Praise God for the timeless message of the Book of Revelation, and the New Testament, and the whole Bible: there is a glorious age to come. The more persecuted the church has been, the more that hope has been 'good' news.
But the fact that it's 'news' (it's not just a forecast, it's also 'news') also means the kingdom has already been inaugurated in some sense - even though we still wait for His second coming and kingdom with patience. Spiritually it's already a quite-different - and better - state of affairs right now than it was back in Old Covenant times. That's the 'news' part - the 'good news'. So there's that.
Yet as wonderful as this foretaste of the age to come can be, it seems there was still to be at least some sort of final showdown with the devil, before the End, no matter what view of Revelation one takes.
No matter what that was going to look like, the last enemy that shall be destroyed is death itself. That will require nothing short of a supernatural intervention by God every bit as supernatural and interventional as Jesus' own resurrection from the dead. Reversing death isn't something that can be achieved by just doing cosmetic touchups to this present world - it will mean a whole new world!
Only the born-again shall see the kingdom of God, Jesus told a leader in Israel. Peter said only righteousness shall dwell in that new earth.
Jesus Christ's resurrection from the dead, after His crucifixion for our sins, is the beginning of that new creation. We who believe are already experiencing resurrection-life spiritually, by the Holy Spirit - if any man is in Christ, he's a new creature. And there has been an overflow of that into the world - opening the eyes of the blind; setting the bruised prisoners free. And on the last day physical creation itself will see resurrection! Then God shall wipe away all tears from our eyes; and He will be all in all.
All of that together is the 'gospel' - the gospel 'of the kingdom' - already now inaugurated; making its impact in the world; but yet-to-be consummated, at Christ's second coming - the message of all prophets and holy men since the world began.
Praise the Lord!
But the fact that it's 'news' (it's not just a forecast, it's also 'news') also means the kingdom has already been inaugurated in some sense - even though we still wait for His second coming and kingdom with patience. Spiritually it's already a quite-different - and better - state of affairs right now than it was back in Old Covenant times. That's the 'news' part - the 'good news'. So there's that.
Yet as wonderful as this foretaste of the age to come can be, it seems there was still to be at least some sort of final showdown with the devil, before the End, no matter what view of Revelation one takes.
No matter what that was going to look like, the last enemy that shall be destroyed is death itself. That will require nothing short of a supernatural intervention by God every bit as supernatural and interventional as Jesus' own resurrection from the dead. Reversing death isn't something that can be achieved by just doing cosmetic touchups to this present world - it will mean a whole new world!
Only the born-again shall see the kingdom of God, Jesus told a leader in Israel. Peter said only righteousness shall dwell in that new earth.
Jesus Christ's resurrection from the dead, after His crucifixion for our sins, is the beginning of that new creation. We who believe are already experiencing resurrection-life spiritually, by the Holy Spirit - if any man is in Christ, he's a new creature. And there has been an overflow of that into the world - opening the eyes of the blind; setting the bruised prisoners free. And on the last day physical creation itself will see resurrection! Then God shall wipe away all tears from our eyes; and He will be all in all.
All of that together is the 'gospel' - the gospel 'of the kingdom' - already now inaugurated; making its impact in the world; but yet-to-be consummated, at Christ's second coming - the message of all prophets and holy men since the world began.
Praise the Lord!
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