Take a Look Behind Time’s Veil!

6th Sunday of Easter, 5/1/16
Revelation 21:10-14, 22-23


Take a Look Behind Time’s Veil!
I. See life with all God’s holy saints
II. See life with your holy God


There’s some truth to the old adage, “Seeing is believing.” I’m certain every adult here this morning has been duped into believing something was true when it really wasn’t. You paid your hard earned money for something sight unseen, and when you finally laid eyes on it, it wasn’t anything like what you were led to believe. Every hour of the day advertisers are hawking products, some promising amazing results. The online reviews all look good. But will it actually work as advertised? Seeing is believing.

This coming Thursday the Christian Church on earth celebrates the Ascension of Our Lord. At a spot near the ancient city of Bethany just outside of Jerusalem, 40 days after his resurrection, Jesus ascended into heaven. He lifted his visible presence from this earth. Jesus still kept his promise to be with his people, just not visibly. He told his followers that he was going to go to his Father, and that’s what he did. And one of his purposes for doing so, was to prepare a place for his faithful people.

But how can we know that for sure? Is this just another one of those fantastic claims without any substance behind it? Is the hope of heaven some crutch supplied by Jesus as we limp through another week? Is there really a place of perfect bliss and unending joy? Indeed there is, and Jesus gives us a glimpse of it through the eyes of the Apostle John this morning.

In this portion of Revelation, Jesus pulls back the veil of time and shows John what’s on the other side. John saw heaven with you in it. Now there’s a glorious truth that lifts the hearts and souls of beleaguered Christians like you and me. So take a peak! Seeing is believing! Look behind time’s veil. Our God has heavenly sights for us to see.

Part I.

I realize that there are some people who prefer to be by themselves. Most people, however, enjoy being with other people. But think about. When you’re with someone else, is it always an enjoyable time? The more time you spend with that person or group of people, the more likely it is that you’ll begin to wish your time with them was over. You don’t always enjoy and appreciate the things that are being said. If you’re hosting them for any length of time, you can get worn out, fatigued, exhausted. Let’s admit it—it isn’t long before you get annoyed, and this is with people whom you love, people you thought you enjoyed being with. Have you had that experience?

It even happens among Christians who aren’t related to each other. Let’s admit it, we have trouble at times just spending time with each other, let alone enjoying ourselves. So we set limits. We’ll spend time with each other for a certain amount of time, and then we’ll head home. We possess Christian love for one another, but we don’t want to spend time with each other endlessly. Sad, isn’t it? Shouldn’t it be better?

It should. And it will be. Look behind time’s veil. This is what John saw. “And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God.” All of time has just ended. The last second of world history has just expired. Jesus has returned, raised all the dead, glorified the bodies of Christians, and taken them to the new heaven and the new earth which John had just seen in an earlier portion of this vision. And what does John see next? He sees you and every other saint. In other words, he sees what right now is invisible—the Holy Christian Church. And note how he sees it. It’s this mighty, glorious city. Everything else has been destroyed, but the Church still stands and you’re part of it.

It gets better. John writes, “It shone with the glory of God, and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal.” Have you ever seen a quality gem under the proper lighting? It’s stunning. That’s what John saw when he saw you and all the saints in heaven. Our version uses the words, “clear as crystal.” Literally, John wrote, “shimmering.” As such a shimmering jewel is precious to the one who owns it, so you and all the saints are precious to our God.

John has one more interesting description of you and all the saints. “It had a great, high wall with twelve gates, and with twelve angels at the gates. On the gates were written the names of the twelve tribes of Israel. There were three gates on the east, three on the north, three on the south and three on the west. The wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.” John’s description of all the saints moves from beauty to security. An ancient city’s walls were its protection from enemies. John saw twelve gates inscribed with the names of the twelve tribes of Israel. No one but God’s elect Christians were allowed to enter. There would be no crashers at this eternal party for the saints. There would be no falsehood here, either. This city was built on the foundation of the teaching of the apostles, the pure word of God. No lies or deception could penetrate those walls and hinder or destroy the joy of the saints inside.

It’s sad but true that our time spent with each other here isn’t always endless joy. But not there. Look behind time’s veil and see life with all God’s holy saints.

For the majority of us here today, the carefree, blissful life as a child is a distant memory. Our lives now are nearly always an unbroken string of realities, harsh realities. Our dreams of what we thought our life would be didn’t materialize, in spite of our hard work. The people we counted on to help us attain them, for one reason or another, let us down. We struggle to find meaning and satisfaction in our vocations. And the personal relationships that once brought us joy and contentment, well…not so much anymore. And I won’t even mention health and financial issues. And then we wonder why our attitude at times is lousy. We don’t like being the Negative Nellie, but how else should we respond to what we’re facing? We get depressed. We feel defeated. It’s as if all our problems and failures have cocooned us. We can’t see through our outer shell of sorrow and grief. Sorry to add insult to injury, but shame on us! Were Jesus’ holy life, his innocent death on the cross and his glorious resurrection for nothing? Absolutely not! He lived and died to make us his saints, his holy ones, and that what’s we are by God’s grace. His resurrection assures us of a glorious life with all the saints. Would you like to know where your life is headed? Look behind time’s veil and see your life with all the saints.

Part II.

For those of you who are married or were married, do you recall why you got married? For the majority of couples it was because they wanted more of life with each other. They loved and cared so much for each other that they wanted to share as much of their lives with each other as possible, and marriage is God’s way of providing that opportunity.

We came into this world without life with God. By God’s grace alone he changed all that. It likely took place for most of you at a font like that one, where the name of the Triune God was spoken over you and the water of baptism was applied. From that day on, you have had life with your God. Scripture plainly states that you are the temple of the Holy Spirit. (1 Cor. 6:19). And now, through Word and Sacrament that life with your God is sustained and nurtured. Our Savior-God draws us closer to himself through the gospel, the good news about Jesus as our Savior.

But your God wants more than that for you and for himself. Let’s take another look behind time’s veil. John wrote, “I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp.” By the word order, John indicates surprise that he didn’t see a Temple in the Holy City. The Temple was the center of the worship life of God’s people for centuries. Why isn’t there one in heaven? It’s not needed. The Temple in Jerusalem was the one place on earth where God’s special presence was located until the Temple was destroyed. When we live with our God in heaven, we won’t need to go to a place where he is located to be with him because we’ll always live in his presence. Hard to imagine, isn’t it? How astounding!

Take one last look behind time’s veil. There’s no problem seeing what’s there because the entire place is filled with light. The sun and moon aren’t needed because the light of God’s glory fills heaven. We’ll never fumble in the darkness—literally or figuratively—again. Life with our God will be unending, glorious light. That’s what living in the presence of God is.

Take a look behind time’s veil and see life with your holy God.

In a crowded world, why is it that people—even we—feel alone at times? It’s because we don’t just need another body there to be with us. We need someone who understands us, cares for us, and loves us to be with us. And as wonderful as it is to have another human being who does all those things, there is no perfect human companionship. What we need most of all is life with our God, life in full with our God. That’s what the ascension of Jesus is all about. Jesus ascended to prepare a place for us and to rule over every moment of time to accomplish his saving plans and purposes for us, his people. So that when time ends, he can usher you, soul and body, into the glorious Holy City he has ready for you. So stop the endless search for meaning, happiness and fulfilment in this life. The point of Jesus’ life and death and resurrection was to share the next life with you. When you need some comfort and hope for your life, take a look behind time’s veil. See your perfect life with all the saints and with your holy God himself. Amen.