1 00:00:03,840 --> 00:00:08,119 This is Living Waters of Grace, the teaching ministry of Clark 2 00:00:08,119 --> 00:00:12,240 Wofford, senior pastor of Calvary Chapel of Westmoreland, 3 00:00:12,240 --> 00:00:16,400 County of Greensburg, PA. Now here's Pastor Clark as he 4 00:00:16,400 --> 00:00:18,760 continues teaching through God's Word. 5 00:00:37,080 --> 00:00:39,120 I love that word uttermost, don't you? 6 00:00:39,760 --> 00:00:46,080 Not part way, only maybe. Not real, sure, not complete. 7 00:00:46,080 --> 00:00:48,480 No. God is able to save to the 8 00:00:48,480 --> 00:00:52,600 uttermost those who come to Him through Christ. 9 00:00:53,000 --> 00:00:56,320 And I love the promise Christ is always living to make 10 00:00:56,320 --> 00:00:59,440 intercession for us. And how much more as we study 11 00:00:59,440 --> 00:01:02,320 that we need to be making intercession for one another, 12 00:01:02,320 --> 00:01:06,000 not grow weary in well doing or faint in our mind praying for 13 00:01:06,000 --> 00:01:08,960 each other by name. Did you know that Jesus prays 14 00:01:08,960 --> 00:01:11,520 for you? The Holy Spirit dwells within 15 00:01:11,520 --> 00:01:14,520 you, making Jesus your intercessor. 16 00:01:15,000 --> 00:01:18,520 Intercessor isn't a fancy word for translator. 17 00:01:19,040 --> 00:01:22,960 Jesus doesn't just make your prayers sound prettier to God. 18 00:01:23,440 --> 00:01:25,960 He actually prays on your behalf. 19 00:01:25,960 --> 00:01:30,920 He prays for you by name to God. Today, Pastor Clark teaches the 20 00:01:30,920 --> 00:01:35,040 importance of your prayers. You must pray for others by name 21 00:01:35,200 --> 00:01:40,040 so Jesus can lift up those prayers by name specifically for 22 00:01:40,040 --> 00:01:43,880 that person. Our prayers have true power when 23 00:01:43,880 --> 00:01:47,320 given to the Lord. Now here's Pastor Clark in the 24 00:01:47,320 --> 00:01:51,240 Book of Revelation chapter 21 with today's edition of Living 25 00:01:51,240 --> 00:01:55,840 Waters of Grace. Revelation chapter 21, we're 26 00:01:55,840 --> 00:01:59,440 going to pick up in verse 9 and go to verse 21. 27 00:01:59,440 --> 00:02:02,440 Let's read that. Then one of the seven angels who 28 00:02:02,440 --> 00:02:05,800 had the seven bowls filled with the seven last plagues came to 29 00:02:05,800 --> 00:02:09,919 me and talked with me, saying, Come, I will show you the bride, 30 00:02:09,919 --> 00:02:12,280 the Lamb's wife. And he carried me away in the 31 00:02:12,280 --> 00:02:15,000 Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me the 32 00:02:15,000 --> 00:02:18,600 great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from 33 00:02:18,600 --> 00:02:22,400 God, having the glory of God. Her light was like a most 34 00:02:22,400 --> 00:02:26,280 precious stone, like a Jasper stone, clear as crystal. 35 00:02:26,640 --> 00:02:30,680 Also she had a great and high wall with 12 gates and 12 angels 36 00:02:30,680 --> 00:02:34,040 at the gates, names written on them, which are the names of the 37 00:02:34,040 --> 00:02:38,400 12 tribes of the children of Israel, 3 gates on the E, 3 38 00:02:38,400 --> 00:02:41,920 gates on the N, 3 gates on the South, and three gates on the 39 00:02:41,920 --> 00:02:44,600 West. Now the wall of the city had 12 40 00:02:44,600 --> 00:02:48,120 foundations, and on them were the names of the 12 apostles of 41 00:02:48,120 --> 00:02:50,760 the land. And he who talked with me had a 42 00:02:50,760 --> 00:02:54,040 gold Reed to measure the city, its gates, and its wall. 43 00:02:54,360 --> 00:02:57,960 The city is laid out as a square, its length is as great 44 00:02:57,960 --> 00:03:02,240 as its breadth, and he measured the city with the Reed 12,000 45 00:03:02,240 --> 00:03:04,840 furlongs. Its length, breadth, and height 46 00:03:04,840 --> 00:03:08,560 are equal. Then he measured its wall 144 47 00:03:08,560 --> 00:03:12,240 cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of an Angel. 48 00:03:12,520 --> 00:03:16,560 The construction of its wall was of Jasper, and the city was pure 49 00:03:16,560 --> 00:03:20,000 gold like clear glass. The foundation of the wall of 50 00:03:20,000 --> 00:03:23,800 the city were adorned with all kinds of precious stones. 51 00:03:24,160 --> 00:03:28,880 The first foundation was Jasper, the second sapphire, the third 52 00:03:28,960 --> 00:03:34,160 Chaldoni, the 4th emerald, the 5th Sardonics, the 6th Sardis, 53 00:03:34,160 --> 00:03:37,920 the 7th crystallite, the 8th barrel, the 9th Topaz, the 10th 54 00:03:38,240 --> 00:03:42,480 Christoph phrase, 11th Jacinis, and the 12th amethyst. 