Restitution
WHAT? WHERE? WHEN?
"The times of refreshing shall come
from the presence of the Lord; and he shall
send Jesus Christwhom the heaven must receive until the times of
restitution of all things, which God
hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began" (#Ac 3:19-21). "A little child shall lead them" (#Isa 11:6).
DO YOU KNOW:
That "restitution" means
restoration, as most other Bible translations show?
That some think it means only one’s
returning anything wrongly taken (Exodus
22:1-6, 12; #Le 6:2-5; #Eze 14-16), but
that the Bible shows it means far
more-the greatest kind of restoration and the greatest blessings ever-soon to come on earth for all people?
DO YOU KNOW:
That the Bible states. "In the
beginning God created the heaven and the earth" (#Ge 1:1), but not how much time from then until
the six creative days, in which He
gradually prepared the earth for human life?
That God made the plants and animals and
then "a garden [paradise] eastward in
Eden" (#Ge 2:8), with perfect ecology, where He created
Adam, "the first man" (not to
become a spirit being, an Angel, but forever to be a human being), "of the [dust, or] earth,
earthly," "a little lower than angels" (#Ge 2:7; Psalm 8:4-8; #1Co 15:45-47)?
That Adam was given rule over the earth
and animals (all were then tame), which
he named; and that then God created Eve as his wife and helpmate
(Genesis 1:26-28; 2:18-25)?
That they and their descendents could have
had perfect life forever on a perfect
earth if they had obeyed God, but that when they disobeyed they were
sentenced to death, cessation of life (#Ge 2:17), and were driven out of and kept out of the garden of Eden, least they continue
to eat the life-sustaining fruit of the
trees and live forever on earth (#Ge 3:22-24)?
That by heredity the Adamic death sentence
came also on all of Adam’s decedents,
so that none of mankind has a right to perfect life in a perfect earth,
but has only an imperfect, dying
existence (#Ro 5:12-19; #1Co 15:21, 22)?
That God showed His great love for all
mankind (including you and me) in
planning to free all from the death sentence by providing a ransom (corresponding price) for them?
DO YOU KNOW:
That God’s only begotten Son, the mighty
Logos, willingly was "made flesh," "the man Christ Jesus," "a little lower
than the angels, for the suffering of
deaththat he by the grace of God should taste death for every
man"-Adam and all his lost
race-and that Jesus "gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified
in due timer" (#Mt 18:11; #Joh
1:14; 3:14-18; #1Ti 2:3-6; 4:10; #Heb 2:1-14; #1Jo 2:2)?
That because of Jesus’ willing
Ransom-sacrifice all, living and dead, are
guaranteed one opportunity "in due time" to gain eternal
life-that the Church, selected during
the Church Age, is given enteral life in heaven (2 Corinthians 5:1-4; #Heb 10:34), but
that all who had no opportunity and afterward repent for sin, believe on Jesus as Savior and give themselves loyally
to God will in the Millennium
("times of refreshing") have an opportunity to get restitution (restoration) to perfect human life forever
on the perfected earth (#Ps
37:9-11, 22, 29, 34; #Mt 6:10), which life Adam could have had?
That in the restitution times animals will
be tamed, the earth perfected (#Isa
11:6; 35:1, 2) and filled
with God’s glory (#Nu 14:21; #Isa 11:9; 40:5; #Heb 2:14); and
the obedient of mankind in general (#Re 22:17) will
be restored to perfection as Adam had
it; the wicked will be annihilated; but the
righteous will live forever in prosperity, peace, happiness, brotherhood
and love in the new earth (#Ps 72; #Isa 65:17-25; #Mt 6:10; #Ac 15:14-18; #2Pe
3:13; #Re 21:3, 4; 22:1-3)?
DO YOU KNOW:
That "the times of restitution,"
of which all the holy prophets spoke, the
1000-year rule of Christ (#Re 5:9, 10; 20:4, 6), follows His Second Advent
(#Ac 3:21), and that with His Church He will
destroy the present evil world
conditions, establish His righteous rule on earth and forever bless all
obedient humans (#Isa 2:2-4; 11:1-9; 25:6-10; 35:1-10; #Da 2:31-45; 7:13, 14, 18, 22, 27)?
That "the signs of the times,"
such as great evil, exposures, calamities,
apostasies, crises, war preparations, conflicts and terrorism, Israel’s
return, increased knowledge and travel,
etc. (#Lu 12:2; 21:11, 25-32; #Da 12:4, 10), prove that we are living in the end of this
Age and that Christ will soon begin the
restitution?
That all should rejoice greatly at the
wonderful prospects for all on earth and
tell others this good news of God’s soon-coming Kingdom on earth (#Lu 2:10-14; 21:25-28)?
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