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I. Are We Living in the Last Days?
Some within, as well as outside of the church are asking if we
are living in the last days. The New
Testament Scriptures we are about to consider say emphatically “Yes!
We are living in the last days”.
Notice in the following Scriptures how this is the historical
context in which Jesus’ Person and Work take on saving significance
for his people. In fact in Acts
2:17ff, the Apostle Peter says that what was prophesied concerning the last
days of God’s salvation has
come and helps us to interpret the significance of Pentecost (Acts
2:1-15). The author of the Book of
Hebrews compares the time long ago
in verse 1, with the last days of
God speaking to his people by his Son Jesus:
Acts
2:17-23 17 "'And in the last
days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all
flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men
shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; 18 even on my male servants
and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they
shall prophesy. 19 And
I will show wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below,
blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke;
20 the sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to
blood, before the day of the Lord comes, the great and magnificent
day. 21 And it shall come
to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be
saved.' 22 "Men of
Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God
with mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your
midst, as you yourselves know- 23
this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and
foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men.
Hebrews
1:1-2 1 Long
ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the
prophets, 2 but in
these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the
heir of all things, through whom also he created the world.
The question that should be asked is not whether we are living in
the Last Days, but rather, “Knowing we are living in the Last Days as the people of God, how should we then live?”
The word eschatology simply means
the “study of last things, or the study of the end, from two Greek
words: eschatos, meaning “last”, and
logos, meaning “the study of” as in the word biology or theology. The important
thing to note about the study of eschatology in scripture is that it is not
so concerned about 'when Jesus will return', as well as all of the
speculations that can go along with that.
In fact that is exactly what Jesus does not want to teach us.
It
could be said that eschatology is not so much about us finding out the
future in the present, as much as it is about the future finding us in the
present and informing our lives in light of this future reality in the
present.
Notice in the following verses that what Jesus wants to teach the
people is to be alert, to watch, to be faithful to the Living Jesus, just because they do not know when
he shall return. Practically
speaking, Christ’s people are called to faithfulness and preparedness
in light of his coming, and they are called to rest in the finished work of
Jesus as they proclaim that work to others.
Matthew 24:42-44 42 Therefore, stay awake,
for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. 43 But know this, that if the master
of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he
would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken
into. 44 Therefore you
also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not
expect.
Matthew 25:13 13 Watch therefore, for you
know neither the day nor the hour.
Mark 13:31-33 31 Heaven and earth will pass
away, but my words will not pass away.
32 "But concerning that day or that hour, no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 33
Be on guard, keep awake. For you do not know when the time will come.
II. Eschatology and the Kingdom of God
Eschatology (or, literally "the study of last things")
in Scripture is simply about the Person and Work of Jesus Christ and the
inauguration of His Kingdom, the pouring out of His Spirit on His People
and how they are to understand themselves as a New Creation-People. That is, eschatology is about what Jesus
did when he came the first time in inaugurating his Kingdom here on
earth.
Eschatology in Scripture is about the grace that was revealed in
Jesus' preaching of the Kingdom, and the manifestation of the Kingdom
itself here on earth. As well, eschatology is also about the grace,
as well as judgment that will be revealed when Jesus’ Kingdom will be
fully realized when he returns!
Eschatology is not trying to fancifully and creatively try and
understand 'when' Jesus will return, but it is about a way of life for
Christians until he does return. Eschatology in scripture is
concerned with teaching us an 'eschatological faith'. That is, a
faith that is ever looking to Christ for salvation, living obediently out
of gratitude here in the last days, while awaiting his return at any
time! It is living by faith as Paul describes in Philippians
3:20-21. We are citizens of heaven, while we await a Savior from
there. Notice the dual nature of our
citizenship as Christ’s people, as well as the dual nature of our
location as the people of God: in
heaven, as well as here on the
earth. This should inform our
identity as Christ’s people as we await his glorious return.
Philippians
3:20-21 20 But our citizenship is in
heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21 who will transform our
lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even
to subject all things to himself.
How is biblical eschatology related to the Kingdom of God? When Jesus casted
out demons, he said the Kingdom of God had come! (Mt. 12:25ff). In Matthew 12:25, the Pharisees dispute
Jesus’ Messianic identity revealed in his miracles. The Pharisees blasphemously assert that
Jesus does his work by the help of Satan, Beelzebul, or the Lord of the Flies indicating their
blindness to the reality of the King and the Kingdom of Christ. Jesus
says to them that the miracles point to the greater reality of his
Kingship, as well as the fact that His Kingdom has come, and will continue
to manifest itself by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Matthew
12:25-28 25 Knowing their thoughts, he
said to them, "Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and
no city or house divided against itself will stand. 26 And if Satan casts out
Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand? 27 And if I cast out demons by
Beelzebul, by whom do your sons cast them out?
Therefore they will be your judges. 28
But if it is by the Spirit of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.
We should appreciate as the people of God that when Jesus healed men
of sicknesses, he was beginning the restoration of all creation (Mt. 8-9)
because he was undoing the work of Satan, or at least that work that
resulted from Satan’s temptation in the Garden of Eden and the coming
of sin, death, and misery into God’s world. As the Great Creator himself (cf. Heb.
1:1-2; John 1:1-3; Col. 1:15ff), he was beginning the restoration of all
things, a foretaste of the New Heavens and the New Earth by the Spirit of
God in his miracles. Jesus even
reveals the coming of the Kingdom in these last days by calming the great
waves of the sea which only God can do (Gen. 1:4-8; cf. Job 38:1-11)
Matthew 8:3 3 And Jesus stretched out his
hand and touched him, saying, "I will; be clean." And
immediately his leprosy was cleansed.
Matthew 8:13 13 And to the centurion Jesus
said, "Go; let it be done for you as you have believed." And
the servant was healed at that very moment.
Matthew 8:24-27 24 And behold, there arose a
great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by the waves;
but he was asleep. 25 And
they went and woke him, saying, "Save us, Lord; we are
perishing." 26 And
he said to them, "Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?" Then
he rose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. 27 And the men marveled,
saying, "What sort of man is this, that even winds and sea obey him?"
Matthew
8:28-33 28 And when he came to the
other side, to the country of the Gadarenes, two
demon-possessed men met him, coming out of the tombs, so fierce that no one
could pass that way. 29
And behold, they cried out, "What have you to do with us, O Son of
God? Have you come here to torment us before the time?" 30 Now a herd of many pigs was
feeding at some distance from them. 31
And the demons begged him, saying, "If you cast us out, send us away
into the herd of pigs." 32
And he said to them, "Go." So they came out and went into the
pigs, and behold, the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea
and drowned in the waters. 33
The herdsmen fled, and going into the city they told everything, especially
what had happened to the demon-possessed men.
From these verses (and there are many more, especially look at
Matthew chapters 8-10 and how he gives this same authority to his
apostles), we see that when Jesus spoke the Word of power he declared
visually that the Kingdom of God had come in Him. In his preaching, Jesus declared that men
repent for the Kingdom of God had come and was also coming (Mt. 3:1-17; Mk.
1).
Mark 1:15 "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and
believe in the gospel."
Jesus declared that the last days, or the beginning of the renewal
of all things had dawned, or begun in his coming. But there was also
some confusion! (as there is still much confusion today!) John the
Baptist had preached that Messiah would come and set up his Kingdom.
John had preached to the people that Jesus would gather to himself those
who repented, but the others he would remove as chaff and destroy them,
because his winnowing fork was in his hand (Matt. 3). Messiah was to preach the good news to
the poor, bring salvation to the captives, healing to the sick, and sight
to the blind, and bring in the terrible Day of the LORD (Is. 61:1-3; cf.
Luke 4:18). However, Jesus' Kingdom came in an unexpected way. Even when John was in a dark and gloomy
prison, either his faith waned a bit, or his eschatological expectations
needed changing. What is clear from
Matthew 11 is that John the Baptist was in prison about to be killed for
his faith as forerunner of Jesus, and the Kingdom of God had not
come yet in Jesus- -at least in his own eschatological estimation.
Matthew
11:2-6 2 Now when John heard in
prison about the deeds of the Christ, he sent word by his disciples 3 and said to him, "Are
you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?" 4 And Jesus answered them,
"Go and tell John what you hear and see: 5 the blind receive their
sight and the lame walk, lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, and the
dead are raised up, and the poor have good news preached to them. 6 And blessed is the one who
is not offended by me."
What Jesus communicates to John from the prophet Isaiah is that the
Kingdom had come because the manifestation of the Kingdom of God in the
blind receiving their sight, the lame were walking, and lepers were being
cleansed (Isaiah 29), and he was to believe this by faith. What Jesus is implicitly communicating to
John, and to us today, is that although the Kingdom is coming in Jesus and
the beginning of the restoration in the Last Days has begun, yet we are to
be a people who live by faith for an indefinite amount of time
(“blessed is the one who is not offended by me”).
Jesus reveals this delay elsewhere in Luke 4:16-21. Here Jesus preaches from Isaiah 61:1-3 on
the Sabbath. He tells the people
that the prophecy of Isaiah about the coming King and Kingdom is fulfilled
in him, yet he leaves out a very important part of Isaiah’s prophecy,
implying that there is more to come in the future. Again, implying that there will be a time
period where the people of God must live by faith, trusting the LORD that
he will return to be Judge of the earth, but not yet!
Luke
4:16-21 16 And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought
up. And as was his custom, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and
he stood up to read. 17
And the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the
scroll and found the place where it was written, 18 "The Spirit of the
Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the
poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of
sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, 19 to proclaim the year of the
Lord's favor." 20
And he rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant and sat down.
And the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. 21 And he began to say to
them, "Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing."
You see Jesus quoted from Isaiah 61, which says:
Isaiah
61:1-2 1
The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me to
bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those
who are bound; 2 to
proclaim the year of the LORD's favor, and the
day of vengeance of our God….
