“TIMES OF RESTITUTION”
In full accord with all that we discussed in our previous post is the apostle’s statement respecting the blessings that are to come to mankind during the millennial age, following our Lord’s second advent and the glorification of His church to joint heirship with Himself. He calls that period “times of refreshing from the presence of the Lord, when He shall send Jesus Christ” at His second advent. He declares that in the meantime the heavens must receive Him, must retain Him, until the times of restitution of all things which God hath spoken by the mouth of all the holy prophets since the world began. In other words, He assures us that these restitution times will follow as a result of our Lord’s Second Advent and the establishment of His kingdom in glory and power.
That the times of restitution signify years of restitution, we need not state, nor need we point out to any that here the thousand years of Christ’s reign is referred to.
The word restitution is or ought to be familiar to everybody. It signifies to put back or bring back something to an original or primary condition. The apostle is speaking of humanity, and hence the suggestion is that the work of Christ and His church in glory during the millennium will be to restore mankind to the condition and privileges and blessings and favors enjoyed before sin entered the world before the “curse” passed upon all by one man’s disobedience. Rom. 5:12.
Evolutionists would have little sympathy with the apostle’s statement here, for, according to their erroneous theory, restitution to the original condition would be the last thing for humanity to desire or hope for or for God to promise as a blessing. But we are not consulting evolutionists in this matter we are taking the word of God, which lives and abides forever. In harmony with this promise we anticipate, therefore, that as the world of mankind has been in a fallen and falling condition with ups and downs, especially downs, for six thousand years, and that when the Lord’s time shall come and times of restitution shall begin the present downward or fallen conditions will give place to upward conditions, to restitution times, for the general uplifting of all mankind.
We have just seen that the great ransom sacrifice finished at Calvary is the basis upon which God can be just and yet be the justifier of those who believe in Jesus, and release them from the sentence of endless death which was justly upon them as the imperfect posterity of the fallen Adam, unworthy of life eternal under divine conditions. The more we look into this matter the more logical, reasonable and satisfactory we see the divine plan to be. The first man perfect, the image of God, sinned with deliberation, and received as a penalty a death sentence. After waiting more than 4,000 years God sent a redeemer in the person of His Son. Since man was not a spirit being but a human being, therefore the apostle declares that Christ took not the nature of an angel, but humbled Himself and came to the still lower plane of humanity and became the man Christ Jesus holy, harmless, undefiled, and separate from sinners. Then as the man Christ Jesus He gave Himself a ransom for all, as our text declares, “to be testified in due time.”
The testimony has already been in the world for over 19 centuries, and it has selected the very class which God foreknew and foretold a little flock of footstep followers who are to be joint heirs with their redeemer and Lord. Next in order will come the testimony to the remainder of mankind first those who have not yet gone into the tomb (those who survive the great tribulation), and secondly to those who have already gone there, and who will be awakened for the very purpose of receiving this testimony and of being tested by it.
Continued with next post.
In full accord with all that we discussed in our previous post is the apostle’s statement respecting the blessings that are to come to mankind during the millennial age, following our Lord’s second advent and the glorification of His church to joint heirship with Himself. He calls that period “times of refreshing from the presence of the Lord, when He shall send Jesus Christ” at His second advent. He declares that in the meantime the heavens must receive Him, must retain Him, until the times of restitution of all things which God hath spoken by the mouth of all the holy prophets since the world began. In other words, He assures us that these restitution times will follow as a result of our Lord’s Second Advent and the establishment of His kingdom in glory and power.
That the times of restitution signify years of restitution, we need not state, nor need we point out to any that here the thousand years of Christ’s reign is referred to.
The word restitution is or ought to be familiar to everybody. It signifies to put back or bring back something to an original or primary condition. The apostle is speaking of humanity, and hence the suggestion is that the work of Christ and His church in glory during the millennium will be to restore mankind to the condition and privileges and blessings and favors enjoyed before sin entered the world before the “curse” passed upon all by one man’s disobedience. Rom. 5:12.
Evolutionists would have little sympathy with the apostle’s statement here, for, according to their erroneous theory, restitution to the original condition would be the last thing for humanity to desire or hope for or for God to promise as a blessing. But we are not consulting evolutionists in this matter we are taking the word of God, which lives and abides forever. In harmony with this promise we anticipate, therefore, that as the world of mankind has been in a fallen and falling condition with ups and downs, especially downs, for six thousand years, and that when the Lord’s time shall come and times of restitution shall begin the present downward or fallen conditions will give place to upward conditions, to restitution times, for the general uplifting of all mankind.
We have just seen that the great ransom sacrifice finished at Calvary is the basis upon which God can be just and yet be the justifier of those who believe in Jesus, and release them from the sentence of endless death which was justly upon them as the imperfect posterity of the fallen Adam, unworthy of life eternal under divine conditions. The more we look into this matter the more logical, reasonable and satisfactory we see the divine plan to be. The first man perfect, the image of God, sinned with deliberation, and received as a penalty a death sentence. After waiting more than 4,000 years God sent a redeemer in the person of His Son. Since man was not a spirit being but a human being, therefore the apostle declares that Christ took not the nature of an angel, but humbled Himself and came to the still lower plane of humanity and became the man Christ Jesus holy, harmless, undefiled, and separate from sinners. Then as the man Christ Jesus He gave Himself a ransom for all, as our text declares, “to be testified in due time.”
The testimony has already been in the world for over 19 centuries, and it has selected the very class which God foreknew and foretold a little flock of footstep followers who are to be joint heirs with their redeemer and Lord. Next in order will come the testimony to the remainder of mankind first those who have not yet gone into the tomb (those who survive the great tribulation), and secondly to those who have already gone there, and who will be awakened for the very purpose of receiving this testimony and of being tested by it.
Continued with next post.
