April 2016 New Horizons

An Unbreakable and Eternal Relationship with the Risen Lord

by William B. Kessler

What is your relationship with the risen Christ? The first disciples believed their relationship with him had ended. These disciples were convinced, on that first Easter Sunday morning, that their relationship with Jesus was cut off, severed—a painful, debilitating, unrecoverable severing, like having your right arm freshly amputated. Grieving the loss of their rabbi and their future dreams, convinced his body was tucked away in some dark, dank, borrowed tomb, certain he died a cruel, shameful death—like a flower cut, fallen, fading, stepped on, and crushed—those disciples believed Jesus was dead. Death, the sharpest and coldest scalpel, severs the most precious relationships we have on earth. But the Gospels record a most startling historical event—the most profound irony with which the human race has ever been confronted: Jesus was no longer dead, but alive—having been raised, even raised from the dead! The flower that had been crushed had blossomed again, to live forever. Jesus’ ... Read more

The Glorious Family Resemblance

by Camden M. Bucey

Glorification is a term entrenched in the Reformed theological tradition, yet our understanding of the subject is weaker than we suppose. The Westminster Standards speak of “glory” in several places, yet the precise word “glorification” is nowhere present. “Glory” is a difficult term to define, but for our purposes we will say that God’s glory is the sum total of his attributes. And so, to “glorify” God would be to demonstrate his attributes. Because God does not change, it is not possible to make God greater than he already is; nonetheless, God makes himself known increasingly through his Word and his works. Perhaps the greatest of God’s works will be the resurrection of the dead on the last day, when our Lord returns on the clouds. This will certainly be the consummate expression of God’s glory in his people, yet we should acknowledge that God’s glory is demonstrated in us already. Our chief end is to glorify God and to enjoy him forever. We glorify and enjoy him now, even ... Read more

The End of the World Has Come

by Jonathan Hutchison

At the beginning of the world, Adam lived in the hope of its end. Before the fall, Adam lived on earth in the hope of heaven. Adam worked in this world in the hope of rest in the world to come. Adam dwelt in this creation in the hope of a new creation. This hope was revealed to Adam in the work of creation, in God’s own work unto rest. The Visible and Invisible Heavens In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth (Gen. 1:1). The word “heavens” in Genesis 1:1 refers not to the visible heavens, but to the invisible heavens. In that verse, God creates all things, both visible and invisible (cf. Col. 1:15). In Genesis 1:2, the focus turns from the heavens and the earth together to the earth alone. The NIV conveys this transition well: “ Now the earth was formless and empty.” The six days that follow are God’s response to the formlessness and emptiness of the earth. In the first three days, God forms what was formless. In the next three days, God fills what was empty. ... Read more