Notice by contrasting the Isaiah prophecy with the sermon from Luke
4 that something very important is missing.
Jesus ended his sermon in Luke 4 with “to proclaim the year of
the LORD’s favor”, yet the end of the
prophecy is “and the day of vengeance of our God”. This teaches us that Jesus’ Kingdom
should be understood in the Last Days as a Kingdom that has come in Jesus,
but that will come in its fullness in the future. It suggest to us an interim that Jesus
will make clearer as he moves closer to the crucifixion and the laying down
his life for his people. The lesson
that we learn (as well as what John learned) is that Jesus’ winnowing
fork is indeed in his hand (we know this because when the words is preached
some believe and some are judged already, cf. Matt. 13 in the parables),
but he is waiting until later to bring about this final judgment. This is why the Apostle Paul teaches that
“Today is the Day of Salvation” in these Last Days!
Jesus did indeed bring salvation; he preached the good news; he
gathered to himself those who repented; and he released the captives, but
the Day of the LORD was to come at a later time. In other words,
Christ's Kingdom would come in two modes, or two acts. It began to
come into the present age with the coming of Jesus, particularly when he
accomplished his life, death, resurrection and ascension and sent forth his
Spirit who is called the "firstfruits"
or "downpayment" of what is to come
(Eph. 1:13; 2 Cor. 1:22; cf. 2 Cor. 5:5). The Kingdom will come again when Jesus
will judge the world. This interim period, called the "last
days" is the period when Christ builds his Church and prepares his
bride for himself in purity and holiness, while allowing men to repent of
their sins and turn to the Living God avoiding the imminent coming wrath!
Biblical eschatology is about how the Kingdom of God came in Jesus Christ, but will come fully in the
future. That is why the Apostle Paul says that "Now is the Day
of Salvation" (2 Cor. 6:1,2). It is
the time of hope as his people await our Living Hope to return (1
Peter 1:3ff).
III. Two-Faced Christianity in the Last Days
What kind of faith and attitude of life should the believer have in
light of Christ’s First Coming, and with a view to His Second
Coming to gather his people to himself and to judge the world? As Christians, we should be the most
two-faced people in the world in the Last Days. We should be a people who are ever
looking back at the completed work of Christ Jesus on our behalf, while
awaiting our Savior to return.
This kind of two-faced living is possible because of the Holy Spirit
who lives within us because of Christ’s humiliation and exaltation on
behalf of his people. In the
following scriptures notice that something new has happened in these Last
Days because of Christ’s work on our behalf. Notice how the Apostle Peter calls us to
two-faced living in these Last Days because Christ's Kingdom has come, yet
has yet to fully come!
1
Peter 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! By his
great mercy we have been born anew to a living hope through the
resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 and to an inheritance
which is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5
who by God's power are guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be
revealed in the last time.
Peter teaches us that we have already been born anew, yet there is
much more to be revealed in the last time (Peter uses "last time"
and "last days" interchangeably). Our full salvation, or
inheritance which is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, is a NOW-Reality, but we wait for Jesus
to return for it to be completely fulfilled. This hope keeps us
focused on Jesus, the Author and Pioneer of our faith! This hope is a
hope in the last days as we await the imminent and glorious return of our
Lord Jesus, when we shall see him face to face! It is interesting to
note comparing 1 Peter 1:3 and verse 5 (above) that there "has been a
salvation revealed" (past tense), and that same salvation "has
yet to be revealed" (future tense).
We should understand as the people of God this great truth:
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A lasting faith for the
last days begins with a strong, extraspectiive
(out-of-self-focused-faith) in Jesus Christ.
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Jesus is the Savior of sinners. This is a reality NOW!
But we await this reality to be fully revealed. As the Apostle John says,
we know we are children of God, but we do not know what we will fully be
when we see him as he is. All who have this hope purifies
himself as he is pure (1 John 3:2-3).
1 John
3:1-3 1 See
what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called
children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not
know us is that it did not know him.
2 Beloved, we are God's children now, and what we will
be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like
him, because we shall see him as he is.
3 And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as
he is pure.
Keep in mind that in speaking of eschatological living we want
prayerfully by God’s grace to understand more clearly what the
Apostle Peter describes as “now” in his epistle to the
persecuted and suffering church. Notice as you read the Apostle
Peter’s First Epistle how he speaks of the "NOW" as
well as the "NOT YET": 1 Peter 1:6-“now you
have to suffer various trials”; 1:8- “you do not now see
him but you believe in him”; 1:12- “the things which have now
been announced to you”; 2:10- “now you are God’s
people…now you have received mercy from God”; 2:25-
“now you have returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your
souls”. But Peter also teaches
us of what is yet to come: 1:5- “a salvation ready to be revealed in
the last time”; 1:7- “your faith may prove real at the
revelation of Jesus Christ for his honor and glory”; 1:13- “set your hope fully on the grace that is
coming to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”
Peter is saying that Christ has been manifested in his Person and
Work at the end of the times for our sakes (already) 1:20; but he will be
manifested again to reward his people for their faith with an unfading
crown of glory (not yet) 5:4. Also, if
our salvation has been accomplished in these last days, how should we
respond to suffering? Notice, that
although now we suffer; the Lord has an end, an eschatology he wants us to
look to by faith to give us hope now: 4:9- “But
the end of all things is at hand; therefore be serious and watchful in your
prayers”; 5:10- “And after you have suffered a little while,
the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ,
will himself restore, establish, and strengthen you.”
Let these great truths be
the encouragement and insight of God’s covenant people who are living
in the last days as we await his glorious return. Let us reflect upon our union with the
Living and Resurrected Jesus, as we ponder the reality of our being seated
in the heavenly places with him, knowing that our salvation has been fully
accomplished in the life, death, resurrection, and ascension, and that
although we will experience real pain, persecution and problems in this
world, we have a Living Christ and therefore a Living Hope who will rescue
us from sin, death, and misery when he returns for His People! Amen.
IV. The Age of the Spirit in the Last Days
When
Jesus is leaving his disciples in this world to be ascended to God’s
right hand, he tells them two important truths about himself. He gives them a message to declare and a
mission to perform until he returns, and he comforts them with the reality
of his authority and presence with them until
the end of the age.
Matthew 28:18-20 18 And Jesus came and said to them,
"All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make
disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of
the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20
teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am
with you always, to the end of the age."
Jesus sends the apostles out founded upon two realities: All
authority has been given to him, and he will be with his apostles until the
end of the age. What age is Jesus
speaking of? The age he is speaking
of is the present age that the
Apostle Paul will elaborate upon more fully in his letters when he
interprets the resurrection and ascension of Christ for the churches then,
and for us today- -both who live in the Last Days, and also in this present
age. Jesus is referring to the Last
Day when he will return in a glorified body to make his people as he
is! That is why he encourages his
apostles that he will be with them in this present age.
The Apostle Paul speaks similar language in Ephesians chapter 1, as
he prays for the Church at Ephesus and encourages them to persevere in their faith in Christ. Notice the comparison again between
Christ’s Authority, or “incomparably great power for us who
believer” and the promise of his present by the Spirit “not
only in the present age, but also in the age to come”.
Ephesians 1:19-21- "[I pray that you
may know] his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power
is like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when
he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in heavenly
realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every
title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the age
to come."
Perhaps this passage from the Apostle Paul’s pen can be
understood more clearly in light of the Biblical teaching of
two ages: this age and the age to come- "This age", or "the
present age" is described and characterized by sin, the fall,
death, and the devil's dominion over the age (that is why Paul calls
the devil the "god of this age" in 2 Cor.
4:4).
2 Corinthians 4:4 The god of this age
has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of
the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
In contrast to the present age characterized by sin, death and the
devil, "the age to come“ or the "future age" is
described as the time of the reign of Christ, the completion of his saving
work for his people, and the sending forth of His Holy Spirit. The
"age to come", "future age", or "Age of the
Spirit" has intruded upon the present age in the coming of Christ and
His Kingdom, thus the reason why it was important for him to face the devil
in his temptation in the wilderness as well as to cast out demons and to
heal the sick. In Christ’s Kingdom, the beginning
restoration of all things had begun in his Person and Work on the
earth. The "Age of the
Spirit" has dawned in the present age, as the present age passes away
(1 John 2:15-17).
1 John
2:15-17 15 Do not love the world or the
things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is
not in him. 16 For all
that is in the world- the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes
and pride in possessions- is not from the Father but is from the
world. 17 And the
world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of
God abides forever.
The contrast in this passage from the Apostle John shows the
impermanent, defeated nature and character of this present age, or
world-order. This world literally is passing away. It is not here where Christian’s
should have their hope- -but in the world that is to come in Christ. These two ages overlap now, since Jesus came
into this world to redeem sinners, defeat the devil in his life and death,
and to undo what Adam did.
V. Our Comprehension of the Eschatological
Tension
Because these two ages overlap, Christians presently experience joy,
but we also experience persecution; we experience strength from
the Spirit, but also experience weakness; we have the life of Christ
within, but unless Christ returns first, we will die and our
bodies return to dust; we have confidence of being renewed, but we still
suffer. The overlapping of the present age characterized by sin,
death, and devil, and the age to come with the dawn of a new creation, a
new age, and we as new creations experience the conflict of these two ages
as we live by the Spirit each day of our lives.
In light of these two ages, Paul tells us to live putting on the
full armor of God so that we might be able to stand upon Christ's
victorious resurrection, living by His powerful Spirit, so that we might
continue to journey in the present age, even though we know we are citizens
of the age to come (Ephesians 6:10-18; cf. Philippians 3:20,21). We are presently saved and the Devil has
been defeated (Heb. 2:14-18; Col. 2:13-15), but we will be ultimately saved
and the Devil will ultimately be defeated when Christ returns and all
things will be restored in the New Heavens and the New Earth, the full
revelation of the Age to Come (cf. Rev. 19-20).
