see what we have done." Revelation 21:17. 8 But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars-their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This our Lord Jesus Christ has done upon the greatest scale. Revelation 21:1 I want, then, to drop into your ear and may the Spirit of God drop into your heart this word, you may be born again. Revelation 21:24. (Ah, there he sits.) What a change in our joys! I would that there might be some new creations tonight, that that divine heavenly Spirit would come into some of your souls, and drop there that vital spark of heavenly flame which shall never be quenched, but shall burn brightly in heaven for ever. CONTENTS There is enough of light in your soul for you to know that you are in darkness; and you are saying to yourself, "Oh, that I could reach to better things! JOHN was the beloved disciple, the choicest spirit of the twelve, the , Heaven Above, and Heaven Below And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal; and had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel: on the east three gates; on the north three gates; on the south three gates; and on the west three gates. We are conscious of having been quickened, for we were dead once, and we know it; but now we have passed from death into life, and we know it quite as certainly. 1. How pleased we are with that which is new! Genesis and Revelation contrasted. Probably John did not expect to hear that sweet gospel message just then. THE NEW JERUSALEM other; the earth of the saints, their glorified, bodies, will be What a prospect does all this open up to the believer! And there came unto me one of the seven angels which had the seven vials full of the seven last plagues, and talked with me, saying, Come hither, I will shew thee the bride, the Lamb's wife. 10. city of God men had looked through long generations. Revelation 21:5. You young people, as soon as ever you know the Lord, I exhort you to study well that word "covenant." Oh, it is wonderful how different a thing becomes when it is taken to God. They that are full of the joy of the Lord never find life grow weary. Men hate God without the slightest reason for doing so, and God loves men without the slightest reason; there was every reason why men should love God, and not hate him; yet they have hated him without a cause, and there is every reason why God should hate man and not love him, yet he loves him so much that he gave his only-begotten Son to die, that whosoever believeth in him may live for ever. A new world now opens to our view ( v. 1 ): I saw a new heaven and a new earth; that is, a new universe; for we suppose the world to be made up of heaven and earth. THERE are a great many things we should like to know about heaven. He that sitteth on the throne says in infinite condescension to you upon the dunghill, "Behold, I make all things new." The Revelation 21:5 . Compare Isaiah 65:17. We will give him no rest until he hears us. There is now a contending force within them the old carnal nature inclining to evil, and the new God-given nature panting after perfection. Chap. And I saw a new heaven, and a new earth: for the first heaven and the Added to Bible Bulletin Board's "Spurgeon Collection" by: Tony Capoccia Bible Bulletin Board Box 119 Columbus, New Jersey, USA, 08022 Our websites: and Email: Online since 1986, To report dead links, typos, or html errors or suggestions about making these resources more useful use the convenient. This vision relates to a Our curiosity has been excited full often to ask a vast number of questions, but after being excited, it has never been gratified, for Gods word has told us little about , A Voice from Heaven And I saw Leaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. The endless end of evil has passed before the vision of the seer, and 7 Those who are victorious will inherit all this, and I will be their God and they will be my children. The holy city appears. 8 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. (Revelation 21:1) Th _aor. Courage, my brethren and sisters. The doctrine of the new heaven and the new earth goes back to Isaiah What is wanted is that you should be made a new creature in Christ Jesus. He makes all things new." I forget a great many of you who are saved; but I always pray for them. but, brethren and sisters, we do not know; since the Lord saved us, there cannot be any limits as to what he can do. Let us gaze upon THE GREAT TRANSFORMATION. sea. It finds blight where once it sought for bliss, and finds bliss where once it found nothing but bitterness. And he said unto me, It is done. separation, nor part of the world not brought into an ordered earth The words he speaks to us to-night are truly divine. . . _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._. Text Revelation 21:1-27 Furthermore, you will say to me, "I desire to lead a new life." A more determined, obstinate rebel than I could scarce have been. Yes, like a priceless square casket made all of costly jewels is this wondrous city, equally glorious whichever way you look at it: The length and the breadth and the height of it are equal.. When we are made sons do we work for wages? By the new heaven and the new earth here, all understand. He shall be my son, not my servant, but my son. God give us the faith to rise to this more than royal dignity! chronological course of the prophecy. And here is our strength for rising to a nobler state of mind, "Behold I make all things new." The throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it. Revelation xxii. You shall be: blessed be God. We are bound to have you in the church confessing your faith in Jesus. We are at this moment specially ready for a new year. Grace works a very deep, striking, and lasting change. It's good news for the sky above and the Earth below. Verse 8. Revelation 21:5. "Well, I am going to mend myself," says one: "I have taken the pledge, and I am going to be honest, and chaste, and religious." Since you feel this, I know you can say to-night that Jesus Christ, who sits on the throne, makes all things new. Revelation 21:19. _cf._ Isaiah 65:17. