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Howdy. Please stand for reading of God's word. I want to read from 2 Corinthians chapter 5. 2 Corinthians chapter 5 and want to begin in verse 14. 2 Corinthians 5. For the love of God controls us, having concluded this, that one died for all, therefore all died. And he died for all, so that they who live might no longer live for themselves, but for him who died and rose again on their behalf.

Therefore, from now on, we recognize no one according to the flesh, even though we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know him in this way no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature. The old things passed away. Behold, new things have come.

Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely that God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them. And he has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ.

As though God were making an appeal through us, we beg you, on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. He who made him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in him. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we bow before you this morning, recognizing that it is because of your great grace and mercy that you were not counting our trespasses against us, but that you sent Christ to reconcile us to you and bring us together in one spirit with you and with each other.

Father, this is the new work that you have done in our lives, and we rejoice because of it. You are the God who makes all things new. Father, and that newness begins with a personal relationship with you. You take away the old nature, enslaved to sin, and put in us the nature of your beloved Son, one who craves and desires and trusts and thirsts for you.

So, Father, we thank you for this work, and we also recognize that though this is where this work in us begins, that there is a new heavens and a new earth coming. Father, where you will complete and put us in a new environment. What begins today, Father, is a new spirit in you.

We recognize that one day we will be raised anew and put on new bodies. But all this, Father, is in light of your coming heaven to earth, where all things will be made new. So, Father, we just rejoice this morning that you are the God who makes all things new.

We thank you for this new morning. We thank you for the new mercies that we receive today. We thank you for the new life that you've given us. And, Father, we just pray now, Father, that you would be exalted out of the gratitude of our heart for the great things that you have done and are doing.

We thank you in Jesus' name. Amen. Well, once again, good morning. Please open your Bibles to Revelation chapter 21. Revelation chapter 21. We'll be looking at verses 5 through 8 today. Revelation chapter 21, beginning in verse 5. And he who sits on the throne said, Behold, I am making all things new.

And he said, Write, for these words are faithful and true. Then he said to me, It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give to the one who thirsts from the spring of the water of life without cost. He who overcomes will inherit these things.

And I will be his God, and he will be my son. But for the cowardly and unbelieving and abominable, and murderers, and immoral persons, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, their part will be in the lake of fire that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.

Well, good morning. You know, you can't miss the inheritance language in this passage. An inheritance. What is an inheritance? Well, it's really part of an estate that is given to a person, part of an estate that belongs to somebody else and given. And in this world, as you know, such inheritances can often be disappointing or even unpredictable.

For instance, think for a minute of Michael Jackson, the king of pop, at a $200 million estate that was postured to grow. Exponentially in the years to come and did. Well, you can imagine the disappointment in 2009 when some of his siblings learned they were left out of his will and estate altogether.

Disappointing. Maybe he wasn't so keen on his siblings as they imagined. Also, imagine how the grandchildren of Leona Helmsley felt when they realized they were left out of her $4 billion estate, but her little fluffy white dog received $12 million. That's pretty unpredictable. I mean, you do the math on that.

That dog was eating gourmet meals. I mean, you couldn't spend it. Well, you can imagine that that was a shock and disappointing. But you know what? God gives us this Bible. He gives us the book of Revelation and the 66 books that it is part of, so that you will know about eternity.

You see, all of us have a stake in eternity. Whether it's in the new heavens or the new earth or whether it's in the lake of fire, you and I and everyone. In this room and in this world, has a stake in eternity. What will your portion be?

God doesn't intend for there to be any surprises about the inheritance that is to come. It's not unpredictable if you read your Bible. He doesn't intend for his people to be surprised or disappointed about their inheritance. It's only the unbelievers that will be surprised. You see, because the Bible tells us how the world ends, we know how the world ends.

We're not going to blow ourselves up in a nuclear holocaust. That's not going to be the end of it. Oh, I'm not saying nuclear weapons won't happen sometime, but I am saying that's not how the world's going to end. We're not going to so change the climate that human beings can no longer inhabit the earth.

That's not the way it's going to end. No, we know how it's going to end. Christ is going to return, there's going to be a final judgment, heavens and the earth are going to flee. We know that. And we can be certain of these things because God has revealed them.

