I will tell you a story as old as the ages are. It’s a true story and its author is God. It has a beginning, a most majestic and miraculous start…. but, it had an earth shattering and soul breaking event with the express purpose to destroy God’s plan: the entrance of sin, which is rebellion against God’s authority.
However, the Author of the story had a fix, a “go around”. Though His treasured creation of mankind was corrupted by the event of sin, God purposed to redeem mankind, to reconcile them and make them back righteous in His eyes. Then, in the eternal final act, to place mankind back into a “perfect garden”, walking again with their Creator face-to-face.
This is the most profound story of hope for humanity: (Rev. 21:1-4)
“Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea. Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.”
And so, a brief outline of His story:
God formed us.
Sin deformed us
God is now transforming us.
But, what for? We shall see that He is now conforming us into the image of His Son, shaping us so that when we graduate from this present earthly life, we will again walk with Him, our God, for eternity. Adam and Eve had a taste of this, but it was not eternal. The will of the Sovereign is for the walk and the life of His
creation to be eternal in His presence.
The Age to Come: The “what for” is delineated in scriptures, an age to come: “For He has not put the world to come, of which we speak, in subjection to angels.” (Heb 2:5)
In the past, it was a Mystery: “How that by revelation He made known to me the mystery …that you may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ, which in other ages (history past) was not made known to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to His holy apostles and prophets.” (Eph. 3:3-5)
You however “have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come,” (Heb 6:4-5)
“Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things, you will never stumble; for so an entrance will be supplied to you (a future event) abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” (2 Peter 1:10-11)
The Mystery & The Purpose of Parables ((Matt 13:10-11))
“And the disciples came and said to Him, “Why do You speak to them in parables?” He answered and said to them, “Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given.”
The Future Date: That Day (Matthew 7:21-23)
“Not everyone who says to Me, Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the Kingdom of Heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day (a future date) ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’
Do you know Jesus Christ?
To “know someone” means having an intimate personal relationship with them, which involves understanding their character, personality, and life beyond just their name or basic facts. This deeper knowledge comes from direct experience, active communication, and building trust, allowing for a more intuitive and empathetic connection. It is distinct from simply “knowing of” or “knowing about” a person, which refers to a superficial awareness without personal contact.
Just as with sexual intimacy, where a man “knows” a woman and goes into her and the “two become one”, there is spiritual intimacy, where the Spirit of God goes into a person and indwells them, giving them a new birth and a new life. The two become one – our knowing God and He knowing us.
Jesus Christ is coming again to draw into His presence those who know him. (Hebrews 9:28)
“So Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many. To those who eagerly wait for Him, He will appear a second time, apart from sin, for salvation.” “Now I see dimly, as in a mirror, but then I shall see face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.” (1 Cor 13:12)
So, “establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.” (James 5:8)
“I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Therefore, let us, as many as are mature, have this mind; and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal even this to you.” (Phil 3:14-15)
“For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore comfort one another with these words. (1 Thes 4:15-18)
Consider this prayer:
Lord, may I lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles me, and may I run with endurance the race that is set before me, fixing my eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
