Jan. 22, 2025

“REVELATION”

REVELATION 22:1-21

*The King Is Coming:

*More Descriptions of the New Jerusalem:

John 14:2 “In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.”

1.  The River- Revelation 22:1-2

There is no sea in the new Jerusalem, but there is a river in it:

Revelation 22:1-2 “And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb. 2In the middle of its street, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life, which bore twelve fruits, each tree yielding its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.”

There was a river in the Garden of Eden that watered it and had four branches:

Genesis 2:10 “Now a river went out of Eden to water the garden, and from there it parted and became four riverheads.”

In the Bible, water symbolizes eternal life, but it’s also a symbol of refreshment. It brings relief. 

Psalm 46:4 “There is a river whose streams shall make glad the city of God, The holy place of the tabernacle of the Most High.”

2.   The Tree of Life- Revelation 22:2

Revelation 22:2 “In the middle of its street, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life, which bore twelve fruits, each tree yielding its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.”

We saw this tree in Genesis:

Genesis 2:9 “And out of the ground the Lord God made every tree grow that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.”

Remember that angels in human form ate food when they came to Abraham:

Genesis 18:8 “So he took butter and milk and the calf which he had prepared, and set it before them; and he stood by them under the tree as they ate.”

Jesus ate with His disciples in His new, resurrected body for the forty days He was here on earth:

Luke 24:40-43 “When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His feet. 41But while they still did not believe for joy, and marveled, He said to them, “Have you any food here?” 42So they gave Him a piece of a broiled fish and some honeycomb. 43And He took it and ate in their presence.”

John 21:12 “Jesus said to them, “Come and eat breakfast.” Yet none of the disciples dared ask Him, “Who are You?”—knowing that it was the Lord.”

The Bible also says we’re going to eat in our resurrection bodies at the marriage supper of the Lamb:

Revelation 19:9 “Then he said to me, “Write: ‘Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb!’ ” And he said to me, “These are the true sayings of God.” 

The leaves of this tree are provided “for the healing of the nations” vs.2. The word healing in this verse is the Greek word therapeian, from which we derive our word therapeutic. It literally means “health-giving.”

vs.2 also says “each tree yielding its fruit every month.” So there are numerous trees, not just one.

Ezekiel 47:12 “Along the bank of the river, on this side and that, will grow all kinds of trees used for food; their leaves will not wither, and their fruit will not fail. They will bear fruit every month, because their water flows from the sanctuary. Their fruit will be for food, and their leaves for medicine.”

3.   The God of Life- Revelation 22:3-5

Revelation 22:3-5 “And there shall be no more curse, but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His servants shall serve Him. 4They shall see His face, and His name shall be on their foreheads. 5There shall be no night there: They need no lamp nor light of the sun, for the Lord God gives them light. And they shall reign forever and ever.”

*We will also “serve Him” vs.3.

Genesis 2:15 “Then the Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it.”

There is work that will be done in the new heaven and the new earth as well.

*vs.4-5 “They shall see His face, and His name shall be on their foreheads. 5There shall be no night there: They need no lamp nor light of the sun, for the Lord God gives them light. And they shall reign forever and ever.”

When Moses was on Mount Sinai receiving the Ten Commandments, He asked God to reveal His glory to him.

Exodus 33:18 “And he said, “Please, show me Your glory.”

The Lords response was clear”

Exodus 33:20 “But He said, “You cannot see My face; for no man shall see Me, and live.” 

God hid Moses in the cleft of the rock and hid his face so he couldn’t see God’s face, but only His back, as His glory passed by:

Exodus 33:21-23 “And the Lord said, “Here is a place by Me, and you shall stand on the rock. 22So it shall be, while My glory passes by, that I will put you in the cleft of the rock, and will cover you with My hand while I pass by. 23Then I will take away My hand, and you shall see My back; but My face shall not be seen.”

And we will reign with God “forever ands ever.” vs.5

4.   Words of Encouragement- Revelation 22:6-7

Revelation 22:6-7 “Then he said to me, “These words are faithful and true.” And the Lord God of the holy prophets sent His angel to show His servants the things which must shortly take place.

7“Behold, I am coming quickly! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.”

5.   A Blessing is Promised- Revelation 22:7-11

There is a blessing attached to Jesus’ return:

Revelation 22:7 “Behold, I am coming quickly! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.”

That’s the same blessing we find in Revelation 1:3 “Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written in it; for the time is near.”

John became so overwhelmed with all of this that he fell down to worship the angel who had revealed the truth to him:

Revelation 22:8-11 “Now I, John, saw and heard these things. And when I heard and saw, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel who showed me these things. 9Then he said to me, “See that you do not do that. For I am your fellow servant, and of your brethren the prophets, and of those who keep the words of this book. Worship God.” 10And he said to me, “Do not seal the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is at hand. 11He who is unjust, let him be unjust still; he who is filthy, let him be filthy still; he who is righteous, let him be righteous still; he who is holy, let him be holy still.” 

This also happened in Revelation 19:10 “And I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, “See that you do not do that! I am your fellow servant, and of your brethren who have the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”

The moment  a person dies, all opportunity for change in your life is over.

6.   A Reward is Promised- Revelation 22:12-15

We also find encouragement in the fact that a reward is waiting:

Revelation 22:12 “And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work.”

That is a big deal, because Paul said our works as Christians will be evaluated at “the judgment seat of Christ.”

2 Corinthians 5:10 “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.”

This judgment doesn’t determine whether you enter heaven, but it will determine the kind of heaven you experience. Jesus stressed the importance of our storing up rewards in heaven:

Matthew 6:19-21 “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; 20but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

The unbeliever will also be judged by the things he has done:

Revelation 20:12 “And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books.”

This is emphasized in the next two verses:

Revelation 22:13-14 “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last.” 14Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city.”

The phrase, “Blessed are those who do His commandments…” vs.14, is a picture of the person who realizes his own righteousness is not good enough to enter heaven. The Bible says our righteousness, the best we can do, is like filthy rags to God:

Isaiah 64:6 “But we are all like an unclean thing, And all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags; We all fade as a leaf, And our iniquities, like the wind, Have taken us away.”

But if we wash our lives in the blood of Jesus Christ, it can remove any stain from our life’s record.

Isaiah 1:18 “Come now, and let us reason together,” Says the Lord, “Though your sins are like scarlet, They shall be as white as snow, Though they are red like crimson, They shall be as wool.”

That is what the blood of Christ does for us. That is why John wrote, “blessed are those who do His commandments.” Only they will have the right to inherit the kingdom of God.

Revelation 22:15 “But outside are dogs and sorcerers and sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and whoever loves and practices a lie.”

7.   An Invitation is Extended- Revelation 22:16-17

Revelation 22:16-17 “I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things in the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the Bright and Morning Star.” 17And the Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let him who hears say, “Come!” And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely.”

John 4:14 “but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.”

This is God’s final warning in the Bible, vs.17.

8.   A Special Warning- Revelation 22:18-19

This is the final warning in the Bible:

Revelation 22:18-19 “For I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds to these things, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book; 19and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the Book of Life, from the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.”

How do people add to the book of Revelation?

Mark 13:32 “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.”

9.   The Benediction- Revelation 22:20-21

Revelation 22:20-21 “He who testifies to these things says,

“Surely I am coming quickly.” Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus!21The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.”

So let me ask you a final question: Are you ready for the Lord’s return?