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Pastor Scott L. Harris
Grace Bible Church, NY
March 22, 2026
Third view of the New Jerusalem & An Imminent Return
Revelation 22:1-7, 12, 20
Introduction
It is good to be back home. The time at the Shepherd’s Conference was very good. Perhaps next Sunday Jeff, Sam and Ed Mendoza can share some of the highlights for them in attending. As per my usual practice, I spent nearly all of my time in meeting with men, both old friends and new contacts, to see how I might encourage them. It was wonderful to praise the Lord together for what He has been doing and share with one another our desires for the future and hopes for what the Lord will do. In that context, we do have additional men praying specifically for this church as we begin the active phase of our search for a godly pastor to replace me. I have already received two very good resumes which we are now following up on.
Diane and I both enjoyed spending some time with our extended families and some of our friends in California. My brothers and I were also able to do some chores and repairs for our mom, and then start figuring out what should be done with all of our dad’s stuff in the garage.
Last weekend Diane and I had a very profitable time at the Culinary Christian Fellowship’s conference held at Camp of the Woods on the subject of Redeeming the Time. It greatly encouraged my heart to spend time with and speak to a great group of young men and women that love the Lord and want to grow in Him even as they train for or are in the early stages of their chosen careers. It is easy for older generations to disparage younger generations for various reasons, but I want to remind you that our God is faithful and He always has His remnant. God is raising up some wonderful young men and women to serve Him and who will greatly impact their generation. We need to be diligent in praying for them as they mature, make important career and life choices, and resist societal pressures that those of us in older generations did not have to face as they do. We certainly had similar worldly pressures, but technology had made many of those much more intense.
I am grateful to Ed Colón and Sam Ramac who preached while I was away. God has blessed us with gifted men who can rightly divide and proclaim His word. I trust you were both challenged and encouraged by Sam’s message from Romans 1:18-32 on God’s wrath revealed against all ungodliness and unrighteousness, and Ed’s sermon on Christian Communication from Ephesians 4:29-30.
This morning we return to our of study of Revelation to begin our examination of its last chapter. Please turn to Revelation 22. We will be looking at the third view of the new Jerusalem revealed to John, and then the three statements of Jesus that “I am coming quickly” which reinforce the doctrine of His imminent return. Before we look at the third view given to John, let me quickly review what was revealed to him in chapters 20 and 21.
First View of the New Heaven, Earth & Jerusalem – Rev. 21:1-8
Revelation 20 very briefly covers the Millennium and the judgment at the Great White Throne that follows it. The thousand year reign of Christ begins with His return from heaven with His armies to conquer the earth and then capture and bind Satan for a thousand years so that he would no longer be able to deceive the nations. The tribulation saints are resurrected to join with the saints of the Old Testament and the church to reign with Christ for a thousand years. Satan is released at the end of that time period and he quickly deceives and raises up a vast army from among those born during the millennium. This rebellion is quickly put down and Satan is seized and cast into the eternal like of fire where the beast and false prophet had already been thrown at the end of the tribulation period. All the unrighteous are then resurrected and judged at the Great White Throne by Christ. All those not written in the book of life are condemned by their evil deeds and also cast into the eternal lake of fire, the second death. (See: The Fact of the Millennium, Descriptions of the Millennium, and The Final Rebellion and Judgment).
Revelation 21 begins with the next vision given to John, 1 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea. 2 And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband.” It is critical to note that this is not an additional description of the millennium as some interpreters claim. The present heaven and earth will pass away for they well bee utterly destroyed and exist no more. This is a new heaven and new earth and new Jerusalem that will be radically different from what existed prior. Verse 3 points out that God will “tabernacle,” He will dwell visibly and in the presence of redeemed humanity. Verse 4 points out that God will comfort His people and that there will no longer any mourning, crying or pain for there will no longer be any death. To emphasize this John states, “The first things have passed away.” The truth of these things is attested to by Christ and the angel in verses 5 & 6. There will not be anyone there that is unrighteous with verse 8 listing categories of evil doers that will be excluded. They will have been cast into the lake that burns with fire and brimstone. (See: The New Heaven & Earth – 2/22/2026).
