Great Gift: The Gift We All Long For

a loud voice from the throne saying, Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live

with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.

He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying

or pain, for the old order of things has passed away. He who was seated on the throne said,

I am making everything new. Then he said, Write this down, for these words are trustworthy

and true. And if you just flick over to chapter 22, starting at verse 1, down to 6.

Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life as clear as crystal, flowing from the

throne of God and of the Lamb, down the middle of the great street of the city. On each

side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit

every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. No longer

will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his

servants will serve him. They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads.

There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the

sun, for the Lord God will give them light, and they will reign forever and ever. The

angel said to me, These words are trustworthy and true. The Lord, the God of the spirits of

the prophets, sent his angel to show his servants the things that must soon take place.

Thanks. And there is a pen or a piece of paper with headings and questions, if that helps

you. As we look at these great passages, really chapter 21 and chapter 22 cover all one theme,

but we're just going to be looking at a section of each.

Okay, well, let's pray.

Father, we thank you for your many gifts to us, gifts that we have already enjoyed today,

the gift of friendship, gift of family, being able to talk and share with one another,

the gift of the Lord Jesus, and the power of your Holy Spirit at work within us.

We thank you so much.

Lord, we thank you for your time.

that we would live lives full of meaning, of hope and purpose, that we would be the

answer, not ourselves, but the message we bring to so many who are lost and without hope.

So encourage us all this morning, we pray. In Jesus' name. Amen.

Amen.

Well, over the last week, we had our annual What Do You Want for Christmas conversation.

I don't know if you have that in your house. We do.

Requests came flooding in.

PS4, iPhone, 42-inch smart TV, sports gear, food, and that's just Kirsty's wish list.

By the time we'd finished our conversation, it had turned into a lot of shouting, threats of not getting anything,

a long explanation from Dad about household budgets and recession, and on and on it went.

So what do you want for Christmas?

What's on your wish list?

And I don't mean what gadget do you want, or what new fashion accessory that you're after.

I mean, what do you really long for?

What's your deepest heart's desire?

Because I think the things that we desperately want is what everybody wants.

Deep, caring, loving friendships.

People who are loyal and faithful.

Relationships that have been broken, but now made new and put right.

Homes where there is joy and happiness, where there isn't any fighting or arguing.

Where sickness is healed and all suffering has been removed.

Equality, so that homeless people don't die in the cold.

Justice, so that guilty people are punished, whatever their political position.

We want an end to things like wars and famine and natural disasters.

You see, what we really long for, what we really want, is for everything that is broken to be fixed.

We want a new world.

A world where people are happy and never sad.

A world where there is peace and not violence.

A world where everyone is satisfied and fulfilled.

Is that too much of a thing to ask for?

Is that too much of a wish?

Well, what we all want for Christmas,

these big longings and big desires of our hearts,

have all been promised by the risen Lord Jesus.

And that's what we have in Revelation chapter 21 and 22.

Revelation 21 · chapter mention

We're given this spectacular vision to help us see and visualize what has been promised.

This vision is like a collage of colorful pictures that all flow and mingle together

to show us.

To show us the beauty and the wonder of a new world under God and what it's going to be like.

So let's have a look at this vision.

First, a gift is promised.

A new world.

Look at verse 1 of chapter 21.

John, who sees the vision, writes,

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth,

for the first earth and the first heaven had passed away.

Everything, he says, is going to be changed.

There's going to be a complete transformation in the world that we know.

There's a program on television called At Your Service.

It's about two brothers, Francis and John Brennan, who own hotels down in Kerry.

And they offer their services to help small hotels who are struggling,

near bankruptcy, and need an urgent makeover.

And they come into these small hotels.

They change the menus and the catering arrangements.

They change the decor in the lobby.

They refurbish the bedrooms, put on new wallpaper, put in new furniture.

They change the whole business plan of the hotel.

They even remove unhealthy and lazy staff.

The end result is a complete transformation.

A new order has been put in place.

Well, what these brothers do for a small hotel,

God is going to do on a cosmic scale for this universe in which we live.

Look at the end of verse 4.

He says,

The old order of things has passed away.

He who is seated on the throne, that is, the risen Lord Jesus, said,

I am making everything new.

It's hard to get our minds around it.

This world that we live in, made new.

So what's this new world going to look like?

Well, in these couple of texts, we have seven pictures,

or I've broken it into seven pictures,

to help us see what this new world is like.

