Heaven - Longing for the Garden of Paradise
Notes
Transcript
Want to take a moment and give you an opportunity to submit a question—submit a question about:
—Revelation--
—the end times
and there are 2 ways to do it:
a QR code on screen (take a picture and it will send you a link)
or write on your paper--
I want you to do this now---turn to your neighbor and then see if you can come up with a question
I won’t answer every single question—but I will look through them and take a Sunday or 2 to try an answer.
Please turn to Revelation 22:1-5. Revelation 22:1-5.
This is our last passage on the new heaven and the new earth.
We have looked at this incredible vision that God gave John the Apostle to encourage him and the suffering church to keep going and follow Christ.
Would you stand as I read it:
1 Then 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
2 down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.
3 No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him.
4 They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads.
5 There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever.
I want you to turn to your neighbor for a second—if you could describe what paradise looks like for YOU personally—what would it be, what would it look like? or another way—if you are struggling—what is the perfect vacation?
We have said so far…that the new heaven and new earth is like:
a place with no sea — perfect shalom
marriage - intimacy with Jesus
inheritance - receiving from our Father
the best community - the new Jerusalem—a new city
and a temple—meaning we dwell with God perfectly
one more image—Heaven is paradise....and paradise is this beautiful garden imagery.
(vs. 1—river of the water of life—clear as crystal down the city....
there is the tree of life—bearing fruit—healing the nations--
even the way light is portrayed—no need for light because God is there.
as I think about all these images---it’s almost like John the Apostle who was getting these visions couldn’t keep up...
Heaven is like this—everything is made new—and set right--
it’s like the best relationship ever—what marriage is pointing to
it’s like the ultimate treasure—the inheritance
it’s the best community ever…where we as a multi-cultural family dwell with God
and it’s like a garden…paradise...
that image of the garden—and paradise—so common in Scripture—it reminds us of—everything is at its best—nature and creation at its best in harmony; humanity dwelling in harmony with nature—reality at its best—satisfaction at its best; it’s pure bliss and paradise. it’s pure beauty, rest. abundance. pure joy
paradise is often pictured on a beach somewhere, in a hammock, drinking your favorite beverage, taking a nap, all is well....
each week, I have been trying to show you how these images are not just random—they are all throughout the Bible—the fact that the new heaven and new earth is a garden…is intentional.
let me take you through the Bible for a second—where is the first place in Scripture where we see a Garden show up:
The Garden:
Eden (Genesis 2:8-17)
8 Now the Lord God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed.
9 The Lord God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
10 A river watering the garden flowed from Eden; from there it was separated into four headwaters.
11 The name of the first is the Pishon; it winds through the entire land of Havilah, where there is gold.
12 (The gold of that land is good; aromatic resin and onyx are also there.)
15 The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.
16 And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden;
17 but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.”
the first image of paradise is the Garden of Eden.
and all is well—God is dwelling with Adam and Eve perfectly.
and notice some of the same images in Revelation 22. show up here—the tree of life, which enabled them to live forever, a river. gold.
and btw—it’s interesting that in paradise—Adam and Eve are put there to work—so it makes me wonder if there will be some type work to do in the new heaven and new earth. but it is the most fulfilling work—as God gives us the raw materials, and we cultivate, and exercise dominion over them.
and we see in chapter 3 that God would walk with them in the cool of the day.
paradise — heaven on earth—the garden.
so the entire Bible is bookended with a Garden—at the beginning—and at the end.
but unfortunately—Adam and Even—rebelled against God—they ate from the tree they shouldn’t, and they were kicked out of this garden:
24 After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life.
no longer are we in paradise—everything is broken—our relationship with God and others and ourselves—and even creation.
there are weeds in our garden—(that’s why I don’t love gardening—takes a lot of work)
how are we going to return to paradise? how? where everything is right...
interestingly…we talked about the image of the temple last week—where God dwells with man...
a short-term solution in the OT...
2. The Temple
God rescued and formed a people—the Israelites and led them into a new paradise—the Promised Land-flowing with milk and honey...
God had the Israelites first build a portable temple, the tabernacle—and then a permanent building—the temple in Jerusalem.
God gave them the temple so that if the Israelites followed all of God’s instructions about animals sacrifices, priests, and festivals, He would dwell with them.
that temple—would be a type of garden or paradise on earth.
and look at how the temple decorations are described...
29 On the walls all around the temple, in both the inner and outer rooms, he carved cherubim, palm trees and open flowers.
30 He also covered the floors of both the inner and outer rooms of the temple with gold.
skip to verse 32:
32 And on the two olive-wood doors he carved cherubim, palm trees and open flowers, and overlaid the cherubim and palm trees with hammered gold.
skip to verse 35
35 He carved cherubim, palm trees and open flowers on them and overlaid them with gold hammered evenly over the carvings.
3x it is mentioned these plants—palm trees, open flowers—all of these are decorations in the temple to remind us of the Garden of Eden—the temple is a new garden
but unfortunately, as much as God tried to dwell with his people, they would not with him.
so he kicks them out of that Garden—the Temple—has it destroyed.
and he sends Jesus this is point #3.
3. Jesus —
and Jesus comes on a rescue mission to dwell with us.
where we failed…he did not.
he demonstrated the incredible power of the kingdom of God as the king—and ultimately he came on a rescue mission to die the death we deserve for our sins in our place.
If you look at
Matthew 26:36–42 (NIV)
36 Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane (a Garden) , and he said to them, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.”
