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| Everlasting ≠ eternal "For ever" ≠ eternal |
October
28, 2019
https://www.facebook.com/sing.f.lau/posts/pfbid0tUJDgHGEYt3yX7fNYGmqjUV5vHfbMixu7wuSPxCeKNFQx874swzapGjy6YtevAWXl
#Eternal_vs_Temporal
#Eternity_vs_Temporality
#Temporality
- the state of existing within or having some relationship with time.
#Eternity
- a state to which time has no relevance; timelessness.
Hebrews
5:9 KJV — And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation
unto all them that obey him.
Hebrews
9:12 KJV — Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he
entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.
Philippians
2:12 KJV — Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my
presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation
with fear and trembling.
1
Timothy 4:16 KJV — Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in
them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee.
The
salvation which God purposed, Christ accomplished, and the Holy Spirit freely
applies to each elect personally (while still dead in trespasses and sins) is eternal salvation, redeeming them from eternal damnation in the lake of
fire.
Of
this gospel of eternal salvation, it is said,
Titus
2 - KJV
11
¶For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men,
12
Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live
soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;
13
Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and
our Saviour Jesus Christ;
14
Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify
unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.
Those
whom the Triune God has freely and graciously saved with eternal salvation are
enabled to work out their own salvation; they are commanded to do so with fear
and trembling.
How?
By "denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly,
righteously, and godly, in this present world; looking for that blessed hope,
and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ."
Everlasting
≠ eternal
Both
"everlasting" and "for ever" are in the realm of time;
there is a terminal point determined by God.
Genesis
17:8 KJT
And
I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a
stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be
their God.
Genesis
48:4 KJT
And
said unto me, Behold, I will make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, and I will
make of thee a multitude of people; and will give this land to thy seed after
thee for an everlasting possession.
"For
ever" ≠ eternal
Gen
13:15 - KJT
For
all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for
ever.
Exo
12:24 KJT
And
ye shall observe this thing for an ordinance to thee and to thy sons for ever.
The
"everlasting possession" lasted as long as the LORD had ordained it; until then, the gates of hell shall not prevail against it; and then the appointed end came.
The "for ever" ordinance was made
obsolete and ended by the same LORD at the appointed time.
May
the Lord grant you understanding.
AMEN.
=========
p/s
A man posted these words and attributed them to someone remembering I said them:
"Both
of these terms refer to existence. However, 'eternal' indicates something that
has no beginning and no end. It has existed and it continues to exist.
'Everlasting', though, is about something that has a beginning but will last
forever."
======
I’m
sure the above are neither my words nor my thoughts. I hope they were not copied
from somewhere and attributed to what someone remembered me
saying them!
In any case, the above spurred some brief thoughts as I muse on the words quoted above.
1.
The terms eternal and everlasting refer to the REALM of existence, not
existence; the former in the realm of eternity and the latter in the realm of
temporality; one is outside of the realm of time, and the other is bound in the
realm of time.
-
They speak of the existence in different REALM – one in eternity, the other in
time.
2.
Beginning and end have relevance only in the realm of time; the concept of
everlasting is irrelevant in the realm of eternity, it's a needless redundant
word.
-
The Triune God, the I AM THAT I AM, is both BEFORE the beginning of time and
BEYOND the end of time; He existed before the beginning of time (Gen 1:1) and
He remains ABOVE/OUTSIDE of time He has created, and continues beyond the end
of time when He abolishes it.
-
In that sense God alone is absolutely from everlasting to everlasting, i.e. He
created time, and He also will end time; He was there at the beginning of time
and He will be there at the end of time.
3.
When the eternal Word was made flesh, One in the REALM of eternity entered into
the REALM of time.
-
Through Christ, the divinely begotten Son of God, and His redemptive work for
His people, they who existed and are bound in the realm of time (and sin and
death and condemnation too) are made fit to exist in the realm of eternity.
WHAT MAGIC! That’s the gospel of God.
-
Both everlasting life and eternal life are spoken of concerning Christ’s
redeemed people. The two terms are not synonymous even though many wish to
insist otherwise. One or two passages from the KJT are enough to debunk such a notion.
-
It is everlasting life because it shall be preserved by God till the end of
time; it began at some point in time and last until the end of time for
glorification. 1Pet 1:4,
4.
Glorification will translate the redeemed from the realm of time (subject to
changes) into the realm of eternity (not subject to changes).
-
Glorification is the ABSOLUTE last change that all the redeemed will
experience. Eternal life is consummated.
-
The penultimate change for some of the redeemed shall be being surrendered/delivered
up by hell for their glorification – that’s my personal belief, of course, but based
on the Scriptures’ authority, in my opinion.
- The blessed Lord Jesus Christ is One who holds the keys of hell and of death (Rev 1:18); He has authority over both; hell shall deliver up/surrender all its captives at His appointed time (Rev 20:13).
-
What a glorious gospel of God, making those bound in the realm of time FIT to
enter the realm of eternity, the realm of the Divine and blessedness.
As
an aside, hell is in the realm of time; it's not eternal, it’s everlasting but will end at God’s
appointed time; the lake of fire WILL BE in the realm of eternity, appointed by
God.
Christ’s
redemptive work dealt with eternal salvation; He saved His people from the eternal lake
of fire.
Rev 20:15 "And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast
into the lake of fire."
That is, whosoever was found written in the book of life was glorified and ushered into the eternal heaven. Christ Jesus came to save eternally from the lake of fire all those whose names were found written in the Lamb's Book of Life
2Ti 2:7 “Consider what I say; and the Lord give thee understanding in all things."
