Word of Salvation – September 2025

THE GREAT CROWD, THE ANGELS, AND THE ELDER

Sermon by Rev. Dr. Steve Voorwinde (Heavenly Glimpses (2)

Scripture Readings: Revelation 4 & 5; 7:9-17.

Scripture Text:               Revelation 7:9-17

Introduction

Four years ago my son sent me a book for Father’s Day. It came with the highest possible recommendation. In it was this note: “I thought you might enjoy the first book I’ve read cover-to-cover since high school (I hope you’re proud).” I’m not sure I was proud, but I sure was intrigued. How could this book have held his attention for over 300 pages? It must be gripping reading!

The book was called Into Thin Air. It’s by the journalist Jon Krakauer who joined an expedition to climb Mount Everest in May 1996. He carefully tells the story of the detailed planning that went into the expedition. It even included a visit to Sir Edmund Hillary, the brave New Zealander who was the first person ever to conquer the peak in 1953. The preparation was meticulous. The book’s descriptions of the Nepalese countryside and its people are heart-warming and breathtaking. The ways in which it depicts the Himalayas is so graphic that by the end of the book you feel you have been there.

The long trek to Everest is more gruelling than you would ever expect. It’s more than a tough climb straight up a huge mountain. There are narrow valleys to navigate. There are deep crevasses to get across. There are howling blizzards to cope with. And more critical than almost anything else is to make sure you have a good oxygen supply. That’s where the expedition turned tragic. People had enough oxygen to get to the summit, but on the way down they struck an unexpected blizzard, which slowed them down terribly. On 10 May nine climbers from four expeditions died on the mountain, and by the end of the month another three lives would be lost. Some of the survivors suffered horrific frostbite and later needed amputations. Jon Krakauer himself made it to the summit and survived to tell the story, but it was a human tragedy.

And yet Mount Everest and the Himalayas beautifully illustrate the Book of Revelation. Everest is the highest peak in the Himalayas, but of course it’s not the only peak. In Revelation the highest peak is at the end, in chapters 21-22. And every Christian is a mountaineer making their way to this peak. That of course is the Celestial City, the holy Jerusalem, where God makes everything new. It has gates of pearl and streets of gold. It’s a place of exquisite beauty where God dwells with his people, and they live in perfect harmony.

But that’s not the only glimpse of glory we get in Revelation. The heavenly Mount Zion may be the highest peak in the book, but it’s not the only peak. In fact, there are seven such peaks and, whenever come to one, there is always worship and praise. Here are the first Himalayan peaks of Revelation:

1. In chapter 1 there is a vision of the glorified, heavenly Christ (1:9-20).
2. In chapters 4 & 5 we see a vision of the One on the throne and the Lamb being worshipped by all of creation. These two chapters are full of praise.
3. In chapter 7 the heavenly multitude in white robes praises God and the Lamb, and so do all the angels (7:7-17).

There are four more such peaks in Revelation 11-19. Each gives us glimpses of heaven. They all point us to the New Jerusalem that comes down to earth from heaven at the end of the book (Rev 21-22). All the high points anticipate this climax at he end.

But in between these peaks there are deep valleys, where the church on earth faces many battles and challenges. Each of these valleys represents what happens between the first and second comings of Christ. For example, peak 1 is the vision of the glorified Christ. Then we go down into the valley of chapters 2 & 3 where the letters to the seven churches show us the hard realities that these churches had to face. This sample of first century churches is representative of the church throughout the ages.

Then we come to peak 2, that wonderful scene in heaven where God and the Lamb are praised by majestic choirs surrounding the throne. Then, after being in heaven for chapters 4 & 5, we are thrust down to earth again in chapter 6. Six of the seven seals are opened. The four horsemen of the Apocalypse are released – riding the horse of conquest, the horse of war, the horse of famine, and the horse of death. This is followed by the cries of the martyrs and the judgment of God.

In chapter 7, heaven is opened once again. We have reached another peak in verses 9-17. This will be the focus of the today’s sermon. We will be on Revelation’s third Himalayan summit.

