The Temple of the New Earth - 61

Well, I feel like a travel guide to you.

We're pilgrims, we're traveling. And I think most of us who've traveled and part of the joy of travel is the planning and the anticipation of the trip. And depending on where you're going and how long you're planning ahead, sometimes the anticipation keeps building and building and building, and you just cannot wait until the time comes to actually embark on whatever it is, wherever you're traveling to. Well, most of the time, our experience doesn't match the anticipation, regardless of how great a time we've had, because however good a time you've had, it comes to an end. How many of you have been on a vacation and you think, man, this is wonderful, this is great. Three days have gone by, we only have three more days left, and then the fourth day and then the fifth day, and you're thinking, we got to pack up and go home. You've been there, you know what I'm talking about. Or how many of us have been sucked in by this beautiful colored brochure that paints this wonderful picture of bliss, and we make our plans and we spend our money and we travel to where we're going, and when we get there, we look at each other and we go, what are we doing here? It's probably been 30, been there about 37 years ago.

My aunt and uncle lived in Florida and we planned to go down to visit them and we married that visit with them to a trip to Disney World. Gabriel was less than two years of age, and one of the days we were there, they came over the intercom and said that if you leave the park, you'll need your pass to get back in because the park is filled to capacity. They're not letting anybody else into the park. And you go, oh goody, right? No, you don't say, oh goody. You think, oh my. So we stood in line for an hour, hour and a half to ride this particular ride. It's a small world after all, I think was, and we're within four or five people to the front and Gabriel says, I got to go to the potty.

And I said, no, you don't. Well, to get serious for a moment, I feel like a travel agent trying to describe to you things that are near on to undescribable because eyes have not seen, ears have not heard, neither has it entered the heart of man, the things that God has prepared for those who love Him. Heaven is going to be a glorious place because we're going to be in the presence of pure glory and not just for a day, not just for a week, not just for a month, but every day, all day, forever and ever and ever, and we'll never get tired of it because God will constitute us with desires that are fit for the experience.

We'll never tire of it because we'll bask in the glory of it and it's what we've been created for, God Himself. I've said from time to time, a board travel guide of the Grand Canyon is a contradiction, right? We've been to the Grand Canyon, you know the glory and the splendor and the awe that it inspires when you see it and if you're being shown the Grand Canyon by a tour guide and he's ho-hum, oh well, you're like, wait a minute, you know where we're at?

Do you know what we're seeing? Well, words are not adequate for me to describe what awaits us because it is so heavenly, so extraordinary, and what I find in the description that we have of heaven, that there is a intentional condescension by God to communicate to us as much as what's not going to be there to experience as what will be experienced. In this passage, I find 10 things that will not be true or present, we will not experience in heaven.

That's not my message tonight, my message isn't structured around those 10 things, although I'll mention them to you at some point, but when we hear these things that are being described for us, it's on purpose. It's to fill our hearts with anticipation. It's to fuel our hope in God and to long for and anticipate what He has prepared and purchased for us that we will enter into. John Calvin says, the very summit of happiness is to enjoy the presence of God in heaven. Richard Baxter said, he's a great Puritan, he looked forward to the eternal glory, calling it the most happy state of a Christian.

Almost sounds like an understatement, doesn't it? Like, okay, if the Puritan Richard Baxter is confined to those kind of words to describe what awaits us, then maybe there's hope for me because I just feel it's such a loss to try and capture your imagination and to fuel your awe of God and to fuel your hope of what God has prepared for us. To behold His glory, that is our longing, that is what is our future hope. And we are like Abraham who was looking forward to a city whose maker and builder is God. And we're not looking for a physical city because in our study here of Revelation chapter 21, we've come to understand that the city that Abraham was looking forward to is the redeemed church.

