XXIII: Where The Gates Never Close

Revelation 21:22 - 22:5

I start my study of Revelation with an initial focus on the end of

Revelation: Chapters 21 and the first 5 verses of 22.

I want to draw the readers’ attention to how unique the Christian

view of Heaven is, briefly comparing it to Islamic visions of Paradise

for enhanced clarity. I point out that two population groups seem to

live in Heaven.

Finally, I remind the reader of how Revelation’s account of Heaven

and Genesis’s creation account mirror one another in a powerful

symmetry.

I’m just filler . . . you know, ‘No

hyperlinks for you till Slide 4!” Contracts on the cat and the kid ran out and now Lenny’s using

me. ‘Best for last’ and all that!

EMAIL: leonard.hoy@gmail.com

TITLE PICTURE: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ab/La_nouvelle_Jérusalem.jpg

Basic InformationLICENSING: I grant a Creative Commons license made of the following elements: You may freely share and adapt this work provided you give me credit–(website info fine!), your efforts have no commercial application and you share extracted/redacted work with others. God bless and have fun!

VISIT: skOG Workshop Headquarters at www.lennyhoy.com for other items of interest.Slide Array Table of Contents

IMAGES:

By Subscription: http://www.instonebrewer.com/bpg2009/frames.htm?members/member_page.php

By Permission: Creative Commons Licensing as noted

WE’LL BE FOCUSING ON THE ETERNAL CITY’S PART OF THE FINAL NARRATIVE

Introduction

Letters to the Seven Churches

The Story of the Tribulation

Christ’s Return

The Millennium

Great White Throne Judgment

The Eternal City

Final Message

Rev 19

Rev 22

The Doom of Babylon

FOUR PARTS TO THIS PRESENTATION

Basic Facts: We extract the facts about Heaven as presented in the last two chapters of Revelation.

Islam Vs. Christianity: Two distinct and different visions of Heaven emerge here-and I suggest that there are reasons why each tradition depicts Heaven the way it does!

The Nations vs. The Bride: Two population groups appear on the rolls of Heaven. What’s up with that?

Genesis vs. Revelation: The two harmonize in the mind of God and that harmony resonates in the pages of our Bibles.

Here’s the Basic Facts Section for Chapter 21 and

the beginning of Chapter 22.

GOD LIGHTS THE ETERNAL CITY

No temple (21:22)– Almighty and the Lamb = Temple

No sun/moon (21:23)– Almighty and the Lamb give light

Nations: (Nations??? What nations? What’s up with that?)

Walk by this light (v. 24)

Have kings (v. 24)

Walk through gates that never close (v. 25)

Bring their glory into the city (v. 24)

GOD HEALS THE NATIONS

River of the waters of life come from God’s throne (v. 1)

This river flows down the middle of the street

On either side of the river: Tree of Life (v. 2)

Yields 12 kinds of fruit

Heals the nations (Again, what are ‘nations’ doing in Heaven?)

There is no more curse

GOD’S BONDSERVANTSGod’s Bondservants serve Him (v. 3)

They (we?) see His face (v. 4)

His name is on their (our?) foreheads

No need for natural light: the Lord God shall illumine them

They (we?) shall reign forever and ever!

GOD’S BONDSERVANTSGod’s Bondservants serve Him (v. 3)

They (we?) see His face (v. 4)

His name is on their (our?) foreheads

No need for natural light: the Lord God shall illumine them

They (we?) shall reign forever and ever!

but just as it is written, "THINGS WHICH EYE

HAS NOT SEEN AND EAR HAS NOT HEARD,

AND which HAVE NOT ENTERED THE HEART

OF MAN, ALL THAT GOD HAS PREPARED FOR

THOSE WHO LOVE HIM." I Corinthians 2:9

REPORTING OUT ON THE TRIBULATION SIX IN CHAPTER 22

TRIBULATION SAINTS: Assuming they belong among the ‘God’s bondservants’ group of 22:3, they reside safely in the Eternal City, New Jerusalem

ANTICHRIST: No news here.

