GOING HOME TO GLORY (Rev. 19:1-9)

Transcription

1 GOING HOME TO GLORY (Rev. 19:1-9) When all my labours and trials are o er, And I am safe on that beautiful shore, Just to be near the dear Lord I adore, Will through the ages be glory for me. That is the blessed hope of every redeemed and born-again child of God We live in a very uncertain world, though. Even in ordinary life, what used to be considered straightforward and good isn t anymore! I say a good advertisement recently. It was in the form of a question, and it asked, You don t believe what people from 2000 years ago say what happened 2000 years ago But you believe what someone from 2015 says happened 4 billion years ago? Absolutely! The entire nonsense of what some people believe! It is good to be saved, and to know you belong to the Lord, and you are going to be with Him forever. What s Heaven going to be like? Well, let s turn to Rev. 19:1 And after these things I heard a great voice of much people in heaven, saying, Alleluia; Salvation, and glory, and honour, and power, unto the Lord our God: 2 For true and righteous are his judgments: for he hath judged the great whore, which did corrupt the earth with her fornication, and hath avenged the blood of his servants at her hand. 3 And again they said, Alleluia. And her smoke rose up for ever and ever. 4 And the four and twenty elders and the four beasts fell down and worshipped God that sat on the throne, saying, Amen; Alleluia. 5 And a voice came out of the throne, saying, Praise our God, all ye his servants, and ye that fear him, both small and great. 6 And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth. 7 Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready. 8 And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints. 9 And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God. Just a few days before going to the cross Jesus promised His disciples, Jn. 14:3 I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. He was referring to eternity and how He had a place prepared for them there. Now, if we were to try to imagine Heaven we would fall short every time. It would be like the description of the Beloved in the Song of Solomon, 2:9 he looketh forth at the windows, showing himself through the lattice. The picture wasn t clear because the mists of the present dispensation obscures our view But then, there will come a day, - as John describes it, - I Jn. 3:2 when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. So, let s glimpse into Heaven again and see something of what the Lord has prepared for us

2 2 In Heaven, there is NO PRESENCE OF SIN Since the Fall of man in the Garden of Eden there has never been a perfect place on earth. No matter how beautiful the countryside looks, you don t have to look far to find the weeds, the thistles, and the nettles. And even if you have had only one person on the most remote breath-taking and stunning Caribbean island you would still have sin. Even if, - on that same lonely uninhabited island you still would have sin because not just humanity fell from God s grace, but all of God s creation. Nothing escaped the judgement of God when man and woman sinned. We are surrounded by conflict and disease, by poverty and by ruthlessness. Total depravity. Do you notice the way Paul writes to Timothy and describes the end times, II Tim. 3:1 This know also, that in the last days perilous times [of great stress and trouble] shall come. 2 For men shall be lovers of their own selves [utterly self-centred], covetous [greedy], boasters [arrogant], proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful [ungrateful], unholy, 3 Without natural affection [callous, inhuman], trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent [loose in morals and conduct], fierce [uncontrolled], despisers of those that are good, 4 Traitors, heady [rash], highminded [full of themselves], lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; 5 Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof. As the end times approach, such characteristics of the world will increase and v.13 evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived. Sin will weave its way deeper into man s consciousness until the goodness of God becomes unrecognisable to the vast majority and it will even affect many within the Church, Mt. 24:12 because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. Yet, the believer is looking forward to Heaven where the salvation of God reigns, along with the glory of God, and the honour of God and the power of God (Rev. 19:1). Where the people of God is in that Heavenly glory, - in the presence of God where sin cannot be. Sin cannot enter Heaven; in no shape or form can it come in. Heaven is God s home, - there is no dirt or dust, it is perfect. How will sin be kept out? It will be kept out simply because it won t be allowed in! Rev. 21:27 there shall in no wise enter into it anything that defileth. Where will sin be kept? Sin will be confined to Hell and sin will explode forever in Hell for sin will not be restricted there by God as it is here on earth. Sin will be beyond the capability of the sinner in Hell to control! But if you have your eyes fixed upon Heaven, Hell and sin is no threat to you because there is no presence of sin in Heaven. In Heaven, there is NO POWER OF SIN

3 3 What does this mean? It means sin in any shape or form will not make the slightest entry into or impact upon Heaven. There will be no tears of sadness, there will be no death, there will be no sorrow of any kind, there will be no conflict, and there will be no parting and no more pain. In fact, - it s a point worth making, - that John the apostle emphasises God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes (Rev. 21:4) I ll not have to wipe away the tears He ll do it for me. The Bible speaks about the new heaven and the new earth (Rev. 21:21) Imagine a world, - perfectly formed by God, - in which there is no sin and no possibility of ever sinning Imagine a pure and perfect world where everyone and everything in it works only to successfully please God. There is no pollution, no wars, nothing that contravenes the laws of God. Children can go along the lanes of Heaven and they need fear no-one molesting them. They can play with the animals, - even the most dangerous animals here on earth, - and they will be safe. In Heaven there is no fear And there is no-one trying to outdo his neighbour all its citizens get on so well together. Sin is absent there is not even a single derivative of sin, - i.e. sin does not demonstrate in another form, even a mild form. Heaven is altogether pure and perfect, - so pure and perfect we here on earth cannot even imagine what it will be like, I Cor. 13:12 For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known. The issues you have been battling with, you will battle with no longer. At present, Rom. 7:18 I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not. 19 For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. But in Heaven, Rom. 8:1 There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. In Heaven is absolute perfection for sin is kept out! It is a very simple Bible study, and what we are doing is reminding ourselves of our privileged standing and our future in the Lord Jesus Christ for, because of His eternal holiness, in Heaven there is no presence of sin, and therefore there is no power of sin, and there is something else Heaven does not have In Heaven, there is NO PEOPLE OF SIN It is impossible for a sinner to sneak in, - there is only one door and it is carefully guarded and besides, not one single unrepentant sinner destined to Hell can escape. You will not find a solitary soul in Heaven who has not repented of their sin. You will not find a single person in Heaven Who does not know Jesus Christ personally. Every occupant of Glory took the opportunity on earth, - granted to them by sovereign grace, - to

