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!