Second View of the New Jerusalem – Rev. 21:9-27
John is next given a second view of the New Jerusalem from the perspective of a great and high mountain from which John sees the new Jerusalem, the holy city, coming down from heaven (vs. 9-10). It is immense and glorious in appearance with the brilliance of “crystal-clear jasper” which I pointed out is likely diamond or something very similar (vs. 11). The wall surrounding the city is great and high and made out of “jasper,” which again is a diamond or something similar. The wall has twelve gates, three on each of its four sides, with the names of the tribes of Israel written on them and with an angel at each gate (vs. 12). Each gate is made from a single pearl (vs. 21). It has twelve foundation stones with each one having the name of an apostle of the Lamb on it (vs. 14). Each of these foundation stones was adorned with every kind of precious stone, and each foundation stone was made from one of twelve precious stones listed in verse 19-20 – jasper, sapphire, chalcedony, emerald, sardonyx, sardius, chrysolite, beryl, topaz, chrysoprase, jacinth, and amethyst.
The city itself and its streets are made out of “pure gold, like clear glass” (vs. 18, 21). Physics will not be the same in this future world because gold, much less gold thin enough to be transparent, could not support a structure as immense as the new Jerusalem will be. It is 12,000 stadia long, wide and high – which works out to be a cube between 1,288 and 1,465 miles (2,072 – 2,357 kilometers) on each side (vs. 16). That is the distance from here in Wappingers Falls, NY west to Omaha, Nebraska and south to San Salvador in the Carribean Sea and would include about ½ the Gulf of America. Or to use a simpler spatial picture, it would be from the eastern boarder of Nevada east to the Mississippi river, and from the Canadian boarder to San Antonio, TX. And its height would be the same – a little higher than low earth orbit satellites.
There will be not be a temple in the new Jerusalem for the Lord God, the Almighty, and the Lamb will dwell in it (vs. 22), and their glory will illumine it so that there will not be a night time, and there will be no need for the Sun or Moon (vs. 23, 25). This future Jerusalem will always be accessible for its gates will never close (vs. 25). It will always be safe for only the redeemed, those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life, will be there. All those that would do evil will have already been cast into the lake of fire – both humans and angels (vs. 27). (See: The Second View of the New Jerusalem)
Once again I stress that this is not a description of the millennium. Those given over to allegorical interpretation are only restricted by their imaginations and so can freely ignore the plain meaning of the words, grammar and historical context to devise explanations of the Biblical text to fit their own musings. What is coming in the future heaven, earth and Jerusalem of eternity is radically different from what exists in the present. What will exist then does not even make sense according to current physics, geology or biology.
Third View of the New Jerusalem – Revelation 22:1-5
Follow along as I read Revelation 22:1-5 which gives the third description of the new Jerusalem. 1 Then he showed me a river of the water of life, clear as crystal, coming from the throne of God and of the Lamb, 2 in the middle of its street. On either side of the river was the tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. 3 There will no longer be any curse; and the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and His bond-servants will serve Him; 4 they will see His face, and His name will be on their foreheads. 5 And there will no longer be any night; and they will not have need of the light of a lamp nor the light of the sun, because the Lord God will illumine them; and they will reign forever and ever.
Revelation 22 begins with “Then he showed me . . .” or “and he showed me . . .” (NKJV). The conjunction here, kai; / kai, can be translated quite a few ways, most often as “and,” “even” and “also.” Here is it joining two closely related events. This is a third view of the new Jerusalem that is shown to John by the angel introduced in 21:9-10 who is “one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues.” What is pointed out to John are either particular features of the new Jerusalem not previously described, or an additional emphasis on a feature already described.
The River of Water – Rev. 22:1-2. The first new feature described is “a river of the water of life, bright as crystal, coming from the throne of God and of the Lamb, 2 in the middle of its street.” There are quite a few references to the “water of life” or the “springs of life” or “living water” in the Scriptures. Those who live in an area like we do here in the Hudson valley where there is an abundance of water tend to take water for granted. Those who live in an arid climate such as Judea and also many of the areas in which the seven churches to whom this book of Revelation was being sent, water is crucial and thought about a lot because its absence is the difference between abundance and poverty and even between life and death. It is common in those areas for rivers to dry up during the Summer months so water has to be saved in cisterns during the rainy months or imported via aqueduct. Water from a river, a spring or deep well would be referred to as “living water” since it is from a flowing source and is so much better being fresh instead of stale like water from a cistern. It is this reality that is behind a lot of the analogies involving water that are made in scripture.
