For six weeks now, we have been walking together through this series, “The Return of the King,” looking at what God has revealed to us about the future. The Lord Jesus made it clear that he is coming soon, and he did not leave us guessing; he gave us details, clarity, and hope.

This morning, I want to do three things. First, I want to step back and see the whole picture by reviewing where we have been. Second, I want to address your questions about the judgment. Third, I want to walk you through the most detailed description of our eternal home in Scripture.

And so, let’s begin where God begins. Speaking through the prophet Isaiah, the Lord said,

"Behold, I will create new heavens and a new earth" (Isaiah 65:17).

In other words, this is not a renovation, a patch job, or a spiritual makeover. It is a brand-new creation, never before seen, and greater than anything we have known.

Now, the Bible is a story of perfect balance, beginning with humanity in a garden and ending with humanity in a garden. It begins with the tree of life and ends with the tree of life. It begins with God dwelling with humanity and ends with God dwelling with humanity forever.

God described to Moses how it all began, telling us that in the beginning he planted a garden in Eden, put man there, and that in the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Genesis 2:9). And then, like bookends, the Bible’s final chapter brings us right back to a garden.

Revelation chapter 2, verse two tells us that the tree of life is there again, now standing within the New Jerusalem, bearing twelve crops of fruit. John tells us that its leaves are for the healing of the nations (Revelation 22:2). And so the garden that was sealed up in Genesis, because the Bible says,

“After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life” (Genesis 3:24).

That garden opens again in Revelation, not for one man and one woman who were sent away, but for the nations of the world gathered in the presence of God.

This is the fullness of the gospel, the redemption of creation itself. Paul told the Romans that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time (Romans 8:22). That through Christ God is reconciling all things to himself, not only people but creation as well (Colossians 1:20).

All of it comes together in the new heavens and the new earth, in a city called the New Jerusalem. This is the city the writer of Hebrews had in mind when he said Abraham was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God (Hebrews 11:10). This holy city has been the hope of God’s people ever since.

Now, let’s look back and review where we’ve been. In week one, we learned that Israel stands at the center of God's plan to build that eternal community. Abraham is the father of the nation, and God promised to bless all peoples on earth through him (Genesis 12:3). At God’s direction, Abraham obeyed by faith and went, even though he did not know where he was going (Hebrews 11:8).

We saw that most of the prophecies concerning Israel have already come to pass. Israel has blessed the world by giving us the Scriptures and the Savior. After being scattered among the nations for nearly nineteen hundred years, Israel is now back in her own land, with the Old City of Jerusalem in Israeli hands since 1967.

In week two, we looked at the signs on earth and in heaven that the Lord Jesus described in Matthew chapter 24. In week three, we learned from Paul's letter to the Thessalonians that Jesus is coming for his church before the tribulation begins. The Lord himself will come down from heaven with a loud command. The dead in Christ will rise first, and those of us who are still alive will be caught up with them to meet the Lord in the air (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17).

In week four, we learned that the tribulation is a seven-year period that begins with the signing of a covenant or peace treaty and the rise of the Antichrist, continues at the midpoint with the persecution of God's people, and culminates in the great battle of Armageddon.

In week five, we learned that immediately after the tribulation, Jesus returns to establish a thousand-year reign on earth, known as the millennium, the golden age of peace when the wolf will live with the lamb. Then, when Satan launches one last rebellion at the close of these thousand years, he is defeated and cast forever into the lake of fire.

That brings us to where we are today, with the new heavens and new earth. But before we can walk into the New Creation, there is a judgment, because the Bible says nothing impure will ever enter it (Revelation 21:27). In fact, truth is, there are actually two judgments still ahead of us, but you need to know that they are not the same event, they don’t happen at the same time, and they don’t involve the same people.

Now, the first judgment is for believers; however, there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1). So, if you are born again, this occurs after the rapture and so it is already behind you on the timeline we have been walking through. It is called the judgment seat of Christ, or the bema seat, and it happens sometime after the Lord's return for his church.

Paul described it as taking place while the tribulation runs its course on the earth below. He wrote,

“We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad" (2 Corinthians 5:10).

Notice who is standing there. Paul says "we" because this includes him. This is for the church. This judgment is for those who belong to Jesus. In other words, this is not about salvation, because salvation was settled at the cross. This is an awards ceremony. It is about receiving rewards. It is about what we did with what God entrusted to us. This is what Paul told the Romans: each of us will give an account of ourselves to God (Romans 14:12).

So how we use our resources and gifts, and how faithful we are with small things, carries an eternal payoff. The Lord Jesus said it plainly in the closing chapter of Revelation,

"My reward is with me" (Revelation 22:12).