Our hope is that when Christ returns, the present age will be
completely in the past and we will live fully in the Age to Come, or the
New Heavens and New Earth in the very presence of the Living God.
Then there will be no more persecution, conflict, death, suffering, or an
sin whatsoever. From all of the pain we have experienced in the
overlap of the two ages, God will wipe our tears from our eyes as he
promises in Revelation 21:1-7.
Revelation
21:1-7 And I saw a new heaven and a
new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth are passed away; and
the sea is no more. 2 And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem,
coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her
husband. 3 And I heard a great voice out of the throne saying, Behold,
the tabernacle of God is with men, and he shall dwell with them, and they
shall be his peoples, and God himself shall be with them, and be their
God: 4 and he shall wipe away every tear from their eyes;
and death shall be no more; neither shall there be mourning, nor crying,
nor pain, any more: the first things are passed away.
5 And he that sitteth on the throne said, Behold, I make all things
new. And he saith, Write: for these words are
faithful and true. 6 And he said unto me, They are come to pass.
I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give
unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. 7
He that overcometh shall inherit these things;
and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.
What hope for the people of God in this present age! This explains the conflict, as well as
the joy in the Christian life between the First Coming of Jesus and his
completed work on our behalf and our living in the Age of the Spirit
as the Church with the indwelling Spirit of which was spoken by the
prophets Jeremiah (31:31-34) and Joel (2:28ff) (which indicates that
the two ages are not only a New Testament concept but were insinuated
in the Old Covenant, cf. Rom. 16:25-27).
This teaching of the two ages includes the real tension of being a
true believer, passing from death to life, yet still mortifying, or dying
to our sin. In other words, this
helps to understand the way the Apostle Paul teaches the real tension
between offering our bodies to our new LORD (and Master) who is
Christ, opposed to our old lords (and masters) who were sin and
the devil. Paul begins in Romans
speaking of Justification by faith in chapter four. He proceeds to
establish the once and for all character of our justification as Christ
having reconciled God to us and therefore we have peace with God in Romans
chapter five. In addition, we are
united with Christ in his death, burial and resurrection in chapter six,
but we still struggle with real sin in this life according to chapter seven
(cf. with the conflict between the flesh and the Spirit in Gal.
5:17-18). However, our hope is in chapter eight where we clearly see
that although there is a tension between this present age and the age to
come, nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus (Rom.
8:28ff), because he who began a work in us if faithful to bring us into his
presence (Phil. 1:6).
VI. Our Eschatological Union with
the Risen Christ
We should keep in mind that in speaking of eschatological living and
faith in the Last Days we have in mind what the Apostle Paul calls being
“in Christ” throughout his letters, and understand our union
with Christ as central to our understanding of who we are as
Christians. Our union with Christ
helps us to understand that we are united to the Living Christ by His
Spirit and he is a “man of two ages”. That means that Christ became a man in
the present age in order to defeat the devil, redeem his people, and to
receive the Holy Spirit as a glorified man so as to be the first man of the
Age to Come (Heb. 2:14-18; John 7:37-39; Acts 2:33)! What an incredible truth! That is why the Apostle Paul, when
speaking of Christ’s resurrection into the Age to Come, speaks of him
as the first-fruits of those he
will resurrect on the day he returns.
1
Corinthians 15:20-26 20 But in fact Christ has been
raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those
who have fallen asleep. 21
For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the
dead. 22 For as in Adam
all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. 23 But each in his own
order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming
those who belong to Christ. 24
Then comes the end, when he delivers the kingdom to God the Father after
destroying every rule and every authority and power. 25 For he must reign until he
has put all his enemies under his feet.
26 The last enemy to be destroyed is death.
As Christians we are united with Jesus Christ in his
resurrection. The Apostle Paul uses
other language as well describing this close Holy-Spirit union. Paul says we are seated with Christ in
the heavenlies (Eph. 1:3, 20; 2:6; 3:10; 6:12). Our life is also hidden in Christ and this reality
encourages us to set our minds on where Christ is and where we are, as well
as to meditate or reflect upon who we
are as Christ’s Last-Days-People who await the glory to be
revealed (cf. Romans 8:17-24).
Colossians
3:1-4 1
If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above,
where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things
that are above, not on things that are on earth. 3 For you have died, and
your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ who is your life
appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.
The eschatological focus of Paul, as well as all of the NT
writers is that Christ’s work has been accomplished in his life,
death, resurrection, and ascension (Acts 2:14-41). This means that we are already now
realizing the promises of our salvation by the application of His
Spirit as Paul teaches in Ephesians 1:3-14. Notice the work God has done for us in
Christ and the present tense reality of
this gracious work!
Ephesians
1:3-14 3 Blessed be the God and
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every
spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, 4 even as he chose us in him
before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless
before him. In love 5 he
predestined us for adoption through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose
of his will, 6 to the
praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the
Beloved.
7 In him we have redemption
through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the
riches of his grace, 8
which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight 9 making known to us the
mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in
Christ 10 as a plan for
the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and
things on earth. 11 In
him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to
the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his
will, 12 so that we who
were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory. 13 In him you also, when
you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in
him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is the guarantee of our
inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.
We are
a people living in the Last Days with a view to the Last Day
Practically, this means that we should have an eschatological
faith. This present age is
characterized by walking by sight, but as partakers and citizens of the
'Age to come" we must learn by grace to walk by faith (2 Cor. 5:5-7).
This is an eschatological faith that is centered on the Person
and work of Christ in our behalf as we look by faith to his
return. Jesus is the Author, better the Pioneer and Perfecter of our faith (Heb 12:1-3). He is our
champion and all of his blessings by the Spirit are a reality NOW (Heb.
12:1ff; cf. 1 Peter)! In Hebrews 11,
the “cloud of witnesses” who looked to the promises of God by
faith had an eschatological faith, that is why they are effective witnesses
to us. This is our great hope
knowing that we live our Christian life not by sight, but by faith in the
promises of God because of his accomplishment in Christ, the down-payment
of the Spirit in our lives, and the ability to live according to
God’s commandments, with an eschatological faith that Christ will return
for us on the Last Day.
Again, we live in the Age of the Spirit now. That is, we live in the Last Days prior
to the Last Day when Christ will come and judge the wicked and renew all
things. The believer’s hope
and life should be lived with this constantly in mind. It is an eschatological faith that does
not look within, but looks to Christ and his righteousness, sanctification
and redemption (1 Cor. 1:30). It is an eschatological faith that knows
God is faithful and as he has fulfilled his promises in the past, so he
will ultimately deliver us and bring us into his presence forever! What great hope for the Christian! Although we do not see him, we love him
with an eschatological faith- - a faith that looks to his work on our
behalf because he first loved us and looks constantly for his return,
working now to please him in the calling which he has given us to perform
in this life.
VII. No Time for Rest as the Pilgrim People
of God in the Last Days
Another way of understanding our living by faith in the last
days is to consider how the Book of Hebrews teaches we as a people to think
eschatologically (that is, as a people who
understand they live in the last days between the time of Jesus' first
coming in grace and his second and final coming to judge the world and
renew all creation). In Hebrews
4, the author tells us that we can rest in Christ’s work on our
behalf NOW, but the author encourages us to persevere by His grace in the
covenant community in order to enter into God’s ultimate
rest. Hebrews 4:3 says: "Now we who have believed
enter that rest..." In the context, the contrast is between
Israel entering into their physical rest in Canaan by faith (some did not
enter in by faith), and we who enter into 'salvation-rest' by faith in the
person and work of Jesus Christ.
Hebrews 4:1-13 1
Therefore, while the promise of entering his rest still stands, let
us fear lest any of you should seem to have failed to reach it. 2 For good news came to us
just as to them, but the message they heard did not benefit them, because
they were not united by faith with those who listened.
3 For we who have believed
enter that rest, as he has said, "As I swore in my wrath, 'They shall
not enter my rest,'" although his works were finished from the
foundation of the world. 4
For he has somewhere spoken of the seventh day in this way: "And God
rested on the seventh day from all his works." 5 And again in this passage he
said, "They shall not enter my rest."
6 Since therefore it remains
for some to enter it, and those who formerly received the good news failed
to enter because of disobedience, 7
again he appoints a certain day, "Today," saying through David so
long afterward, in the words already quoted, "Today, if you hear
his voice, do not harden your hearts." 8 For if Joshua had given them
rest, God would not have spoken of another day later on. 9 So then, there remains a
Sabbath rest for the people of God, 10
for whoever has entered God's rest has also rested from his works as God
did from his. 11 Let
us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same
sort of disobedience. 12
For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword,
piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow,
and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. 13 And no creature is hidden
from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we
must give account.
The author of Hebrews wants us to continuously fix our eyes on
Jesus, the Author and Pioneer of our faith that has gone before us to be
with the Heavenly Father. The author of Hebrews wants us to
continue to persevere by his grace and strength, while resting in Christ
Jesus' completed and perfect work on our behalf! Even though we have
entered into our “rest” in the sense that Christ has “sat
down” at the right hand of the Father (Heb. 1:3; 10:12), he wants us
to understand as a covenant people living the Last Days that our faith must
show itself to be genuine by keeping our eyes on Jesus who will be revealed
on the Last Day. Then, we as his
Last Days people, shall fully enter into his rest (4:9-11).
The author of Hebrews wants us as the children of God to be reminded
that just as good works are characteristics of a true and saving faith,
so perseverance is a characteristic of faith as well.
As children of the Living God who are citizens of heaven, we are to fix our
eyes on Jesus who sat down at the right hand of the throne of God when he
fully accomplished our salvation. In
light of this reality of the ministry of Christ and the giving of his Holy
Spirit, we are to remember to be obedient to his Living and Active Word
(4:12-13).
