The fulfillment of God's promises, distinguishing between the 'now' and the 'not yet' in the Christian life. It highlights that while believers currently experience spiritual resurrection, eternal life, and God's presence through Christ, the full realization of these blessings, including bodily resurrection and the ultimate defeat of Satan, awaits the age to come. The message emphasizes that Christ is the focal point of all God's promises, both present and future, urging believers to live in the power of the Spirit with a hopeful anticipation of His return and the complete fulfillment of God's kingdom.
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The Gospel chapter twelve. John chapter twelve. We're going to read two verses from John chapter twelve, verses thirty-one and thirty-two. Where our Lord says, Now is the judgment of this world. Now shall the prince of this world be cast out. And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all unto me. May the Lord bless the reading of his words. on our Lord's Day evenings we've been looking at the subject of fulfillment themes things that have been fulfilled in the Word of God tonight we want to draw this study of fulfillment themes to a close and we have seen in our studies that in every age there are some things that are very similar in the Old covenant age, there was what was known as this age and the age to come.
So it is now. You and I are living in this age, which is called in the word of God, this present evil age. But there is also that age to come. And we look forward to the realization of all that our Lord Jesus accomplished for us. through his death and resurrection and it's going to be ours in the age to come. Now the themes that we have examined thus far as being fulfilled in this age over and against the Old Testament economy and yet have a glorious hope for us in the age to come.
There is first of all the resurrection of the body. In the resurrection of the Our Lord Jesus Christ from the dead. We have the foretaste of our own resurrection. First Corinthians chapter fifteen, verse twenty says, But now is Christ risen from the dead. And he's the first fruit of them that slept. For as by man came death, by man came also the resurrection from the dead. So in the resurrection of our Lord Jesus from the dead, we have the fulfillment of the hope. of the previous age as outlined in the book of Job, and also in Isaiah chapter twenty-six and Daniel chapter twelve.
What a blessed reality is a fulfillment, as Peter said, of Psalm sixteen when Peter preached on the day of Pentecost concerning the resurrection of Jesus Christ. But then there's another theme that we have examined. And that is the present possession of eternal life. The present possession of eternal life. We have that now. We possess eternal life now. First John chapter five, verse twelve. He that hath the Son hath life.
But oh, when we look forward to the utter fulfillment of eternal life, in the age to come. What a blessed hope we have. We're going to have the fullness of the blessing of eternal life in the age to come. And then we examine the theme of God dwelling amongst these people. Under the Old Testament economy, God dwelt among these people in the Shikana glory that rested above the tabernacle and above the Holy of Holies in the temple but in the incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ we can read the words in John's Gospel chapter one in verse fourteen the word became flesh and the word is none other than our Lord Jesus Christ he became flesh and dwelt among us and we beheld his glory John said but then another theme that is fulfilled And that is the glory of God revealed in our Lord Jesus Christ.
The glory of God was manifested under the Old Testament economy. But the fullness of that glory awaited the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and on the Mount of Transfiguration. It was beheld by Peter, James, and John. And Moses and Elias appeared in the glory with him. We have the Old Testament saints there represented. And what a picture that is of the coming kingdom glory that is yet in the future. And then there is the enjoyment of our rest in Christ.
Our Lord could say, Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. My yoke is easy. My burden is light. Come unto me and ye will find rest unto your soul. In other words, our Lord Jesus Christ is the end realized. We live here and now by virtue of our association with him. But you and I await the age to come. The age to come is going to be a far more glorious fulfillment of what we have now.
And that is what we want to consider tonight. While all that we enjoy in Christ now, there is still more to come. And that's why I have taken this first point that we must ever consider when we're reading the Scriptures, the now and the not yet. Beloved, now are we the sons of God. But it does not yet appear what we shall be. The not yet focuses on that which is to come. The now is our present position and possession in our Lord Jesus Christ.
In other words, right now we have the blessed hope of a future promised resurrection. Romans chapter six says that we have been raised from the dead to walk in newness of life. That is our portion now. You and I have been made free from all the limitations of the reign of sin. Sin hath reigned unto death. But the crown has been removed from the head of sin. And it has been placed upon the head of grace. Grace now reigns through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord.
