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Heavenly Father, we are blind to the truth unless you open our eyes. We are deaf to your word unless you open our ears. By the work of your Holy Spirit in us, please open our eyes and ears to the truth of your word this morning. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Are you a reader of thrillers? I’ve read a few John Grisham’s in my time. The best are the earliest, such as A Time to Kill and The Firm. Thrillers have a pattern – and typically after a lot of build-up they end all in a rush. The wicked enemy dies or ends up in prison. All ends well for the lead character. We cheer, we dream, and there’s a satisfying resolution. Grisham is particularly good at it. He’s sold 300 million books. And maybe the fact that he’s a Christian has something to do with it. Maybe something in our soul recognises that thriller pattern as reflecting a reality that we’re made for. And that reality is what the Book of Revelation is all about. It’s the Bible’s thriller.

We’re starting a short series called ‘All Things New’ on Revelation, jumping straight to its climax, Revelation 21-22; a bit like going straight to the final chapter of a thriller. Today we’re looking at Revelation 21.1-8, and my title is ‘The Death of Death’. Revelation is an extraordinary and powerful book. It’s a highly structured book, full of picture language and symbolic numbers – especially the number seven. In fact the whole book of Revelation is a series of seven-fold scenes. And Revelation 21.1-8 is the seventh vision of the seventh series. As we read it we need to let it dig deep into our imaginations. Read it cinematically (as if we’re seeing it all up on a big IMAX screen), because its symbols represent reality. And what we’re watching is how God (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) will finally fulfil his promises forever. So, this is the culmination of the whole Bible. The more we read the whole Bible, the richer these chapters get, and they are so rich that we can only scratch the surface this morning. So, what are we to learn from Revelation 21.1-8?

1. God will make all things new

That’s where history is headed. Towards a new creation. Revelation 21.5:

And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.”

That refers back to Revelation 20.11, which says:

Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. From his presence earth and sky fled away…

And it’s clear even further back, that the one on the throne is God the Father. So Revelation 4.2 tells us:

At once I was in the Spirit, and behold, a throne stood in heaven, with one seated on the throne.

And all the representatives of creation and of God’s people around God’s throne say (Revelation 4.11):

“Worthy are you, our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honour and power; for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created.”

Well now, at the end, that creation is giving way to a new creation. Revelation 21.1:

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.

So this is the creation equivalent of what will be our resurrection bodies. As there was with the risen Jesus, there will be continuity as well as re-creation. As the apostle Paul puts it in Romans 8.21:

…the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.

Vivienne and I are fans of the TV show The Repair Shop; broken down old things are made new. I got hooked the first time I saw it, and a large glass lightshade came in, smashed to pieces. To my amazement, the conservator worked on it, until it was whole and full of light. It’s better than ever, and you wouldn’t know it had ever been broken. So it will be with our world. God will make all things new.

2. Those who choose death will be sent away from God to eternal destruction

This is inescapable in these chapters, and we’ll miss out on just how glorious is our salvation in Christ if we don’t face it head on. There is a Day of Judgement coming, a final reckoning. Take a look at the end of our section, Revelation 21.8:

But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulphur, which is the second death.

And that refers back up to Revelation 20, which describes how the Books of Death and the Book of Life are opened, and people are judged accordingly. Revelation 20.12 and Revelation 20.15:

And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done…And if anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.

Then lest we want to pass over this too hastily, this teaching is there again down in Revelation 21.27, which says about the eternal holy city:

But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life.

Let me make a few comments on this:

i). Why do we tend to find such teaching so uncomfortable? Because our culture cries out for justice, but rejects the judge who alone can bring it about, and rejects his judgements. There is a deep contradiction there. Just this week we’ve heard a fresh outcry over the shocking and evil racist murder of Stephen Lawrence, 30 years ago. “Anger at police failings after BBC names sixth suspect,” says the headline. Anger because that suspect has died and so will not face justice. But he will.

ii). Revelation is clear that those who are eternally condemned choose death. They reject all opportunities to repent. Instead they curse God. So for instance in Revelation 16.11, as God’s wrath against sin and evil is poured out on the world, they:

…cursed the God of heaven for their pain and sores. They did not repent of their deeds.

Again and again the opportunity to repent and be saved is there, but they don’t want it. They want nothing to do with God, in whom is life. And they get what they want.

iii). Those who are eternally condemned are liars. That’s the final sin in the catalogue. It’s significant because it identifies them as aligned with Satan. As Jesus said to those who wanted to kill him – and in the end succeeded (this is John 8.44):

You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires…When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.

iv). The Bible is clear that without Jesus and without grace, we are all like that, and headed for eternal destruction in the lake of fire. Romans 3.23 and Rmans 6.23:

…for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God…For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

v). The reality of judgement to come is good news. Judgement is good news. Without it, there would be no justice, and no end to evil. Without it, the universe would collapse into a chaos of evil. We should thank God for the reality of judgement. When we took over our new garden, we discovered it was infested with ground elder; a pernicious, perennial, invasive and destructive weed. Even the smallest fragment of root regrows if it’s left. We’re in the process of purging it from our garden. We’ve taken large quantities of it to the tip. It all must go. And we’ll be delighted if ever it is gone completely. There can be no place for those who curse God in the holy city, the new Jerusalem. It is very sombre but also very good news that those who choose death will be sent away from God to eternal destruction.

