Living with God
2004030
Topic # 0295
Introduction:
A. John 14:1-3
B. God wants us to dwell with Him! The greatest thing about heaven is that God will be there!
1. This should be a source of comfort and hope!
2. Rev. 21:3 - Imagine living in the actual presence of God!
C. Ever been in the presence of the president?
1. Feeling of importance; anticipation; excitement!
2. Leader of free world; world focused on his visit – of which I was a part of! Bush’s Mt. Rushmore visit in August 2002.
3. Now, imagine being in the presence of God!
i. Creator of the universe.
ii. All powerful & all knowing.
D. Note,…we’re talking about living with Him through the luxury of His home throughout all eternity!
E. Paul believed he would live with God. Phil. 1:21-23.
1. To be with Christ is to be in the presence of God.
2. This fact is borne out in Acts 7:55-56. See also 7:59. “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit…”
F. When a faithful Christian dies, our spirit is taken into the care & keeping of God.
1. Colly Caldwell: We do not die in the grave. We do not cease to exist. We are alive and well in the presence of God.
I. Living with God Described:
A. Revelation is a misunderstood book. Largely unread by many Christians as they feel it cannot be understood.
1. One of the greatest objectives of the book is that it seeks to comfort Christians who suffer themselves & whose loved ones have suffered – many to the point of death.
2. Jesus wanted to secure their faith in the fact that their loved ones would be with God!
B. God is powerful! God is caring! God loves us more than any other person! I believe “living with God” is described in Rev. 21:1-7.
C. In heaven, God will identify us with Himself personally.
1. Rev. 21:3; 22:4
2. At marriage – the greatest identifier is the husband giving his new wife his name…and the wife taking his name as her own.
3. In the same way, God will identify with us!
D. IN heaven, God will take care of and provide for us … forever!
1. Rev. 21:4; 7:17 - Imagine how wonderful this will be!
2. 21:4 - Nobody has reason to cry; nobody dies; there is no sadness; there is no grief; and there is no pain.
3. 21:12 - This square city is surrounded by an enormous, high wall with three gates into the city on each side, but the gates never close.
4. 21:19-21 - It is a city of incredible wealth--the walls are covered with jewels, the gates are made of pearl, and the streets are paved with such pure gold that they are crystal clear. Have you ever seen transparent gold?
5. 21:16 - The city is like a cube: 1500 miles wide, 1500 miles long; 1500 miles high.
6. 21:18 - The whole city is made of pure gold that is transparent.
7. 21:22 - There are no temples, no church buildings because God lives there--everyone can see Him and Christ.
8. 21:27 - Nothing influenced by evil is there; there is no deceit there.
9. 22:1 - It has a river that flows from under God's throne.
10. 22:2 - It has a main street that runs through the center of the city.
11. 22:2-3 - On each side of the river there are trees; each tree bears twelve kinds of fruit; and there is ripe fruit to eat every month.
12. 22:5 - There is no night because the glory of God and Christ constantly illuminate the city.
II. Some things to remember when reading the Revelation account:
- The picture of heaven drawn in Revelation 21 and 22 is a symbolic picture that had special meaning to the people in the first century.
- Remember Paul’s writing to the Corinthians in 1 Cor. 15:50?
- The physical does not exist in the spiritual realm.
- Life in heaven is as real as life on earth, but heaven is not physical.
- There is no flesh and blood, no physical gold, no physical river; no physical food, no physical necessities.
- Second, then what does that picture in Revelation mean?
- Remember the rest of the book.
a) The church in Ephesus struggled with evil men (2:2).
b) The church in Smyrna knew great suffering and poverty (2:8).
c) The church in Pergamum existed where Satan's throne was and saw a member killed for his faith (2:13).
d) The church in Thyatira had an immoral woman of great influence in the congregation (2:20).
e) The church in Philadelphia was in severe conflict with people who belonged to Satan (3:10).
f) The church at Laodicea was wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked (3:17).
- In a number of places Revelation describes an enormous, destructive conflict that caused pain, suffering, and death to Christians.
- The suffering and deaths of Christians are terrible!
a) Rev. 6:10 - Martyrs cry out to God…
- So…what did the picture of heaven mean to Christians of the late first century?
- Heaven…is a place of total, absolute safety where no one can be harmed.
a) Then the safest cities were walled cities build on hill tops.
b) With no gun power or bombs, gates and walls kept enemies out.
- In first century….best way to attack a walled city was by a siege that let no one go in and no one come out.
a) Because the city was built on a hill, the water supply was outside the city.
b) Cut the people off from water and food, and in time they would surrender.
- For everyone, inside the walls or out, darkness was the time of greatest danger.
a) Thieves, robbers, and evil people came at night.
b) Since there was little artificial lighting, if there were enough of them, you were helpless.
- Where God lives there is nothing to fear because there are no dangers.
a) Gates never closed because there are no enemies.
b) It is never dark, so you are never vulnerable.
c) There are no evil people there; there is no one to harm you.
- Even if an enemy did exist, the enemy could not hurt the people in that city.
a) There is a river that gives life right in the middle of the city.
b) You can't starve there; there are trees that never stop bearing fruit.
- There is no poverty there.
a) The city is made out of gold.
b) No one who lives in this city is in need.
- Do you see the point God made to these suffering Christians?
- God's place is a secure place of peace where there is no suffering.
- Where God lives there is no fear, no dying, no sorrow.
- No one can hurt you there, and you are never vulnerable.
- There are no enemies, there are no dangers, there is no need.
III. What physical symbols would God would use today to explain what life with Him is like?
A. All pain and rejection would cease to exist including those produced by broken relationships, divorce, insecure children, abuse, lovelessness, hate, anger, bitterness, and sorrow.
1. He heals all those who live with Him of such wounds.
2. Wounds created by pain and rejection never exist again.
B. There is no death or sorrow where God lives.
1. No death of a child, no death of a loved spouse, no death of a mom or dad or best friend.
2. Never is there reason to grieve about anything in God's world.
C. There is no evil where God lives.
1. God will destroy any evil in you and me through His forgiveness and grace so that you and I will never hurt anybody.
2. In the same manner, God will destroy the evil in everyone else so no one will ever hurt us again.
3. No people who are controlled or ruled by Satan live with God.
D. There is no insecurity where God lives.
1. Those who live with God will never experience being afraid again.
2. There is nothing to fear.
3. There are no terrors or anxieties real or imagined.
E. Where God lives there is love, acceptance, joy, and peace.
1. Absolutely nothing can interrupt them.
2. And that situation never ends.
3. And you will never be old or disabled, and you will never die.
[Song of reflection: 867 – To Canaan's Land I'm On My Way]
IV. Living with God is a conditional Thing.
A. Existence w/o God is unthinkable!
1. Existence with God in eternity is conditional upon our dwelling with God NOW!
2. Most NT passages that speak of “living” or “abiding” with God discuss a “present” relationship with the Lord.
3. “Living with God” in this life is the only way to lead a satisfying and fulfilling life in the world.
B. See 1 John 4:12-16. Conditioned on our love; confession; and belief.
C. Jhn. 14:23 – Jesus said it is conditioned upon our obedience.
D. There will be no living with God eternally unless we live for Him now.
E. Have you given yourself to Him?
F. I N V I T A T I O N