Jesus referred to living water in John 4 in His conversation with the Samaritan woman at the well to then point her to a spiritual truth that He was the source of “a well of water springing up to eternal life.” Jeremiah used water imagery to castigate the people for forsaking the Lord, “the fountain of living waters,” to hew for themselves broken cisterns that could hold no water (Jeremiah 2:13; 17:13). Earlier in Revelation 7:17 a promise is given to the martyrs of the tribulation period that the Lamb would be their shepherd and that He “shall guide them to the springs of the water of life; and God shall wipe every tear from their eyes.” That is an obvious reference to this future new Jerusalem.
When those in the seven churches in Asia (western Turkey) would have read this description they would have delighted not only in the beautiful physical description, but also it being seen by them as a place of water, a necessity for life, that will be abundant, refreshing, continual and available. Notice first that this is a river of water, not a cistern, so it is a flowing source, not a stored source that is stagnant. Second, it is “bright as crystal” showing it is clean and pure and not polluted with dirt, plants, algae or anything else. Third, the origin of this river is the throne of God and of the Lamb. Since God, the Lamb and their throne are all eternal, this is a river that will not be subject to running dry. It will have a continual flow. Fourth, this river flows down the middle of the street. That indicates easy access for all. There will not be any lining up at a well or fountain. You can draw from it anywhere along its length. This future river will be a water source that will be abundant, refreshing, continual and available – which by analogy is pointing to life in the new Jerusalem being the same.
I will add here quickly that though John has made a distinction about whether it is God the Father or the Lamb, the Son of God that sits on the thrones mentioned earlier in Revelation, here he notes that this is “the throne of God and of the Lamb.” It is two persons who sit on one throne, but it is not two separate entities, for God is one (Deut. 6:4; 1 Tim. 2:5; Gal. 3:20), and Jesus said in John 10:30, “I and the Father are one.” The mystery of the triune nature of the only God will be manifest in the new Jerusalem.
I will also add that this is not the river in the millennium described in either Zechariah 14 or Ezekiel 47 since the descriptions are different and whatever existed in the Millennium will have passed away and been replaced in the new Earth and Jerusalem of eternity.
The Tree of Life – Rev. 22:2. The next new feature of this future Jerusalem John notes is the tree of life. Revelation 22:2, “in the middle of its street. On either side of the river was the tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.” The river is in the middle of the street. The spread of the tree of life is described by a Greek idiom literally translated as “from here and from there.” An equivalent English phrase which would make sense to us is “on this side and on that side,” or “on either side.” That much is clear, but there is some debate on exactly what this description would look.
It is a bit unclear whether the spread of the tree extends to either side of just the river or also to either side of the road running parallel on both sides of the river. The river is the near antecedent, but it is positioned as in the middle of the street, so it seems that the two sides of the split street are adjacent to the river. One idea places a row of trees on the banks of river as in Ezekiel 47 or along the adjacent streets, but that requires the singular, “tree of life,” to be taken as a collective reference to a plural number of trees. Another idea is the tree itself is split so that the river and adjacent roads run through it. Another variation is that it is one tree growing in the middle of the river, possibly on an island, whose branches extend over both channels of the river. Personally, I favor the later, but it is a bit of a guess. We will know the particular details when it comes about.
What is being emphasized here is that this tree of life is directly related to the river of the water of life, and it is large, quite large enough to fulfill its purpose. This is not the tree of life that was in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 2:9), for that one would have been destroyed in the flood of Noah’s day. Even if it had survived the flood, all things of this present earth will pass away before the creation of the new heaven. This is not the tree in the garden of Eden.
Remember that after Adam and Eve sinned God expelled them from the garden of Eden and “stationed the cherubim and the flaming sword which turned every direction to guard the way to the tree of life.” In eternity, the redeemed will have free access to this tree of life for their will no longer be any sin, and as verse 3 states, there will no longer be any curse. In the letter to the church at Ephesus, it is promised to the overcomer, “I will grant to eat of the tree of life which is in the Paradise of God.”
This future tree of life will produce twelve fruits, yielding its fruit according to each month. We don’t know what fruits it will produce, but I can guarantee that even people like myself who can be very particular when it comes to liking fruit will enjoy whatever this tree bears. That will be part of having a resurrected body and sinless nature. The reference to “each month” is to a length of time, but that will no longer be according to the moon for there will no longer be phases of the moon because the glory of God will have replaced the need for sun and moon (Isaiah 60:19-20; Rev. 21:23). Length of time will be determined by some factor other than the moon so that each fruit is produced in its proper season. This verse plus the fact that Jesus in His resurrection body ate food indicates that there will be eating in eternity, though it appears that will be much more similar to the garden of Eden in which plants and “every tree which has fruit yielding seed” was food for Adam and Eve.