First, there's the removal of fear.

I wonder what it is that you do fear in life.

Do you fear people?

Are you afraid of the future?

Maybe of dying?

Well, in this new world, there is nothing to fear

because all fear has been removed.

Look at the little phrase at the end of verse 1 of chapter 21.

There's that little phrase that says,

There was no longer any sea.

Now, when John wrote this in the first century,

the sea was a sign of threat.

We tend to think of the sea as a place of pleasure and recreation.

But in John's day, there were no yachts,

there were no jet skis flying about the place.

For them, the sea was not a safe place to go out to.

It was dangerous.

People lost their lives when they went out to sea.

But here the picture is of no more sea.

Not literally.

It's not that this new world, you're not going to have any sea.

There will be a sea.

But it's symbolically, he's meaning,

there is no longer any fear.

All the fear has been removed.

There is not fear from anyone or anything.

All fear gone.

That's the kind of world we want.

Second, there's the provision of security.

Verse 2.

I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem,

coming down out of heaven from God.

Jerusalem, we know, was the capital city,

the centre of power and authority.

This is where the king lived and where the king ruled.

So it was a place of provision, a place of protection.

People came into the city to escape trouble and hardship.

They came to the city to find rest.

Well, here we're given a picture that this new world

is going to be like a fortified city.

Safe and secure.

No threat or danger or harm.

A city of freedom and joy.

A place without worry or concern.

This is the kind of world we all long for.

The third picture that we get is of the presence of God

in this place.

Verse 3.

And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying,

Now the dwelling of God is with men

and he will live with them.

They will be his people

and God himself will be with them

and be their God.

Now we all enjoy friendships and relationships.

But this is the ultimate relationship that we were made for.

This is why God created us.

That we would be made for him

and to be with him.

This is where we are finally satisfied and fulfilled.

The God who made the universe in all his power.

Who is rich in mercy,

full of justice,

faithful in love,

gentle and compassionate.

It tells us that we will be with him.

We will live with him.

And he will be with us.

We will see him.

It will be like the coming together of a husband and wife

in all its beauty and intimacy.

Look at the end of verse 2

where it talks about the new Jerusalem,

the city coming down prepared as a bride,

beautifully dressed for her husband.

This coming together,

this unity with God

that we will never be separated.

This permanent relationship.

In this new world,

we will be with God.

Get our minds around it

that we will see him

and we will live with him

and talk to him

in ways that we have never known before.

The presence of God.

And in this place,

there will be the absence

of suffering.

Verse 4.

He will wipe every tear from their eyes.

There will be no more death

or mourning

or crying

or pain.

Every one of us here

has experienced

some kind of pain and suffering.

Sometimes it's through our own illness.

Sometimes it's through the sickness

of someone we love.

And it's painful

when somebody suffers

because most of the time

we just can't do anything about it.

We can't fix it.

And sadly,

all suffering

results

in death.

And none of us like death

because it ends

everything that is good.

It steals away

our friends

and our family.

It spoils

and robs us

of our joy

and our happiness.

And when those we love

closest to us

we grieve

the heartache

the loneliness

and it never ever

seems to go away.

But look at the picture here

in verse 4.

In this new world

there is no more suffering.

There is no more death.

No more hospitals

to visit.

No more funerals

to attend.

Look at the next picture.

Not only is there

the absence of suffering

but there is

the abundance of life.

Look at chapter 22

verse 1.

The angel showed me

the river

of the water

of life

as clear as crystal

flowing from the throne

of God

and of the Lamb

down the middle

of the great street

of the city.

Here we have this river

this water of life.

It pictures

the abundance

of life

that there will be.

Life itself

will be flowing

flowing from the very source

from God's throne

right down

through the city

to the people of God.

A continuous stream

that nourishes

and provides

and sustains

all things.

We live in a world

where death

is at work

where death

destroys

and disease

corrupts

but in this

new world

there will be

life

and it will change

and transform

everything.

On each side

the rest of verse 2

of the river

stood

the tree of life

bearing 12 crops

of fruit

yielding its fruit

every month.

This river of life

in all its

bountifulness

produces

a tree of life

which is there

for all the people

to feed from

and to enjoy

and notice

the way

this tree is.

It produces

fruit

every month.

It's never ending

in its supply

of goodness.

It pictures

this abundance

and plenty

that there will be.

