Eschatology

Notes
Transcript
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Scripture Intro

“How Then Shall We Live?”
Creation, Scripture, Image of God, Providence, Redemption
This Week, “End Times”
Two more Sundays in the series,
and two more Sundays before my sabbatical.
“What is the chief end of man?”
To glorify God,
and enjoy him forever.
Then, Todd will begin a series on the book of Mark.
And that will be the preaching series during my time of sabbatical.
But for today, “End Times”
1 Timothy 6:6–21 (ESV)
6 But godliness with contentment is great gain, 7 for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. 8 But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content.
9 But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction.
10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.
11 But as for you, O man of God, flee these things. Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness.
12 Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.
13 I charge you in the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and of Christ Jesus, who in his testimony before Pontius Pilate made the good confession,
14 to keep the commandment unstained and free from reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ, 15 which he will display at the proper time—he who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords,
16 who alone has immortality, who dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see. To him be honor and eternal dominion. Amen.
17 As for the rich in this present age, charge them not to be haughty, nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy.
18 They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, 19 thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life.
20 O Timothy, guard the deposit entrusted to you. Avoid the irreverent babble and contradictions of what is falsely called “knowledge,” 21 for by professing it some have swerved from the faith. Grace be with you.
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Introduction

ILL. Armageddon, The Rapture, The Apocalypse, “signs of the times”...
When the church today thinks about the end times,
there seems to be utter confusion and mystery.
Many would say, “I don’t even want to think about it,
b/c it is so strange and difficult to understand.”
Yet, when people think that the “end times”
will have us disappear from the world ((via the Rapture)
until the world is destroyed and burned up,
so that we can start over...
If that is your end times theology,
you inevitably struggle to see why living in the world today matters.
Why? B/c it’s all going to burn up anyways.
What difference does it make?
Just hang on until Jesus teleports us our of here,
and then we can get on with the “real” Christian life.
Regardless of the details,
what is interesting about many believers in the U.S.
is that many are so concerned with the end times that they are looking for it everywhere, trying to “read the times”.
Not all bad, b/c Jesus said be ready.
Or, many in the church has just given up and cease to think about it at all.
Yet, they miss that the authors of Scripture seem to address these issues quite frequently...
And often, they are the lens by which the Christian life is viewed.
Paul’s wrote in 1 Thess 4,
“to encourage each other with these words.”
Cru article:
When we fail to keep in the forefront of our thinking that Christ may return at any moment, we can lose a sense of anticipation, hope, urgency and eternal perspective: we can become mired in the here-and-now.

This Period of History Culminates with the Return of Christ

1 Timothy 6:14–15 (ESV)
14 to keep the commandment unstained and free from reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ, which he will display at the proper time—
“this present age”
1 Timothy 6:17 (ESV)
17 As for the rich in this present age, charge them not to be haughty, nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy.
“this present age” means there is an “age to come”
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This matches the testimony of all of the Scriptures.
The OT points to a “forever” kingdom
Promise to David,
2 Samuel 7:16 ESV
16 And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever.’ ”
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Inauguration, Continuation, Consummation
Inaugurated Eschatology
Future Eschatology

Our Eternal Future Frames Our Lives Today

Eschatology Frames Our Lives as Part of a Greater Story
1 Timothy 6:18–19 (ESV)
They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life.
Our lives now...
find their foundation in the future.
“storing up”… actions now with future effect
“for the future”
(v. 20) “guard the deposit”
“some have swerved from the faith”
Guard it so that you don’t swerve...
“take hold of that which is truly life”
Also in v. 12 - “Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called”
1 Timothy 6:7 ESV
7 for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world.
Current life is framed by the life to come.

Eschatology Brings Us Hope, Not Fear

When we think of the resurrection, the defeat of Satan, the final and perfect judgment, the new heavens and the new earth, and eternal fellowship with Christ and His Church, we surely cannot but amplify our worship of God. If our eschatology does not result in greater worship of God, we are either in error, or we are approaching the truth in the wrong spirit. (David Murray, Ligonier)
The victory is already won.
We live in light of that vicotry.
Jesus has won the deciding battle.
Jesus will win the war.
We live in the middle of those two things.
1 Timothy 6:14–16 (ESV)
14 to keep the commandment unstained and free from reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ, which he will display at the proper time—
he who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone has immortality, who dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see. To him be honor and eternal dominion. Amen.

Eschatology Heightens Our Urgency

1 Timothy 6:9 ESV
9 But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction.
“content” b/c of the future.
“snare” of the “desire to be rich”
What occurs?
“ruin and destruction”
Our urgency rises when we know of the eternal judgment that awaits.
ILL. In 2004, we watched the news as the Indian Ocean Tsunami destroyed communities and families all across the region.
Nearly 230,000 died.
A friend of mine once asked,
“If you were in Thailand,
and you knew the tsunami was coming,
how would you approach people who were staying at a beach resort?”
You would plead with them to leave.
You would speak to them knowing their lives were hanging in the balance.
Knowing our eternal future… raises the urgency today.
But also, for God’s people...
1 Timothy 6:10 ESV
10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.
It’s amazing how easily God’s people become enamored with this world and its blessings.
App. Where is your heart’s focus?
This age or the next?

Eschatology Motivates Us to Action

The fact that the end is nigh should not make us passive waiters for the inevitable nor induce a fatalistic inactivity. Rather, the New Testament links belief in the imminent end of all things with zealous service.
1 Timothy 6:12 ESV
12 Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.
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