Thanksgiving In Heaven

“THANKSGIVING IN HEAVEN” Revelation 7:9-12

FBCF – 11/10/24

Jon Daniels

INTRO – Welcome those watching today – CSpire, Youtube, Facebook – Let us know you’re here & if we can pray w/ you about anything today – Go to website for more info.

One week closer to T’giving – Last week: “Thankful for our Victory” – over doubt, demons, & death. Continue this week – “T’giving in Heaven.” Not talking about turkey & dressing & cranberry sauce being served in heaven. But going to look at the deep, passionate, heartfelt gratitude that we have in our hearts as we ponder on the majesty & glory of heaven today.

Thankful for so many things in the Christian life – Bible, Church, fellowship & support/encouragement of brothers & sisters in Christ (got a text Thu from Selby Oliver, new church member, asking how he could pray for me. Wanted to beat me to the punch before my Friday “PrayDay”), beauty of corporate worship, list goes on & on.

But probably at top of most of our lists would be the promise of heaven & the gift of eternal life freely given to those of us who know Jesus Christ as our Savior & Lord. So many wonderful promises in Scripture about heaven & eternal life:

- John 3:16

- John 14:1-2

- Romans 6:23 – “For the wages of sin is death…”

- 2 Corinthians 5:1 – “For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands.”

- Philippians 3:20 – “But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ.”

- Hebrews 11:10 – “For [Abraham] was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.”

- Hebrews 13:14 – “For here we do not have an enduring city, but we are looking for the city that is to come.”

- 2 Peter 3:13 – “But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells.”

- Revelation 21:1-2 – “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. 2 And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.”

All of these promises & so many more are given only to those who truly know Jesus personally & passionately – those whose relationship w/ Him has moved from an intellectual knowledge of Him to an intimate walk w/ Him, which means you need to come to Jesus TODAY if you’ve never truly done that! NOW is the time! TODAY is the day of salvation! Be saved before it’s too late!

EXPLANATION – Revelation 7:9-12

Revelation written by Apostle John on island of Patmos where he had been exiled by Roman emperor Domitian. Sent there as punishment for his opposition to the worship of the emperor & for his preaching of the Gospel. But using Genesis 50:20, “[Domitian] meant it for evil, but God meant it for good,” b/c it was during this time of exile that God inspired John to write the book of the Revelation. John begins w/ letters from Jesus Himself to 7 different, actual churches, followed by a long series of judgments on the wicked, culminating in the eventual, inevitable, & eternal condemnation of Satan himself by Jesus Christ, “the King of kings & Lord of lords.” Revelation 20:10 – “Then the devil, who had deceived them, was thrown into the fiery lake of burning sulfur, joining the beast and the false prophet. There they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.” (NLT) To put it succinctly & triumphantly: WE WIN B/C JESUS WINS! And throughout this book, heaven is mentioned at least 55 times. Pretty important subject!

APPLICATION – Our gratitude for our future in heaven should motivate us to worship & live for Jesus now.

THE SPACIOUSNESS OF HEAVEN – v. 9 – How big is heaven? It’s big enough for every person who gives their life to Jesus. Look at this verse:

IT’S A BIG CROWD: “a great multitude that no one could number” – What’s the biggest crowd you’ve ever been in?

- Maybe football game at Kyle Field TX A & M (102,733) or Tiger Stadium LSU (102,321) or Neyland Stadium TN (101,915) or Bryant-Denny AL (101,821)

- PK “Stand in the Gap” – Oct 4, 1997 – 600K-1.4 million men

Those stadiums have a seating capacity that can be numbered. That PK rally was numbered w/ attendance estimates from US Park Service & others. Yet none of those come anywhere close to the great multitude that will be gathered before the throne of God in heaven one day. No human can number all those who will be in heaven, but there’s plenty of room for them all.