GRACE BAPTIST CHURCH

HEAVEN – WHO SHALL ENTER IN?
Salvation
Revelation 21:27

Don Fortner

The Church of God in this world is like the tabernacle in the wilderness.

1. Within it is lit up with the glory of God's presence. We are the temple of the living God. God dwells in our midst. God the Holy Spirit resides in the hearts of his people. And the One Person who always attends the assembly of the saints is the Son of God, our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. Whenever two or three gather in his name, he is present with them (Matt. 18:20). What does it mean to gather together in Christ's name?

• To Gather Trusting His Name – His Blood and Righteousness.


• To Gather For The Worship of His Name.


• To Gather For The Glory Of His Name.


• To Gather To Make His Name Known.

2. Without God's Church is Guided and Protected by the Fiery and Cloudy Pillar of God's Eternal Providence. As God led Israel in the wilderness, fed them, protected them, and defended them under the symbol of the fiery and cloudy pillar, so he leds, feeds, protects, and defends his Church today.

3. But outwardly, to all outward appearance, the Church of God in this world is a common, unattractive, despised thing. Insofar as the nations were concerned the tabernacle was nothing but a crude tent. God was there, but they knew it not. The altar was there, but they had no use for it. The sacrifice of atonement was there, but they despised it. The mercy-seat was there, but they could not use it. All they could see was a poor, homeless people, who had no place to worship but a crude tent, and a people who claimed to be the only true worshippers of God in the world.

• The Faithful Jews would not worship at any other altar.


• They Refused to acknowledge as brethren any who would not worship their God.


• They acknowledged only one way of salvation – Blood!


• For these things, they were always despised, persecuted, and mocked by the world around them.

The tabernacle in the wilderness was, in these ways, a symbol and picture of God's Church in this world. God dwells in his Church. Christ Jesus guides and protects his Church. But the world, and all the religions of the world, mock and despise the Church of God. But it will not always be so.

There is a day coming when the tables will be turned. In the last day the Lord God will reveal his glory in his Church and glorify his Church before all the universe (John 17: 22-23; Eph. 2:7). In the chapter we have read (Rev. 21:10-27) John shows us the glorified Church of God in the last day. (Read Eph. 5:25-27).

• Christ loved his Church.


• Christ died to redeem his Church.


• Christ sanctifies his Church.


• Christ will perfect and glorify his Church.

And in the last day, The Lord Jesus will present his Church, in all the resurrection glory he puts upon her, to the Father's throne. And all the world shall marvel at his glory and grace revealed in his Church. Look at John's description of her glory. We shall be presented before the throne of God, before the ordering angels, before satan, and before the eyes of the damned as…

1. A Virgin Bride (v. 9).
2. The City of God (vv. 10-11).
3. A Walled Fortress (v. 12).
4. A Great, Massive City (vv. 12-17).
5. A Perfect, Complete City (v. 16).
6. An Indescribably Wealthy People (vv. 18-21).
7. A Perfectly Happy, Satisfied People (vv. 22-23).
8. A Universally Honored, Glorious Church (vv. 22-23).

The Church of God shall be the crowning glory of the new creation in eternity. "As it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him." (I Cor. 2:9). No tongue can tell, because no mind can conceive the glory that awaits the Church of God in heaven's eternal bliss. Write my name among these blessed ones. My soul thirsts for the living God and the glory that awaits his Church in heaven. To dwell in the presence of Christ, to be where he is, to be like he is, to behold his glory, this is the very heaven of heaven! But some will never enter into the glory and bliss of heaven. Read verse 27 – "And there shall in no wise enter into it anything that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb's book of life."

Heaven is an eternal estate of perfect holiness into which nothing but perfect holiness can enter.

The title of my message tonight is – Heaven: Who Will Enter In? I want to show you three things from this twenty-seventh verse.

1. A Very Solemn Fact.
2. A Plain, Reasonable Deduction.
3. A Blessed Word of Hope.

I. Here is A Very Solemn Fact – "There shall in no wise enter into it anything that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a like." Heaven will never be polluted by sin. God Almighty is holy, righteous, just, and perfect. That which dwells with him forever must be holy, righteous, just, and perfect. In order for anything, or anyone, to enter heaven it must be perfect. Any lack of absolute, total perfection will forever exclude us from the presence of God. Perfect holiness cannot tolerate anything less than perfect holiness.

• When sin defiled Eden, Eden was forever destroyed.


• God's law requires a perfect obedience from man and threatens any lack of perfection with death.


• The law required a perfect sacrifice for atonement.


• Even God's own dear Son, when he was defiled with sin, was forsaken by God and slain.

God requires perfection. Heaven is a world of perfection. Defilement, abomination, and deceit shall never enter into it. Sin shall never darken the kingdom of light. Sin shall never defile the city Beautiful.

A. It Is Only Right That All Evil Be Excluded From Heaven.

It is not at all a matter of bigotry or harshness to declare that heaven shall never be defiled by sin. It is only a matter of righteousness and justice, to which every rational man must give assent.

1. Everything in heaven, everyone in heaven, and everyone going to heaven is in full agreement with this decree – "There shall in no wise enter into it anything that defileth."

We have seen what sin has done to the world of the angels, the physical world, and our fallen race. We would not see heaven ruined by it.

2. The essence of heaven's bliss is the total absence of sin in that blessed estate.

God's saints are citizens of a land where there is no sin. We are going to an eternal world, where sin shall never be found. One of heaven's greatest attractions and most cherished glories is total freedom from sin.

