Sermons on Eschatology
Matthew 15:29-31
In Matthew 15:29-31 Christ heals many on a mountain. Mountains are significant in the gospel of Matthew as they point to the fulfillment of the mountain of God theology in the OT. What is the purpose of this summary of Christ’s miracles? To indicate that the new creation has come in Christ. Christ’s miracles are a foretaste of the resurrection.
1 Samuel 4:12-22
Many believe that God will not come in judgment. They say that God is a God of love, not wrath. The Scriptures, however, make it clear that God is always faithful to his word, not just the words of promise, but also the words of judgment. This is evident in 1 Samuel 4:12-22 where God brings upon Eli the judgment prophesied in chapter 2 as well as a more general judgment on the people of God as a whole.
Proverbs 9:13-18
In the gospel eternal life is offered. Wisdom has set a great feast, and yet, many refuse. Why is this the case? Many reasons can be given, but one significant reason is that there is another offer to go to another feast, and many choose this one over Wisdom’s. This is the feast of folly, built on the foundation of sin. Ultimately, it leads to death. Those who are foolish content themselves with this feast that leads to death.
Hebrews 13:7-16
In Hebrews 13:7-16 the author explains that christians ought to obey their leaders rather than be led away after the false teachings of others who emphasize an earthly altar. The passage is a reminder that our faith focuses on the world to come rather than this one.
Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43
In Matthew 13:24-30 and 36-43 Christ gives the parable of the wheat and the weeds, showing that there will always be a mixture of the righteous and the wicked until the last day. The great separation will happen at the judgment when Christ sends forth his angels to gather the wheat into the barn but to reserve the weeds for fire. Such is the warning for all Christians, not to presume salvation based on outward membership and not to expect…
Hebrews 8:1-6
In Hebrews 8:2 the author speaks of Christ as the priest of the true tabernacle, pitched by God, not man. The tabernacle and the temple were instituted by God but constructed by man. The Old Testament speaks of a time when God himself would construct a house for his name and bring His people to dwell with Him there. Christ is the priest of this new tabernacle, serving in heaven itself.
John 20:19-23
In John 20:19-23 Christ breathes the Spirit on His disciples. John describes this action in ways similar to Genesis 2:7 where God breathed the breath of life into Adam’s nostrils. Christ, the author of the new creation, who became a life-giving Spirit through His resurrection, sovereignly brings dead sinners to life through the giving of the Spirit. Thus, anyone in Christ is a new creation.
John 19:28-30
In John 19:28-30, Jesus declares His work to be finished on the cross. What is He declaring to be finished? Pastor Grasso shows that this is the culmination of Christ’s work of new creation. As God completed His work on the sixth day and declared everything very good, so too, Christ on the cross declares His work to be completed. All of those in Him have entered the new creation.
Hebrews 4:12-13
In Hebrews 4:12-13, the author concludes the great exhortation begun in 3:7. Do not harden yourself when you hear the Word of God because the Word of God is living and active, it pierces to the deepest part of you, and is able to judge everything about you. This is true because God is the one who speaks this Word. He is the judge of all the earth, whom you cannot escape, and the one to whom you must give…
Hebrews 4:9-10
In Hebrews 4:9-10, the author speaks about a “sabbath rest” that remains for the people of God (v. 9). He then shoes how Christ has rested from his works as God did from his (v. 10), providing the basis for this rest. Pastor Grasso defends this reading of verse 10 and shows the ways in which Christ’s work of redemption is related to creation and, more particularly, the new creation.
Matthew 11:20-24
In Matthew 11:20-24, Jesus denounces several cities for not believing the gospel though they had seen so many of his works. In each case he declares that unbelief in these situations will lead to a greater judgment than notoriously sinful Old Testament cities. The point being made is that rejection of the Gospel is the worst possible sin and will lead to the greatest judgment. Judgment will always be in proportion to the light and knowledge one has received.
Hebrews 4:1-11
In Hebrews 4:1-11 the author builds on the exhortation given in 3:7-19. He shows that the oath forbidding some to enter God’s rest implies a promise for all of those who will hear the Word of God with faith. Those who hear with faith will enter into the rest of God, which is the true fulfillment of the rest spoken of at creation in Genesis 2:2. This Sabbath rest has been won for God’s people through Christ, who rested from…