of sharing its blessedness? At present, none! None! What have you to do
heaven His interest in earth, and to the inhabitants of earth the certainty of His purpose respecting earth's final restitution. And for what is this ascended Saviour interceding? Not only for His Church, but for earth itself. 'Ask of me, and I will give Thee the heathen for Thine inheritance, and the uttermost ends of the earth for Thy possession.' He pleads for earth,—earth, where He was born, and lived, and died; earth, whose air He breathed, whose plains and hills He walked, and whose soil He watered with His blood; earth, out of whose dust His body is composed, and the future bodies of His risen saints. Nor shall these intercessions be long in vain. Soon shall they be all answered, and the cry be heard, 'Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men!'
1. Saint, are you making ready for that day? Are you walking worthy of an heir of that glory? Are you remembering that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost? Are you at one with Father and with Son in your desire for that restitution of all things? Do you not only long to depart and to be with Christ, but do you also long for the arrival of Christ here, and for God's making His tabernacle with the children of men? 2. Sinner, what are your thoughts of that day? What hopes have you of sharing its blessedness? At present, none! None! What have you to do with it? What has an unforgiven soul to do with a forgiven and delivered creation? What has an unrenewed sinner to do with a glorified world,—a new heaven and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness? From that world all sin is swept away; and can you hope to dwell in it? Nothing that defileth shall enter; and do you expect to enter it? Yet Christ says, 'Behold, I stand at the door and knock: if any man hear my voice and open the door, I will come in unto him, and will sup with him, and he with me.' Let the Son of God enter now; His entrance now will be the earnest of your entrance into the new Jerusalem. Admit this Christ whom you have long shut out. Admit Him at once. He will come in, and dwell in you and with you; and that will be the pledge of the eternal indwelling, the eternal fellowship, the eternal blessedness, when the tabernacle of God shall be with men!
L. The Coming Of The Perfect, And The
Departure Of The Imperfect
"The former things are passed away."— Revelation 21: 4.
'The things which are seen are temporal,' says the Apostle Paul; and again he says, 'Old things are passed away;' and again, 'The fashion of this world passeth away.' These are words that suit us well in our changeableness, and vanity, and mortality. It would not be well for us were such a condition as the present immoveable and eternal. Fading and dying, and then entering on the possession of an unchanging life,— this is surely far better than a prolonged mortality of pain and weakness like that which we have here and now. The words do not teach annihilation of any kind,—of man or matter. When one is renewed of the Spirit, there is a new creation: old things pass away, all things become new, yet the man's identity is unchanged. He is the same individual, and yet a new man. So is it here. Former things pass away, all things are made new; yet all are in the truest sense the same,—the same, only without the sin, and the evil, and the pain, and the decay. These former things are many,—great and small, material and spiritual;— all of them more or less connected with earth and man. Note some of these: I. The former things connected with the body have passed away.— Our bodies shared the ruin into which sin brought our race. Mortality and corruption took possession of them. They became subject to pain, and weariness, and disease, in every organ and limb. The one drop of poison coming from Adam's sin has spread itself out and pervaded every part of us. The whole head is sick, and the whole heart is faint. We begin with pain, and we end with it. Our flesh, from the cradle to the tomb, is feeble,
broken, ready to faint, the cause and the inlet of a thousand sorrows. It is truly an 'earthly house,' a frail tent or tabernacle, in which we groan, being burdened; a 'vile body,' needing such perpetual care, and food, and medicine, and rest,—yet, after all, incapable of being preserved; the seat of a daily warfare between life and death; in spite of all our cherishings, hastening on to the sick-bed and the separation from its guest the soul. All this shall yet be reversed. Former things shall pass away. This head shall ache no more; these hands and feet shall be weary no more; this flesh shall throb with anguish no more. 'God shall wipe away all tears from these eyes; and there shall be no more death; neither, sorrow, nor crying, for the former things are passed away.' He who once hung upon the cross, but now sits upon the throne, says, 'Behold, I make all things new.' 'This corruptible shall put on incorruption, and this mortal immortality, and death be swallowed in victory. II. The former things connected with the soul have passed away.—The beginning of this renovation was our 'being begotten again into a lively hope.' This re-begetting displaced the old things and introduced the new. The sin, and the darkness, and the misery, and the unbelief, and the distance from God,—all these shall come to a perpetual end. In their place shall come holiness, and love, and light, and joy, and everlasting nearness, —unchanging and unending fellowship with that Jehovah in whom is life eternal. Every fragment of evil shall be expelled from our souls; and we shall then know what perfection is—perfection according to the mind and after the image of God,—perfection without a flaw, or taint, or shade,— perfection without the possibility of reversal or diminution. From our heart, from our conscience, our intellect, our feelings, our affections, from every part of our spiritual being, shall all evil depart. 'Former things shall pass away.' We shall be holy as God is holy; we shall be perfect as He is perfect; we shall be children of the light and of the day in the fullest sense,—no trace remaining of sin in any part of us. We shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. We shall be changed into His image from glory to glory. He that is righteous shall be righteous still; he that is holy shall be holy still.