That is what Jesus meant when he told us to use worldly wealth to gain friends for ourselves, so that when it is gone, we will be welcomed into eternal dwellings (Luke 16:9). And so, whatever you want to bring into eternity, you must send it on ahead. That’s why Jesus said,

“Store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:20-21).

Now, the second judgment is the one that stands between the millennium and the new creation, and it is called the Great White Throne judgment. This one is for the unsaved dead of every age. John says that he saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. Earth and sky fled from his presence, and there was no place for them (Revelation 20:11).

Then the dead, great and small, stood before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life, and the dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. Anyone whose name was not found in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire (Revelation 20:12, 15).

At the great white throne, nobody argues about their past, about what they have done, because the evidence is history. The one thing, the only thing that saves a person is having their name written in the Lamb’s book of life. And it is written there by grace through faith in Jesus Christ, and no other way.

At the same moment, I want you to look at what happened to the old creation. The Bible says that the earth and sky fled from his presence because the old order of things cannot stand before a holy God. This is the moment when the old creation gives way to the new.

Now, as we stand at the doorway to Revelation chapter 21, on the other side lies the fulfillment of your heart's deepest longing. Paul, sitting in a prison cell, said that departing to be with Christ is far better (Philippians 1:23). The writer of Hebrews said the saints of old longed for a better country, a heavenly one (Hebrews 11:16). In other words, deep within each of us, God has planted a longing. As Solomon mentions in Ecclesiastes 3:11, God has set eternity in the hearts of men.

We are created for a better world, and that world is on its way. The mystery is that we aren't ascending to it; instead, it is descending to us. So let's turn to Revelation chapter 21, the Bible's most detailed chapter about our eternal home. As we walk through it, let the Scriptures paint the picture for you. John opens with the same words he has used again and again.

"Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband" (Revelation 21:1-2).

John is not using flowery poetic language here to feed our imagination or make up for something that isn't real. Whatever these words cannot capture, the real thing is bigger than the picture, not smaller. A real new heaven, a real new earth, and a real city are coming down out of heaven from God.

The first heaven and the first earth have passed away. Peter describes how this occurs, dashing any hopes of mankind saving the world:

"The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire" (2 Peter 3:10).

And there is no longer any sea (Revelation 21:1). In ancient times, the sea was seen as a dangerous and threatening force to Israel, often bringing storms and invading armies. However, in the new creation, all threats to humanity have been removed.

Then a loud voice comes from the throne saying, "Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God" (Revelation 21:3).

Not in heaven, behind the curtain, or in a temple, he will live among us. The family of believers gathered there will come from every nation, tribe, people, and language, wonderfully diverse yet perfectly united in Christ (Revelation 7:9).

In verse four comes one of the most precious promises in all of Scripture.

"He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away" (Revelation 21:4).

This is not a picture of a crowd comforted from a distance. This is a personal moment when the finger of God will wipe every tear from your face. Every sorrow, every hurt, and everything evil that has ever touched your life will be gone forever. And then the one on the throne speaks, saying,

"I am making everything new!" (Revelation 21:5).

What is he making new? Everything, right?

In verse six, he says, "It is done” (Revelation 21:6), signifying that a phase of God's plan of redemption has been completed. Judgment has concluded, the old creation has ended, and the new creation has begun.

He promises that to the one who is thirsty he will give to drink without cost from the spring of the water of life, and that the one who overcomes will inherit all this, and God will be his God and he will be God’s son (Revelation 21:6-7). In one breath, he declares life, belonging, family, and an inheritance.

But then comes a sober warning. He says that the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters, and all liars will have their place in the fiery lake of burning sulfur, which is the second death (Revelation 21:8).

In other words, nothing wicked, corrupt, or false will ever enter that city. Everyone who walks those streets will have been washed clean, forgiven, born again of the Spirit, and made righteous through faith in Jesus Christ.

Then, in verse nine, an angel invites John to come and see the bride, the wife of the Lamb (Revelation 21:9).

That is us. Jesus is the bridegroom, and we are his bride. So the next time you are at a wedding and hear the music begin as the bride enters, you are getting a glimpse of yourself in eternity.

In verse 10, the angel carried John away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high and showed him the Holy City Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God (Revelation 21:10).

John says the city shone with the glory of God; its brilliance was like a very precious jewel. It had a great high wall with twelve gates and twelve angels at the gates, and written on the gates were the names of the twelve tribes of Israel. The wall had twelve foundations, and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb (Revelation 21:11-14).

I want you to notice the number twelve because we see twelve tribes, twelve apostles, twelve gates, and twelve foundations, with the Old and New Covenants standing together in one structure, forever pointing to Jesus Christ, his covenant people, and his government.

