Calvinism’s Big Picture
Originally published January 30, 2014
TANC dissects a lot of Reformed theology, but I want to take an opportunity here to remind people of the big picture. In the infancy of Christ’s assembly, Christianity was called “The Way.” There are only two beliefs in the world: those who facilitate God’s way, and those who divert from it. Following God is a way of life—it’s a lifestyle.
The kingdom of darkness employs many, many devices for diverting people from the way. Major devices, perhaps the primary ones, are false mediators, fear, compulsion, and philosophy.
But let’s not forget the major objective: diverting from the way. Man must be shown the way by God, and God has done this with man face to face, and through His written law. When we speak of “law,” we are really speaking of God’s full counsel to man. The law shows us how to be reconciled to God, or justified, and also instructs us on how to follow God—that’s sanctification. It is also God’s full philosophical statement to man including metaphysics, epistemology, ethics, and politics.
This is important because people will interpret life through the prism of what they believe to be reality; for instance, what we believe about man will dictate what we accept intellectually in regard to mediation. Does God speak directly to man, or has God preordained a special class of people to interpret reality for the masses? Christ promised that those who seek Him will find Him; can you seek Him directly, or must you seek Him through men that have some gift for interpreting reality?
The salesman who sells a certain reality dictates outcome. And be sure of this: Calvinism primarily seeks to sell a certain reality that assures the outcome they want. Think not that Calvinism is primarily a doctrinal concern; the Reformers created a certain way to interpret reality itself. The Calvin Institutes is first and foremost a philosophical book.
The Bible offers very deep analysis on this, and also very simple analysis. You can look at the big picture and be satisfied with that, but if you want to go deep, the opportunity is there. This post is about the big picture, but the problem we have today in Christianity is the following: institutionalized American Europeanized Christianity is so mindless that the doorway to understanding the thumbnail is a “big theological word.”
We don’t need none of dim big fancy words cause we have Jesus. You hain’t anybody because you throw around 50-cent theo-ology words. Jesus said to believe like a little children.
And the Reformers smile. This kind of caste system comprised of ignorant spiritual peasants being led by an enlightened class is exactly what the Reformers had in mind. It is absolutely amazing: I have had people with doctorate degrees in some liberal art complain to me about using big theology words in my teachings; words like justification and sanctification that are actually IN the Bible! When you go to a Catholic Mass there isn’t a Bible in the place, and the Protestant fruit doesn’t fall far from that tree. Protestant Bible-carrying is more symbolic than substantive. The doctrinal illiteracy of our day is testimony to that fact.
I have friends who would say this reality was created by ignorance of philosophy itself, in other words, the Reformers were able to create this caste system because they were primarily philosophers. I would protest that point little. For those who didn’t buy that package, the Reformers utilized the force of state. This was a complete control package. The Reformers sought to control the masses by selling a certain caste reality, and had those who wouldn’t buy the package executed by the state. This is why America was founded by philosophers—not theologians. Sorry.
Nevertheless, this is about the big picture, and in order to understand the big picture, we will need to understand three big theology words that are in the Bible: justification, sanctification, and antinomianism. If you want to understand the very basics of spiritual warfare, you will need to understand these three words. Sorry.
Antinomianism is the English translation of a Greek word that is used throughout the New Testament, “anomia.” It means, “anti (against) law.” More specifically, it means against God’s law. Interestingly enough, in the book of Revelation, we find a church state ruled by “the man of anomia” (2Thess 2:1-12). The Bible pretty much begins with mankind being diverted away from the way, and ends the same way. It begins with a “mediator” who proposes to explain to us what God is really saying, and ends the same way. This is the big cheese of all sword wielding mediators, those who we affectionately call “philosopher kings.”
They will use every trick in the book to keep you from The Way. This necessarily entails separating you from the law of God. This necessarily entails making you an antinomian. This isn’t a difficult task in our day because most Christians don’t know what an antinomian is. Many are functioning antinomians, and have no time for the big word that describes them; the word in the Bible that the Holy Spirit uses to identify them.
