Big!
“Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in GOD, believe
also in Me. In My Father’s House there are many Mansions; if it were not so, I
would have told you. I go to prepare a Place for you. And if I go and prepare a
Place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I Am,
there you may be also.” John 14:1-3
House – John 14:2 “In MY Father’s House…” = oikia; [from
oikos; of uncertain affinity; a dwelling (more or less extension,
literally or figuratively); by implication a family (more or less related,
literally or figuratively):-home, house (-hold), temple.] probably residence
(abstract), but usually (concerning) an abode (literally or figuratively): by
implication a family (especially domestics):-home, house (-hold).
Mansions – John 14:2 “…are many Mansions.” = mŏnē;
[from mĕnō; a primary verb; to stay (in a given place, state, relation
or expectancy):-abide, continue, dwell, endure, be present, remain, stand,
tarry (for), X thine own.] a staying,
i.e. residence (the act or the place):-abode, mansion.
There are and always have been questions about the meaning of
Mansions; but first let’s look at My Father’s House: MY Father is easy –
JEHOVAH GOD the Father of JESUS The Christ of Nazareth and all who are adopted
by His Father by surrendering their life to JESUS. House is the dwelling place
of GOD, we call it Heaven (though Heaven is not a definition of oikia or
oikos.), but we do not really know what it is and we won’t until we get
there. A mansion is also a dwelling place, a home, a residence, but for us
within GOD’s House (Heaven).
We do know that GOD’s Dwelling Place (Heaven) it is big,
there is nothing small about our GOD! In Revelation 21 and 22 the new heaven
and the new earth and the New Jerusalem are described. “For I saw a new heaven
and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also
there is no sea. 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.” Revelation 21:1-3
The New Jerusalem: Revelation 21:9-24 describe The New
Jerusalem; (these are just the highlights); twelve foundations of precious
stones, twelve gates each gate is one pearl, the streets are of pure gold, the
wall was jasper. “The City was laid out in a square; its length is as great as
it breath. And he measured The City with his reed: twelve thousand furlongs
(literally stadia, about 1,380 miles in all); its length, breath, and height
are equal. Then he measured the wall: one hundred and forty-four cubits (about
216 feet), according to the measure of a man, that is of an angel.” Revelation
21:16-17
So how big is that? Most Bibles give its basic measurements
as 12,000 furlongs or 1380 miles cubed for the City, with its walls being 216
feet thick, its volume is 2,628,072,000 cubic miles.
How does that compare to the earth, the volume of the earth
is 260,000,000,000 cubic miles according to NSSDCA. So The New Jerusalem is
about one percent the size of the earth.
The New Jerusalem stands 1,380 miles tall, the tallest
mountain, Mt. Everest is 29,032 feet or 5.5 miles tall.
The tallest manmade structure is the Burj Khalifa building
which is 2,717 feet or just over one half mile tall.
Earth’s atmosphere is about 60 miles thick according to NASA.
Our breathable atmosphere is 7.5 miles according to NASA.
Commercial aircraft can only fly as high as 45,000 feet (8.5
miles) according to former pilot and professor Dan Bubb.
So The New Jerusalem is plenty big enough for all the Saints!
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