{"id":1176,"date":"2019-11-17T14:14:34","date_gmt":"2019-11-17T22:14:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/?p=1176"},"modified":"2019-11-17T14:18:28","modified_gmt":"2019-11-17T22:18:28","slug":"isaiahs-picture-of-paradise","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/2019\/11\/17\/isaiahs-picture-of-paradise\/","title":{"rendered":"Isaiah&#8217;s Picture of Paradise"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div style=\"color:black;font: 10pt arial;\"><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>  <w:WordDocument>   <w:View>Normal<\/w:View>   <w:Zoom>0<\/w:Zoom>   <w:TrackMoves\/>   <w:TrackFormatting\/>   <w:PunctuationKerning\/>   <w:ValidateAgainstSchemas\/>   <w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false<\/w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>   <w:IgnoreMixedContent>false<\/w:IgnoreMixedContent>   <w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false<\/w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>   <w:DoNotPromoteQF\/>   <w:LidThemeOther>EN-US<\/w:LidThemeOther>   <w:LidThemeAsian>X-NONE<\/w:LidThemeAsian>   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\tmso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; \tmso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; \tmso-fareast-font-family:\"Times New Roman\"; \tmso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; \tmso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; \tmso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; \tmso-bidi-font-family:\"Times New Roman\"; \tmso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} <\/style>\n\n <![endif]--><\/p>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"mso-bidi-font-size:12.0pt;color:#212121\"><audio class=\"wp-audio-shortcode\" id=\"audio-1176-1\" preload=\"none\" style=\"width: 100%;\" controls=\"controls\"><source type=\"audio\/mpeg\" src=\"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/Saints-Triumphant-11-17-19.mp3?_=1\" \/><source type=\"\" src=\"http:\/\/FILELINK?_=1\" \/><a href=\"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/Saints-Triumphant-11-17-19.mp3\">http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/Saints-Triumphant-11-17-19.mp3<\/a><\/audio>&nbsp;<\/span><span style=\"mso-bidi-font-size:12.0pt\">&nbsp;<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">&nbsp;<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">&nbsp;<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">Saints Triumphant Sunday <\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">November 17, 2019<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">Isaiah 65:17-25<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">Isaiah\u2019s Picture of Paradise<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">&nbsp;<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"text-align:justify;tab-stops:13.5pt .5in 2.5in 238.5pt 337.5pt\"><i style=\"mso-bidi-font-style:normal\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt\">\u201cBehold, I will create new heavens and a new earth.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>The former things will not be remembered, nor will they come to mind.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>But be glad and rejoice forever in what I will create, for I will create Jerusalem to be a delight and its people a joy.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>I will rejoice over Jerusalem and take delight in my people; the sound of weeping and of crying will be heard in it no more.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Never again will there be in it an infant who lives but a few days, or an old man who does not live out his years; he who dies at a hundred will be thought a mere youth; he who fails to reach a hundred will be considered accursed.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>They will build houses and dwell in them; they will plant vineyards and eat their fruit.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>No longer will they build houses and others live in them, or plant and others eat.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>For as the days of a tree, so will be the days of my people; my chosen ones will long enjoy the works of their hands.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>They will not toil in vain or bear children doomed to misfortune; for they will be a people blessed by the L<\/span>ORD<\/i><i style=\"mso-bidi-font-style:normal\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt\">, they and their descendants with them.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Before they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>The wolf and the lamb will feed together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox, but dust will be the serpent&#8217;s food.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain,\u201d<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt\"> says the L<\/span>ORD<span style=\"font-size:12.0pt\">.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>(NIV1984)<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">&nbsp;<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">&nbsp;<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">Dear fellow saints of the living God,<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">&nbsp;<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">\u201cA picture is worth a thousand words.\u201d<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Is there anyone here who has not heard that proverb?<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Is there anyone here who does not understand what it means?<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>I have walked along the top of the Great Wall of China.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>I have stood inside some of its guard towers and looked out over the landscape.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>I could try and describe for you the majesty of the wall and the beauty of the mountains and the valleys, but I would fail.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>I could show you some of the pictures I took while I was there and you might begin to understand both the majesty and the beauty.<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">&nbsp;<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">\u201cA picture is worth a thousand words.\u201d<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>There is no better example of that truth, my friends, than the holy inspired Word of our God.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>The Bible is absolutely filled with pictures\u2014 pictures that help us both understand and remember the great truths of the Christian faith.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Within the Old Testament Scriptures there is perhaps no better example of that truth than the book of the prophet Isaiah.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Do you want to see a picture of the seriousness of sin?<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span><i style=\"mso-bidi-font-style:normal\">\u201cAll our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away\u201d <\/i>(Isaiah 64:6).<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Do you want to see a picture of God\u2019s forgiveness?<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span><i style=\"mso-bidi-font-style:normal\">\u201cThough your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool\u201d<\/i> (Isaiah 1:18).<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Do you want to see a picture of the true meaning of the ministry of the Lord\u2019s Messiah\u2014 a ministry that would lead Him directly to the cross?<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span><i style=\"mso-bidi-font-style:normal\">\u201cHe was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth\u201d<\/i> (Isaiah 53:7).<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Do you want to see a picture of the true meaning of the Messiah\u2019s empty grave on Easter Sunday?