8-27-2023 Sunday Sermon Message

Devotional of the Week: Psalm 91:1-16

Text: Revelation 21:1-8

Title: What God is doing to bring about a new heaven, a new earth, and new Jerusalem

         When Apostle John saw that the things God wanted to accomplish were revealed, he testified as he saw them.

When we realize through His Word what God has planned and accomplished with the Father, the Word Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit for the past six thousand years and seven thousand years leading up to the thousand-year kingdom of Christ, and what mysterious things He will do in the last days to come, we will glorify, praise and worship the Holy Trinity God for all eternity.

        God has planned in advance those who shall live forever and ever in the new heavens, the new earth, and the new Jerusalem, where there will be no more the devil and no more sin, death, and curses, and He has been working without slumber or sleep.

       Six thousand years ago, we can see what God Himself proclaimed about what He would do in His words to the old serpent Devil, who brought sin, death, and curses to the heavens and earth that He Himself had created:

” And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.”(Genesis 3:15)

         Through these words, God prophesied that He would make a woman in the future. He called Abraham to make the descendants of his grandson Jacob as his chosen Israelites and to choose them as his women to be the lords of the new earth that He would create anew. We see this in Jesus’ words to the Jews:

” Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.” (Matthew  5:5)

       Also, when God referred to His only begotten Son, Jesus, who would come as a descendant of the Israelites, as her seed, He was saying that in the future He would crush the Devil’s head and throw him into the lake of fire.  Apostle Paul and the Apostle John testified about the purpose for which her seed, Jesus Christ, came:

“Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil;…. He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.   .(Hebrews 2:14, 1 John 3:8)

      God also said that in the future, the devil would crush Jesus, who was coming as her seed, by hanging Him on the cross and nailing Him to His heel. In these words, we can see God’s plan for the Church of God, who will come down from heaven and live with the Lord forever in the New Jerusalem, where we will believe in and receive the Lord Jesus Christ, who died on the cross and rose the third day to take away the sin of the world (John 1:29), and those who receive the Holy Spirit by faith in Christ, become God’s children, and become the bride of Christ. Apostle Paul testified of the position of the Church of God:  ” Would to God ye could bear with me a little in my folly: and indeed bear with me. ² For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ..(2 Corinthians 11:1-2)

       We can see that God’s plan is contained in God’s words spoken to the old serpent devil. However, since the Devil brought sin, death, and curses into the world, the conscience of every person born into the world has been filled with tremendous sins because of the original sin caused by Adam. Jesus told His disciples what kinds of sin are included: ” And he said, That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man. ²¹ For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, ²² Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness: ²³ All these evil things come from within, and defile the man..(Mark 7:20-23)

       He said that not only the hearts of men, but even the earth that God created were cursed because of Adam’s sin: ” And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; ¹⁸ Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; ¹⁹ In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return..(Genesis 3:17-19)

       God is doing this until now, because He must restore the earth that has been cursed by the sin of Adam, and men in the sin, the curse, and the death in order to create new men and  new earth.

      First of all, God cleanses with the blood of Christ Jesus from all sins in the consciences of those who believe in the death, burial, and resurrection of His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ: ” Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.¹³ For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh: ¹⁴ How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?”(Hebrews 9:12-14)

      Apostle Paul testified that the spirit of all who believe in the blood of Christ receives eternal life through the rebirth: ” ³ For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another. ⁴ But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared,⁵ Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;”.(Titus  3:3-5)

       God renews the earth and all the creatures that inhabit therein, cursed by man’s sin, to be born again: ” 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. ⁶ 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.”.(Revelation 21:5-6)

       Jesus told His disciples about the time when He would make all things new and the earth would be restored and made new:

” And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.”(Matthew 19:28)

        Yes! Not only does God sanctify people by rebirth with His blood, but He also regenerates the earth to create a new earth. Not only that, but He also restores all of creation that is suffering because of man’s sin.  Apostle Paul testified: ” For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God. ²⁰ For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope,²¹ Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.”(Romans 8:19-21)

        God will work to make the heaven defiled by Satan Lucifer as a new heaven. Therefore, God’s will be done in heaven: ” And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, ⁸ And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. ⁹ And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. ¹⁰ And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night..(Revelation 12:7-10)

      The devil, who was cast out of heaven, shall be released from the abyss for a while after the millennium, and will deceive all the nations of the world, and all the nations of Gog and Magog shall be judged by fire, and the devil shall be cast  into the lake of eternal fire, and he will no longer be able to deceive the people in the earth, so that the new earth that God will create shall be forever and ever:

“And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.” Revelation 20:10)

       Finally, the holy New Jerusalem, the heavenly dwelling place that Jesus promised to his disciples, shall descend to God, and the bride of Christ shall live with Him in their eternal dwelling place forever and ever. The remnant of the Jews shall live forever as a nation of priest in the new earth, and all the repentant Gentiles shall migrate to the infinite stars in the new heaven and live in the new heaven forever and ever.

Amen! Hallelujah!