In your Bibles tonight, Revelation 21, I'm going to begin reading verse number 1. Tonight I want to preach this message. Let's talk about heaven. There are some wonderful things here to discuss and see. In God's Word, Revelation 21 and verse number 8. Just so you know, the verses we're reading, I'm confident, are references to our eternal state, eternal glory, eternity, heaven. And I believe that literal heaven begins at the end of the thousand-year reign of Christ. And that leaves folks with questions, well, where's my loved ones? The Bible says to be absent from the bodies, to be present with the Lord. And as long as you're with Jesus, it's heaven. And so we're thrilled. We don't have any worries about that. The Bible describes where we'll be for eternity, and I'm going to tell you, the world does great injustice to eternity when they paint pictures of people sitting on clouds looking like angels, strubbing harps, because I can guarantee you that won't be no fun. God has a plan that's far better than you could ever imagine. And let's talk about heaven. There's some things I think that will be a help to you. I've been so encouraged by this text. The Bible says in Revelation 21, beginning in verse number 1, 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, 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. 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 athirst of the fountain and 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." Let's talk about heaven. Let's just start here in verse number one and we'll begin here. Point number one, in heaven it's all new. There's an emphasis here as we begin this passage of scripture on the newness of heaven. The Bible says, and I saw a new heaven and a new earth. One of these days this world, as we know, it's going to be gone and God is going to give us a new heaven and a new earth. The Bible says the first heaven and the first earth were passed away and there was no more sea. It's kind of interesting to make note that there's no more sea because in the millennial reign, the millennial kingdom, there's mention and reference to bodies of water and in the heaven, in the new heaven and new earth, there's no sea. And so it's kind of interesting to note and pay attention to and it's one of the reasons why I think we can very confidently say that we're talking about eternity in heaven with the Lord. It's a new heaven, new earth, no more sea. Verse number 2, John, I John, saw the holy city, new Jerusalem. And this great reference to God's city, Jerusalem is always a place that's lifted in the mind of God. Don't forget that. And it won't be the same Jerusalem as we have today, but it'll be a new Jerusalem. And the Bible says John saw it. I saw a new Jerusalem coming down from God. I want you to know this new heaven, this new earth, it's out of this world. It's something you've never imagined. It's something you can never dream up. It's something that God has designed, a new heaven coming down from God, out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. As John is watching this and he's describing, trying to describe in the words of the people that he's writing to and the Holy Spirit's leading him, he's trying to describe, what does this remind me of? What does this moment remind me of? He says, I'll tell you, the most beautiful thing I can imagine to liken this to is watching a bride prepared adorned, walking down an aisle, so to say, for her husband. He says, it's amazing. This new city drew as a bride adorned for her husband. I did a wedding just a couple weeks ago. It is so sweet. This guy did exactly what I wanted to do, but was too stinking proud when his bride-to-be opened the door and walked in. He just absolutely broke down like a snibbling mass, and it was precious. He was so taken back with emotion that he couldn't hardly gain his composure, and he didn't care what anybody thought, because he was looking at the bride. And it's sweet, it's beautiful, and John said, I want you to know what God has prepared for us, I can't put it into words, but it looks like that. It's amazing what God has done. You see, Heaven, it's all new. It's all new. How many of you are like me, and you like to explore new features on new things? I'm just telling you, I am a button masher. Have you ever been around a button masher? Now, some people, they have buttons on something new, and they're scared to push them. That ain't me. I'll push them all. One of these days, I'm gonna accidentally hit the eject button, and poof, there I'm gonna go. But I'm gonna push the button. You can be sure of it. I love new features. I love to see what's new in a car. I love to see how they all work. I like new features. I like new features on my phone. I like new features on my car. I like new features in my house. I'll never forget the first house Ruth and I bought. I was so excited. You know what I was excited about? It was a nice little house. But I'll tell you what I was most excited about. It came with one of them refrigerators that had ice and water in the door. Yes! I mean, that was the upgrade. And I love new features. Now, how many of you have been amazed at some of the things that come out on new things? Well, I want you to know, God has given me an intellect and imagination to do some amazing things, but I want you to think about this for a minute. When we're talking about heaven, it's all new. And I want you to know who's done the designing on a new heaven and a new earth. Some people get called up, you know, they say, we're not going to be married like we are here. That's what the Bible says, and I don't understand all about it, but let me tell you something, I love being married to my wife, but in the new heaven and the new earth, God's got something better than that. And I don't understand it, don't claim to, but I'm going to tell you something, our perfect, loving, creator God who's designed everything that is has designed a new heaven and a new earth and because I'm trusting in Christ I'll go there someday and you too if you know the Lord it's all new and I'm excited to mash the buttons I'm excited to see what God has in store for us I'm going to tell you If God in His mercy and grace and love for us has given us so many things to enjoy in a sin-cursed world, I want you to know what