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[0:00] Well, if we could, this evening, with the Lord's help and the Lord's enabling, if we could turn back to that portion of Scripture that we read. Revelation chapter 7.

[0:13] Revelation chapter 7, and if we read again at verse 13, which has, I think, one of the best questions in the Bible.

[0:26] Revelation 7 and verse 13. Then one of the elders addressed me, saying, Who are these clothed in white robes, and from where have they come?

[0:39] I said to him, Sir, you know. And he said to me, These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation. They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

[0:54] Who are these clothed in white robes, and from where have they come? As you know, it was about this time last year that we concluded our study of John Bunyan's brilliant book, The Pilgrim's Progress.

[1:16] And I have to be honest, I miss studying The Pilgrim's Progress, because next to the Bible, it's a book that's full of illustrations and imagery of what the Christian life is all about.

[1:29] And if you've never read The Pilgrim's Progress, read it. You won't be disappointed. Because as many of you know, the main character in the story, he's called Christian.

[1:40] And he's found in the opening narrative, he's clothed in rags. He's got a Bible in his hands and a burden upon his back. And a Christian is struggling with the question, the question that we all need to ask ourselves, what must I do to be saved?

[1:57] But when Evangelist points him in the right direction, Christian, we're told, he flees from the city of destruction, crying, life, life, eternal life.

[2:09] And on his journey, Christian, as you know, he meets lots of different characters along the way, some who help him and others who hinder him. And throughout The Pilgrim's Progress, we witness Christian.

[2:20] We witness him being delivered from the slough of Despond. We see him crossing the Wicked Gate. We see him exploring the Interpreter's House. We see him standing before the cross.

[2:31] We see him persevering up the hill called Difficulty. We watch him lodging at Palace Beautiful. We see him fighting with Apollyon in the Valley of Humiliation. We see him passing through the Valley of the Shadow of Death.

[2:43] We also witness him being persecuted, first of all in Vanity Fair and then in Doubting Castle. We also see him enjoying the delights of the delectable mountains.

[2:54] And you know, when Christian's pilgrimage is over, we read that he crosses the final river and he enters, boys and girls, the celestial city.

[3:06] He enters the celestial city. And as I said, that's what I want our thoughts to be this evening. I want us to set our affection on things above.

[3:17] I want us to think about the celestial city of heaven as we come to believe and confess the words of the Apostles' Creed. I believe in the life everlasting.

[3:30] The life everlasting. And so if you have your Apostles' Creed in front of you, or if you know it of by heart by now, please say the Apostles' Creed with me.

[3:43] I believe in God the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried.

[4:02] He descended into hell. The third day he rose again from the dead. He ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty. From thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.

[4:16] I believe in the Holy Ghost, the Holy Catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting.

[4:28] Amen. And so this evening we're considering the second last statement. The life everlasting. The life everlasting.

[4:39] And as we're thinking about heaven this evening, I want us to think about it under three headings. Heaven is holy. Heaven is happy. And heaven is home.

[4:52] Heaven is holy. Heaven is happy. And heaven is home. So first of all, heaven is holy. Heaven is holy. Look at verse 9 of chapter 7.

[5:04] John says, After this I looked and behold a great multitude, that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne and to the Lamb.

[5:38] As you know, last Lord's Day we were considering the previous statement in the Apostles' Creed, where we are believing and confessing in the resurrection of the body. And in order to reflect upon that statement, we looked at two questions from the Shorter Catechism.

[5:54] Question 37. What benefits do believers receive from Christ at death? The souls of believers are at their death made perfect in holiness, and do immediately pass into glory, and their bodies, still being united to Christ, do rest in their graves until the resurrection.

[6:14] We also looked at question 38. What benefits do believers receive from Christ at the resurrection? And we're told that at the resurrection, believers being raised up in glory, shall be openly acknowledged and acquitted in the day of judgment, made perfectly blessed, and go into the full enjoying of God to all eternity.

