What Lies Beyond?

Well, as we're here today now, we are just a few weeks past the final Holy Days of the Year. Now, we've had an opportunity to go through and rehearse the annual festivals. And it was hopefully if you had a festival season like I did, you enjoyed your opportunities to be with brethren, assembled together at God's feast sites, assembling and encouraging one another, learning about the wonderful time to come in the millennium, and then the events that are tied prophetically with the last great day or the eighth day, a time when all the dead will be raised, their graves will be opened, all those who have not had an opportunity to know of God, though He knows them, as we heard in the song and sermonette, they will have an opportunity to finally know God, and their eyes and their minds will be opened.

And we recognize in the Church of God that the Holy Days have been revealed to the Church. They are, they picture something, often referred to as shadows. Colossians 2 and verse 16, it says that these are shadows. They picture a reality, something to come. We recognize the spring Holy Days often have some fulfillments in history, no doubt have spiritual lessons for us to glean from and to apply in our spiritual journey today, and the fall Holy Days, picturing something in the future. And ultimately, the festivals of God are the annual Holy Days, and including, of course, the weekly Holy Day, the Sabbath Day, they all picture things revolving around God's plan.

The annual Holy Days we've long saw as steps or connections to what God is doing on a grand scale. Summarize a few different ways in Hebrews 2. I like to think about Hebrews 2, where it talks about bringing many sons to glory. We could bring that into modern nomenclature and say, bringing many children, sons and daughters, building a family, and bringing them into glory. We have seven annual festivals, a full week, a full revealed time span. Ultimately, showing God's redemptive work through Jesus Christ. Like what Mr. Roland was talking about. God desiring a relationship. God building a family. That is indeed a wonderful relationship, or should be. But beyond the plan of salvation that we have revealed through the Holy Days, what does God have in mind?

What's beyond those seven annual Holy Days in prophetic meaning? As we begin today, let's turn to 1 Corinthians chapter 2. 1 Corinthians chapter 2, in verse 6. 1 Corinthians 2 in verse 6. Paul writes, however, we speak wisdom among those who are mature, yet not the wisdom of this age, nor of the rulers of this age who are coming to nothing, but we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery. You see, there are things that God has revealed that are mysteries. Not that they can't be understood, maybe how I would think about mystery in English, but that God reveals them.

He opens their individual's eyes and minds. It says, Paul refers to this state often. He says, you know, before we really come under or understand God's ways, a lot of what we do is in ignorance. And he's almost speaking in a very positive way, for if they indeed knew, they wouldn't have done these things.

Very positive way of saying we'll be obedient, even though we know that's not always the case that we follow God's ways, even when we learn. Verse 9, but it is written, You see, that which God is preparing for us doesn't enter into the heart of the man, or the ears, or the mind of thinking, naturally. It doesn't happen of our own accord, of our own desire, of our own seeking out knowledge.

If we just desired it enough, God would be forced to reveal them. That's not how it works. Instead, God, by His mercy, He opens the minds of an understanding of His people at different times, when it's the best opportunity for us to have our minds opened. Verse 10, but God has revealed them to us through His Spirit, for the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. You see, as Proverbs 25, I think it's in 25 or thereabouts, it says, it's the glory of God to conceal a thing, but it's the honor of kings to search out a matter.

God opens the minds of those whom He calls, and He reveals to them the glory that will come.

So what is the glory that will come? For today's sermon, I'd like for us to review a little bit, a small section of Scripture, primarily in Revelation 21, considering some elements of this glory or this world that is to come, what lies beyond the prophetic fulfillment of the annual Holy Days, which we just rehearsed. So turn with me over to Revelation 21, if you will.

Revelation 21, in verse 1, we see a small section here. Now, throughout the Bible, there are little gold nuggets, little things that God has recorded for us by inspiration, revealing this plan and hinting at and showing different ideas of what He has in store for us, though we can't understand everything fully, just what He reveals in understanding. In Revelation 21, we have a smaller section of it that gets a bit of this vision, that God sent through Christ, through an angel to John, and then inspired to record it, and then God preserved it for us to have in one of the most publicized book, developed book, and sadly, the most stolen book of all history. We have the Bible, easily accessible to all of us to read what God has in store. Revelation 21, in verse 1, now I, this is John writing, I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. So here we see this new heaven and this new earth in vision that John is seeing, and he's recording. Now, what does God mean by new? Now, if you look into that a bit, at least in the New Testament, right? So we're primarily working within the Greek language of the time. Often you'll find two major words used that are translated as new in the New Testament. One word refers to something new that didn't exist before. You know, maybe you're a child and then you have a new brother born and now you have a new brother. He wasn't there before the nine months prior, but now he exists. My children, when they refer to themselves before they were born, they often refer themselves as dead. I don't quite get that. I try to tell them, well, you weren't dead, you just didn't exist yet. That's one word for new, right? Something that didn't exist and now it is new. But that's not the word here. What we have here is a different word which refers to kind of a state of like a refreshed quality. If you were to have an old painting or an old house, I'm very familiar with looking for rundown houses. So if you have a hook on a rundown house, let me know. You look at a rundown house, we call them fixer-uppers. Now, if the bones are good in the house, maybe you give it a facelift. Maybe you change the walls. You put some paint on it. You get some new carpet. And now it becomes a new house. Not that it didn't exist before, but it has been refreshed, rebuilt. New makeup on it. Refresh. That's the word that John is inspired to record here in Revelation 21. A relation to equality. And we see this then, that God is saying that there is a refreshing that's going to take place. In fact, in other places of Scripture, Romans 8 coming to my mind at least right now, it kind of personifies the universe that the whole of creation is yearning, is desiring for this new creation or this refreshing. Specifically in Romans 8, I think the context is the whole universe is yearning for the revealing of the sons of God and the glorified status of the family of God. God is excited to show his family to all creation. What John is not saying here, he's not saying that everything that we see will no longer exist, but rather it will be refreshed and changed. He will mention some things that don't exist anymore. We'll talk about that here in a moment. But even look down in verse 5. Verse 5, he writes, then he who sat on the throne said, Behold, I make all things new.

