Although a new chapter begins, John simply continues with the description of the New Heaven and the New Earth. He only begins the book’s closing words in verse 6. We now walk into a New World, no longer over golden streets, through pearly gates and on jewelled foundations.
“There is a river whose streams make glad the City of God, the Holy Place where the Most High dwells.” The Holy Spirit emanates from the Father and the Son. It is through the Holy Spirit that God shares of Himself in streams of spiritual gifts, in the ‘water of life’.
When preaching, it is definitely meaningful to draw spiritual significance for the Church of today from the images of the future that are sketched here. A pastor can preach today from these prophetic images of the future.
The Holy City, Jerusalem, descending from Heaven, lets its brilliance and holiness flow out over the New Earth. The river of the ‘water of life’ flows from the throne of God and the Lamb, as clear as crystal, just as John had seen the ‘sea of glass like crystal’ before the throne of God.
Things turn out differently from what mankind ever expected. ‘You will be like God,’ the fallen angel had said to the Adam and Eve in Paradise. How deep they fell when they chose for themselves and against God.
These end-times events still must soon take place. We are not completely there, yet. But the Lord shows these ‘things to come’ to His servants, the prophets, first. He does nothing without first revealing His counsel to them.
There is a God in Heaven who reveals mysteries. John was to be shown ‘what must soon take place.’ That was in particular to include the revelation, the unveiling of Jesus in His Glory. And now the Saviour Himself says, “Look, I am Coming soon!”
What was to happen soon was to be shown to John, but he did not only see it, he also heard it. He was an eyewitness and ear-witness, a true Apostle. “I, John, I am the one, as you know, who saw and heard everything that Jesus did.
Is this not amazing? If you keep the words of this Book of Revelation like a treasure in your heart, you may know that the angels are with you, to help you and to assist you in the difficult times this book speaks about.
God is the One who inspires the prophets. The Lord says through the mouth of the prophet Isaiah: “I foretold the former things long ago; My mouth announced them and I made them known; then suddenly I acted, and they came to pass.”
Daniel was also told that “Many will be purged, purified and refined, but the wicked will act wickedly; and none of the wicked will understand, but those who have insight will understand.” A ‘separation of spirits’ will take place during the end-times.
How the Jewish people suffered from slavery in Egypt. Their burdens were systematically increased. The pressure became ever heavier. First came the supervisors—slave- drivers who forced the people into slave labour.
