Curtain of Eternity – Part 4
(God) who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was granted us in Christ Jesus from all eternity, but now has been revealed by the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel [2 Timothy 1:9-10].
Jesus saved us and called us with a holy calling. Hallelujah! This is spelled c-r-o-s-s and e-m-p-t-y--t-o-m-b.
The cross was where the penalty for my sins was paid, where I was saved from sin and death. The empty tomb demonstrated this to be true. Death could not hold Jesus because He had no sin, and death comes as the wages of sin. Having died bearing the sins of all mankind, Jesus rose out of death with the bill for all those sins marked “Paid in Full!” Now the new resurrection life of Jesus is available to whoever will receive it.
The cross paid the penalty for sins. This is salvation. We are “saved” from sin. The empty tomb extends the benefits of the cross to include “a holy calling”. We are saved from sin for the purpose of living a holy life. To live a holy life requires power and ability within us which is not corrupted by sin. That is the definition of a new, holy nature.
That completes our diagnosis of the context for the duality between time and eternity, as presented in 2 Timothy 1. In that context we are able to rightly grasp what the Holy Spirit reveals to us by this duality. So let’s begin by repeating the duality, so that we have it fresh on our minds:
1. which was granted us in Christ Jesus from all eternity
2. but now has been revealed by the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus
The word in point #1, “which”, refers to God’s salvation and holy calling combined. Remember, God never merely saves anyone. He saves for a purpose, and His purpose is that every person he saves stop living for sin and thenceforth live in the power of the Holy Spirit according to the Word of God. That is the definition of “a holy calling”.
Ergo, the duality has to do with God’s salvation and calling as they are joined together in holy matrimony for all eternity, beginning from the moment a person is saved. God didn’t plan His salvation and calling of each Christian at the moment he was born, nor even at the instant he was conceived, neither from the first thought mom and dad had of conceiving a baby together.
No, indeed! God’s plan to save me and call me with a holy calling occurred in eternity, dear friends! And the same applies to His plan for you guys and gals too. Eternity isn’t dependent on time, you see. We puny creatures of time had no existence until we were conceived and then born, but God’s plan for us existed even before time began! Explain that one to me, I dare you!
Still, eternal plans for creatures of time and space and matter don’t go very far, unless time actually exists along with those creatures. This brings in point #2 of the duality we are vetting from 2 Timothy 1. In order to fulfill the eternal plan of God, God needed to enter time as a creature of time.
Hold that thought. It is much too steep for us to wander into it willy-nilly at this late hour. We will explore that terrain on the morrow. Enjoy time with the Lord Jesus now.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Genesis: Volume 1 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B005PJ761C
https://sites.google.com/site/heavenl...
Jesus saved us and called us with a holy calling. Hallelujah! This is spelled c-r-o-s-s and e-m-p-t-y--t-o-m-b.
The cross was where the penalty for my sins was paid, where I was saved from sin and death. The empty tomb demonstrated this to be true. Death could not hold Jesus because He had no sin, and death comes as the wages of sin. Having died bearing the sins of all mankind, Jesus rose out of death with the bill for all those sins marked “Paid in Full!” Now the new resurrection life of Jesus is available to whoever will receive it.
The cross paid the penalty for sins. This is salvation. We are “saved” from sin. The empty tomb extends the benefits of the cross to include “a holy calling”. We are saved from sin for the purpose of living a holy life. To live a holy life requires power and ability within us which is not corrupted by sin. That is the definition of a new, holy nature.
That completes our diagnosis of the context for the duality between time and eternity, as presented in 2 Timothy 1. In that context we are able to rightly grasp what the Holy Spirit reveals to us by this duality. So let’s begin by repeating the duality, so that we have it fresh on our minds:
1. which was granted us in Christ Jesus from all eternity
2. but now has been revealed by the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus
The word in point #1, “which”, refers to God’s salvation and holy calling combined. Remember, God never merely saves anyone. He saves for a purpose, and His purpose is that every person he saves stop living for sin and thenceforth live in the power of the Holy Spirit according to the Word of God. That is the definition of “a holy calling”.
Ergo, the duality has to do with God’s salvation and calling as they are joined together in holy matrimony for all eternity, beginning from the moment a person is saved. God didn’t plan His salvation and calling of each Christian at the moment he was born, nor even at the instant he was conceived, neither from the first thought mom and dad had of conceiving a baby together.
No, indeed! God’s plan to save me and call me with a holy calling occurred in eternity, dear friends! And the same applies to His plan for you guys and gals too. Eternity isn’t dependent on time, you see. We puny creatures of time had no existence until we were conceived and then born, but God’s plan for us existed even before time began! Explain that one to me, I dare you!
Still, eternal plans for creatures of time and space and matter don’t go very far, unless time actually exists along with those creatures. This brings in point #2 of the duality we are vetting from 2 Timothy 1. In order to fulfill the eternal plan of God, God needed to enter time as a creature of time.
Hold that thought. It is much too steep for us to wander into it willy-nilly at this late hour. We will explore that terrain on the morrow. Enjoy time with the Lord Jesus now.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Genesis: Volume 1 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B005PJ761C
https://sites.google.com/site/heavenl...
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