Post by elizabeth on Feb 11, 2014 19:59:09 GMT
“Fair Use For Educational or Discussion Purposes”
God, Time, and Eternity
In William Shakespeare’s play King Henry IV the Archbishop of York observes, “We are time’s subjects.” All creation is subject to time, but God is the eternal Creator and is Himself uncreated. Because God is eternal He is not bound by the limits of time any more than He is bound by the limits of space. God existed before time began and will continue to exist forever. He is God “from everlasting to everlasting” (Ps. 90:2).
The eternal nature of God means that His existence stretches in an infinite direction both before and after creation. It also means that God does not relate to time in the same way that we do. Our experience of time is finite. Although we possess eternal souls that will exist forever, we are created beings who did not always exist (Ps. 139:13). Consequently, our experience of time is linear, a succession of moments. We experience the present, remember the past, and anticipate the future.
Because God is infinite in knowledge, power, and presence, His relationship to time transcends our limited and linear experience. To Him “a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day” (2 Peter 3:8; cf. Ps. 90:4). God “works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will” (Ps. 139:1–4; Eph. 1:11).
Although God is not bound by time in the same way that we are, He does have a temporal dimension to His experience. At the incarnation Jesus Christ, who existed as God from eternity past, took to Himself a human nature that He did not previously possess. With respect to His human nature, Jesus shared the linear experience of time-bound creatures (John 1:1, 14). He lived out His ministry in a succession of days, He knew what it was like to wait and to experience longing for the future (Matt. 17:17; Luke 12:49–50; John 4:7–8; 11:6). In the birth, death, resurrection, and second coming of Christ the redemptive purpose of God unfolds according to a divinely established timeline. The eternal Savior came to die for the ungodly “at just the right time” (Rom. 5:6). The time when Jesus will return and establish His kingdom has been determined by the Father (Matt. 24:36; Acts 1:7). Time
serves God’s purpose.
We may be subject to the limitations of time, but time is not our master. The same God who established the regular cycle of day and night, summer and winter, or seedtime and harvest also orders the seasons of our lives (Gen. 8:22). Our times are in His hand (Ps. 31:15).
By John Koessler, Chair and Professor of Pastoral Studies Click Here
God, Time, and Eternity
In William Shakespeare’s play King Henry IV the Archbishop of York observes, “We are time’s subjects.” All creation is subject to time, but God is the eternal Creator and is Himself uncreated. Because God is eternal He is not bound by the limits of time any more than He is bound by the limits of space. God existed before time began and will continue to exist forever. He is God “from everlasting to everlasting” (Ps. 90:2).
The eternal nature of God means that His existence stretches in an infinite direction both before and after creation. It also means that God does not relate to time in the same way that we do. Our experience of time is finite. Although we possess eternal souls that will exist forever, we are created beings who did not always exist (Ps. 139:13). Consequently, our experience of time is linear, a succession of moments. We experience the present, remember the past, and anticipate the future.
Because God is infinite in knowledge, power, and presence, His relationship to time transcends our limited and linear experience. To Him “a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day” (2 Peter 3:8; cf. Ps. 90:4). God “works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will” (Ps. 139:1–4; Eph. 1:11).
Although God is not bound by time in the same way that we are, He does have a temporal dimension to His experience. At the incarnation Jesus Christ, who existed as God from eternity past, took to Himself a human nature that He did not previously possess. With respect to His human nature, Jesus shared the linear experience of time-bound creatures (John 1:1, 14). He lived out His ministry in a succession of days, He knew what it was like to wait and to experience longing for the future (Matt. 17:17; Luke 12:49–50; John 4:7–8; 11:6). In the birth, death, resurrection, and second coming of Christ the redemptive purpose of God unfolds according to a divinely established timeline. The eternal Savior came to die for the ungodly “at just the right time” (Rom. 5:6). The time when Jesus will return and establish His kingdom has been determined by the Father (Matt. 24:36; Acts 1:7). Time
serves God’s purpose.
We may be subject to the limitations of time, but time is not our master. The same God who established the regular cycle of day and night, summer and winter, or seedtime and harvest also orders the seasons of our lives (Gen. 8:22). Our times are in His hand (Ps. 31:15).
By John Koessler, Chair and Professor of Pastoral Studies Click Here
