Monday, March 10, 2014

Revelation 21: Gates of Pearl and Streets of Gold

Now, this is what I'm talkin' about!  After wading through blood as high as a horse's bridle, enduring years of tribulation, and suffering plague upon plague, we have finally reached our goal: Heaven!

Doesn't this sound like a place where you would want to spend eternity?  Here are some of the biblical descriptions of our true home:

  • One of the prevailing images (mentioned twice) is that our relationship with God will be as a bride, beautifully dressed for her husband.  Heaven holds the joy of a wedding! (vs. 2 and vs. 9)
  • Just as husband and wife start living together after their marriage (at least in traditional arrangements!) so will God now dwell with His people.  The separation wrought by sin is over; our fellowship with God is restored! (vs. 3)
  • A long list of negative experiences is over forever.  There is "no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."  I can almost hear Tom Hanks saying, "There's no crying in heaven!" (vs. 4)
  • The old is not only gone - but everything is made new! (vs. 5)
  • Our thirst for living water will be quenched (vs. 6)
  • Evil will not be a part of its fabric (vs. 8 and vs. 27)
  • Heaven really does have pearly gates - each of its twelve gates made of a single pearl! (vs. 21)
  • Heaven really does have streets of gold! (vs. 21)
  • It does not, however, have a Temple or a Tabernacle, because these structures were merely symbols of God's presence with His people.  There is no longer a need for such symbols; the presence of God with His people is now a reality.  He is their Temple! (vs. 22)
  • Neither is there a need for a light source like the sun or the moon.  "The Light of the World" (Jesus Christ) is its lamp! (vs. 23)


Wow!  I can hardly wait!

1 comment:

  1. I don't have much as far as my own thoughts are concerned. But I love Jeremy Camp's song about this chapter. I am posting the link for anyone who stops by and wants to check it out.
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k8gkDiTvloc

    ReplyDelete