It is the bride of Christ and we see that. Let me just remind you of the structure here of chapter 21. We're going to finish our exposition of the chapter in verses 22 through 27, but let me remind you that verses 1 through 8 are a summary of the chapter. We have this summary of the new Jerusalem, the holy city, the redeemed church, and then verses 9 through 27 is divine commentary on the summary that we had in the first eight verses. So let me give you three points from the opening verses that just kind of remind us of kind of the territory that we've covered and then we'll build upon that this evening.

Number one, three things. Number one, the dwelling place of the people of God. Notice verse one, now I saw a new heaven and a new earth for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away.

Also, there was no more sea. The dwelling place for the people of God. This is paradise restored. This is the new heaven.

This is the new earth. This is where we will spend eternity. The dwelling place of the people of God. Then, number two, the description of the people of God in verse two. Then I, John, saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. The description of the people of God characterized by two things.

Number one, holiness. Then I, John, saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God. And then characterized, number two, by the bride of Christ. This holy city, this new Jerusalem that's coming down out of heaven from God, he says there in verse two, is prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.

And that's language that reminds us that the church is the bride of Christ and that God is preparing a bride fit for his son. So the dwelling place of the people of God, the description of the people of God, and the blessedness of the people of God in verse three and four. John says, And I heard a loud voice from heaven, saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. Three times in verse three, there is a mention of God being with His people. That is the supreme blessedness of our experience, of our hope, of what awaits us. We will be in the presence of God.

God will be with us for all eternity. That's verse three. And then the blessedness of the people of God, verse four, And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes. There shall be no more death nor sorrow nor crying. There shall be no more pain for the former things have passed away. And again, note the description of heaven is given to us there in verse four with words of negation. It's not things that will be true. It is things that will not be true of heaven, of our eternal state, of our being in the presence of God. No more tears, no more death, no more sorrow, no more crying, no more pain.

So that brief review. But tonight, as we're looking at verses 22 through 27, three headings for you. And the title of my message is The Temple, The Temple of the New Earth, The Temple of the New Earth.

And three things about that. Number one, the nature of the temple. Number two, the illumination of the temple.

And number three, the occupants of the temple. You may be a little bit surprised by the title of my message, The Temple of the New Earth, when you read, when you hear the opening words of verse 22, But I saw no temple in it. The title of your message is The Temple of the New Earth. But I saw no temple in it. Please understand that does not mean there will be no temple. There'll be no physical temple. There'll be no dwelling place. There'll be nothing like a tabernacle, nothing like a temple, nothing like a church building, no place for the people of God to go to experience and enjoy and enter into the presence of God because God will be everywhere. Are you looking forward to a day you don't have to come to church? Well, in that day you won't need to go to church because God is everywhere present. He permeates everything. So the nature of the temple.

A couple of things about that. Number one, we're not talking about a physical meeting place. We're talking about something that's spiritual. And listen to what Peter says.

Where did you go? Here we go. First Peter chapter 2 verse 5 or verse 4, Coming to him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men but chosen by God and precious, you also as living stones are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. The nature of this temple is not a physical building. No temple, no tabernacle.

We're talking about a spiritual entity. And again, back to that verse 22 of chapter 21, John says, But I saw no temple in this new Jerusalem, this holy city, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. God has chosen to tabernacle with his people. We enjoy God's presence in a spiritual sense, not in a building.

This building is just bricks and mortar. But God has chosen to tabernacle with men. The church is the meeting place of God. God promises a special presence where two or three are gathered together in his name. He says, There I am in the midst. So that's what is being referred to here as we think about the nature of the temple. It's a remarkable statement, really, isn't it?

And it's remarkable for this reason. The temple for the people of God, the tabernacle, the church has always been the center of the religious life of the people of God. The Old Covenant community as well as the New Covenant community. The temple is the place believers go in order to experience the special presence of God because God chose to manifest his special presence in the temple, in the tabernacle, in the church. But in that day, the church will be gathered unto him.

