“And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb. In the middle of its street, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life, which bore twelve fruits, each tree yielding its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.” Revelation 22:1-2
Today’s meditation is part two in our discussion of the importance of worship. Last time in Exodus 30:20 we saw how seriously God takes worship, the privilege of coming into His presence, the danger of flippant or improper worship, and the length to which Jesus went to make our worship of God fully accessible. In today’s meditation on Revelation 22:1-2 we see the centrality of worship for the spread of the Kingdom of Heaven and the transformation of the world.
These verses in Revelation harken back to the Garden of Eden. The Garden of Eden was at a high point in the larger land of Eden which was also elevated above the rest of the earth. A river flowed through the Garden, through Eden, and split into four rivers that flowed into the outlying lands. The Garden was where man came into the presence of God. It was the place of worship. Man sinned and was cast out, barred from the presence of God by cherubim. Then Sin spread like a river to the ends of the earth.
The restoration of man back into the presence of God, the path to draw near to the Lord, is seen in the very structure of the Tabernacle and later the Temple. The presence of God seated on His throne is the Holy of Holies, behind the veil guarded by embroidered cherubim, like a small Garden of Eden. As we saw last week, in the Old Covenant man can once again draw near to God but cautiously because the time of the restoration of all things had not yet come. It wasn’t until the Messiah arrived in the fullness of time, that the restoration could begin. Because of the ministry of Jesus Christ, in the New Covenant man can now boldly come into the presence of God. The veil of separation being torn down, man can worship once again fully in the presence of God.
The implication of this was seen by the prophet Ezekiel. In Ezekiel 47 he was given a vision of the New Covenant Temple that the Messiah will build when the time of the end has come. In his vision a river flows out from the Temple, getting deeper and deeper the further it goes out into all the world. There are trees on either side of the river and everywhere it goes it brings life and healing. But the river begins in the place of worship.
This is the picture of Revelation 22:1-2. The river of life comes out from the New Jerusalem, which is the church (Galatians 4:26), and also the New Covenant Temple (I Corinthians, Ephesians 2:21, I Peter 2:5). Like the river Ezekiel’s vision this river flows through all the earth healing the nations, reversing the curse. This is a vision of the ministry of the church. The ministry of the church flows like a river, spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ, extending His kingdom to all nations, transforming the world, and it begins at God’s throne in His presence. It begins with worship. May God grant us a deeper appreciation for the importance and power of worship! Truly, If we want to change our culture and world it has to start with worship.
His mercy endures forever!
Pastor Flynn