So that’s the big picture of Revelation and the wider context of our passage. We are still in the part of the book where its pattern is mountain-valley, mountain-valley . . . and so it goes till chapter 21. Today we are the third peak. Now it’s time to drill down to some of the details. You may have already noticed that in these verses there are three groups whose words are recorded. They help us to break down the passage into bite-size pieces:

• There’s the great crowd before the throne in vv. 9-10;
• Then we hear from all the angels in vv. 11-12:
• Thirdly, there is an exchange between John and one of the elders, but the main voice is really that of the elder, in vv. 13-17.

Hence the title of this sermon: “The Great Crowd, the Angels, and the Elder.” These are also its three points.

 

1. So, we begin first of all with the crowd before the throne (vv. 9-10).

 

1. What we notice right away is that they are a crowd that no one can number. They are as innumerable as the angels. In chapter 5 the angels number “myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands” (Rev 5:5). That means there must have been a zillion angels, a made-up number, because we have simply lost count. That’s what the angels and the great crowd have in common. They are each a vast throng – too many to count.

 

That’s a reality that the seven small and struggling churches in Asia Minor needed to be reminded of. Compared to the vast pagan Roman Empire in which they lived, they were tempted to feel like a drop in the ocean or a speck of dust in the wind. And how easy it is for us to do the same in the secular environment in which we live. We seem to be such a tiny, insignificant church. Can we ever have an impact? Could we ever be an influence? Or can we only hope to chip some little chunks from the secular iceberg that is (name of your city)?

 

How much we need this vision that John saw on Patmos – “a great multitude that no one could number” (v. 9)! Has it ever occurred to you that we are part of the largest movement in the world? More than that, we belong to the largest movement in the history of the world! We could even say that we belong to the largest movement in all eternity! For a moment in Revelation 7, the curtain is drawn aside and we see spiritual realities for what they are.  When we come here to worship, we don’t just gather with 100 or 150 other churchgoers. Things are not what they seem. The writer to the Hebrews reminds us of what’s really happening when come to worship. This what he says:

 

. . . you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, and to the assembly of the first-born who are enrolled in heaven, and to God the judge of all, and to the spirits of righteous men made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel (Heb 12:22-24).

By coming to church this morning, you may have got more than you bargained for! As we offer our praise and thanks to the One who sits on the throne, we have become one with the church universal. This morning not many people in this town may even know that we are here or what we are doing. But God knows. Jesus knows, and so do the angels. The supernatural forces in the heavenlies know that we are here and what we are doing. We may think we know how many attend church on any given Sunday, but we don’t have a clue. We could be surrounded by legions of angels!

 

2. But now let’s come back for a moment to that “great multitude that no one could count” (Rev 7:9). They are the ultimate fulfilment of God’s promise to Abraham: “Your offspring shall be as the stars of the heavens and as the sand which is on the seashore (Gen 22:17).

 

And there was another promise that God made to Abraham, when he said, “in you all the families and nations of the earth will be blessed” (Gen 12:3; 17:22). We also see this promise fulfilled in the presence of the “great multitude that no one could number.” And how do we know that? Because they are “from every nation, and from all tribes and peoples and languages.” Now we have met this great crowd before. Back in chapter 5 they are introduced in song. When the Lamb went and took the scroll from the right hand of the One seated on the throne, the four living creatures and the 24 elders fell down before the throne. They then sang a new song:

Worthy are you to take the scroll

And to open its seals,

For you were slain, and by your blood

You ransomed people for God

From every tribe and language and people and nation,

And you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God,

And they shall reign on the earth (Rev 5:9-10).

That’s how this great multitude was introduced by the elders and the living creatures.  They were sung about, and soon we will hear them sing. They are the full number of the redeemed, ransomed by the blood of the Lamb. And we belong to that multitude, everybody here who has put their faith in the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29).

3. But where exactly is this great crowd? When you compare the vision in chapter 7 to the one in chapters 4-5, where do they fit in?

In chapters 4-5 there are four concentric circles around the throne. The innermost circle is for the four living creatures. The second is for the 24 elders. The third circle is for the myriads of angels, and the last for every other living creature in heaven and earth.