And because they are also ignorant of the other two words, justification and sanctification, they can denounce antinomianism while being one, because the pastor says it’s a big word they can’t understand. They only need to take his word for it; it’s bad, and we are not antinomian.
Yes and no. Antinomianism is a good thing in regard to justification, but a bad thing in regard to sanctification. Let’s compare some Bible verses. First, Matthew 5:17…
Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.
And now Romans 10:4…
For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.
And Ephesians 2:15…
by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace,
Wait a minute, which is it? Christ said He didn’t come to abolish the law, and then Paul states that He did come to abolish the law. This would appear to be a direct contradiction—if you don’t understand the difference between justification and sanctification. Note in Rom 10:4 that Christ is the end of the law …”for rightousness.”
In the Bible, righteousness, justification, and salvation are practically synonymous. You can’t be saved without being justified, and in justification we are declared righteous. Christ is the end of the law for salvation. Antinomianism in regard to salvation is a good thing.
Now let’s go back to Matthew 5:17. Christ said He came to fulfill the law, and the following two verses tell us in what regard He is speaking of:
For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished. 19 Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
Putting verses 17-19 together, we find that Christ came to fulfill the law through us…”in the kingdom.” One speaks of salvation, the other speaks of kingdom living or The Way. This is confirmed by Romans 8:1-8…
There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. 3 For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, 4 in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. 5 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. 6 For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. 7 For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. 8 Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
Antinomianism is good in regard to justification because in justification the law condemns and is the “law of sin and death.” Now, to those who are in Christ, the law is the “law of the Spirit of life” and we are able to love Christ and please Him by keeping the law. Such will be “called great in the kingdom of heaven.”
But not only is antinomianism a bad thing in sanctification, it calls into question a proper understanding of the gospel. Why is this? Because it believes that the law is not changed from the law of sin and death to the law of the Spirit of life at salvation. Antinomianism in sanctification does not acknowledge that the believer’s relationship to the law has changed upon being saved. This proposes that the believer cannot please God (2Cor 5:9), and therefore does not fit the definition of a believer. Not only that, the law of sin and death is categorized with being under law while the law of the Spirit of life is categorized, under grace (Rom 6:14). No recognition in regard to a changed relationship to the law leaves the “believer” in the same category of the unregenerate; i.e., under law.
Calvinism gets around all of this via a different angle: Christ fulfills the law for us; that’s how He is the end of it (Calvin Institutes 3.14.9-11). Calvinists claim to be against antinomianism because the law is the standard for justification. They point to those who say the law has been done away with altogether as antinomians. “No” they say, “the law is good because it is God’s standard for righteousness.” So, the only change is the idea that Christ fulfills the law in our place, and we can therefore be declared righteous. The “believers” ability to obey the law is not changed in salvation, only his/her belief that we are considered justified because Christ keeps the law for us.
Therefore, any attempt by us to keep the law in sanctification is synonymous with keeping the law for our justification. What ensues is sanctification by faith alone as a “true” gospel that maintains our salvation. This is antinomianism in sanctification, and righteousness/justification based on the law. The Reformed negative definition of antinomianism is the idea that the law is not needed for justification. They refute that, but that is exactly what the Bible teaches—justification is apart from the law. That is the point Paul made to the Galatians in regard to Abraham being declared righteous 430 years before the law. “The Promise” was not based on any law keeping, and there is no law that can give life for justification regardless of who keeps it. The standard for righteousness is God Himself, not the law. Abraham “believed God” and that was credited to him as righteousness 430 years before the Law of Moses.
Calvinism makes justification’s standard the law and biblically defines believers as unregenerate due to their inability to keep the law in kingdom living. The position that saints are unable to keep the law in a way that pleases God goes part and parcel with the idea that believers are unable to participate in The Way. The Way is redefined as a life that lives out sanctification by the same gospel that saved us, and by returning to that same gospel over and over again, the perfect obedience of Christ to the law is imputed to our sanctification and we remain justified (Ibid, esp. sec. 11).