<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span><i style=\"mso-bidi-font-style:normal\">\u201cOn this mountain he will destroy the shroud that enfolds all peoples, the sheet that covers all nations; he will swallow up death forever\u201d<\/i> (Isaiah 25:7-8).<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">&nbsp;<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">A picture is indeed worth a thousand words, my friends.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>As you and I gather together to celebrate this Saints Triumphant Sunday that proverb is proven right here in our text for today.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>This morning then let\u2019s rejoice as we look at this portion of Scripture under the theme:<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span><b style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight:normal\"><i style=\"mso-bidi-font-style:normal\">Isaiah\u2019s Picture of Paradise.<\/i><\/b><span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Since we simply do not have enough time this morning to cover all the truths contained in Isaiah\u2019s picture of paradise we are going to highlight just three.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>First, let\u2019s see how Isaiah\u2019s picture of paradise helps us to understand the new home that the Lord God will give to us, His saints.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Then let\u2019s see how Isaiah\u2019s picture of paradise helps us to understand the new life that the Lord God will give to us, His saints.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Finally, let\u2019s see how Isaiah\u2019s picture of paradise helps us to understand the new relationships that the Lord God will give to us, His saints.<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">&nbsp;<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">I invite you to look at the opening verses.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Isaiah writes, <i style=\"mso-bidi-font-style:normal\">\u201cBehold, I will create a new heavens and a new earth.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>The former things will not be remembered, nor will they come to mind.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>But be glad and rejoice forever in what I will create, for I will create Jerusalem to be a delight and its people a joy. I will rejoice over Jerusalem and take delight in my people; the sound of weeping and of crying will be heard in it no more.\u201d<\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">&nbsp;<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">Like the apostle Peter (See 2 Peter 3) Isaiah\u2019s picture of paradise includes a new home for God\u2019s saints.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Personally, I am convinced that the <i style=\"mso-bidi-font-style:normal\">\u201cnew heavens\u201d<\/i> and the <i style=\"mso-bidi-font-style:normal\">\u201cnew earth\u201d<\/i> that our God will <i style=\"mso-bidi-font-style:normal\">\u201ccreate\u201d<\/i> for us, His saints, will in reality be this earth restored to the perfection of paradise\u2014 exactly the way it was when the Lord first created it! (See Genesis 1:31)<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Imagine that picture in your minds, my friends.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Imagine what the Garden of Eden must have been like on the seventh day of Creation.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Now multiply it a million times over!<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>As the saints of God, as people who have been <i style=\"mso-bidi-font-style:normal\">\u201cwashed clean\u201d<\/i> by the blood of Jesus Christ, we will be living on a restored earth, a perfect earth.<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">&nbsp;<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">Included in this picture of paradise is the fact that our <i style=\"mso-bidi-font-style:normal\">\u201cnew\u201d<\/i> home will be permeated by perfect joy and perfect delight!<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Think of all the things that make you sad.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Think of all the things that keep you awake at night.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Think of all the things that bring sorrow and disappointment into your heart.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Think of all the things that cause the <i style=\"mso-bidi-font-style:normal\">\u201csound of weeping and of crying\u201d<\/i> in your life.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Those are the <i style=\"mso-bidi-font-style:normal\">\u201cformer things\u201d<\/i> that <i style=\"mso-bidi-font-style:normal\">\u201cwill not be remembered\u201d<\/i>!<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>As saints of the living God you will be given a home where joy and delight are always the norm!<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">&nbsp;<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">Now look at verses 20-23 of our text.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>As you scan through those verses look at how Isaiah\u2019s picture of paradise helps you to understand the new life which God has in store for you, His saints.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>In verse 20 Isaiah gives us this picture:<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span><i style=\"mso-bidi-font-style:normal\">\u201cNever again will there be in it an infant who lives but a few days, or an old man who does not live out his years; he who dies at a hundred will be thought a mere youth; he who fails to reach a hundred will be considered accursed.\u201d<\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">&nbsp;<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">Hardly a week goes by when someone does not say something along the lines of, \u201cPastor, don\u2019t get old.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>It is no fun at all!\u201d<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Many of us have learned from personal experience that the older we get the more difficulties we encounter as we journey through this world.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Our physical bodies begin to wear out.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Our minds are not as sharp as they once were.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Why, my friends?<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>What causes us to become old?<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>What causes illness and disease to ravage our bodies?<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>What causes our mind to become muddled?<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Ultimately, it is sin, isn\u2019t it?<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Sin is the root cause of <b style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight:normal\">all<\/b> our problems!<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>In the paradise which our Savior God has in store for us, sin and all the effects of sin are gone\u2014 completely and forever!<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>That\u2019s why Isaiah\u2019s picture of paradise includes a new life for God\u2019s saints\u2014 a new life that no longer includes illness of any sort, a new life that no longer allows any kind of disease, a new life where death has been <i style=\"mso-bidi-font-style:normal\">\u201cswallowed up forever\u201d<\/i>!<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">&nbsp;<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">Now look at verses 21-23.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Have you ever failed at something?<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Have you ever disappointed someone or had someone disappoint you?<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Have you ever experienced hardship or heartache of any kind?