Thursday, January 19, 2006

The Blessed Hope


"For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus, who gave Himself for us to redeem us from every lawless deed, and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds." Titus 2:11-14

This mention of the blessed hope is focused on the eschatological appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ, and indeed He is the center and foundation of all our hope, and His coming again is central to the full actualization of all we ultimately hope for.

It is that "all we ultimately hope for" that I've given some thought to recently. What do we ultimately hope for?

- To see Christ face to face and love Him fully and wholeheartedly without sin.

- To see His purpose in redemption completed in all it's cosmic and creational scope, that is in the resurrection of the body and the inauguration of the New Heavens and the New Earth.

- To finally wholeheartedly and unreservedly love one another without sin, and thus being able to enjoy a fullness of relationship to one another not possible in a fallen and not yet fully redeemed world.

- To have rest from the impact of the fall and the resulting curse that is upon creation and our labor in particular.

- To fully wholeheartedly glorify God by enjoying Him forever.

What else would you add?

Sola Deo Gloria!

~ The Billy Goat ~

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