In addition to its fruit, “the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.” That does not imply there will be any disease in eternity since that will be impossible for there will no longer be any curse, nor death, nor mourning, nor crying, nor pain for any human in the new Jerusalem (Rev. 21:4; 22:3), and our future resurrection bodies will be immortal and incorruptible (1 Corinthians 15:53-55). The word translated as healing here, qerapeiva / therapeia, has a root idea of “serving or ministering” and so here carries more the idea of “health-giving.” Walvoord concludes, “the leaves of the tree promote the enjoyment of life in the new Jerusalem, and are not for correcting ills which do not exist.” MacArthur concludes the leaves “promote general health. Life in heaven will be fully energized, rich, and exciting.”
No Curse – Revelation 22:3 describes several wonderful aspects about life in the new Jerusalem. The first is “there will no longer be any curse.” The curse was the consequence of the sin of Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden, and their fallen sin nature was inherited by all of their descendants so that all of mankind is born under sin’s curse of death, both physical and spiritual. The only means of escape from it is redemption by God’s grace through faith in the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ. That is the only means by which it is guaranteed by the sealing of the Holy Spirit that your name is written in the book of life, and that you will receive a sinless, glorified body at either your resurrection after you physically die or being translated at the rapture. The only humans that will be in the future new heaven, earth and Jerusalem will be saints who are forgiven and made righteous by Christ and glorified so that they will be sinless for eternity. The curse will not be present in the new Heaven and new Earth or in or on anything that will exist in them.
The Throne of God & the Lamb – Rev. 22:3. The second wonderful aspect about life in the new Jerusalem is a reemphasis of what was already pointed out in Revelation 21:3, 5 & 22:1. “The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it.” The curse is a hindrance to man’s fellowship with God, and that hindrance will not exist in the future for the redeemed will dwell in the presence of God and of the Lamb on their throne. Again, it is one throne jointly occupied by two persons, God and the Lamb, the Father and the Son, who with the Holy Spirit make up the singular, triune godhead. God is one entity made up of three distinct persons.
God’s Slaves – Rev. 22:3, 4, 5. The next wonderful aspect about life in the new Jerusalem is in verse 3, 4 and end of verses 5. “and His bond-servants will serve Him; 4 they will see His face, and His name will be on their foreheads. 5 . . . “and they will reign forever and ever.
The unity of the Father and the Lamb is emphasized again by the fact that each pronoun referring to them is singular.
We will not be idle in eternity. We will be serving God however He directs. The correct term here is slaves and not servants or bond-servants, for we belong to Christ having been purchased and redeemed by His precious blood (1 Corinthians 6:19; 1 Peter 1:18-19). The aversion to slavery which translates the word for slave, dou:loV / doulos, as servant, distorts our true relationship to our Savior who is also the Lord and our Lord. An incorrect identification of Jesus’ identity as Lord in the sense of Master can result in belief in a false Christ resulting in a false profession of faith. The wrong Jesus cannot save you. In addition, slaves exist for their Master and joyfully obey a good master without question. Servants still exist for themselves and so retain a pride that makes obedience optional to one degree or another resulting in a weaker pursuit of holiness and a greater danger to the temptations of sin.
Being sinless and without the curse we will also have intimate fellowship with God which is emphasized by the statement we “will see His face.” Even Moses could not do that while in His earthly body. Exodus 33:23 tells us that God would not allow Moses to see His face, but only His back after He had passed.
We will be identified as belonging to God by having His name on our forehead in a manner similar to the slaves of God who were sealed during the tribulation period (Revelation 7:3). And we “will reign forever and ever.” This means the promises given to the saints of all the ages related to reigning with the Messiah, Christ, will extend beyond just the millennial period to eternity. That reign will be over the new creation in a manner similar to what Adam was supposed to do over the first creation in Genesis 1:28.
It’s Illumination – Revelation 22:5 repeats what was said in 21:22-25 about the glory of God illuminating the new Jerusalem so that there will not be night and therefore no need for a lamp or the light of the sun. The difference here is that the glory is stated specifically to illumine them, which is personal, and not just illumine the new Jerusalem, which is general. This verse ends the description of what was revealed to John about the new Jerusalem, and as already pointed out, it concludes in triumph of the saints reigning.