To us, and we cannot know them any other way unless He tells us in plain language, and He does. Revelation, in many ways, is you can think of it as God's last Testament and will. His last Testament, it closes the 66 books of the Bible, and it tells us what His will for the eternal state is going to be.

And it tells us very clearly who's going to be part of it and who is not. You know, we're experiencing somewhat of a cold front now, but you guys all know here in Texas when you get this northern wind blowing, you realize there's a front pushing in. The drier air behind is pushing, and all the moisture we see is that what's coming down out of the skies and being pushed out.

You see the rain and the thunderstorms, and then behind it, on the back side of it, you'll see those clear blue skies, the blueness. That's why we call it a blue northern. Well, you can kind of think about the events of Revelation chapter 6 all the way to chapter 20 as depicting the difficult times that are coming up on the earth because of its sin.

Sin is going to mature. It's going to crystallize in a worldwide government, which has an epicenter, a worldwide philosophy that is enlarged, embraced by the whole. We also know that it's going to be judged. But, like a passing storm that brings the glorious weather behind it, so is the tribulation and judgment.

It will push through. Sin will, sin, and judgment will all push through, and it will all give way to the glory of the new heavens and the new earth that comes behind it. You can think about what's depicted in the book of Revelation in large part is this tribulation period, this great tribulation period and the day of the Lord that's going to come down upon it.

But something you need to understand about this great tribulation, it will reveal who belongs to God and not. And it will also show us the sinful depths to which humanity will go. It'll show us all these things. But something you need to understand is that the tribulation does not turn a believer into an unbeliever, it only reveals who the Believers really are.

All the tribulation in the world has no power to change a believer into an unbeliever. It only reveals who they are. Just like a storm that pushes through. Just recently, this week, we saw a bunch of devastating storms and they wreaked all kinds of havoc upon some structures.

Well, guess what? The strong structure has survived. The storm didn't make a structure weak, it just revealed the weakness that was already there. So it will be with all tribulations and all temptations. What that does is they just reveal what's there. And so, after this great judgment that we read about in chapter 20, where heaven and earth flee, then John gets this vision of heaven.

He gets this vision of heaven. We began looking at it last time. And look back at verse 1. If you remember, this vision of heaven begins in chapter 21 and verse 1, right after the great white throne judgment, where death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire, and everyone whose name was not found written in the book of life, they too were thrown in the lake of fire.

And then afterwards, John gets this vision of the new. New heavens. And it's broken down into what he saw and what he heard. First of all, look at what he saw. He saw a new heavens and a new earth, a new Jerusalem. Verse 1: Then I saw a new heavens and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea.

And I saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven. And I heard, that's what he heard. He hears something. He saw this, and then he hears something. That's going to take us through verse 8. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men.

The new Jerusalem is God's tabernacle. And God will dwell with his people. He will dwell among them. They shall be his people, and God himself will be among them. Verse 4, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and there will no longer be any death.

There will no longer be any mourning or crying or pain. The first things have passed away. So with the coming of the new heavens, the new earth, the new Jerusalem, the old things have passed away. And with that, in verse 5, he hears these words. Behold, I am making all things new.

All things. New. And so, for the first time, notice who is speaking. For the first time, really, since chapter one, God is the one who is clearly speaking. Verse 5, and he who sits on the throne, the one who is sitting on the throne, said, Behold, I am making all things new.

Take this in. Behold. See, get your mind around this. I am making, I am in the process of making, creating all things new. All things new. If this were a psalm, it would probably say, Silah. Pause. All things new. Don't you love new? I love spring. I love the new, I love the green on the trees, the new spring green before it gets older green, deeper green, and then brown.

I love the new green as it comes out. We love new. We love new. We love pristine. We love a car that's new. We hate it when we get our first dent on it. We love a new toy. We love new opportunities. We love new relationships. We love new beginnings.

All things. God says he is making new. And so he does this because this is what he delights to do. God loves to make things new. He loves to make things good. He loves to make things whole. This is the God of the Bible. And it is only sin that has wreaked havoc in this world.