3. Those who accept the gift of life will be brought into the holy city

Revelation 21.6:

And he [who was seated on the throne, that is, God] said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment.”

That fulfils the prophecy given to Isaiah – this is Isaiah 55.1-3:

Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price…Incline your ear, and come to me; hear, that your soul may live…

And let’s be clear that this water of life is the Spirit of Jesus. As Jesus himself said, in John 7.37-38:

If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’

And John immediately adds:

Now this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive…

So this is God giving himself as a gift to us, who because of our sin, evil and rejection of him deserve to be thrown into the lake of fire. We just have to want him. We just have to thirst. What is the cost to us? Nothing. This gift is free. It is without payment. Why? Because the payment has been made by the Lamb who was slain. Jesus paid the price by laying down his life for our sin on the cross. We killed him. And it is the Lamb who was slain who is calling us. If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Revelation 21.6:

To the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment.

In the world of the internet subscriptions, when we’re offered a free trial it’s to hook us in and get us to pay later and repeatedly. Not so with the Lord’s offer of eternal life – the water of life. The price is paid, once and for all. It is free for all eternity.

4. The curse of death will be lifted for ever

The glorious and astounding picture here is that it’s not only the devil and the enemies of God who will be thrown into the lake of fire. It is death itself. So this is what will happen after the Day of Judgement – this is Revelation 20.14, just before our passage:

Then Death and Hades [that’s the realm of the dead] were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death…

Death has hung like a terrible fatal cloud over all human life ever since Adam and Eve fell. And this is the death of death – the end of death itself. So if we’ve slaked our thirst and accepted the Lord’s free gift of the water of eternal life without payment, then what will this mean for us?Revelation 21.4:

[God] will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain any more, for the former things have passed away.

Death will be destroyed, and all its many symptoms will disappear. On the radio the other day I heard an interview with a man talking about his experience of life after getting a diagnosis of terminal prostate cancer. But he’s not alone. We all have a terminal diagnosis. Death is coming for each one of us. But God is coming for death. Death itself has a terminal diagnosis. Death will die. What tears are in our eyes? My dear dad died. I mourn him. I don’t want to open old wounds, but what mourning is in our hearts? In what ways are we crying inside? What pain are we having to bear? Did you hear what God is going to do with all of that? He is going to wipe it away. All of it. The curse of death, and all of deaths symptoms and side effects, will be lifted forever.

5. God will bless his redeemed people by living with them forever

Revelation 21.3:

And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God.”

Every now and again a day comes along when everything goes right – a nearly perfect day with those you love. Do you know what I mean? It doesn’t happen very often in my experience, but I treasure those days. Multiply that a million times, and we still don’t get close to what it will be like to have God (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) live directly and personally among us. It will be the ultimate fulfilment of God’s promise of blessing to his people. We’ll take a closer look at what it’ll be like next week when we get to the rest of Revelation 21. But here’s a sneak preview from Revelation 21.22-23:

And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb. And city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb.

This will be like the Garden of Eden only without the snake in the grass, and the shame, and the threat, and the need to hide from God. Genesis 3.8:

And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day…

The Westminster Catechism asks the question: What is the chief end of man? Answer: To glorify God and enjoy him for ever. That is the blessing that God will give us. So, to wrap up, let me just step back for a moment and ask: What do we make of all that? Can it all really be right? Well the Lord anticipates those questions and doubts that rise in our minds. And he says (this is in Revelation 21.5):

Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.

This is the voice of the living God – the creator of all things, who will make all things new. This is true. We can trust it. So don’t choose death. The opportunity to repent and come to Christ is here now but it won’t be forever. The day will come when it’s too late. Choose life. Come to God with your thirst. As the Lord said right the way back in Deuteronomy 30.19, in the early days of this long history that culminates in Revelation 21:

See, I have set before you today life and good, death and evil… blessing and curse. Therefore choose life…

And then be one who conquers. Revelation 21.7:

The one who conquers will have this heritage, and I will be his God and he will be my son.

Keep going with Jesus in the face of sin, Satan, sickness and death. We do that by grace and in the power of the Holy Spirit. Romans 8.37:

…we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.

And look forward to the new heaven and the new earth, and to the holy city, the New Jerusalem. Don’t grieve as those without hope. There will be an end to our pain and grief. There is a blazing and glorious light on the horizon. Jesus is waiting to welcome us. Let’s pray:

Heavenly Father, we believe your living and true word. Help our unbelief. Make us strong in faith and hope. While we live with pain, tears and crying, help us not to grieve as those without hope. Give us your living water of life. And lift our eyes to the horizon, and to the day when we will see our Lord and Saviour, your beloved Son, face to face; and live in your immediate and eternal presence; and glorify you and enjoy you forever. Amen.