As all the other category words we have seen since we started writing these, this one also is Greek in origin.  It comes from an adjective meaning “last” and in theology refers to the doctrine of last things.

One might ask, “Last compared to what?”  Or perhaps, “How much is included in ‘last’”?  To answer, it might be helpful to think about the theological connection between creation and redemption.  These two ideas were connected very early in the history of theology, and we could argue, in the Bible itself.  The familiar story is that God created the universe “in the beginning,” but sin entered due to the moral rebellion of the people God created.  He immediately began a process of restoration, culminating in the incarnation of His Son and His work on the cross to destroy the works of evil.  The redemption He brought was the inauguration of the eschaton, so that we now live in one sense in the “last.”

But the present age is in another sense only the “last” in anticipation.  The children of God live in the glorious liberty of their freedom from sin, but the creation still groans under the weight of the curse and God’s children still have an appointment with death.  The Jesus who finished His work did not restore the kingdom of Israel; rather, he left with a promise of return.  When He returns, with all the surrounding events, the “last” will be completed and that original, spoiled creation will be remade.  There will be a new heavens and a new earth.  The righteous will enter into the joy of their Lord, and the wicked will endure an eternal punishment.  The “last” is not exactly parallel to “in the beginning” because creation will not be ended in a metaphysical sense so that only God will continue to be as He was prior to the creation.  But the change will be radical; history as we think of it will come to an end.

That second coming of Jesus is what is usually thought of as the content of eschatology.  What will happen and, as it is usually debated, in what order?  The “second coming” may be thought of in the narrow sense of Jesus’ return to earth, or in the wider sense of all the events surrounding his return, including the consequences.  Eschatology as a theological topic is the second coming in the wider sense.

Paul refers to Christ’s return as a “blessed hope,” but unfortunately it has often become, especially in the modern age, a cause cèlébre for strife, bickering, and division.  How ironic!  It has also become an occasion for theological crystal-ball-gazing.  The Jews came to understand the promise of a Messiah in such as a way as to miss him when he came.  God help us not to do the same the second time.  As we work through the terms and differences, please remember that some degree of humility is appropriate, even though we as a church profess a rather definite position on eschatology.

Phil Meade, Dana Arledge, Will Uminn, and Kevin Farmer