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Paul is one of the Staff Editors at Matthias Media. He is married to Cathy and has three fantastic kids. He loves student ministry, reading, writing music and playing the saxophone, and is looking forward to meeting Jesus face to face.
Peter, Sandy: thanks for the posts. Very helpful.
Peter: Just a question about the scene of the sheep and the goats at the end of Matthew 25. I’m just trying to see how this fits into the framework in this post. You wrote:
The text says,
Then the nations are judged, and the reward/punishment is eternal.
Correct me if I’m misunderstanding: does your perspective then mean that the separation of the sheep and the goats (the nations) is the ministry of the gospel following the ascension/resurrection (coming of the Son of Man), culminating in eternal life/punishment respectively?
In other words, is this a compressed picture of the age of the ministry of the gospel?
Michael,
yes, that is how I take it. Jesus looks towards the end when humanity will be separated into ‘sheep and goats’ with the consequences of eternal life and judgement. He then goes to his death, and once he rises from the dead, this separation process begins. Now in this gospel age the judgement process continues as people either receive or reject Christ, as they believe or disbelieve his gospel. To use a Johannine phrase, now in this gospel age, believing the gospel is the means by which we pass from death to life.
There’s various theories about the “abomination.” Apparently, the OT pattern is that “desecrations” were committed by the corrupted priesthood (such as idols in the Temple), but “abominations” were committed in the Land (like child sacrifice). Jesus refers to the former. They slew Adam, but He forgave them. Then they slew Eve, massacring Christians once the “restraint” of Rome (which we see all through Acts) was taken away. And again from the OT we know that the shedding of innocent blood calls up the destroyer. This is the desecration that brought desolation. The destruction of the Temple was not the crime but the punishment. Only God’s priests, the Adams, can commit “desecration” in the Garden.
I must say I fully agree with Peter, and was trying to make this point earlier- see http://solapanel.org/article/comments/the_coming_of_the_son_of_man_when_part_2/#549.
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