SALVATION AND LAST THINGS

In the act of faith man is delivered from death, sin and wrath to life, righteousness and peace with God. But this is only the beginning. There are three tenses of salvation:
the past tense -- we have been saved (Rom. 8:24),
the present tense -- we are being saved (I Cor. 15:2),
and the future tense -- we shall be saved (Rom. 5:9).
Now we are being transformed into and conformed to the image of God (Rom. 8:29; II Cor. 3:18). The resurrected God-man, the Son of man, Jesus Christ, is the image of God (Col. 1:15; II Cor. 4:4). By the last Adam, the man from heaven, man is being restored to the image of God. In faith we have put on the new man which is being renewed according to the image of Him who created him (Col. 3:10; Eph. 4:23-24). This is the present tense of salvation. But there is still a future tense of salvation: we shall be saved when Christ returns to reign (Rom. 8:23). When he returns, we will bear the image of the man of heaven -- Christ (I Cor. 15:47-49). For "when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is." (I John 3:2) At the second coming of Jesus Christ (Acts 1:9) our bodies will be resurrected if we die before he comes (I Thess. 4:14-17), or they will be transformed into ones like his resurrected body if we are alive at his coming (I Cor. 15:51-52; Phil. 3:20-21; I John 3:2). Thus will physical death be replaced with physical life as spiritual death was replaced with spiritual life when we first repented and believed (conversion). What was begun at conversion will be brought to completion (Phil. 1:6) at Christ's coming, the day of Jesus Christ. Spiritual life will become eternal life -- eternal fellowship with the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit (Rev. 21:3). We shall reign with him (II Tim. 2:12; Rev. 20:4) and be with him (I Thess. 4:17; Rev. 22:4) forever. We shall be his people, and He shall be our God (Rev. 21:3, 7). Thus will man be restored to the image of God. And our salvation from death (both spiritual and physical) unto life, from sin (idolatry -- trust in false gods) unto righteousness (trust in the true God), and from wrath to peace with God will be completed. Praise God!