No matter what your challenge or difficulty today, you can persevere by faith, by
fixing your eyes on He who completed his work on your behalf; Who is ever
interceding for you (Heb. 7:25); Who will never leave you nor forsake you
(Heb. 13:5); and Who is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Heb.
13:8)! His victory and strength is our encouragement as well as our
endurance in the Christian race!
In the Book of Hebrews we are taught to think like pilgrims,
sojourners who have entered into our rest by faith in Jesus, but to
remember at the same time that we have an eternal city built by God, and
have yet to fully enter the Heavenly City described in chapter 12.
Hebrews
12:22-29 22 But you have come to Mount
Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to
innumerable angels in festal gathering,
23 and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled
in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the
righteous made perfect, 24
and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood
that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel. 25 See that you do not refuse
him who is speaking. For if they did not escape when they refused him who
warned them on earth, much less will we escape if we reject him who warns
from heaven. 26 At that
time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, "Yet once more
I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens." 27 This phrase, "Yet once
more," indicates the removal of things that are shaken- that is,
things that have been made- in order that the things that cannot be shaken
may remain. 28 Therefore
let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus
let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, 29 for our God is a consuming
fire.
Notice in the above verses that we await the Heavenly City of the
Age to Come to be fully revealed.
Notice how we have a great and perfect Mediator in the New
Covenant. God has not changed, he is
still a consuming fire just as he revealed himself to be in the Old
Covenant (Heb. 12:29), yet the Mediator has changed. We have a better, more perfect Mediator
in Christ who shed his precious blood once-and-for-all for our sins and
therefore as his Last-Days-People, no matter how difficult the
circumstances or temptations we face, we are to listen to his voice
revealed in Scripture! By listening
to His voice, we are to be encouraged, as well as warned, that we must not
rest now (save in the work of Jesus Christ), but we should continue to
journey with our eyes on the Heavenly and Unshakable Kingdom of the LORD
God.
The author of Hebrews also encourages us as Last-Days-People that
our High Priest has entered the Most Holy Place in heaven and has made
atonement for our sins- - NOW, according to chapters 7-9. We have been released from the power of
death and the devil (Heb. 4:16-18) and have access to God, but we still
await the triumphant return of our High Priest. In Hebrews 9:24-28 we should appreciate
the completed work of Christ, while we “eagerly await” his
second appearance, not to take away sin, but to save fully those who are
waiting upon him (v. 28).
Hebrews
9:24-28 24 For Christ has entered, not
into holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true things, but into
heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf. 25 Nor was it to offer himself
repeatedly, as the high priest enters the holy places every year with blood
not his own, 26 for then
he would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world.
But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put
away sin by the sacrifice of himself.
27 And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and
after that comes judgment, 28
so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will
appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are
eagerly waiting for him.
The teaching of Hebrews is to help us to think eschatologically as a pilgrim people in the wilderness,
a people on the way that have yet to arrive, a holy nation and people of
God (1 Pet. 2:5ff). Our salvation
has been accomplished but we are awaiting the day when we enter into the
full and glorious presence of the Lord.
Sin no longer has dominion, but it still remains in us. We have passed from death to life NOW- -
but we still await to fully pass from the remaining elements of death
to the full eternal state.
The author of Hebrews completes the book with the greatest
encouragement imaginable for those who are sinners, yet at the same time
are citizens of the Heavenly City who still must persevere in the difficult
wilderness of suffering found in this fallen world. He says:
"May the God of peace, who through the blood
of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that
great Shepherd of the sheep, equip you with everything good for doing
his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus
Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen."
VIII. Last Days Identity as the People of God
As we have been studying, the question that should be asked by
Christians today is not whether
we are living in the Last Days (we are! according to Acts 2:16ff), but
rather, “Knowing we are
living in the Last Days, how should we then live?” As we have learned, the study of
eschatology in scripture is not primarily about 'when Jesus will return', in fact that is exactly what Jesus
does not want to teach us (cf. Matt. 24). Rather, eschatology (or,
literally "the study of last things") in Scripture is about
what Jesus did when he came the first time in inaugurating his Kingdom
here on earth.
Further, eschatology in Scripture is about the grace that was
revealed in Jesus' preaching of the Kingdom and the Kingdom manifesting
itself here on earth; eschatology is also about the grace, as well as
judgment that will be revealed when his Kingdom is fully realized when he
returns!
We have learned that eschatology is not trying to fancifully and
creatively try and understand 'when' Jesus will return, but it is about
a way of life for Christians until he does return. Eschatology in
scripture is concerned with teaching us an 'eschatological faith'.
That is, a faith that is ever looking to Christ for salvation, living
obediently out of gratitude here in the last days NOW, while awaiting his
return at any time! It is living by faith as Paul describes in
Philippians 3:20-21. We are citizens of heaven, while we await a
Savior from there.
In light of our study thus far, what kind of identity do we have as
the people of the Living God living in the Last Days? In other words,
how does Biblical eschatology form,
as well as inform our
identity? We have an eschatological identity as the People of God
that is revealed to us NOW because of the completed work of Christ in his
humiliation and exaltation. What is
our eschatological identity as a people of God and what does it mean to be
a holy people, consecrated to the LORD in these Last Days? Our eschatological, Last-Days-identity as
the People of God is formed, as well as informed in several ways. I would suggest to you that preaching,
publicly joining a faithful congregation of believers, partaking in the
Lord’s Supper, as well as worship are all practices we do as a
Last-Days-People.
(1) Preaching is eschatological. When we hear the sermon preached on the
Lord’s Day, the pastor stands in the stead of Christ proclaiming what
God has done in Christ's completed work and the hope of the imminent return
of our savior. When he preaches this
is eschatological because he declares to us the gospel of the Lord
Jesus Christ and how he has conquered death, hell and the devil on our
behalf, that we have been forgiven of our sins, and that we can live by
faith in the power of the Holy Spirit as we await His return.
Preaching is eschatological because the hope of Christ’s return
in the future interprets our present circumstances in his completed work (1
Peter 1:3-9), and it points us forward by faith to think on the day
when Christ will preach and teach us himself in Paradise in the presence of
God. Preaching teaches us to hear
and to follow the risen Jesus Christ NOW, as we patiently, expectantly, and
alertly await his return for us!
Preaching unites the People of God in the Last Days and is vital for
our spiritual growth. This office of
preaching is given to Christ’s people to encourage them to endure and
to teach them the truths concerning Christ and His Work so that they might
mature. The Apostle Paul explains
this truth to us in Ephesians 4.
Ephesians
4:11-16 11 And he gave the apostles,
the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, 12 to equip the saints for the
work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13 until we all attain to the
unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood,
to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, 14 so that we may no longer be
children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of
doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. 15 Rather, speaking the
truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head,
into Christ, 16 from
whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it
is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so
that it builds itself up in love.
(2) Publicly joining a faithful congregation of believers is
eschatological. It is a
confession before men, publicly recognizing our sins, submitting
to one another out of love for Christ, especially his elders, or undershepherds who are under Christ's
authority, and showing forth in the visible church that we are identified
and confessing members of the Kingdom of God in this present age. Our joining a congregation of believers and
submitting to the authority of the elders in the church is for the Apostle
Peter the same thing as submitting to the authority of God himself. Peter says that it is humble and shows
forth to the world our submission to God, as the elders of the
Last-Days-People are in submission to God as well.
1 Peter
5:1-11 1 So I
exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness of the
sufferings of Christ, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to
be revealed: 2 shepherd
the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion,
but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but
eagerly; 3 not
domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the
flock. 4 And when the
chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory.
5 Likewise, you who are
younger, be subject to the elders. Clothe yourselves, all of you, with
humility toward one another, for "God opposes the proud but gives
grace to the humble." 6
Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the
proper time he may exalt you, 7
casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.
Joining a congregation is eschatological because by faith in
Christ’s righteousness alone, our names are publicly written down in
the book of church membership, but we look forward to the Last Day when our
names will be publicly displayed as written in the Lamb’s Book of
Life, and how Christ Himself will confess us publicly before
God, men, and a heavenly host of angels.
Revelation
3:5 5 The one who conquers will be clothed thus in white garments,
and I will never blot his name
out of the book of life. I will confess
his name before my Father and before his angels.
Revelation
21:22-27 22 And I saw no temple in the city,
for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. 23 And the city has no need of
sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its
lamp is the Lamb. 24 By
its light will the nations walk, and the kings of the earth will bring
their glory into it, 25
and its gates will never be shut by day- and there will be no night
there. 26 They will bring
into it the glory and the honor of the nations. 27 But nothing unclean will
ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only
those who are written in the Lamb's book
of life.
Our relationship to the visible church of faithful believers should
encourage us to remember that it is for our benefit to meet together and
join with other believers publicly, just because we know that with the
overlap of the two ages, there is pain, persecution and problems in this
world. Our ministry to one another
in the Last Days is to encourage one another, all the more as we see the
Day of Christ, the Last Day, approaching.
Notice how the author of Hebrews reminds the people of this truth in
Hebrews 10.
Hebrews
10:23-25 23 Let us hold fast the
confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is
faithful. 24 And let us
consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, 25 not neglecting to meet
together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the
more as you see the Day drawing near.
As well, the importance of belonging and joining a faithful group of
God’s people is described as those who are not of us. The
implication is that those who belong to the LORD submit themselves to the
elders of the church and publicly join a faithful Christian congregation to
identify themselves with the true Last-Days-People of God. In 1 John, the Apostle John’s
appeal is to those who have gone “out from us” in the context
of the Last Days, proving that they were not the people of God.
1 John
2:18-20 18 Children, it is the last
hour, and as you have heard that antichrist is coming, so now many antichrists
have come. Therefore we know that it is the last hour. 19 They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it
might become plain that they all are not of
us. 20 But you
have been anointed by the Holy One, and you all have knowledge.