People in this

new world

will never be thirsty.

They will never

be hungry.

Everything they need

for is provided.

But more than that

look at the rest

of verse 2.

And the leaves

of the tree

are for the healing

of the nations.

I'm sure you've all

had a nettle sting

at some stage

and you're all told

to get a little

dock leaf

rub it on your arm

until the sting

goes away.

I don't know

if it ever did

but that's what

we were told to do.

Well here we're told

something that is true.

the leaves

of this tree

will bring

full and complete

healing.

It's giving us

a picture

of what God

is going to do.

All the emotional

scars

that people carry.

All the physical

hurts

from our lives.

The mental

wounds.

The spiritual

pain.

It's all

healed.

It's all

rubbed away.

never to break

us

or crush

us

again.

This is

abundant

life

renewed

and restored

to what it

should be.

And I guess

picturing all of

these things

together

we're told

in verse 3

that the curse

is lifted.

No longer

will there be

any

curse.

because the

world that we

live in

and that we

experience

right now

is under

a curse.

That's why

things break.

That's why

relationships

go wrong.

Because of our

rebellion against

God.

Because of our

sinful actions

and our

hard hearts.

Life doesn't

function the

way it's

meant to.

There's a

frustration

about life.

It's damaged

and broken.

We don't

enjoy work

as we should.

We don't

enjoy the

things around

us as we

should because

things have

gone wrong.

But in this

new world

the curse

has been

lifted.

It's been

taken away.

Life is

given its

freedom to

be able to

flourish.

Instead of

death and

disease there

will be

beauty and

harmony.

And in

this world

we will

also flourish.

We will be

everything that

God intends

us to be.

Look at the

rest of verse

three.

The throne

of God

and of

the Lamb

will be

in the

city and

his servants

that's his

people will

serve him.

They will

be working.

They will

see his

face.

Picture that

looking at

God and

seeing him

and his

name will

be on their

foreheads.

It's like

your passport,

your entrance

into the

new world.

God's

residents,

his people

in his

city,

in his

kingdom,

serving their

good and

kind master,

creating and

building and

playing and

doing all

that we

ought to be

doing.

The chains

of the

curse have

been untied

and the

freedom of

life is

enjoyed.

And look

at the last

little picture

that we get

in verse

five.

there is

the end

of all

evil.

There will

be no

more

night.

When it

says no

more night

it's like

what it

said in

chapter 21

no more

sea.

Night

is a

symbol

of the

evil

darkness

that rules

our world.

The dark

forces that

cause so

much havoc

and harm.

But look

at verse

five.

they will

not need

the light

of a

lamp or

the light

of the

sun for

the Lord

God will

give them

light and

they will

reign forever

and forever.

In this

new world

the light

of God

will banish

the darkness

of evil.

The work

and the

ways of

Satan will

be removed

never ever

to influence

again,

never to

harm again.

Instead of

a world

that is

broken with

evil and

all the

violence and

all the

crime that

we see

and read

about on

our news

every single

day,

it will

be gone.

No more

sin,

no more

temptation,

no more

bad things.

This new

world will

see the

end of

all evil.

And so

through these

chapters and

through these

verses,

we've got

this amazing

colourful

picture of

the world

that is

to come.

Can you

see what

is being

promised?

Can you

see this

amazing gift

that is

being offered?

The kind

of world

that we

all long

for.

There's not

one person

that you

know that

you work

with or

live beside

or socialise

with who

wouldn't say,

I don't

want this.

Everything

broken

is fixed.

All that

is old

and disordered

will be

replaced by

something new

and beautiful.

Verse 6,

the angel

said to me,

these words

are trustworthy

and true.

This is not

make-believe.

This is not

Santa Claus.

This is all

promised by

the true

and risen

Lord Jesus.

So the

gift

has been

promised

and the

gift is

offered

a way

in.

You see,

like every

gift,

we want to

know how

we can

have it.

So let's

see how

we can

get this

promise.

Have a

look at

chapter 22

verse 14.

It says,

blessed are

those who

wash

their robes

that they

may have

the right

to the

tree of

life

and may

go through

the gates

into the

city.

You see,

he's telling

us clearly

there is a

way into

this new

world.

There's a

way to get

access to

the tree

of life.

There's a

way to

this abundant

fruit and

the leaves

of healing.

There's a

way through

the gates

into the

city where

there is

no more

evil,

suffering or

fear.

