by the sweat of our brow that we eat our bread in this sin-cursed world. And that's true for the believer and unbeliever alike. But in heaven we will enjoy rest, not the rest of inactivity, But the rest associated with glorifying our Saviour continually in the kingdom of glory that he has gone ahead to prepare. In Hebrews 4 verse 9, this rest is described for us. So then there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God's rest has also rested from his works as God did from his. a Sabbath rest. The word Sabbath means literally rest. God kindly made provision for the human race in giving us one day in seven as a Sabbath, as a rest day. Growing up on a farm as I did, that concept of six days of work and one day of rest was deeply ingrained in my childhood mind. Yes, there were busy times on the farm in the springtime, during the sowing of the seed, and in the autumn time, the harvesting of the crops. But no matter the pressure, the one day of rest was observed and deeply appreciated. The rest, the Sabbath, did not exclude worship. Fellowship with God's people was entered into. Corporately, we sang his praises. We heard his word. His word read and preached, and we prayed as the minister gave voice to our petitions. Our Sabbaths here on earth are meant to be a little foretaste of heaven. And I trust that that is your experience, that when the Sabbath comes, you have time to set aside the cares and preoccupations of the other days of the week and join with God's people in fellowship to praise the Lord, to glorify him and to hear from him. Heaven will be an extended Sabbath, where we will rest from our labours, where we will rest from our earthly toil and join in the worship of the Lamb. The Apostle John in the Isle of Patmos was given a glimpse of heaven and the singing of the redeemed, Revelation 5 and 9, speaking collectively of the Church And they sang a new song, saying, worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals. For you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation. Some people, I have heard it, you may have heard it too, some people have heard it said that they find Sabbath dull and dreary. I trust that you will never be led to utter such words. because there awaits the true believer an eternal Sabbath, a Sabbath that will be filled with pleasure and joy and fellowship and worship. Heaven, a place of glory, heaven, a place of rest, and now thirdly, heaven, a place of fellowship. Verse three, Jesus said, And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again. I will take you to myself that where I am, you may be also when traveling to Bloomington last July, we had some time to spend at airports and we could observe some tearful partings and some joyful reunions. These disciples were troubled at the thought of Jesus's imminent departure But here are reassuring words calculated to fill their hearts with joy. Yes, a tearful parting, but the anticipation of a joyful reunion. Yes, I'm going away, he told them, but soon I am coming back again. I will come again and take you to myself, that where I am, you may be also. And what was true of the 11? is true for every believer here this evening. Jesus is coming back to take us to our heavenly home, where we will live in perfect harmony forever. It will be a picture of perfect tranquility. It will be a picture of rich, enduring fellowship. Though many things mar our fellowship with Christ on earth, especially our sin, Because we do sin every day in thought and word and action, but in heaven, sin will be no more. Revelation 21, 27 makes that abundantly clear. But heaven, but nothing unclean will ever enter it. For anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb's book of life. Heaven, you see, will take us back to Eden, to that paradise with our first parents, which our first parents lost through their sinful disobedience. Heaven will be, for all of God's people, paradise regained. In heaven, we will be able to walk with Christ in the garden in the cool of the day, enjoying union and communion with him. and not only enjoying communion and fellowship with our Savior, but with all of God's people, all those believing family members and friends who've gone before us, who have passed into eternity. We will join with them in ascribing praise and honor and glory to Christ our Savior, singing worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing. So heaven, a place of glory. Heaven, a place of rest. Heaven, a place of fellowship. But will you be there? Will you be there? Many people vaguely hope to be in heaven, but they have absolutely no basis for entertaining such a hope. Some people think that in the end, God will open the door of heaven to everyone. but he won't. That is a delusion of the devil. Think of the picture in the parable of the 10 virgins. Those who were unprepared came late and cried out, sir, sir, open the door to us. But the reply came from inside. I tell you the truth. I don't know you. The Bible makes it very plain that unless you are on the way to heaven, When you live on earth, you will not end up in heaven when you die. That makes sense. Perfect sense. If you're living in Texas and want to go to Mexico and you keep traveling north, you'll never get to Mexico. So what is the way to heaven? Well, Thomas was curious. Thomas wanted to know. Thomas said to him, Lord, we do not know where you're going. How can we know the way? Answer came. Jesus said to him, I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the father except through me. Do not think for an instant that there are other ways. Do not be wise in your own conceit. Some drivers have thought they know better than the map, or the satnav, and invariably they end up lost. Many people think that they know better than God's word, and sadly they will be eternally lost. Jesus is the way, the only way. We must come to the Father through him. And remember, Jesus will not accept you if you insist on bringing the baggage of your sin with you. The way to heaven is a narrow way. And in order to enter heaven, you must leave that baggage of sin behind you. You must forsake your sin. You must turn from it and follow the way, follow Jesus Christ. Follow Jesus Christ, the Saviour who died on the cruel cross at Calvary to bear the punishment of your sin and the sins of all his people. Follow Jesus Christ, the one who will lead you safely through the stairs and pitfalls of this world. Follow Jesus Christ, the one who will lead you to the Father's house, the place of glory, the place of rest, and the place of fellowship. Amen. Let us pray. God, as we come before you in prayer once more, we do thank you that we will indeed know that you're with us in the journey through this life and that in Christ, we will receive the welcome into heaven when our days on earth are done. And we thank you for this picture of heaven that we are given this evening, that heaven is a place of glory and a place of rest and a place of fellowship. And we do thank you for all that is revealed to us in the Bible about heaven and grant to God that we might indeed know that anticipation of heaven that the apostle Paul had for he had desire to depart and to be with Christ. which is far better. So, God, thank you for your goodness to us today. In Jesus' worthy name we pray. Amen.