Finding Jesus in the Bible…So We Can Follow Him in Life
Bible Reading Plans
- Plan One: New Testament Only
- Plan Two: New Testament + Psalms
- Plan Three: New Testament + History
- Plan Four: The Entire Bible – Year 1 of 3, Year 2 of 3, Year 3 of 3
Don’t know which plan? Go to A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.
Extras
Verse of the Day, Audio Capsule, and Video Minute
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(Today’s Reading)
The Implications of the Second Coming as Accomplished Fact
(Book Installment 61)
The Plan Behind the Second Coming
Chapter 4 – The Predetermined Plan
Comparing the Four Vantage Points
Most people are familiar enough with the OT and NT perspectives that we don’t need to spend a lot of time studying them. But comparing and contrasting these two viewpoints with the other two will help us become equally familiar with all four. I’ve chosen a single-word description for each stage that will clearly distinguish it from the other three.
The Singularity of the OT Vantage Point
The Old Testament view of the plan focuses on one God who sponsors one nation formed from the descendants of one man and who worship at one temple. This is why I chose the word “singularity” to characterize it. It is this simplicity, as well as the repetition allowed by the sheer length of the OT when compared to the NT, that makes this perspective the easiest of the four to grasp.
The Multiplicity of the NT Vantage Point
The New Testament introduces the complexity in God’s plan – a notable contrast to the OT’s simpler view. For example, the NT focuses not just on God but on His Son as well, not just on Jews but on Gentiles as well, and not just on one nation with one temple but on an increasing number of congregations across an increasing number of nations. This is why I chose the word “multiplicity” to characterize this stage of revelation.
The Minimality of the Pre-Creation Vantage Point
The pre-creation point of view is presented only in the New Testament. There are hints of it in the Old Testament, but no presentation. And the presentation of it that we have in the New Testament is not lengthy. On the contrary, there are minimal, even though substantive, descriptions of the pre-creation period. And the number of things that were described as taking place during that pre-creation period, as important and as profound as they were, were very few. Hence the descriptor “minimality.”
The Finality of the Second Coming Vantage Point
In the previous chapter, I made the point that the Second Coming brought to a conclusion all that had been promised by the prophets and apostles. Everything about the Second Coming speaks of “finality” – which is why I chose this word for its label as the fourth vantage point from which to view God’s plan. But it was the finality of God’s plan for the beginning of His creation – not its end. In other words, God’s kingdom didn’t come to end the world, but rather to secure its eternal status.
The Bible is a finished book that tells an unfinished narrative. By this, I mean that the Second Coming is, of course, the conclusion of the Bible’s narrative. But the Bible only presents it as prophecy, not as history – prophecy of unseen things that had to have occurred in the generation of Jesus and His apostles. Therefore, we can only know the coming of the kingdom of God is history by believing the Bible’s prophecy of it. If we say that we need more proof that the Second Coming is history before believing it, then how can we say we believe the Bible? God has already proved enough stuff in the Bible that we would be able to take His word for it when it comes to the Second Coming.
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