4 4 repent of their sins, to believe in Christ, and to become His prized and purchased possession, and to live a life holy unto Him. The Bible says you will not find (Rev. 21:8) the fearful, and unbelieving there; neither will you find there the people so depraved they are not aware of what they are doing. And as for murderers who have not turned to Christ, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars you will not find them there either! But you will find at least one murderer, - Saul of Tarsus who was involved in the persecution and murder of some of the saints and you will find at least one social outcast there, Mary Magdalene. And you will find many other people who were so steeped in sin, but the Lord lifted them out and saved them. Yes, Heaven is full of sinners changed and transformed by the glorious saving Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. And you will not find anyone there who has been born good enough to be there or made it through their own self-righteousness; you ll not find anyone there because they were born into a particularly religious family. You will not find anyone there who has bought their way into Heaven Heaven is filled with people with the most beautiful debt anyone ever could owe because they are there indebted to the Saviour, saved by His work on the cross alone and glad to be at home with their Lord! Sin in all its shapes and forms, - its presence and its power and its people, - has all been left behind. Heaven is the company of the Redeemed. It is the place where the Bridegroom will present His Bride to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish (Eph. 5:27). She will be dressed in Heaven s most expensive, Rev. 21:8 to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints. She will be seated at the Table of the King of kings, for Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb (Rev. 19:9). Will you know your loved ones who have died in Christ, in Heaven? Will you see them again? Your mother, your father, your husband, your wife, your child who died in Christ will you meet them again in Glory? Yes, I most certainly believe you will. David had the confidence in his own soul he would see his little boy again. As a consequence of him committing adultery with Bathsheba the Lord took the little child from him after only seven days. During those seven days he wept until he could weep no more for he knew he had sinned. However, the

5 5 Lord was working in his heart and he repented of his sin and the Lord gave him the overwhelming confidence, II Sam. 12:23 can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he shall not return to me and where was David ultimately going? Ps. 23:6 I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever. Remember too that on the mountain in northern Galilee, - when the Lord Jesus was transfigured before the three disciples (Peter, James and John, Mt. 17), - without the slightest hesitation, they recognised Moses and Elijah. Never before had they met Moses and Elijah but such is the Heavenly Glory there are no strangers there. And we ll not have the same relationships in Heaven. The Sadducees tried to trick Jesus. They asked him a ridiculous question, Mt. 22:24 Master, Moses said, If a man die, having no children, his brother shall marry his wife, and raise up seed unto his brother. 25 Now there were with us seven brethren: and the first, when he had married a wife, deceased, and, having no issue, left his wife unto his brother: 26 Likewise the second also, and the third, unto the seventh. 27 And last of all the woman died also. 28 Therefore in the resurrection whose wife shall she be of the seven? for they all had her. And Jesus listened to them rambling on, - they thought they were so clever and He just simply replied, 29 Ye do err, not knowing the scriptures, nor the power of God. 30 For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven. In other words, every relationship in Heaven is as pure and as perfect and as complete as the holy relationship between the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Yes, the relationships we have in Heaven will be far better. There will be no arguments, no nasty words, no animosity! I do believe we shall know our loved ones who died in Christ and who are in Glory, and we shall meet them again... but what will make it even more beautiful and more glorious is that, - since Heaven is better in every way, - the relationships that are awaiting us there will far surpass the closest of relationships here. There will be no strangers in Heaven! CONCLUSION What is all this saying to me in the here and now? It is saying that God has great things ahead for me, even when this life is over. Yes, believer, you and I have the assurance that only comes from knowing Christ Phil. 1:23 to be with Christ; which is far better. Heaven has no unbelievers. It has no people who made their way by their own righteousness. All of Heaven s citizens and all whose place in Heaven has been

6 6 reserved is because of the blood of Christ being shed on Calvary to wash away their sins forever. They have all arrived there by the same means And Heaven has no invalids, blind people, dumb or deaf. There is no cancer, or illness. Heaven is perfect and for God s perfect people. I m not perfect yet, and neither are you but the Lord has set our feet walking toward Glory. He has never lost even one of His saints, - He has always brought every one of them home, Jn. 10:14 I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine. 27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: 28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. Unbeliever, come to Christ and be saved and be sure of your place in Heaven. Believer, child of God, Going Home to Glory Amen, so let it be!