<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>If so, then you will appreciate how Isaiah\u2019s picture of paradise includes a new life for God\u2019s saints\u2014 a new life where all of the things I just mentioned no longer exist, a new life where you, God\u2019s saints, will only and always be people who are <i style=\"mso-bidi-font-style:normal\">\u201cblessed by the L<\/i><\/span><i style=\"mso-bidi-font-style:normal\"><span style=\"layout-grid-mode:line\">ORD<\/span><\/i><i style=\"mso-bidi-font-style:normal\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">\u201d\u2014 \u201cblessed\u201d<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\"> in ways that you can not even begin to imagine right now!<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">&nbsp;<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">The final point included in Isaiah\u2019s picture of paradise is that you, God\u2019s saints, will enjoy new relationships.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>First Isaiah focuses on our new relationship with the Lord.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>We know, of course, that even while we are here in this sinful world we have the right to approach God\u2019s eternal throne of grace in prayer at any time and for any reason.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>We also know that our God has promised to hear and to answer all of our prayers in the way that He knows is best for us.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Why?<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Because we <b style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight:normal\"><i style=\"mso-bidi-font-style:normal\">are<\/i><\/b> His dearly beloved children.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>We <b style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight:normal\"><i style=\"mso-bidi-font-style:normal\">are<\/i><\/b> His saints.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>But try to envision what it will be like in paradise, my friends.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Actually we don\u2019t have to try and envision what it will be like, do we!<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Isaiah reveals how close and how complete our new relationship with the Lord will be when the Lord says in verse 24 of our text, <i style=\"mso-bidi-font-style:normal\">\u201cBefore they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear.\u201d<\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">&nbsp;<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">That new relationship that you, God\u2019s saints, will have with your Lord will also be perfectly reflected in your new relationship with everything else\u2014 including each other!<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Look at the closing verse of our text.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Isaiah writes, <i style=\"mso-bidi-font-style:normal\">\u201c\u2019The wolf and the lamb will feed together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox, but dust will be the serpent\u2019s food.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain,\u2019 says the L<\/i><\/span><i style=\"mso-bidi-font-style:normal\"><span style=\"layout-grid-mode:line\">ORD<\/span><\/i><i style=\"mso-bidi-font-style:normal\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">.\u201d<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\"><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">&nbsp;<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">In the paradise on the new earth with the new life that the Lord will give to us, His saints, there will be no fear, no animosity and no conflict of any sort.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>We will live in perfect harmony with all of God\u2019s creation.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>We will live in perfect harmony with all of God\u2019s saints.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Take a moment to savor what that will be like!<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>No anger.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>No disagreements.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>No arguing.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>No bickering.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>No hurt feelings.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>No broken hearts.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Ever!<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Peace, harmony, joy laughter, happiness\u2014 this will be the hallmark of our new relationship with all of God\u2019s saints!<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>How wondrous that will be!<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">&nbsp;<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">As we gather together this morning in the Lord\u2019s house to celebrate Saints Triumphant Sunday there are just two more things that I want to emphasize before I close.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>First of all, let Isaiah\u2019s picture of paradise remind you of what the good Lord has already granted to your loved ones who have been called home to Heaven.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>The joy and the happiness, the glory and the perfection which they are experiencing right now helps to temper the sadness and the emptiness and the loneliness that you feel because your loved one is no longer by your side.<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">&nbsp;<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">Secondly, I urge you to stay close to your Lord and Savior through regular use of His holy Word and Sacrament.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>This is the spiritual food that God Himself has freely given to you to insure that you will always remain one of His saints, one of His saved and forgiven children as you journey through this sinful world.<span style=\"mso-spacerun:yes\">&nbsp; <\/span>Your status as a saint in the eyes of the one and only true God\u2014 the status that was secured for you on the cross of Calvary\u2019s hill (Pointing to the cross) guarantees that both you and your sainted loved ones will inherit the paradise that Isaiah pictures for us here in our text for today, the paradise that our God will make a reality when He returns to this earth at the end of the age.<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">&nbsp;<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">To God be the glory!<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">&nbsp;<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">Amen<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-pagination:none\"><span style=\"font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;layout-grid-mode:line\">&nbsp;<\/span><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"postie-attachments\">Download sermon audio ::  <a href=\"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/Saints-Triumphant-11-17-19.mp3\">Saints-Triumphant-11-17-19.MP3<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Saints Triumphant Sunday November 17, 2019 Isaiah 65:17-25 Isaiah\u2019s Picture of Paradise &nbsp; \u201cBehold, I will create new heavens and a new earth.&nbsp; The former things will not be remembered, nor will they come to mind.&nbsp; But be glad and rejoice forever in what I will create, for I will create Jerusalem to be a delight and [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1176","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sermon"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1176","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1176"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1176\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1176"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1176"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1176"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}