III. The former things connected with the earth have passed away.— This earth is the seat of evil since man fell. The curse came down on it; creation was subjected to the bondage of corruption; Satan took possession of it. It has been overshadowed with sin, overspread with misery; its air full of sighs and groans; its soil made up of corrupted bodies; its cities the centers of ungodliness and rebellion; its thrones the fountainheads of misrule; God disowned; Christ rejected both in State and Church; the Bible despised; the gospel mocked; blasphemy resounding on all sides; evil everywhere. These are the former things which shall pass away. Satan shall be bound, and his angels traverse earth no more. The devouring lion shall be in chains, and 'no lion shall be there.' The curse shall vanish from creation; the blight disappear. Beauty shall clothe all things. Paradise shall return. Holiness shall revisit earth. God shall once more delight in it and set His throne in it. The second Adam shall be its Lord and Ruler. His scepter shall supersede the oppressive scepter under which the race has groaned from Nimrod downwards. Righteousness shall flourish, and holiness to the Lord be inscribed everywhere. The ransomed of the Lord shall return and come to Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads. The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad. The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid. The meek shall inherit the earth; and the glory of the Lord shall shine over all its' expanse. There shall be the new heavens and the new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness. And all this irreversible! No second fall. No second overflow of evil. No failure on the part of the righteous King. No waxing old; no ruin; no decay; no return of disease and death. All is everlasting. Messiah,—even He who died for us and who rose again;—is on the throne, and no usurper can assail it. He ever lives and ever reigns. Blessed consummation and hope! It draws nearer and nearer. Soon shall time no longer be. Soon shall this present evil world give place to the glorious world to come. Our king is coming; He will not tarry. Our
Bridegroom is at hand; He is not slack concerning His promise. In an hour when we think not He will arrive. Are we ready? Is the oil in our vessels? Have we got on the garments of beauty? Are we preparing to bid Him welcome? 'Lo, this is our God, we have waited for Him.'
LI. The New Things Of God
"And He that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new, And He said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful." —
Revelation 21:5.
There are many new things spoken of in Scripture, some of more, and some of less importance. Of the less important we have such as these:— Samson's new cords (Judges 15:13); David's new cart for the ark (2 Samuel 6:7); the new sword of the giant who sought to slay David (2 Samuel 21:16); Elisha's new curse (2 Kings 2:20) the new tongues of Pentecost (Matthew 16:17); Joseph's new tomb (Matthew 27:60). These are not so directly connected with things spiritual and eternal, and so we may call them of less importance; yet they have all their important lessons. But let us take up the following as specially the new things of God:—
I. The new testament or covenant (Matthew 26:28).—That which was old has vanished away. It was insufficient; it could not help the sinner; it said nothing of forgiveness. But the new covenant is all a sinner needs; it comes at once with a free pardon; it presents a work done for the sinner, not a work for the sinner to do. The motto or burden of the new covenant is, 'Their sins and iniquities will I remember no more.' II. The new man (Ephesians 4:24).—This seems to correspond with the 'new creature' (2 Corinthians 5:17); with the 'new heart' (Ezekiel 18:31); with the 'new spirit' (Ezekiel 11:9); with the 'heart of flesh' (Ezekiel 36:26); with the 'new birth' (John 3:3); and the being 'begotten again' (1 Peter 1:3). It supposes the destruction or removal of the old man and the creation of the new,—this new thing being the workmanship of God, the
production of the Holy Ghost. Newness of nature, or heart, of life, of words, of the entire being, is the basis of all religion and true worship. III. The new way (Hebrews 10:19).—The approach or access to God by the sinner is said to be by a 'new and living way,'— that way being Christ Himself, for through Him we have access by on Spirit to the Father. It is a new way in contrast with Adam's old way; a new way, because newly made by Him who had newly died; a way into the holiest; a way through the veil, by means of the blood. All God's dealings with the sinner are on a new footing, that of free love, simple grace. It is a free way, a sufficient way, an open way, a perfect way. He who walks thereon is safe; for the way not only leads to life, but is the life. Yes, life and truth are in Him who is the way; for Christ is all and in all. The new song (Psalm 33:3; Revelation 5:9).