Now he doesn't say, I make all new things. Slightly different in English, but he's saying, I make all things new. There's a coming time when everything will be refreshed.

Everything will be brought into a state of glory. All within God's timing, how he does that, there are some different hints, or when he does it, but it'll come after the revealing of what has been revealed by the Holy Day plan of salvation. In verse 1, it talks about the former things being passed away. Let's hold our place here. Let's go to 2 Peter chapter 3.

We go back to another writing of an apostle. 2 Peter chapter 3.

2 Peter 3 and verse 10.

2 Peter 3 and verse 10. Now here we have the verse verse... well, that's confusing. Verse 10. The first one we'll read. It says, But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night. Now, quick context check, right? Day of the Lord is one of those phrases in the Bible that can mean a lot of things. It really depends on the context and what's really bringing to mind. Now, Peter is no doubt going to hook a lot or connect into some scriptures in the Old Testament by inspiration of God and bring into view this idea of perhaps the day of the Lord as the final period before the return of Christ. There's also some connections here to the final day of the Lord when we're talking about after all is said and done, after the second resurrection, after the third resurrection. So, I can refer to a few things, but we'll see here. The wording definitely fits a few events in the future. Verse 10.

You can connect this with, I think, Revelation 6. You connect it with a few minor prophets, of course, that time when there comes a time of the wrath of God Almighty, the wrath of where the heavens will pass away, the elements will burn with melt and melt with fervent heat. Both the earth and the works that will be in it will be burned up. There's coming a time when things will be cleansed by fire, if you will.

What's being described here is a great destruction. Great destruction. I always think of when I think of a large destruction. I've never been around a volcano. I thought it'd be kind of neat to go close to one. Safe distance, you know? They happen relatively controlled in certain continents. I say relatively controlled. I don't know what I'm talking about now. But very loud, very destructive forces. But I think about in the Midwest, boy, growing up in North Dakota, you think about tornadoes. You ever lived through a tornado? And they're very loud, depending on the size.

And they're like freight trains, and they sound, and they're so terrible sounding. Very destructive. You can imagine some of those sounds here. Verse 11, therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness? And so Peter is pointing out an idea here, and he's not really talking about the destruction or the renewing. Not really the topic that I'm bringing today. But he's pointing to the fact that there will come a time when there will be a great dissolving of everything that we see and a changing.

A changing so that all there exists. And Peter's point here is, okay, you're going to lose these physical things. What's important for you today? Well, he says, work towards holy conduct, making sure that our character is set, making sure that we are indeed living as examples of God's way of life today. I appreciated the opening prayer by Mr. Gasson, I think it was. He mentioned, right, helping us to internalize what we hear today in the messages so that we can live God's way today.

So building a character, building the character that is modeled after God's standards and way of life. That's Peter's context. But we do see the same connection with this idea that everything will eventually burn. You know, Mr. Delamater gave a sermon here just a couple weeks ago. I think his title was, Everything Burns, a connection to pop culture film. But the idea of working, making sure that we are becoming members of the family of God. The application here is, of course, God values his creation. He's not just going to throw it away.

But there will come a time when there'll be a cleaning up, a refreshing, a changing. And so as we consider that God will indeed renew his creation, redeem it, bring it back into a state of glory, it should help us a bit focus on how we treat God's creation. Just a little side application point there with understanding what is coming.

A refreshing period, a cleaning up period. When we're considering what lies beyond the Holy Days, at least the prophetic fulfillment of the Holy Days, we first see that the former things have to pass away. That all things have to be renewed and refreshed, cleaned up, brought into a different quality of creation. Along with this, I hinted at it before, there will be some things missing, won't there? If we go back to Revelation 21, we'll see a few things listed that John just kind of highlights quickly will be gone.