It's sin that has wreaked havoc in your life, in your relationships, and everything else. You can boil it down to sin, but the good news is that God, God, God loves to make all things new. And that's what He is doing. So as we continue working our way through what John heard in this vision of heaven, he's going to hear several more things that are intended to help God's people.

And that includes you and I overcome all the passing pleasures and all the passing persecutions of this sin-defiled world. It's passing. I want to focus on this phrase: all things new. All things new is what characterizes heaven. New heavens, new earth, new pristine, never fading, always at its pristine.

Pinnacle place, all relationships, all the environment, everything pristine, eternal bloom. This is heaven. This is how we start getting our mind around heaven, and it just gives us a glimpse, a vision. But wouldn't you like to see it all new? Well, we will. So I want to talk to you about three more insights into heaven and the following verses.

First of all, the certainty of it. Heaven, all things new. It is certain. It is certain. Look at verse 5. And he who sits on the throne said, Behold, I am making all things new. And he said, Write, for these words are faithful and true. Write. John, pick up that pen again.

He's probably looking at all this and just kind of, wow. Pick up that pen, John. Write. Put this into a state of writing. Put it for all the churches to see and read and get their minds around. Put this into a state of writing. John. Right, because these words, these words are faithful and true.

These words, what are these words referring to? Well, some take it as to the whole of Revelation. Well, certainly all the words of Revelation are true, and yes, it is God's last testament and his will. Yet I think in the near context, what he's speaking about the new heavens, the new earth, the new Jerusalem, and this statement, all things new.

These words, that's the nearest antecedent, all things new. These words, that all things are going to be made new. Put them in a state of writing, John. Why? Because they're true. And God wants you and I to be certain of this. These are the realities that are coming.

And he gives three reasons. At least I can find, I can see three reasons why we can expect all things to be new. It's coming. Friends, it's coming. All things new. Coming. He gives three reasons that God wants you and I to be expecting heaven. The first is that God is faithful and true.

Look back, write, for these words are faithful and true. His words are faithful and true. Why? Because he is faithful and true. You remember in Revelation 19:11 when heaven is opened up? Let me just read those words to you. Look back there. Revelation 19:11. And I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, and he who sat on it is called faithful and true.

That's who he is. Faithful and true. Write, for these words are faithful and true. We can trust every single word of God because he is faithful and true. And he is faithful to communicate what is faithful and true to us. All of his words are faithful and true.

And in their ordinary sense, plain, simple. Why are his words written in a plain, ordinary sense for everyone to get? Why? Because God wants to be understood. His purpose is to reveal. And his purpose is to reveal so that you and I can understand, so that we can embrace, so that we can heed.

That we can live our lives in light of the coming realities. Second reason that we can expect all things to be made new is look at verse 6. Then he said to me, It is done. I am the alpha and the omega, the beginning and the end. God is the alpha and omega.

Not only is God faithful and true, but he is the alpha and the omega. He is the beginning and the end. Notice what he says, it is done. As John sees this, he hears these words, it is done. It has come about. It has been produced. It has been born.

That's the word. It has come about. You see, God wants this truth settled in the minds of his people. It is done. Everything will be made new. Why? Because God is the first cause. He is the alpha. He is the final say. He is the omega. And he is the one in between directing all things to their conclusion.

He is the origin of all things new. He is the one who is making all things new. And because of that, there is a conclusion. All things will be. Made new. But there's a third reason why we can expect all things to be new. Not only is God faithful and true, not only is God the Alpha and Omega, but God, number three, intends to satisfy his people.

Look back at verse 6. I will give to the one who thirsts from the spring of the water of life without cost. Water of life. What is he talking about? He's talking about not just physical life. Yes, that will be necessary. But he's talking about the spiritual supply of his spirit that binds, that unifies God and his people together.

God's spirit, his spiritual supply. Everything necessary for abundant eternal life. Physical and spiritual. Water of life. And notice to whom he's going to give that to. To the one who's thirsty. To the one who thirsts. What does thirst mean? Have you ever really been thirsty? Have you ever gone without water for a period, been working out, sweat, sweat, sweating, you're just thirsty and you can feel like you can drink a pond?