—Every new day brings with it a new song; or rather it brings materials for many new songs, which we should be always singing. Our whole life should be full of new songs. Yet the old songs are not thereby made obsolete; they do not grow tame or unmeaning. As the old songs of a land are always fresh and sweet, so is it with the old songs of faith. They never come amiss, and they help us with the new. These new songs have to do with the past,— for often, in looking into the past, we get materials for a new song,—with the present, and with the future. They are connected with ourselves, our families, with the Church, with our nation, with the work of God just now, with resurrection, with the restitution of all things, with the glory, the new Jerusalem, and the new creation. It is specially with the last that the new song of the Apocalypse is connected, The new commandment (John 13:34; 1 John 2:8).—It is both an old and a new commandment which Christ gives us; substantially the same as from the beginning, yet in many respects altogether new; a new lawgiver, a new motive, a new standing-place (Zion, not Sinai), new light fullness; everything in the commandment now connected with Christ Himself and with His love. This new commandment bases itself on 'God is love,' revolves round the cross. Love me, says the Master; love one another with
a pure heart fervently; love the brethren as I have loved you;—thus fulfilling both the old and the new commandment at the same time, nay, treating them as one. VI. The new wine (Matthew 26:29).—In one sense the Lord's Supper is new wine; and there we remember His love, which is 'better than wine.' But Christ, in using the expression, 'till I drink it new with you,' refers to the heavenly feast, the marriage supper of the Lamb. There is in the highest sense and degree 'the new wine;' wine made from no earthly vine, but from him who is the true vine, and from the juice of whose grapes there comes the new and royal wine, the wine of the kingdom. He is Himself the giver and the gift. His blood is drink indeed here; much more hereafter. It is 'new' here; it will much more new hereafter. VII. The new Jerusalem (Revelation 3:12, 21:3, 10).—This is no earthly city. It is not the old Jerusalem rebuilt; that is another thing. This is a new and more glorious city, heavenly and divine, which cometh down out of heaven from God; and it has the glory of God and of the Lamb. It is altogether new; for the risen and the glorified; for God's kings and priests; the city and the palace of the Great King. VIII. The new heavens and new earth (Isaiah 65:17; 2 Peter 3:13).— The whole of what God had made, and which sin had defiled, is made new. The universe is renewed; it is the restitution of all things; it is the replacing of all creation on a higher and more glorious footing, from which there shall be no second fall. There dwelleth righteousness; it is the kingdom of the righteous King. IX. The new name (Revelation 2:17).—This is for the dwellers in the new Jerusalem, the inhabitants of the new heavens and earth. Let us consider what it is and what it means. What the actual individual name is we know not; it will be as unlike the past as 'Israel' (the prince with God) was unlike 'Jacob' (the supplanter). It will be a name,— (1) Of love.—The Father's love will be in it; Christ's love will be in it.
(2) Of honour.—It will be no mean nor common name, but glorious and celestial. (3) Of blessing.—It will proclaim blessing; it will be a name of blessing, a blessed name. (4) Of wonder.—It will astonish the possessor, and every one who hears it; no one shall know it or guess it till it comes out. As Christ's new name is one which no one knows but Himself (Revelation 19:12), so with the conqueror. It will be a name of glad astonishment. (5) Given by Christ.—'I will give.' As He gave names to Abram, Jacob, Peter, John, so will He give this new name, superseding our old earthly appellation. (6) Most suitable and characteristic.—It will in itself condense and summarize our past history and character, or perhaps our eternal prospects, as seen by God Himself. It will be a name full of divine meaning,— interpretative, perhaps, of God's dealings with us, and indicative of His love. (7) Contained in a white stone.—The white stone is the stone of acquittal. In that stone of acquittal the new name is inscribed by Christ. It is as an acquitted man, a conqueror, one to whom the Master says, 'Well done,' that we get the name. It is the everlasting seal of forgiving love. They shall see His face, and His name shall be in their foreheads. The Father's name is there (Revelation 3:12, 14:1). But this new name is something more. What manner of love is this?
LII. The Conqueror's Reward And The Coward's
Doom
"And He said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end: I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son. But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death."—
Revelation 21:6-8.