Testimony of the Angel – Revelation 22:6
The next section of Revelation has much in common with the opening chapter in explaining the origin and transmission of the prophecy and therefore its truthfulness. It begins in verse 6 with the testimony of the angel to the veracity of what has been revealed. 6 And he said to me, “These words are faithful and true”; and the Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, sent His angel to show to His bond-servants the things which must soon take place.
The near context points to this being the same angel that has been speaking and showing things to John since Revelation 21:9. He testifies “These words are faithful and true.” That declaration refers to the whole book and not to just this last revelation concerning the new Jerusalem in Rev. 22:1-5. Notice he states at the end of the verse that it concerns “the things which must soon take place.” That points back to Revelation 1:1 which uses this exact same phrase.
The angel also summarizes the statements in Revelation 1 that explain the origin of what would be revealed. It starts with the Lord, who is further identified here as “the God of the spirits of the prophets.” This is the same God through whom all the prophets have received all their prophecies and declarations. This matches the statement in 2 Peter 1:21 that “no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.” This revelation is from God and is not of human origin.
As in Revelation 1:1, this revelation was communicated by an angel from God to His slaves, and specifically to John, who then wrote down what he was told and observed so that it could be sent to the seven churches in Asia, and from them to all Christians and all people from that time forward.
The totality of this is that all the words of the entire prophecy are faithful and true because they are God given. And like all other prophecies, the details are also true and important because they verify that these are the words of God and not the musing of man. That is the test for a prophet given in Deuteronomy 18:19-22. A prophecy must come true in all its details or it proves it did not come from the Lord and prophet is false and is to be executed. The tragedy is that so many Christians follow methods of interpretation that do not treat Revelation as other prophecies. They place it in its own category so that they can interpret by allegory instead of by its words, grammar and historical context. They end up substituting the musings of men, which at times are quite fanciful, for what God has actually declared. I will speak more about the seriousness of this error next week when we get to Revelation 22:18-19.
Testimony of Christ’s Return – Revelation 22:7, 12, 20
I want to close this morning with an emphasis on Jesus’ declarations to those who read this book about His return. That actually begins in verse 6 with the angel’s declaration that the words of the things declared in this prophecy “must soon take place.” The word “soon” here (tavcoV / taxos) refers to a point in time subsequent to a previous point in time with an emphasis on a relatively brief interval between the two points.
To this is added Jesus’ declaration in verse 7, “And behold, I am coming quickly. Blessed is he who heeds the words of the prophecy of this book.” I will get to the blessing described here next week, but notice that the first sentence of this declaration is also made in verses 12 & 20 – “Behold, I am coming quickly” and “Yes, I am coming quickly.” Coming here, (e[rcomai / erchomai), refers to moving toward or to the person, object or event. In this context it is a declaration that He is going to fulfill His promise in John 14:2-3 that He is coming back to receive His disciples to Himself after He has prepared a place for them in His father’s house. This promise is modified in its time element by the adverb, “quickly.” This the same word as in verse 6 translated as “soon,” (tavcoV / taxos). All of these are futuristic present middle indicatives meaning not just “soon,” but also “swiftly, all at once” before you could be aware and make preparations. That is an emphasis that strengthens the case for the doctrine of the imminence. I am not going to go over this doctrine in full detail because I have included it in many sermons and preached on it several times before, but I am going to give a quick overview of it. (See: Imminence of the Rapture – 12/3/2023)
The doctrine of the imminent return of Jesus Christ is that Christians are always to be ready for Jesus’ return for His church at the rapture, for He can appear any time. While there are many things that could happen before His return, there is nothing that must happen before His return for His church. Please be careful here. Imminence concerns Jesus’ return for His church at the rapture as described as in 1 Thessalonians 4: 15-17. It does not apply to the Second Advent which is Jesus’ physical return to the earth which occurs at the end of the seven year tribulation period. This is what the early church believed as demonstrated in multiple scriptures in the epistles. It is also what the early church fathers believed.
What is the Biblical evidence of Jesus’ imminent return?