We can

get there.

How?

Look what it

says at the

beginning of

verse 14.

Blessed are

those who

wash their

robes.

It's telling

us that we

need to be

made clean

and pure

so that we

can go into

the clean

and pure

and good

world.

Go back

to chapter

7 of

Revelation.

Keep your

finger there

in Revelation

22 but go

back to

chapter 7.

Here in

an earlier

vision we

see all

this huge

crowd,

this multitude

from all

different kinds

of nations

and they're

all part of

this new

world and

the one who's

speaking in

the vision is

wanting to

know where

they came

from and

how they

got to be

there.

So we

pick it up

in verse 13

of chapter

7.

Then one of

the elders

asked me,

these in

white robes,

who are they

and where

did they come

from?

Like how did

they get to

be in here?

I answered,

sir, you

know.

And he said,

these are they

who have come

out of the

great tribulation.

These are the

people who've

gone through

this world and

all its

suffering and

all the hard

things.

They have

washed their

robes and

made them

white in

the blood

of the

lamb.

Go back

to Revelation

22.

You see,

he's telling

us there that

we need to

have our

robes washed.

Now it

sounds messy,

doesn't it,

to be washing

your clothes

in lamb's

blood?

But I think

we know what

it's saying.

This is

picture language.

It's

talking about

the death

of the

Lord Jesus

when Jesus

the lamb

died on

the cross,

when his

blood was

spilt.

It was

God's

means of

washing away

sin.

It was a

way to

clean us

and to

make us

right.

You could

imagine a

young man

going to

his

girlfriend's

house for

the first

time,

to have

dinner,

to meet

the parents.

Maybe you

remember that

time.

And unless

he was a

right nut

job,

he would

spend his

time getting

himself washed

and cleaned

up and

scrubbed up,

all the

dirt and

grime

removed,

all so that

he would be

welcomed and

accepted into

the family.

now if we're

going to be

welcomed and

accepted into

God's new

world, into

his family,

into his

kingdom, then

we need to

be cleaned.

Not on the

outside, but

deep on the

inside.

And this is

why we come

to Christ,

why we come

to Jesus, to

find that

forgiveness, that

cleaning, that

washing away of

all our sin,

past, present

and future, all

our guilt and

shame gone.

blessed, verse

14, are those

who wash their

robes, who've

come to Jesus,

that they may

have the right,

the audacity to

be able to go

into that new

world because

we've come to

Christ, and to

go to the tree

of life, and to

walk through the

gates of that

city.

But please read

this carefully.

Please read

this carefully.

Because it is

only those who

come to Jesus,

it is only

those who have

been washed,

that will have

access to the

tree and walk

through the city

gates.

Look at verse

15.

Outside,

outside this

new world,

are the

dogs, meaning

the outsiders,

those who

practice magic

arts, the

sexually immoral,

the murderers,

the idolaters,

and everyone

who loves and

practices

falsehood.

does that

mean that

those who

do enter

are somehow

better than

everybody else

or less

sinful than

other people?

No, the

point is we're

all messed up,

we're all

broken people.

We've all

done these

things that

are in verse

15 in one

way or another,

not necessarily

in action,

but in

thought.

through our

minds.

The only

difference between

the group in

verse 14 and

the group in

verse 15 is

that those who

are in verse

14 have seen

their sin.

They've accepted

responsibility for

it and they

have come to

Jesus and they

have asked and

they have longed

for that cleaning

and for that

washing.

Those who are

outside have

refused it and

rejected it.

what a

difference.

Unless we

come to

him, we

do not have

access to the

tree of life.

We will not

enter the city

gates.

And I know

we know that.

But many

people don't

know that.

this wonderful

gift, the

way that we

can actually

enter in,

we have

something to

say to

people.

But not

only is this

gift promised

and not only

is it offered,

it is

experienced.

Jesus has

promised us a

wonderful gift

and through

Jesus we

can enjoy

that gift.

But does

that mean we

have to wait

for it?

We've sung

about it this

morning, we've

thought about it,

do we have to

wait until we

get to it?

Well the answer

to that is yes

and no.

Yes we do

have to wait,

we do have to

be patient,

because the

new world

will only

come when

the Lord

Jesus returns

and puts

everything right.

But no,

we don't

have to

wait,

because that

new life

has already

begun in

Christ now.

It's not

all in the

future.

