We have been navigating our way through what we believe as a church, and today we reach the end of those essential beliefs. We have hit on the following topics…
Scriptures Inspired
One True God and the Divinity of Jesus
Fall of Man and the Plan of Salvation
Ordinances of the Church (Communion and Water Baptism)
Baptism of the Holy Spirit and Speaking in Tongues
Sanctification
The Church and Its Mission
Divine Healing
Blessed Hope, Millenial Reign of Jesus, and Final Judgement
And all of that leads us to today's message, The New Heavens and New Earth.
Foundation #16
And look forward to the perfect new heavens and new Earth that Christ is preparing for all people of all time who have accepted Him. We will live and dwell with Him there forever following His millennial reign on Earth. ‘And so shall we forever be with the Lord!’
There Will Be A New Heaven And A New Earth
2 Peter 3:10-13 (ESV)
But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the Earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed.
Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be set on fire and dissolved, and the heavenly bodies will melt as they burn! But according to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.
So 2 Peter tells us that this new heaven and new Earth is coming, but what will it be like?
Revelation 21:1-7 (ESV)
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first Earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”
And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” And he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment. The one who conquers will have this heritage, and I will be his God and he will be my son.
So we start seeing that everything will be new without death, sadness, illness, etc. So it’s going to be a great place to be.
When you start picturing heaven, you might have the wrong perspective. Media has given us this imagery of us sitting on clouds playing harps.
That isn’t going to be heaven. It is going to be the most incredible place you can ever imagine! And keep in mind for a moment that all things will be made new.
Revelation 21:16 says that the city’s length, width, and height are equal and that they are 12,000 stadia. 12,000 stadia equal about 1,400 miles. This makes the city a square: 1,400 miles wide by 1,400 miles long by 1,400 miles high.
Now, listen to this comparison. Mount Everest is approximately 5.5 miles tall. You could stack 254.5 Mount Everest before reaching the city's top.
Remember when I mentioned God would be making everything new? Gravity will be different. Our ability to consume Oxygen, if Oxygen exists, will be different.
Revelation 21:18-27 (ESV)
The wall was built of jasper, while the city was pure gold, like clear glass. The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with every kind of jewel. The first was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, the fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the twelfth amethyst. And the twelve gates were twelve pearls, each of the gates made of a single pearl, and the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass.
And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb. By its light will the nations walk, and the kings of the Earth will bring their glory into it, and its gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there. They will bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations. But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb's book of life.
Heaven is going to be a breathtaking place to experience. If you want to dive deeper into what this new heavens and new earth will be like, join us on Christmas morning at 10:30 am!