Revelation 21:21-25 "And the twelve gates were twelve pearls..."

"And the twelve gates were twelve pearls, each of the gates made of a single pearl, and the street of the city was pure gold, transparent as glass. And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine upon it, for the glory of God is its light, and its lamp is the Lamb. By its light shall the nations walk; and the kings of the earth shall bring their glory into it, and its gates shall never be shut by day—and there shall be no night there" (Revelation 21:21-25 RSV).

Question:

The fundies are telling I won't need my religion any more, but I should join theirs. They are relating to these verses. Something about the light of God and Jesus replacing mine.
 

Comment:

The 21st chapter of the Revelation to John is, I think, one of the most sublime in the entire Bible. The fearsome and exhausting wars and conflicts are behind us. The terrifying illusions of lack and separation have been vanquished. Everything that is not eternal, not a pure expression of spiritual truth, has been relegated to the lake of fire to be purified and reborn in more positive ways.

And now comes the payoff. "Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God..." (Revelation 21:1-3). A loud voice announces that "the home of God is among mortals. He will dwell with them; they will be his peoples, and God himself will be with them; he will wipe every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more, for the first things have passed away."   All earthly illusions of duality and separation from Source are gone. And now "the one who was seated on the throne" speaks for Himself. "'Behold, I make all things new.' And he said, 'Write this, for these words are trustworthy and true'" (Revelation 21:5).   What's important here, I think, is that this "kingdom of heaven" has come to us here, on earth, in the course of our mortal experiences. It's not a question of us ascending somewhere else after death. When we achieve kingdom consciousness, everything will seem new. ("I make all things new" isn't the same as "I make all new things"—it's a promise that the world we are living in will be transformed.) And to know that "these words are trustworthy and true" is to know that the promise is absolute, guaranteed, certain to be achieved, no matter how distracted or frightened we may become during the challenges that precede this moment.   The passage you cited affirms that there will be no need of artificial sources of either guidance or light, for we will be living in the energy and aura of the Christ Light within us. We will intuitively make the spiritual choices that currently confuse and challenge us. So it's not a question of the Light of God and Jesus replacing yours. It's about your Light, and the Light of God, and the Light of Jesus, all being the same divine Light.   Blessings!

Rev. Ed