In this scheme of things, where is the the great multitude to which we belong? We are told in v. 9 that this great crowd is “standing before the throne and before the Lamb.” You will notice that the preposition ‘before’ is used twice. It’s quite emphatic. And the apostle John uses his prepositions very carefully. The only ones who up till now have been described as ‘before’ God and ‘before’ the Lamb are the four living creatures and the 24 elders, and they don’t stand before the throne, they fall before the throne (Rev 4:10; 5:8).

So where does that place the great multitude? First you have the throne. Then immediately around the throne you have the four living creatures. Then around them in the next circle are the 24 elders. Then in the next huge circle is the great crowd that no one can number. Then in the even bigger circle around them you have the myriads of angels. In other words, we will be closer to the throne than the angels! (cf. Heb 1:14; 2:5-8).

What places of honour we will have in heaven! Being before the throne will be a far greater honour than an invitation to the White House or to Buckingham Palace. And what glory will be ours! This is far more glory than winning a Logie or an Oscar. It’s far more glory than being awarded a Nobel Peace Prize or a gold medal at the Olympics. This is more glorious than being called up to the podium or walking the red carpet. The glory we will be receiving in glory will leave all those earthly glories in the dust. In heaven we will be flanked on one side by the God and the Lamb, the living creatures and the elders and on the other side by myriads of angels. What a future to look forward to!

But why will we be standing? Why, when the elders and the living creatures have fallen on their faces before the throne and before the Lamb? Why? Because between them falling on their faces in chapters 4&5 and the great multitude standing in chapter 7, a momentous event has taken place. In the last part of chapter 6, the sixth seal is opened. The day of judgment has come. And this is how that chapter ends:

Then the kings of the earth and the great ones and the generals and the rich and the powerful, and everyone, slave and free, hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains, calling on the mountains and rocks,

“Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who is seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb. For the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?” (Rev 6:15-17).

Who can stand? That’s the question of the damned, and it doesn’t go unanswered. “Behold,” says John, “a great multitude that no one could number. . . standing before the throne and before the Lamb” (v. 9). So, who can stand? A vast crowd that no one can even count!

4. And why can they stand? Because they are “clothed in white robes and with palm branches in their hands.” Now who else in the passages that were read from Revelation this morning is dressed in white? It’s the 24 elders! (Rev. 4:4). The elders also have the privilege of wearing golden crowns and sitting on thrones, but like the great multitude, they are dressed in white. So, what is the relationship between the two – the 24 elders and the crowd that cannot be counted? The crowns and the thrones suggest that the elders have a ruling or governing function, just as elders do in the church. With respect to the vast multitude, the elders have a leadership role. They were the human leaders and founders of the OT church and the NT church. Most likely they were the twelve patriarchs of Israel and the twelve apostles of Jesus. Now they serve as the leaders of the church in glory.

 

5. The colour white in Revelation may stand for either victory or purity depending on the context. Here the white stands for victory because the great crowd are holding palm branches in their hands.

 

During the time between the Old and New Testaments, there was a period when the Jews suffered terribly under pagan Greek rule. They lost control of Jerusalem, and the temple was desecrated. In 164BC Jerusalem was won back and the temple was rededicated. The Jews had been victorious over their enemies. On both occasions they celebrated with music and worship and by waving palm branches.

 

There is only one other reference to palm branches in the New Testament and that is of course on Palm Sunday. As Jesus approached Jerusalem, the people “took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying out, ‘Hosanna!’ Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!” (John 12:13). The masses who followed him thought Jesus was going to drive out the pagan Romans, just as the Maccabees had driven out the pagan Greeks. For them the job was as good as done, and they hailed him “the King of Israel.” The triumphal entry was a victory lap for King Jesus. The palm branches are mentioned only in John’s Gospel. And for John, Jesus’ moment of glory and his greatest triumph was the cross. That’s when he showed his glory. That’s when he showed himself to be the great “I AM.” It was then that our salvation was won.

 

6. That’s why the great multitude in Revelation can cry out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne and to the Lamb!” (v. 10). Salvation belongs to God and the We owe our salvation to him. It was his idea from start to finish. He thought of it. He designed it. He executed it. All we can do is to hold out the empty hands of faith. And when we do that, we discover that faith itself is a gift.