55 00:03:42,840 --> 00:03:47,000 The 12 gates were 12 pearls, each individual gate was of 1 56 00:03:47,000 --> 00:03:50,520 Pearl, and the street of this city was pure gold, like 57 00:03:50,520 --> 00:03:53,920 transparent glass. That sound like a place you want 58 00:03:53,920 --> 00:03:57,440 to go to? In verse 9, it talks about this 59 00:03:57,440 --> 00:04:00,760 Angel and this is the same Angel that we remember studying about 60 00:04:00,760 --> 00:04:05,240 earlier who was involved with pouring out the the bowls of the 61 00:04:05,240 --> 00:04:09,200 wrath of God, the last plagues upon the face of the earth. 62 00:04:09,200 --> 00:04:12,920 Now he has this privilege to introduce the apostle John to 63 00:04:12,920 --> 00:04:17,160 the beauty of this eternal Kingdom that is going to descend 64 00:04:17,160 --> 00:04:20,120 from the heavens one day, the new Jerusalem. 65 00:04:20,399 --> 00:04:23,400 The apostle John had the privilege to see this thing 66 00:04:23,400 --> 00:04:25,640 actually come to pass, to come to being. 67 00:04:26,160 --> 00:04:30,440 And we see there's a much more detailed gaze as we were reading 68 00:04:30,440 --> 00:04:34,760 the earlier verses in Revelation, verse one and two of 69 00:04:34,760 --> 00:04:37,000 chapter 21. This is what he saw. 70 00:04:37,280 --> 00:04:39,840 I saw this new new heaven and the new earth, for the 1st 71 00:04:39,840 --> 00:04:43,520 heaven and the first earth had passed away also. 72 00:04:43,520 --> 00:04:48,200 There was no more sea. And I, John, saw the holy City, 73 00:04:48,480 --> 00:04:52,520 New Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a 74 00:04:52,520 --> 00:04:58,280 bride or dorn for her husband. What a beautiful experience this 75 00:04:58,280 --> 00:05:01,640 man had. Can you imagine what he saw? 76 00:05:01,640 --> 00:05:07,120 It would be hard to explain in human terms what he actually was 77 00:05:07,120 --> 00:05:10,720 seeing because it was something that no one has ever seen 78 00:05:10,720 --> 00:05:13,320 before. And so in his writings, he's 79 00:05:13,320 --> 00:05:16,360 going to write about it in ways that we might be able to connect 80 00:05:16,360 --> 00:05:19,760 with as far as physical matter. But he's seeing something that 81 00:05:19,760 --> 00:05:23,560 is miraculous and eternal. And what's interesting and how 82 00:05:23,560 --> 00:05:26,840 John writes this book through the direction of the Holy Spirit 83 00:05:26,840 --> 00:05:31,160 is similar to how he work with Moses when he put Genesis 84 00:05:31,160 --> 00:05:33,240 together. But in the 1st chapter of 85 00:05:33,240 --> 00:05:37,320 Genesis, God works through Moses and gives an overview of the 86 00:05:37,320 --> 00:05:40,360 creation. And then in the 2nd chapter, he 87 00:05:40,360 --> 00:05:44,040 goes into great detail as to what it is that he's describing. 88 00:05:44,040 --> 00:05:48,120 In the 1st chapter of Genesis. We see this also the same kind 89 00:05:48,120 --> 00:05:52,120 of format that the the Holy Spirit is using with John as he 90 00:05:52,280 --> 00:05:56,080 is writing this 21st chapter of Revelation. 91 00:05:56,440 --> 00:06:00,800 Now we understand that what he's seeing here is a glorious 92 00:06:00,800 --> 00:06:02,760 Kingdom that's coming down out of heaven. 93 00:06:03,000 --> 00:06:06,000 And if you turn over to Matthew, you think about Jesus when he's 94 00:06:06,000 --> 00:06:10,360 being tempted by the devil in the wilderness, Matthew chapter 95 00:06:10,360 --> 00:06:15,480 4, verse 8. And it says again, the devil 96 00:06:15,480 --> 00:06:19,640 took him up on an exceeding high mountain and showed him all the 97 00:06:19,640 --> 00:06:21,680 kingdoms of the world and their glory. 98 00:06:22,000 --> 00:06:25,800 And he said to them, him, All these things I will give you, if 99 00:06:25,800 --> 00:06:27,760 you will fall down and worship me. 100 00:06:28,080 --> 00:06:31,440 And Jesus said to him, Away with you, Satan, for it is written, 101 00:06:31,680 --> 00:06:35,400 Ye shall worship the Lord your God, and him only shall you 102 00:06:35,400 --> 00:06:37,560 serve. And the devil left him, and 103 00:06:37,560 --> 00:06:40,360 behold, angels came and ministered unto him. 104 00:06:40,760 --> 00:06:42,520 How ridiculous it would be, right? 105 00:06:42,920 --> 00:06:47,160 When you think about the context of the devil to come to the King 106 00:06:47,160 --> 00:06:50,600 of Kings and Lord of Lords and tempting him with the puny 107 00:06:50,600 --> 00:06:53,840 kingdoms of this world that are going to pass away. 108 00:06:54,200 --> 00:06:59,480 The Lord is omnipresent and he's also omniscient. 