The Bible ends with the New Jerusalem (Rev. 21:2). This means that New Jerusalem is the ultimate consummation of all the positive things in the Bible. In the same principle, the consummation of all the negative things is the lake of fire. At the end of the Bible there are two consummations, one represented by a city and the other represented by a lake. The city is a city of water, and the lake is a lake of fire. New Jerusalem is a city of living water. Because this living water flows throughout the city, it will never be dry. The lake is a lake of fire. Everything in it burns. Without exception, all the positive things will be gathered into the city of water, and all the negative things will be cast into the lake of fire. Antichrist and his companion, the false prophet, will be the first to be cast into the lake of fire (Rev. 19:20). All those who follow them to fight against Christ will also go there. Later, Satan, his angels, and all the sinners will also be cast into the lake of fire (Rev. 20:10, 15). Eventually, even the demons, death, and Hades will be put there (Rev. 20:13-14). Therefore, the lake of fire is a universal “trash can.” Everything that is not of God, that is against God, or that is considered by God as trash will go into the lake of fire. I trust that no one reading this message will end up in the lake of fire. But what about the work you are doing? Will your work go to the lake of fire or to the New Jerusalem, the eternal habitation of God? Here in the eternal habitation of God, everything is positive. Every positive thing in the Bible can be found there.
This matter of the New Jerusalem has never been adequately opened to Christians. Perhaps Revelation 21 and 22 have been closed to you for years. Although you have read these chapters again and again, you simply could not see anything. In this message I want to point out various aspects of New Jerusalem.
After God created man, He placed him in a garden in front of the tree of life (Gen. 2:8-9). Thus, immediately after the creation of man, the tree of life was mentioned. The tree of life is one of the outstanding features of New Jerusalem. Revelation 22:14 indicates that the tree of life is in the New Jerusalem. This verse says, “Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter by the gates into the city.” In the first two chapters of the Bible we see the old heaven, the old earth, the old garden, Adam, and the tree of life. In the last two chapters of the Bible we see the new heaven, the new earth, and the city with the tree of life. In this city we do not see Adam, but Israel and the Apostles representing the new man. In the garden in Genesis there was the old man; in the city in Revelation there is the corporate new man. In the garden there was the tree of life, and in the city there is also the tree of life. Although the heaven and earth have changed, the garden has been changed into the city, and the first man has been changed into the corporate new man, the tree of life remains unchanged. Everything has been changed or improved except the tree of life. From the beginning to the end, the tree of life remains the same. Hallelujah, the tree of life never changes!
Genesis 1:3 says, “And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.” In Genesis 1:14-18 we see that God created the light-bearers, the sun, the moon, and the stars, on the fourth day. New Jerusalem is a city of light (Rev. 21:23). In every part of the city there is light. This light is so strong that there is no need for either the sun or the moon. The light that will illumine the city is God Himself, and Christ, the Lamb, will be the lamp. God is in Christ, just as the light is in the lamp. God, the light, is in the Lamb, the lamp, shining in, over, through, and out of the city. As far as New Jerusalem is concerned, the sun, moon, and stars are useless. Today we need electrical light because we do not have sunshine everywhere or all the time. But in New Jerusalem there will neither be the natural light nor the man-made light. Hallelujah for the light in New Jerusalem!
When you came into the church life, did you not have the sense that the environment and the atmosphere were absolutely new? Did it not seem as if you were in the new heaven and new earth? Furthermore, in the church there is the tree of life. The church is also full of light, for here God is shining through Christ as the lamp. In the church life there is no darkness. Before we came into the church life, we were in the old universe, the old atmosphere, the old environment, an environment that was filled with darkness and death. But the day we entered into the church life, the heavens, the earth, the atmosphere, and the environment all became new. Instead of death, there was the tree of life, and instead of darkness, there was light.