And in the seventeenth verse of Romans chapter five, we reign in righteousness by one man, Jesus Christ. You see, our bodily resurrection though is also assured. romans chapter eight that glorious happy portion of romans eight tells us we await the adoption the redemption of our body and first corinthians chapter fifteen in minute detail gives to us the order by which our bodies are going to be raised from the dead that's why If any man be in Christ, he is a new creation.
Because here and now it is our privilege to walk in newness of life. And we look forward, and that gives us a definite, blessed hope concerning the redemption of the body. What a glorious hope it is. Every man will be raised in his own order. There is a now. We have been raised to walk in newness of life, and it's a spiritual resurrection. But there is going to be a resurrection of the body as well. And just as our bodies were old and sick, and when our brother was giving the announcements, and he told us, went down the number who are laid aside from our own assembly at the present time.
It's a day coming when they won't be laid aside. the redemption of the body. There are those who try to claim future blessings right now, and it doesn't work. There are those who continuously preach bodily healing. You see, and they say, isn't bodily healing in the atonement? And I usually answer by saying, can you name anything that isn't in the atonement? There isn't anything that isn't in the atonement, but let's get our time elements right according to the word of God.
There is the now and the not yet, and that which is promised in the age to come. We have a glimpse of it in this age. We have, as it were, the down payment. We have been raised to newness of life spiritually. And this is something that's very important. You've all heard me make a statement of the woman who told Brother Sutton and myself that her son was saved when we visited the home. He was living like a hippie and he was living in adultery.
He saved. And when I was alone with that woman, I said to her, from what has he been saved? And she said, oh, he's been saved from hell first of all. I said, oh, no. No one is ever saved from hell first of all. We're saved from hell last of all. The first thing that God saves us from is our sins. And that's why we expect a changed life. We have been raised spiritually to walk in newness of life. And I said to that lady, I said I couldn't trust a God to save me from hell who wouldn't save me from my sins.
You see, that's the thrust of the New Testament epistle. We have the now and there is the not yet. Now the same is true concerning eternal life. We have the life now. We have eternal life right now. But we shall possess it in its fullness. in the age to come you see eternal life comes in two stages first of all the first one is called regeneration we are born again born of the spirit we experience the new birth and then the second stage is the resurrection of the body the first one has to do the first stage has to do with my spirit and my soul The second stage has to do with the redemption of the body.
That's why in Romans chapter eight, it says, we wait, await the adoption, the redemption of our body. Now, I'd like to go to the verses that we read tonight, John chapter twelve. In John chapter twelve and verses thirty-one and thirty-two, They're quite interesting verses. In verse thirty-one we read, Now is the judgment of this world. Now shall the prince of this world be cast off. And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all unto me. You see, Satan's defeat was accomplished at the cross.
Our blessed Lord is speaking about Calvary. In John twelve he is facing the cross. John Thirteen is the night in which he was betrayed. And as he faces a cross, he says, now is the prince of this world cast off. But you see, when I read the book of the Revelation, chapter twenty, it's still future, isn't it? When he will be utterly defeated. When he'll be cast into the lake of fire. He'll be utterly defeated, according to Revelation chapter twenty. Turn over to Revelation twenty. You have the now, and you have the not yet.
Now is the prince of this world cast out. He was defeated thoroughly through the death and resurrection of our blessed Lord. But in Revelation chapter twenty, and we'll have to read the first few verses here, and then We'll read a little more. Verse one. And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit, and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the devil and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, and cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him.
that he should deceive the nations no more till the thousand years shall be fulfilled. And after that he must be loosed the little season. And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them. And judgment was given unto them, and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their forehead or in their hands. and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.
Blessed and holy is he that has part in the first resurrection. On such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ and shall reign with him a thousand years. And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, and he shall go off to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. And they went up on the breadth of the earth and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city, and fire came down from God out of heaven and devoured them. And the devil that deceived them was cast, into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beasts and the false prophet are and shall be tormented day and night forever and ever.
