08
Jul '20
Heaven’s On My Mind
08
Jul '20
Revelation 21:1-7
“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. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 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. 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. 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. And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.”
Introduction: The songwriter penned the words, “I can only imagine… Surrounded by your glory…” Other familiar songs bring HOPE and COMFORT to our hearts… “How Beautiful Heaven Must Be,” “When We All Get to Heaven,” “What A Day That Will Be… when my Jesus I shall see…” “I’ve Got Heaven on My Mind.” Speaking of heaven, have you ever asked these questions: What is Heaven going to be like? Who is going to be in Heaven? What are we going to do in Heaven? How should we prepare for Heaven? The apostle John answers some of those questions:
1. What is HEAVEN going to be like? (Rev 21:1-f)
“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… And the city lieth foursquare…”
• How Big is the PLACE called the New Jerusalem?
{Approximately 1500 miles x 1500 x 1500 x 1500 miles, cube-shaped. This is an estimated area of 2, 250, 000 square miles. This is approximately 1/2 of the U.S. To give you an idea, an airplane only flies about 7 miles in the air and this is 1500 miles up}
•How Beautiful is the PLACE called the New Jerusalem?
{*City – pure gold (v 18)}
{*12 gates made of pearls (v 21)}
{*Street- singular – pure gold (v 21)}
{*Walls made of jasper (v 18)}
{*Foundation made of all stones… blue, sky blue, bright green, reddish brown, pale green, sea green, yellow green, violet, and purple (v 19, 20)}
{*No night or light – sun or moon… but the Glory of God (v 23)}
{Jesus on His throne- Rev 4 & 5}
“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… And the city lieth foursquare…”
• How Big is the PLACE called the New Jerusalem?
{Approximately 1500 miles x 1500 x 1500 x 1500 miles, cube-shaped. This is an estimated area of 2, 250, 000 square miles. This is approximately 1/2 of the U.S. To give you an idea, an airplane only flies about 7 miles in the air and this is 1500 miles up}
•How Beautiful is the PLACE called the New Jerusalem?
{*City – pure gold (v 18)}
{*12 gates made of pearls (v 21)}
{*Street- singular – pure gold (v 21)}
{*Walls made of jasper (v 18)}
{*Foundation made of all stones… blue, sky blue, bright green, reddish brown, pale green, sea green, yellow green, violet, and purple (v 19, 20)}
{*No night or light – sun or moon… but the Glory of God (v 23)}
{Jesus on His throne- Rev 4 & 5}
2. Who is going to be in HEAVEN? (Rev 21:5, 7, 8)
“He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.”
“He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.”
{*”Overcometh” is the word nikao, which means conqueror.
*”Inherit” is the word kleroma, which means possess, heir.
*”Son” is the word huios, which is designated for personal.}
• Only God’s sons and daughters
• Who have been “born again”
• Nothing sinful or unclean (v 27)
*”Son” is the word huios, which is designated for personal.}
• Only God’s sons and daughters
• Who have been “born again”
• Nothing sinful or unclean (v 27)
3. What are we going to do in HEAVEN? (Rev 21:4; Rev 22:3, 7, 17, 20)
“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.”
• Pain free (v 4)
• Pardon free (v 4)
• Praise & worship with freedom (v 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.”
• Pain free (v 4)
• Pardon free (v 4)
• Praise & worship with freedom (v 4)
4. How should we prepare for HEAVEN?
( Rev 22:7, 12, 17, 20)
” Blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of this prophecy of this book.”
• Watch & work ( Rev 22:7)
• Wait & Witness ( Rev 22:16,17)
• Welcome ( Rev 22:20)
( Rev 22:7, 12, 17, 20)
” Blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of this prophecy of this book.”
• Watch & work ( Rev 22:7)
• Wait & Witness ( Rev 22:16,17)
• Welcome ( Rev 22:20)
Conclusion: When you go off – for vacation, do you get ready? Pack your suitcases? Why not get ready for our trip to heaven? I HOPE and TRUST you’re planning on going! There’s a “One way ticket – stamped by the BLOOD of JESUS” ! Have you got your bags packed? On a lighter note: A Sunday School teacher asked her children to raise their hands if they wanted to go to heaven. All lifted their hands except one little boy. With a puzzled look on her face, the teacher asked him why he did not raise his hand. He replied, “I thought you were getting up a LOAD to go today! I’m not quite ready!!”
Well, let’s get ready.
I’ve got heaven on my mind.
Love y’all,
I’ve got heaven on my mind.
Love y’all,
Dr. Randy Reese