[6:36] But, you know, what does the catechism mean when it asks the question, or when it mentions the full enjoying of God to all eternity?

[6:48] The full enjoying of God to all eternity. Well, I believe that we find the answer to that question here in Revelation chapter 7, where the Apostle John here, he's given a revelation, a vision.

[7:00] He's given a vision of heaven. And, you know, people often say, they often say, don't be so heavenly minded that you're of no earthly use.

[7:11] Don't be so heavenly minded that you're of no earthly use. But, you know, that's completely unbiblical. Because our Bible repeatedly reminds us that in order to be of any earthly use, we need to be heavenly minded.

[7:26] In order to be of any earthly use, in order to be of any use here on earth, we need to have our affections set on things above. Do you know, as we're going to look on Tuesday evening, in order to have a passion for life, we need to have our minds upon the life everlasting.

[7:45] And that's what the book of Revelation does for us. It exhorts us and encourages us to be heavenly minded so that we are of earthly use. In fact, that's why John was given this revelation.

[7:58] It was to encourage and enable the church of Jesus Christ here on earth. A church in the first century that was being persecuted, where Christians were being put to death.

[8:09] And John is given an eternal perspective. And he's told to look beyond the present, look beyond the painful circumstances, and look to the glory that is to come.

[8:22] Look to the glory that is to come. But as you know, far too often, the book of Revelation, it's often overshadowed by mystery and metaphors. And yet, the book of Revelation is a book of revelation.

[8:38] It's a book which reveals. It's a book which reveals the climax and culmination of our salvation. It's a book which reveals what Jesus achieved, accomplished, and applied at the cross of Calvary for us.

[8:52] It's a book which reveals who Jesus really is, and that he is the risen and exalted Savior who will call his people home to be with himself.

[9:03] And you know, in this chapter, and in the chapter we read earlier, and also in many chapters in the book of Revelation, you know, it's as if God pulls the curtain back. He pulls the curtain back, and he gives to us a glimpse of the glory that awaits all the saints.

[9:20] He gives us a glimpse of the glory that awaits all the saints. And you know, that's the thing about John's revelation. We see here that he sees, in verse 9, this innumerable gathering of saints.

[9:36] He sees an innumerable gathering of saints. And as saints, they're set apart. They're in glory. Therefore, they're holy.

[9:48] They're set apart. They're holy. They're different. They're distinct. But more than that, these saints, we're told, they're from all the nations of the world. They're from all the continents on the earth.

[10:01] They're from all the different tribes and peoples and places and languages. Every nation, we're told, is gathered before the throne of God. And they're gathered there because the gospel of God's grace has transformed them.

[10:16] And it has transformed them from sinners to saints. You know, as the hymn writer says, the saints are in that number. And the saints go marching in.

[10:30] And they go marching in because they are the saints who share, as Paul says. They share in the inheritance of the saints in light. My friend, heaven is holy.

[10:42] Not just because the saints are there. But because Jesus is there. God dwells there. God is holy. He's without sin. He's of purer eye than to behold iniquity and to look upon sin.

[10:57] And yet, the wonder of wonders. This is the beauty of what heaven is. We. We who are conceived in sin. And we who commit sin.

[11:09] And we who embrace sin. We who enjoy sin. And yet, by the grace of God, through the gospel of Jesus Christ, we are able to be set apart as saints.

[11:21] And at our death, as the catechism reminds us, we are made perfect in holiness. And we're made holy for heaven. This is the gift of God's salvation.

[11:32] That sinners are made saints. And that they're able to enter and enjoy the holiness of heaven. Because as Peter reminds us, that's where righteousness dwells.

[11:45] Righteousness being Jesus himself. Peter says, according to Jesus' promise, we look forward to a new heavens and a new earth where righteousness dwells.

[12:00] Now, it's not clear what the new heavens and new earth will be like. I'm not going to speculate. We just don't really know. And, as you know, there are lots of speculative ideas about what heaven is going to be like.

