The Future Revealed
Tags: The Future Revealed
The Future Revealed
The sufferings of this present time cannot be compared with the glory of God
which shall be revealed to us.
As we call out to our Father in heaven for His Kingdom to come and His
will to be done on earth as it is in heaven and through the Holy Spirit we
call Him, ‘Abba, Daddy’, He hears and answers us. As we suffer with Jesus, we
shall be glorified with Him. (Romans 8:17b).
We will enter into His liberty and glory as the children of God. His glory is
manifested in suffering at this time. He chose to suffer for our sakes and our
suffering for His sake is the glory of God hidden in suffering is revealed and
leads into eternal joyous life with Him. This future is the glorious
resurrected eternal happy life with God.
Here is what St. Paul says:
” I want to know Christ and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship
of His sufferings by becoming like Him at His death, if somehow I may attain
the resurrection from the dead. (Philippians 3;10-11).
The full revelation of the liberty and the glory of the sons of God will be
at the resurrection when the redemption of our bodies will happen.
Then, the creation which has been in bondage to death and decay will be
set free.
‘For the earnest expectation of the creature waits for the manifestation
of the sons of God.’
The inner peace we have in our communion with God is what the creation
craves. Indeed every human being craves this communion with the hidden
and unknown God. This craving is intrinsic to their being. The quest for the
outer universe, the deep oceans and highest mountains, the desire to
explore the secrets of the universe, even at its highest peak cannot fulfill
the true yearning and inner thirst for meaning. We find in nature a deep
craving for the manifestation of the liberty and glory of the sons of God,
because the creature was subject to vanity since God subjected it to
futility so that every creature would expect in hope of the escape from
corruption and decay into the liberty of the glory of the children of God.
Nature everywhere speaks to us of a desperate struggle for survival.
This desperate struggle ends in despair unless what we are saying is true.
This struggle is vain and futile unless the future resurrection is true.
The struggle is useless and meaningless, indeed existence is hopeless
and pointless unless what we are saying here is true about the future of
mankind and nature.
This bondage to corruption talked about here is the finiteness of life and the
inevitable death and decay of every creature. The end of every human
enterprise would be futility unless what we are saying here is true.
The creature is not willing to be subject to vanity. In fact great attempts are
made to deny this vanity. But the creature was made subject to futility,
not willingly, but by reason of Him Who has subjected the same in hope.
God has subjected the creature to futility, so that the creature would hope.
Jesus is the answer to our yearnings, our questions, our dilemmas.
The Fall caused death and decay, strife and separation, sickness and
suffering. The Hope of the resurrection and union between man and God
is fulfilled through the Cross and Resurrection of Jesus the Christ.
If we are aware of our mortality we know we need Him. If we know we
are in bondage to futility, we know we need Him. If we understand the
predicament of the tangible universe, we know we need Him.
His promise is new life for the new man, a new creation, the new heaven
and the new earth. In this we rejoice and we anticipate the liberation of
the entire creation from futility. While awaiting our transformation the
entire creation groans in labor pains together until now, because of the
separation inflicted on it at the Fall. The creature sighs for the glory that
shall be revealed to us. What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the human
heart conceived, what God has prepared for those who love Him, these
things God has revealed to us through His Spirit; for the Spirit searches
everything, even the deep things of God. For what human being knows what
is truly human except the human spirit that is within? So also no one
comprehends what is truly God’s except the Spirit of God. ( I. Corinthians
2;9-12).
We also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, we ourselves also groan
within ourselves, waiting for our adoption, that is the redemption of our
body. We know we are saved by Jesus Christ and we now have the first-
fruits of the Spirit. We have received our freedom in Him. The Spirit bears
witness that we are children of God. The Spirit is poured out in our hearts
whereby we cry, ‘Abba,Daddy!’ Jesus Christ has made us partakers of the
divine nature. Hope that is seen is not hope. But we are saved by this hope
that is unseen. The unseen fact of who we are in Jesus Christ. The unseen
reality of our redemption. The unseen future which awaits all nature. We
have received the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, the Spirit of adoption,
the Spirit Who raised Jesus from the dead. We have this hope, as an anchor
of our souls.
“For God is not unjust; He will not overlook your work and the love you
showed for His sake in serving the saints, as you still do. And we want each
one of you to show the same diligence so as to realize the full assurance of
hope to the very end, so that you may not become sluggish, but imitators
of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.
When God made a promise to Abraham, because he had no one greater
by whom to swear, He swore by Himself, saying, ‘I will surely bless you and
multiply you.’ And thus Abraham, having patiently endured, obtained the
promise. Human beings, of course swear by someone greater than
themselves, and an oath given as confirmation puts an end to all dispute.
In the same way, when God desired to show even more clearly to the heirs
of the promise the unchangeable character of His purpose, He guaranteed
it by an oath, so that through two unchangeable things in which it is
impossible that God would prove false, we who have taken refuge might be
strongly encouraged to seize the hope set before us. We have this hope, a
sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters the inner shrine
behind the curtain, where Jesus, the forerunner on our behalf, has entered,
having become a high priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.”
(Hebrews 6; 10-20).
The fact that Jesus Christ has entered the heavenly Holy of Holies, coupled
with the fact that the Holy Spirit dwells in us comprise our solid basis for
holy hope.
“Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray
as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words.
And God, Who searches the heart, knows what is the mind of the Spirit,
because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.”
(Romans 8;26 & 27).
At the same time the Holy Spirit while intercedes, we are also made aware
of God’s thoughts:
“So also no one comprehends what is truly God’s except the Spirit of God.
Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit of God, so
that we may understand the gifts bestowed on us by God. And we speak
of these things in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the
Spirit, interpreting spiritual things to those who are spiritual.
Those who are unspiritual do not receive the gifts of God’s Spirit, for they
are foolishness to them, and they are unable to understand them because
they are spiritually discerned. Those who are spiritual discern all things,
and they are themselves subject to no one else’s scrutiny.
‘For who has known the mind of the Lord so as to instruct Him?’ But we
have the mind of Christ.” (I. Corinthians 2;11b-16).
The Spirit Who is the Spirit of adoption Himself bears witness with our
spirit that we are children of God. He comforts and reassures us. He
reminds us what we have been told, He shows us the Truth and will
reveal to us everything Jesus Christ wants us to know. He will guide
us into all truth. As we pray He intercedes for us, because we do not know
what to pray for, but the Spirit makes intercession for us with sighs that go
beyond human vocabulary and intercedes for us according to the will of
God. In this way we commune with God the Father and are in union with
Jesus Christ, the Way, the Truth and the Life.
” And we know that all things work for together for good to them that love
God, to them who are called according to His purpose. For whom He
foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, in
order that He might be the firstborn within a large family. And those He
whom He predestined He also called; and those whom He called He also
justified; and those whom He justified He also glorified.” (Romans 8; 28-30).
HALLELUJAH! THANK YOU LORD JESUS FOREVERMORE!