A special preview excerpt from Journey To New Jerusalem by Brian Williams follows the Scriptures below.
Revelation 21:1-5
1. And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.
2. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
3. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.
4. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.
5. And He that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And He said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.
Journey To New Jerusalem (Chapter 1)
When the New Heaven and the New Earth had merged, the moment had been so enchanting that one could easily comprehend how the redeemed saints could, and would, marvel over the splendor and majesty of it all for all of eternity. To actually witness the New Jerusalem descending from God to the resurrected and redeemed earth had been so enthralling, beyond all of their greatest imaginations, that the first several moments were filled with absolute silence. Then, the entire universe was filled with a great voice saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God…And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain…for the former things are passed away!”
If it weren’t for the new resurrection bodies of the redeemed, the loud cheers that followed would’ve undoubtedly been deafening to the ear. Angels and redeemed children of God offered a tidal wave of praise to the Lord.
“Hallelujah!”
“Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord, Almighty!”
“All glory, praises, and honor belong to King Jesus!”
The redeemed children of God had never anticipated that it would be so glorious. Had this new existence not been so intense, it would’ve felt like a dream. But this was no dream, and there was no need to pinch oneself, because the pulsating presence of God was so overwhelming and sensational that there was no doubt that this place was ultimate reality. All of the five senses were amplified to the glory of God.
Beyond compare, the New Earth was infinitely more glorious than its predecessor, the Old Earth. Mountain peaks extended beyond what was formerly considered the stratosphere. Waterfalls glistened like flowing torrents of diamonds. Colors were so numerous here, and so vivid, that they appeared multidimensional in composition.
It was all so breathtaking: the streets of gold; the precious jasper stone; the sapphire, emeralds, topaz, and gemstones too numerous to count. Then there were the many mansions, just as Jesus had promised, covering the majestic landscape as far as the eye could see.
“Behold, I make all things new!”
True to his Word, God had certainly delivered, and now his faithful children could live as He had originally intended in the very beginning. His will was now being done on Earth as it had previously been done in Heaven.
“Is this my mansion, Lord?” Nearly all of God’s children asked the same question when they learned which of the many mansions belonged to them.
“Yes, my child.” He answered each inquiry individually, and as His children settled into their eternal abodes, they praised the Lord heartily and fellowshipped with loved ones, angels, and new friends and family alike, with an inexpressible joy.
It was during one of the many assemblages of praise, worship, and reunion, in that glorious dawn of eternity, that an angel by the name of Adah made an important announcement to a large group gathered near a crystal-clear lake in the middle of one of many picturesque gardens.
“My name is Adah,” the angel said. His voice was friendly, yet authoritative. His countenance was bright and dazzling. “You have read in God’s Word about the city of New Jerusalem, and that God and the Lamb are its temple…And that the nations will walk in the light of New Jerusalem, and that the nations will bring their glory and honor into the city where the throne of God is…There are many nations here in Heaven…This region we are in now is called Praisenton, which is a part of the nation of Graceton…At the appointed time, the citizens of Praisenton will make a journey to New Jerusalem, the first of many journey’s we will make together, to pay tribute, and to bring honor and glory to the King, Jesus!”
“He is worthy!”
“Hallelujah!”
“Yeeessss!”
“Our most gracious God has provided us the finest, the most outstanding existence one could ever imagine,” Adah said, raising both arms and reveling at the wondrous environment. “But the city of New Jerusalem…”
Adah paused and looked many of those gathered around him in the eye before continuing.
“God’s throne is there,” he said with a rising pitch full of enthusiasm. “And all this magnificence you see around us is because of the presence and power of our glorious God whose glory is so fantastic and mighty that it illuminates the entire cosmos from the very throne of the Lamb in New Jerusalem!”
Thunderous praise erupted from the crowd.
“You saw the holy city descending from God, just as the apostle John prophecied that it would,” Adah said.
“Yes,” many of them agreed, wide-eyed with joy.
“But until the appointed time arrives for us to journey there, we have work to do,” Adah announced gleefully. He surveyed the crowd before continuing, then he said, “Will Barry Bradley please come forth?”
The summons caught Barry by surprise, but without delay, and with eager anticipation, he stepped forward. On the Old Earth, Barry had been confined to a wheelchair at the age of nine when a drunk driver ran a red light and blind-sided the car his mother drove, killing his mom in the process, which not only left Barry motherless, but left himself a paraplegic. Barry spent twenty-two years in a wheelchair, though he never tasted death, because he was still alive when the Lord returned for his faithful bride, the church.
Adah greeted Barry with a warm embrace and said, “Barry, you have been chosen to be Governor of Praisenton, and I am delighted to be your servant.”
The joy that rushed through Barry rendered him speechless, though his inner mind roared, Thank you, Heavenly Father!
“Glory to God,” Adah whispered, embracing Barry once more before turning to face the crowd again.
“Will Mary Samarite please come forth?” Adah said, smiling as Mary bolted through the crowd like she half-expected her name to be called.
On the Old Earth, Mary lived in the first century, and died as a martyr for her faith in Jesus. In the face of ironclad persecution, she’d refused to worship the Roman emperor as a god, and instead chose execution. Her faith remained diligent even when she was thrown to a pack of starved lions in that Roman coliseum crammed to capacity with bloodthirsty onlookers.
“Mary, you have been chosen to be Lieutenant Governor of Praisenton,” Adah told her. Mary jumped for joy, and Adah jumped with her. Then they embraced like long lost friends while praising the Lord.
“Will Nick Pryor please come forth?” Adah smiled, returning his attention back to the crowd.
Nick was beaming when he came forth. On the Old Earth, he had been a slave in the heart of dixie, USA, during the middle of the eighteenth century. He was lynched on his twenty-seventh birthday for teaching fellow slaves how to read the Bible despite repeated threats and warnings from his violent aggressors. “I ought to obey God rather than men,” he often told his tormentors on the plantation.
“Nick Pryor,” Adah nodded, speaking sincerely as he greeted Nick with a firm handshake before seizing him in a tight bear hug. “The Lord has chosen you to be Chief Community Organizer over the three districts in this region, Sir.”
Nick’s facial expression was one of tremendous elation.
“Yes!” he blurted out zealously. “Thank you, Jesus!”
“You’ll have one district organizer reporting to you from each district,” Adah explained, still gripping Nick’s hand. “Let’s meet your staff…Will Josh Ross, Beth Chestnut, and Savannah Woods please come forth?”
Surprised and elated beyond words, Josh, Beth, and Savannah shot through the crowd in no time flat.
“God is good,” Adah told each of them between hugs.
“All the time,” Josh agreed.
“Indeed, he is!” Beth shouted.
“He is excellent!” Savannah extended both arms toward the sky.
The crowd cheered vigorously until Adah motioned to get their attention.
“To the rest of you,” Adah said, overjoyed as he faced the crowd. “The job you’ve always wanted awaits you…”
“Yeeeesssss!”
“Amen!”
When it was all said and done, not a single individual in any of the many province’s of Heaven was in the least bit dissatisfied with their new job; not even marginally. For the main objective of every job was to glorify God to the fullest, something that would grow more rewarding with each moment of eternity.
“Amen!”
Copyright © 2008, Journey To New Jerusalem, All Rights Reserved
Avaliable now by Brian Williams (Pen Name: First Born), Delivered From Evil: A Powerful Novel About 12 Inner City Disciples (ISBN: 1-4120-8048-7). To read an excerpt from Delivered From Evil, click this link: Amazon.com . Once redirected to the Amazon website, click on the book cover to read the excerpt.
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