We will be fully glorified. God will be with us forever and ever and ever and ever. So when it says, John says, I saw no temple in it, that is the New Jerusalem, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. I thought about this this afternoon in light of the message this morning that was so good about the mediatorial ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ in that day. Jesus's mediatorial work, his ministry will not be needed. We will not need Jesus to go through to get to the Father because we will be in the presence of the Father. So Jesus's mediatorial work will be over and done and he will take on a new role. And what will that role be? He will be in the presence of his bride.

He will be the bridegroom enjoying his bride, the church. When I thought about that today, it just staggered me because our experience in this life as believers is undergirded and strengthened by the necessity of a mediator. There's one mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus, and he is absolutely critical to our worship, to our relationship with Almighty God. But in that day, we will be in the presence.

Notice what it says. I saw no temple in it for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. No experience for us, something absolutely new and remarkable, but that's what the Bible tells us. So I am thankful for the church. I'm thankful for the gathered church. And, you know, the technology that we have at our disposal is a wonderful thing because it affords the opportunity for those who are hindered, not able to gather with the church, to be able to enjoy church. So right now, I'm not only speaking to the gathered church here in this auditorium, but I'm talking to those who have gathered with us by live stream.

And perhaps what I've just said is even more meaningful to you because you cannot join with the church because of your physical limitations and for whatever else providentially is hindering you. But in that day, we won't need to get on our car. We won't need to have to go somewhere to be with God, to know his presence because he will be everywhere to be enjoyed.

What a day that will be. What a joy awaits the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ. So whether it is the Old Covenant people of God or the New Covenant people of God, Old Covenant people of God were dependent upon the temple, were dependent upon the tabernacle. That was the meeting place of God. That's where God manifested his presence. And for the New Covenant community of believers, it is the church, the gathered church.

But notice with me that there is a progression here. Think with me about under the Old Covenant, the special presence of God was manifested in only one place on earth. And that was the Jewish temple. One place and one place only.

And again, I'm talking to you about a progression. So one place and one place only, the Jewish temple. But the New Covenant community, there's a special presence of God manifested in many places around the earth wherever a biblically functioning church gathers for its stated meetings.

Do you understand what I'm saying, the progression? The church is gathered all over this world and wherever the church, a biblically functioning church gathers, God has promised his special presence. But in the new earth, the special presence of God will be manifested in every place because the whole earth will be the temple of God. In the new earth, the special presence of God will be everywhere. We have nothing to compare that to.

There's no precedent for that. It's something that will be brand new that awaits the people of God and we're indebted to God to give us this insight so we know what awaits us. And it's meant to fuel our hope and our anticipation for what awaits us. We're talking about the nature of the temple. There is no place in that day that you will be able to go to get more of God because all of God will be manifested everywhere in the new earth all of the time. So John is not saying that there is no temple at all in the eternal state. He's saying that there is a temple and that temple is God himself and the Lamb.

And we've seen that already. That's why I covered those summary verses. Verse 3, again, John said, And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people. God himself will be with them and be their God. Three times God emphasizes the truth that he will be with them. He will be with those of the redeemed.

What a glorious hope and prospect we have there before us. God is saying in that day his glory will permeate, will saturate, will completely envelop everyone in the new Jerusalem. And again, when we read about Moses, who experienced a relationship with God that was unique and unmatched, but Moses could only see the glory of God. It was veiled to him. When Jesus was on this earth, on the Mount of Transfiguration, there was a glimpse of his glory.

But he, for the most part, almost without exception, without a couple of exceptions, he veiled his glory. Why? Why?

Why was that? Because in our sinful state, we are not constituted to be able to enjoy that, to experience that without losing our life, without being consumed. But to think that we will be so constituted in that day that we will be able to be in the full splendor of the glory of God and enjoy that, not just for a little while, but forever and ever and ever. It's beyond me to try and convey that any better than what I have, and I've done a poor job of doing it. And I'm trying to relate something to you that we've never experienced. We don't know what that's going to be like, but God has been gracious enough to tell us, this is what awaits us.

