Sermon #905 Series: The State of God’s Saints in Heaven #4
Title: The State of God’s Saints in Heaven
Text: Revelation 21:1-27
Reading:
Subject: Biblical Images of the Saints’ Blessedness in glory.
Date: Sunday morning - March 11. 1990
Tape #:
Introduction:
I have read Revelation 21 to you for
my text, not because I intend to expound its mysteries; but rather because I
know that I cannot expound its mysteries. This blessed, sublime chapter of
Inspiration is the background for my message. I have titled this message, Images of Heavenly Glory.
For the past few weeks I have been trying to describe the
glorious state of God’s saints in heaven, a task more fit for an angel than for
a man, or for one of the glorified saints in heaven than for a weak, sinful,
mortal creature like myself. but it is a task God has given me, and one in
which I thoroughly delight. Therefore, I shall endeavor today, by the
assistance of God the holy Spirit and in the light of the Holy Scriptures, to
show you some images, by which heavenly glory is represented in the Word of
God.
Our conception of heavenly glory and
the greatness of it must be formed according to the adjectives used in the Word
of God to describe it.
1. It is an unseen glory (1 Cor. 2:9).
The glory of heaven consists of “things not seen” (2 Cor. 4:18), which
are eternal. We look for and have an assured hope of heaven by faith. But no
one on earth has ever seen it. (See Heb. 11:1.) No one here has ever had so
much as a glimpse of heaven but by faith. And we live in hope of that which we
have not yet seen (Rom. 8:24-25).
2. The glory of heaven is for us
a future glory (Rom. 8:18; 1
John 3:2).
Our friends who have gone before us
enjoy the glory of heaven now. But for us, it is altogether a future thing, yet
to be revealed. Sometimes we imagine that we have experienced a little
foretaste of heaven, or a little of “heaven on earth,” in worship. But we have
never come close. The glory of heaven is a glory yet to be revealed.
3. It is also an incomparable
glory (Rom. 8:18).
There is nothing in this world to be
compared to the glory of heaven. All earthly honor, riches, pleasure, and
greatness are trifling and empty things of vanity, when compared to the glory
that awaits us. Even the sufferings of God’s saints in this world for Christ’s
sake, which is the purest and most glorious form of service to him, is not
worthy to be compared to the glory that awaits us. And if our most glorious
service cannot be compared to the glory of heaven, they certainly cannot be
meritorious of heaven! The very best things we do for our God, from the purest
principles cannot be compared to heavenly glory.
·
Our
afflictions for Christ are “light
afflictions” - Heaven is a weight of glory.
·
Our
afflictions are but for a moment - Heavenly glory is eternal.
It is the prospect of heavenly glory that supports believers
in their troubles, and makes them choose to suffer affliction with the people
of God and to esteem the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures
of Egypt, causing them to take joyfully the spoiling of their goods for
Christ’s sake, knowing that in heaven they have a better and an enduring
substance (Heb. 11:25-26; 10:34).
·
If nothing in
this world can be compared to the glory that awaits us in heaven, then let us
set our hearts on things above, not on things on the earth (Col. 3:1-4; Matt.
6:19-34).
My rest is in heaven, my rest is not here,
Then why should I tremble when trials come near?
Be hushed, my dark spirit, the worst that can come
But shortens thy journey, and hastens thee home.
It is not for me to be seeking my bliss,
Or building my hopes in a region like this;
I look for a city that hands have not piled,
I pant for a country by sin undefiled.
Afflictions oppress me, but cannot destroy,
One glimpse of his love turns them all into joy;
The bitterest tears, if He smiles but on them,
Like dew in the sunshine, grow diamond and gem.
Let doubt, then, and danger my progress oppose,
They only make heaven more sweet at the close,
Come joy, or come sorrow, whatever befall,
One hour with my God will make up for them all.
A scrip on my back, a staff in my hand,
I march on in haste through an enemy’s land;
The road may be rough, but it cannot be long;
I’ll smooth it with hope and cheer it with song.
The glory of
heaven is an incomparable glory. So let us compare nothing here to it!
4. Again it is
called an eternal glory (1 Pet. 5:10).
The glory of
this world passes away very quickly. But the glory of the world to come never
shall. The glory of this world is fading. The glory of that world is ending.
The glory of this is temporal. The glory of that world is eternal. The glory of
heaven is an immutable, eternal weight of glory! All that awaits us on the
other side is eternal...