109 00:06:59,480 --> 00:07:02,480 He knows everything. And so his, he's looking at the 110 00:07:02,480 --> 00:07:05,800 Satan's temptation here. I'm sure he's like, if you could 111 00:07:05,800 --> 00:07:09,160 only see and realize what is yet to come. 112 00:07:09,440 --> 00:07:13,280 Whatever you have to tempt me with cannot even come in the 113 00:07:13,280 --> 00:07:17,800 faintest sense near to what the Father has planned for those who 114 00:07:17,800 --> 00:07:19,720 love him. And when you think about 115 00:07:19,720 --> 00:07:22,520 temptation in your own life, we're all tempted, aren't we? 116 00:07:23,040 --> 00:07:27,240 And the devil is very cunning and he tempts us with very 117 00:07:27,600 --> 00:07:30,640 beautiful things, things that are very alluring and exciting. 118 00:07:31,200 --> 00:07:34,360 It wouldn't be a temptation if it was ugly and discouraging, 119 00:07:34,360 --> 00:07:37,520 disappointing or boring. God the Father allows the devil 120 00:07:37,520 --> 00:07:39,560 to come with something that's very enticing. 121 00:07:39,840 --> 00:07:43,440 And when the devil comes, we have to realize that whatever 122 00:07:43,440 --> 00:07:46,680 we're being tempted with, God has something so much more 123 00:07:46,680 --> 00:07:51,240 beautiful and so much more wonderful for each of us as we 124 00:07:51,560 --> 00:07:54,400 walk with the Lord. And so that's why the Bible 125 00:07:54,400 --> 00:07:58,280 tells us there's no temptation. It's taking you, but such as is 126 00:07:58,280 --> 00:08:01,840 common into man. But God will provide a way of 127 00:08:01,840 --> 00:08:05,680 escape from the temptation. You might be able to bear it. 128 00:08:05,800 --> 00:08:09,040 So I trust as we're being tempted by the devil, we'll be 129 00:08:09,040 --> 00:08:13,160 like the Lord and we'll tell the devil that this to go away. 130 00:08:13,160 --> 00:08:16,000 We're not interested in his lies and his deceptions. 131 00:08:16,240 --> 00:08:19,600 But we see this new Jerusalem through the eyes of the apostle 132 00:08:19,600 --> 00:08:22,320 coming down suspended over the earth. 133 00:08:22,920 --> 00:08:26,280 The Bible tells us when the first creation was designed by 134 00:08:26,280 --> 00:08:30,120 the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. It's like a stone cut without 135 00:08:30,120 --> 00:08:32,799 human hands. There will be no physical 136 00:08:33,080 --> 00:08:36,640 manifestation of human beings involved in the making and 137 00:08:36,640 --> 00:08:40,440 development of this glorious new city to Jerusalem. 138 00:08:40,440 --> 00:08:43,520 It's coming down. We read in verse 11 it says 139 00:08:43,520 --> 00:08:47,240 having the glory of God. Her light was like a most 140 00:08:47,240 --> 00:08:51,120 precious stone, like a Jasper stone, clear as crystal. 141 00:08:51,520 --> 00:08:54,600 And you might want to underline in your Bible that he's saying 142 00:08:54,600 --> 00:08:57,720 it was like this. He's not saying it was exactly 143 00:08:57,720 --> 00:09:01,320 that, but he's saying, the only way I can describe this to you 144 00:09:02,120 --> 00:09:05,800 is that it reminds me of something I saw on the Earth, 145 00:09:06,320 --> 00:09:09,640 something I saw sometime in my own experience. 146 00:09:09,640 --> 00:09:14,080 He says it's like, and this comes from the theological term 147 00:09:14,080 --> 00:09:18,920 called anthropomorphic, and this is a term that means something 148 00:09:18,920 --> 00:09:22,480 that is described or viewed in terms of the language, 149 00:09:22,680 --> 00:09:24,760 experiences and knowledge of man. 150 00:09:25,600 --> 00:09:29,600 And so John is saying this is what the city looks like to me, 151 00:09:30,040 --> 00:09:32,000 and if you were there, you might have a different way of 152 00:09:32,000 --> 00:09:34,680 describing it. He talks about this first 153 00:09:34,680 --> 00:09:37,960 beautiful stone, Jasper. I don't know if you've ever seen 154 00:09:37,960 --> 00:09:39,680 a Jasper stone. I never have. 155 00:09:40,000 --> 00:09:43,440 My wife has seen just about any kind of precious stone and 156 00:09:43,440 --> 00:09:46,160 mineral and gold and silver that exists 'cause she's always 157 00:09:46,160 --> 00:09:47,960 trying to kind of drag me into jewelry stores. 158 00:09:47,960 --> 00:09:49,800 They'll look at all these different beautiful things. 159 00:09:50,040 --> 00:09:51,920 I can't tell one versus the other. 160 00:09:51,920 --> 00:09:55,760 All I know is when she gets what she has a desire for, and it's 161 00:09:55,760 --> 00:09:58,920 in our budget and we prayed about it and God permits it, she 162 00:09:58,920 --> 00:10:01,800 puts it on and she loves it. You know, and women have all 163 00:10:01,800 --> 00:10:06,200 those different things on. I just have $125.00 silver Kmart 164 00:10:06,440 --> 00:10:12,360 ring I've had for 40 years now. I wanted to get a, what did I 165 00:10:12,360 --> 00:10:13,760 want to get? A plastic ring. 166 00:10:14,200 --> 00:10:15,920 They had yellow, orange, red and green. 