Amazing. So there's hope there, isn't it? No need to go to church because you will be living within the church all day, every day for eternity. Now, for some people, you tell them that, they'll say, well, that sounds pretty boring.

That doesn't sound like anything to get excited about. Well, any man or any woman who despises the church and wants nothing to do with the church, who's never attended church, even when they could, I really doubt whether they're going to experience what we're talking about tonight in the new earth. Because if you want nothing to do with the temple of God on this present earth once a week, how could you bear to live within the temple of God all day, every day for eternity? You see, that's why we're so God-centered in our theology, that we were made for God and our souls are restless until we find our rest in Him. Our satisfaction is in Him. The psalmist said, thou has set before me the path of life. In thy presence is fullness of joy and at thy right hand are pleasures forevermore. Do you believe that?

I trust you do. The people of God believe that. So it's not my purpose to put anybody on a guilt trip who's providentially hindered from being with a gathered church, but I think I've said this before, it sounds a bit trite and there are exceptions to it, but I heard someone say one time, if a man's religion won't take them to church, it's doubtful that it'll take them to heaven.

Why is that? Because Christ loved the church. He loves His church. He gave His life for His church. And if you don't love the church, you don't love Christ. You can't be indifferent to the church and be in a healthy state before God.

So I believe a Christ-centered Christian is a church-centered Christian because Christ loves the church, that Christ died for His church, Christ is building His church, Christ indwells the church with His special presence, even as it exists in its impure state on this earth. So the nature of the temple. Number two, the illumination of the temple. The illumination of the temple, verse 23 says, the city had no need of the sun or of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it, the Lamb is its light. Now when you hear those words, do not draw the conclusion that there will be no sun or moon in the new earth. It simply says the city had no need of the sun or the moon to shine in it. So again, I don't have the final word on this, but theologians are pretty unanimous in their depiction here that there will be a sun, there will be a moon, but in terms of its need to sustain life and to illuminate and provide light, their need is, what do I say? Well, what's it say? It says the city had no need of the sun or of the moon to shine in it.

Why is that? Well, because the glory of God is more than sufficient to illuminate everything all the time. I've been in Alaska when one particular time there were about three and a half hours of daylight and I thought to myself, this would be a depressing place to live in. Then I got to thinking, well, there's a time of the year there's 20 plus hours of daylight and you would be one tired person because it's hard to sleep when the sun's out.

If there's sun and you can work and you can be outside, you would probably be burning the candle at both ends, or at least that's the way I would be. The illumination of the city. In verses 19 and 20, the Lord is twice said to be the everlasting light of the new earth. This is, I'm sorry I didn't, last week we took a look at Isaiah chapter 60 and we saw that the prophecy of Isaiah 60 is fulfilled here in Revelation chapter 21. And I won't take you back to that again this evening, but I will remind you though in Isaiah chapter 24 and verse 23 it says, quote, then the moon shall be confounded and the sun ashamed when the Lord of hosts shall reign in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem and before his ancients gloriously. So I think what's being said there is the amount of light of the sun and the moon will be a tiny spark in comparison to the brilliance of the light of the glory of God. That God's glory will provide constant light to the new earth so that there shall never be any period of darkness or nighttime ever again. I love the anthem our choir does.

It brings me to tears every time I hear it. No night there. That's what awaits us. No night there. So just as God's universal presence removes any need for a localized temple in the new earth, God's universal presence also removes the need for any localized source of light in the new earth because he meets that need in both occasions. Wherever we are, God's presence and God's light will exist. Never again will there be any darkness and never again will we be able to go away from the presence of God. No need of a flashlight. No need to be looking for anything in the dark.

No stumbling in the dark. Perpetual light all the time and we'll never tire of it. I want you to notice that Revelation 21 verse 23 makes it clear that both the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb share an equal glory because both of them are an equal source of this universal light of glory in the new earth.