·
A crown of glory
that fadeth not away.
·
An inheritance
that is eternal.
·
A house, not
made with hands, eternal in the heavens.
·
A kingdom that
is everlasting.
·
A city that
continueth forever.
“When kingdoms, crowns, and scepters
are no more, and all that is great and glorious in this world (has passed
away), this will endure forever, for it is eternal glory the God of all grace
calls his people to and will put them in possession of” (John Gill).
Here is the glory of heaven - It is to be forever with the
Lord. It is eternity with Christ!
This world is not my home,
I’m only passing through;
A stranger here, I must go on,
My home is now in view:
“Forever with the Lord!”
Amen! So let it be!
With Christ I’ll live forevermore
In immortality!
5. Add to all
this the fact that heaven is a place of glory (John 14:3).
Our Lord said, “I go
and prepare a place for you.” Yes, heaven is a state and condition of
glory. But it is also a place of glory, a place where Christ is gone, a place
where he sits in a real body upon a glorious throne, a place prepared for us.
Proposition:
The glory of that place called heaven is set forth in the
Scriptures under many striking images, images taken from the most great,
glorious, rich and valuable things known to men.
NOTE:
We know that the imagery used in the Scriptures to describe heaven is not
given to describe its literal form, size, and shape, because Paul told us
plainly that no tongue could describe what he saw there and heard there (2 Cor.
12:1-4). These images drawn of heaven by the inspired writers of God’s Word are
intended to show us the surpassing excellence and infinite glory that awaits us
in heaven.
Here are five images given in the Word
of God to show us the grandeur and greatness of heavenly glory.
I. HEAVEN IS
REPRESENTED TO US IN THE SCRIPTURES AS A HOUSE (2 Cor. 5:1).
It is a house, but a house
incomparable to any house found in this world. This house is a building of God,
“a house not made with hands, eternal in
the heavens.”
A. The house of
glory is not built by man’s hands.
This house of heavenly glory is a house whose Builder and
Maker is God. There is nothing, not one brick or piece of timber in that
heavenly house that has been laid in its place by the will of man, the works of
man, or the worship of man. Our house in heaven is a construction of grace
alone. It is true, the works of God’s saints follow them into their house in
heaven (Rev. 14:13). But they do not go before them. And they have nothing to
do with the building of that house. It is a building of God…
1. Its foundation was laid in God’s purpose.
2. Its walls were erected by Christ’s blood.
3. Its title deed was purchased by Christ’s blood.
4. Its door was opened by Christ’s entrance into heaven.
Solomon built a great temple in Jerusalem. When it was laid
in ruins, Zorobabel rebuilt it, and Herod repaired it. It was a grand and
glorious structure in the eyes of men. But where is it now? Not one stone is
left in its place! It was a holy place made with hands. But it was only a
temporary, typical house. Our house in heaven is the true holy place. It is the
building of God, the work of free, sovereign, effectual grace in the Lord Jesus
Christ.
B. This house is
in the heavens (2 Cor. 5:2).
These houses of clay in which we now
live have their foundation in the dust of the earth. And they must soon
crumble. But our house which is from heaven and in heaven is eternal. It will
never age, or crumble, or stand in need of repair.
Men build their houses on earth and
vainly imagine that they will stand forever (Psa. 49:11). But in time they
decay, are demolished by the elements, broken down with earthquakes, burned by
fire, or destroyed by their enemies.
Our heavenly house of glory abides
forever. All its apartments are called “everlasting habitations” (Lk. 16:9).
C. And our Lord
Jesus called this house our “Father’s
house” (John 14:2).
It is his Father’s house. And that
makes it our Father’s house and that makes it all the more endearing and
glorious. In our Father’s house there are many mansions.
1.
Heaven is
called the “Father’s house.”
·
Our Father
built it.
·
Our Father
dwells there.
·
It is the
place where He would have all his children to be.
Our Father’s house is a rich, roomy, stately, and well
stored house, a place of “many mansions.”
·
These mansions
are dwelling places for the King’s sons.
They are places of rest, joy, and peace, where the sons and daughters of
almighty God want for nothing.