167 00:10:15,920 --> 00:10:17,600 I was a hippie. So I figured, hey, they're like 168 00:10:17,760 --> 00:10:19,680 2 bucks, put that on. That's good to go. 169 00:10:19,920 --> 00:10:21,880 Cindy says no way. Then I wanted to get like a 170 00:10:21,880 --> 00:10:24,240 leather band and she said no, that'll fall apart. 171 00:10:24,240 --> 00:10:26,560 We can't get that. So we, we made a deal. 172 00:10:26,560 --> 00:10:30,680 I think they were two for 45. So but, but since that time 173 00:10:30,680 --> 00:10:33,280 she's upgraded. She's got those things like 174 00:10:33,280 --> 00:10:36,400 Revelation talks about on her hand now and I'm I'm still 175 00:10:36,400 --> 00:10:40,280 wearing this, you know, but anyway, I, I think of this 176 00:10:40,280 --> 00:10:44,520 Jasper and what it reflects the beauty and how excited he is 177 00:10:44,720 --> 00:10:47,960 about what it is. He's seeing something like he's 178 00:10:47,960 --> 00:10:50,320 never seen before, clear as crystal. 179 00:10:51,040 --> 00:10:54,040 And I think about what it says in First Corinthians chapter 2, 180 00:10:54,040 --> 00:10:58,280 verse nine. I hath not seen nor ear heard 181 00:10:58,600 --> 00:11:02,200 nor entered into the heart of man the things that God has 182 00:11:02,200 --> 00:11:05,640 prepared for those who love him. So I, I trust today you're 183 00:11:05,640 --> 00:11:08,680 getting excited about what we're studying and realizing what God 184 00:11:08,680 --> 00:11:11,760 has prepared for you. I mean, salvation is a wonderful 185 00:11:11,760 --> 00:11:12,880 thing. We're going to be saved. 186 00:11:12,880 --> 00:11:15,600 We're going to be in heaven forever, but it isn't just going 187 00:11:15,600 --> 00:11:18,120 to be a a normal place that you've seen before. 188 00:11:18,360 --> 00:11:20,720 I believe when we go there, we're going to be so excited 189 00:11:20,720 --> 00:11:22,880 throughout all eternity. We're going to say, did you see 190 00:11:22,880 --> 00:11:24,600 that, Barry? Did you see that? 191 00:11:24,600 --> 00:11:27,120 Bethany, come over here, look over here, look at this. 192 00:11:27,120 --> 00:11:29,200 Every day. It's a new discovery, something 193 00:11:29,440 --> 00:11:33,480 that will just blow our minds. And I think about how difficult 194 00:11:33,480 --> 00:11:37,440 it must have been for John to be able to express in human terms 195 00:11:37,440 --> 00:11:40,760 what it was he was seeing. It would be like Baptista. 196 00:11:40,760 --> 00:11:46,360 Baptista is a former witch doctor in the Yanomano tribe. 197 00:11:47,120 --> 00:11:50,600 When he became a Christian and he got born again and got saved, 198 00:11:50,800 --> 00:11:53,440 he began to get discipled. He became an elder in his 199 00:11:53,440 --> 00:11:55,600 church. And when Mike and Gary would 200 00:11:55,600 --> 00:11:59,400 come to the US to speak to the major colleges, anthropology 201 00:11:59,400 --> 00:12:02,520 departments, they would bring Baptista so he could speak to 202 00:12:02,520 --> 00:12:06,280 them through the communication and the translation of Mike and 203 00:12:06,280 --> 00:12:10,200 Gary to explain to the people, the listeners, what is life like 204 00:12:10,200 --> 00:12:12,480 in the jungles with the Yanomanos. 205 00:12:12,760 --> 00:12:15,560 And of course, he would describe some things to the people here 206 00:12:15,560 --> 00:12:17,680 that like, man, what's he talking about? 207 00:12:17,680 --> 00:12:19,240 I never heard about anything like that. 208 00:12:19,520 --> 00:12:23,520 Never saw anything like that. And he would put it in terms 209 00:12:23,880 --> 00:12:26,600 through the interpreters that we might be able to relate to. 210 00:12:26,920 --> 00:12:30,800 Well, when Baptista came to America, Mike told me it was 211 00:12:30,800 --> 00:12:33,160 wild. He, he first of all, gets a huge 212 00:12:33,160 --> 00:12:36,360 bird that he never saw in his life called a jet airplane. 213 00:12:36,600 --> 00:12:39,400 He gets in and he's like, this thing's actually going to fly. 214 00:12:39,680 --> 00:12:42,120 And Mike's explaining to him how it's going to fly and what the 215 00:12:42,120 --> 00:12:45,000 wings do and everything. And so he gets in and he's like 216 00:12:45,000 --> 00:12:47,320 totally stoked. I mean, never, never, never 217 00:12:47,320 --> 00:12:50,440 comprehended there was such a way of transportation. 218 00:12:50,760 --> 00:12:54,520 He comes to America and he lands and he gets in these vehicles 219 00:12:54,520 --> 00:12:57,720 and he sees, you know, cars everywhere and everywhere he's 220 00:12:57,720 --> 00:13:00,000 looking, large skyscrapers and buildings. 