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Psalms
119:80-89 Let my
heart be blameless regarding Your statutes, That I may not be ashamed. My soul
faints for Your salvation, But I hope in Your word. My eyes fail from searching Your word, Saying,
"When will You comfort me?" For I have become like a wineskin in
smoke, Yet I do not forget Your
statutes. How many are the days
of Your servant? When will You execute judgment on those who persecute me? The
proud have dug pits for me, Which is
not according to Your law. All Your commandments are faithful; They persecute me wrongfully; Help me! They almost
made an end of me on earth, But I did not forsake Your precepts. Revive me
according to Your lovingkindness, So that I may keep the testimony of Your
mouth. Forever, O LORD, Your word is settled in heaven.
Father God, we thank you for your
mercy. Guide us in all we do and bless us with your Grace. Your mercy endures
forever. In Jesus name we pray, Amen!
Revelation 21:9-20 NKJV
Last week we studied the return of Jesus and His
Saints on white horses. The rest of this chapter is about the New Jerusalem, its
dimensions, its construction, and a glimpse of the inside. Everything about the
New Jerusalem is of a grand nature and one of beauty that we cannot comprehend.
To live in the New Jerusalem is a goal every individual here on earth should be
living for, not the things of earth that only gives us temporary happiness.
This reward for a Christian will last for eternity, which is also difficult for
our human minds to comprehend, at least for me it is. Eternity!!!!!!
9 Then one
of the seven angels who had the seven bowls filled with the seven last plagues
came to me and talked with me, saying, "Come, I will show you the bride,
the Lamb's wife."
One
of the Angels that had one of the seven bowls of wrath showed John the scarlet-clad
harlot, the great and guilty Babylon and now is going to show John the New
Jerusalem. What a huge contrast from sin and ugliness to purity and beauty.
The
bride as described in earlier lessons pertains to every Born Again person from
Abel to the last saved person of the Great Tribulation time frame. Some believe
it is a particular church or religion that is the bride which is a false
teaching, because if that were true then why was the Apostle Paul commissioned
to preach to the Gentiles? Why were there thousands saved at gatherings that
listened to the Apostles preach? Salvation is for all who will come to the Lord
with an open and contrite heart. John
3:16-17 For
God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not
perish but have everlasting life.
17 For God did
not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world
through Him might be saved. Acts 4:12
Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven
given among men by which we must be saved."
The
lamb is of course referring to Jesus and the sacrifice on the Cross for us. If
we believe and place our faith in Jesus by means of Him being the perfect
sacrifice, He will cover us with His shed blood, and God the Father will then
only see the blood of His Son and not our sinful flesh. With the covering of
this blood we are justified and accepted into God’s family. It is like joining
an organization and receiving a membership card. The animal sacrifices of the
OT were only a temporary cleansing that had to be repeated many times because
the blood was not of a perfect and pure origin.
10 And he
carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me the
great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God,
And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and
high mountain; This angel didn’t actually take John to a high
mountain, the word spirit signifies this is a vision and the view was one that
appeared from a high vantage point, thus like a high mountain.
And showed me the great city, the holy Jerusalem,
descending out of heaven from God; The New Jerusalem descends out of Heaven after the
cleansing of the old heaven and earth. Everything will be refreshed and made
new so that it will be acceptable to God to set up His new Kingdom here on
earth where Jesus will rule among His believers. Matthew 6:10 Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven.
11 having
the glory of God. Her light was
like a most precious stone, like a jasper stone, clear as crystal.
The
New Jerusalem is pure in nature and is illuminated with the presence of God,
therefore there is no need for light within. The view will be magnificent with
rays of light coming forth from within. We have all seen beams of light coming
down from the sun from time to time and this is what it will be like, but the
beams shining from the New Jerusalem will be crystal white and bright because
of God’s purity. A jasper stone is a gem of crystal nature, but also of various
colors or appears to be various colors. A diamond is a clear crystal that will
reflect light in such a way, at times it may appear to be colored. With the
construction material that will be described in upcoming verses, the light
coming from the New Jerusalem will most likely be reflected and appear to be
various colors, but the radiance shining forth from God’s presences is a pure
white light.
