The end of the world

[0:00] Let's dip into the text then. So let's return to Revelation 21 and 22. And it matters.

[0:33] I just say that because that's so important. There is a future and it matters. The Christian life cannot be lived on the basis of the present.

[0:48] The Christian life does not make sense just in terms of the present. We heard a speaker on Wednesday from Australia, from a beautiful part of Australia where the sun always shines, the sea is always blue, and he said he had problems persuading the people around him that heaven could be any better.

[1:17] Now that is a problem because we are not meant to fix our hopes and our affections and our joy in this world.

[1:30] Now there are delightful things, there are joyful things, there are things we can genuinely look forward to, but they cannot be the thing that propels us through the Christian life.

[1:41] The only thing that is adequate to make us the people of God is by looking at the future which the book of Revelation depicts.

[1:53] That's what we have to have deep in our hearts as the reason for living the Christian life. I say that to some of us it might be very obvious, but it needs saying because the Christian life can be presented in terms of you have wonderful fellowship with people of your own age, you sing wonderful songs, what could be better than that?

[2:20] Well the answer is heaven is better than that, the world to come is better than that, and that's jolly well what we'd be better to be aiming for because sometimes the songs are going to be out of tune, one day the people of your own age will be in their 80s and 90s, and you still need to be living the Christian life looking forward with gladness and confidence and a robust hope.

[2:48] So there is a future and it matters. Those promises that we looked at in the beginning of Revelation, in November chapter 2 and 3, each of the seven churches had a little snippet of a promise, if you combine them all together, they make up the whole thing.

[3:05] To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life. And where is that tree? It's in the paradise of God.

[3:16] That's what we've been reading about. To him who overcomes, says the Spirit, he who overcomes will not be hurt at all by the second death. That's the judgment to come.

[3:29] These are all promises for the future. Almost entirely. Not completely all, but almost entirely. Second introductory remark.

[3:43] The future is accessed via moral, ethical retribution and grace. So, I'll explain what I mean.

[3:57] In chapter 21 is the heavenly city and you get to that via chapter 20. And what happened in chapter 20? Well, what you had in chapter 20 was the day of judgment.

[4:11] And you don't get to the world to come except via the day of judgment. And what is this day of judgment? It's a day with moral categories to it.

[4:25] Good and evil. It's a day with ethical characteristics. What has been right and what has been wrong.

[4:35] That matters. That's what is assessed on that day. It's a day of morality and ethics. And it's a day of retribution. Retribution. I had a quite long conversation with somebody at a conference about retribution.

[4:52] And I only realized sort of towards the end of it that he thought retribution meant revenge. And therefore was a nasty thing. Revenge getting your own back is not really the same thing or gives you the wrong impression than retribution.

[5:10] Retribution is to pay what is owed. To settle accounts. The things that are owed get paid. A fair repayment.

[5:22] And the day of judgment works by, it's not the only thing it works by, but it works by fairness. So people who have raped and murdered and abused and cheated and oppressed will get what they deserve.

[5:44] They won't get worse than they deserve, but they won't get less than they deserve. All the things that they have done and perhaps thought, this is of no consequence.

[5:54] I can oppress people. I can extract money from them. I can have all the wealth and power. And there's no downside to it at all. On that day, the Lord will give people as they deserve.

[6:10] It's a day of paying back. And that's what I mean by retribution. If that's not what you understand by it, then filter it out and put in the correct understanding. A day of complete fairness.

[6:24] And it is also a day of grace. Because for those who have believed in Jesus Christ, their sins will be found to have already been paid for by Jesus Christ.

[6:42] That's fair. Because no sin goes unpunished. But the sins of believers have already been punished. Jesus Christ bore that.

[6:54] That's what he was doing when he said on that day, my God, my God, why have you forsaken me? The day when the sun refused to shine. That's the day when the sins of believers were paid for.