SATAN: No news here, but death has been done away with which suggests his influence has finished?

REPORTING OUT ON THE TRIBULATION SIX

ISRAEL: No relevant news in this section 21:22 - 22:5

THE NATIONS: Some subset of the class “Nations” clearly has a place around the Eternal City, perhaps in the “New Earth” over which the Eternal City hovers. How did they get here? See the slide “Nations vs. Bride” below for fuller treatment. River of Life said to be for the nations’ healing (Rev 22:1+2)

CREATION: No more curse!! (Rev 22:3) Everything ‘new’!

Here’s the Islam vs. Christianity section.

Compare and contrast to sharpen your

understanding.

ISLAM VS. CHRISTIANITY Our Heaven appears less naturally alluring than do the Muslim’s visions of Paradise

Bible: Lots on geography; little on experience

Qur’an: Little on geography; lots on experience

Bible: Features the site– bejeweled splendor, grand architecture

Qur’an: Features the experience–eternal sexual pleasures etc

Different and

instructive visions

of heaven

ISLAM VS. CHRISTIANITY God provides us a view of Heaven which stresses its corporate elements: the Bride, the nations, the Holy City, corporate experiences of Heaven’s overall beauty

The Qur’an provides us a view of the individual muslim man’s elevation to limitless self indulgence: His tent, his collection of women, his wine and good times

Different and

instructive visions

of heaven

God has a reason for crafting His

account of heaven the way He has.

That reason may have something

to do with motivating the behavior

of the faithful.

Qur’anic vision of Paradise motivates Muslims to behave

very differently than do the Christian’s visions of Heaven

That reason may have something

to do with motivating the behavior

of the faithful.

Islam: Take up the sword in

life and get an eternity of

eat, drink and be merry. Physical effort =>

Physical reward

Islam: Take up the sword in

life and get an eternity of

eat, drink and be merry. Physical effort =>

Physical reward

Christianity: Pursue a knowledge of Jesus in

this life; gain an eternity of His presence.

Spiritual effort =>

Spiritual reward

In obedience to Christ’s appeals to know Him in this life, we strive to express, in acts of grace, the experience of His

Spirit’s presence within us now.

Our present union with God through His Spirit serves as the primary motivation and power for our actions here on earth.

Biblical depictions of Heaven serve as a secondary motivator for action on earth. Therefore:

The Bible’s depiction of our personal experience of Heaven gets only a general description. In Heaven, God tells us that we experience the completion of our union

with Christ which we enjoyed in life .

In obedience to the Qur’an’s commands to pursue violent jihad, the islamic warrior strives now to earn a

future entrance to a sensual Paradise later.

That need to secure entrance to Paradise with physical violence motivates the many a Muslim male’s behavior.Lurid Qur’anic visions of Paradise serve as a powerful primary motivator for dangerous physical actions here

on earth. Therefore:

The Qur’anic portrayal of the sensual personal experience of a future Paradise gets

powerfully graphic descriptions designed to stir the faithful to violent physical actions in the present.

The Christian secures Heaven upon conversion and begins to learn the ways of his God here on earth. Christ gives us His presence, His Spirit, to motivate us here to acts of graciousness.

The Christian secures Heaven upon conversion and begins to learn the ways of his God here on earth. Christ gives us His presence, His Spirit, to motivate us here.

The Muslim man has but one sure ticket to

Paradise: martyrdom in the way of jihad.

The Qur’an’s lurid descriptions of Paradise

compensate for the non-presence in this life

of the distant, undemonstrative Allah.

Here’s the ‘Nations vs. The Bride’

Section. Wondering why the ‘nations’ are in Heaven

with the Bride? Me, too.