There will be some things that will no longer be around during the time when God has brought everything into glory. Revelation 21, back to there. In verse 1, we stopped at the end there, but John writes, also there was no more sea. He just kind of puts that out there. I'm giving too much explanation, and there's a lot of theories on this one. But we see that there are no more sea, maybe from John's perspective, maybe in general. There's, of course, maybe some spiritual connections or illustrations that sea sometimes represents, maybe chaos and confusion.

Whatever the case may be. But John specifically sees that there is no more sea. Of course, as he watches the new heavens, the new Jerusalem coming down a big dimension, new dimensional city, maybe just takes up the whole region. There's no space for sea there. But he sees no more sea! There's another one. If we go down to verse 4, verse 4 of chapter 21, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes, there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying.

They shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.

Why aren't we looking forward to that one specifically? I love the sea, so I'm gonna wait and see what God does with that one.

But I look forward to the time when there's no more death, no more sorrow, no more crying. Crying from pain. I think of God here as a loving parent, not distant and unaware, like the false gods of this world, but a God who cares and a God who reaches down to wipe away the tears. What a beautiful picture that's being painted for us. A loving father. Whether we've had a loving father in this life or we don't, we can look to God as a loving father, always doing what is good for us, not necessarily what we want, but what's good. And wiping away our tears.

When we think about this, we think about the coming time of glory and change.

And it's going to be a time when there's no more death and sorrow and pain. We can think about, well, how does that make us live today?

We have pain and we have suffering and we have death. Cincinnati congregations, we've felt the impact of death a lot in the last three weeks. And so when we think about that, that happens still. We cry and we mourn with one another. It should help us recognize that as God, as a comforter, wiping away tears, looking forward to the time where He wipes away tears, that should help us wipe away tears today. Maybe not literally. Got to check for permission.

But comforting one another. We celebrate with one another and we mourn with one another. At least we should. Down in verse five, no more night. At least the lighting sources. God being their light there. Kind of bringing back into memory, maybe Genesis chapter one before the recreation, the recreation of the earth there, the light source being God.

If we go to chapter 22, though. Chapter 22, I think I misspoke earlier, no more light is verse five of chapter 22. But chapter 22 in verse three, we see, we're just taking a few examples here. Verse three, and there shall be no more curse, but the throne of God and the Lamb shall be in it, and His servants shall serve Him. Here we see no more curse.

No more cursing. Maybe a lighter way of saying that. No more crass-speaking. A pure language. No more crass language or perverse jokes. No more curses. Again, hearkening back to the beginning of the story when God created mankind, and there were curses instituted because sin, because they sinned. Curse of the ground. The curse of the serpent. The curse against the woman. The curse for the man. All these curses will be gone, will be cleaned up. No more cursing. No more defilement, if you think about that, connected to curses. No more defilement. No more abomination. That's in 21 and verse 27.

We're right there. We can read it. But there shall be no, by no means enter it, that city, the New Jerusalem, that defiles or causes an abomination or a lie, but only those who are written in the Lamb's Book of Life. So no longer even those who defile.

So when we think about that, and we recognize that the time that's coming where things will be glorified, well, we ask ourselves, well, how should that make us live today? Well, we should recognize our speech, our actions, that we should not curse, whether it be swears, crass-speaking, rude jokes. I know sometimes there's a fine line there with your brothers, right? Little jokes, put-downs. There's a fine line sometimes, but we should be cautious about that. But also, no cursing, speaking love of those who wish us harm, seeking to be in agreement with those who curse us, praying for those who abuse us, making sure we remove ourselves from an abusive situation, but praying for those that God may grant those individuals repentance. Recognize this, and so we live by those elements today in our minds and our actions. Now, we don't fully understand all the things that are being mentioned here, no more night. How is this going to actually play out? How is this going to look? We recognize it will have new bodies, glorified state. Things will be refreshed, so we can't know all the answers.

But we recognize that there's going to become this time of close relationship with God. In verse 21 and verse 22, chapter 21 and verse 22, it says that there'll be no more temple there, for the Lord God almighty the Lamb are its temple. Definitely connections here to a few ideas, but bringing across, I'll connect with Mr. Roland's sermon at the relationship aspect.

Temple was often recognized as you would go there as you're going to the Lord, have a relationship with Him. And so I'll connect it with that idea. There's a few there, of course, but understanding that the dwelling of God's people will be with God. God's people will be the bride to the groom Christ. We go back to chapter 21 and verse 8. Along with the defilement, of course, it'll be the people as well. The people who will not submit, the people who, once their eyes are opened, don't want to go along with God's ways. The ones that don't repent, they will not be there. Revelation 21 and verse 8, but the cowardly, the unbelievable, or excuse me, the unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexual, immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death. So all those individuals who they have sins, they act in rebellion against God, once their eyes are opened and they understand what is wrong, and they still refuse to listen to God and refuse to go along with his ways and to change, they're described as individuals who are not repentant. They're described as individuals abominable murderers, right? There's a difference and a recognized difference where when God calls us, God can call a murderer and he can change a murderer and bring them into forgiveness. Those who stay murderers, those who stay liars, those who won't change, won't overcome, God will not allow in his new glorified place. Which is interesting to think about, that God is not going to force any individual to stay beyond their own will. Even if it's good for them to stay, even if he desires that they will not perish, he will not force anyone to go in there. He won't force anyone to stay in his new destination, if you will, or the glorified time to come.

