The Kingdom of God:

Part 2 – Scope and Sequence

Session #3 Ruling over Time: Eschatology

56 mins

Introduction

Eschatology answers two fundamental questions:

• Do we expect to win?
• How long is the fight?

1. Who wins?

1.1 God or Satan?

a) Pessimism

“We are to expect evil until it becomes so flagrant that it will be necessary for the Lord to judge it… I am afraid that many a cherished feeling dear to the children of God has been shocked this evening; I mean their hope that the gospel will spread by itself over the whole earth during the actual dispensation.” J.N.Darby

“David was not a believer in the modern theory that the world will grow worse and worse, and that the dispensation will wind up with general darkness and idolatry. Earth’s sun is to go down amidst tenfold night if some of our prophetic brethren [men like Darby in Spurgeon’s day] are to be believed. Not so do we expect! But we look for a day when the dwellers in all lands shall learn righteousness, shall trust in the saviour, shall worship thee alone, O God, ‘and shall glorify thy name’.” C.H.Spurgeon

b) Pietism

c) Puritanism

In the Puritan vision of life, “social and cultural involvement was …the natural outgrowth of a worldview which saw all of life as sacred, and everything under the dominion of God.
” Christian Overman, in “Assumptions that Affect our Lives”

1.2 Church or Israel?

a) Dispensationalism

b) Discipleship

51 mins

2. How Long?

• The Kingdom: “Already” and “Not yet”

2.1 Here & Now or There & Then?

• It’s here now – for Jesus said, “…if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God [which he was doing!], surely the kingdom of God has come upon you” (Matt 12:28).
• It’s now here - for Jesus spoke of the kingdom coming in terms of God’s will being done “on earth as it is in heaven”.

Clues for the Treasure Hunt

• Clue #1 - “Now”
• Clue #2 - “Here”

2.2 Fast or Slow

a) We lose – soon!

b) We win – soon!

c) We win – but maybe not yet!

• Embarking on long term projects
• Victory may be over there rather than over here
• Believing in victory in the long run does not mean ignoring the possibility of defeat in the short run; at least, defeat in a particular part of the world at a particular time.