Why a Future Focus is a Must
This past Sunday we concluded our summer series on Sound Doctrine: Applying Core Beliefs to Everyday Life. We looked at 11 key Bible truths that are foundational to living the life God has blessed us with in Christ:
Bibliology (God’s Word is inspired, authoritative, inerrant, sufficient in all matters of faith and practice)
Theology Proper (God alone exists as the true & living God in three co-equal, co-eternal Persons: Father, Son, Holy Spirit)
Christology (Jesus Christ is the eternal Son of God, Lord, Savior, High Priest, and coming King)
Pneumatology (The Holy Spirit is our indwelling, gifting, fruit-bearing Chief executive and enabling officer)
Anthropology (Humans are created in the image of God, male & female to rule over His creation, reflect God’s image, and replenish the earth)
Hamartiology (All people are guilty sinners against God by nature & choice, are under God’s wrath and incapable of altering this condition by their own ability)
Soteriology (God sent His only Son to deliver anyone from sin & judgment who repents and trusts in Christ)
Angelology (God has an angelic ministry team to bless His people, serve His purposes, and provide all the defensive resources needed to defeat Satan and His fallen, evil angelic army)
Ecclesiology (God formed His church as a special called-out body of believers to make more and better disciples of Jesus Christ by proclaiming the gospel, growing in grace, holding each other accountable, and serving one another)
Zoeology (Believers are given eternal life, a newness of life that is fully equipped, progressively developed, and lived out by faith)
Eschatology (God has planned out how everything will end and be consummated for everyone: individuals, the church, the nation of Israel, the nations, heaven, hell, and the eternal state)
SO, why should you and I keep a forward focus?
God’s future plan covers 27% of the Bible’s teaching and tells us how everything is ultimately resolved (8,352 of 31,124 verses). Jesus has 224 prophecies yet to fulfill around His Second Coming and reign, and God said He doesn’t “want you to be uninformed” (1 Thess. 4:13).
God’s future plan honors His knowledge of how everything will end because He planned it and will carry out every detail of the plan (Isaiah 46:8–11; 1 Cor. 15:20–28)
God’s future plan motivates an accountable lifestyle that pleases the Lord (2 Cor. 5:9–10) in “holy conduct and godliness” (2 Pet. 3:11–12; Titus 2:11–14), staying away from sin (Col. 3:4–17), living pure lives (1 John 3:2b–3), pursuing patience without complaining (James 5:7–11), being faithful (Matt. 25:21, 23), ready (Matt. 24:42; 25:13; Luke 21:36), prayerful (1 Pet. 4:7), loving one another (1 Pet. 4:8), serving one another (1 Pet. 4:10–11), abounding in God’s work (1 Cor. 15:58), and avoiding deception (Matt. 24:4-5, 24-25; 2 Thess. 2:1-3).
God’s future plan keeps us hopeful (guarantee God keeps all His promises) knowing we will see Jesus and be like Him (1 John 3:2); we can comfort one another during loss (1 Thess. 4:18), we can persevere through all the trials of life (1 Cor. 15:58; Heb. 10:32–38), and know that God has prepared our heavenly home (John 14:1–3; Heb. 11:16) to be with Him forever.
We are “looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus” (Titus 2:13), so we “eagerly wait for a Savior” (Phil. 3:20–21) and “the new heavens and new earth, in which righteousness dwells” (2 Pet. 3:13).
Work on keeping that forward look to stay hopeful, holy, and to honor the Lord who planned it all. “Maranatha” Lord (1 Cor. 16:22).
Pastor Jeff