[7:06] And it's all wrapped up in the grace of God, whereby he planned and purposed to have these people with him on that day. That Jesus Christ should die for their sins.

[7:19] And their names are known to God. And their names are written in a book. The book of life. And in chapter 20, you see, let me just see what the references were.

[7:30] Verse 12, books opened. Now those are books that record the deeds that people have done. And there's another book. This book of the Lamb's book of life.

[7:43] The names of those whom God has purposed forever to show grace to. And on that last day, that grace will be shown.

[7:56] So the future is accessed via the realities and the categories and the demands of this great day of judgment.

[8:11] Third comment about the future. We're told constantly through the book of Revelation that the future is coming. Difficult to translate the Greek word.

[8:25] It's entakis, from which we get tachometer, which means a speed measuring machine. It means speedily. Jesus says in verse 22, verse 7, I am coming.

[8:40] Now I haven't done the homework on this. I presume it's entakis or taki. I am coming speedily. I am coming soon. I am coming suddenly.

[8:53] So you could, there's a range of possible meanings of that. But it's all to do with velocity. It's all to do with speed. And although to us, well I don't know, do you think the future comes along slowly or quickly?

[9:09] I think time travels faster than you think it's going to, doesn't it? Things come around very quickly. And Jesus adds this assurance that he will bring the future quickly, soon.

[9:23] Behold, I am coming soon. So you've got the definiteness. There is a day. And the rapidity.

[9:35] Well he says it's coming rapidly, suddenly perhaps, quickly. It's taken 2,000 years so far to come quickly. But he still says, I'm coming quickly.

[9:48] So there is, yeah, that was point number three. And point number four, the future contains, well it contains, glory and fulfillment, torment, as well as, as well as, torment, wrath, defeat, and disposal, as in rubbish disposal.

[10:15] That's quite a combination of things. Chapter 19, verse 20, the beast was captured, with him the false prophet, who had performed, the miraculous signs, on his behalf.

[10:29] And it says, the two of them, were thrown alive, into the fiery lake, of burning sulfur. Well, I'm not sure I can say, very much about this, fiery lake, of burning sulfur.

[10:39] It sounds awful. And that's what it's, meant to sound like. It's meant to sound final. You know, there's no coming out, of that lake. So I've put it, as disposal.

[10:51] Evil, is done away with, never to pop back, never to return. And I'm also thinking, of chapter 20, verse 10, where it says, the devil who deceived them, was thrown into the lake, of burning sulfur, where the beast, and false prophet, had been thrown.

[11:09] They will be tormented, day and night, forever and ever. I don't, I don't, I would like to hide, this verse away. But I'm not going, to hide this verse, because that's what it says.

[11:22] It says, there will be, for some people, the devil, the beast, the false prophet, are mentioned here.

[11:33] For some personal beings, there will be, everlasting, torment. There will be, wrath.

[11:44] And, another metaphor, is this of defeat, isn't it? The armies, that try to, overcome, the Lord, and his Christ, are utterly, and completely, defeated.

[11:59] So, this is an awful, and awesome day, because it, it contains, the downfall, and the final destruction, and the ultimate defeat, of everything, that has been evil, everything, everything, that has been, against God, everything, that is, neglected, God, ignored God, twisted, God's, ways, etc.

[12:26] So, it's got that in it, as well as the glory, and the fulfillment. There's the glory, and the fulfillment, that I wanted to, to pause on, but, it has to be said, there's, there are unspeakably, awful things, that come from that day, and I want to ask you, to make it your business, to make sure, that that isn't you.

[12:52] Because, hell, which is what's described here, here's another word for it, if you call it hell, that lake, it's not empty. Some, forms of Christianity, teach that hell, is, empty, that everybody, somehow, will be saved, and it'll be, wonderful for everybody.

[13:17] Real Christianity, doesn't teach that. Real Christianity, teaches, that there is a crisis, a division, in the human race, that on that great day, the king, will sit, dividing the sheep, from the goats, and saying, come you blessed, of my father, to some, and depart from me, to others.