·
And there are
“many” of them! “Many for the many who were ordained to eternal life - The many
who have been justified by Christ’s obedience - The many for whom his blood was
shed for the remission of sins - And the many sons whom he will bring to glory
(Acts 13:48; Rom. 5:19; Matt. 26:28; Heb. 2:10). There is room enough and
provision enough in the Father’s house for all the innumerable hosts of those
men and women out of every nation, kindred, tribe and tongue chosen, redeemed,
and called by almighty grace.
II. Secondly, HEAVENLY
GLORY IS CALLED AN INHERITANCE (Acts 20:32; Eph. 1:11; Col. 1:12; Rom.
8:17).
As Canaan was an inheritance distributed
by lot to the children of Israel, so heavenly glory is an inheritance given by
lot, by the lot which God himself arranged (Prov. 16:33), to the Israel of God.
As Canaan is a type of heaven, it should never be forgotten that Moses could
never bring Israel into the land. But what Moses through the weakness of the
flesh could not do, Joshua did. And the saints of God are brought to heaven not
by the works of the law, but by the Lord Jesus Christ, our Joshua, our
Deliverer, the Captain of our salvation.
An inheritance is a free gift. It
cannot be earned by labor and diligence. It cannot be merited. And it cannot be
purchased with money. It is bequeathed from one person to another. Our
inheritance in heavenly glory was given by God the father to his Son, Christ
Jesus. And it is given by Christ to all who trust him. It is to us a gift of
pure, free, sovereign grace.
A. Heavenly glory
cannot be obtained, in any part or degree, by the works of men.
All men by nature vainly imagine that they must do something
to inherit eternal life in heaven. But their proud imaginations deceive them.
Eternal life is the gift of God (Rom. 6:23).
·
In its
promise!
·
In its
bestowment!
·
In its
preservation!
·
In its
everlasting enjoyment.
B. Heavenly glory
cannot be purchased by men.
If a man should give all his substance for it, the price
offered would be utterly despised by God.
C. Heavenly glory
is an inheritance bequeathed to chosen sinners by our heavenly Father from
eternity.
It is the Father’s good pleasure to give his kingdom to his
elect. He gives it by his own will, by a testament, through, by, and upon the
death of his dear Son, the Testator (Heb. 9:15-17).
1. This inheritance belongs only to the children of God (Rom.
8:17).
It does not belong to his servants, the angels (Heb. 1:14),
nor to the children of the bond-woman (Gal. 4:30), self-righteous, legalistic,
works and free-will religionists, but only to those men and women predestinated
to adoption in eternity and called to be the sons of God in time.
2. But it is an inheritance that fully belongs to all the
saints of God - There are no degrees of glory in heaven! There are no back
settlements in the heavenly Canaan! There are no second class citizens in the
New Jerusalem!
3. Our heavenly inheritance is incorruptible. All earthly
inheritances are corruptible, subject to change, and unstable. This inheritance
cannot be corrupted by us or anyone else. It cannot be changed or altered in
any degree. And it is as sure as the throne of God!
4. It is an undefiled inheritance.
5. It is an inheritance that fadeth not away.
6. It is an eternal inheritance (Heb. 9:15).
7. And it is an inheritance reserved in heaven, immutably and
infallibly reserved in heaven for God’s elect (1 Pet. 1:4).
·
God keeps the
inheritance for us!
·
And God keeps
us for the inheritance!
III. Thirdly, ANOTHER
FAMILIAR IMAGE OF HEAVEN IS THAT OF A CITY (Heb. 11:10).
Heaven is a large, rich, spacious,
fully inhabited city, whose Builder and Maker is God. Like the other images,
this word, “city”, is a figurative term, not to be understood in any carnal,
earthly, mundane sense. Heaven is a city infinitely beyond anything on this
earth.
A. It is “a city which hath foundations.”
Not
one foundation, but many, so that it is firm, immovable, and cannot be shaken,
thrown down, or dissolved. The foundations upon which this city, this
habitation of glory, is built are…
1.
The
everlasting love of God.
2.
The
unalterable covenant of grace.
3.
The Rock of
Ages, Jesus Christ our Lord.
B. The glory of
this city cannot be comprehended or described by men upon this earth (2 Cor. 12:4).