[12:14] But what we can be sure of, and what we can be certain of, is that it will be new. It will be brand new. John says in Revelation 21, I saw a new heaven and a new earth.

[12:29] For the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. And he who was seated on the throne said, Behold, I am making all things new.

[12:42] And you're in his book, A Faith to Live By. If you haven't read it, read it. It's by Professor Donald MacLeod. It's called A Faith to Live By. And in the concluding chapter, he has a chapter on heaven.

[12:55] And in it, Donald MacLeod, he states, One day God will recreate the whole universe. There will be a great moment of regeneration. A moment of new birth for the cosmos itself.

[13:08] When the God who made the world will pull it all apart. And in its place, he will call into being a new universe. One which is a continuation of the old world, but radically different.

[13:23] What the Bible makes absolutely clear, he says, is that not only man's soul and body, but his whole environment will revert back to its Edenic condition, more splendid than the original paradise.

[13:41] And you know, I love that thought. That the new heavens and the new earth, wherein righteousness dwells, it will be like a new garden of Eden.

[13:52] It will be a new paradise. It will be a new paradise. In fact, that's what the word paradise means. The word paradise means garden.

[14:04] And you know, that's what Jesus promised the thief on the cross. He turned to the thief on the cross, and Jesus said to him, today you will be with me in paradise.

[14:17] Or more literally, today you will walk with me in the garden. Today you will walk with me in the garden. And so as we consider the life everlasting, the first thing we need to think about of heaven is that heaven is holy.

[14:33] There's no sin there. There's no shame there. Heaven is holy. But then secondly, we see that heaven is happy. Heaven is happy. So heaven is holy and heaven is happy.

[14:47] Now look again at verse 9. After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.

[15:09] And all the angels were standing around the throne, and around the elders, and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne, and worshipped God, saying, Amen.

[15:21] Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honour and power and might be to our God forever and ever. Amen. You know, the question that's often asked is, what will we be doing in heaven?

[15:38] If we get to heaven by trusting in Jesus Christ as our Saviour, what will we be doing in heaven? What will we be doing?

[15:49] Will we just be sitting around? Will we be bored in heaven? What will we be doing in heaven? What will heaven be like? Well, I believe that in heaven, we will be doing something similar.

[16:03] Not the same, but similar to what Adam and Eve were doing before the fall. Because as we said, the new heavens and the new earth, they will be paradise with Jesus.

[16:17] It will be a new Eden. It will be walking in the garden of Eden with Jesus. The new Eden. And similar to the first Eden, which was without sin and without shame, the new Eden will be without sin and without shame.

[16:34] But what's clear is that the new Eden will not be boring. Because as it was for Adam and Eve in the first Eden, they were given three creation ordinances.

[16:45] You're listening, boys and girls. Three creation ordinances. Three creation ordinances which were foreshadowed on earth and were to be fulfilled in heaven. Three creation ordinances.

[16:56] Three things that God ordained on the earth before the fall that were foreshadowed on earth and fulfilled in heaven. And these three creation ordinances, you're listening, boys and girls?

[17:11] The Sabbath, marriage, and work. The Sabbath, marriage, and work. As you know, the Sabbath was the day on which God rested.

[17:23] He rested from His words and His works of creation. The Lord God, we're told in Genesis 1, He had created all things by the word of His power in the space of six days and all very good.

[17:35] But on the seventh day, on the last day of the week, the Lord rested from all His words and all His works. And He rested not because He was tired after creating the world. He rested in order to leave us an example.

[17:50] The Lord rested in order to declare to us and to demonstrate to us that the Sabbath is a gift to worship, not a gift to waste.

[18:03] The Sabbath is a gift to worship, not a gift to waste. The Sabbath is a day to rest from work, not a day to recover from wearing ourselves out during the week.

