1. Revelation 22 Amen, come, Lord Jesus!

2. v1 the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2down the middle of the great street of the city.  Image which reflects earlier OT images  Joel 3 v18 18"In that day…(the day of the Lord) …all the ravines of Judah will run with water. A fountain will flow out of the LORD's house and will water the valley of acacias.  Ez 47v1-7 Vision of a river flowing from the altar of the temple - making the Dead Sea live and the trees on each bank bearing fruit each month Their fruit will serve for food and their leaves for healing."  Zech 14v8 8On that day living water will flow out from Jerusalem

3.  Major image reflected is of Eden - Gen 1 & 2  In the OT the river of life flows through the OT saints nourishing their spiritual life  Ps 1v1-3 1Blessed is the man ….(whose) …. delight is in the law of the LORD, 3He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers  Jer 17 7 "But blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in him. 8He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream.  Ps 46 4There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwells.

4.  The river in OT not simply a physical river, but a picture of spiritual sustanance associated with faith in God  Jesus develops this idea in NT  Jn 4v13 to woman at the well 13Jesus answered, "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, 14but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life."  Jn 7v 37On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. 38Whoever believes in me, asC the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him." 39By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive.

5.  Throughout OT and NT this river is symbolic of the Holy Spirit bringing life to God’s people  In Rev 22v1 the river flows from the throne of God and the Lamb - the Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son  The Spirit is the outpouring of the Son’s power which creates and sustains this new creation Col 1v17 all things were created by him and for him. 17He is before all things, and in him all things hold together  New Jerusalem is more than Eden restored, a garden city his servants will serve him…

6.  This revelation is trustworthy & true –and there is a blessing in keeping the prophecy of this book. This blessing is that the knowledge of God in Christ is given to those who keep its words.  Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this scroll, because the time is near

7.  Jesus again speaks about the destiny of humanity  11Let him who does wrong continue to do wrong; let him who is vile continue to be vile; let him who does right continue to do right; and let him who is holy continue to be holy."  When Jesus returns each person’s true character will be displayed - no further opportunity for repentance -  Corollary - no fear of losing salvation for believers  12"Behold, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done. 13I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.  Jesus is the God who encompasses history - and he comes to reward each for what they have done with Christ & what they have allowed Christ to do through them

8.  14"Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city.  Clothes washed white in the blood of the Lamb (Rev 7v14 )  Believers cleansed not in own righteousness but by faith in Jesus’ sacrificial death  We as saints (fallen sons of the 1 st Adam) have access to the tree of life because of the shed blood of the 2 nd Adam hung on Calvary’s tree.  Tree of life is symbolic of the eternal life found in Christ c.f Gen 3v22  15Outside are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.  This list not exhaustive // 21v8 - unbelieving sinners. C.f Dt 23 v18 Phil 3 v2.

9.  Jesus says 16 " I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star."  Revelation of who Jesus really is -  Jesus is `great David’s greater son’ - his offspring.  Jesus is the Root of David - Isreal’s everlasting father - Before Abraham was I am c.f Mt 22v41 Is 9v6 Jn 8v58 Col 1v17  The bright Morning Star. Num 24v17 Balaam’s prophecy  17"I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near. A star will come out of Jacob; a scepter will rise out of Israel.  At the second coming of Jesus the new era will dawn, the age of eternity.

10.  The Holy Spirit, and the Church taught by the indwelling Spirit, pray  17The Spirit and the bride say, "Come!"  And then there is a further invitation  "Come!" Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life.  There is great blessing here, the satisfaction of spiritual thirst.  We often seek to satisfy our spiritual thirst in other ways -  Jer 2 13"My people have committed two sins: They have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns,broken cisterns that cannot hold water.  Be filled with the Spirit.

11.  Warning not to add to or detract from the words of this book (& all scripture )  Jesus reiterates "Yes, I am coming soon."  John leads the Church in response Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.  21The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God's people. Amen.