Hence, many verses that speak of Christ being our justification are applied to sanctification/kingdom living/The Way. Other verses speak of our success in sanctification only being possible because of Christ’s sacrifice, but are posited as proof that Christ obeys the law for us. This makes law the basis of justification—no matter who keeps it. It also leaves “Christians” by definition as biblically unregenerate—they are still under law and unable to keep it as The Way.
Calvinism is just another road leading to the gargantuan antinomian blitzkrieg predicted to occur in the last days. An inability to keep the law is an inability to participate in The Way, and the Bible is clear, those who don’t get it will be disposed of in the usual way. That is the Calvinism of the past, would be the Calvinism of the present if not for the American Revolution, and will play its part in the end time tyranny predicted in Revelation.
That’s Calvinism’s big picture.
paul
Calvinism’s Big Picture
TANC dissects a lot of Reformed theology, but I want to take an opportunity here to remind people of the big picture. In the infancy of Christ’s assembly, Christianity was called “The Way.” There are only two beliefs in the world: those who facilitate God’s way, and those who divert from it. Following God is a way of life—it’s a lifestyle.
The kingdom of darkness employs many, many devices for diverting people from the way. Major devices, perhaps the primary ones, are false mediators, fear, compulsion, and philosophy.
But let’s not forget the major objective: diverting from the way. Man must be shown the way by God, and God has done this with man face to face, and through His written law. When we speak of “law,” we are really speaking of God’s full counsel to man. The law shows us how to be reconciled to God, or justified, and also instructs us on how to follow God—that’s sanctification. It is also God’s full philosophical statement to man including metaphysics, epistemology, ethics, and politics.
This is important because people will interpret life through the prism of what they believe to be reality; for instance, what we believe about man will dictate what we accept intellectually in regard to mediation. Does God speak directly to man, or has God preordained a special class of people to interpret reality for the masses? Christ promised that those who seek Him will find Him; can you seek Him directly, or must you seek Him through men that have some gift for interpreting reality?
The salesman who sells a certain reality dictates outcome. And be sure of this: Calvinism primarily seeks to sell a certain reality that assures the outcome they want. Think not that Calvinism is primarily a doctrinal concern; the Reformers created a certain way to interpret reality itself. The Calvin Institutes is first and foremost a philosophical book.
The Bible offers very deep analysis on this, and also very simple analysis. You can look at the big picture and be satisfied with that, but if you want to go deep, the opportunity is there. This post is about the big picture, but the problem we have today in Christianity is the following: institutionalized American Europeanized Christianity is so mindless that the doorway to understanding the thumbnail is a “big theological word.”
We don’t need none of dim big fancy words cause we have Jesus. You hain’t anybody because you throw around 50-cent theo-ology words. Jesus said to believe like a little children.
And the Reformers smile. This kind of caste system comprised of ignorant spiritual peasants being led by an enlightened class is exactly what the Reformers had in mind. It is absolutely amazing: I have had people with doctorate degrees in some liberal art complain to me about using big theology words in my teachings; words like justification and sanctification that are actually IN the Bible! When you go to a Catholic Mass there isn’t a Bible in the place, and the Protestant fruit doesn’t fall far from that tree. Protestant Bible-carrying is more symbolic than substantive. The doctrinal illiteracy of our day is testimony to that fact.
I have friends who would say this reality was created by ignorance of philosophy itself, in other words, the Reformers were able to create this caste system because they were primarily philosophers. I would protest that point little. For those who didn’t buy that package, the Reformers utilized the force of state. This was a complete control package. The Reformers sought to control the masses by selling a certain caste reality, and had those who wouldn’t buy the package executed by the state. This is why America was founded by philosophers—not theologians. Sorry.
Nevertheless, this is about the big picture, and in order to understand the big picture, we will need to understand three big theology words that are in the Bible: justification, sanctification, and antinomianism. If you want to understand the very basics of spiritual warfare, you will need to understand these three words. Sorry.