In this world produced by God, which is after the prophetic fulfillment of the holy days, we find that there are several things missing that we're so accustomed to in today's world. Thankfully, those things will be removed one day.

We continue to think about what will come. We have this new city and a new and refreshed Jerusalem. So we go back to Revelation 21 in verse 2 and 3. John writes of this holy city coming down.

Holy city coming down, new Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people. God himself will be with them and be their God.

You see, this is the new Jerusalem, a refreshed Jerusalem, a glorified Jerusalem, not the Jerusalem we see today. That needs to be changed into this new one, refreshed and adorned in different ways. We see poetic imagery loosed here. We'll tie it with some verses in the prophets as well. We'll see that God's presence will be there. God will literally be dwelling with his people in a different way than ever before, and it'll truly start to fulfill its name as a city of peace, of which it's nowhere close today.

This is a holy city, like a bride adorned for a husband. Let's go back to Isaiah chapter 61. Hold your place here if you want, or if you're a fast turner, you can just turn back later.

Isaiah 61.

Isaiah 61 and verse 10.

Isaiah 61 and verse 10. You see, what's shown in vision to John nearly 2,000 years ago now...

Yeah, I'm around there. We'll say, circa, if that's even appropriate for referring to time back. Anyways, what was revealed to John in vision was prophesied all the way back in Isaiah's time. We'll do another circa, maybe somewhere around 700 or something. I saw a doctor go, mm-hmm. That seems about right. So, circa, though, I said. That gives you, like, at least 200-year buffer. Yeah. Isaiah 61 prophesied all that long ago of this renewed city. Now, of course, there's some duality here in meaning. We have a physical and a spiritual meaning of Zion in Jerusalem, but we'll read here in verse 10.

Pointing back to the application and the sermon on the mount, where it says, You do the things in secret, by him who sees you in secret, your reward will be shown later. That's a wicked paraphrase. I jumped into Bostonian language. I didn't mean wicked like bad.

That was a terrible paraphrase. How about that? Okay. But bring forth righteousness and praise, spring forth before all the nations. Continuing on to chapter 62, You see, this is so short in today's world. The city, the people that God elected or called. Right? If we think of the physical nation of Israel, of course, there's always still a remnant of those in the spiritual Israel, the Israel of God. But we look at what God has chosen, Jerusalem. It wasn't always in Jerusalem, but He chose Jerusalem as His special place. We see Zion being both the city but also representing the church. But we see a connection to His people that we fall short of that today. God's chosen people, they went astray. He said, if only they had the hearts to obey Him. But He says, but for Zion's sake, for the church's sake, for Jerusalem's sake, I will not rest. God will not rest. He will bring to pass the plans that He has until her righteousness goes forth as brightness and her salvation as a lamp that burns. Ultimately, God will bring His plan of restoration and redemption. It is for sure. Verse 2, Then the Gentiles shall see your righteousness, and all the kings your glory. You shall be called by a new name, which the mouth of the Lord will name. So a connection here, no doubt, to the children of God. The saints who are resurrected will be given a new name. Those who will be brought into understanding, they will see the saints in the first resurrection. They'll see those individuals. Verse 3, You shall also be a crown of glory in the hand of the Lord and a royal diadem in the hand of your God. You shall no longer be termed forsaken, nor shall your land be any more be termed desolate. That's very much where we're at today. Desolate land. Wasted land. Land caught up in conflict and strife. But you shall be called Hepzebah and your land Beulah. Or that is, you shall be called my delight is in her. So no longer translated desolate here in New King James, but I think it's the opposite of my delight. I think it's probably, uh, well, I'm not good off the top of my head. But there's not a delight there. Instead, you will be called a delight. My delight is in her. Beulah, referring to a marriage. Literally, you'll be called married. Again, a lot of connections here, and we can connect this a lot with the Church, but what I'm honing in on in this idea of, like, God is using marriage as a language to show an eternal relationship. Marriage was given to mankind as a representation of something eternal. It should last the whole life of the individual. They should become one flesh, and what God has joined together, man shall not tear apart. Now, we recognize that there are situations where there can be separation, but that wasn't the desire. That wasn't the goal. So marriage, then, is referencing to an eternal relationship. God is desiring an eternal family, a family to be with him. Of course, the Church marrying Christ. That's the connection there. The people of God, eternally fixed with the city, not necessarily in place, but in relationship, always with their God. He will be their God, and we will be his people. We see that very plainly in chapter 21 of Revelation, verse 3, where he says, the tabernacle of God is with men. The dwelling place of God is with men.

Eternally in that relationship, God the Father coming down to dwell with man on a refreshed earth, dwelling with his family, and going forth to do the work that God will reveal. And we recognize that this has always been a plan from the beginning, hasn't it?