The city has no need of the sun or of the moon to shine in it. For the glory of God illuminated it. The Lamb is its light. The Lamb is its light. Equal in essence, both of them are fully God.

Both of them will provide this illumination of light. You know, as you're studying this, verses of scripture come to mind that just, you know, burst in your mind and you think about what Jesus said there in John chapter 8 and verse 12. I am the light of the world. I am the light of the world. Well, this sure gives new understanding, doesn't it? And when you read, God is light and in Him there is no darkness at all. But listen to, this isn't good news for everybody. This is only good news for the people of God. John chapter 3 verse 17 says, For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. He who believes in Him is not condemned.

He who does not believe is condemned already because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation that the light has come into the world. And men loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil. For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But he who does the truth comes to the light and his deeds may be clearly seen that they have been done in God. You know, if we flee from spiritual light that Jesus brings, we'll never dwell in the physical light that he provides later. If we have no appreciation for light, we run from light.

And by light, we're talking light as a metaphor for truth. If we have no appetite for truth, then that does not bode well for us. It does not speak well for us. It does not commend us to be a believer. Those who prefer darkness now will live in outer darkness forever, where there will be weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth.

I think this is a pretty good litmus test. How can you tell if somebody is going to wind up on the new earth? Well, ask yourself this. Do they love the place of God's special presence here on the earth? Do they love the church where God manifests his special presence?

Do they love that? Do they love the spiritual light of Christ's teaching here on this earth? And if they love God's temple here, they love his church, and if they love God's light here, I think we can draw a conclusion that they will dwell in God's temple there, and they will dwell in God's light there.

A pretty good litmus test. But number three, let's think about the occupants of the temple. The occupants of the temple, and we're told about who will occupy this temple and who will not occupy this temple. Again, back to Revelation 21, he says, And the nations of those who are saved shall walk in its light, and the kings of the earth bring their glory and honor into it. Its gate shall not be shut at all by day, there shall be no night there, and they shall bring the glory and the honor of the nations into it. We learn that this place that God has prepared is not just for Jews, it's for Gentiles, it's for people scattered all over the earth that he is going to bring to himself.

We think about the occupants of the city. They are the ones whose names are written in the Lamb's Book of Life, verse 27. He says, There should be no means enter it anything that defiles or causes an abomination or lie, but only those who are written in the Lamb's Book of Life. God's saving purposes are not small, they are not narrow, but they are certainly not confined to one ethnic group or nationality of people. You remember the promise that God made to Genesis, that through him all the nations of the earth would be blessed. And God has saved a multitude of people, a multitude that no man can number out of every tongue, tribe, people, and nation.

We're told that in numerous places. Let me remind you of the cyclical nature of the book of Revelation. We have visited this scene of the glorified state in heaven that awaits us numerous times in our study. We saw it in Revelation chapter 7. We had a brief summary there of what we're studying here in Revelation 21. And what we're told there in Revelation chapter 7 in verse 9 and 10, John says, After this I beheld in low a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations and kindreds and people and tongue, stood before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes and palms in their hands, and cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne and unto the Lamb. So again, this is not anything new.

We've seen this before, but there's more detail here. And we are appreciative of everything God has revealed to us. So the question is, who is going to heaven? Who is going to heaven? All the people who are saved. Is it just believing Jews?

No. There's going to be all the kings of the earth, all the nations of the earth. Notice again, And the nations of those who are saved shall walk in the light and the kings of the earth, bring their glory and honor into it.

There's an interesting statement there in verse 25. It says, Its gates shall not be shut at all by day, there shall be no night there. Gates, earthly gates.

What purpose did they serve? Well, they were always shut at night because night was a time of vulnerability and danger from enemies. But in the new earth, there will be no night. In the new earth, there will be no enemies.

Why? Because God will have destroyed all of his enemies. Satan himself will have been cast into the lake of fire. There'll be nothing there to defile.