[13:40] Hell, will not be empty, and, the choices, that we make, that you are making, determine that. Do you want, to pay for your own sins, on that day?

[13:56] Or, will you turn, to Jesus Christ, and so, pray to him, and so, speak to him, and so, engage with him, that, you can be sure, that you have heard him say, I've taken your sins, for you.

[14:13] That's the, that's coming, to Jesus Christ, in repentance, turning from everything, else to him, and coming, believing his promises, and it is absolutely, vital, that that's the sort, of Christianity, you have.

[14:28] Real, personal, engagement, with Jesus Christ, for heaven, and hell, for life, and death, that's how important, it is, and this day, shows that to us.

[14:44] So, let's look now, at the future, for the believer, and, the future, is, depicted, in a number, of overlapping, pictures.

[14:58] So, in 21, I saw a new heaven, and a new earth, for the first heaven, and the first earth, had passed away, and there was no longer, any sea. I think, not because, God doesn't like, beaches, but I think, sea, in the Bible, is the place, from which evil arises, you know, the churning of the sea, and the beasts, come out of the sea.

[15:19] I think that's the symbolism, of it. And I saw, the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down, out of heaven, from God, prepared, as a bride, beautifully dressed, for her husband.

[15:33] So, the future, is, a city, which is a bride. It's a, a strange combination, isn't it?

[15:43] Well, I'm just going to outline, these things first, and then come back to them, in a moment. So, there's the city, and, there's the bride, one beautiful picture, and it's also, a tree, and a river.

[15:58] If you go to chapter 22, the angel, showed me, because a lot of chapter 21, is about the city. The angel, showed me, the river, of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne, of God, and of the Lamb, down the middle, of the great street, of the city.

[16:16] There's a river. And, on either side, of the river, stood the tree of life. Well, we thought, there was one tree of life, but this tree, manages to be, on both sides, of this river, and it bears fruit.

[16:27] It's a tree, and a river. And, there's the tree, and the river. But, there is not a temple. Do you notice, it said there was no temple. So, we'll look at that, and I'll draw, I'll draw no temple.

[16:38] That's there, I've drawn it. So, let's, let's look first of all, at the, the bride, and the city. So, it really is just dipping in, on this.

[16:51] The bride. She's dressed, as a bride, beautifully dressed, for her husband, verse 2, and in verse, chapter 21, verse 9, come, let me show you, the bride, the wife of the lamb.

[17:09] And, I think, there's not, a great deal more, said, enlarging on that thought, but let's take that thought, because everybody, understands, a bride. The part of human, understanding, I was pondering, there are a number of things, in human life, which, which, almost link directly, to heavenly things.

[17:31] So, marriage is one of them, because, the idea of marriage, is of Christ, and his church, that's where it comes from. And, football matches, are another, when you have a huge, community of people, all shouting, great, worthy is the one, who scored the goal.

[17:50] Well, that's like it is in heaven, you're experiencing, a little bit of heaven, like that. Music is another, because only human beings, I think, only human beings sing, it's something, transcendent, it's, puts us in touch, with the, the whiff of heaven, and, a bride is part of that.

[18:08] Everybody knows, what a bride is, everybody knows, what a wedding is, everybody has, some, some sense, of, the wonder of it, the idea of a person, personal relationship, because this is what a wedding is about, isn't it?

[18:23] It's about, two people who love one another, and have longed to be together, and that great day is celebrated, in the, in the wedding. So, as I put there, it's, it's something, personal, it's to do with relationship, isn't it?

[18:42] Person to person relationship, it's to do with love, it's to do with beauty, because every bride looks beautiful, and she's dressed, to be adorned, as beautiful, and it says that here, doesn't it?