[18:16] You know, that's why the Lord blessed the Sabbath day. That's why the Lord hallowed the Sabbath day. He made it holy. He made the Sabbath day a blessing, not a burden.

[18:29] He made the Sabbath day a delight, not a dread. And as Jesus said, the Sabbath was made for man and not man for the Sabbath. And you know, what's interesting is that in the Old Covenant, in the Old Covenant, the Sabbath was on the seventh day, the last day of the week, because you worked towards that day of rest.

[18:51] But now in the New Covenant, because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, we have the Christian Sabbath. We have the Lord's Day on the first day of the week.

[19:03] It's the day of resurrection. It's the day of renewal. It's a day on which we can contemplate and even anticipate our eternal rest.

[19:14] But more than that, we gather together on the Lord's Day so that we start our week. We start our week with what Christ has accomplished and applied to us.

[19:26] And we go out into that week. And we go out into the world during that week with what Christ has accomplished and applied to us. You know, that's what the writer to the Hebrews highlights for us.

[19:39] That through the death and resurrection of Jesus, Jesus has purchased and procured for us a better Sabbath rest for the people of God.

[19:52] Jesus, He's not only granted and given to us the Christian Sabbath rest on the Lord's Day, but the wonder of wonders is that He has also accomplished and applied to us this promise of an eternal Sabbath rest for the people of God.

[20:10] Therefore, says the writer to the Hebrews, let us strive. Let us strive to enter into that rest. Let us strive to enter into that eternal Sabbath rest.

[20:25] Let us strive to enter into that rest. But then the second creation ordinance which was given to Adam and Eve in the first Eden and will be fulfilled in the new Eden is marriage.

[20:39] Because as you know, marriage is a creation ordinance. It was ordained before the fall by the Lord where the Lord instituted and He instructed that the marriage union would be between one man and one woman.

[20:53] And we're told that the Lord, when the Lord made Eve, He brought her to Adam and Adam then said about her, This is at last bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh.

[21:05] She shall be called woman because she was taken out of man. Therefore, a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife and they shall become one flesh.

[21:17] And so marriage, it can't be redefined by our government because it's a creation ordinance. And it's a marriage, it's a union between a man and a woman because marriage, as the Bible teaches us, marriage is a mirror.

[21:34] Marriage is a mirror and it's a mirror of Christ's marriage to His bride, which is the church. And that's why when Paul gives instructions about marriage in Ephesians 5, he says, Husbands, love your wives.

[21:51] Love your wives as Christ loved the church and gave Himself for her. Love your wives as Christ loved the church and gave Himself for her.

[22:05] But as Jesus teaches us in the Gospels, there's no marriage in heaven. There's no marriage in heaven. Marriage foreshadows on earth what will be fulfilled in heaven because in heaven the only marriage, the only marriage is the marriage between Christ and His bride.

[22:26] And I often find that the most solemn part of a marriage service where a couple comes before you in marriage and you're marrying them and what they vow to one another is that they will remain together until God shall separate them by death.

[22:44] And which is a reminder to us that our marriage must end in this world, our earthly marriage, because marriage is a mirror. It's foreshadowing and being fulfilled by this marriage between Christ and His bride.

[23:00] And that's what John reveals in Revelation 19. He writes, Let us rejoice and be glad and give Him the glory for the marriage of the Lamb has come and His bride has made herself ready.

[23:12] And the angel said to me, write this, Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb. Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.

[23:28] Do you know, my friend, you are blessed? You might not realize it, but you are blessed because you are someone who is being invited in the gospel to attend the marriage supper of the Lamb.

[23:41] And as you know, the only way to attend is to trust in Jesus Christ, to commit your life to Him, to follow Him, to fall asleep in Jesus, trusting in Him.

[23:54] And so the Sabbath and marriage, they are creation ordinances. They foreshadow on earth what will be fulfilled in heaven. But the last creation ordinance was work. As you know, Adam was the climax, he was the culmination of God's creation.

