1-2 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more.  And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.  3-4 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain any more, for the former things have passed away.”

5 And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” And he said to me,  “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end.  6-7 To the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment. The one who conquers will have this heritage, and I will be his God and he will be my son.  8 But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable; as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars - their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulphur, which is  the second death.” Revelation 21:1-8 English Standard Version

Christians have experienced persecution ever since Jesus sent his apostles into the world with the message of salvation from the coming wrath of God. In fact, becoming a Christian in this world doesn't look exciting on the outside! But a man who wrote to the first Jewish followers of Jesus told them what it really meant to become a Christian. He said; “You haven't come to a physical mountain like your ancestors did - you’ve come to Mount Zion, the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to a joyful gathering of countless thousands of angels. You've come to the assembly of God’s firstborn children, whose names are written in heaven. You've come to God himself, who is the judge over all things. You've come to the spirits of the righteous ones in heaven who've now been made perfect. And you've come to Jesus, the one who mediates the new covenant between God and people, to his sprinkled blood, which speaks of forgiveness.” (Hebrews 12:22-24) All of that is wonderful news – but today's reading showed there is something even better. There's a whole new world coming. (vs 1-2)

The sea in that verse may refer to the nations who so often rage like a stormy sea. And the 'new Jerusalem' is not so much a city, but rather the people who've been saved through the ages (as we read in Hebrews). They are the ones who eagerly desired God's salvation, stayed true to His word, and overcame Satan. They didn't give up because of trials, nor give in to temptations. They conquered in this world. (vs 6-7)

So what are the things that these conquerors will inherit? What is it that makes this new world that God brings about so desirable? (vs 3-4)

We see that God looks upon them as His own children and will live with them in an even closer way than He is present with us now. He also takes away everything that has been the cause of our sorrows and tears in this present world. And death also will have no place in the new heaven and earth. This is something to really hold on to as we journey through our present world.

But what about people who delighted in all the wrong things and served Satan all their days, even if they didn't realize it? And what about the people who through the ages persecuted those who loved God. What is their inheritance? (vs 8)

That's a frightful destiny. But did you notice that God told John to make sure he got everything down in writing because God has both the first and last word on every subject, and His words are totally reliable and true? (vs 5) The list in vs 8 mentions many things we obviously see as sins – but it started with the words 'cowardly' and 'faithless'. It takes courage and persevering faith to follow Jesus in the present world, but don't give up, there's a wonderful new world coming.