There'll be nothing there to threaten the people of God. One of the things that we do in our routine at night before we retire to bed is to ask one or the other, Have you set the alarm? The security alarm. Why do we have a security alarm? Well, because our house has been broken into on several occasions, and therefore we have a security alarm.

And when you go to bed at night, there is a sense of safety knowing that your home is protected. Anybody comes in that's not supposed to be there, the alarms will be going off. Well, in that day where we're going, it says its gate shall not be shut at all by day. There shall be no night there. There'll be no need to shut the gate because those who live on the new earth will be in perfect security and total safety.

That's something to look forward to. We're living in a world that's becoming increasingly more and more dangerous. When we think that in that day all of Christ's enemies will have been vanquished and cast into the lake of fire, it's impossible for anything to assault anyone in the city.

We will live in perfect safety and security. So we're not only told who will be there, who will inhabit the city, but we're told who will be excluded. Notice again verse 27 that says, but there shall by no means enter it anything that defiles or causes an abomination or a lie. Three vices that are mentioned there in verse 27. One cannot practice immorality, one cannot practice idolatry, and one cannot practice deceit and be a saved person on their way to heaven. Saved people repent of such behavior, saved people depart from such behavior, and saved people do not practice it or defend it or persist in it. You say, does that mean that if any Christian is... I'm not saying that a believer may not fall into those vices, but I'm saying it will not, it should not, it cannot characterize a person and for that person to have any assurance that they're going to heaven.

Because if those things are present, because we live in a defiling world, those things, we could be guilty of those things, we must repent of those things and be cleansed of those things and they must not characterize our life. That's what it's telling us. So, as I bring this chapter to a conclusion, I thought of what David the psalmist said in Psalm 27 as he reveals his desire. And I thought this would be an excellent challenge for us. He says, one thing, one thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after, that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life to behold the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his temple. That ought to resonate with us this evening. That should be our heart's desire. And if it's not, and we're a believer, we should pray, God help me to share that desire that the psalmist expressed. Help me to have the desire that the pastor is speaking of here tonight. Help me not to be indifferent.

Help me not to be nonchalant about this. May it be that which I'm setting my affections on. May it be that which directs me in this life and gives me purpose for living. Now, in a few minutes I have, I thought it might be interesting just to, as I mentioned, that there is as much language here telling us about what's not going to be true of the new heaven and the new earth as to what it will be like.

So, walk with me through this description. Revelation 21 says, Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also, there was no more sea.

No more sea. First thing mentioned, down to verse 4, God will wipe away every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death, number two, nor sorrow, number three, nor crying, number four. There shall be no more pain, number five, for the former things have passed away. Over to verse 22, our passage tonight, there will be no physical temple, no tabernacle, no physical dwelling place, that's another negation, number six, there will be no night there, number seven, there will be no gates there, number eight, and then verse 27, there shall by no means enter anything that defiles or causes an abomination or a lie, but only those who are written in the Lamb's Book of Life.

Now think about that language. Who is going to be in heaven? Those whose names are written in the Lamb's Book of Life. Did you put your name in the Lamb's Book of Life?

Did you do that? Did you make a decision that caused your name to be put in the Lamb's Book of Life? How'd your name, if it's in the Lamb's Book of Life, get there? Who put it there? Who put it there? God Himself put it there. When did He put it there? Oh, after He saw me exercise my... When did He put it there?

Before the foundations of the world. So if your name's there, do you get any credit for that? Is there anything you can say, you know what?

There's merit there for me. No. But only those who are written in the Lamb's Book of Life. And if your name's written in the Lamb's Book of Life, you know what God does not have?

This is not a negation, but this is just an extrapolation. God does not have an eraser. If your name's in the Lamb's Book of Life, God's not going to say, uh-oh, I hadn't thought about that. I didn't know you were going to do that.

