Title: Heaven's Present and Future
Contents
Heaven's Existence and Existence
Luke 15:1~2, Luke 16:16
(Luke 15:1-2) As all the tax collectors and sinners came near to hear the word, 2 the Pharisees and the scribes grumbled, saying, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”
(Luke 16:16) The law and the prophets were until the time of John, and from then on the gospel of the kingdom of God is preached, and everyone invades there.
In Luke 15:1, it is said that “they come near to hear the word,” and the word “near” here
It is 'enggijo' in Greek. This means....
The words of Romans 10:8 are near to you and in your mouth...
(1448) Engijo
from 1451; To come close, that is (reflexive), to come close, to come near (approach), to come near (come) <Mt 15:8; Luke 18:40> v. to come near, bring near;
(1451) Engus
From the basic verb agcho "angko" (weave, squeeze; similar to the stem of 43); near (literally or symbolically of place or time), close to, prepared <Luke 19:11; Revelation 1:3> part. near;
(Romans 10:8) What then?
Therefore, the concept of the word 'enggijo' in the Bible should be seen as referring to a volitional act rather than the general concept of 'to approach a certain distance, distance, etc.'. And the part that needs to be corrected in Luke 16:16 is the part translated as the gospel of the kingdom of God. Here, the kingdom of God is in the possessive case, and the gospel is the subject. In the original text, the word 'the kingdom of God' is the subject, and the verb 'to preach the gospel' is in the indicative? present? passive voice.
And in Luke 16:16, the word ‘invading’ means…
(Matthew 11:12) From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force.
Here again, it is said to be ‘violence’, which is the same word as in Luke 16:16. Literally translated, it means ‘to take away (to enter) by force (forcibly)’. So today, Luke is going to think about the present and future of heaven through chapters 15 and 16. The reason we emphasize the present nature of heaven is because our religious life has mainly only had the future nature of heaven.
That is why we emphasize the presentness of heaven. To emphasize the presentness of heaven is not to say that there is no futureity of heaven. Occasionally, many people say that the only heaven is this world, and there is nothing after death...? There are many people who think like this or have a misunderstanding, but this is never the case. What are we emphasizing the presentness of heaven...?
Why was heaven understood as the future nature in the past, and why is the present nature re-emphasized now? That's the crux of the matter. In other words, because the past was the past, it was a time when we had no choice but to explain Heaven as the future. It's not that it's wrong. Because heaven did not have a present heaven at that time, it emphasized it as a future nature, and now it is emphasizing the present meaning of heaven because it has a future heaven as well as a present heaven . When asked what the basis for that is, these are the words of today's text.
We already know that the concept of heaven, or the kingdom of God, is Jesus Christ. But in Luke 15:1, it is recorded that all the tax collectors and sinners gathered to hear something from Jesus. To those who had gathered and to the murmuring Pharisees and scribes, the Lord spoke in parables. However, those who have gathered to the Lord are those who invade the kingdom of heaven. Who were they in Luke 15:1? tax collectors and sinners.
If you look at the cross-reference for ‘every person’ in Luke 16:16, it will be ‘j’ and it will be connected with Luke 15:1 to compare. In the original language, they are ‘fanta’, that is, ‘all things’ created by the Lord. Then Luke 15:1 also shows how they are going to invade the kingdom of heaven. It is coming to hear the Lord. If you come to hear the Lord, what will you come to hear? There is only the word of God. Therefore, to invade means to enter into the Word and to use strength to obtain the Word. But how did the Pharisees and scribes interpret and complain about Jesus' actions? It was seen as welcoming sinners. Receiving sinners here is a different concept from that we receive the Hor logos in John 1:12.
The reception in John 1:12 is 'rambano', and the reception of sinners in Luke's Gospel is 'prosdekomai' (to accept, wait patiently).
(4327) Prosdecomai
from 4314 (near to) and 1209; To tolerate (sexual intercourse, hospitality, trust, or [symbolically] patience), implicitly wait (with trust or patience). Accept, allow, take <Luke 2:25; Titus 2:13>v. to give access to oneself, to await;
(2983) Rambano
Extensions of basic verbs used only as substitutes in some tenses; to take (in various applications, literally and symbolically [in its original sense, an object or an active grasp; but 1209 is given to someone, rather subjectively or passively; on the other hand, 138 denotes more violence, seize or restrain]) <Matthew 17:24; Romans 7:8> v. a) to take; take, grab hold of, receive b)try; c) to take as authorty;
Therefore, to welcome sinners means to accept and accept sinners with patience. This is the heaven of grace. So didn't the Lord say?
(Matthew 21:31) Which of the two did his father's will? He said, "The second son." Jesus said to them, "Truly, I say to you, tax collectors and prostitutes will enter the kingdom of God before you."
In that sense, that's exactly what the Pharisees saw.
why? Because the Lord saw them as receiving sinners.
But what did he do when he received a sinner? You ate food together.
What does this mean?
It means the presentness of heaven. It means that eating and enjoying is the present nature of heaven.
So, what is the future of heaven? Not only to eat and enjoy, but to dwell together.
Then, why should we emphasize the presentness of heaven and live the present life of heaven?
Look at Luke 16:16...