This song could also have been the slogan for the Reformation: “Salvation belongs to our God and to the Lamb!” The medieval church had lost sight of this. They had added all kinds of human works to our salvation. People had to do their bit to be saved. They had to attend the Mass. They had to go through the process of seven sacraments. Then the worship of the Virgin Mary was thrown into the mix, and so were donations to the building of St Peter’s in Rome. The Reformation was a rediscovery of the biblical doctrine of salvation. “Salvation belongs to our God and to the Lamb!” And as Reformed Christians we are the heirs of that transforming doctrine. So please, let’s treasure it. Let’s never water it down.  Let’s never weaken it.

1. Secondly, we move from the greater to the lesser, from the vast crowd to the angels.

 

1. Back in chapter 5 there were “many angels, numbering myriads and myriads and thousands of thousands.” Here in chapter 7, there seem to be even more. There are now “all the angels.” And like the great crowd, they are standing. They too answer the question at the end of chapter 6, “Who is able to stand?” They could have fallen as so many other angels had. But they are standing.

 

2. And they are standing in the same place they were before – “around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures” (v. 11). But they don’t stay standing. Like the living creatures and the elders in the last vision, “they fell on their faces and worshipped God” (v. 11; cf. 4:10; 5:8).

 

3. Listen to their worship: “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honour and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen.” (v. 12). And they sing almost the same as what they sang in chapter 5: “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honour and glory and blessing!” (5:12). What they sing now is what they sang then, but not quite. Let’s just pick up on the differences:

 

• Their song begins and ends with “Amen!” With the first “Amen!” they are giving their assent to the cry of the multitude, “Yes, salvation does belong to our God and to the Lamb.” The angels may not have needed saving themselves, but they have always had a vested interest in our salvation. The apostle Peter once wrote that these are “things into which angels long to look” (1 Pet 1:12). It’s as though they were standing on tiptoe to get a sneak peek into what God was doing about our salvation. And now when that salvation is being declared by the saved, they give it a hearty “Amen!” Then by the second “Amen!” they are affirming the reliability of what they themselves have just expressed. When it comes to our salvation, all the blessing and glory and wisdom. . . that were put into it and that flow from it will be God’s forever and ever.

 

• Another difference between the two doxologies is that the first is addressed to “the Lamb who was slain” (5:12) and the second is “to our God” (7:12). Our salvation belongs equally to God and the Lamb. And now the two are ascribed the same glory. How well this illustrates the truth told by Jesus, “I and the Father are one” (John 10:30). Both are God and together they are one.

 

• “Wealth” in 5:12 is replaced by “thanksgiving” in 7:12. This difference is not difficult to understand. To ascribe power, wealth and might to “the Lamb that was slain” (5:12) is particularly appropriate, while the angels who had such a stake in our salvation will be thanking God for it forever and ever.

 

 

4. At the beginning of this section, I said that we were moving from the greater to the lesser, from the vast crowd to all the angels. That’s a big claim, that the redeemed in heaven are greater than the angels. But I think we can argue it from Scripture. The writer to the Hebrews asks this question about the angels, “Are they not all ministering spirits sent out to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation?” (Heb 1:14). And the implied answer is yes – they are ministering spirits, they are our spiritual servants.

 

In the great arena of heaven, we get almost front row seats. There are only 28 beings between us and the throne. What a privilege, what an honour, what glory! O, to be held by the everlasting arms of God, to be pastored by the Lamb, to be eternally warmed by the Spirit’s fire! Are you looking forward to heaven where we will be closer to God than even the angels?

 

1. Then as we listen in on the brief conversation between John and one of the 24 elders, we get even more glimpses and insights into heaven.

 

1. The elder begins by asking John a question, “Who are these, clothed in white robes, and from where have they come?” It’s a question in two parts. Both questions are about those “clothed in white robes.” He asks two very simple questions, “Who are they?” and “Where have they come from?” But John politely professes ignorance. He defers to the elder, “Sir, you know.”