12 Also she
had a great and high wall with twelve gates, and twelve angels at the gates,
and names written on them, which are the
names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel:
13 three
gates on the east, three gates on the north, three gates on the south, and
three gates on the west.
This
great city has God’s government written all over it. Twelve signifies God’s
government and it will be His government that will rule. An angel sentry of the
Lord posted at every gate. Each gate will have a name of one of Israel’s tribes,
which signifies the importance of God’s chosen people to Him and the covenant
God made between Abraham and Himself. Will the descendants of the twelve tribes
enter through the gate of their tribe? I would venture to say yes and Ezekiel
even tells us what name is on each gate. Ezekiel 48:30-35 "These
are the exits of the city. On
the north side, measuring four thousand five hundred cubits 31 (the gates of
the city shall be named after
the tribes of Israel), the three gates northward: one gate for Reuben, one gate
for Judah, and one gate for Levi; 32 on
the east side, four thousand five hundred cubits, three gates: one gate for Joseph, one gate for Benjamin,
and one gate for Dan; 33 on the south
side, measuring four thousand five hundred cubits, three gates: one gate for Simeon, one gate for Issachar,
and one gate for Zebulun; 34 on the west
side, four thousand five hundred cubits
with their three gates: one gate for Gad, one gate for Asher, and one gate for
Naphtali. 35 All the way around shall be eighteen thousand cubits; and the name of the city from
that day shall be: THE LORD IS THERE. What about
us the Gentiles? What gate will those of us that are grafted to the vine enter?
That is a very good question and I don’t have an answer for you, but I do know
this we will be welcomed!
14 Now the
wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the names of the
twelve apostles of the Lamb.
Here
again twelve foundations, and on each layer a name of one of the twelve
apostles of Jesus Christ. The apostle’s that built on the foundation of the
Cross by being obedient to God, going out to all nations, and preaching the
Gospel. They are the foundation of Christianity and boldly went where no man
had gone before. As a Gentile I’m glad they did. With this verse I leave you
with this to ponder. Are the names on the foundations, of the twelve original apostles,
the twelve with the replacement for Judas being man appointed Matthias, or Paul
appointed by Jesus? Acts
1:26 And they cast their lots, and
the lot fell on Matthias. And he was numbered with the eleven apostles.
15 And he
who talked with me had a gold reed to measure the city, its gates, and its
wall.
16 The city
is laid out as a square; its length is as great as its breadth. And he measured
the city with the reed: twelve thousand furlongs. Its length, breadth, and height
are equal.
17 Then he
measured its wall: one hundred and
forty-four cubits, according to
the measure of a man, that is, of an angel.
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Angel
with Measuring Rod
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Art used; by Pat Marvenko Smith, copyright 1992.
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A
cubit is equal to a distance from the joint of the elbow to the tip of the
middle finger about 18 inches, (.5 m) but its precise length varied.
A
furlong is about 660 feet
(201 m).
The
city's measurements are symbolic of a place that will hold all God's people,
God’s prescribed number of perfect government. These measurements are all
multiples of 12, the number for God's people: There were 12 tribes in Israel,
and 12 apostles who started the church. The walls are 144 (12 x 12) cubits (216
feet) thick. There are 12 layers in the walls, and 12 gates in the city; and
the length, width, and height are all the same, 12,000 furlongs (1,500 miles). That means it covers more than 2,250,000
square miles of land area. It would cover an area
in the United States
from the Atlantic Ocean coastal line
and westward to Colorado and from the furthest part of Maine to the furthest
part of Florida. The New
Jerusalem is a perfect cube, the same shape as the Most Holy Place in the
Temple (1 Kings 6:20). These
measurements illustrate that this new home will be perfect for us.