[18:57] A bride, can't find it, beautifully dressed, for her husband, and I've been at one, or two weddings, where, at the moment, where the bride, enters in, so it's the way we do it, in English weddings, anyway, so the, the bridegroom is already there, and the bride enters, and this poor chap, his knees have been knocking, ever since, well, ever since, and, and then he's, so he's more or less done for, already, and then he looks around, and sees this wonderful, person coming towards him, and nearly keels over, I'm just trying to think, I think Jamie was a bit like that, when he got married, and, I think Tom Robson, was when, when he got married, actually, so, here's the, here's something that everybody, understands, and, the Bible says, that's what it will be like, on that great day, and the bride, will be us, and,

[19:59] Jesus, is the great, heavenly bridegroom, it's the, the wife, of the lamb, and, it's a day, well, it's full of wonder, we can't imagine ourselves, looking beautiful, and wonderful, and yet, Christ, does that, Christ is changing us now, he died, to, to cleanse us, and make us, a beautiful bride, for him, and one day, all of that, longing, will be, will be consummated, and we will, see him, we will be presented, to him, we won't be living apart, in the sense, that we do now, we'll be together, forever, so, we have that picture, of, what the future holds, it's a fantastic picture, isn't it, do you agree with me, I think it's a wonderful picture, the, here is, the bride, the church, us, prepared, as a bride, beautifully dressed, for her husband, husband, that's what the end of the world, is like, and the, the second, sort of half of that, that is described, is of a city, and I notice, that the two, are put back to back, book of revelation, loves to do that, the lion, is also a lamb, the 144,000, a very precise number, is the same, as that multitude, that no one can number, and here, the, the bride, the singular bride, is also, the holy city, and of course, city, enlarges on the, the, the depiction, what is a city, what is this, new, this holy city, this new Jerusalem, well a city, is a community, it's not, an individual, it's, humanity, grouped together, that's what a city is, it's a community, and a city, has a characteristic, made up of all the, individual characters, put together, and working together,

[22:18] I suppose, you get the same thing, a little bit, in the way that, different churches, have different characteristics, you get a different, combination of personalities, different, aspects, aspects, but one, one church, one community, so here's the city, it's a community, it's a place of business, so, we should not think, that the world to come, is only, and exclusively, singing, and we should not think, that the world to come, is wafting around, in a disembodied state, either, a community, a community, is a place, where real people, do stuff, it's, a place of business, and it has, this, the combined, force, and, combined personality, and the multiplicity, meaning many, many people together, and that is, what is described, in, of the city, let's, look at, the description of it, in verse nine, and I am just, dipping into this, so, come,

[23:34] I will show you the bride, the wife of the lamb, he carried me away, in the spirit, to a mountain, great and high, and showed me, the holy city, Jerusalem, coming down, out of heaven, from God, it shone, with the glory of God, its brilliance, was like that, of a very precious jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal, so he's going to describe, the brilliance of it, in terms of, semi-precious stones, what we call, semi-precious stones, wonderful colours, and beauty, and, as you know, different, places have, different characteristic, building materials, so, if you go to the, Isle of Wight, there's a lot of brick, that's made, a sort of green clay brick, gives a characteristic, anybody know, the characteristic, or the famous, building, material, in Lewis, mathematical tiles, mathematical tiles, look like bricks, but if you look, at the edge of them, they're only that thin, and they're actually, tiles that have been hung, like that, to look like bricks, timber framed house, and you, that's very Lewis, very Lewis, have a look, when you're next there, the Brighton building, material, characteristically, sorry,

[25:00] Bunga Roosh, Bunga Roosh, which is made, of all loads, of old rubbish, put together, with more, with, yeah, with lime, and a, a render, on the outside, which is the only thing, that holds it together, you can recognise, it a mile off, the, the place, where you're doing the building, has characteristic, building materials, and the characteristic, building materials, of heaven, are heavenly materials, we'll have, a pearl for this, and, we'll lay down, gold for that, and, this will be, made out of pure glass, just notice all these, heavenly building materials, last time, we might have seen those, was on the, breastplate of the high priest, because he, is clothed, in a heavenly way, when you look at him, you think, oh, he must have been in touch, with heaven, look at his clothes, and he smells of heaven, as well, because he had a particular, scent that he was, to carry around with him, so these semi-precious stones, were on his, on his front, and here they are, in the, in the building, of this city, verse 12, it had a great high wall, with 12 gates, with 12 angels, at the gates, so, what is, 12 is a special number, it's not 7, it's not, 13, or 14, it's 12, why 12?

