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Muskegon SDA Church

The Book Of Revelation

Kameron DeVasher

Revelation 1-3

Revelation 4-9

Revelation 10

Revelation 11

Revelation 12

Revelation 13

Revelation 14: The First Angel’s Message

Revelation 14: The 2nd Angel’s Message

Revelation 14: The 3rd Angel’s Message

Revelation 15-20

Revelation 21-22

We've been studying this quarter, the book of Revelation, and we find ourselves finally at the very end of the book of Revelation, chapters 21 and 22.

As we've seen, the book of Revelation, as it opens, is a revelation of Jesus Christ, and it's a book written about things from the time of John that were still to come.

And from John's perspective, it begins in his time and it goes all the way to the coming of Jesus and beyond.

And we've seen the history of the church recounted in various symbolic ways.

We've seen the times of difficulty and persecution.

We've seen the last warning message given to God's world in the 3 angels' messages and then last time we saw the destruction of Satan and the wicked.

And now we come to Revelation chapter 21 and 22 and as was so well read in verse 1, now I saw a new heaven and a new earth for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away." Today the burden of our study will not be exhaustive on Revelation 21 and 22, but As an introduction to our service of recommitment at the ordinance of humility and the communion supper, I would hope and pray that we would see in our study today a call to recommit to Jesus Christ and an understanding that He indeed is coming very soon.

But before we begin our study, let's begin with a word of prayer.

Heavenly Father, I thank you so much again for a Sabbath day and for so graciously allowing us to come into your house on your day.

And now as we study your word, we ask for your spirit to guide our minds and our understanding and to make application in our lives as we seek to become more like you every day, for we pray it in Jesus' name.

Oftentimes when 1 studies Revelation 21 or 22 or hears a presentation on these last 2 chapters of Scripture, it is noted accurately so that the last 2 chapters of the Bible, because these are of course not just the last 2 chapters of the book of Revelation, they're the very last chapters in all of Scripture.

The last 2 chapters of the book of Revelation bookend very nicely with the first 2 chapters of the very first book of the Bible.

Genesis 1 and 2 find their mirror image in Revelation 21 and 22.

If you recall, in the beginning, it says, in the beginning God created the heavens and the earth, and he goes on to outline in that first chapter how the Lord made them and what sequence and order, and he made everything, and each time he would make something he would come back and say it was good, it was good.

In fact, by the end of the creation week, on the end of day 6, he said, it was very good.

And then the Lord rested on the seventh day, the Sabbath, and hallowed it.

And in Revelation, chapter 21, we see verse 1.

Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth for the first heaven and the first earth have passed away.

And of course everything that goes in between those bookends, starting from Genesis chapter 3, is the sin problem.

It's development in our time and in the history of the world and in Christ's sacrifice to redeem us from that curse of sin and to restore us to that original Eden ideal.

Basically you have in Scripture the establishment of the Eden and then the Eden restored at the end of Scripture.

Of course Colossians chapter 1, If you would turn there briefly with us, you can see that this has been the plan of God all along.

Colossians chapter 1, right there in that little packet of books by the Apostle Paul, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, and then Colossians chapter 1.

We read in verse 19 and 20, what is the will of God that this very reconciliation would occur.

So it says in verse 19, For it pleased the Father that in Him, that is, Jesus Christ, all the fullness should dwell, and by him to reconcile all things to himself by him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of his cross." So basically what you have here is the heaven and earth were an ideal situation and they were going to be restored to that ideal situation and the thing that makes it happen is the blood of Jesus.

The blood of Jesus, which of course is a theme throughout the book of Revelation.

It speaks of Jesus as the lamb slain from the foundation of the world.

The redemption and the restoration, this reconciliation that is so confidently spoken of is only done through the blood of Jesus Christ.

So we go back to Revelation chapter 21 And we take just a brief look at what's being offered in Revelation chapter 20, 21.

Much like Revelation chapter 1 talks about kind of the nuts and bolts and the physical order of creation, here we have in Revelation chapter 21 the nuts and bolts of the new heavens and the new earth, specifically the kingdom of God itself.

And it goes on to describe this new Jerusalem.