221 00:13:00,000 --> 00:13:03,720 He, he just can't begin to comprehend everything he's 222 00:13:03,720 --> 00:13:06,840 seeing. It's like overload, the senses 223 00:13:06,840 --> 00:13:09,280 of what he's encountering, and that's what it's going to be 224 00:13:09,280 --> 00:13:12,080 like when we go to heaven. It's going to be sensual in the 225 00:13:12,080 --> 00:13:14,800 sense of overload. We're not going to be able to be 226 00:13:14,800 --> 00:13:16,920 able to take it all in. It's just going to be 227 00:13:17,320 --> 00:13:20,560 overwhelming. But Baptista would have to go to 228 00:13:20,720 --> 00:13:23,920 eventually back to the jungles and they would ask him what is 229 00:13:23,920 --> 00:13:27,560 it like there in America? And he would use a term, what we 230 00:13:27,560 --> 00:13:31,880 would call jungle pocentric, and he would try to communicate in 231 00:13:31,880 --> 00:13:36,600 terms of jungle life what he had seen in in this culture, in this 232 00:13:36,600 --> 00:13:38,520 country. You can imagine how difficult 233 00:13:38,520 --> 00:13:42,280 that would be. He might describe a Boeing 747 234 00:13:42,520 --> 00:13:47,080 with its flaps down as an elephant flying with people on 235 00:13:47,080 --> 00:13:49,320 it, a huge elephant flying with people on it. 236 00:13:49,640 --> 00:13:54,000 But we see here on this day, this heavenly city in chapter 237 00:13:54,000 --> 00:13:56,960 21, verse four. And we covered this several 238 00:13:56,960 --> 00:13:59,400 weeks ago. Last week we covered the 239 00:13:59,400 --> 00:14:03,440 importance of fasting and I trust that God is working in 240 00:14:03,440 --> 00:14:06,880 your hearts regarding fasting. Something we got to continually 241 00:14:06,880 --> 00:14:10,720 pray about and encourage each other to do, especially for the 242 00:14:10,720 --> 00:14:13,520 obstacles in our lives that Jesus said cannot be moved 243 00:14:14,000 --> 00:14:18,160 without prayer and fasting. But it says in verse 4, And God 244 00:14:18,160 --> 00:14:20,600 will wipe away every tear from their eyes. 245 00:14:20,880 --> 00:14:23,880 There shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. 246 00:14:24,200 --> 00:14:27,160 There shall be no more pain for the former things that passed 247 00:14:27,160 --> 00:14:31,120 away. As a pastor, I sense your pain, 248 00:14:31,360 --> 00:14:35,120 your sorrow, your heartache many times, and I'm sure you sense 249 00:14:35,120 --> 00:14:39,600 mine as well as God's servant. But I'm looking so forward to 250 00:14:39,600 --> 00:14:44,120 that day that I won't have to comfort anybody anymore from the 251 00:14:44,280 --> 00:14:48,520 horror of tragedy, of the ruination of people's lives 252 00:14:48,520 --> 00:14:51,720 because of sin and bad choices and mistakes. 253 00:14:52,160 --> 00:14:55,320 I won't have to be with someone at a Funeral Home. 254 00:14:55,520 --> 00:14:58,840 I won't have to give a funeral. I won't have to carry the 255 00:14:58,840 --> 00:15:02,880 burden, nor will you, of the heartache of loved ones who have 256 00:15:02,880 --> 00:15:07,240 gone into eternity, especially those who have not received 257 00:15:07,240 --> 00:15:10,560 Jesus Christ and will have to suffer the consequences for all 258 00:15:10,560 --> 00:15:13,080 eternity. But it'll be so wonderful to be 259 00:15:13,080 --> 00:15:17,360 able to see you there with smiles on your faces as wide as 260 00:15:17,360 --> 00:15:22,120 your grin can possibly be. Never discouragement anymore. 261 00:15:22,360 --> 00:15:25,360 No more sorrow, No more suffering, no more pain or 262 00:15:25,360 --> 00:15:27,520 anguish. No more hopelessness. 263 00:15:27,800 --> 00:15:32,080 I mean, what God has planned for us guys is this beyond our 264 00:15:32,080 --> 00:15:35,520 ability to take in. You won't have your wife broken 265 00:15:35,520 --> 00:15:38,920 hearted crying, or your husband discouraged or disappointed. 266 00:15:38,920 --> 00:15:42,240 You won't see your child coming home from school because people 267 00:15:42,240 --> 00:15:44,760 said mean things about him or a bully beat him up. 268 00:15:45,120 --> 00:15:48,800 You won't have rejection. You won't have depression. 