[26:30] 12 tribes, and the 12 apostles, and Jesus, we presume, called 12 apostles, on the back of the fact, that originally, Israel was 12 tribes, sort of describing, the community, of God's people, Old Testament, and New Testament, there's a lot of 12s here, in this city, it's a very, community, place, on the gates, were written, this is verse 12, strangely enough, the names of the 12 tribes, of Israel, there were three gates, in the east, three gates, in the north, three in the south, three in the west, making a total of, 12, 12, the wall of the city, had 12 foundations, and on them, the names of the 12 apostles, of the land, well I don't know, how to draw the foundations, but there's lots of 12s, it's, it's built for, this complete community, Old and New Testament, the people of God, and the angel, who talked to me, verse 15, had a measuring rod, of gold, well that's what you would use, isn't it, you wouldn't dream of, taking something, made out of aluminium, to measure this city, a measuring rod of gold, to measure its city, its gates, its walls, he's not doing architecture, he's not, he's doing theology, he's, this is, a visual way, of teaching us, spiritual truth, so he measures it, he's saying, what can we find out, about this, well it's laid out, like a square, as long as it was wide, he measured the city, with its rod, and it's vast, so according to the footnote, about 1,400 miles, in length, and width, and height, so it's cubic, cubicle, no it can't be cubicle, that can't, that can't be right, it's cubic, it is a cube, and, any idea, where the idea, of a place, that's a cube, might come from,

[28:31] Steve knows, because he told me, go on, yeah, in the construction, of the temple, the old testament temple, the space, where God was, was cubic, so it's not, a Borg cube, it's, a holy cube, where were we, so it's a wall, which is 144 cubits thick, which is 12 by 12, by man's measurement, interesting, that something, so heavenly, is also so human, because there is this, this wonderful, combining together, of holiness, heavenliness, and humanness, it's a place, for human beings, and then there's, the description, of the wall, made of Jasper, the city of gold, the foundations, the foundations, of the city, were decorated, with every kind, of precious stone, and they're listed,

[29:33] Jasper, Sapphire, Chalcedony, emerald, and so on, and so on, and so on, verse 21, the 12 gates, were 12 pearls, each gate, made of a single pearl, the streets, of the city, were of pure gold, like translucent glass, so, I simply take from that, he's trying to say to us, it is a beautiful, radiant, amazing place, you've never seen, anything like this, but, this is where you'll be, and you'll be part of it, because it's all 12-ish, it's all for people, and this is what he's, this is what he's telling us, right, so it's a bride, and it's a city, let's, jump over a little bit, and think that it's, the future, depicted as a river, and a tree, 22, chapter 22, the angel showed me, the river, of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God, and of the lamb, down the middle, of the great street, of the city, does anybody know, where the idea, of a river, that flows, from the throne, comes from, it's ringing a number of bells, from the Old Testament,