37 He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled.
38 Then he said to them, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.”
39 Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.”
40 Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Couldn’t you men keep watch with me for one hour?” he asked Peter.
41 “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
42 He went away a second time and prayed, “My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done.”
is it any accident—that Jesus goes to a garden—right before he is about to go to the cross, to pray. and he knows why he came—the Father sent Him on a mission to die for the sins of the earth and he is wrestling with the cross and what is about to come—because he will become sin on our behalf and be separated from the Father.
but our Savior is awesome—where the first Adam failed in the Garden of Eden…when tempted...
Jesus—the 2nd Adam—succeeded.
where the first Adam was kicked out of the Garden.
Jesus willingly stayed—praying—
Jesus shows that even his disciples couldn’t stay awake and compare to Jesus—they needed saving just as much as the rest of us.
and his cross is compared to a tree—he hung on the tree of life—dying, taking the curse of sin on our behalf so that if we surrender to King Jesus—we will eat from the tree of Life—who is Jesus.
Galatians 3:13 - 13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree”
The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Ga 3:12–13). (2016). Crossway Bibles.
Jesus even told the thief of the cross: Luke 23:43
43 Jesus answered him, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.”
and so Jesus stayed, went to the cross, died. and look where they placed Jesus’ body:
41 At the place where Jesus was crucified, there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb, in which no one had ever been laid.
and 3 days later—the women went to the tomb and look what happened...
John 20:11–16 (NIV)
11 Now Mary (Mary Magdalene) stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb
12 and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus’ body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot.
13 They asked her, “Woman, why are you crying?” “They have taken my Lord away,” she said, “and I don’t know where they have put him.”
14 At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus.
15 He asked her, “Woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?” Thinking he was the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.”
16 Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means “Teacher”).
17 Jesus said, “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’ ”
18 Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: “I have seen the Lord!” And she told them that he had said these things to her.
Jesus is the one who stayed in the Garden, and rose in the Garden—
and if you have Jesus now—you begin to experience a type of Garden in your life—a type of paradise—heaven on earth.
4. You as a follower of Jesus.
and like a garden—you are called to bear fruit:
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
it’s the fruit of the Spirit—because as you stay connected to Jesus—He produces it...
you do this by being connected to Jesus the vine:
1 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener.
2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.
3 You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you.
4 Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.
5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.
and you become a vision of this paradise when Jesus says this now:
37 On the last and greatest day of the festival, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink.
38 Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.”
39 By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified.
finally back to this...
5. the new heaven and new earth
1 Then 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
2 down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.
3 No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him.
4 They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads.
5 There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever.
we long for this paradise—a return to it.
through Jesus we start to experience it now--
and one day we will have paradise fully—face to face with Jesus in our Garden, City, Temple, marriage, inheritance with no sea...
so what do we do now? in light of all these images:
Nancy Guthrie in her book Blessed says this...
Blessed: Experiencing the Promise of the Book of Revelation Hearing and Keeping Revelation 21:1–22:5
~ This picture of the new creation as a marriage sustains us as we await the coming of our bridegroom, Jesus. It causes us to direct our desires toward this eternal marriage.
~ This picture of the new creation as an inheritance helps us to be content. We don’t get so uptight about what we have or don’t have here and now because we really do believe and anticipate that one day we, along with all of the other children of Abraham by faith, are going to inherit the world.
~ This picture of the new creation as a multicultural community leads us to open the doors of our hearts, the tables in our homes, and the pews in our churches for people who may come through a different door, from a different culture, and have skin that’s a different color. We love them and welcome them and invest in relationship with them now because we know we are going to be sharing eternity with them.
~ This picture of the new creation as a holy temple causes us to increasingly hate what is evil and love what is good. Instead of holding on to our pet sins, we find that we have an increasing desire to be holy as he is holy.
~ This picture of the new creation as a garden keeps us from expecting that this world is ever going to fully satisfy us. We’re thirsty for the living water. We’re hungry for the fruit of the tree of life. We long for the full and complete satisfaction that awaits us in the new and greater garden to come.
that word satisfaction—so true.
how many of you would say you are satisified--
how many of you long for true satisfaction...
here is what we can do now...
remember that our ultimate satisfaction will be in the new heaven and new earth. (in other words—in some ways—we will never fully find it this side of heaven). that is not meant to be depressing—but to remind us—that if that is true—is that is where real paradise is…stop looking to find paradise in the things of this world—money, power, romance, vacations, people’s approval, whatever it is—it will only come from God fully and finally where we are face to face.
at some level we experience that satisfaction now—b/c Jesus he is our living water—if I drink from Him every day—that makes me satisfied now and long for it.
and if you know that...
you can make a difference now for the kingdom of God.
if our hearts are not entangled in this world now…but longing for Jesus now and for eternity—we can hold on to our stuff loosely—it belongs to Jesus. we don’t have to feel so frantic and like we are in rat race—b/c we got Jesus—and paradise is coming.
we don’t have to fear missing out—fomo—b/c the best if yet to come...
we can live and move into the hardest most difficult neighborhoods, countries, all for the cause of Christ—b/c paradise is coming...
and as we live for the kingdom of God—we give people a taste of that now.
Richard Baxter article...
final plug:
if you have a paper you need to submit on Revelation questions—give it to the ushers as you leave
please get your picture taken today for the directory—sign up for the app and directory...
verse?