269 00:15:49,040 --> 00:15:53,160 You won't have sickness or disease or illness or 270 00:15:53,160 --> 00:15:57,000 addictions. It'll all be pure and holy and 271 00:15:57,000 --> 00:15:59,640 perfect. That's what God has prepared for 272 00:15:59,640 --> 00:16:03,440 those who love Him. John then begins to describe the 273 00:16:03,760 --> 00:16:09,360 physicality of this incredible holy city of God and verse 12, 274 00:16:09,400 --> 00:16:13,800 this Great Wall with 12 gates, 12 angels at the gates, and 275 00:16:13,800 --> 00:16:18,000 names written on them, which are the names of the 12 tribes of 276 00:16:18,000 --> 00:16:23,000 the children of Israel. The 12 gates represent the 12 277 00:16:23,000 --> 00:16:27,200 tribes of Israel and the 12 foundations represent the 12 278 00:16:27,200 --> 00:16:30,000 apostles. And what's beautiful in this 279 00:16:30,000 --> 00:16:34,080 particular experience here in this place is that the group of 280 00:16:34,080 --> 00:16:37,480 people that are going to be here, Revelation chapter 15 281 00:16:37,480 --> 00:16:42,160 verse 3 says they sing the song of Moses, a servant of God, and 282 00:16:42,160 --> 00:16:45,760 the song of the Lamb, saying great and marvelous are your 283 00:16:45,760 --> 00:16:49,920 works, Lord God Almighty, just and true are your ways, O King 284 00:16:50,160 --> 00:16:52,760 of the Saints. So we see in the Kingdom the Old 285 00:16:52,760 --> 00:16:56,400 Testament Saints that were familiar with the song of Moses 286 00:16:56,600 --> 00:16:59,720 and the New Testament believers who were or familiar with the 287 00:16:59,720 --> 00:17:03,120 song of the Lamb. Both groups of people will be 288 00:17:03,120 --> 00:17:07,040 there because we're all saved by faith in Jesus Christ. 289 00:17:07,040 --> 00:17:10,079 Those in the Old Testament who trusted in the Messiah to come, 290 00:17:10,400 --> 00:17:13,920 and those in the New Testament that were able to see the 291 00:17:13,960 --> 00:17:17,599 finished work of Jesus Christ at the cross, His death, His 292 00:17:17,599 --> 00:17:20,359 burial, his resurrection, and his soon coming. 293 00:17:20,839 --> 00:17:23,280 The wall that we're looking at here that's being described 294 00:17:23,280 --> 00:17:27,960 manifests the eternal security of our God, that only in God's 295 00:17:27,960 --> 00:17:32,920 family are we secure and safe. I love the word when it says no 296 00:17:32,920 --> 00:17:35,320 weapon that's formed against us shall prosper. 297 00:17:35,600 --> 00:17:39,040 That God is our refuge, our strength, our fortress, our 298 00:17:39,040 --> 00:17:41,040 strong tower and time of trouble. 299 00:17:41,400 --> 00:17:45,280 God is faithful to protect and to save us to the other most. 300 00:17:45,280 --> 00:17:48,720 If you turn to Hebrews Chapter 7, I love this verse. 301 00:17:48,720 --> 00:17:51,520 Whenever things get tough and you find that you're getting 302 00:17:51,520 --> 00:17:55,120 discouraged and you think, boy, how in the world can I ever 303 00:17:55,320 --> 00:17:57,960 fulfill the purposes of God in my life? 304 00:17:58,280 --> 00:18:02,600 And you see the promise of God here in seven 25 of Hebrews. 305 00:18:02,800 --> 00:18:08,080 Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who 306 00:18:08,080 --> 00:18:11,520 come to God through Him, since He always lives to make 307 00:18:11,520 --> 00:18:14,560 intercession for them. I love that word uttermost, 308 00:18:14,560 --> 00:18:19,720 don't you? Not part way, only maybe, not 309 00:18:19,720 --> 00:18:24,640 real, sure, not complete. No God is able to save to the 310 00:18:24,640 --> 00:18:29,880 uttermost those who come to Him through Christ and I love the 311 00:18:29,880 --> 00:18:34,480 promise Christ is always living to make intercession for us and 312 00:18:34,480 --> 00:18:37,000 how much more as we study that we need to be making 313 00:18:37,000 --> 00:18:40,880 intercession for one another, not grow weary and well doing or 314 00:18:40,880 --> 00:18:43,800 faint in our mind. Praying for each other by name, 315 00:18:44,080 --> 00:18:47,000 remembering each other's faces is a body of Christ here at 316 00:18:47,000 --> 00:18:50,520 Calvary Chapel going through the church directory and going name 317 00:18:50,520 --> 00:18:52,560 by name. You don't know all the details, 318 00:18:52,560 --> 00:18:54,680 but God does. Having the people in your heart 319 00:18:54,760 --> 00:18:57,680 and, and praying for God's provision and guidance and 320 00:18:57,680 --> 00:18:59,800 direction and protection upon their lives. 321 00:19:00,160 --> 00:19:04,400 And as we do that in our feeble attempt and by the grace of God, 322 00:19:04,400 --> 00:19:07,080 we try to do these things faithfully daily, to pray for 323 00:19:07,080 --> 00:19:09,160 the things that God puts in our heart. 324 00:19:09,280 --> 00:19:13,280 Here we have our Savior who's ever living before the right 325 00:19:13,280 --> 00:19:17,320 hand of the Father, living to make intercession for us night 326 00:19:17,320 --> 00:19:19,120 and day. He doesn't stop praying. 