[30:49] Ezekiel, there's Ezekiel, where the, there's a, he's shown a temple, and the river, and he measures it, and it gets deeper, and deeper, and deeper, and it turns the salt water, fresh, as it goes along, so that's the vision, that he's, he's picking up on, any other rivers, which one, were you thinking of, yeah, there were, there were rivers, that flowed out of Eden, weren't there, yeah, which presumably, meant it was on a hill, if the rivers flowed out of it, yeah, thank you, and there's a psalm, isn't there, which says, there is a, the river, the streams of which, make glad the city of God, and the idea of a, a river, so important, isn't it, to have a stream of water, particularly if you're a, Middle Eastern reader of this, what could be more precious, than water, and, we have, Jesus, telling us, all you who are thirsty, come to me and drink, drink, drink the, drink those who believe in me, for out of, out of his, middle, out of his belly, will flow streams of living water, the idea of, of this, fullness, of spiritual life, flowing, and I can't help, but remember, that when Jesus died, on the cross, his side was pierced, and from his side, there flowed, water and blood, and I would like to suggest, and it's only a suggestion, that the, the healing river, flows from the wounded side, of Jesus Christ, says here, it flows from the throne,

[32:35] I'm not, I don't think that's a contradiction, but I think the, the thought, of his wounded side, is very suggestive, so there's water, flowing, in this world, and, it, it supplies, the tree of life, now where does the tree of life, originally come from, yeah, it's in the, in the garden of Eden, isn't it, it's the, it's the tree, the eating of which, gives you eternal life, or sustains eternal life, and, that was sort of the last, we saw of it, in Eden, we weren't allowed, to go there, and God took measures, to mean that there was a barrier, that could not be crossed, but here he says, here's the tree, it's there, actually there's, is it 12 of it, it's on either side, of the, of the river, and it bears 12, crops of fruit, so I read, misread that as 12, versions of the tree, but it doesn't say that, does it, it's about 12, crops of fruit, and the leaves of the tree, are for the healing, of the nations, which is a wonderful thing, isn't it, the nations, down through the Bible, the nations always get, the wrong end of the stick, the nations are always, hammering on, against the Lord, and his anointed, the kings of the earth, take their stand, the rulers take their stand, against the Lord, and his anointed, and the nations, are constantly depicted, as shaking their fists, in the face of God, but God will win the nations, and he provides, for all this, dysfunctionality, and all this, this mess up, to be healed, there is, healing, the leaves of the tree, are for the healing, of the nations, and the time, the civil rights movement, in America, there was a song, by Pete Seeger, which is a sort of, secularized version, of this, but you can get, the longing of it, oh healing river, send down your water, send down your water, upon this land, oh healing river, send down your water, and wash the blood, from off the sand, that's what, the Pete Seeger song, he was thinking of that, in the middle, of all the, civil rights unrest, and all of that, healing river, come and sort out, our nation, well he wasn't, talking about it, in a Christian way, but here is, the Christian way, the leaves, of the tree, is for the healing, of the nations, and it says, there will be, no more curse, so that's exactly, what we need, isn't it, back in,

[35:12] Genesis, when our, first, father, sinned, he brought, misery, on the rest of us, and, creation, took the hit, with him, it was, there was a curse, and here, at last, creation, has the curse, removed, and creation, has been groaning, and longing, in expectation, for the sons of God, to be revealed, and here, and now, the nations, are healed, and, the curse, is removed, from creation, it's a wonderful, prospect, isn't it, I think, the way we access it, is really by, imagination, and I, I've said this before, and I, I still, still think it's right, that C.S. Lewis, has done, great things for us, and giving us, an imaginative way, of thinking about, the world to come, I know C.S. Lewis, isn't to everybody's, taste, but, if you can, if you can manage it, sort of, set a, you know, 1930s style, of England, isn't it, but, great imagination, as to what it would be like, to be in a world, where there's no sin, in a world, where everything is, is new, anyway, let's move on, to the no more temple, right, looks as though,