[24:09] He was made in the image and likeness of His Creator. And as a reflection of His working Creator, who had worked to create the world in the space of six days and all very good, and rested on the Sabbath from His work, we see then that Adam, just like His Creator, Adam was created to work.

[24:29] We're told in Genesis 2.15 that the Lord God took the man, put him in the garden of Eden to work it and to keep it. He was put into the garden to work and to keep it.

[24:44] Now, you'll remember that after the fall, the ground was cursed, which would make work difficult and draining. Work would be tedious and tiring. But before the fall, before the curse, work was exciting.

[24:59] Work was enjoyable. It wasn't a drain. It wasn't difficult. It wasn't tedious. It wasn't tiring. It was exciting and enjoyable because before the fall, there was no sin.

[25:10] There was no shame. And Adam was put in the garden of Eden to work it and to keep it. And you know what I find fascinating about the Bible? that phrase to work and to keep.

[25:23] It's key to understanding the new Eden because it's a phrase that's used in the Bible to describe the role and the responsibility of the priests at the tabernacle and at the temple.

[25:36] They were those who led in worship, which means that Adam, in many ways, he was the first priest. And the garden of Eden was the first temple, the temple at which God was worshipped.

[25:50] Therefore, if the garden of Eden, the old Eden, we'll call it, if that foreshadowed what will be fulfilled in the new Eden of paradise, then heaven will not be boring.

[26:04] Heaven will not be boring because in heaven, my friend, you will be busy working. You will be busy witnessing. You will be busy worshipping. Worshipping the lamb who was slain.

[26:18] In heaven, we will be busy working, witnessing, and worshipping the lamb who was slain. And that's what we see in these verses. In these verses of Revelation 7, heaven isn't boring.

[26:29] It's busy. Heaven is holy. Heaven is happy. Because we see this great multitude there. They're gathering together and they're gathering to work and to witness and to worship the lamb who was slain.

[26:44] And you know, when this curtain is pulled back and John receives this revelation of heaven, you know, he must have heard the best and the most beautiful singing. I'm sure we've all heard singing in a stadium or at a sporting event.

[27:00] But you know, it's no comparison to the many multitudes around the throne of God. because the singing in heaven, it will be sinless singing.

[27:11] It will be perfect and passionate singing. It will be singing in union and in unison. And we will be singing as they sang here. Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne and to the lamb.

[27:27] And as they say there in verse 12, Amen. Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever.

[27:39] Amen. And so as we consider the life everlasting, as we set our affection on things above, we see that heaven is holy. Heaven is happy.

[27:51] We're busy working, witnessing, and worshiping. But then lastly, we're reminded that heaven is home. Heaven is home.

[28:01] So heaven is holy, heaven is happy, heaven is home. Heaven is home. Look at verse 13. Then one of the elders addressed me saying, Who are these, clothed in white robes, and from where have they come?

[28:17] I said to him, Sir, you know. And he said to me, These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation. They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

[28:29] You know, when Christian, in the pilgrim's progress, when Christian met Watchful at the Porta, he met him at the Palace Beautiful.

[28:44] And Christian was asked, Who are you? And where are you going? Who are you? And where are you going? And you know, I love Christian's response because it should be the response of every Christian.

[28:57] Christian said, At first, I was called graceless, but now my name is Christian. I have come from the city of destruction. I am going to Mount Zion.

[29:08] I am a pilgrim, and I am going to the celestial city. And you know, my friend, that's our confession because as the Apostle Paul reminds us, as a Christian, our citizenship is in heaven.

[29:37] Our citizenship is in heaven. That's where we're bound. That's where we belong. That's where we're seeking. That's what we're striving to reach. That's where we're looking.

[29:48] That's what we're longing for. Is it not? Because, you know, we have received grace by the way. And as my good friend, J.C. Ryle, reminds us, it is grace by the way and glory in the end.

[30:03] It's grace by the way and glory in the end. You know, I'm sure it was Jim Reeves who sang, This world is not my home.