While Satan was defeated at the cross, the final defeat is still in the future. The now and the not yet. Just as sure as he was defeated at the cross, he shall be defeated at the end of the millennial reign of Christ. You see, so what about us? We have a rest in Christ now. Matthew eleven twenty eight. Come unto me, all ye that labor, and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me, for I am meek and lowly in heart, and ye shall find rest unto your souls, for my yoke is easy, and my burden is light, now we have a rest in Christ now but we have a rest that still remains a future the now and the not yet Hebrews chapter four and verse nine there remaineth therefore a rest unto the people of God you see it's still the age to come now
the presence of God When you think about that, it was manifest in Christ when he was here. John chapter fourteen. John chapter one in verse fourteen. The word was made flesh and tabernacle among us, and we beheld his glory. The glory is of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. But what about him? Oh, there awaits a greater manifestation of him. Turn with me, if you will, to the twenty-first chapter. of Revelation. Revelation chapter twenty-one. Verse one. And I saw a new heaven and a new earth.
For the first heaven and the first earth were passed away, and there was no more seas. And I, John, saw the holy city, knew Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them and be their God. Oh, the future, not yet that awaits the people of God. We have the blessed indwelling of the Spirit of God today, and we look forward to the future manifestation of our Lord Jesus Christ.
But what about our salvation? I want you to turn to this verse. Turn to Romans chapter thirteen and verse eleven. In Romans thirteen, verse eleven, we have that great statement, Now is our salvation nearer than when we believe. Romans thirteen, verse eleven, and that knowing the time that now it is high time to awake out of sleep, for now is our salvation nearer than when we believe. In other words, he's speaking Of that which is yet going to be manifested in the age to come.
And the coming of the Lord is nearer day by day. Turn over to Hebrews chapter nine. Hebrews nine. And verse twenty eight. Hebrews nine verse twenty eight. It says, So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many. And unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time, without sin, unto salvation. We're saved now, and we can talk about being saved. But there's a future salvation that yet awaits us when our Lord returns.
Now, with that in mind, look at First Peter, just a few pages on. First Peter, chapter one, and verse five. It says, we should begin at verse three, really. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who, according to his abundant mercy, hath begotten us again unto a living hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled, and that fatheth not away reserved in heaven for you, who are kept. You and I are kept by the power of God through faith.
onto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In other words, there's a salvation that's ready to be revealed in the age to come at the coming of the Lord. But now, what about the kingdom? You see, God's kingdom is now realized, but it is yet to be fully manifested. Turn over to First Timothy chapter four. in verse one. First Timothy four verse one says, Now the Spirit speaketh expressly that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of demons.
I wanted second Timothy, I'm sorry. Second Timothy chapter four verse one. I charge thee therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom. Verse eight. Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness which the Lord the righteous judge shall give me at that day, and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing. Then not yet that the child of God as in store for him. How do we apply this truth? Application number one.
You and I as believers in Christ should be aware of what the future holds. Looking back at the Garden of Eden, the way things were then, you and I are reminded that there's far more ahead for us in the future. while Adam was created perfect. Never forget that. Adam was created perfect, but Adam was not as perfect as he would have been had he obeyed God. Adam would have grown as a child of God in his apprehension and fellowship with God.
Let me give you an illustration. Concerning the now and the not yet. How many trees of life were in the Garden of Eden? One. How many are in the new Jerusalem? Do you get excited when you read it? In Revelation? They're on both sides of the river! and they bring forth fruit twelve times a year. The now and the not yet. That should get you excited when you read a verse like Ephesians chapter two.
I think it's about verse five or verse seven that says that in the ages to come he might show the exceeding riches of his grace and his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. but not yet that awaits the child of God in the full manifestation of the blessing. There is only one tree of life in the garden. In Revelation chapter twenty-two and verse two, there are many and they bear a variety of fruit every month. You see, paradise has been regained and so much more.
or the fulfillment of the blessings of God. When Adam lost and refused, the last Adam, our Lord Jesus Christ, has fully perfected. There is fullness and perfection in and through the person of our Lord Jesus Christ. In other words, application number one, we should be aware of what the future holds. But application number two, the promised blessings now does not rule out a future realization.
There are those who say it does, but it doesn't. In other words, there is nothing here in Scripture that rules out the pre-millennialist hope of the future kingdoms. It is true that there are realized blessings now, but let us not mistake the blessings now for the future blessing that is yet to be ours in the not yet. You and I should not be without that blessed hope of the future realization and the future kingdom.
I want you to turn to First Corinthians chapter four. In the opening verses, in the first four chapters of First Corinthians, you have, as it were, an introduction to First Corinthians. And Paul scans the whole theme of theology in the first four chapters of First Corinthians. And Paul writes to them, And he says beginning in verse eighteen of chapter four, and you must realize that these Corinthians were carnal and they were living for this present world instead of for the one that is to come.