A. There we shall enjoy perfect communion with Christ.
B. There we shall have perfect conformity to Christ.
C. There we shall exercise perfect consecration to Christ.

Should sin be permitted to enter, all would be ruined! Sin would forever disrupt the peace of heaven, destroy the joy of heaven, and defile the beauty of heaven.

B. This Exclusion of Sin From Heaven Is The Exclusion Of All Who Are Sinners.

"There shall in no wise enter into it anything that defileth." No person who defiles, no fallen spirit, no sinful man can enter the gates of the New Jerusalem. No tendency to sin, no thought of sin, no will to sin, no desire for sin can go to heaven.

1. Were it possible for a sinner to go to heaven, he could never enter into the heavenly state – The essence of heaven is a condition, not a place. It is a condition of worship, a condition of holiness, a condition of delight in God – If a sinner could get to the place of heaven, he still could not be in the condition of heaven. He would be out of his element. Heaven would be misery for you, if you should enter it as you now are.

2. Our own hearts give full agreement with this exclusion. "There shall in no wise enter into it anything that defileth."

If I might enter into heaven as I am at this moment with my sinful heart and nature, it would be a horrible crime for me to do so, for my presence there would defile the city of God.

Illus: A Man With A Deadly Disease.

C. This Exclusion Of Sin From Heaven Is The Absolute Exclusion Of All Who Defile, Make Abomination, Or Make A Lie.

John is telling us that sinners of every kind must be forever excluded from the Paradise of God.

1. "There shall in no wise enter into it anything that defileth."

No evil thoughts, words, or deeds shall enter heaven. These who enter the city of God must be free of these things. If you are defiled, in anyway, by sin, you cannot enter heaven. No unclean thing shall enter the Temple of God (Isa. 52:1).

2. "There shall in no wise enter into it anything that worketh abomination."

Abomination, in the scriptures, usually refers to idolatry, the making of idols, the worship of idols, and the service of idols – (I Kings 11:4-8).

The most abominable thing in this world, in the sight of God is false religion, idolatry! If your religion is false, if you worship strange gods, you cannot go to heaven. What is a strange god?

• A god who wants to save, but lacks the power.


• A god who sends people he loves to hell.


• A god whose will is frustrated, whose purpose is defeated, whose power is limited.

3. "There shall in no wise enter into it anything that maketh a lie."

All false prophets and false teachers, inventors and perpetrators of religious lies shall be damned (I Tim. 4:1-2; II Thess. 2:11-12).

• Every Preacher of Free-will Salvation.


• Every Preacher of Works Religion.


• Every Preacher of Conditional Grace.

Hear this very solemn warning. Realize its meaning. And lay it to heart. "There shall in no wise enter into it anything that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie."

II. Secondly, in the light of these things, I set before you A Plain, Obvious, And Reasonable Deduction.

The deduction is just this – None of us can, by any possibility, enter heaven in our present condition.

A. You Who Are Without Christ Are Without Hope – (Eph. 2:11-13).

You cannot go to heaven as you are. Should you die tonight, there would be no hope of you being saved.

1. There is no promise of mercy for you.
2. There is no covenant of grace for you.
3. There is no blood atonement for you.
4. There is no pardon for you.
5. There is no hope of life for you.

All these things are in Christ, but you are without Christ. And being without Christ you are without hope.

B. Our Text Most Certainly Slays Forever All Hope Of Self-Salvation – (Jer. 13:9).

• Can a sinful man wash away his own sins?


• Can a dead man give himself life?


• Can a guilty man make righteousness for himself?


• If any of us are saved, we must be saved by grace (Eph. 2:8).

C. Even Those Of Us Who Are Saved By The Grace Of God Must Undergo A Great Change Before We Can Enter Into Heaven.

Many are of the opinion that God's saints in this world get riper and riper for heaven in progressive holiness and sanctification, until at last they are ready for heaven. But it is not so.

Illus: Steve Holiday – "Yes, I am getting more holy."

• We must drop this robe of flesh in death.


• We must be transformed in the resurrection.

III. Yet, there is in our text A Blessed Word of Hope.

I know that nothing evil shall enter heaven, nothing and no one, who defiles, works abomination, or makes a lie shall enter heaven. No one has the right to enter by nature. And no one can ever earn the right to enter. But there is hope. God has written a book of election, and all whose names are written in that book shall enter in. No one shall enter into heaven "but they which are written in the Lamb's book of life."

I want to know one thing: Is my name written in that book? If it is, all is well. If it is not, I must be forever damned. Is my name written there? I know this, if my name is written there –

• It was written here in eternity.


• It was written here because of a covenant.


• It was written there permanently.

• A Book of Election.


• A Record of Redemption.


• A Promise of Life.

Yes, my name is written in that blessed book. I know it is because I trust the Lord Jesus Christ, And trusting Christ I have life. And by his grace, I have all that God requires for entrance into heaven - (Col. 1:12 - 2:9-10).

• Imputed Righteousness.


• Imparted Righteousness.

C. In Christ, I am Assured Of A Glorious Change.

• Death (II Cor. 5:19).


• Resurrection (I Cor. 15:51-58).

Will you, or will you not, enter into heaven at last? Will you, or will you not, enter in by Christ tonight? He alone can –

1. Give you live.
2. Pardon.
3. Righteousness.

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