The speaker here is 'He that sat upon the throne.' He is the author of the new creation: 'Behold, I make all things new.' He declares the truth and certainty of what has been, and what is to be spoken in this book: 'These words are true and faithful.' For His name is the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God. He calls Himself the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the ending; the all-possessing, allcomprehending, allcommunicating One, whose fullness is from eternity. He was the babe of Bethlehem; he is now the risen and glorified Son of God. He spoke on earth the words of grace; He speaks the same from heaven. There is no change in His heart. As it did not require ages to make Him the gracious One, so the lapse of ages and the glory of heaven cannot make Him less gracious or alter the feelings of pity with which He yearns over a rebellious world, even as He wept over impenitent Jerusalem when He saw her doom approaching. For these words refer to the crisis of earth's history: 'He said unto me, It is done;' just as He said on the cross, 'It is finished.' The fullness of the times has come; the prophetic word has been fulfilled; the seals are opened; the
trumpets are blown; the vials are poured out; the battle of the great day of God Almighty has been fought; Babylon has fallen; Satan is about to be bound; creation about to be delivered from the bondage of corruption; the saints to be raised; the great kingdom to begin! It is just at the crisis; just when the consummation is about to take place; just when the last vengeance is about to descend, and the gate to be closed,— that the Lord sends out this last and most urgent summons of grace. Come! Enter! In another hour you will be too late. The door will be shut. I. The fountain for the sons of men.—Each word here deserves special notice. The thirsty.—These are they who are seeking rest but finding none; going after pleasure, yet obtaining no happiness; hewing out the ever-breaking cisterns; 'spending their money for that which is not bread, and their labour for that which satisfieth not.'[24] They are not those thirsting after righteousness, but after pleasure, saying 'Who will show us any good?' They are the weary, worn-out, empty, sorrowful, broken-hearted sons of sin. The water.—That which refreshes, satisfies, fills, makes happy. 'This He spake of the Spirit' (John 7:39). Frequent are the allusions to this water both in the Old Testament and the New. It is called 'living water,' 'water of life;'—it is that which quickens and revives, which fills the soul with heavenly gladness. This Jordan is better than Abana and Pharpar, though the world slights and shuns it. All joy is in it. The life of heaven is in it. The Giver.—It is He who gave Himself,—Jesus the Christ, who not only has all fullness, but gives it. The Son is the gift of the Father, and the Spirit is the gift of the Son. He is the great Giver of all blessing to a poor and empty world. He gives from the Father's throne. He gives according to His love. He gives of the water of life,—nay, of its fountain,— freely. Undeserved and unpurchased He gives! The wells of salvation (Isaiah 12:3) are His, and He lets down His bucket and draws for us;— not merely the
surface water, but its depths,— 'creating in us a well of water springing up unto everlasting life.' Thirsty spirit, take the living water! Drink and be happy. Deal with Jesus about it. Deal with Him alone, and face to face. Deal with Him as One who desires sincerely that you should drink and be refreshed. II. The conqueror and his reward.—The designation 'he that overcometh' carries us back to the seven epistles, in each of which the expression occurs. As believers we are saved, as conquerors we get the recompense. Seven kinds of reward for seven kinds of victory; and here is the eighth! It says, Fight, for the great Captain leads you on. Fight, for the reward is as great as it is sure. The reward here is threefold: The inheritance of all things.—We are heirs of God; jointheirs with Christ. As such the universe becomes our possession; heaven and earth, and the wide regions of farthest space; all that God possesses, all that Christ has become heir to;—all is the portion of the conqueror. A kingdom wide as widest space, large as God's possessions, endless as the eternal ages,—such is the over comer's heritage, the conqueror's recompense. The divine portion.—'I will be his God,'—a repetition of Abraham's blessing (Genesis 17:7). Jehovah is our God! Does not this include everything? If God be not my God, I have nothing. If God be my God, I lack nothing; nor should I be poor though stripped of everything, and though not an atom of the universe were mine (1 Corinthians 3:21, 23). The divine adoption.—The conqueror becomes a son, and all that is contained in sonship is his,—all the paternal love, all l the divine patrimony, all the endless glory. He our Father, we His sons (2 Corinthians 6:17, 18). Noble paternity, blessed sonship! 'Behold what manner of love the Father hath bestowed on us, that we should be called sons of God!' (1 John 3:1). This glory, this new and peculiar relation to Godhead, we shall owe entirely to the free love of Him who gave His Son for us.