(3) Partaking in the Lord’s Supper is eschatological. The Lord's Supper points us back to
the hope of Christ’s body and blood that has cleansed us from
our unrighteousness and through His Spirit we sup with Christ's real
and spiritual presence, invisibly by faith-
-NOW, as we await a day in Paradise when we will eat this
covenantal meal with Christ in the presence of God. Blessed are
all of those who are invited to the Great Feast where we
will be privileged to dine with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the
glorified and physical presence of our Lord Jesus, the One who
has saved us from our sins!
Matthew 8:10-12 10 When Jesus heard this, he
marveled and said to those who followed him, "Truly, I tell you, with
no one in Israel have I found such faith.
11 I tell you, many will come from east and west and
recline at table with Abraham,
Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven, 12 while the sons of the
kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness. In that place there will be
weeping and gnashing of teeth."
1 Corinthians 11:23-26 23 For I received from the Lord
what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was
betrayed took bread, 24
and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, "This is my body
which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me." 25 In the same way also he
took the cup, after supper, saying, "This
cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in
remembrance of me." 26
For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the
Lord's death until he comes.
Revelation
19:9 9 And the angel said to me, "Write
this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb." And he said
to me, "These are the true words of God."
Jesus uses the Lord's Supper by His Spirit to
nourish and strengthen us in our perserverance
and faith as we await our full salvation to be revealed and we shall se Him
as He is! John Calvin’s
understanding of the Lord’s Supper is helpful in understanding our
identity as a Last-Day-People of God.
In a book entitled Given for
You: Reclaiming Calvin’s Doctrine of the Lord’s Supper,
Keith A. Mathison explains Calvin’s
Biblical understanding.
"Calvin understood that
Christ is the Christian's source of life and nourishment and that for this
reason believers must be united to him. The Father has life in
himself and has granted the Son to have life in himself (John 5:26).
Jesus has come to give eternal life to the world (John 6:33; cf. 1 John
5:11). That Christ is the believer's source of life is vividly
illustrated in the Bread of Life discourse (John 6). Christ is the
living bread, and those who partake of this bread will live forever (6:51)...
...The bond of our union with
Christ, as Calvin explains, is the Holy Spirit: 'The bond of this
connection is therefore the Spirit of Christ, with whom we are joined in
unity, and is like a channel through which all that Christ himself is and
has is conveyed to us.'...The Holy Spirit bridges the gap between
individual Christians and Christ by uniting then with him. By virtue
of this mystical union with Christ, divine life (eternal life) is
communicated to believers. Christ is the true Vine. We are the
branches who abide in the true Vine. The divine life of the true Vine
is only able to pass to the branches because the Holy Spirit grafts those
branches into the Vine.
Calvin explains that each of
the two sacraments [baptism and the Lord's Supper] is related to the
believer's mystical union with Christ. The sacrament of baptism is
connected with the believer's initial union with Christ. The
sacrament of the Lord's Supper is connected with the believer's ongoing
union with Christ. In the Lord's Supper, the believer is nourished
and sustained, and his communion and union with Christ is strengthened and
increased. The Lord's Supper is intimately tied to the believer's
ongoing sanctification and growth in grace. Those who do not regularly
partake of the Lord's Supper separate themselves from their source of
nourishment and life." –pages 275-76
If Calvin is correct about the the Lord's
Supper strengthening our bond and union with Christ by the work of the Holy
Spirit in these Last Days (and I believe he is correct), then it would seem
to me that as Christians we should all run to the opportunity to take part
in the Lord's Supper. No matter how "inconvenient" we think
partaking of the Lord's Supper may be on a frequent, monthly, or even
weekly basis (and God forbid it if we do think this way as Christians), we
should be realize the great blessing we have in strengthening us and
helping us to grow in our sanctification and Christ-likeness! It
seems to me that according to Acts 2:41-47, as well as Acts 20:7-12, that
the early church which met after Jesus' ascension "broke bread"
or took the Lord's Supper daily, and then on a weekly basis. The preposition “to” in verse
7 below is being used in this context with the understanding “with
the purpose to”.
Acts
20:7 7 On the first day of the week,
when we were gathered together to break bread…
Acts 20:7 teaches that the purpose for which the Last Days
Christians wee gathered together was to break bread (and they also heard a
sermon because Paul preached). In
light of this, and without being dogmatic, It seems to me that it would be
fitting for the modern church to return to the Biblical frequency indicated
in the Book of Acts. It seems to me that the implicit teaching of
Acts 2 and 20 is that every time the church met to hear the Word preached,
they were there as well for the express purpose of taking the Lord's Supper
(cf. Acts 20:7).
Perhaps this infrequency of partaking the Lord's Supper has led to
the lack of spiritual growth in American Christian congregations?
Perhaps a better understanding, as well as a more frequent partaking of the
Lord's Supper combined with the preaching of the Word, could lead to
thriving spiritual communities, a Holy-Spiritual revival, that could lead
us into more reformation and Christ-like living? Perhaps a frequent partaking of the
Lord’s Supper would enhance our eschatological identity in these Last
Days.
(4) Worship is eschatological. We praise God NOW
for his word and deed as we think on the salvation he has wrought in Christ
in the past, as well as the help and provision he supplies to us each and
every day of our lives. In our worship we cry “Come, Lord
Jesus” as we await our Savior’s appearing. This points us forward by faith to
consider the day when we will worship the Lord God day and night in his
presence.
Revelation 5:9-13 9 And they sang a new song,
saying, "Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for
you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every
tribe and language and people and nation,
10 and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our
God, and they shall reign on the earth."
11 Then I looked, and I heard
around the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of many
angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, 12 saying with a loud voice,
"Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and
wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!" 13 And I heard every creature
in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is
in them, saying, "To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be
blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!"
Revelation
22:7-9 7 "And behold, I am
coming soon. Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy of this
book." 8 I, John, am
the one who heard and saw these things. And when I heard and saw them, I
fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who showed them to me, 9 but he said to me, "You
must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers the
prophets, and with those who keep the words of this book. Worship God."
These are just a few of the eschatological activities we do as
Christians that form and inform our eschatological identity as we
await as pilgrim people for the Lord to come and restore all things. This is our hope and our
confidence NOW as we await what God has promised to us. As pilgrims and sojourners (see previous
studies on Hebrews and 1 Peter), we live a life in the Age of the Spirit,
not by sight but by faith, knowing God is faithful to accomplish all things
on our behalf. Let us remember the
good news that the Apostle Paul reminds us of in 1 Corinthians.
1
Corinthians 2:9-10 9 But, as it is written, "What no eye has
seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him"- 10 these things God has
revealed to us through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches everything, even
the depths of God.
As the people of the Living God, we have such a blessing living in
this Age since Jesus has been resurrected.
Never forget the importance, as well as the privilege of getting to
hear a preacher preach to you in Christ's stead on the Lord’s Day. Remind yourself that what is happening is
a rich and rewarding experience whereby Christ, by His Spirit, through his
Word spoken by a 'jar-of-clay-imperfect-preacher' (2 Cor.
4-5), is communicating his instruction to you!
Remember the importance of joining with other believers publicly and
submitting to one other in Christ's church as Paul admonishes us to do in
Ephesians 5-6. Remember the
privilege of partaking and feeding spiritually, yet really and truly on Christ in the Lord's Supper- -what an awesome
advantage we have as believers to receive it by faith (just as we do the
Word of God when preached).
Further, remember that when we worship we are taking part of what
the heavenly host in heaven are doing presently, and we are looking forward
to a day when we shall get to praise Christ having a greater knowledge of
Him than we do now when we shall not only see him, but know him even as we are known (cf. 1 Cor. 13:9ff; 1 John 3:1-3). Praise God for all of our eschatological
privileges because we are his people.
Let us
be different in this present age, because we belong to the Age to Come!
IX. Living in the Last Days without a Curiosity
for those Difficult Passages Concerning the Last Days
Before we consider the attitudes that we ought to have in the Last
Days, let us consider some of the more difficult passages concerning
eschatology or the Last Days revealed in Scripture. We must all admit
that we have some built-in fancy for being attracted by the more
difficult passages concerning the last days, as well as being curious about
what is to happen with regard to the future of the world. (I often
shudder to think that more ink has been spilled in futile speculation of
'when', 'where', and 'how' Jesus will return, rather than focusing on the
JESUS who knows when, where, and how he will return and who has not
chosen to reveal it to us (Deut. 29:29).
It is sad (frightening?) to think that possibly we have spent
more time as the people of God 'speculating' about eschatology and the last
days, rather than carefully handling Scripture and LIVING
ESCHATOLOGICALLY -- that is, living by faith with a true hope and love for
HIS appearing. For some reason, we
allow what God has chosen not to
reveal, someone to prevent us from understanding what he has been please to reveal.
Though we desire to know more of Scripture, and our intentions are
good, we get bogged down in the details and fail to consider the clear and
encouraging teaching of such books as Daniel (particularly chapters 7-12),
Mark chapter 13, Matthew chapter 24, and the Book of Revelation. We
must resist the temptation to read into, or to be preoccupied with that
which God 'does not' reveal to us, and to make every effort to understand that
which he indeed 'does' reveal to us. Remember Deuteronomy 29:29:
'The
secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the revealed things to
us and our children."
There are some things about the future that we must admit will
remain a mystery, but what is clear and what will edify and build up the
church NOW is what we are to focus on in these books containing truth about
the last days living. Sadly, we divide in our churches over the
unclear portions of Scripture, even portions we do not truly understand,
rather than uniting upon that which is clearly revealed for us all.
