Whenever I read the last chapters of Revelation, I have mixed emotions. I feel somber about what will happen at the end of time. I also feel a sense of anticipation of what is coming as I read about the New Jerusalem and its unimagined beauty.

At the end of time, the Lord will make everything new, “He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever” (Revelation 21:4). The end will become a new beginning for those who believe.

As the Lord brings a closure of time as we know it, He will utter these words, “It is finished” (vs.6). A finality will come that none of us can change or avoid. If in this life, we have chosen to follow the Lord and drink from the streams of His truth, we will receive a reward. We will live forever with Him and other believers in His presence.  All our thirsts will be finally satisfied in His victory,  “All who are victorious will inherit all these blessings, and I will be their God, and they will be my children. (vs.7). 

Verse 8 reveals a sobering reality, “But cowards, unbelievers, the corrupt, murderers, the immoral, those who practice witchcraft, idol worshipers, and all liars—their fate is in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.”  Those words shake me to the core because all will not be saved. Some will perish. That reality motivates me today to pursue the Lord and His truth more passionately. It reinforces my understanding of a coming spiritual reality that cannot be ignored or dismissed even when some slick and manicured presentation of Scripture is taught telling us that all will be saved and none will perish. The choices we make in this life matter because they have consequences.

Enjoying the future God has planned for us has a condition. Our names must be written in the Book of Life. That registry will allow us to stand in God’s presence where “Nothing evil will be allowed to enter, nor anyone who practices shameful idolatry and dishonesty—but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life” (vs. 27). To have our names written in the Book of Life requires that we have chosen to follow the Lord in this life.

From time to time we need a sobering injection of stark truth regarding the end of time and its consequences. It is not popular to mention these realities today in some parts of the Church. Not considering the implications of that coming reality and making adjustments to how we live. will dull our faith and how we see people. It will leave people believing in illusions, not the truth, about what is coming.