Well, that's the thought. Thirsty, the one who has a strong desire for, the one who intensely craves what God supplies. That's the one who can only be satisfied totally in the new heavens and the new earth. And this is good news, friends. I love this. All I need to bring to the table is thirst.

I can do that when I really take into consideration who I am. All you need to do is be thirsty for Him and for what He gives. And if you will take an honest evaluation of your own soul, you will have good reason to be thirsty. It's easy.

Think about sin. I look back over the history of my life, I have sinned. I can't rid myself of what I have done. Can you? Can you go back and change a fact of history? You have sinned. I cannot go back and change a fact of history. And what's more, I do not have an excuse for the reason why I sinned other than I loved it.

I wanted to be in return. Rebellion to God. I cannot make an adequate excuse, nor can I make adequate atonement or covering for my sin. And nor can I go back and fix those who I harmed with my sin. You see, I'm in trouble, and so are you.

I can't do that. And so I thirst for God to deal with my sin in a gracious and just way. I also am thirsty for God to undo the impacts of my sin that has inevitably left a mark upon this world. And not just my sin, but your sin and everyone else's.

It has marked this world. And I thirst for all things to be made new so that there isn't even a trace or a mark of sin upon this world. Don't you thirst for that? For your own sake and for the sake of others and for the sake of the mess.

Wouldn't it be nice to see it all new? That's good news. My lack is profound, and so is yours, if you will honestly assess yourself. But also, not just about sin, think about your competency. Think about my competency. Get it. I am thirsty for what God supplies. I realize I am not God.

I realize I am not the master of my fate or anyone else's. I am not adequate to provide food, sustenance, wise living. I'm not adequate for these things in and of myself. I am dependent upon His supply for fruitfulness, for help in my presence. You know what? I can't even take care of those I love.

I am dependent upon God's supply so that I can take care of and be party to taking care of those who I love. So I thirst for God's spiritual supply today, fruitfulness, blessing, all is in Him. And I thirst for all things to be made new, where God's perfect supply and immediate presence will be upon all, upon me, and upon all who I love, without curse, without blemish.

Yeah, so that is satisfaction, eternal. But notice that he gives this, look at the last word. Of verse 6, without cost, without a gift, without payment. It's something freely given. Do you want the kind of life that God wants for you? He created you, He knows what real living is about, and He wants to give it to you.

Do you thirst? Do you see your own inadequacies on so many layers? Do you thirst for Him and what He supplies? That's all you have to bring to the table. I will give to the one who thirsts from the spring of the water of life without cost. Do you want all things new to be your inheritance?

Do you long for that to be made new? Do you thirst for it? Then come to Him and ask Him. So, heaven, first reality we're looking at this morning is that it's certain. But John goes on to hear more things about it. Next thing he hears about is those who are going to inherit it.

Look back at verse 7. I will inherit, or he, verse 7, he who overcomes will inherit these things, and I will be his God, and he will be my son. Inherit. He who overcomes will inherit. That is, will come into possession of, will acquire these things, will receive, will have a share in, he will inherit these things.

What things? Well, the water of life, the new heavens, the new earth, the new Jerusalem, all things new, the one who overcomes, and that's a present verb, the one who is overcoming, the one who is currently conquering, the one who is currently overcoming. This one will inherit all of these things.

God doesn't want you to be ignorant of how His will reads and what's coming. Overcomes what? What is He or she overcoming? Well, the answer is all temptations. To defect from being loyal to Christ. That's it. What is John writing to? What is Jesus encouraging? What is God encouraging?

Overcoming. Overcoming every internal temptation to defect, overcoming every external pressure to defect and be loyal to the God of this age rather than to the God of Scripture. Well, keep in mind that this book is written to the seven churches. The seven churches. And these seven churches were facing some horrific times.

And they give us, remember, we spent, I believe, it was 29 sermons in just two chapters. Can you believe that? No, you can't. Or maybe you can. But just think about chapters two and chapter three. It's Christ's epistles to his church. Churches. What were some of the challenges they were facing?