That's what I love, but not the only thing. That's one of the things I love about God, and what he reveals is that we have a whole Bible laid out where you can go back to, like, Leviticus 26 and verse 11, where he says, I will set my tabernacle among you. Hinting at this idea that he always wants to be dwelling with his people. He didn't just create us, as Mr. Roland pointed out, like the false gods claim. Make up some people and let them have some fun. No, he created us because he's sharing his identity with us. He's sharing who he is, building a family, a glorified family together. If we go back to Ezekiel 37, typically a section of Scripture we read during millennium, or well, we haven't been to the millennium yet. Excuse me, during the feast or the last great day, Ezekiel 36 and 37 thereabouts.

If you remember Ezekiel 37, we have the valley of the dry bones.

And God raises from the dead in that vision the whole house of Israel, which we know it's all men. Revelation makes that clear, but in the vision here it's the whole house of Israel, and Ezekiel sees it and he gives that nice answer, right? When the Lord says, what is this? And he goes, well, you know. That's a perfect answer to give to your father if you don't know something. Well, you know. And so he sees this vision, but what's the purpose of this this act that God will do in the future? He will raise them from the dead. He will put new bodies on them. He will give them skin, flesh and blood again. He will breathe into them life. He will pour out his spirit upon them. And what's the purpose? Verse 26. We go to Ezekiel 37. Verse 26. Moreover, I will make a covenant of peace with them, and it shall be an everlasting covenant with them. I will establish them and multiply them, and I will set my sanctuary in the midst forevermore. My tabernacle also shall be with them. Indeed, I will be their God, and they shall be my people. The nations also will know that I, the Lord, sanctify Israel when my sanctuary is in their midst forevermore. You see, when God brings Israel back, the rest of Israel, because we know a remnant will live into the millennium, but at the second resurrection, when he raises them from the dead, it's to sanctify them and to cleanse them and to show the nations this is how it was actually supposed to be. And then we fast forward to the new heavens and new earth. That's the purpose. The purpose is to dwell with man forevermore, to have an everlasting covenant with God's relationship, where God is building his family. So God's plan is to dwell with his people. And so the application for us, of course, is are we acting on that invitation today? I appreciated Mr. Roland Sermanet. I've mentioned it a few times. Anybody that listens to the recordings later is going to be like, well, I gotta find Mr. Roland Sermanet now. But you think about the idea that God knows us, and he wants the relationship with us.

If we become too familiar with the society around us and the ideas that God is distant, he doesn't really care, then we can forget what God is truly doing, and we'll miss that opportunity that he indeed is having an invitation for, hey, work with me, talk with me, share with me your life, and I'll give you what you need. I'll provide for you, and I'll encourage you, I'll strengthen you, and I'll show you how to be built up into the same image as my son, Jesus Christ.

God is working with us to be a people who delight in him. Hezbollah. Ah, I think I just cornered that wrong. My delight is in her. He's building us up to be a people that delights to be with God. So you and I have that precious opportunity today to strive to be in relationship with God, to delight in communicating with him. In the world that will come after what is shown in shadow by the annual Holy Days, there will be this new and holy city, a refreshed Jerusalem which will bring forth righteousness forevermore, and God will dwell there with his people. Now, I've had a smattering of little application ideas throughout, but it brings the question. We have to always remember, knowledge for knowledge's sake puffs up. If we're not growing in what God is desiring for us, then it's just knowledge. So what's the purpose and the point of God revealing this city to us? This time of glorified state, this time of being in a family. Well, let's go back to Revelation 21. For the rest of the sermon, we'll focus a little bit on, okay, why? Because I know that we've only touched on surface ideas and some of the things that are revealed. But why?

Why is God doing this? Why does he reveal it? And why is he doing his plan this way?

Revelation 21 and verse 6.

And he said to me, it is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give of the fountain of the water of life freely to him who thirsts. He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.

You see, recognizing that there's coming a refreshed state, a new city, a new Jerusalem, the application is to be a person of that city, to inhabit that place, to be in that family, we must overcome, and we must thirst for it. He says, I will give water of life freely to him who thirsts.

This harkening back to the idea that the wicked, the abominable, those who don't want to be in the family, they won't be there. God will not force anyone to do it. It's those who desire to be in the family. It's those who thirst for his way of life, who seek his ways over man's ways. They will be there. God will not grant eternal life to those who are just like, I guess it's the better option of the two.

I've had those conversations when I worked in the private sector. Now I'm in the public sector.

Not a good joke, got it.

I've had those conversations with people, and it's like, well, I guess, you know, when you kind of wait out all the options, it seems like the better option. Some will just take the scatter approach. They'll be like, I'll just pray to that God, and then I'll go get baptized here, and then I'll be good on all fronts. You see, God will not grant eternal life to those who are just like, I guess this is the best way. It has to be those who desire to be in his family, those who truly thirst for his ways. And there's this great invitation. We recognize in the church that God is working with a few. Not just this room. We recognize what the body of Christ is. But we know that it is a small amount of people in the history of billions of people that have ever lived. But we know that God, there's this invitation, and he will call everybody, each in their own perfect time. Let's go to Isaiah 55.