God has prepared for His people is going to be fabulous. And we can trust in His goodness, and we can rest in His promises. And if you're at a moment in your life where you're tired, I get it. You're at a moment in your life where you think, I don't know if I can handle it much longer. You just remember, you stay true to the Lord, you trust in Him. God has prepared for us a place like a bride, and it's all new. Let's talk about heaven. It's all new. Number two, the most important thing about heaven. God is there. God is there. Now look at what the scripture says in verse number 3. It says this, 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. Now I want to make a note here. I just have you know that in John 14, Before Jesus went to the cross, before Jesus died and rose again and ascended into heaven, He promised us something. He says, I will not leave you comfortless. I'll come to you. Now I want you to know something that is so wonderful and true. Until we get to heaven, you remember this God's people, heaven has come to us. We live every moment of our lives in the presence of God. He's with me. He's with me. It's wonderful. Now I want you to know something. In heaven for all of eternity, that doesn't change except we're going to live visibly in the presence of God. I don't know what it will be like. The Bible says there's no sun, but you don't need the sun when God is shining. God is there. God is there. I remind you God is here and I'm thankful and I'm trusting in Him. And I know it's true, but for all of eternity, we will be in the presence of God. The scripture says that he'll dwell with them. They shall be his people. God himself shall be with them and be their God. God is there. Number three, let's talk about heaven. No more tears. Hallelujah. No more tears. Look at what the Bible says in verse 4. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes. Now, some folks have a misunderstanding, I believe, of this verse. Like, somehow people are going to carry their tears and their regrets and their sorrows into eternity. And when they get there, they're going to be downtrodden. Oh, I'm so rotten, terrible. And then God's going to wipe all their... No, no, no, no. Let me tell you something. My sins are covered in the blood. I'm a saint before God. I'm forgiven. I'm his child. God looks on me as his only son. I'm not going to enter eternity with tears and regrets because all my sins are under the blood. Hallelujah. I'm completely known and completely loved by God and that doesn't change. The emphasis here about heaven is, hey look, the bottom line is Our hearts break and tears are a real thing on earth, but not there. In heaven there's no more tears. The Bible says God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes. There shall be no more death, hallelujah, no more sorrow, no more crying, neither shall there be any more pain. For the former things are passed away. You look at that last phrase of verse before, the former things, the things we just talked about, tears, death, sorrow, crying, those things passed away. They're gone. Hallelujah. Won't that be sweet? That'll be wonderful. That'll be wonderful. Until then, I'm resting in the grace of God as we bear the burdens of one another. I'm trusting in the Lord and His grace is sufficient. His peace is real. It's awesome to carry burdens for one another because we know that God carries us. But in heaven, no more tears. No more tears. The former things are passed away. Look at what the Bible says in verse 5. And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. No more sorrow, no more tears, no more pain, no more sorrow. The former things are passed away and Jesus says, I'll make all things new. Hallelujah. All things new. The sorrow and tears, it won't be there. All things new. You know something interesting about being a person like you and I who've lived in a sin-cursed world. We've experienced sin, temptation, troubles, grace, mercy, new birth, salvation. The thing that's really wonderful about being us in eternity is we'll have the greatest possible appreciation and gratitude for what God has done for us for eternity. You see, people who have never experienced or never experienced trouble, they don't understand how good it is when you don't have it. I've been thinking about this. It was something that was fascinating to me because it's horrible how sin entered into the human race. It's awful. A lot of times I think, God, why did you allow it to be like this? But God has given us all, even His angels, a free will. Satan rebelled against God. Men rebelled against God. Sin entered the human race. We've got a mass. But God's promised that He'll work all things together for good. One of the glories of heaven So when we get to heaven, all things will be new. And those of us who've experienced sorrow, tears, mourning, suffering, death, in all of heaven, in all of eternity, we'll sing praises to God because we knew what it was like then. And we're experiencing what it is now. And I'm going to tell you something, heaven is going to be sweet. You see, If you're one of these people who grew up with an outhouse and a Sears and Roebuck catalog, you really appreciate Charmin and indoor plumbing, right? Amen. I wouldn't know. I'm way too young for that. Those of you who, it's fun to talk to Papaw Fred, Mike's dad, he actually was seven or eight years old before they had electricity in their house. I was asking him, talking about it just the other day. And, you know, if you've spent some time without electricity, you understand, man, this is awesome. This is awesome. You know, when we get to heaven, we'll have a recollection and memory of life without God on the throne. without the glories of heaven. We'll remember what it was like to suffer a little bit and we'll just praise the King of Kings and Lord of Lords because for all of eternity there'll be no more tears. No more tears, I'm so thankful. No more tears, no more death, no more crying, no more pain, no sorrow. Let's talk about heaven. It's all new, God is there, no more tears. And finally, number four, here's how to go there. Here's how to go there. Look at what the scripture says in verse number five. He that sat upon the throne said, behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, write. For these