The Restoration of All Things

“We shall be like him.” — 1 John 3:2 Throughout this project, I have argued that Christians should take these words seriously. God truly intends to conform His children to the image of His Son. We will become like Christ. But what does that mean for where humanity is ultimately going? Before going further, I want to clarify what I mean by the title of this article. I am not suggesting that Christlikeness and Godlikeness are two separate destinations—as though we first become

In the previous article, I argued that becoming like Christ is not the end of humanity’s story. Christ is our model. He shows us what faithful humanity can look like. Scripture promises that we will be conformed to his image and that, when he appears, “we shall be like him” (1 John 3:2). But Christlikeness ultimately leads beyond itself. Paul prays that believers will be “filled with all the fullness of God” (Ephesians 3:19). Peter speaks of becoming “partakers of the divine

Revelation 20:1-15, Revelation 21:1 reads: “And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven, having the key to the Abyss and holding in his hand a great chain. 2 He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil, or Satan, and bound him for a thousand years. 3 He threw him into the Abyss, and locked and sealed it over him, to keep him from deceiving the nations anymore until the thousand years were ended. After that, he must be set free for a short time. 4 I saw t

Revelation 20:1-3 says, “Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain. 2 And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, 3 and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he might not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were ended. After that he must be released for a little while.” If everything tha

The Bible does not end with darkness. It does not end with death, suffering, judgment, Satan, or humanity forever divided between those whom God has restored and those whom He has lost. It ends with restoration. John writes: “I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away.” (Revelation 21:1) Then he hears a loud voice from the throne: “Behold, God’s dwelling is with people, and he will dwell with them, and they will be

Beale, G. K. The Book of Revelation: A Commentary on the Greek Text. Eerdmans, 1999. Brown, Francis, S. R. Driver, and Charles A. Briggs. A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament. Clarendon Press, 1907. By, A. E., & Bandy, A. S. (2024, July 11). Views of the Millennium. The Gospel Coalition. https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/essay/views-of-the-millennium/ Clouse, Robert G., editor. The Meaning of the Millennium: Four Views. InterVarsity Press, 1977. Danker, Frederic