It begins

right here,

right now.

Have a look

with me please

in 2

2 Corinthians 5 · chapter mention

Corinthians

chapter 5.

2

2 Corinthians 5 · chapter mention

Corinthians

chapter 5.

In

Revelation

we're thinking

of a new

heaven and

a new

earth,

the old

order passing

away,

a new

order brought

in,

a new

creation,

a new

world.

Well look

what happens

when we

turn to

Jesus.

Chapter 5

verse 17.

Read it,

see what it

says.

Therefore,

if anyone

is in

Christ,

they are

a new

creation.

The old

has gone

and the

new

has come.

Do you

see what it's

saying?

What God

is going to

do on a

cosmic scale

to the whole

world and

to the whole

universe,

what he

will do,

God has

already done

and is

doing in

our lives

right now.

That means

we don't

have to

wait for

it all

to come.

The old

is replaced

with the

new.

We have

begun a

new life.

The old

life is

over.

A new

life has

begun for

those who

are in

Christ who

have come

to him

and who

have accepted

his washing

and his

cleansing.

We are

nothing less

than a

new

creation.

Now that

doesn't mean

we experience

everything now

that has been

promised,

that great

big list of

pictures that

we went

through.

That will

come to

us.

But it

also means

that right

now as

believers we

begin to

taste something

of what is

to come.

The other

day I

had literally

that size

a piece

of Christmas

cake.

A little

tiny taste.

And I

ate it and

I thought

Christmas is

coming.

Dinner is

coming.

All the

food that

we're going

to enjoy.

But it

was just

a taste.

It reminded

me of all

that is to

come.

Well because

we're in

Christ and

because we're

a new

creation,

we have

so much

now to

enjoy.

We can

enjoy the

presence of

God.

We do

have a

relationship

with our

Father in

Heaven.

The intimacy

of talking

to Him.

That is

something

amazing.

We do

live without

fear today

of anyone

or anything.

Why?

Because God

is with us.

The maker

of this

universe is

in us by

the power

of His

Holy Spirit.

He has

our future

taken care

of.

What is

there to

fear?

And He's

given us

His Spirit

to fight

and overcome

sin.

We don't

have to

say yes

to sin.

We don't

have to

give in

to temptation.

Because He's

given us

His power

to be able

to fight

it and to

do battle

against it.

to resist

Satan

and his

temptation.

And

while we

may go

through

suffering

but He

has given

us the

strength

and the

grace to

cope with

it.

To see

that it

is God's

means of

changing

us and

equipping

us and

preparing

us.

We have

so much

now.

And we

have eternal

hope in

the face

of death.

We know

that when we

die and when

we face the

grave we

have a

future beyond.

And we

have true

life, real

life, meaning

and purpose

in Jesus

Christ.

Yes the

best is yet

to come

but all

of that

life has

begun now

in the

present.

Look at

chapter 5

verse 17

again.

Therefore

if anyone

is in

Christ they

are a

new creation.

The old

has gone

and the

new

has

come.

What a

gift

we have

been given.

You will

not find a

better gift

than this.

And what a

gift

we can

give

to a

world that

is desperately

in need.

And through

Jesus

that gift

is offered

and that

gift can be

experienced

right now

today.

Let's pray.

Let's pray.

Father, would

you please

forgive us

for thinking

at times

that we

have nothing

help us

to see

clearly

the wonderful

gift that

you have

given to

us through

your son

the Lord

Jesus.

Thank you

that we

have so

much to

look forward

to.

A new

heaven and

a new

earth.

But we

thank you

that that

life has

begun

today.

and we

thank you

that we

are a

new

creation.

We have

a new

way to

live.

With the

blessing of

God upon

us, the

power of

his Holy

Spirit, a

relationship

with our

Father in

heaven, the

right to be

called your

children.

We thank

you so

much for

all that we

have and

all that we

enjoy because

of you.

we thank

you for

this amazing

gift.

And we

pray, Father,

as we have

been praying,

that you

would open

up an

opportunity

for each

one of us

here to

be able to

offer,

tell,

or explain

to someone

this amazing

gift that

we can

have.

love.

We pray

that we

will experience

it more

and more

in our

own lives,

bring it

to a

reality in

us.

But we

pray also

that many

others,

friends and

family,

would

experience

this gift

too.

We ask

for your

help in

doing this.

In Jesus'

name we all

pray.

Amen.