Well, remember at Ephesus, they were facing losing their first love. They had elevated. Orthodoxy over love for Christ. They became masters at theological defense and debate, but they lost their first love for Christ. That's a challenge and a temptation. You remember Smyrna? They were facing intense suffering, and there was a temptation to be afraid, to conform.

You remember Pergamum? They started tolerating doctrinal defection. Ah, they got a little off. Okay, the majority of us aren't going that way, but we're not going to come down hard. We're going to love them into the kingdom. Something like that. And they tolerate doctrinal defection right in their midst.

And then as you look at Thyratira, that doctrinal defection had manifested itself into moral compromise. And then as you keep going, you get to Sardis, and they have gone from just tolerating doctrinal defection and celebrating moral compromise to just succumbing to spiritual deadness. And then in Philadelphia, they were small.

They had been pelted hard, and they were in danger of just letting go of Christ. It's too much. And then there's that. Laodicea, who sought worldly esteem and the temptations of lukewarmness to reduce their spiritual fervor to mere apathy. And this is what life in a secular society will do.

Well, those churches, and in each one of those, there was this overt call to overcome. You see, and those who overcame those temptations and pressures in those early churches, they were ones who would not demote Christ to secondary significance. And that's what we're called to do today. In the midst of all these, in suffering, the threat of suffering, and doctrinal defection, and the celebration of moral compromise that happens in the church, and the spiritual deadness, and those who are under pressure releasing Christ, all of these, we are to keep Christ primary and overcome these.

That's what we're called to do. That's who we are. The storm doesn't change us, it just reveals who we are. Let me tell you something. When something is in you that comes from above, it overcomes the world. That is why you need a relationship with Jesus Christ. And he offers it today.

Are you tired of being overcomed and overwhelmed by this world? Then come to Christ. And if you have come, believe in Christ. Believe more in Christ. You see, the ones who are overcoming are not ashamed of Christ and his words in this generation. Look back at the end of verse 7.

He who overcomes will inherit these things, and I will be his God, and he will be my son. They do not, those who are overcoming do not regulate Christ to secondary significance. And when they do, they quickly repent. They have an answer for their sin. But their life and character is one of growing in Christ's likeness.

Therefore, God is not ashamed to be his God or her God. Father-son, closest relationship. And what happens to a son? They inherit all things that the Father gives. So, heaven, important that you understand that it is certain. Second thing, John. Heard was that about those who will inherit.

And the third thing in our text this morning is he also heard about those who will not. Those who will not inherit these things. You see, in contrast to the faithful who will inherit all things new, there are the unfaithful who Satan marks. Now we think about in the tribulation period that is to come, they're going to be physically marked by the beast outwardly.

He wants outward conformity, he wants a mark on it. And though that day is coming, even today and throughout all of history, Satan likes to clearly mark his people. And he does that by their character, by their disposition, by the things they do. And this verse describes several of those marks, many of those marks.

Look back at verse 8. We can think of these as the marks of Satan or the categories of the unfaithful, but here they are, just nicely categorized for us. These are the ones who will not inherit heaven. Look at verse 8. But for the cowardly and the unbelieving and the abominable and murderers and immoral persons and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their part will be in the lake that burns with fire and break.

Brimstone, which is the second death. Notice the first one on the list: the cowardly, the timid. This is someone who shrinks back. Okay, for all of you pilgrim's progress people, you remember on the Mount of Difficulty, the hill of difficulty, as Christian is going up, he meets two people running back.

We saw lions. One of their names was mistrust. And do you remember what the other one's name was? Timor. Timorous. Yes, Timorus. Timorous is this person right here, the cowardly, the ones who's nervous, the one who lacks confidence. We could probably think of it as somebody who has a quivering voice or somebody who shrinks back.

These are the ones who do not persevere in faith. Remember what Jesus said in Mark 8:35? Whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel's sake will save it. 2 Timothy 1:7, for God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline.

Let me tell you where Christ leads. He always leads to victory. Let me tell you what Christ overcame. Everything, every temptation, every pressure to defect from the will of his heavenly Father. Overcame it all. And guess what? If you're a disciple of him, guess what you're doing? You're walking in that same path.

Not because of your own strength, but because of the one who has a hold of you. You've been born from above. And there's something new. And this something new overcomes the world. So be who you are. Let us not shrink back, fall away, because those who shrink back and fall away are not like him.