This invitation you and I have been given today.

We recognize that God is calling us today. He has opened our minds today. If we have children and we are baptized, God is calling our children. And so as parents, we have the high calling to raise our children in the ways of God so that they understand that they're being called, and they understand the standards of God.

Now, of course, they'll make their own decisions. But we have the responsibility to show them this invitation.

I'm talking too much. Let me get to Isaiah 55.

I was just in Isaiah. Now I'm turning all the way back and forth. There it is. Isaiah 55, verse 1.

This is a prophesied invitation long ago.

Isaiah 55 and verse 1. Ho, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters, and you who have no money, come, buy, and eat. Yes, come.

Buy wine and milk without money and without price. Why do you spend money for what is not bread and your wages for what does not truly satisfy? Listen carefully to me and eat what is good, and let your soul delight itself in abundance. Incline your ear and come to me. Hear, and your soul shall live, and I will make an everlasting covenant with you. The sure mercies of David.

There's this great invitation. God will call everybody in their own time, in the right time for them. You and I have been called today. We have this opportunity to come, buy, and eat the things which money cannot buy.

That's so precious. As inflation keeps going up and bread costs a lot more, eggs cost a lot more and goes up and down, the things that truly satisfy, the things that truly sustain, buy without money. If you get the analogy.

And then there's that admonition there. Why do you spend money for what is not bread? We have to be careful with what consumes our life.

What we're constantly working and slaving for to get. If we have an off-balance approach to what God is truly doing with us in this world. Why our invitation has been given today? Because God desires that we come to repentance. Many of us, of course, we have. And but to stay on that path, that way of God. To thirst and desire to be in His family.

You see, to be there, we must overcome. I read it a little bit ago. We could go back and refresh, but in Revelation 21 and verse 7, He says, we must overcome.

He who overcomes shall inherit all things. This is verse 7. He who overcomes, to be there in that world that comes after everything, we must overcome.

The Greek there is meaning to be victorious. To be victorious. To be a victor. To be a conqueror.

Now, we recognize the spiritual truth of that, that in Christ, we have victory.

And so when God forgives us of our sins by the death of Jesus Christ, we have the responsibility then to walk in a newness of life. Always striving to overcome against the sins of the flesh, overcome against the thoughts of the mind. Bringing every thought into captivity. Fighting against every desire and urge that takes us away from the tree of life.

God helps us with that. God helps us to overcome. Who will overcome? Well, let's just partner this with 1 John chapter 5.

1 John chapter 5 and verse 3. Just a few pages over if you have a Bible like mine.

1 John chapter 5 and verse 3.

Verse 3 of chapter 5, For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome. Again, connecting a little bit to the idea of thirsting for the ways of God. Those who thirst for the ways of God, you don't typically thirst for things that are burdensome. If you've ever been really thirsty and you're like, I just don't want water. Gross. Now wait, actually that may be true for some of us.

The idea is that we desire what will quench the thirst. Not burdensome. Verse 4, For whatever is born of God overcomes the world, and this is the victory that has overcome the world, our faith.

So, when we are born into the family of God at the resurrection, parallel verse, Romans 1, somewhere thereabouts, verse 5, it says, Jesus Christ became the Son of God through the resurrection of the dead. We are born into the family of God at the resurrection. Him who is born in the family of God overcomes.

So, he who overcomes will die in Christ. And if we die in Christ, we will live again in a different body, in a glorified body.

Let's partner this back with another idea, though, in overcoming the resurrection. We think about this time to come, a glorified state, glorified bodies, no longer subject to death. First resurrection, no longer subject to second death.

Right? Eternal life.

In Revelation 21 and verse 7, what we read earlier at the end of it says, So he who overcomes shall inherit all things. I will be his God, and he shall be my Son. He who overcomes will inherit all things. Now, maybe I shouldn't ask for a show of hands, but if you've ever had families, that left an inheritance for you. Whether some land or some money or hopefully spiritual things, like good teaching, if not financial things, right?

This idea of overcoming is connected with rulership.

Revelation 22 and verse 5, it says, when it says, no more night, it says, at the end of that, it says, they shall reign forever and ever. This idea of overcoming and inheriting is tied to rulership, proper rulership and proper authority. We see proper authority within the family of God. The Father, the Son, submitting himself to that structure. You and I, then, submitting to our elder brother, will become part of the family of God. Same identity in the sense of family of God. Same name, but in subject to the authority that's there.

And this was always part of the plan. God created us to share his family with us and for us to inherit his plans and what he's built and what he's striving to do.

Let's go back to Genesis chapter 1, verse 26.

It was always God's desire to give us authority or to grant us opportunities to rule. Now, in our society that has gone the way of the knowledge of good and evil, the wicked way under the deception of Satan, rulership and authority and all that submitting, those are all nasty words in today's world. What do you mean submit? I have to submit to somebody, especially as an American, right? I just moved here from New Hampshire, the state model. Live, free or die, baby. The baby I don't think is part of the... I don't know why I said that. It's on my license plate still even now.