 

2. So, the elder answers the second question first, “These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation” (v. 14). But what is the great tribulation? This question has caused great debate in evangelical circles over the last 200 years. Some say that it refers only to the terrible persecutions that will occur during the last period of human history. Others say it will be during the seven years before Christ returns. Of them some say that the whole church will endure these seven years of tribulation, while others say it will only be experienced by believing Jews. And on and on the discussion goes.

 

The simple fact of the matter is that the great tribulation is not just for seven years. It’s what happens to the church between the first and second comings of Christ. Remember those valleys in Revelation. None of them is free from tribulation. In that sense the great tribulation is now. And the millennium is now too. This is a time of great gospel advance, but it’s also a time of great affliction for the church.

 

Last century the gospel went forward with great strides, especially in places like Asia, Africa, and Latin America, but the church also suffered great persecution like never before. It’s been estimated that there were more martyrs for the faith in the twentieth century than in all the other centuries combined. Revelation has great visions of heaven, but between those mountain tops there are also deep and dark valleys of persecution and pain. Yet the gospel moves on.

 

3. So that’s where the great crowd has come from. They have come out of the great tribulation. But there’s still that first question, “Who are these people, clothed in white robes?” And the answer is as clear as a bell, “They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.” We are probably so familiar with these words that we miss the paradox. But think of what a paradox does, it makes you think. Let me give you a few examples:

• I once heard an older boy say, “Even when I was little, I was big.”
• Here’s another one: “She plays the part of a poor little rich girl.”
• The psychotherapist Sigmund Freud summed up his teaching in a paradox when he said, “The child is the father of the man.”

Paradoxes pack a punch because they bring two seemingly opposite ideas together. And that’s what happens here, “They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.” (v. 14). A lamb’s red blood is not usually thought of as a whitening agent. So, there must be something deeper happening here. You can’t take it literally.

In Revelation white is a symbol for either victory or purity. Back in verse 9 the white robes went with the palm branches and stood for victory. Here they stand for purity. The vast crowd’s sins have been washed away by the blood of Christ. Their consciences have been cleansed in the same way. So, they are pure – pure in their own conscience and pure in God’s sight.

4. Because they are pure, “They are before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple” (v. 15a). William Hendriksen makes this comment: “These redeemed saints in glory experience the sweetest, fullest, and most intimate fellowship with God through Christ” (More than Conquerors, 137-38). They serve him continually by praising and thanking him. It is the spiritual service of adoration and gratitude.

 

And they can do this because the Lamb has made them “a kingdom and priests to our God” (Rev 5:10). That is why they can serve God day and night in his temple. They are priests. But even more than that, they serve God in his temple, in his sanctuary, in the Holy of Holies. Now, in the OT who was the only person who could enter the Holy of Holies – and that just once a year? It was the high priest on the Day of Atonement. He could enter that sacred space only at a special time on that special day. But the vast multitude can serve God there day and night.

 

5. But now that sins have been atoned for through Christ, what is there for all these priests to do? You may remember that the Holy of Holies in the OT was in the shape of a cube. In the tabernacle in the wilderness, it measured 10 x 10 x 10 cubits. In Solomon’s temple it measured 20 x 20 x 20 cubits. (A cubit is about 50 centimetres or 20 inches). But in the book of Revelation is there anything in the shape of a cube? Yes, there is! In chapter 21 we see “the holy city Jerusalem come down out heaven from God” (v. 10). We are back again at Revelation’s Everest. Then John gives us its measurements. Its length, width, and height are all equal. Each measures 12,000 stadia. That’s the distance from Adelaide to Darwin, about 2,200 kilometres. I think I can imagine a city that wide and that long, but a city that high? That doesn’t make sense. But it does if you understand the biblical symbolism. The New Jerusalem will be one enormous cube, one giant Holy of Holies. The city has been enveloped by the sanctuary. So, all of life will be worship. Everything we do there – our work, our relationships, our sport, our entertainment – will be to the praise and glory of God. What a grand and stupendous thought!