[30:14] I'm just a passing through. And that's something I think we often forget. We forget it. This world is not my home.

[30:26] I'm just a passing through. And it should always be a reminder to us that our citizenship, as the Lord's people, our citizenship is in heaven. Heaven is our home.

[30:39] And there we await, says Peter, we await an inheritance that is incorruptible, undefiled, that fadeth not away, but is reserved in heaven for us.

[30:50] But you know, the wonder is that it's not only an inheritance that awaits us in heaven. Our Savior awaits us in heaven. Our Savior awaits us to meet us.

[31:03] I always love that vision that Stephen had, where Stephen was being stoned to death, and he looked up into heaven, and what did he see? Jesus isn't sitting.

[31:15] Jesus is standing to receive him. He's waiting. He awaits his inheritance because we are his inheritance.

[31:26] And as John says, when we see him, we shall be like him and see him even as he is. You know, that's how Paul exhorted and encouraged the Christians in Antioch.

[31:38] He reminded them, he reassured them that when this fight with sin and Satan is over, and when all the frailties of sickness and sorrow have ended, Paul said to the Christians in Antioch, the Christians who were first called Christians in Antioch, he said to them, it will be through much tribulation that you will enter the kingdom of heaven.

[32:04] It will be through much tribulation that you'll enter the kingdom of heaven. So when the fight with sin and Satan is over, when all the frailties of sickness and sorrow have ended, it's then that we will enter the kingdom of heaven.

[32:22] And that's what we witness here with this multitude of the saints in glory. One of the 24 elders around the throne of God, they ask John, they ask John that question I love, who are these?

[32:36] Who are these clothed in white robes? And where have they come from? And John says to him, sir, sir, you know. And the elders says yes.

[32:48] Yes, these are the ones. These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation. They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

[32:59] They've washed their robes, they've made them white in the precious, crimson blood of the Lamb. And as we said this morning, they've come to know those in heaven as well as those on earth.

[33:13] They've come to know the power, power, wonder-working power in the precious blood of the Lamb. Therefore, we're told, therefore, they are before the throne of God.

[33:28] They serve him day and night in his temple. And he who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence. They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more.

[33:39] The sun shall not strike them nor any scorching heat. For the Lamb, the Lamb who was slain, the Passover Lamb, the Lamb that was wounded for our transgressions and bruised for our iniquities, the Lamb will be in the midst of the throne.

[33:56] And he will be their shepherd. Because they confessed on earth, the Lord is my shepherd. So he will be their shepherd. And he will guide them to springs of living water.

[34:07] And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes. And you know that phrase there at the end of chapter 7, God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.

[34:21] It should be a reminder to us that in this world we will have tribulation. We will have tears. We will have to, as we were singing in Psalm 84, pass through Bacchus veil.

[34:32] And we might even enter the glory of heaven with tears in our eyes. But the wonder is, God will wipe away every tear, every trial, every sickness, every sorrow.

[34:51] He will wipe it all away. You know, my friend, it will be a beautiful moment. It will be a great homecoming. heaven is home.

[35:04] Heaven is home. And you know, that's the image John Bunyan gave as Christian came to the end of his Pilgrim's Progress and entered the Celestial City.

[35:18] And with this, I'll conclude. When you read the end of part one of Pilgrim's Progress, you read that the Shining One, he led Christian to the gate of the Celestial City.

[35:30] And he assured Christian that on entering, on entering, he says, there you shall walk and talk with the King throughout the endless days of eternity.

[35:42] There you shall never again see sorrow or sickness or affliction or death, for the former things have passed away. There you shall receive all the comforts of your toil, and you will have joy for all your sorrows.

[35:58] There you will be crowned with a crown of gold, and enjoy perpetual sight and vision of his Holy One. There you shall see him as he is.

[36:09] There you shall continually worship him with praise and thanksgiving. There you shall enjoy family and friends again who have gone before you.