First, both John and Paul expected it could happen in their lifetime or that of those to whom they were writing. John uses the first person plural pronoun in 1 John 2:28 stating, “And now, little children, abide in Him, so that when He appears, we may have confidence and not shrink away from Him in shame at His coming.” John records in Revelation 2:25 Jesus saying to the church in Thyatira, “Nevertheless what you have, hold fast until I come.” The apostle Paul uses the first person plural pronoun to include himself in the expectation of the rapture in 1 Thessalonians 4:17, “Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord.” He does the same thing in 1 Corinthians 15:52, “For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we will be changed.”
Both Paul and James make statements that the “Lord is near,” (ejgguvvV / eggus) which refers to something close enough to be “at hand” (Phil. 4:5; James 5:7-9). James even describes that as “the Judge is standing right at the door.” That is in the perfect indicative meaning the action described was complete before James wrote and remains in that state. He was and remains standing at the door.
I already mentioned some of Jesus’ “I am coming quickly” statements. In Revelation they occur in 2:16; 3:11; 22:7, 12 & 20. As already pointed out, these have the connotation of both soon and suddenly. Related to this is another word group, ajpekdevcomai / apekdechomai and its cognates, which convey that Christians are to wait for Jesus’ return with eager anticipation. The more direct verses include 1 Corinthians 1:7, “. . . awaiting eagerly the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Romans 8:19 and 23, “the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God,” and “. . . we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons . . .” Philippians 3:20, “for our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.”
A related word group, prosdecovmenoi / prosdechomenoi, is used in relationship to Jesus’ return and has the meaning of waiting in the sense of longing for. Titus 2:13, “looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus.” Jude 21, “keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting anxiously for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life.”
A third word group, ajnamevnw / anamen , describes waiting for someone that you know is coming, but you do not know exactly when, but it could be at anytime. It is used in 1 Thessalonians 1:10, “to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, [that is] Jesus, who delivers us from the wrath to come.”
Finally, there are the stern warnings to be ready because you don’t know when Jesus is returning such as Luke 12:40, “You too, be ready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour that you do not expect.”
Conclusions
The coming millennium after the tribulation will be wonderful, but the new heaven, new earth and new Jerusalem will be far superior. The descriptions are brief, yet more than enough to make us long for the reality of it to come. Many of the descriptions of it do not make much sense if you try to make them fit within the existing world, but that just reinforces the fact that it will be a world in which Jesus “makes all things new.” Though poets and hymn writers often emphasize the beauty of the new Jerusalem and doing things like “walking streets of gold,” the most wonderful thing about it will be dwelling in the very presence of our God and creator. Because we will be sinless and have glorified bodies, we shall experience the fullness of His glory without it threatening our existence.
The promise of being included as a resident of the future new world and new Jerusalem of eternity is only for those who have been forgiven of their sins through faith in the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ to redeem us by the sacrifice of His own life as the payment of those sins. If that is true of you, then rejoice and proclaim the gospel to others. If it is not, then talk to myself or any of our church leaders and get right with God today. You will want to be there and not the alternative.
Sermon Notes – 3/22/2026
Third view of the New Jerusalem & An Imminent Return – Revelation 22:1-7, 12, 20
Introduction
We will examine John’s third view of the new Jerusalem and Jesus’ statements about His imminent return
First View of the New Heaven, Earth & Jerusalem – Rev. 21:1-8
Revelation 20 briefly covers the _______________& the judgment at the Great White Throne that follows it
Rev. 21:1-2 – This is not the Millennium. It is a _______heaven, a _______earth and a ________Jerusalem.