Antinomianism is the English translation of a Greek word that is used throughout the New Testament, “anomia.” It means, “anti (against) law.” More specifically, it means against God’s law. Interestingly enough, in the book of Revelation, we find a church state ruled by “the man of anomia” (2Thess 2:1-12). The Bible pretty much begins with mankind being diverted away from the way, and ends the same way. It begins with a “mediator” who proposes to explain to us what God is really saying, and ends the same way. This is the big cheese of all sword wielding mediators, those who we affectionately call “philosopher kings.”
They will use every trick in the book to keep you from The Way. This necessarily entails separating you from the law of God. This necessarily entails making you an antinomian. This isn’t a difficult task in our day because most Christians don’t know what an antinomian is. Many are functioning antinomians, and have no time for the big word that describes them; the word in the Bible that the Holy Spirit uses to identify them.
And because they are also ignorant of the other two words, justification and sanctification, they can denounce antinomianism while being one, because the pastor says it’s a big word they can’t understand. They only need to take his word for it; it’s bad, and we are not antinomian.
Yes and no. Antinomianism is a good thing in regard to justification, but a bad thing in regard to sanctification. Let’s compare some Bible verses. First, Matthew 5:17…
Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.
And now Romans 10:4…
For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.
And Ephesians 2:15…
by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace,
Wait a minute, which is it? Christ said He didn’t come to abolish the law, and then Paul states that He did come to abolish the law. This would appear to be a direct contradiction—if you don’t understand the difference between justification and sanctification. Note in Rom 10:4 that Christ is the end of the law …”for rightousness.”
In the Bible, righteousness, justification, and salvation are practically synonymous. You can’t be saved without being justified, and in justification we are declared righteous. Christ is the end of the law for salvation. Antinomianism in regard to salvation is a good thing.
Now let’s go back to Matthew 5:17. Christ said He came to fulfill the law, and the following two verses tell us in what regard He is speaking of:
For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished. 19 Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
Putting verses 17-19 together, we find that Christ came to fulfill the law through us…”in the kingdom.” One speaks of salvation, the other speaks of kingdom living or The Way. This is confirmed by Romans 8:1-8…
There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. 3 For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, 4 in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. 5 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. 6 For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. 7 For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. 8 Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
Antinomianism is good in regard to justification because in justification the law condemns and is the “law of sin and death.” Now, to those who are in Christ, the law is the “law of the Spirit of life” and we are able to love Christ and please Him by keeping the law. Such will be “called great in the kingdom of heaven.”
But not only is antinomianism a bad thing in sanctification, it calls into question a proper understanding of the gospel. Why is this? Because it believes that the law is not changed from the law of sin and death to the law of the Spirit of life at salvation. Antinomianism in sanctification does not acknowledge that the believer’s relationship to the law has changed upon being saved. This proposes that the believer cannot please God (2Cor 5:9), and therefore does not fit the definition of a believer. Not only that, the law of sin and death is categorized with being under law while the law of the Spirit of life is categorized, under grace (Rom 6:14). No recognition in regard to a changed relationship to the law leaves the “believer” in the same category of the unregenerate; i.e., under law.
Calvinism gets around all of this via a different angle: Christ fulfills the law for us; that’s how He is the end of it (Calvin Institutes 3.14.9-11). Calvinists claim to be against antinomianism because the law is the standard for justification. They point to those who say the law has been done away with altogether as antinomians. “No” they say, “the law is good because it is God’s standard for righteousness.” So, the only change is the idea that Christ fulfills the law in our place, and we can therefore be declared righteous. The “believers” ability to obey the law is not changed in salvation, only his/her belief that we are considered justified because Christ keeps the law for us.
Therefore, any attempt by us to keep the law in sanctification is synonymous with keeping the law for our justification. What ensues is sanctification by faith alone as a “true” gospel that maintains our salvation. This is antinomianism in sanctification, and righteousness/justification based on the law. The Reformed negative definition of antinomianism is the idea that the law is not needed for justification. They refute that, but that is exactly what the Bible teaches—justification is apart from the law. That is the point Paul made to the Galatians in regard to Abraham being declared righteous 430 years before the law. “The Promise” was not based on any law keeping, and there is no law that can give life for justification regardless of who keeps it. The standard for righteousness is God Himself, not the law. Abraham “believed God” and that was credited to him as righteousness 430 years before the Law of Moses.