Imagine if you will, the sadness and irony for Christ's church, with all of
our "charts of eschatology" that supposedly enlighten us, yet
divide us, and cause us to miss the main blessing of what should unite
us by love in the Last Days! What is clear in the difficult
eschatological passages are the warnings to watch together (implying unity
and love) for the coming of the LORD Jesus and to live our lives NOW in
light of this imminent truth! The
truth of this is seen in Jesus’ Parable of the Ten Virgins that
Matthew places directly after his Olivet Discourse in chapter 24 of his
gospel. In fact the Parable of the
Ten Virgins is the second of three stories Jesus tells, so that his people
will get the clear teaching of what he is saying to them! He says be watchful, prepared, and ready!
Matthew
25:1-13 1
"Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their
lamps and went to meet the bridegroom.
2 Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. 3 For when the foolish took
their lamps, they took no oil with them,
4 but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. 5 As the bridegroom was
delayed, they all became drowsy and slept.
6 But at midnight there was a cry, 'Here is the
bridegroom! Come out to meet him.' 7
Then all those virgins rose and trimmed their lamps. 8 And the foolish said to the
wise, 'Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.' 9 But the wise answered,
saying, 'Since there will not be enough for us and for you, go rather to
the dealers and buy for yourselves.'
10 And while they were going to buy, the bridegroom came,
and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the
door was shut. 11
Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, 'Lord, lord, open to
us.' 12 But he answered,
'Truly, I say to you, I do not know you.'
13 Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor
the hour.
With regard to some of the more difficult passages of Scripture
concerning the Last Days, such as Matthew, 24, Mark 13, 2 Thessalonians
2-3, and the Book of Revelation, there are some clear teachings that we
want to understand before we seek to further understand the more difficult
teachings. In fact, when we study
the clear passages first, they usually helps us to understand the passages
that are not so clear to us. We
should remember that they were clear to the author of Scripture, as well as
to the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit,
as the Author will help us when we approach these texts humbly and in
submission to Him the Great Teacher (1 Cor.
2:6ff; cf. 1 John 2:20-27).
As we have studied earlier, the clearest teachings in these
difficult portions of Scripture is to be prepared; to watch; to be sober
and alert. Additionally, there is a
clear indication that evil and wickedness will increase in the Last Days in
a way consistent with the progressive nature of the Kingdom coming into
this world, and the spread of the Gospel.
There is an escalation or progressive view, not only of Christ’s
Kingdom coming into the world in this present age (1 Cor.
15:22-28; Mt. 12-13), but also there is an escalation or increase of
wickedness and ungodliness, consummating, or ultimately coming to a
conclusion in the overthrow of all evil, sin and death (Rev. 6-19:18; Mk.
13; cf. with the increase of wickedness from the first sin of Adam to
Genesis 6: “All the thoughts and intents of man’s heart were
evil continually”).
It is a constant New Testament expectation that to the extent to
which the gospel of the cross is spread abroad, to that extent the
hostility of the world will be manifested as well. Christ is destined to be a rising and
falling for many, and to bring out into open the thoughts of many. HE has come into the world for judgment
that those who do not see may see and those who see may become blind (Mt.
21:44; Luke 2:34; John 3:19-21, 8:39; Rom. 9:32,33; 1 Cor.
1:23; Heb. 4:12).
In the last days, the days that precede the return of Christ, the
wickedness of human beings will rise to a fearful level. The days of Noah will return. Lust, sensual pleasures, lawlessness,
greed, unbelief, pride, mockery, and slander will erupt in fearful ways
(Mt. 24:37ff; Luke 17:26ff; 2 Tim. 3:1; 2 Pet. 3:3; Jude 18).
2
Timothy 3:1-7 1
But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of
difficulty. 2 For
people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive,
disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 heartless, unappeasable,
slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, 4 treacherous, reckless,
swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 having the appearance of
godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people. 6 For among them are those who
creep into households and capture weak women, burdened with sins and led
astray by various passions, 7
always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth.
This escalation of evil should be kept in mind and understood when
reading the descriptions that the Apostles wrote concerning the Last
Days. This means that although we live in the power of the Spirit in
this present age, and our hope is set on the Age to come to be revealed
when Christ returns, we will suffer persecution from evil spirits and
people. In fact, the great expectation of every Christian ought to be
a life of persecution in the Last Days as difficult as this is for
us.
Paul says to Timothy: "Those who want to live a godly life in
Christ Jesus will suffer persecution"- 2 Tim. 3:12. God is
gracious and allows us to have times of peace and creaturely comforts here
in this present age that makes Last Days living somewhat easier.
However, we should never place our trust in these "things",
because they are never guaranteed to us. As American Christians who
do not see as much persecution as the rest of our brothers and sisters in
the world, we ought to daily remind ourselves of this truth!
In our desire to understand eschatological portions of the
Bible, we must keep in mind not to get too bogged down with the details,
but to “hear” the emphasis of Christ in difficult passages such
as Mt. 24 and Mk. 13 and in the Book of Revelation. These
Scriptures are given for our encouragement, may this important truth be not
overlooked.
May we consider the clarity of what is written in these passages and
pray for patience and understanding by the Spirit, approaching any
difficult portion of Scripture with humility, as a child comes to their
father. May we thank Christ for the
Spirit’s gifts to the Church in teachers who can help us to better
understand these passages. Although
there can be some difficulties with understanding these passages, we should
understand what is clear about them.
The
Difficult passages are not meant for our calculation on Christ’s
return, but for our consideration of the attitude that we should have until
he returns.
In Mark’s account of the apocalyptic Olivet discourse, he
tells his disciples and us to “watch” five times! Jesus ends with a clear message of what
he wants his disciples to understand however much we or they misunderstand
Jesus’ eschatology in Mk. 13:
"Watch
therefore, for you do not know when the master of the house is coming -- in
the evening, at midnight, at the crowing of the rooster, or in the morning
--lest, coming suddenly, he find you sleeping. And what I say to you, I say
to all: Watch!"
The focus of our eschatological faith as the
people of the Living God ought to be fixed upon Jesus Christ our Savior and
King! We must learn from these somewhat difficult passages concerning
eschatology that Jesus teaches us to be alert,
sober, and watchful.
How can we learn from this as a
Last-Days-People? Be alert as to who
we are, who we serve, and keep our focus on His imminent return for us.
Our alertness, soberness, watchfulness is increased in the faithful
preaching of the Word. In the preaching and teaching of the Word, we
are reminded of the shortness of this life and the greatness of the next
life! We are reminded of our weaknesses and His great strength on our
behalf (2 Cor. 4:16-18; 12:9); we are reminded
that each day is a gift and we should use our time for his glory.
Paul says that we must make the most of our time, knowing the days are
evil. Paul reminds us that Today is the Day of Salvation, the day of
grace offered to repentant sinners (2 Cor.
6). The Apostle Paul sums up the
great news, the nearness of the Last Day, as well as the attitude of how we
should live our lives as God’s people NOW in Romans 13.
Romans 13:10-14 10
Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the
law. 11 Besides this
you know the time, that the hour has come for you to wake from sleep. For
salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed. 12 The night is far gone; the
day is at hand. So then let us cast off the works of darkness and put on
the armor of light. 13
Let us walk properly as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not
in sexual immorality and sensuality, not in quarreling and jealousy. 14 But put on the Lord
Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.
Let us pray that God, by His Spirit will make
us an expectant people. A people who hold on loosely to the
"things" of this present age, and a people who realize that they
are citizens of another Kingdom, the Kingdom of the Age to Come. May
we be diligent by His grace, to be serving him wholeheartedly when he
returns, working to build up his church, to seek unity in his church and
with his people, and may he not find us searching the Scriptures in a
futile manner for yet another eschatological "chart of Jesus'
return", but may he find us living with an eschatological faith
awaiting the Living Hope Who will renew all things and bring glory to Himself!
Amen.
X. Armed for
Eschatological Warfare
As we learned in the last study, although the gospel increases and
expands throughout the world, the increase of wickedness also grows in the
last days (2 Tim. 3:1-7). As in the parable of the sower and the seeds, the Evil One is there to snatch up
the seeds that drop on the path as the Word of the Kingdom is proclaimed
(Matt. 13:18ff). There is an eschatological war in the heavenlies and here on earth between the Seed of the
Woman and the seed of the Serpent; between the Sower
of the Seeds of Righteousness and the Sower of
Seeds of Wickedness; there is war between the Sower
of Wheat and the sower of weeds. Yet, despite his real and evil work, the Sower of Righteousness prevails, and His Kingdom is abundantly
increased (13:23, 43).
Matthew
13:18-23 18 "Hear then the parable
of the sower:
19 When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not
understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown
in his heart. This is what was sown along the path. 20 As for what was sown on
rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives
it with joy, 21 yet he
has no root in himself, but endures for a while, and when tribulation or
persecution arises on account of the word, immediately he falls away. 22 As for what was sown among
thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and
the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it proves unfruitful. 23 As for what was sown on
good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it. He indeed
bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in
another thirty."
Matthew
13:36-43 And his disciples came to him, saying,
"Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field." 37 He answered, "The one
who sows the good seed is the Son of Man.
38 The field is the world, and the good seed is the
children of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one, 39 and the enemy who sowed
them is the devil. The harvest is the close of the age, and the reapers are
angels. 40 Just as the
weeds are gathered and burned with fire, so will it be at the close of the
age. 41 The Son of Man
will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of
sin and all law-breakers, 42
and throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping
and gnashing of teeth. 43
Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father.
He who has ears, let him hear.
As seeds of the Woman, being united to Jesus Christ the Seed of the
Woman, we are called to bear his name, be witnesses to his Kingdom, and to
boldly march in his Power and Spirit, but we must be aware of an enemy who
is scheming against us, who is the Great Serpent, the Devil, who has his
own seeds. We must remember as
children of light that we are in a great war and how the Apostle Peter
describes our Eschatological enemy the Devil in his First Epistle:
1 Peter
5:8-11 8 Be sober-minded; be
watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion,
seeking someone to devour. 9
Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering
are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world. 10 And after you have suffered
a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal
glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish
you. 11 To him be the
dominion forever and ever. Amen.
