From Whitney T. Kunihom (The Essential Bible Guide, Waterbrook Press, 2003):
When our children were young, we had an illustrated edition of John Bunyan’s classic allegory The Pilgrim’s Progress. It’s the story of a man named Christian who takes a journey from the City of Destruction through all kinds of dangers and temptations to the foot of the cross and finally to heaven. We read it at bedtime so many times that the binding finally wore out. Our children are grown now, but I still love to read that tattered book aloud. And whenever I get to the part where Christian enters the Celestial City, I still cry with joy. That’s how I feel when I read this passage.
How can you express what it will be like to enter the gates of heaven? These two chapters are filled with what have become popular images of that wonderful moment—images such as pearly gates, streets of gold, and the River of Life. But as incredible as all that may sound, the reality of heaven is better still in two important ways.
First, everything will be new (21:5). Part of the curse of sin was that everything became subject to destruction and death (Romans 8:19-22). But when Jesus returns for his Church, he will create a new heaven and a new earth (21:1), and a New Jerusalem will appear (21:2). Those are powerful images to describe how God will re-create his world. One joy of being a Christian is that you can be sure that one day your body, your life, your world, everything will all become gloriously new
But the second and most important reality of heaven is that it is the place where the throne of God will be (22:3) and where he will dwell with his people forever (21:3). That was his plan from the very beginning, and it is why he sent his Son to earth (John 1:14). “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). That’s the Big Story of the Bible.
CONGRATULATIONS! You’ve completed the E100! We’ve come to the end of the Bible’s story; but the end of the story is not the end of all things. It also signals a new beginning; a continued life with God, serving and worshipping him. With that in mind, think about ways that you can prepare now for what is to come, in this age and the next!
Week 20 (Friday), Reading 100: The New Jerusalem -- Revelation 21:1-22:21
Click here for today’s reading: https://www.biblestudytools.com/revelation/21.html
From Whitney T. Kunihom (The Essential Bible Guide, Waterbrook Press, 2003):
When our children were young, we had an illustrated edition of John Bunyan’s classic allegory The Pilgrim’s Progress. It’s the story of a man named Christian who takes a journey from the City of Destruction through all kinds of dangers and temptations to the foot of the cross and finally to heaven. We read it at bedtime so many times that the binding finally wore out. Our children are grown now, but I still love to read that tattered book aloud. And whenever I get to the part where Christian enters the Celestial City, I still cry with joy. That’s how I feel when I read this passage.
How can you express what it will be like to enter the gates of heaven? These two chapters are filled with what have become popular images of that wonderful moment—images such as pearly gates, streets of gold, and the River of Life. But as incredible as all that may sound, the reality of heaven is better still in two important ways.
First, everything will be new (21:5). Part of the curse of sin was that everything became subject to destruction and death (Romans 8:19-22). But when Jesus returns for his Church, he will create a new heaven and a new earth (21:1), and a New Jerusalem will appear (21:2). Those are powerful images to describe how God will re-create his world. One joy of being a Christian is that you can be sure that one day your body, your life, your world, everything will all become gloriously new
But the second and most important reality of heaven is that it is the place where the throne of God will be (22:3) and where he will dwell with his people forever (21:3). That was his plan from the very beginning, and it is why he sent his Son to earth (John 1:14). “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). That’s the Big Story of the Bible.
CONGRATULATIONS! You’ve completed the E100! We’ve come to the end of the Bible’s story; but the end of the story is not the end of all things. It also signals a new beginning; a continued life with God, serving and worshipping him. With that in mind, think about ways that you can prepare now for what is to come, in this age and the next!