Calvinism makes justification’s standard the law and biblically defines believers as unregenerate due to their inability to keep the law in kingdom living. The position that saints are unable to keep the law in a way that pleases God goes part and parcel with the idea that believers are unable to participate in The Way. The Way is redefined as a life that lives out sanctification by the same gospel that saved us, and by returning to that same gospel over and over again, the perfect obedience of Christ to the law is imputed to our sanctification and we remain justified (Ibid, esp. sec. 11).
Hence, many verses that speak of Christ being our justification are applied to sanctification/kingdom living/The Way. Other verses speak of our success in sanctification only being possible because of Christ’s sacrifice, but are posited as proof that Christ obeys the law for us. This makes law the basis of justification—no matter who keeps it. It also leaves “Christians” by definition as biblically unregenerate—they are still under law and unable to keep it as The Way.
Calvinism is just another road leading to the gargantuan antinomian blitzkrieg predicted to occur in the last days. An inability to keep the law is an inability to participate in The Way, and the Bible is clear, those who don’t get it will be disposed of in the usual way. That is the Calvinism of the past, would be the Calvinism of the present if not for the American Revolution, and will play its part in the end time tyranny predicted in Revelation.
That’s Calvinism’s big picture.
paul
A City Built By God: Revelation 21 And 22
In Hebrews 11:8-10, we read the following:
“By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going. By faith he went to live in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise.
For he was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God.”
Abraham knew the promised land was just a pre-fillment of a better promise from God, so he lived there “as” an alien would. As Christians, what are we ultimately looking for in God’s plan for the end times? This may surprise you, but it’s not the rapture. We read the following in 1Peter 3:13;
“But according to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.”
Both Peter and Abraham pointed to a singular promise. Abraham called it a city, Peter called it a “new heavens and new earth.” Peter also said to live in this present age as “sojourners and pilgrims [1Peter 2:11].”
Now we read the following in Revelation 21:1,2;
“Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.”
There it is. Two men who lived 4000 years apart looking for the same city, a city built by God. People ask, “what will Heaven be like?” Really, it’s the wrong question. The right question that can be answered within the confines of God’s revelation to us is “what will God’s city be like?” Revelation 21continues in verse 3:
“And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God.”
Furthermore, Revelation 21: 22 says the following;
“And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb.”
“Noooooowwwwww wait a minute here Paul, that’s clearly all allegory!” Oh really? You sure about that? Let me give my literal understanding of this passage and then we will consider an allegorical approach:
1] There is going to be a “new” heavens [plural] and “new” earth [singular]. This city built by God comes down from Heaven and is on earth. Weird, but that’s what it says.
2] This is when all sin and all suffering is forever eliminated: “He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away[vs 4].” This is opposed to the previous age of the Millennial Kingdom that will be bliss compared to this age, but will be occupied with mortals. That is why Christ will have to rule it with a “rod of iron.” The second coming of Christ at the end of the Tribulation Period [which precedes the Millennial Kingdom] and the putting down of the rebellion at the end of the earthly, 1000 year rein of Christ from David’s throne [the Millennial Kingdom] are clearly two separate events [compare 20:7-1 and 19:11-16].
3] Verses 10-14 of chapter 21 give an overview of the city and then 21:15-22:1-5 give the specific details, a strange grammatical structure for an allegorical approach. It is called the holy city of Jerusalem and comes “down” to earth “out” of Heaven “from” God. So in other words, it’s already up there and the Holy Spirit goes out of his way to make it clear that God is coming down from Heaven to dwell with mankind. The Holy Spirit states it three different ways: Down to earth, out of Heaven, and from God. It’s deliberately redundant so nobody misses the point.
The angel takes the author, the Apostle John, on a great high mountain to get a big picture of the city coming down from heaven. It has the glory of God and the brilliance of many jewels, a great high wall, and 12 gates guarded by angels. The gates also have the names of the 12 tribes of Israel. John also specifies that there are 3 gates on each of the 4 sides. So far, the city is named “holy Jerusalem” and we have 12 gates named after the 12 tribes of Israel, not a pretty picture for reformed theologians.