[36:21] There you shall be clothed with glory and majesty. And so he says, you will ever be with the Lord. Who are these clothed in white robes?

[36:35] Where have they come from? And you know, then from the perspective of the author, and this is what I love about Bunyan, he doesn't give away what heaven will be like because he doesn't know.

[36:47] He says, I looked in after them. I looked in after them and behold, the city shone like the sun. The streets were paved with gold and on them walked many men with crowns on their heads and palms in their hands and golden harps to sing praises with.

[37:04] And after that the gates closed and I wish that I myself was among them. That's how he concludes.

[37:16] I wish that I myself was among them. Is that not your desire to say with Bunyan as we set our affection on things above, I wished that I myself was among them.

[37:38] Is that not your desire that when you cross that final river you will enter the celestial city into life everlasting life everlasting.

[37:53] My friend if this is not your hope and this is not your assurance tonight then Jesus remains for you the way the truth and the life because he says as he says to us so clearly in the gospel he says to us I am the way the truth and the life no man can come to the father except through me.

[38:19] My friend I hope we will all see each other again in glory. I hope we will all meet together in Emmanuel's land because we will all know one another of that there is no doubt but will we all see one another.

[38:40] You make sure by trusting in this Jesus for time and for eternity. May the Lord bless these thoughts to us. Let us pray.

[38:55] O Lord our gracious God we give thanks to thee that the word of God who has made for us that new and living way that we as sinners are able to enter the holiness of heaven that we are able to enjoy the beauty and the glory of gathering around the throne of God and that we are able to even call heaven our home to know that we are not shut out but that we are those who are called to come in and Lord we pray that each and every one of us that we would all be found in Emmanuel's land where glory glory dwelleth in Emmanuel's land Lord bless thy truth to us encourage us we pray help us to keep looking above to set our affection on things above where Christ is seated and to know that he is the one who is preparing a place for us Lord encourage us we ask strengthen us we pray go before us into a new week that whatever this week has for us help us to know that thou art the one who knows the way that we take and that when thou hast tried us we shall come forth as gold keep us then we pray for we ask it in Jesus name and for his sake amen we're going to bring our service to a conclusion this evening the words of Psalm 84 the last three verses

[40:27] Psalm 84 verse 10 so he said it's a pilgrim Psalm and as he says at the end of the Psalm for in thy courts one day excels a thousand rather in my God's house will I keep a door than dwell in tents of sin for God the Lord's a sun and shield he'll grace and glory give and will withhold no good from them that uprightly do live O thou that art the Lord of hosts that man is truly blessed who by assured confidence on thee alone doth rest these verses of Psalm 84 in conclusion to God's praise praise for in thy court one day excele of God's others and mothering my God's birth will

[41:35] I keep adore the quell in tents of sin for God the Lord's heart nuestras as heal as as hust confused and mash us am as as O thou art, thou art of hosts, and my days truly blessed, whom I assure in confidence on the earth, thou art of hosts.

[42:52] The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God the Father, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all, now and forevermore. Amen. So have you got answers?

[43:08] Yes? Okay. Question one. In the pilgrim's progress, what city is Christian traveling to? Celestial City.

[43:20] Well done. Okay. Have you seen the film? Yes? You've all seen it. That's good. Okay. Question two. What are the three creation ordinances? Here's one for you.

[43:32] The Sabbath, work, and marriage. Yes? Do you get that? Three creation ordinances. Three things God ordained before the fall.

[43:44] So the Sabbath, marriage, and work. Okay? Question three. What are the headings of tonight's sermon? So that, why are you listening?

[43:55] That's the main question. Maybe we should ask the adults this one. Heaven is holy, happy, heaven is home.

[44:07] That's it. Heaven is holy, heaven is happy, heaven is home. Isabel. By the time I'm like, I'll be répondre to you. Amen. All right. Shame. Hmm.

[44:17]  So now...