Then the angel takes a measuring rod of gold and measures the city. It is laid out like a square, as long as it is wide, twelve thousand stadia in length, and as wide and as high as it is long (Revelation 21:16).

So this is not a flat square but a cube. Twelve thousand stadia is about fourteen hundred miles in every direction. If God dropped that Holy City on the United States, it would stretch from the Canadian border to the Gulf coast and from the Atlantic coast to most of Colorado. And then it goes up that same distance. So there is plenty of room in our Father's house.

Now, in verse eighteen, look at what it is made of. The wall is jasper. The city itself is pure gold, as clear as glass. The foundations are adorned with every kind of precious stone, shimmering in brilliance, layer upon layer of color that catches the light of God’s glory. Even the twelve gates are pearls, each gate made from a single enormous pearl. And the street of the city was made of pure gold, like transparent glass (Revelation 21:18-21).

I love this description because everything we call precious on earth is only a shadow of what God has already prepared for us in his kingdom. We lock our gold in a safe, and he paves the road with it.

As we reach verse 22, John says something is missing:

"I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple" (Revelation 21:22).

In other words, no building is needed because God's presence fills the city. Verse twenty-three says,

"The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp" (Revelation 21:23).

John continues to tell us that the gates will never be shut because there is no night there, no danger, and nothing impure will ever enter it. No one who does what is shameful or deceitful will enter, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb's book of life (Revelation 21:25-27).

Revelation chapter 22 opens with one of the most beautiful scenes in Scripture, moving us from the foundation, layout, and structure of the city to the life of the city.

"Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city…" (Revelation 22:1-2).

Look at where that river begins; it flows from the throne. This is the life of God himself, poured out without measure and without end.

Church, that river is not something we have to wait for. Jesus stood up in the temple and declared,

“Whoever believes in me… streams of living water will flow from within him” (John 7:38).

And John tells us plainly that Jesus was speaking about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive (John 7:39).

And so, what we have now is a deposit, but what we will one day know is a flood, flowing down the middle of the great street of the city.

Notice that the tree of life is not hidden, not off-limits, and not guarded by a cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to it (Genesis 3:24). But in the new heavens and new earth, the Bible says,

“On each side of the river stood the tree of life” (Revelation 22:2).

And so, it’s right there, accessible to anyone who can reach it. And so, the tree that Adam and Eve lost access to is not merely restored; it is multiplied, “bearing twelve crops of fruit,” never running dry, “yielding its fruit every month.” And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations (Revelation 22:2).

Every division and every scar of human history is healed in the presence of God.

"No longer will there be any curse" (Revelation 22:3).

In other words, that curse that fell in Genesis chapter 3 is gone. There is no more sin, no more decay, no more thorns in the ground, and no sorrow in labor. Everything sin has touched will be undone.

In that same breath, John says the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him (Revelation 22:3). And so heaven is not boring, just hanging around, endlessly floating on a cloud with nothing to do. It is meaningful, joyful service in the presence of God, and every bit of it will be satisfying and life-giving as Jesus promised when he said,

“I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full” (John 10:10).

Then in verse four comes the greatest promise of all. This is the highest blessing eternity holds:

"They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads" (Revelation 22:4).

It’s not a reflection or a vision, but the face of the one who saved us, sanctified us, and walked with us through every valley. And his name will be on our foreheads, marking our identity, our belonging, because we will be his, fully and forever.

John finishes the scene by telling us there will be no more night; no one will need the light of a lamp or the sun, because the Lord God will give them light, and they will reign forever and ever (Revelation 22:5).

This is where this whole story has been going, from the first page of Genesis to the last page of Revelation. A new heaven and a new earth. A city coming down out of heaven. The curse gone. All things restored. And God himself living with his people.

Now, as we come to a close, I want you to focus on one line from everything we’ve read. It’s from chapter 21, verse 27, which says,

“Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life” (Revelation 21:27).

In other words, not the good people or the religious people, but only the forgiven will walk through those gates. And here is the best news of all. That invitation is still open this morning, and it is the last great invitation recorded in Scripture.

"The Spirit and the bride say, 'Come!' And let him who hears say, 'Come!' Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life" (Revelation 22:17).

That is the Holy Spirit and the church, the bride of Jesus Christ, calling with one voice. I want you to notice the word “free,” because it cannot be earned, is not deserved, and cannot be bought. It is a gift, and the only condition for receiving any gift is to accept it.

If you are sitting here this morning and are not certain that your name is written in that book, nothing else we discussed today matters more than this. You do not have to clean yourself up first or understand everything. But the promise of the gospel is that:

“To all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God” (John 1:12).

Graphics, notes, and commentary from LifeChurch, Ministry Pass, PC Study Bible, Preaching Library, and Sermon Central. Scripture from the New International Version unless otherwise noted.