327 00:19:20,480 --> 00:19:25,280 He's praying always for you and for me and the fulfillment of 328 00:19:25,280 --> 00:19:29,160 His plan in these last days. We need to be reminded of these 329 00:19:29,160 --> 00:19:32,000 things. First John chapter 5. 330 00:19:33,160 --> 00:19:37,800 And this is a testimony that God has given us eternal life and 331 00:19:37,800 --> 00:19:40,840 this life is in His Son. If you're here today and you're 332 00:19:40,840 --> 00:19:44,640 a child of God and you're born again and you're a follower of 333 00:19:44,680 --> 00:19:48,480 Jesus Christ, this is to you that God has given us eternal 334 00:19:48,480 --> 00:19:50,360 life and this life is in His Son. 335 00:19:50,760 --> 00:19:54,920 He who has a Son has life. If you're here today and you 336 00:19:54,920 --> 00:19:58,520 don't have Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, this is the 337 00:19:58,520 --> 00:20:01,360 message to you. He who does not have the Son of 338 00:20:01,360 --> 00:20:04,400 God does not have life. You might be living, but you're 339 00:20:04,400 --> 00:20:06,720 not living in God's kind of life. 340 00:20:06,720 --> 00:20:10,080 You're living in a life that's going to suffer in hell forever 341 00:20:10,080 --> 00:20:12,280 if you don't come to Jesus Christ today. 342 00:20:12,520 --> 00:20:16,040 And he said in verse 13, these things I written to you who 343 00:20:16,040 --> 00:20:18,200 believe in the name of the Son of God. 344 00:20:18,760 --> 00:20:22,640 I love this that you may know that you have eternal life, that 345 00:20:22,640 --> 00:20:25,720 you may know that you have eternal life, that you may know 346 00:20:25,720 --> 00:20:31,920 No, no, no, right may know that we have eternal life. 347 00:20:33,040 --> 00:20:36,640 Why? That you may continue to believe 348 00:20:36,640 --> 00:20:41,080 in the name of the Son of God. And I love this. 349 00:20:41,080 --> 00:20:44,800 Now this is the confidence that we have in Him that if we ask 350 00:20:44,800 --> 00:20:48,520 anything according to His will, He hears us and we know that He 351 00:20:48,520 --> 00:20:51,840 hears us whatever we ask. We know that we have the 352 00:20:51,840 --> 00:20:54,280 petitions that we've asked of Him. 353 00:20:54,680 --> 00:20:58,040 Go to verse 18. We know that whatever is born of 354 00:20:58,040 --> 00:21:00,800 God does not sin. So if we're followers of Christ, 355 00:21:01,000 --> 00:21:03,960 we don't have a desire to live in a habitual sin anymore. 356 00:21:04,240 --> 00:21:07,840 If you say you're a follower of Christ, turn from sin. 357 00:21:08,840 --> 00:21:13,280 Don't condone sin. Don't justify sin, don't accept 358 00:21:13,280 --> 00:21:16,280 sin in your life if you're a follower of Jesus Christ. 359 00:21:16,280 --> 00:21:19,000 It says if we're born of God, we don't sin. 360 00:21:19,000 --> 00:21:22,120 That means we have to live in a way that's holy. 361 00:21:22,520 --> 00:21:25,920 We have to live in a way that's obedient to the Lord Jesus, not 362 00:21:25,920 --> 00:21:28,800 in our own strength, but by the power of the Holy Spirit. 363 00:21:29,400 --> 00:21:32,880 Walk in the Spirit and you will not fulfill the lust of the 364 00:21:32,880 --> 00:21:35,240 flesh. The Bible says it says, But he 365 00:21:35,240 --> 00:21:38,920 who has been born of God keeps himself, and the wicked 1 does 366 00:21:38,920 --> 00:21:41,880 not touch him. So often Christians are paranoid 367 00:21:41,880 --> 00:21:44,000 about the devil. The devil's doing this. 368 00:21:44,000 --> 00:21:46,680 The devil's here. People talk more about the devil 369 00:21:46,680 --> 00:21:48,880 than the victory that we have in Jesus Christ. 370 00:21:49,120 --> 00:21:53,480 I love this promise. If we who have been born of God 371 00:21:53,800 --> 00:21:58,520 walk with the Lord and stay away from sin, the wicked 1 does not 372 00:21:58,520 --> 00:22:01,400 touch us. We know that we are of God and 373 00:22:01,400 --> 00:22:03,960 the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one. 374 00:22:04,320 --> 00:22:07,200 And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us an 375 00:22:07,200 --> 00:22:11,760 understanding that we may know Him who is true and that we are 376 00:22:11,760 --> 00:22:15,400 in Him who is true in His Son Jesus Christ. 377 00:22:15,600 --> 00:22:17,960 This is a true God and eternal life. 378 00:22:18,000 --> 00:22:20,920 Isn't that beautiful? I love the the description 379 00:22:21,000 --> 00:22:24,000 description here. He's given us understanding that 380 00:22:24,000 --> 00:22:29,480 we may know him who is true. We are in him who is true in his 381 00:22:29,480 --> 00:22:31,680 Son. You talk about security and 382 00:22:31,680 --> 00:22:35,880 protection and peace that we are in Jesus Christ. 