spiritual kingdom. The Lord Jesus is going to have a righteous and actual kingdom here on earth. When Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world,’’ He didn’t say “in.” The Spir it of God is extremely careful about even the prepositions in the Bible. His Kingdom is not of this world’s kind, not of its temper, not of its nature, not of its outlook, not of its objective. If it were “of” this world it would be maintained by force and ultimately would come to an end by force. The Saviour’s rule is not going to be like that. He will maintain a heavenly rule here on earth. Q . Fort Collins, Colo.— “Will you please explain Romans 8:25-31 as well as Acts 2U7. I am confused about the last part, ‘such as should be saved.’ Please speak about predestination.’’ A. These are strong passages concern ing God’s overruling grace in bring ing many sons unto glory. In the first seven chapters of Romans, Paul, through the Spirit of God, talks about universal condemna t i on and how Christ makes wonderful provision for all who believe in Him. Chapters 6, 7, and 8 tell how this wonderful salva tion is applied to the life of the re deemed one through sanctification. We are to be conformed to the image of our Lord Jesus Christ. God has saved us, however, much of His promised glory remains in the realm of faith. We have assurance of the Word which calls for patience. The Holy Spirit is always present to give us the Lord’s promised strength. How we need Him to keep us in an expectant and prayer ful mood. The Spirit of God rightly searches our hearts to know our pur poses and intents. For those of us who love God, all things work together for good. This is the Lord’s objective. The Saviour is not willing that any should perish. In times of difficulty, when our spirits groan within us, we can have our hearts assured in the Lord’s wonderful overruling plan. He did foreknow, bringing the saved into covenant relationship with Himself. He foreordained that those who trust
Christ should be conformed to the image of His Son. God took care not only of the original decree but also of the means. God has chosen us in Christ that by reposing faith in Him, we should have everlasting life. Elec tion is God’s sovereign choice by which we have eternal glory through believing on the Lord Jesus Christ. The destination is the sovereign work ing of the Lord. Q . Myrtle Point, Ore.— “Will Jesus come before the antichrist is revealed and the Tribulation begins?” A. As far as the Tribulation is con cerned, the Lord will come before this seven year period begins. (Tech nically speaking, the last 3% years of this time is specifically “The Great Tribulation.”) During this period God will be judging a Christ-rejecting world. The Church will not be here on earth. Antichrist will be fully revealed after the Saviour has taken His Bride, the Church, out of the world. It may be that the generation alive just pro ceeding the Rapture may see the anti christ on the horizon. We need to be careful, however, not to speculate. Many fine Bible teachers have fallen into disrepute for this reason. When the Holy Spirit is taken out of the way and the Church is translated, then this wicked person will come into power (II Thess. 2:8ff). The antichrist will run his course during the Tribulation period upon the earth. Then the Lord will visibly return to
One of the most imposing Campus structures is Myers Hall, key facility of the Talbot Theological Seminary. A portion of it is pictured below. The building was presented to Biola by Dr. and Mrs. Ray A. Myers, and their family, whose daughter Nancy, now home withthe Lord, was a graduate of the schol.
24
Made with FlippingBook flipbook maker