A single city that large, and remember, it
is a cube, so it extends upward as far as it does outward, is literally
difficult to comprehend. But the same God who spoke the planets into existence
will have no trouble building and deploying a city that large onto planet
earth. Because the city is a cube, it must have "floors" inside it
that extend upwards. Someone has calculated that there could be room for as
many as 600 floors within the cube. If each of those 600 floors covers the same
2,250,000 plus square miles as the bottom floor, that produces 1.2 billion
square miles of "living area" within the cube. If you're wondering
about transportation inside such a structure, remember that our glorified
bodies will be different than what we have now. The Lord Jesus simply appeared
in a room with the disciples after His resurrection, unhindered by physical
barriers, will the residents just think about where they want to go and presto
they are there???
18 The construction of its wall was of jasper; and the city was pure gold, like clear glass.
19 The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with all kinds of
precious stones: the first foundation was
jasper, the second sapphire, the third chalcedony, the fourth emerald,
20 the fifth sardonyx, the sixth sardius, the
seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase,
the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst.
Many people spiritualize, these
elements of the city.
They simply can't
imagine anything like what John describes could possibly exist. Here is the
way I see it, if God created the universe and all living things within it Genesis 1:1-31; 2:1-4,
then he can create a New Jerusalem with the described foundation and the other
descriptions listed. I believe God created heaven and earth and will create a
New Jerusalem. Being built of gold and a foundation of nonperishable stones,
the New Jerusalem will last for eternity. What a sight this New Jerusalem will
be. It will be awesome! Can you imagine what it will look like with God’s
radiance beaming off of those precious stones, I can’t?
Next week we will take a look
inside the city.
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Foundations
of the City
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Art used; by Pat Marvenko Smith, copyright 1992.
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Jasper - opaque, cryptocrystalline variety of
quartz, usually colored red.
·
Sapphire - a clear, fairly pure form of the mineral
corundum that is usually blue but may be any color except red.
·
Chalcedony - a microcrystalline, translucent
variety of quartz, often milky or grayish.
·
Emerald - a rare variety of beryl that is colored a
deep clear green by chromium and valued as a gem.
·
Sardonyx - a species of the carnelian combining the
sard and the onyx, having three layers of opaque spots or stripes on a
transparent red basis. Like the sardine, it is a variety of the chalcedony.
·
Sardius - the precious stone, thought to have been
a ruby.
·
Chrysolite - an olive-green mineral of the olivine
group, found in igneous and metamorphic rocks.
·
Beryl - a white, blue, yellow, green, or pink
mineral, found in coarse granites and igneous rocks.
·
Topaz - a white or colourless mineral often tinted
by impurities, found in cavities in igneous rocks and in quartz veins. It is
used as a gemstone.
·
Chrysoprase - a green variety of chalcedony,
sometimes used as a gem.
·
Jacinth - an ancient blue gem
·
Amethyst – a purple or violet quartz, used as a
gem.
Colossians 1:16 For by Him all things were created
that are in heaven and that are on earth,
visible and invisible,
whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers.
All things were created through Him
and for Him.
Romans 3:23 for all have sinned and fall short of
the glory of God,
Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our
Lord.
John 3:3 Jesus answered and said to him, Most assuredly, I say to you,
unless one is
born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."
Bill
Wiesbrock https://www.facebook.com/bill.wiesbrock?ref=tn_tnmn
Sinners Prayer; Pray this, and if you believe
it with your heart, Jesus will save you!
“Lord Jesus
I know I am a sinner. I confess my sins
to you; I am sorry for my sins; I repent (Meaning, desiring to turn from a
sinful lifestyle.) of all my sins, and I am asking for your forgiveness of all
of my sins. I believe that only you can
forgive sin. I commit my life to you and
ask you to come into my heart, direct, and take charge of my life. I believe that you died to set me free from my
sinful lifestyle and you rose from the dead to give me eternal life, and right
now you are seated at the Right Hand of God Almighty. I believe you are the Son
of God; the only Way, the only Truth, the only Life, and my Savior.” I believe this and have faith you will make a
new person out of me, by sending the Holy Spirit to dwell in my heart and lead
me in a new life. In Jesus name I pray Amen.”
(John 3:16,17; Romans 3:23; 6:23; 5:8; 10:9-13; Ephesians 2:8-10; 1
John 5:11-14; 1:6-10) (Sin: Rom.
1:22-32; Gal. 5:19-21; Eph. 5:3-7)
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