No. If your name's in the Lamb's Book of Life, it's there, forever will be. We're kept by the power of God, saved by His grace. He who began a good work in you will continue it until the day of Jesus Christ.

God's got a lot of work yet to do in us, doesn't He? So that we're fit for this kind of habitation, you say, well, should I feel guilty that I'm not as excited about this as you are? Well, I'll leave that up to God. I'm not here to put a guilt trip on you, but maybe this will help you. Because you are constituted still with a sinful nature, you say, well, I thought I had God's nature.

Listen to me. When God saved you, He did not eradicate your sin nature. Your sin nature got a roommate.

All right? And your sin nature got a roommate in the divine nature. And there's a battle going on.

There's a war going on. That's why Paul says, the flesh wars against the spirit and the spirit against the flesh because they are contrary one to the other. Remember a man coming to me and he says, you know, this Christian thing, I just don't get it. I'd never made a profession of faith. I never thought to myself to be a Christian but I so I would just live my life doing what I wanted. But didn't my conscience wasn't bothering me. And now that I'm a Christian, I'm a miserable person. There's this fight, this war going on all the time.

I'm tired of it. And he was wondering whether he was a Christian. I said, Well, listen, I'm not the Holy Spirit here.

I can't I can't give you divine assurance, but I can be I can encourage you. You're talking like a Christian. Only a Christian knows about this internal conflict in this war between the flesh and the spirit.

So back to my point. What if you're not as excited about what we're talking about tonight is you probably feel like you ought to be. Well, if you're God's child, and God's still working on you, we're all we're all under construction. You're going to have a new constitution. And you can say, You know what?

There's a lot to look forward to here. I'm not I'm not in a static condition. God has a purpose and a plan. And I'm justified. I'm progressively being sanctified and he's going to glorify me. And wherever you happen to be in that process of progressive sanctification, it may be a quantum leap when you die.

I don't know. But you're not going to heaven without being glorified because you wouldn't you couldn't exist there. So there's a cost. A reconstituting of your sin nature will be gone. You will be perfectly glorified, perfectly sanctified.

And you know, that ought to thrill our hearts to say, You know what? That's if that happens, that's going to be as much of God's doing than me being justified, right? You're not going to work yourself up to that.

Are you? God didn't say, Okay, I saved you. You get busy getting yourself ready for heaven.

And when you're ready, I'll call you. Oh, that's the case. We'll be waiting a long time, right?

No. That's why Jesus is the author. And he's the finisher of our faith. What he started, we will finish.

I'm looking forward to the finished product. How about you? Huh? Aren't you looking forward to being done with your sin nature?

Aren't you? Aren't you looking forward to be prepared for this kind of living? Well, you say, Well, yes, sounds boring to me. All eternity for every day, every day, every week, every month, every year.

Yep, that's exactly right. And you won't be bored. You'll be thrilled. Because we're in the presence of a God that we can never fully understand. We'll have time for all of our inquiries and all of our, you know, as I said, when Paul says, eyes haven't seen, ears haven't heard, neither has it entered into the heart of man the things God has prepared for those who love him. And if you love him tonight, it's because he first loved you.

It's because he put a love in your heart for him. Right? Amen. Well, believe it or not, we're next time we're in the last chapter of the Book of the Revelation.

Let's pray. Father, we bow to thank you for your grace that has saved us, for your grace that is sanctifying us, for your grace that will one day fully and finally glorify us and fit us for your presence for all eternity. Lord, this temporal life is short.

It is but a vapor that appears for a little while and vanishes away. How thankful we are that you have an eternity for us to enjoy. And that enjoyment will be you and your glory. So cause our hearts to be filled with hope and anticipation and with new faith to trust you for what you are doing in us that's going to prepare us for that day. Again, thank you for the Word of God. Thank you for preserving it for us. Thank you for reminding us of what it is that you have prepared for your people. We bless you and thank you for this. In Jesus' name, Amen.