Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from
God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from
heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with
them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their
God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more
death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things
have passed away.” Then He who sat on the throne said, “Behold, I make all things
new.”
…. The twelve gates were twelve pearls: each individual gate was of one pearl. And
the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass. But I saw no temple in it,
for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. The city had no need of the
sun or of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it. The Lamb is its
light. And the nations of those who are saved shall walk in its light, and the kings of
the earth bring their glory and honor into it. Its gates shall not be shut at all by day
(there shall be no night there). And they shall bring the glory and the honor of the
nations into it. But there shall by no means enter it anything that defiles, or causes
an abomination or a lie, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.
(Revelation 1:2-5, 21-27)
With this history of Jerusalem in mind we can see the contrast between
the old Jerusalem and the new. Jerusalem was always meant to be the dwelling
place of peace – where God could be with His people. This new Jerusalem is
the fulfillment of that. This is a pure Jerusalem – one that cannot be corrupted
or defiled. It is open to people of all nations and yet safe from all enemies.
This is a Jerusalem that will never be destroyed. It is a holy city – not holy
because it has a temple in it where ritual sacrifices are performed in the right
way, but holy because God is truly present there, protecting and comforting
His people, and illuminating the whole city. It is a beautiful vision.
The teachings of the New Church say that Jerusalem in the Bible means
“the church” and the new Jerusalem means the New Church. (True Christianity
107, 782; Apocalypse Revealed 880) If we aren’t careful we can think: “The New
Jerusalem is the New Church. We are the New Church. The New Jerusalem
is perfect and the best. Therefore we are perfect and the best. Rah, rah New
Church Day!”
But let’s slow down and think it through carefully. What is a church? When
are we part of the New Church?
The Greek word and the Latin word is ecclesia. It doesn’t have anything to
do with a building or really even a formal organization. It means an assembly
of people, a gathered group – literally those called out. So the church means
the group of people called out by the Lord to follow Him.
When we look at the history of Jerusalem we are looking at the history of
those who have been called out by the Lord to follow Him. The