Series: The Radical Call of Jesus
Message: Radical Hope
Preacher: Japhet De Oliveira
Daily Walk: Japhet De Oliveira

Refresh: Open with prayer. Read or listen to Psalm 107:10–16. 

Read: Revelation 21:1–22:21 (ESV). Re-read in the English Standard Version for new insights or questions.  

Reflect: Why? That is the question you need to ask right away: Why is Jesus doing all of this? The answer John wants us to remember harks back deep into the Sanctuary right at the very beginning. In this section as in each section, that starts in the Sanctuary. You might have picked up on this pattern by now (Revelation 21:3). The answer to the question why is simple that Jesus may dwell with us. The idea of Jesus dwelling with His people comes from the First Testament. In fact, it has roots right in the in the garden. Moses alludes to this when he tells the children of Israel about their identity. 

For over 400 years they had been slaves in Egypt. They had forgotten what it meant to be human. They had lost their way. Moses, called by Jesus, wrote the first five books of the Bible, referred to as the Torah. When you begin your “read the Bible in one year” plan, Genesis is riveting. You can cope with chapter 11 because the stories are so good. You arrive in Exodus and all seems good, but halfway through, your mind may start to wonder and then once you hit Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy, you really begin to wonder why this book was written at all. Maybe you don’t even get that far . . . . Part of the difficulty is that the purpose gets lost in the midst of the data. The story of identity is found when one discovers the identity of Jesus. Knowing who Jesus is helps us understand ourselves. If you are reading the Bible and constantly asking the question, “What does this teach me about Jesus?” the thread will appear. 

In Genesis, Jesus is walking in the garden with Adam and Eve, after sin and there is separation, but by the end of Exodus, after the plagues, after they are released, after the commandments, after the golden calf, etc.—at long last they build a Sanctuary. Why? So that Jesus may dwell among them. 

This is the story of the Bible. Jesus says, “Let me dwell among you. If I do, and you follow me, you can change the world.” Revelation 20 shows a time when the promise really will be fulfilled, and Jesus will finally able to dwell among us again. This time it will be forever and this time there is no building!

Recalibrate: ​​​What does it mean to have Jesus dwell with you? To have Jesus live with you?

Respond: Pray for Jesus to be with you.

Research: Where in the Bible does the idea of Jesus dwelling among us appear?