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Monday, February 11, 2013

The Already and Not Yet Dimensions of Salvation.

All of God's saving works of God in Christ are eschatological (ie future) gifts.  The declaration that people are righteous during the present time indicates that God's end-time verdict has now been pronounced ahead of the last day, and it will be declared to the whole world on the day of judgement (cf. Rom. 5:1; 8:33-34; Gal 5:5).  Salvation is fundamentally eschatological because it represents deliverance from God's wrath on the final day (Tom 5:9; 1 Thes. 1:10; 5:9).  And yet that salvation belongs now to those who believe in Jesus Christ (Eph. 2:8-9), so that the gift of the end time belongs to believers during the present evil age.  Now is the time of salvation (2 Cor. 6:2), so that God's eschatological promises have penetrated a world that has not been transformed.  So too redemption will be the portion of believers when their bodies are redeemed and made whole (Rom 8:23; Eph. 1:14).  And yet are now redeemed and forgiven through the blood of Christ (Eph. 1:7; Col. 1:14).  - Thomas Schreiner, New Testament Theology, p. 30-31.

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