Title: The New Heavens and a New Earth
Scripture Reading: Isaiah 65:17-25; Revelation 21:1-5
For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind.
18 But be ye glad and rejoice for ever in that which I create: for, behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy.
19 And I will rejoice in Jerusalem, and joy in my people: and the voice of weeping shall be no more heard in her, nor the voice of crying.
20There shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man that hath not filled his days: for the child shall die an hundred years old; but the sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed.
21 And they shall build houses, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and eat the fruit of them.
22 They shall not build, and another inhabit; they shall not plant, and another eat: for as the days of a tree are the days of my people, and mine elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands.
23 They shall not labor in vain, nor bring forth for trouble; for they are the seed of the blessed of the Lord, and their offspring with them.
24 And it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear.
25 The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, and the lion shall eat straw like the bullock: and dust shall be the serpent’s meat. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain, saith the Lord.
1 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.
2 And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
3 And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.
4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.
5 And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, write: for these words are true and faithful.
Revelation 21:5 says, ‘for these words are true and faithful.’
The Hebrew thought behind this Greek phrase implies trustworthiness.
The split between Isaiah 65:17-19 and Isaiah 65:20-25.
Isaiah 65:17-19 is a description of the Promise of New Heavens and a new Earth.
Isaiah 65:20-25 is the millennial earth.
Revelation 21:1-5 is the New Heavens and a new Earth.
- The Millennial Earth: a foretaste of the New Heavens and a New Earth
Isaiah 65:20-25 gives a description of the Millennial Earth.
Isaiah 65:23 says, ‘They shall not bring forth in trouble.’
Isaiah 65:22 says, ‘as the days of a tree are the days of my people.’
Isaiah 65:24 says, ‘Before they call, I will answer.’
Isaiah 65:25 says, ‘The wolf and the lamb shall feed together. And the lion shall eat straw like the bullock.’
A. During the Millennial Earth tremendous changes in the earth will be made.
B. The Millennial Earth will also be a time of judgment.
C. There is something wonderful in store for a child of God. Man’s potential will be greatly increased.
D. The longevity of life that predated the patriarchs will be one of the features of the Millennial Earth.
E. Prosperity will be another feature of the Millennial Earth.
F. There will be permanence and stability.
G. The Law of the jungle will be changed to conform to the rule of God.
- The New Heavens and a New Earth
Isaiah 65:17 says that ‘the former shall not be remembered or come to mind.’ This is an indication that Isaiah 65:17 does not speak of the millennial earth.
In the Millennial earth, the whole temple ritual will exist.
The former nations of the world will remain, after the Second Coming of Christ.
In the book of Revelation, John also sees this: ‘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 New Heavens and a New Earth will not contain sins because they will be forgiven. The earth will return to its pre-Genesis 3 glory and purpose.
The New heavens and a new earth come after the Great White Throne Judgment.
Christian will have to stand before another throne – the judgment seat of Christ. 2 Corinthians 5:10 says, ‘For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.’
Another judgment is the Great White Throne judgement.
The Great White Throne Judgment is the judgment of the lost.
The Great white throne judgment is a judgment of condemnation.
Rev 20:12 says, ‘And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened.’
Their standing posture means they are now about to be sentenced.
There are two books mentioned: the book of deeds remembrances and the book of life
Revelation 20:13 says, ‘the sea, and death and Hades gave up the dead which were in them. And they are judged. This is known as the second death.’
If anyone’s name is not written in the book of life will be in the Great White Throne judgment.
Why Heaven or the New heaven and New Earth in the first place?
The chief characteristic of the New Earth is the absence of the sea.
- Heaven and Hell really exist
The human life span is so short. Great people and people of wealth and power seem to rule over the whole world forever, but as time passes, there also comes a time when they have to put down everything and wrap it up.
Alexander the Great, said, ‘Let both my hands be kept hanging out of my coffin.
Solomon, known as the king of wisdom, at the end of his life, quoted: ‘Meaningless! Meaningless! Everything is meaningless.’ His conclusion of life is ‘Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether good or evil.’
Unless we seek God and set out life goals and direction toward heaven, all the things we do are meaningless, a chasing after the wind, no matter how hard we try to accomplish them
Jesus has planted the hope of heaven in the hearts of us His disciples, even amidst hardship and persecution.
‘Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.’
Luke 9:16-25 says, ‘There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores and longing to eat what fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores. The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. In hell, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. So, he called to him, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.’ But Abraham replied, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony.’
The end of the book of Revelation, representing the end of days, the end of life on earth, it says, ‘Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth . . . “. . . He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away . . . 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 is the second death.”
Jesus has already shown us the way to heaven. But he also knows that not all will listen. So, he gives us life’s choices but there will be consequences. He says, “Let him who does wrong continue to do wrong; let him who is vile continue to be vile; let him who does right continue to do right; and let him who is holy continue to be holy. Behold, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End. Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city. Outside are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.”
In conclusion:
We all lived a very difficult life here on earth. There is a lot of pain in life. What we are offered in life, many a times, are crumbs. We toil day and night only to earn enough to get by that day. Then we are grieved by death of loved one, disappointed by friends closest to us. Our health deteriorated as we grow older, stricken by sicknesses, diseases, and physical pains. Our expectations are constantly not fulfilled and we marched towards the end of life knowing everything is vain, meaningless. But then another one showed us the right way. He too lived a short, difficult life until the age of 33. His pillow at night is a rock. He too was grieved by pain when Lazarus died an untimely death. To make matter worse, his closest friends all forsook him. His physical body deteriorate and he is parched for water, needing air to breathe. But he followed a different aspiration from all of us. He followed God. He feared God and followed the ways of God. At his deathbed he cried, ‘Father, into your hands, I commit my spirit.’ But he did more than that. He took all our failures, pain, disappointment and was crucified on the cross to satisfy the judgment of sin for us. And when He was resurrected, he provided a way that our life will not be a waste, disappointment and meaningless. He said, a purposeful life is possible. And he will enable us to fulfill that purposeful life, through His Spirit and assures us that there is a mansion waiting for us in heaven. Life will not be in vain. There is great joy waiting for us one day. Just say like Jesus, say, ‘Father, into your hands, I commit my spirit.’