383 00:22:36,080 --> 00:22:39,240 And then the admonition at the end, little children, keep 384 00:22:39,240 --> 00:22:42,160 yourselves from idols. Do you have idols in your lives 385 00:22:42,160 --> 00:22:45,440 today, guys and gals, if we have idols, we need to repent of 386 00:22:45,440 --> 00:22:47,880 those things. Cast the idols down. 387 00:22:48,480 --> 00:22:52,080 But for followers of Christ, there's no room for idolatry in 388 00:22:52,080 --> 00:22:55,320 our lives. Foolish focus upon things that 389 00:22:55,320 --> 00:22:57,560 are going to perish and be destroyed. 390 00:22:58,000 --> 00:23:01,760 I love the foundation of this particular city. 391 00:23:02,000 --> 00:23:05,320 It reminds me of what it's tells us over in the book of Ephesians 392 00:23:05,320 --> 00:23:07,880 chapter 2. If you turn over there for a 393 00:23:07,880 --> 00:23:13,080 moment, our foundation is not made out of bricks and mortar. 394 00:23:13,280 --> 00:23:16,160 It says in Ephesians chapter 2, verse 19. 395 00:23:16,400 --> 00:23:19,640 Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, 396 00:23:19,880 --> 00:23:23,400 but fellow citizens, with the Saints and the members of the 397 00:23:23,400 --> 00:23:27,760 household of God having built on the foundation of the apostles 398 00:23:27,760 --> 00:23:31,040 and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief 399 00:23:31,040 --> 00:23:33,360 cornerstone. Isn't that amazing? 400 00:23:33,640 --> 00:23:37,400 The Church is built upon Christ. On Christ the solid rock I 401 00:23:37,400 --> 00:23:40,000 stand, all other ground is sinking sand. 402 00:23:40,120 --> 00:23:42,880 I'm not standing on Calvary Chapel, and I hope you aren't 403 00:23:42,880 --> 00:23:45,200 either. I'm standing on Jesus Christ. 404 00:23:45,200 --> 00:23:47,560 Amen. On Christ the solid rock we 405 00:23:47,560 --> 00:23:50,080 stand, all other ground is sinking sand. 406 00:23:50,240 --> 00:23:54,440 And what's on top of Christ is the foundation of the apostles 407 00:23:54,440 --> 00:23:58,760 and the prophets. Thanks for being with us today 408 00:23:58,760 --> 00:24:02,640 here on Living Waters of Grace. We're in the Book of Revelation, 409 00:24:02,640 --> 00:24:06,960 and we find it fascinating how influential and involved the 410 00:24:07,000 --> 00:24:11,840 angels are in this book. They bring about whatever it is 411 00:24:11,840 --> 00:24:15,480 that God has instructed them to do, but it's through their 412 00:24:15,480 --> 00:24:18,560 actions that much of the judgements come on the earth. 413 00:24:19,040 --> 00:24:22,840 The angels are in submission to God as their authority, but He 414 00:24:22,840 --> 00:24:26,120 utilizes them in unique ways throughout this book. 415 00:24:26,640 --> 00:24:30,280 Like angels have a specific purpose from God, you have a 416 00:24:30,280 --> 00:24:34,200 unique purpose and plan too. God wants to use you in your 417 00:24:34,200 --> 00:24:37,720 life as a testimony to others and to bring others who are 418 00:24:37,720 --> 00:24:40,400 currently lost into the fold of God. 419 00:24:41,000 --> 00:24:44,280 God would love more than anything for all who are willing 420 00:24:44,280 --> 00:24:47,600 to come to Him for salvation, but He wants it to be their 421 00:24:47,600 --> 00:24:53,240 choice, not a forced situation. This is the way God works, not 422 00:24:53,240 --> 00:24:57,440 forcing himself on anyone, but giving each person free will. 423 00:24:57,920 --> 00:25:01,400 If you're interested in learning about this choice that's free 424 00:25:01,440 --> 00:25:06,200 and that it's a gift, go to calvarychapelonline.com and 425 00:25:06,200 --> 00:25:10,600 click on the About Us tab and then find the link for what we 426 00:25:10,600 --> 00:25:13,160 believe. We'd love to be a help and a 427 00:25:13,160 --> 00:25:16,680 resource for you as you walk through what it means to be a 428 00:25:16,680 --> 00:25:20,600 follower of Jesus. If you find the contact tab on 429 00:25:20,600 --> 00:25:24,040 our website, you can get in touch with us or submit a prayer 430 00:25:24,040 --> 00:25:26,400 request. We'd love to hear from you. 431 00:25:27,040 --> 00:25:30,680 That's all for today's edition and Revelation, but there's much 432 00:25:30,680 --> 00:25:34,000 more that Pastor Clark plans to share with us from this 433 00:25:34,120 --> 00:25:37,800 culminating book of the Bible. Stay tuned for that and make 434 00:25:37,800 --> 00:25:40,480 sure to mention this radio program to others. 435 00:25:40,840 --> 00:25:45,320 Invite them to tune into Grace FM 91.7 FM. 436 00:25:45,880 --> 00:25:50,080 They can stream worldwide at Grace Radio dot FM. 437 00:25:50,480 --> 00:25:53,360 This has been Living Waters of Grace.