The description of the New Jerusalem
given by the Apostle John is a hyperbole. It does exactly what it was intended
to do. It defies imagination. John saw in his vision a city with walls of
Jasper, gates of pearl, and streets of pure gold, transparent as glass! What a
place of wealth, abundance, and happiness heaven must be! What a place of
spiritual excellence heaven must be. There they have no value, absolutely no
value, for the most priceless treasures and gems of the world! In that world,
where there is no sin, there is no greed, covetousness, or ambition. In that
glory land, where there is no sin, material things are nothing but useful
accommodations. No value is placed upon them.
·
Jasper is
nothing but a wall to enclose the church of God
·
Pearls are
nothing but gates to open the kingdom of God.
·
Gold is
nothing but pavement upon which men and women walk to the throne of God! (God,
teach us to so use them now!)
IV. Fourthly, HEAVENLY
GLORY IS REPRESENTED TO US AS A KINGDOM.
A house is great. An inheritance is something greater. A
city is something greater still. But the Inspired Writers seem to stretch for
words to describe the heavenly glory, using ever expanding ideas to describe
it. What is heaven? It is a glorious house! Yes, but it is more than a house.
It is a glorious inheritance! Yes, but it is more than an inheritance. It is a
glorious city! Yes, but it is more than a city. It is a glorious kingdom!
A. God’s saints
in this world are kings.
We have a kingdom now which cannot be moved (Heb. 12:28). It
is a kingdom that lies not in carnal ceremonies, but in righteousness, peace,
and joy in the Holy Spirit (Rom. 14:17). And we are heirs of another kingdom, a
kingdom prepared for us from the foundation of the world (Matt. 25:35). It is a
kingdom of glory (1 Thess. 2:12). It is an everlasting kingdom. We have been
called and born into this kingdom by the almighty, irresistible grace and power
of God the Holy Spirit. And we have been prepared and fitted for this kingdom
by the blood and righteousness of Christ.
B. The kingdom of
glory to which we are heirs is the place where every believer shall be crowned
and honored by God and all the holy angels.
In this world there is no honor put upon faith,
faithfulness, and commitment to Christ. But in the world to come God himself
and all his holy angels will honor and crown redeemed sinners for the
perfection of beauty grace has given them in Christ (Eph. 1:10; 2;7; Rev.
21:9). (See Jeremiah 33:16.) The Lord
God will give us a crown.
·
A crown of
life (James 1:12).
·
A crown of
righteousness (2 Tim. 4:8).
·
A crown of
glory that fadeth not away (1 Cor. 9:25).
And our great God and Savior will
cause us to sit upon a throne as kings in his glorious kingdom (Rev. 3:21). We
have been raised from the dunghill of fallen humanity by his grace. And we
shall be raised from the dunghill to a throne of glory in heaven (1 Sam. 2:8).
There, in heavenly glory, we shall inherit and sit upon the throne with Christ
himself!
This is grace! And this is glory!
V. Fifthly, HEAVENLY
GLORY IS SET BEFORE US UNDER THE IMAGE OF INFINITE, ETERNAL, HOLY PLEASURE (Psa.
16:11).
Heaven is a house. Heaven is an
inheritance. Heaven is a city. Heaven is a kingdom. And heaven is a place of
glorious life, fullness of joy, and pleasure forevermore!
Everything that is pleasing to the
renewed mind, gratifying to the sanctified heart, and desirable to the
regenerate soul shall be fully enjoyed to all eternity in heaven’s glory land.
There we shall sit down with Christ at
his table and drink new wine with him in his Father’s kingdom. There we shall
pick and eat the fruit of the tree of life which stands in the midst of the
Paradise of God. There we shall drink of that pure river of the water of life
proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb. There we shall see what no
eye has seen, hear what no ear has heard, and understand that which has never
entered into the heart of man.
“The eye of man has seen many things
on earth very grand and illustrious, and what have been very entertaining to
it. But it never saw such objects as will be seen in heaven. The ear of man has
heard and been entertained with very pleasing sounds, very delightful music,
vocal and instrumental. But it never heard such music as will be heard in
heaven. The heart of man can conceive of more than it has either seen or heard.
But it never conceived of such things as will be enjoyed in the world above”
(John Gill).
Application:
I call upon you who hear my voice, I invite everyone of you,
with the authority of God himself, to come into the kingdom of God (Rev.
22:17).
The door is straight. And the way is
narrow. You must come in by the Door, Christ Jesus. The only way to God, the
only way to heaven, the only way to glory is faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
Christ is…
·
The Only Way.
·
The Righteous
Way.
·
The Sure Way.