Live, free or die. Because we don't like authority. We don't like submitting.

At least, well, never mind.

But God has always desired to grant us authority and to give us to rule and to be a part of his family. Verse 25 of Genesis chapter 1 of verse 26.

And God said, Let us make man in our image according to our likeness, let them have dominion or authority over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth. And so God created man his own image. In the image of God, he created him male and female. He created them. So he created these two for the purpose to rule, to rule over all the creation.

Now let's fast forward, of course, to Deuteronomy chapter 4.

We're going to connect this with more and more ideas with inheritance.

What is God building? What is God doing to provide for us to inherit these things? Those who thirst, those who will overcome will inherit all things, will rule with God and Christ.

Deuteronomy chapter 4 and verse 19.

Another hint to this plan.

Deuteronomy 4 and verse 19.

And take heed. So within an admonishment, a warning, take heed, beware. It says, lest you lift your eyes to the heaven, and when you see the sun and the moon and the stars and all the host of heaven, you feel driven to worship them and serve them. So you're saying, okay, be careful. When you look up into the night sky, it's going to amaze you. How many people have ever gone out in the pitch night? Pitch dark night. Outside the city, get away from the light pollution and look up in the night sky. Five hands.

Okay. Okay. 42 hands. Good.

Well, we'll make a note on the social committee. We'll have a middle of the wilderness camp out.

I'm up for it, if anybody's up for it. So you get out there in the night sky with very little light. And what do you see?

A ton of stars. And you see, I think what they say, right? The technical, the galaxy, right? The Milky Way. You see that kind of cool looking.

I don't know. I don't know the technical term for it.

You know what I'm saying, though, if you've ever seen that. You're amazed by how many stars are out there. He says, okay, when you look up there, that's going to amaze you. And with your small little human brains and your rejection of authority of me, you're going to want to worship them. Don't do that.

He says, so all the hosts of heaven, you feel driven to worship them and serve them. He says, which the Lord God has given to all the peoples under the whole heaven as inheritance, as a heritage.

When we look up at the stars around us, we look at everything God has created. God is building all of these things as an inheritance for all peoples.

Everybody He will bring into the family. So we fast forward thousands and thousands of years right after the millennium then and into the after the last great day period, the time of judgment. And when God gets rid of all wickedness and sets up this refreshed state, then you have all peoples in the family of God receiving the inheritance of all creation.

What a beautiful time to consider! Something I'm not even sure we can truly imagine. But over the years we have a bit. We've speculated, talked to young children, you think, well, what do you think is beyond? I remember I had a conversation with a young boy just a year ago or so, and he's like, well, I'm gonna have a Lego planet. On the Lego planet, it's gonna be built out of Legos, right? And we're build Lego things and, you know, right? As a child, we think as a child. We have all these theories and different speculations. Well, what is God planning with all the creation? Now, we see the creation out there, and the universe is great, forgiven us our times and our season, and it's beautiful. But there's a plan much beyond that. There's something in store, a refreshing that will take place, and we will rule with God throughout his plan. And of course, this is connected in Hebrews. Let's go to Hebrews for a minute. Hebrews chapter 2. And so we see darkly. We don't see exactly what God has planned, but we see that it will be a time of rulership in his family over all that he has created, but a refresh date. No more in the same sense of what we just read. No more death. No more pain. No more suffering. So it's a new and refreshed state, but it is, no doubt, God's plan to share all of creation with his people, his family. In Hebrews chapter 2 and verse 5, we see the writer reflecting, inspired to consider Psalm 8. So in Hebrews 2, he's connecting back to Psalm 8. If you remember, Psalm 8 is the classic passage I always think about, where when you're talking about going out and looking out the night sky, David's out there and he says, What is man that you're mindful of, us? You know, we're so tiny, so insignificant in the grand scheme of the universe. Why did you make us? What is our destiny?

So David contemplates all these things and he says, you know, you created us, you made us a little lower than the angels, you gave us dominion or authority over the beasts of the field and the birds of the air. And so David is contemplating in Psalm 8, the authority that God has granted humans over the creation of the earth. And now fast forward to Hebrews chapter 2, which I'm not even there. Sorry, give me a second. Hebrews chapter 2, we see then the writer picking up where David leaves off.

Hebrews chapter 2 and verse 5. For he has not put the world to come, of which we speak in subjection to angels. The world that is coming will not be under the authority of the angels. They're created for a different purpose. They are ministering servants. He writes a little earlier, I think, where he says they are created to serve those who will inherit all things. So God is not putting the world to come in subjection to angels, but one testified in a certain place, saying, what is man that you're mindful of him? Here he's referencing back to Psalm 8, like I was referring to. I kind of summed this up a little bit. Verse 8, he writes, you have put all things in subjection under his feet. And he stops there. And he recognizes that David was primarily contemplating or reflecting on the fact that God had granted authority in Genesis at recreation. Authority over the creation. The beasts and the birds and all those things. But here we see that there's more to come.