words are true in faith. I really think that verse number five is pretty fun. In some of my notes, I've made an emphasis on the word right. I think that at this moment that John the Revelator is so caught up in the glories of heaven and all that's not going to be there and how God has shown it to him and New Jerusalem coming down. I really think John at this moment is kind of like, and I think God has to say, hey, your job is to write. Write this down. Hey, wake up. Write. He says, write. Here's what I want you to write. He says, write these words. write, for these words are faithful, true and faithful." He says, write, for these words are true and faithful. Now, I want you to know something. God never has to say about His words that they're true and faithful because they're always true and faithful. But when He does write that His words are true and faithful, it's there for emphasis. So we pay extra attention and we give it a little more time. The Bible says, write, for these words are true and faithful. Verse 6, He said unto me, it is done. What does that mean? Well, God says His work is complete. This is going to happen. Heaven's real. It's done. His plan is right. It's going to happen. It's done. He says, I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. Alpha is the first letter of the Greek alphabet, the beginning. Omega is the last letter of the Greek alphabet, the end. He says, I'm Alpha, Omega, the beginning and the end. He says, I'm the beginning of all things, and I'm the ending of all things, and I'm consuming everything that's in between. I am everything. I'm all God. He says, write it down. It's done. I'm the beginning and the end. He says in verse 6, he says, I will give unto him that is a thirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. Here's how to go there. Have you ever had that thirst to know the Lord? I remember as a child that God began to work in my heart. He used preachers, and he used Sunday school teachers, and he used my mom, and he used children from the Chilean Baptist Church, when I didn't even attend here, who were talking about how the Lord was working their hearts, and how they'd been saved. I remember as a child, I started hearing the gospel message, and the Holy Spirit began to show me that I was a sinner. I'll just tell you, I got to the place where I needed to find out. what it meant to be a Christian and what I needed to do to get washed clean from the sin that the Holy Spirit had made so plain. And I began to thirst. I praise the Lord when God puts a thirst in people's hearts. I have a meeting with a little boy tomorrow afternoon who God is putting a thirst in his heart. Ruth, last week, led a little girl to the Lord who God put a thirst in her heart. It's happening. I'm thankful. Lord, if you've experienced that thirst where you knew you're a sinner, you needed the Lord, and he says this, I will give unto him that is a thirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. It reminds us of John 7, 37, in the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried saying, if any man thirsts, let him come unto me and drink. Can I tell you something? If you're here tonight and you don't know for sure if you're to die, you'd spend eternity in heaven. The Holy Spirit is showing you your need of a Savior. If you're thirsting, the Lord Jesus will save your soul. He'll give you the promise of everlasting eternal life in heaven. He says, I will give unto him that is a third 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." Now, when I come to verse 6 and I think about being thirsty and the Lord says, I'll quench your thirst and I'll give you the fountain of the water of life, free them. I'm like, hallelujah, by grace am I saved through faith. Hallelujah. But then I read verse 7 and the Bible says I'm going to have to overcome. Hold on. How many of you ever tried to overcome lust, temptation, the flesh and you failed? The truth is we all have. Because for all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. Overcome? I can't overcome. I'm thirsty but I can't overcome. Well I do. He that overcometh, the Bible says, shall inherit all things. And I will be his God and he shall be my son. I want that. But I'm kind of more like verse number eight. The fearful and the unbelieving and the abominable and the murderers and whoremongers and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars have their part. And the lake was burned with fire and brimstone, which is the second death. Is that true? Yes, it's true. You know, I'm like, hmm, abominable? No, not really. Murderer? No. Whore murderer? No. Sorcerer? Definitely not. Idolater? No. Liar? Done that before. Fearful? Oh, man. Unbelieving? Condemned. Condemned. Guilty? I can't overcome? He that overcometh shall inherit all things. I can't overcome. Then I read in God's Word, 1 John chapter 5. For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world. And this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. Who is he that overcometh the world but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God? I have overcome because I believed in Christ Jesus and Christ alone for my soul's salvation. I've been washed in the blood of the Lamb. I've trusted in the Lord. And this is the record that God has given to us eternal life. and this life is in his Son. He that hath the Son hath life. He that hath not the Son of God hath not life. These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God, that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God." I've overcome through faith in the Overcomer, the Lord Jesus Christ. And you know what's wonderful? When I die, I'm going to heaven. I'll spend eternity with the Lord in heaven. This place of glory is prepared for me too. I deserve condemnation, but I've trusted in Christ. How about you? If you're here and you're saved tonight, we have lots of reasons to be happy. If you're here tonight and you've not trusted in Jesus as your Savior, you've not answered that thirst that's in your heart and surrendered your will to Christ, Promises of God are not yours yet, but they can be. I'm so thankful that God's prepared a place for us. Oh, what a plan and purpose and will that God has for us as people. Let's talk about heaven. It's real. It's real. And Jesus is the way.