They're not truly following him. He doesn't lead you to shrink back and fall away. That's why this doctrine, the perseverance of the saints, is the indication of really who is in the faith. Well, there's a second category. Look back. Unbelieving, but the cowardly and the unbelieving. What is the unbelieving?

Those without faith. And they're faithless. And because they're faithless, guess what? They're also unfaithful. And they're not following Christ. Christ trusted the Father. And this is the fundamental sin underlying the repentant. All the false teachers you read about, all the heretics, all those who shrink back and those who will not repent, the fundamental sin is unbelief.

And this is the reason why people don't repent today. They don't really believe. This is why you don't really repent, is because you really don't believe. There's a third category: the abominable. Who are these? Fascinating word. It's those who have been polluted, those who have been corrupted. It's not just talking about someone who does a horrific act, it's talking about what they have become.

They're characteristics. Their characteristics are disposed to detestable inclinations. They started down the act doing the acts of abominable things. And then somewhere, God just gave them over. And that became part of who they are. Just like the woman in Revelation 7:8, Babylon the Great, she had in her hand a gold cup full of abominations and of the unclean things of her immorality.

You see, those like this clearly do not follow Christ. Revelation 3:7, he says he is holy. He is the holy and true one. Revelation 15, 4, who will not fear, O Lord, and glorify your name, for you alone are holy. See, abominable deeds prove an abominable character. Fourth category, murderers.

Who are they? They are these who kill people or are party to killing people. Such people place a small value on human life. Do you know people like that? Or maybe that's you. Do you place a small value on human life? This is what characterizes the world of Babylon.

They kill the saints and anyone else who doesn't conform. But if you're a follower of Christ, guess what? You value human life. Because that's what he did. That's what he does. We are to value human life because that's what our Lord does. And if you're truly following him, that's what you will do.

We're not to ally with those who murder people. Fifth category, look at immoral persons. This is the word pornos. We get pornography. Speaking about those who are given to sexual perversion of all distinctions. And what is that? Anything outside of the covenant of marriage. That's what sexual perversion involves.

You see, there are many, and even in the churches of chapters 2 and chapter 3, there is an internal justification for sexual immorality, even among Christians, and then not just to tolerate it, but then to celebrate it. And we see that in our churches today. Not only a justification for sexual immorality, but even a celebration of it.

Many denominations have left God's designs for sexual relations. Listen, if you are engaged in sexual activity outside of the marriage covenant, you are the sexually immoral that is being spoken about here. And you do not, will not have an inheritance in the things to come. That's not my words, that's his words.

Now, some of you were sexually immoral. All of us have sexual sin. We've been called out of that. Such were some of you if you were in Christ. Sixth. Oh, let me say one more thing about sexual perversion. You know, sexual perversion, it's about using people. It's not about loving them.

Sexual perversion is by nature predatorial. And so all forms, all shapes, all sizes, God's people are to come out of that. And they are overcoming every temptation. That's what God's doing in us. There's a sixth category. It's kind of related. These last few are kind of related to each other.

The sorcerers. It's where we get the word pharmacy, pharmaceuticals from. Mind-altering drugs. Pharmakia. And these mind-altering drugs were historically used in pagan worship. It was necessary to deceive people, but also to sexually exploit the temple prostitutes. Listen, the use of drugs to deceive, they cause people to relax their inhibitions.

It gives people the opportunity to sexually exploit others. You see, drugs, especially in these contexts, would allow people to think and do what they would not do otherwise. It's closely related to the pagan worship. I mean, you have to smoke dope before you can worship some of these deities from them to make any kind of sense.

And yet, or to drug up the temple prostitutes and enslave them, just juice them up on a bunch of dope and control them. Still happens today, doesn't it? Get them hooked on drugs, and you can control them. Seventh category: idolaters. These are those who worship other gods. And certainly in the context, this went all as one part: the sorcery, the idolaters, the sexually immoral, were all part of this first-century world that this church lived commingled with there in these churches.