For in that he put all in subjection under him. He left nothing out that was put under him. But now we do not see all things put under him, but we see Jesus.

So he's saying, we don't quite see everything in detail the way that God has planned for us. But we see the one who gave up his glory came in the flesh as man.

In verse 9, we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels.

For the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honor, that he by the grace of God might taste death for everyone. So we see the path. Or the... I lost my word there. We see the mode, or the means, by which we will be glorified. Clear as mud? I don't know what I'm trying to say.

We see Jesus, who is the pattern... that's a good one... the pattern of how we will enter the family of God. Through Christ, we then are sons, born into the family by the resurrection of the dead.

And we will be in that same family, inheriting all things, crowned with glory in a different way. But being all things being subject under our feet. See, Christ sees this reality now. Well, in part. He's on the right hand of the Father. He's not quite on his throne yet. Right? He will be put on his throne in the millennium. But he sits on the Father's throne.

But Christ lived this out. He gave up his glory and came in the likeness of sinful flesh. He didn't sin, but he appeared like the rest of us. Like he was flesh. Let me say that clearly. He was flesh. He was human.

And he came and sacrificed himself. And now he's back at the right hand of the Father. We don't quite see that reality as plainly as he does. But we have faith. And we're assured of these things.

All things include, then, the whole of the cosmos in a refreshed state. Timing up to God, how he does these things, how he brings them to pass. But they're clearly laid out.

We will be giving authority with proper respect to the Father and our elder brother, Jesus Christ.

So do we recognize and do we long for this coming time, this new heaven, this new earth, this new Jerusalem? No more pain, no more death, no more suffering, no more tears. I know a lot of us, as we age, every year we get a little older.

We long for those new bodies. No more aches and pains, no more sufferings. Let's go to Hebrews 11 as we're closing up here.

Hebrews 11, verse 13.

Are we longing for this city to come? And are we doing all today that we can to overcome by the grace of God, the power of God within us? Hebrews 11, verse 13.

Talking about inside this context of these faithful heroes, these faithful men and women who endured a lot of suffering and persecution and trial. Verse 13, he writes, These all died in the faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on this earth. For those who say such things declare plainly that they seek a homeland. You and I, we recognize that our homeland is not here. Our citizenship is of a heavenly calling. Mr. Eliot spoke a bit on that last week.

We seek a homeland to come. We haven't seen it yet, but we're assured of it.

And God willing, or by the grace of God when we die in the faith, we're waiting for those promises, unknown to us. Verse 15, And truly if they had called to mind the country which they had come out of, they would have had an opportunity to return. A great warning! When God calls us out of that system, that darkness, and he transfers us, Colossians 1 verse 16 or so says, transferred us into the kingdom of his light, brings us out of darkness, opens our mind, brings us under the authority of his rulership today, we have to make sure that we're not longing for that old country like the Israelites did. Wait a second, Moses, you took us out of a really great thing we had going. I know we were in slavery, but I know we got whipped a lot, but we had food. And we had water. Now you've taken us out here to die in the wilderness. This is terrible.

You see, God is saying those who have those of the faith will not desire their old way of living. They will be seeking and searching, seeking and thirsting for the coming city. Hebrews chapter, let's continue reading verse 16. But now they desire a better, that is a heavenly country. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.

Hebrews 13 in verse 10.

We have an altar. Hebrews 10 and verse 13. We have an altar from which those who serve the tabernacle have no right to eat. For the bodies of those animals whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest for sin are burned outside the camp.

Verse 12. Therefore Jesus also, that he might sanctify the people with his own blood, suffered outside the gate. Therefore let us go forth to him outside the camp, bearing his reproach. For here we have no continuing city, but we seek the one to come. Therefore by him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to his name.

Do not forget to do good and to share, for such with such sacrifices God is well pleased. So we seek that new city to come. And while we're striving to do what God says is right, while we're working out our own salvation with fear and trembling, he says, also don't forget to do good.

Almost like an afterthought. It's not, of course.

As the people of God, as the household of faith, we must do good. Galatians 6, 10, as you have every opportunity, do good to all those, especially the household of faith.

Provide for one another. Care for one another.

Have good works.

Good works is seen throughout the Bible. God prepares good works that we should walk in them. It's not necessarily the soup kitchens. It's not a bad thing to go to a soup kitchen and help. But it's like the fruit of God's Spirit, the works that are being produced in us so that we can be conformed to the image of the sun.

We're striving for that city to come.

Brethren, are we longing for that new city, that new Jerusalem, that glorified state that will come, that family that will be a part of? Let us always continually come out of this crazy and abominable world, the systems of this world, drawing closer to one another every weekly Sabbath as we have opportunity, as we're going into a long stretch of worldly holidays and we don't have a lot of, we don't have God's holy days, just the weekly one. Let us always assemble together, not neglecting each other, suffering, comforting one another, helping one another, encouraging one another. So let's desire that new heavens and that new earth, desire that new Jerusalem, because indeed it is a magnificent creation, a magnificent glory that will come to all creation.