Revelation 21 - "And He Said to Me...."

When we start talking about heaven and what a fantastic place that it is, it might be hard for some to believe that we not just making up some mythical place that is only a figment of our imagination. John must have realize that as he is writing these verses. We are born into a world of suffering, pain, sorrow, tears and death. From start to finish, life is a battle for every human being. The moment we are born, we begin to die. Death seeks to take away our life every second of every day. This is all a result of the sin of our first parents. Romans 5:12 emphasizes this truth: “Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned—”. We talk about a person who is about to die with cancer or heart disease as being “terminally ill”. The truth is that every person on planet earth is “terminally ill”. The last time I checked, the death rate for a person is one hundred percent. No one is exempt! For the last six-thousand years of human history, every person who has been born has died sooner or later. (Except for two noted exceptions, Enoch and Elijah). Basically, what I’m trying to say is that life is tough! It is a battle! If we didn’t have the Bible and did not have a Savior, we would absolutely have nothing to look forward to, except death one day. So, when the Bible talks about heaven and assures us that we can live for something more than just one more day in a world full of tragedy, war, violence, corruption, hatred, bigotry, selfishness, and death, it is no wonder some might think we are just making up a place called heaven just to feel better about today. That is why John tells us Who is making these statements about the reality of a new heaven and a new earth and eternity. Right after John hears a “loud voice from heaven” telling him that God Himself is going to live with His people and that He is going to “wipe away every tear” and that there will be no more suffering, no more death, no more pain, no more crying and no sorrow, John hears Someone “Who is sitting on the throne”speak! He proclaims that He is the One who is making all things new! He is the One who assures us that what He is saying are words that are “faithful and true”. He is the One who pronounces, “It is done”! And then He tells us Who He is! Of course, this Someone is none other than the Lord Jesus Christ! He claims that He is the “Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end.” This of course is the same Jesus we read about in the first chapter of Revelation 1:4-8: “Grace to you and peace from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne, and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood, and has made us kings and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen. "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End," says the Lord, "who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty." How interesting that Revelation begins and ends with these same words! My friend, you can always trust the words and promises of the Lord Jesus Christ! He really is the only one that you can absolutely trust and be assured that what He says will surely come to pass! God bless!