[36:39] I've, clicked the wrong button, at the wrong time, so bear with me, on this, verse, chapter 21, verse 22, I did not see, a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty, and the Lamb, are its temple, let's just touch, on that thought, so, this is the button, I meant to press, there's the world, with trees, and houses, and a person, taking a dog, for a walk, I did the dog, quite quickly, but you could imagine, it's being a dog, it's quite, yes, it's all right, so there's the world, as it is, there's our world, and there is the presence of God, God spans the entire world, does he not, the earth is the Lord's, and the fullness, of it, however, the way, certainly in the Old Testament, certainly the idea of temple, is that if you want to, meet God, you have to go, to a special place, and at the temple, there is the presence of God, please notice, so you have a big wide world, and God is, as big as the world, and yet, only in part of the world, can you meet God, because you go to Jerusalem, or you point yourself, towards Jerusalem, and there is the presence of God, and it has, you know, it says,

[38:06] God dwells here, this is the holy place, this is the most holy place, that's where God is, that's how it is in our world, in the world to come, you have, please imagine, a new creation, so there are new trees, and there's a new house, and there's a new dog, and a person doing, the things that human beings do, interacting with creation, in a resurrection world, I don't know whether, there are resurrection dogs, but there is a resurrection, ecosystem, a new heaven, and a new earth, and, so this is a bit where I click it, and it puts the God bit over there, you don't need a temple, because there is no bit of the world, where you have to go to, to find the presence of God, specially, because the whole world, is the place to meet God, and I invite you to think of a creation, like that, where God is fully, actively, wonderfully present, at every point,

[39:21] I mean use your imagination, in our world, you can, trip over things, and stub your toe, in the world to come, here's a suggestion, is the world to come, so filled with the presence of God, that the rules that it operates by, do not allow you, to stub your toe, because in this new world, there's no pain, there's no death, there's no mourning, there's no crying, we can hardly imagine it, can we, but a world, absolutely packed, with the presence of God, it doesn't need a temple, because, the Lamb, and the Lord, are the temple, in that world, so we're just, dipping into this, as you can see, and I'm missing lots of stuff out, and not dealing adequately, with lots of other stuff, here is, no, here are some of the promises, in these wonderful chapters, so let's, just taste those, it's a brilliant promise, isn't it, there will be no more death, or mourning, or crying, or pain, the old order is gone, and all is made new,

[40:41] I suppose that's, like many promises, it may have more, or less resonance, depending on what, you're going through, but you could imagine, somebody, perhaps, feeling, very much, the pain, and the sadness, of this world, and God saying, you won't feel that, in the world to come, there won't be tears, there won't be, sorrow, there won't be, regrets, it's, it's all wiped away, the old things are gone, and God says, it's all new, and then we have this promise, which is tucked away, in there, 22 verse 4, they will see his face, well that's one thing, we've never ever done, is it, we've never seen his face, there's a, there's a, sort of iconic, representation of Jesus, everybody, would recognize, this is what it's supposed, to look like, excuse me, that we've never seen his face, and, according to this promise, we will see his face,

[41:59] I, I can remember, a bit of, the bit at the end of, of, a, a, a, a, Pilgrim's Progress, should have brought it along with me, where he says, Pilgrim, as he's about to enter the heavenly city, says, something like, I have, I have heard of him, and, the thought of meeting him, has been like a burning coal, in my heart, but now I shall see him, of whom I have only heard, previously, they will see his face, I remember, going to pray with, Neil, whose last name, I've forgotten, Neil, and, Durrant, he had liver cancer, and I remember going, and reading that bit, with him, and, I didn't see him again, in this world, and, he said, cool, that sounds quite exciting, doesn't it?

[42:51] And, and, it is. And, here's another verse, which says, and I didn't put the reference, they will reign with him, it's, 22, verse 5, they will reign, forever, and ever, not need the light, of the lamp, or the light of the sun, for the Lord God, will give them light, will give them light, and they will reign, forever, and ever.

[43:20] I think it's saying, about us, isn't it? That we will share, his throne, and, I think that they, is us. An amazing thought, isn't it?

[43:33] So, time has gone, we've touched on, these wonderful things, and, we have prayed, that we wouldn't just, forget them, but that they would be, part of our, thinking, part of our motivation, part of what keeps us going, and leads us on.

[43:51] Amen.