NATIONS VS. BRIDENations:

At Armageddon (19:19)Slaughtered in battle (19:21)Millennial experience of Sheep Nations (20:8)Some join Satan at end (20:8)All dead resurrected (20:11)Great White Throne: If name not in Book of Life, report to Hell, If name in Book of Life, report to to Heaven (20:11)

God dwells with those in Book of Life in heaven (21:3)No tears for the ‘saved’ (21:4)Relationship with New Jerusalem for the ‘saved’ (21:4)

Have kings (21:26)Access to New Jerusalem (21:25)Receive healing (22:2)Relieved of curse (22:3)

The Bride:Marriage Supper (19:7)First Resurrection (20:4+5)Reign with Christ for 1000 years (20:6)Live as Bride of Christ in New Jerusalem (21:2)Serve God (22:3)Carry God’s Name: (22:3)

Why 2X’s + more

info on fate of

nations?!?!

WUWT?

The Christian secures Heaven upon conversion. The Bible locates the point of our entrance

(resurrection 19:7) and declares our presence with our God (22:3). God deems this level of info enough for the eternally secure!

The Bible spends more time on the Fate of

the Nations (some Heaven, some Hell)

because believers need reassurance here and

now that 1) our God judges all righteously

and 2) that God has a plan to do so!

The Christian secures heaven upon conversion. Bible locates the point of our entrance (resurrection 19:7) and declares our presence with our God (22:3). God deems this level of info enough for now!

The Bible spends more time on the Fate of

the Nations (some heaven, some hell) because

we need reassurance here and now that 1)

our God judges righteously and 2) that God

has a plan to do so!

We serve in this life on a

“NEED TO KNOW” basis.

The Christian secures heaven upon conversion. Bible locates the point of our entrance (resurrection 19:7) and declares our presence with our God (22:3). God deems this level of info enough for now!

The Bible spends more time on the Fate of

the Nations (some heaven, some hell) because

we need reassurance here and now that 1)

our God judges righteously and 2) that God

has a plan to do so!

For more information, see Slide Set

“The Nations in Revelation”.

Who are the ‘nations’?

On what basis do they get involved

in The New Heaven and New Earth?

Huh?

Let’s review the connection between

Genesis’ opening Chapters and Revelation’s closing

Chapters.

GENESIS <=> REVELATION

GENESIS <=> REVELATIONRevelation reflects Genesis!

Remember???

R 21:23–Light also bathesthe second creation

G 1:3–Light bathes thefirst creation

G 2:9–Tree of Life inGarden’s center

R 22:2–Tree of Life in thecenter of New Jerusalem

G 2:8–God createsthe Garden

R 21:2–God createsNew Jerusalem

G 2:10 A river watersthe Garden

R 22:1–A river watersNew Jerusalem

GENESIS:THE ALPHA TOWER

REVELATION: THE OMEGA TOWER

R 21:3–God dwellsamong men

G 3:8–God walkswith Adam

G1:1–God creates the heavens and earth

R 21:1–God creates thenew heavens and earth

R 20:14–Death abolished G 2:3–Death reigns

G 3:17–Ground Cursed R 22:3–Curse removed

G 3:16–Pain and tears R 21:4–No more painand tears

GENESIS:THE ALPHA TOWER

G 3:24–Man banishedfrom Garden

R 21:3, 22:3–Man welcomedback to New Jerusalem

REVELATION:THE OMEGA TOWER

R 21:25–Gates openedG 3:24–Garden locked

G 2:13–Satan deceives R 20:10–Satan punished

GENESIS AND REVELATION

Revelation pictures an Eternal State that directly reflects God’s original intentions for the Creation as pictured in the opening chapters of Genesis.

Creation itself has come through a spiritual death to become all that God intended it to be from the first, before the Fall of Man.

Heaven reflects God’s righteous character, not man’s carnal interests in self-indulgence, and every descriptive item in Revelation speaks to us of our God’s righteousness and strength!

Throughout Revelation’s treatment of the Eternal

State, there exists a striking physicality to the

depictions. Heaven fills with structures of

measured substance, possesses a geography and a

political system. What are we spiritually-minded

souls to make of this physicality in heaven?

Next:XXIV: Physicality of Revelation 21

Search the Table of Contents for Other Offerings In This Series