For this eschatological warfare in the last days, we need the armor of God Christians so that we may
stand. That is, we must realize we are clothed in the armor that is
given to us by God when we are united to Christ. Paul says in
Ephesians 6:10-18 to be strong in the
LORD. That is, our battle, our warfare is not against
flesh and blood (cf. 2 Cor. 10:3-5), but it is
against the rulers, powers, and spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly
realms. Because we have been united to Jesus Christ by faith, seated
with him in the heavenly places, although our battle is experienced by us
in an earthly manner, it is also a battle "in the heavenlies". Dr.
Sinclair Ferguson writes: "The work of the Spirit in uniting us to
Christ brings the Christian life into an eschatological atmosphere.
It is lived out in the heavenly realms (Eph. 1:3; 2:6). But
these are also realms of eschatological conflict where the evil day is
faced (Eph. 6:12-13)." ('Holy Spirit'-IVP). Paul says in Ephesians 6:
Ephesians
6:10-18 10 Finally, be strong in the
Lord and in the strength of his might.
11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to
stand against the schemes of the devil.
12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but
against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over
this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly
places. 13 Therefore take
up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil
day, and having done all, to stand firm.
14 Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth,
and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and, as shoes for your
feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. 16 In all circumstances take
up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts
of the evil one; 17 and
take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the
word of God, 18 praying
at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep
alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints…
This eschatological warfare is a battle where we stand
grounded in the truth revealed to us in Scripture as our belt of
truth. It is a battle in which we stand with the breastplate of
Christ's righteousness that is given to us; we stand with in the peace of
the gospel, and with the helmet of salvation, using the Word of God as our
sword to stand firm by faith. In this battle, we are called to pray
continuously, ever depending on the grace, mercy and strength of
God to stand firm against the Evil One and his schemes.
The reality is that Paul says we
can stand (Eph. 6:13-14) in this great battle. That is, we are
able to stand in this battle, we do not have to give up or to bow our heads
in despair and doubt. When we are tempted by the Evil One, the one
who hates us, we must remember that we have been united to Jesus Christ, we
have died to sin and to our former master, and therefore Paul says 'stand
firm' by faith in this reality (Rom. 6:3-8; Col. 1:11-14)!
People of God in the Last Days: Hold on and fight this battle,
knowing that you have the Divine Warrior who has conquered death, hell, and
the devil, and stand upon Christ’s victory won in his resurrection
and ascension in these last days! Our Divine and Gracious Warrior,
the Living God, has worn this armor himself (Is. 59:15-20)! It is
"His" armor of strength which he gives to us so that we may stand
firm in His Name, by His grace!
We should also remember we fight together (Eph. 6:18).
18 …praying at all times
in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert
with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints…
We do not stand alone, but are part of Christ's body, and therefore
we should take courage that the gates of hell shall never prevail against
his Church, his people for whom he died (Matt. 16:18)! We should
remember to pray for one another, for some in the body are much weaker than
others and although they are dressed in God's armor, are strong in
Lord, and have his powerful might in Christ, they have a weak faith, a
faith that has not fully realized nor fully grasped these truths.
Therefore, they need others who are standing firm, to help them to stand by
His grace.
Paul says we must always stand in the confidence of our union with
Christ, that no temptation comes into our lives, except which is common to
all humanity (1 Cor. 10:12-13).
1
Corinthians 10:12-13 12 Therefore let anyone who
thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall. 13 No temptation has overtaken
you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be
tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide
the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.
And with each temptation by the Evil One, we know that we can stand,
and we know that God will not allow us to be tempted without providing a
way out. If you think you are standing, take heed, lest you
fall. That means, ever rely upon the grace and strength of the Lord
Jesus and His powerful Spirit to help you, never on anything you can do in
yourself, or by yourself. Always be ever mindful that you are in
warfare, yet you are completely clothed with God's armor, and you can
indeed, by faith, "be strong in
the Lord and in the might of His power"!
Whatever your battle today, whatever your discouragement, whatever
the temptation that continually seems to beset you, know who you are because of Jesus Christ,
and in the knowledge of who you are, clothed in His righteousness and
armor, stand firm in these Last Days! Pray for others as well, that
they may stand firm, and never forget that you are never alone in the
battle. Oh, and by the way, the battle has been completely won by
Jesus Christ the righteous! Stand firm and strong in this
reality! "Fear not, for I am with you," says your God and
Father.
XI. Eschatology and Difficult Daily Living in
Christ
Jesus taught his people that as disciples we must learn to put
our hands to the plow and not look back (Luke 9:62), but to
keep looking forward in our daily walk. What is implicit in this teaching is that
when difficult times come into our lives, it will be easy to look back and
reconsider our commitment to our Savior.
Sometimes, the worries of this life “choke” the growth
as in the parable of the Sower (Matt.
13:1-23). Yet throughout Scripture,
we are reminded of the importance of ever looking forward as pilgrims,
persevering by his grace, no matter how tough times get! Notice how the Luke records Jesus’
words to his disciples.
Luke
17:28-33 28 Likewise, just as it was in
the days of Lot- they were eating and drinking, buying and selling,
planting and building, 29
but on the day when Lot went out from Sodom, fire and sulfur rained from
heaven and destroyed them all- 30
so will it be on the day when the Son of Man is revealed. 31 On that day, let the one
who is on the housetop, with his goods in the house, not come down to take
them away, and likewise let the one who is in the field not turn back. 32 Remember Lot's wife. 33 Whoever seeks to
preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life will keep it.
We are reminded of Lot’s wife who looked back rather than
forward, and the forward-looking-faith of her husband Lot who was depending
on God's promises of redemption (Gen. 19).
We remember Israel in the wilderness and their subsequent history
revealed in Samuel and Kings, as they forgot what they had “seen and
heard”- -they forgot what God
had done for them in their redemption because times got too tough
(Deut. 4). These historical examples
serve as reminders that in this world the people of God will experience
pain, trials, and sufferings, but we are to ever rest in the grip of our
Savior, while keeping our eyes fixed on Him.
As the people of the Living God, we must keep in mind that in this
age we will have tribulation, but Christ has overcome the world (John
16:33). The Apostle Paul told Timothy in his final letter that those
who want to live a godly life will suffer persecution (2 Tim. 3:12). 1 Peter 4:12-13 says:
“Beloved, do not be
surprised at the fiery ordeal which comes upon you to prove you, as though
something strange were happening to you. But rejoice in so far as you
share Christ's sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his
glory is revealed.”
Remember that as aliens and strangers here in this world we are
only guaranteed suffering. If God
should see fit to give us joy and peace in our lives now and then, we
should thank him because we are not of this world. Remember in the difficult, and
oftentimes monotonous, day after day living in our jobs and our
callings that we want to be faithful by his grace, and know that there is
truly more than just this life.
Remember God’s promises when you go through trials
or suffer, and when it does not seem that God is with you.
Remember the promises made to Adam and Eve concerning a Seed to
crush the head of the serpent (Gen. 3:15); to Abraham and to his Seed (Gen.
17:7); to Moses (Ex. 6:7; Dt. 29:13); and to David
(2 Sam. 7:24ff)- - these promises have all been fulfilled according to Jer. 31:1,33; Ezek. 37:23, 36:28 (cf. Acts 2; 7).
And because we live in the Last Days and have a down payment of the
Holy Spirit (2 Cor. 1:20ff), we know
that all of God’s promises will be fully fulfilled when Christ returns for those awaiting his
return.
All of God’s promises are “yes” and
“amen” in Christ Jesus NOW- - we just await the full
restoration of all things in Christ (2 Cor.
1:20). Do not worry about your life, because He Who has promised
is able to keep his promises and to keep you until the Day he returns
(Matt. 6:24-34). You know who you
have believed in and he is able…He has begun a new work in you and
will complete it…Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever…faith
is truly the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not
seen…therefore we walk by faith and not by sight as we await his
return. This is a true and living
eschatology for the people of God living in the Last Days.
How many times in this life do we want to give up? How many times do we pray for
perseverance to continue the race before us? Pray that we would be faithful and
watchful as we await his appearing.
God has called us to jobs, to work and be faithful, but to not
be over-realized in our eschatology.
To be over-realized in our eschatology means to expect ALL of the
blessings of heaven NOW, forgetting that although the present age of sin,
death and suffering is passing away, it will not be completely abolished
until Christ returns again. Therefore, because there is an overlap of
the present age and the Age to Come there is suffering, while at the same
time peace in Jesus Christ!
We must avoid an over-realized eschatology and remember that we
will suffer and be persecuted, and we must try to avoid expecting all the
joy and the peace of paradise NOW (we will enjoy the peace and joy of
the Spirit now, but even this is a foretaste of what is to
come)! We see an unhealthy
over-realized eschatology in our Christian friends who want riches and
fame, healing, and no suffering-
-NOW! We should avoid such a
non-Biblical attitude because it will lead to doubt, disbelief, and even
more pain because we haven't accurately considered the cost of following
Jesus. An over-realized eschatology
is ultimately a misunderstanding of our life in the Kingdom. Yes, we have been given special
blessings NOW like adoption, being made priests of God, we
are a holy nation of kings (1 Pet. 2:5), but we want to remember that
Jesus’ Kingdom is not of this world (John 8:23; 18:36; Rom. 12:2),
and therefore until he returns we are still a pilgrim people of kings
and priests who presently live in tents until we receive our full
inheritance in the New Heavens and New Earth in the Age to Come. Jesus encourages us concerning our
inheritance when he says: “Blessed are the humble for they shall
inherit the earth.”