Rev. 21:3-4 – God dwells ____redeemed humanity & comforts them – no more death, mourning, crying, pain
Rev. 21:4-8 – The angel & Christ both attest to these _________. No who is unrighteous will be there
Second View of the New Jerusalem – Rev. 21:9-27
From a new vantage point, John sees the new Jerusalem come down from heaven. It is _____________
Rev. 21:12-20. The ______surrounding the city, its foundation stones and its gates are all described in detail
The city itself is “pure __________, like clear glass” (vs. 18, 21) – which does not fit within current physics
It is __________- a cube between 1,288 & 1,465 miles on each side
There is no temple because the Lord God, the Almighty & the Lamb dwell in it – their _______illuminates it
It will be fully accessible & safe for __________the redeemed will be there
Again, this is not the millennium for the world it will exist in will be _______________- this is all new
Third View of the New Jerusalem – Revelation 22:1-5
This is a ____view of the new Jerusalem shown to John by the same angel that showed him the second view
The River of the Water of Life – Rev. 22:1-2. In a dry climate, water is ___________important & valuable
Water stored in ____________becomes stale – rivers, springs & deep wells are “living water”
Water and its source are often used as analogies to ____________truth (John 4; Jeremiah 2)
Those in the 7 churches in _____would have delighted in the river’s description & recognized it significance
It is a river, not a cistern, so it is flowing water, not stagnant. It is “bright as crystal,” so it is _______& clean
Its origin from the throne of God points to a continual, ______________ flow
Flowing down the middle of the street gives easy ___________ to all
__________ in the new Jerusalem will be abundant, refreshing, clean, continual and available
The Father & the Son (the Lamb) sit on the same throne, for they are ________persons, but ______entity
This is _______the river of the millennium described in Zechariah 14 or Ezekiel 47
The Tree of Life – Rev. 22:2. It encompasses both sides of the river, but the exact description is _________
The emphasis is on the relationship between the tree & the river and its _____being adequate for its purpose
This is not the tree of life that was in the garden of Eden for that tree was ______________
Adam’s sin excluded him from the tree of life – all in the new Jerusalem will have _________to the new one
The tree of life will produce ___fruits, each in its month, but moon phases will no longer determine a month
Its leaves are for “healing” – does ____indicate disease for there is no curse & humans have glorified bodies
The word for healing here points to “____________________” – good for promoting general health
No Curse – Revelation 22:3. The curse was the consequence of Adam’s _____which every human inherited
Salvation from sin & its curse comes ________by God’s grace through faith in Jesus & His atonement
The only humans in the new Jerusalem will be the _____________who will be glorified & sinless
The Throne of God & the Lamb – Rev. 22:3. Removal of the curse ___________man to dwell with God
God’s Slaves – Rev. 22:3, 4, 5 – As God’s slaves, we will _________Him in eternity however He desires
_______serve their master joyfully without question – servants retrain a pride that hinders perfect obedience
We will see God’s ________because we will be sinless – even Moses could not do that (Exodus 33:23).
We will be identified as belonging to God by having His ______on our foreheads & we will reign with Him
It’s Illumination – Revelation 22:5. The ___________of God illumines them and the city
Testimony of the Angel – Revelation 22:6
The same angel declares the whole prophecy to be faithful and ___________
The origin of the word of the prophecy is from _________just as with all other true prophecy
It is communication from God to the angel to John to the 7 churches to the world – it is all __________
Revelation should be interpreted _________other prophecies instead of substituting the musings of men
Testimony of Christ’s Return – Revelation 22:7, 12, 20
The angel declared the things declared in Revelation “must ________take place” – a relatively brief interval
Jesus’ multiple declarations of “I am coming quickly” – backs up the doctrine of __________________
Christians are to eagerly wait for Jesus return – many things could, but nothing ________happen before then
John & Paul both expressed expectation Jesus could return in their __________(1 John 2:28; 1 Thess. 4:17)
Paul and James both declared “the Lord is _________” meaning ready to return – Phil. 4:5; James 5:7-9
Christians are to wait for Jesus’ return with eager _______________- Rom. 8:19, 23; 1 Cor. 1:7; Phil. 3:20
Christians are to look for Jesus’ return with a sense of _________, an anxious waiting – Titus 2:13; Jude 21
Christians are to anticipate Jesus’ return as if it could be at _____________ – 1 Thess. 1:10
Conclusions
The millennium will be wonderful, the new Jerusalem will be __________- be sure that you will be there!
KIDS KORNER
Parents, you are responsible to apply God’s Word to your children’s lives. Here is some help. Young Children – draw a picture about something you hear during the sermon. Explain your picture(s) to your parents. Older Children – Do one or more of the following: 1) Count how many times the new Jerusalem is mentioned. 2) Discuss with what the new Jerusalem will be like and how to be sure you will dwell there in eternity
THINK ABOUT IT!
Questions to consider in discussing the sermon with others. Summarize the descriptions of the new Jerusalem in Revelation 21. How do we know this is not the millennium? What is the river of the water of life and what is its importance? What is the tree of life and what is its importance? What is the significance of there not being a curse and the throne of God and the Lamb being there? What blessings are given to God’s slaves in Rev. 22:3, 4 & 5? What does the angel testify and why is that important? Why should Revelation be interpreted the same way as other prophecies? What is the evidence supports the belief that Jesus’ return is imminent?
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