Jesus Christ, the living Lord, will return in person as Judge and King.
In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction. (2 Timothy 4: 1-2)
Contemplating the future (or last things, eschatology) brings hope.
Thinking about the future, helps us dream and plan.
The global reality may not be that optimistic
In NZ, reality is not that optimistic as well.
Yet, BOB ends in an optimism note. In churches, there is a variety of teachings about the future, speculations about the end times before Christ returns. BOB doesn't include any of them. As an inter-denominational fellowship our BOB does not have a particular fixed position on the progression of events currently and how it relates to passages about the end times in the Bible or eschatology. BOB's optimism comes because Christ will come again and reign!!!
BOB is NOT born of a desire to escape the conflicts and sufferings of this world (though it will accomplish this). BOB is founded upon the promises of Christ Himself, to restore us to full relationship with Him.
Unlike physicists and evolutionary biologists, BOB is NOT primarily interested in understanding the mechanisms by which the world and life as we know them came about and how they continue to function. BOB does not try to precisely predict when Christ will return or cateogorise who will/ will not reign with Christ.
BOB is NOT theoretical. BOB is orientated to explore what the Bible calls wisdom, the attempt to live and collectively create a life in harmony with a hopeful reality. One that at various points in history may go against every reasonable and emotional objection and contradiction. BOB is an assurance, an expectation and a glorious hope.
The return of Christ includes the completion and perfection of the Church, body of Christ, the fulfilment of God’s irrevocable promises to His people, the resurrection of all who ever lived on earth, and the final judgement according to God’s sovereignty and righteousness; and ultimately the establishment of a new earth and a hew heaven in which justice dwells.
In the Lord of the Rings, the king returns and all is well. Is this the same as Christ's return?
Yes and no.
Yes, because we could see the love element in the movie as the biblical love relationship of Christ and His Church. But no, because does the kingdom of God only come when Jesus returns? No, not quite...
There is danger in looking at the return of Jesus, like the Lord of the Rings, as bringing in the Kingdom of God in the future.
When Jesus talked about God’s kingdom, he viewed it as something that was already here, but that which wouldn’t come in its fullness until the end of this age. In other words, it is both a future event and a present reality.
"This is known as the ‘already but not yet’ tension. It is this ‘already but not yet’ tension that preserves us from one of two extremes:
* being so taken up with the glories of heaven that we lose any vision of what God wants to do in the here-and-now – apart from ‘saving people’ so they can enjoy the life to come. (This is a tendency of the premillenialist.)
* or becoming so comfortable with this life that we live as though this is all the life there is. (This is a tendency of the postmillenialist.)"
Taken from Wayne Kirkland's blog
www.ruminations.co.nz/?p=14
There is much to do as we address the issues present today with Kingdom values: in the environment, social injustice, poverty, disenfranchised people, violence and war through our lives on campus and later, in the marketplace (Inspiring graduates). We are hopeful that things will change because as Owl City sings Jesus commands our destiny....til He returns or calls me home, here in the power of Christ we stand.
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