Cosmic Reconciliation
How does the Bible describe the final resolution of the problem of sin in the universe? Rev. 20:11–15, 22:3–6.
Biblical hope embraces the universe, and it anticipates the moment when the reconciliation obtained through the blood of the Lamb will reach universal dimensions. This will happen at the end of the millennium, when the wicked are restored to life and Satan prepares to fight against God and His people in a last-ditch effort to gain the supremacy he’s always wanted. But it will be precisely after the millennium, when all the questions have been answered to the satisfaction of the redeemed, that the enemies of God will be confronted with the record of their sin and rebellion. At this time the conclusion reached by the heavenly family during their reflections in the millennial kingdom will coincide with the conclusion reached by the forces of evil on earth. There, before the throne of God, God’s justice and love will be publicly acknowledged by all the parties involved, including Satan, his angels, and the lost, who will publicly and voluntarily recognize that they were fighting for the wrong cause. They all will confess the righteousness of God, acknowledge the Lordship of Christ, and accept the divine sentence pronounced against them by the righteous One (Phil. 2:9–11), thus admitting that they deserve to die. This is the verdict reached by the people of God during the millennial judgment. The whole universe is finally in perfect agreement: The forces of evil must be eradicated. At that time the universe will be cleansed from any doubts there may have been concerning the justice and love of God, and every intelligent creature will be united in praising God’s love and justice.
The evidence against the lost will be so overwhelming that even “Satan sees that his voluntary rebellion has unfitted him for heaven. He has trained his powers to war against God; the purity, peace, and harmony of heaven would be to him supreme torture. His accusations against the mercy and justice of God are now silenced. The reproach which he has endeavored to cast upon Jehovah rest wholly upon himself. And now Satan bows down and confesses the justice of his sentence. . . . With all the facts of the great controversy in view, the whole universe, both loyal and rebellious, with one accord declare: ‘Just and true are Thy ways, Thou King of saints’ ”—Ellen G. White, The Great Controversy, pp. 670, 671.
| Read 1 Corinthians 4:5. How can you learn to trust the promise found there? |
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