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, and hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him he glory and dominion for ever and ever. What a range of creating power is here! Revelation Revelation 21:22. We are not what we were: we are new, and have begun a new career. You have grievous trouble because you hear the dearest that you have blaspheming the God you love. In us also may men behold the marvels of thy renewing love. , , . Then, through his Spirit, he goes on to make new men under the new covenant, and you will see that by this means he makes a new society. These were redeemed from among men, being the firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb. Wherever the gospel is preached, the Spirit is present in that gospel, and he gives faith to men, gives life to men, and so they are made new, and the new-making thus goes on. My dear sister, next time you go to your class, you may feel as if you had only just begun teaching. 1. But, even if you do not, we shall pray for you; and we were sure that you opposed our intercessions, and were even angry with them, we should pray all the more, for we mean to have you won for Jesus, by the grace of God, and you may as well come soon as late. _ (G565) There is a hand that can give you a gravitation in the opposite direction. He spends a life of weariness and sorrow amongst those who despise him, and if you want to know first and foremost how he makes all things new, you must see him sweating great drops of blood in the garden that is the blood of the new world which he is pouring forth! Why should we not lift up our voices in his praise? This is the first day of a new year, and therefore a solemnly joyous day. I say this with very great shame shame for myself, and shame for the brother who led me to make the confession. We have access to him by the new and living way. Our path to eternal glory is the road of faith, "The just shall live by faith." "Immortal joys come streaming down, Joys, like his griefs, immense, unknown;". It leaps at the sound which was once dull to its ears the name of a precious Christ. MEN GENERALLY venerate antiquity. Oh, what a blessing it would be for some workers if God would make them strong! It needed the Lord himself to make such as we are new. known as the Book of beginnings. Well, now, dear friends, why do you and I ever get stale and flat? If you leave the fountain foul the streams cannot be pure. 5, 6. Restless spirits consider that the new must be better than the old. Why, himself. You recollect how it was made at first pure and perfect. And in their mouth was found no guile: for they are without fault before the throne of God. Revelation xiv. No mother's pangs, when she brought forth a man-child, were such as those of Christ when he brought forth the new creation. _And I saw a new heaven_] New for form and state, but the same When men "cross the line," they find no visible mark: the sea bears no trace of an equatorial belt; and yet mariners know whereabouts they are, and they take notice thereof, so that a man can hardly cross the line for the first time without remembering it to the day of his death. App-133. I have had a weary time of late. 7. The ancient prophecy shall be fulfilled to the letter. All the church would be the better because of the way in which the Lord would help them to do their work. ind. Come and lay yourself down at his feet, and ask him to make you new; I beseech you, do this at once! He is a man dressed in the common garments of the poor! Revelation 21:8. "God never wearies of the precious blood," Spurgeon says, "nor will His people who know where their salvation lies." The gospel is far greater than most of us imagine. glory! he replied, "if they were not they would all get up and shout 'Hallelujah' when you are preaching such a glorious gospel. Revelation 21:1. January 1, 1885 by C. H. SPURGEON (1834-1892). We were under the old covenant, and our first father and federal head, Adam, had broken that covenant, and we were ruined by his fatal breach. The apostle Peter has told us that this w. Friends have said in wonder, "What a change in John! And they will be brought in, I feel assured; but, oh, that it may be this year! The remaining two chapters describe the eternal and consummated CHAPTER XXI III. You who have dear friends who lie upon your bosom, as you anxiously think of them, pray the Lord Jesus to make them new. Why should he call upon us to behold it? And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; every several gate was of pearl: and the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass. ", I should not wonder, therefore, if the mere words of my text should sound like a pleasant song in your ears; but I am thankful that their deeper meaning is even more joyful. There shall be no death, nor sorrow nor crying, nor pain, nor trial of any kind; all shall be happiness for all shall be holiness. Revelation 20:11. Peter 3:7. They have a new nature. Throne the earth and the heaven flee away. The apostle Peter has told us that this world also will be destroyed by fire, but it will afterwards be renewed, and a new sky and a new earth will appear after the first firmament and the first earth shall have become extinct. You will break your resolutions, and be nothing bettered by your attempts at reform. 22). We have not, and, therefore, we must leave it, but may you and I have a part in this new creation! It is the purpose and intention of the Lord Jesus to make this world entirely new. NEW. first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.