Yet they were called to be distinct and to overcome these temptations. But even in our context, idolaters are those who worship other gods. Because they don't like serving the true God, they come up with an alternative God that will allow them to do what they want. They'll redefine Christ.

They'll redefine God in such a way that they can pursue what they want to pursue. And what happens is they turn out just like the gods they worship. Look at this final category, number eight. The liars. Liars. What an ex liars. All liars. These are those who deceive with the tongue, whether it's subtly or overtly.

Listen, to lie is to be like Satan. He's the one who starts it all. In fact, as you read through Revelation, he doesn't seem to do anything well except deceiving people. He can't stand in heaven. He can't stand on earth. He's constantly driven away. He meets no military victory except as he deceives people.

That's his power over you. That's how he controls people, and that's what he's good at. But there is going to be no lies in heaven. In fact, in the next few lists, listen to what Revelation 21, 27 says, and nothing clean, and no one who practices abomination and lying shall ever come into it.

Revelation 22, 15, outside are the dogs and the sorcerers and the immoral persons and the murderers and the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices lying. It ends. The lists, all three of these lists. God wants truth in the inner parts. He wants truth on our lips. It's the most stressed category.

Why? Because all other vices in this list are built upon some kind of lie. The father of lies. This is what brought in, he distorted. He subtly and then overtly set aside God's word and led others to set aside the truth. Well, we've looked at these marks of the unfaithful, and friend, if you this morning are feeling convicted by these things, go with it.

Let God convict you of this is your burden. Deal with it. Let the conviction of these things and the truth of the words that I am sharing with you today drive you to Him, give you a thirst. He has already promised. I mean, if you are feeling that conviction, the invitation, come, he will give.

Let there be truth in your inward parts and let it drive you. Agree with God and say, I am thirsty for what you do. You give. Well, that brings us, we've looked at the categories of the unfaithful and the marks. Now let's look at the inheritance of the unfaithful.

Look back at verse 8. Their part, last sentence there, their part will be in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death. Their inheritance, their part. Here comes eternity. There is the part, the new heavens, the new earth, and all things new. And there are those who inherit that.

There are those who don't. Those who don't, let me tell you what their part is. Their part will be in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death. Eternal condemnation. See, if you were joined this morning to Satan, you don't have to be.

If you bear his marks, you don't have to be. You can come out of that by repenting of your sins and placing your faith in Christ. But those who permanently refuse Christ's invitation end up permanently bound to Satan. Their names are not written in the book of life, and they will share the same fate as he in the lake of fire.

You see, there should be no surprises about your inheritance. God has been explicit about what the eternal state is going to bring and who's going to receive what. But you and I all have a part in eternity, whether good or bad. And you see, these realities are given to us to behold, behold, in order that it will further advance us down the road of overcoming the trials and the temptations and the persecutions to defect from Christ today.

And that's why he gives us this vision of heaven. This is why he gave this vision of heaven to those early churches there in Asia Minor. They were facing some horrific things, and there have been churches throughout the whole history of the church that has faced similar challenges.

And he gives us a picture of heaven, a vision, so that we will be fortified and strengthened to overcome every external pressure and every internal temptation to defect from Christ. God wants Christ to be primary in your life for His glory, but also for your good. You see, the pleasures and persecutions of this world are quickly passing, and soon we will step over into that threshold of eternity, and each of us will be given our part in eternity.

Do you really believe that God is sovereign? Do you really believe these words are true? Do you really believe that He is good? Do you really believe that He is coming again? Do you really believe that evil will be done away with and all evildoers will be done away with it?

Do you really believe that a new heavens and a new earth is coming or coming? Then act upon that faith. Don't be shaken. And let all temptations and all persecutions let them make you thirsty all the more. Let them make you run to Christ for His supply. Well, we all have a part in eternity.

An inheritance awaits us all. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you for the truths that you have revealed to us. Thank you for letting us know not only how the history of this world is going to go, but how things are going to go after this world has concluded.

Father, we thank you for these truths. May they shape us. Thank you that you are the God who makes all things new. May you do so today. May you change hearts today. May you mend relationships today. Make them new again. Make all things new here among us as we wait for the final all things new in the heaven that is to come.

For it's in Christ's name we pray.