Scripture Reading: Rev. 21:10-11, 23-24; 22:1-2, 5; Eph. 1:10, 22-23
Ⅰ
In Revelation 21 and 22 we see that we, the sons of God, may express Christ as the lamp, the light-bearer, in the New Jerusalem, with the glory of God as the light within Him, by which the nations will walk:
A
The New Jerusalem has God's glory as the uncreated light and the Lamb as the lamp to shine forth the divine brightness through the entire city—21:11, 23; 22:5b:
１
We are the expression of Christ, who has God in Him as the light, and this light, which is God Himself shining in Christ throughout the New Jerusalem, saturates us; we will be immersed in God Himself as the light, and we will be the expression of Christ with God as the light—21:11; 1 John 1:5; Eph. 5:8.
２
God's purpose is altogether a matter of our being built together as a corporate entity to become the holy city; God as light shines from within the Lamb as the lamp through the city as the diffuser of the divine light to express Himself as glory—1:11; 3:11; Rev. 21:10-11, 23.
３
In the New Jerusalem there are the light, the lamp, and the diffuser—vv. 11, 23:
ａ
The light is in the lamp, and the lamp is in the diffuser—John 14:20.
ｂ
The light is God the Father, the lamp is God the Son, and the diffuser is the Body of Christ, the New Jerusalem, to shine the divine light over the nations, the peoples who live around the New Jerusalem—Rev. 21:24.
ｃ
God as the divine light shines within and through the redeeming Christ, and this shining enlightens the city so that the entire city becomes a light-bearer; this bearing of God's light becomes an expression, and this expression is God's goal—vv. 10-11.
ｄ
Eventually, the entire New Jerusalem will be the diffuser of the divine light, diffusing the divine light over the nations outside the city—v. 24.
４
In the future the unlimited glory of God will shine forth as light with Christ as the lamp in the New Jerusalem, signifying that Christ will be the center of the New Jerusalem in the new heaven and the new earth for all eternity—vv. 2, 11, 23.
５
The nations will walk by the light of the shining from the New Jerusalem; this indicates that the entire eternal kingdom of God will be under the shining of God's glory in the Redeemer through the redeemed as the diffuser—vv. 2-4, 23-24; 11:15.
B
In the new heaven and new earth with the New Jerusalem as the center, all things will be headed up in Christ; this will be the complete fulfillment of Ephesians 1:10:
１
At the top of the New Jerusalem, Christ is the Head with God in Him as the content—Rev. 22:1-2:
ａ
From Him flows the river of water of life with the tree of life to supply all His sons, and the redeemed ones as the sons of God are filled with life—21:7.
ｂ
The whole city shines out this life as light, and the nations, representing the whole universe, walk in the light of this city—v. 24.
ｃ
Because Christ is at the top of the city to be the Head, all things are headed up in Him through the Body, the church, which consummates in the New Jerusalem— Eph. 1:10, 22-23; Rev. 21:2.
ｄ
All things will be headed up in Christ through the church—Eph. 1:10, 22-23:
⑴
This is the consummation of God's eternal purpose—v. 11; 3:11.
⑵
This heading up of all things will be an eternal expression of the Triune God.
ｅ
The light in the New Jerusalem will control, rule, guide, and keep everything in order—Rev. 21:11, 23; 22:5.
２
The light that is diffused through the New Jerusalem shines on all things in order that all things may be headed up in the light; in this way all things are headed up—Eph. 5:8-9, 13-14; 1:10.
３
All things will be headed up through the church and for the church—vv. 22-23:
ａ
God needs a group of people who live in His life and allow His life to shine forth from within them in order to bring all things into the light of life to be headed up in Christ—1 John 5:11-12; John 1:4; 8:12; Eph. 1:10.
ｂ
When the life of the Head passes through the church, His Body, and reaches all things, all things become headed up in Christ—John 1:4; 8:12; Eph. 1:10.
４
God has a process to carry out; He has much work to do in the church—2:10:
ａ
He needs to work Himself in Christ into us as life so that we may be full of light and be controlled by this light; then we will have the oneness, the harmony, and this will be the real building up—3:16-17a; 5:8-9; 4:13, 16.
ｂ
Under the shining of the divine light through us, all creation will be freed from the slavery of corruption and liberated from vanity and brought into the freedom of the glory of the sons of God—Rom. 8:18-21:
⑴
The glory of the sons of God is the shining of the New Jerusalem; this shining of the New Jerusalem is the manifestation, the glory, of the sons of God—Rev. 21:10-11.
⑵
All the nations will be brought under this shining, and they will walk in this light and be controlled by this light—Isa. 4:2.
⑶
All things will be enlightened by the light that shines out through the oneness of the church, all will know Jehovah in the light of the oneness of the church, and all will be brought under the Head to arrive at the oneness— 11:9; John 17:21-22; Eph. 4:13.
ｃ
All this depends on the work of God within us and through us—3:16-17a:
⑴
God is working Himself into us as life; therefore, we need to be dealt with, and we need to be permeated and saturated with God—1 John 5:11-12, 20.
⑵
Every one of us in the church is responsible for allowing the Lord to work in him, shine in him, and be diffused through him; only when Christ is able to diffuse Himself out through us will we be mature—Eph. 3:16-17a; 4:13; 5:8.
Ⅱ
Revelation 21:23 is a clear picture of the centrality and universality of Christ:
A
God shines in and through Christ, and Christ shines in and through the New Jerusalem— vv. 10-11.
B
Christ as the light-bearer will be the centrality and universality in the coming eternity, when He will be the center, the circumference, and everything in the New Jerusalem—v. 23.