 

6. Then the imagery goes back to the tabernacle in the wilderness, “and he who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence” (v. 15b). A more literal translation puts it this way, “He who sits on the throne shall spread His tabernacle over them” (NASB). This is the great heavenly tabernacle, of which the tabernacle of Moses was an earthly replica (Exod 25:40; Heb 8:5). But again the focus is on the Holy of Holies. In the tabernacle it was only a small space. It was about five metres long, wide, and high. But the heavenly tabernacle is large enough to house an innumerable multitude, not to mention the myriads of angels. The imagery is consistent throughout v. 15. Whether it’s the temple or the tabernacle, the focus is on the Holy of Holies where God lives with his people. There they find shelter and a final refuge from the great tribulation.

 

7. Safe in God’s intimate and sheltering presence, “they shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore; the sun shall not strike them, nor any scorching heat” (v. 17). The kind of afflictions that threatened the Israelites in the wilderness and that came with the great tribulation will be a thing of the past. Now they have reached the eternal Promised land. They are finally and fully home. Their every need will be satisfied whether it be for food or drink or safety. But there are deeper needs that will also be satisfied. Jesus spoke of hungering and thirsting for righteousness (Matt 5:6); and the Psalmist wrote, “As the deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God” (Psa 42:1-2). These deeper spiritual longings will be satisfied as well.

 

And how good that will be! Who of us does not struggle with spiritual dryness, apathy, and coldness of heart that so often plague our souls? We want to pray more faithfully, more earnestly, so we try harder. But even then, God may seem distant, remote, or perhaps simply irrelevant. We want to hang on to those moments that we once enjoyed with God. We want repeats of those spiritual ‘highs’ of the past. We want our prayers to be more natural, to flow more easily, and to feel more intimate. But instead, they seem sterile, lifeless, and formal. We want that “closer walk with God.” For a while we have it, but then it slips away again and it’s gone. But one day these kinds of spiritual struggles will be a distant memory, if it’s even a memory at all. All our spiritual longing will be satisfied. We will be living in the very presence of God – before the throne, in his sanctuary, in the heavenly Holy of Holies.

 

“How is this possible?” you ask. We are told in the last verse (v. 17).

 

8. “For the Lamb in the middle of the throne will be their shepherd” (v. 17a). Here’s another paradox, “The Lamb will be their Shepherd.” Lambs are not usually shepherds; of all the flock, they need to be shepherded the most. But, of course, this is no ordinary Lamb. This is the Lamb in the middle of the throne. This is the One who brings together all the shepherd imagery in both the Old Testament and the New. These are some of the best known and best loved verses in the Bible:

 

Psalm 23: “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside quiet waters.”

 

Psalm 100: “We are his people and the sheep of his pasture.”

 

Then in John 10, Jesus declares: “I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep” (v. 11). And then again, a few verses later: “I am the good shepherd; and I know my own and my own know me” (v. 14).

 

Because he knows us so well, our Shepherd and our God “will wipe away every tear from our eyes” (v. 17b). Have you ever stopped to think what that might mean, that he will wipe away every tear from our eyes? That means all the tears you shed on your journey through the wilderness and through the great tribulation. Every tear will be wiped away:

 

• Tears for that baby you lost through a miscarriage or a still-birth or a cot death.
• Tears brought on by that family member who abused you or by that ‘friend’ who betrayed you.
• Tears for the wife you lost to cancer.
• Tears for your teenager who died in a car accident.
• Tears for that wayward child who you can still visit and talk to, but only in prison.
• Tears for that close relative or dear friend who died without knowing the Lord.

For God’s people this life can be a valley of tears, but one day all those tears will be wiped away. And they will never return, not then, not ever, for all eternity.

Conclusion

When the author Jon Krakauer reached the top of Mount Everest, he should have been over the moon. He could have congratulated himself for reaching a goal he’d been dreaming about since childhood. He could have taken in the majestic scenery. He should have been on top of the world. But all he could think about was the long, dangerous descent that lay ahead. . .  and whether his oxygen would last the distance.

When we reach our summit, it won’t be an anti-climax. When we reach the New Jerusalem, let me assure you, it will not be a disappointment. It will be the beginning of a grand and glorious eternity that has more joys in store for us than we could possibly imagine.