Then 1 of the 7 angels who had the 7 bowls filled with the 7 last plagues came to me and talked with me saying come I will show you the bride the Lamb's wife okay now if you want to put your finger interesting enough right there and go back to Revelation chapter 17 you'll see a parallel it seems very similar Revelation chapter 17 in the destruction of the counterfeit city, then 1 of the 7 angels who had the 7 bowls came and talked with me saying to me, come I will show you the judgment of the great harlot who sits on many waters.

So he was shown the judgment of the counterfeit, the great harlot, and her kingdom, Babylon.

And now in Revelation chapter 21, the invitation from the same individual is given, now come, I will show you, again verse 9 of Revelation chapter 21, the bride, the Lamb's wife.

And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and he showed me the great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God.

Having the glory of God, her light was like a precious stone, like a jasper stone, clear as crystal.

And then it goes on to give the dimensions of the city, and it talks about the glories that will be therein.

And oftentimes when we talk about the coming of Jesus and our going to heaven to be with him, our focus is on some of the physical aspects that we're gonna enjoy.

Streets of gold, I personally want to swim with a dolphin.

I'll be honest with you, I would like that, I've never done it.

I would like to fly and visit other planets, I'd like to have the freedom that provides.

I'd like to have the peace and the safety and the no more tears.

And I'd love to have the physical environs that are there described so parallel, Genesis chapter 1.

But as you see the end of chapter 21, it goes on after it describes the city like pure gold in verse 21, like transparent glass.

But I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God Almighty and The Lamb are its temple.

Obviously the centerpiece of the kingdom is not the kingdom itself, but the king of the kingdom.

The city had no need of the sun, verse 23, or of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it.

Again the focus is so easy to get focused on the kingdom that you lose sight of the king.

But in our presentation of the gospel message, friends, we cannot just simply hold out heaven as a great place to be, Though I'm sure it will be a very fine place.

But the reason we want the kingdom is for the king." And it says it right there that the land is its light.

Then we go on to chapter 22, and you notice that in chapter 22, again after it describes some of the features of the sea, the water of life, The tree of life, the fruit that is there for the healing of nations.

It goes on to say in verse 7, and you'll notice this repeated theme in the very last chapter of the very last book of Scripture.

Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.

And behold, I am coming quickly, and my reward is with me, to give to everyone according to his work.

He who testifies to these things says, surely I am coming quickly.

You see, the last repeated promise of not just the book of Revelation, but the Bible itself is the soon coming, the quick coming of Jesus Christ.

And as Christians, we look forward to that, but it is difficult, if we can just be honest, to proclaim the quick coming of Jesus 2, 000 years after it was written.

That is some kind of quick that if I were employed my boss would not necessarily agree with my representation of things.

I got there quick, 2, 000 years late, from people's perspective.

In fact, this was an anticipated question.

Apparently in the last days we should expect this question to be asked.

People are saying, okay, Jesus said he was coming, where is he?

2 Peter 3, verse 3, Scripture tells us, 2 Peter 3, verse 3, knowing this first, that scoffers will come when?

In the last days, which I believe we're living in the last days.

We're not living in those earlier churches.

We're living right there at the time of the coming of Christ, after the time of persecution, after the beginning of the judgment, just before Jesus appears.

We're living in the last days, and apparently in those last days, scoffers will come, walking according to their own lusts and saying, where is the promise of what is coming?

I'm coming quickly, I'm coming quickly, and these are the last days, and we see no Jesus yet.

But look at the response, skip down to verse 8.

And if I could pause for a second, if the Bible ever tells you to not forget something, what should we do?

Similarly, if the Bible says remember something, what should we do?

And it says, brothers, do not, when you're answering this question, when people are confronting you, scoffing you with this concept that you say Jesus is coming yet we don't see him, remember this.

Do not forget this 1 thing, that with the Lord 1 day is as a thousand years and a thousand years are as 1 day.

The Lord is not slack, or some versions say slow, concerning his what?

He's not slow, or at least not the way we would think of slow.

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Series

The Book Of Revelation

Revelation 21-22

Transcript

Parent Series

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Recorded

Take Heed

19m

Through His Eyes

24m

The High Priest, The Sanhedrin, and the Great High Priest

35m

Communion Service

21m

The Long Journey Home

Sealed and Ready

30m

Communion Service

24m

The Cross

Cosmic Reconciliation

25m

Spirit Now Live In Me

24m

Delicious Grape Juice

36m

Godhead Questions and Answers

Pioneers and the Trinity- Part 2

1h 2m

Sound Doctrine