Also, apart from the wall being very high, it has 12 foundations underneath it and each one has the name of either one, or all twelve Apostles.
Starting in verse 15, we begin to get some of the details from an angel who’s doing the measurements.
4] The city is 1,380 miles high, 1,380 miles wide, and 1,380 miles long.
5] The wall is measured in cubits, an ancient measurement from a man’s elbow to the tip of his middle finger. John mentions that it is the same for angels as it is for man, indicating a strong resemblance in build between the two and clarification concerning the fact that the cubit would be the same. Again, why would that be important in regard to allegory? But I digress, 144 cubits is about 2,500 feet or about the same height as a 250 story building. Ever been to the Sears building in Chicago? More than twice that high. Any questions? This is probably not including the 12 foundations underneath the walls.
6] The wall and foundations are built with several kinds of rare stones which are named specifically. The wall is of one kind of jewel but the foundation is of various sorts of brilliant, colorful stones.
7] The street [singular as well as interesting] and buildings of the city are built of pure gold which is also transparent like glass. Nothing in that city needs to be covered up. One will be able to see all of the activity from one end of the city to the other.
8] Each gate is cut from a solid pearl and the gates remain open at all times.
9] There is no temple in the city. The temple is God and Christ. Neither is there any night. The light of the new heavens and new earth is supplied by the glory of God and the Lamb.
10] There will be kings and nations that will bring honor and glory into the city. All subjects are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.
11] Moving into chapter 22, there is a river of life flowing from God’s throne through the middle of the one street and it is some pretty good look’in water.
12] Somehow, the tree of life is on both sides of the river that flows through the middle of the one street in this 2 million square miles of city. The tree has 12 different types of fruit.
Seriously, if that’s all allegory, what would it mean? The theologians of our day cannot even articulate
what our role is in the sanctification process and how it’s experienced, much less all of that. Besides, what are you going to do with the tree of life spoken of in 22:2,3? If that’s not allegory, why would the rest, being in the same context, ie, the city, be allegory? If the tree here is allegory, what about the tree in the garden?, is that allegory? Why would a tree in a garden be any more or less allegorical than a tree in a city? And if it is, then what was the real sin that Adam and Eve committed? And if it wasn’t as stated, ie, eating from the tree, why wouldn’t God plainly state what the sin was?, especially since he specifically ask Adam later if that’s what he did! Did God ask Adam an allegorical question concerning his allegorical sin?
In our present day, I sense a great disconnect in the understanding of how end times truth empowers us for sanctified living. The Scriptures allude to this often, and I must confess, I am seeking for God to open my eyes more to the understanding of it. If ALL scripture is “profitable” to equip for every good work, then there must be a vital connection between end times knowledge and sanctification that pleases God. Some estimate that eschatology is 25% of scripture. Is today’s church only utilizing three fourths of the Bible to equip the saints? Paul said he did not fail to teach the “whole counsel of God.”
Where is our earnest expectation of a sudden and unexpected return of Christ? The Apostles and Christ
seem to emphasize such a mentality. Is our focus on a city built by God, or a house built by Drees in the suburbs?
The other night, I was watching a cable network show called “Gangland.” As I watched, the show seemed to glorify gangs while presenting a hopeless picture in regard to controlling them. As the show continued to delve deeper and deeper into their evil and proud exploits, I thought about that city where evil will be vanguished. Perhaps gang members need to hear more about that glorious city lit by the glory of the Lamb as compared to the city they live in and the difference in fate regarding the dwellers thereof.
Jesus also says there will be no more suffering in that city. Are these some pieces that may lead to understanding? Is the answer our focus and a willingness to confront evil and embrace suffering? Does that enhance our earnest expectation for the city built by God? I think that’s some of it. I also believe this: How the story of redemptive history ends is objective and not open to nebulous endeavors, for our wonderful lord spoke these words to John in regard to the truth about his city: “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” [Revelation 21:5]
paul
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