Even though we know that now we may suffer and be abused and cheated
as disciples of Christ.
Nevertheless, what a privilege that we have been called to live a
life like Christ our LORD.
This may be the “hard teaching” of eschatology, or
of discipleship according to Jesus in the Last Days, but his promises still
stand, His Word is sure, and He establishes us not by might, nor
by power, but by His Spirit (Zech. 4:6).
This helps us to have a faith that is forward looking when Christ
himself will judge the wicked and those who have abused us and also those
who abused him! Our Last Days
declaration to sinners and fools in these last days is: "Beware you
wicked! Repent for the Day of the
LORD is near! Come to the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation!" The tension is real, we truly live in the
Kingdom of God NOW, but we await for all the benefits of this eternal
inheritance to be revealed in the Last Day.
XII. An Eschatological
Prayer for Help in Difficult Daily Living
The following is an
anonymous prayer from a brother in Christ who lived in the 17th
century. Pray this prayer in light of the last study on difficult
daily living in Christ which we will all experience from time to
time. Remember not to be "over-realized" in your
eschatology, or to expect all of the Kingdom blessings NOW, without also
experiencing the difficulties, dangers, and disrespect that may come your way
because of your union with the Living Christ (Matt. 5:11-12; cf. 2 Tim.
2:12).
Neither be
"under-realized" in your eschatology. That is, thinking too lowly of yourself,
lacking confidence in your struggle against the world, the flesh, and the
devil, because you have been seized, apprehended, gripped by God's grace,
united to Jesus Christ, given a portion, or down payment of his Spirit, so
that you do have the power to die to sin and the "old man" and
live unto Christ (back in the day, this was termed "mortification"
and "vivification"; cf. Romans 6:3ff). Over-realized
eschatology wants all of God's Kingdom blessings NOW, while under-realized
eschatology communicates a "dirty sinner", kind of
"worm theology", that often seems without any present hope
in the Spirit! We pray for balanced living in these Last Days, or
even better, we pray for an eschatological way of understanding our living,
our pilgrim journey, as that which is focused back on the finished work of
Christ on our behalf, our firm standing in Him as our righteous,
sanctification and redemption, and our great and Living Hope Who will
return for us when we least expect it! Let us remember that no matter
the situation, HE will never leave us, nor forsake us!
Thou Great Three-One,
Author of all blessings
I enjoy,
of all I hope for,
Thou hast taught me
that neither the
experience of present evils,
nor the remembrances of
former sins,
nor the remonstrances of friends,
will or can affect a
sinner's heart,
except you vouchsafe to
reveal your grace
and quicken the dead in
sin
by the effectual working
of your Spirit's power.
You have shown me
that the sensible
effusions of divine love
in the soul are superior
to and distinct from
bodily health,
and that often times
spiritual comforts are
at their highest when physical
well-being is
at its lowest.
You have given me the
ordinance of song
as a means of grace;
Fit me to bear my part
in that music ever new,
which elect angels and
saints made perfect
now sing before your
throne and before the Lamb.
I bless you for
tempering every distress with joy;
too much of the former
might weigh me down,
too much of the latter
might puff me up;
You are wise to give me
a taste of both.
I love you
for giving me clusters
of grapes
in the wilderness,
and drops of heavenly
wine
that set me longing to
have my fill.
Apart from you I quickly
die,
bereft of you I starve,
far from you I thirst
and droop;
But you are all I need.
Let me continually grasp
the promise,
'I will leave your nor
forsake you'."
XIII. How Should We then Live in the Last Days?
According the verses below from Hebrews 10:35-11:6, those
united to Jesus Christ have a persevering faith that is ever looking
back to the completed work of Christ, experiencing presently the power of
the Holy Spirit daily in their lives, and are seeking the great reward that
is to come when our King and Savior returns for us!
Hebrews
10:35 - 11:6 (ESV) 35 Therefore do not throw away your
confidence, which has a great reward. 36 For you have need of
endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may
receive what is promised. 37 For, "Yet a little while,
and the coming one will come and will not delay; 38 but my
righteous one shall live by faith, and if he shrinks back, my soul has no
pleasure in him." 39 But we are not of those who shrink
back and are destroyed, but of those who have faith and preserve their
souls. 11:1 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the
conviction of things not seen. 2 For by it the people of old
received their commendation. 3 By faith we understand that the
universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made
out of things that are visible...6 And without faith it is
impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe
that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.
We want to remember from our previous study that Biblical
eschatology is not so much about finding the future in the
present (that is, seeking after a knowledge of when and where Jesus will
return), but it's about having the future find us in the present (that
is, informing and strengthening us in our faith, and helping us to
persevere each day by his grace, looking forward to our eternal inheritance
in his presence! In light of Hebrews 10 and 11, there are a few
implications that we ought to consider to instruct us in these Last Days.
First of all, we must learn to lose our rights in this world,
because our “Kingdom rights” are no good in this fallen
world. Our great "abiding
possession" and our citizenship are in heaven (Heb.10:34; cf. Phil.
3:20-21). We should not presume to
think we have any rights at all here in this present age, when we consider
that our LORD himself, the Great King and LORD over heaven and earth did
not try to assert his rights over others.
Our Lord Jesus taught us to turn the other cheek as well and to
forgive those who mistreat us and abuse us- - it is God’s to avenge
us (cf. Hebrews 10:30-34; Romans 12:17-21)! Knowing that now we may
suffer and be abused and cheated, but what a privilege that we have been
called to live a life like Christ our LORD.
As the people of God, we truly have an abiding possession and
are citizens in the Kingdom of God now, but we await for all the benefits
of this eternal inheritance to be revealed on the Last Day.
Secondly, we should remind ourselves that waiting on
Christ’s return does not mean packing a bag and sitting at the side
of the road awaiting his return (like some poor souls have done in the past
who have had someone predict Jesus' return, and some of the misguided
folk literally sold all that they owned, all that the Lord has
provided for them during their journey here. Some in the past have
dishonestly charged up credit cards, thinking that they would never get the
billing statement from their creditors because Armageddon would burn them
up. This sadness has happened in America as recently as
1994).
“Wait upon the LORD,” the Psalmist says. This does not mean that to wait means to
do nothing but “Christian activity” or “Christian
ministry.” He calls as many to
secular tasks as he does "full-time service" in the church. Both are vocations, or callings to
be accomplished under Christ our head. Neither is greater than the
other in significance to the LORD.
Waiting upon the LORD means being faithful and ready to do
Christ’s work in whatever area he has called you no matter how
boring, how monotonous, or how tiring it may seem to you. Christ’s parable of the faithful
steward in Matthew 24 is a steward, or servant who is faithful in
doing the job Christ has called him to do while he perseveres in this
present age by an eschatological faith.
Waiting on the LORD by faith in the Book of Hebrews
is describing a resting in the peace we have with our Creator and
God, but it does not mean just doing nothing. It means being faithful by faith no matter how much
we do not feel like it, and how difficult the circumstances may be. It means getting up another Monday
morning to go into our jobs which can sometimes feel meaningless; it means
loving our brothers and our wives, as Christ loved the Church; it means
loving our enemies and those who use and despise us just one more day;
it means being faithful whether we ever receive recognition or praise of
men ever in our lives! Whether or
not anyone ever recognizes our faith, the LORD is watching, his eyes are on
all people and he will reward you for your faithfulness. In fact, he will give you the grace and
perseverance to make it another day.
Whatever you pain or your suffering, hang in there, the LORD is
faithful! This is the teaching of
Biblical eschatology!
XIV. What are We Waiting For?
We are ultimately waiting to be brought back into the Garden, into
Paradise, in the Presence of God, released eternally from our sins and from
death, hell, and the Devil, and into the wide open and inviting arms of our
Lord Jesus. Where we were formerly kept out of the presence of
God and from eating of the Tree of Life by two cherubim who held swords of
fire and judgment, soon we shall be greeted by a heavenly host of
angels. On the Last Day when Jesus
stands upon the earth, the angels will greet us with good news in the
same way as the Apostles were greeted at the tomb of the resurrection! Rather than hearing “He is not
here,” as the apostles heard at the tomb, we will hear “He
is here- - Blessed are all
those whose names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.” And our Lord will say “Well done my
good and faithful servants!”
In Gen. 3:23,24- The LORD drove Adam and Eve from the Garden of God.
In Revelation 21:3 we hear the wonderful news of “Behold, the
dwelling of God is with man!”
Revelation 22:14 says “Blessed are those who wash their robes,
that they may have the right to the tree of life and that they may enter
the city by the gates.”
“Come, Lord Jesus,” that is a true eschatology for
living the Christian life in the Last Days.
We can enter God’s presence through the blood of Christ
taught to us in the Book of Hebrews (Heb. 10:19-23ff), so let us hold fast the
confession of our hope without wavering, for he who has promised is
faithful. Let us also consider how to stir up one another to love and
good works- - not neglecting to meet together (as some are in the habit of
doing), but encouraging one another- - all the more as you see the Day
drawing near. Remember what the
Apostle Paul said in 1 Cor. 15:58:
“Stand firm; let nothing move you. Always give yourselves to the work of the
Lord for you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.”
Click here for more study on Suffering and
Eschatology from the Book of Hebrews
FOR FURTHER READING ON "LIVING IN LIGHT
OF BIBLICAL ESCHATOLOGY"
John Calvin, Book III- Institutes
of the Christian Religion
Herman Bavinck- The Last
Things
Sinclair Ferguson- The Holy
Spirit
__________. The Christian Life
Anthony Hoekema- The
Bible and the Future
Keith A. Mathison- Given
for You: Reclaiming Calvin’s Doctrine of the Lord’s Supper
Herman Ridderbos- Paul: An
Outline of his Theology; The Coming of the Kingdom
R. C. Sproul- The Last Days According to Jesus
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