The age to come must ever be in front of us. And he says to them in verse eighteen, now some are puffed up. as though I would not come to you but I will come to you shortly and if the Lord will and will know not the speech of them that are puffed up but the power for the kingdom of God is not in words but in power why does he say that look back at verse eight he says to them these Corinthians he says now you are full Now you are rich. Ye have reigned as kings without us.
That's what you could call realized eschatology. They have reigned as kings without us. And Paul says, and I would to God ye did reign, but also that we might reign with you. Their carnal minds were set on this present world. this present age which is denominated an evil age and instead of getting on to the business of serving the Lord in the power of the Spirit for the kingdom of God is not in word but in power that's what he says and it's getting on to the business of serving the Lord now with our blessed hope of the not yet.
And in the meantime, he acknowledges, what is the position of the child of God now? Well, he says in verse nine, for I think that God has set forth us the apostles last, as it were appointed to death, for we have made a spectacle unto the world and their angels and the men. We are fools for Christ's sake, but you are wise in Christ. What a difference. They had totally missed it. The Corinthian church, in their carnality, in their richness in this world, good, and in everything else, they had missed the real blessing and the future stabilization that God gives us to live in the present now as the children of God.
He says, But ye are strong. Ye are honorable. But we are despised. Even unto this present hour we both hunger and thirst and are naked and are buffeted and have no certain dwelling place. And labor working with our hands, being reviled, we bless. That's the true kingdom. That's the kingdom that our Lord spoke about in the Sermon on the Mount. Being reviled, we bless. And the Corinthian church was missing this. The now and the not yet.
Don't mistake, friends. The future blessings that God has in store for free people. Don't confuse them with the now. You see, application number two, the promised blessing now. does not rule off a future realization. And application number three, Christ is our blessed hope. Christ is our blessed hope. Christ Jesus the Lord is the focal point of the gospel. The gospel is the gospel of God concerning Jesus Christ our Lord.
In other words, Christ did not merely come to proclaim things that had come to pass. He proclaimed Himself. That the premises of God meet in Him. He proclaims Himself. And He is what the Old Testament saints anticipated. And He is a very essence and the blessedness that we enjoy in this age and what we're going to enjoy in the age to come. That's why the person who isn't interested in the person of Christ in this age is going to miss the age to come.
Because the essence of salvation is Christ Jesus the Lord. He that hath the Son hath all. And you and I are in the midst of a Christianity today that is involved in things. Things which are seen instead of the things which are not seen. And you and I have to be careful as the children of God that we proclaim the truths of God's Word in the fullness of His blessings. In other words, Christ is the very essence of the blessedness that we enjoy in this age.
In other words, salvation history is realized eschatology. Future eschatology. is the same subject, the person of Jesus Christ. What are you going to have in the future, more of the same, the person of Christ? And if people today get tired of the person of Christ, I wonder, are they really indwell by the Holy Spirit? For the Holy Spirit speaks of him. You see, we await his return.
He came the first time to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. Hebrews nine, twenty-six to twenty-eight. And he's coming the second time apart from sin unto salvation. We await that blessed hope. Christ is the blessed hope of his people. Beloved, all the premises of God meet in Him. As Paul says in First Corinthians chapter ten, all these things happen unto them and are our examples upon whom the ends of the ages are come.
And you and I have the blessed privilege of living in this age right now that is focused upon the person of Christ, the fulfillment of the whole of the Scriptures, and to look forward to the age to come when all that is realized in this age by our association with him will be abundantly increased and blessed beyond measure. The now and the not yet. Beloved, now are we the sons of God, but it does not yet appear what we shall be.
May the Lord give us a fresh vision of what is ours and what is to be ours in the age to come. Let's pray together. Our Father, how thankful we are that you have given unto us the knowledge of yourself. We thank you for that blessed hope and the glorious appearing of our great God. And we await that day when our bodies will be redeemed, when we shall experience the resurrection of the body, when Satan shall be utterly defeated, when the glory of the Lord will cover the earth as the waters cover the seas, and all the rich blessings shall be fully enjoyed by those of us whom you have redeemed by divine grace.