Category: Eschatology
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Theology and Economics: Having the Mind and Heart of God. (Part 1)
We live in the era between Jesus' resurrection and Jesus' return. He left us with a vision of the future and told us to anticipate a future of shalom. However, Jesus did not leave us with an instructional manual for creating a government, an economy, or even a congregation. This presents a real challenge. Indeed,…
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Theology and Economics: Remembering the Whole Story
I wrote at the end of my last post, In short, the story begins with God creating the earth, intending to fill it with his animated eikons living in perfect shalom. The story ends with God recreating the earth, and dwelling among his animated eikons who now fill the earth, living in perfect shalom. This…
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Theology and Economics: The New (Jeru)shalom
When Jesus arrived on the scene, the Jews were looking for a messiah to gather all the Jews to Israel, overthrow the oppressors, and restore shalom. Exactly how this would happen and when was a much-contested issue. Still, these three elements were prominent within most Jewish eschatology. The gospel of Luke takes the story of…
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Theology and Economics: Israel and the Coming Shalom
God's mission is renewal of shalom. What will this age of shalom look like? The vision was unveiled over time. First, I will look at the Old Testament vision of the coming age and then turn to the New Testament vision. God had promised Abraham that "…in you all the families of the earth shall…
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Eschatology: Book of Confessions on Eschatology
The following are excerpts from the Book of Confession of the Presbyterian Church (USA) on eschatology. These are taken from Between Millennia (11-14). Nicene Creed (325, 384) He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end…. We look for the resurrection of the dead,…
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Eschatology: Four Millennial Views
I wrote in my previous post that Christians have a view of time moving from creation toward some end. The Presbyterian Church (USA) has published two excellent documents addressing eschatological issues. They address how we understand our present circumstances considering the future. Eschatology: The Doctrine of the Last Things. – This is a study published…
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Eschatology: Breaking the Cycle of Time
Throughout early history, the world's religions shared a common theme: time moves in endless cycles. The goal of human existence was to understand and conform to those cycles. With the rise of Judaism 3,000 years ago, all that changed. The Jews introduced the idea of linear time. The Jews did not abandon the idea of…
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Eschatology: The End of the Story
I have watched many movies in my day. Alfred Hitchcock, the master of suspense, directs some of my favorite movies. Most are not gruesome, but they bring you to the edge of your seat, wondering what will happen next. M. Night Shyamalan is another director who I like for many of the same reasons. Occasionally,…
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Eschatology: About Justice
What constitutes justice? Dennis Prager wrote a piece a few days ago called The Left Hates Inequality, Not Injustice. As you might have gathered, it is not written from a liberal perspective. I think he makes some valid points, but as a Christian, I think his analysis is incomplete. Prager writes, To understand any political…
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An Eschatological Pastor’s “Job Description”
Job Description is an article in Christian Century that reflects on what it means to be a pastor with the telos in mind. It is a great article. I especially loved the typical job description he gives for most pastors: WANTED: Person to fill position that involves important but undervalued work; exact job description unclear.…