Tag: passivity

As noted above, when humanity remembers the Sabbath one is commemorating the creation event. This is a component, but it is more than commemorative, it is also participatory. Every week we participate in the Sabbath. We are seeking to live in God?s intention. First, it seeks to commemorate God?s original intention. To commemorate and participate in God?s original intention, we must first understand what God?s intention was at creation. Reflection on my own ecclesial and ethnic traditions informs me that first of all God?s original intention was to make all of humanity in God?s image. God?s original intention was for humanity to live equally. A reflection on how the Sabbath evolved through the Biblical record confirms this for all individuals in Israel including slave, free, rich, and poor took part in the responsibilities as well as the benefits of the Sabbath. Even the animals were to ?rest? (Exodus 20:10). For the purposes of this paper, I will use equality as a component of God?s original intention. Thus, to commemorate and participate in Sabbath we should be commemorating and participating in God?s original intention which includes equality. Seventh-day Adventists sometimes have emphasized the refraining from work aspect of the 7th day without emphasizing this participation in God?s intention aspect. We participate in equality in the world as we stand up for the vision of the Sabbath in the world.

The Sabbath allows us to live in God?s original intention although partially today. Today we can see the in breaking of the Kingdom. Today by reflection on this symbol we can gain a clearer perception of what God?s intention is and thus what the fullness of God?s kingdom will look like. The Sabbath itself does not allow one to fall into a trap of quietism where one does nothing. The Sabbath pushes us to see the world as God would see it. This first step clarifies our view of the world in light of others.

Because of the participatory aspects of the Sabbath, one cannot ever fall into a trap of just looking on or observing. If one is truly remembering God?s creative acts, or as I have put it remembering God?s intention, one will participate in it which means an active disengagement with all that is not in line with God?s intention.

Sabbath

In this section of the paper, I will briefly describe the three symbols that I will use. The first symbol is the Sabbath. This is a symbol that reminds humanity to look back at creation. Thus, the Sabbath is a symbol of the commemoration of divine creation. Because God called what God created ?very good? (Gen 1:31), I will call original creation God?s original intention for humanity. Creation is a work solely of God. Humanity did not participate in it, but humanity participates in its celebration. Contemplating and understanding God?s world as originally given will cause one to contemplate God?s desires of wholeness, equality, perfection, and justice.

Second Advent of Jesus Christ

The Second Advent of Jesus Christ is another symbol that is important to my own theological reflections. Here there is a breaking in of divine into the human realm. I wish to describe this as the institution of God?s ultimate intention in the world. God?s original intention at creation has gone through some change as a result of human failings, but God still has a plan. Humanity had no part in creation that we symbolize in the Sabbath. Humanity also will not have any part in the Second Advent per-se? beside just watching and celebrating. This might give one the impression that there is nothing for humanity to do. However, the Heavenly Temple ministry of Jesus Christ is a symbol where we can see humanities role in the realization of the ultimate intention of God in history. The Heavenly Temple ministry of Jesus Christ is also a historical bridge between the creation symbolized in the Sabbath and the Second Advent. This is God?s current intention for the world.

The Heavenly Temple Ministry

The Heavenly Temple ministry is a time when Jesus is guiding history towards God?s intention.One can see glimpses of this ministry by looking at how Hebrews speaks of Christ as High Priest in the heavenlies (Hebrews 7-9) and the picture of Christ as priest in Revelation (see Revelation 1:9-17). While Jesus Christ is performing this work in heaven that he became qualified for because of his humanity (see Hebrews 2), the Holy Spirit is performing a role on the earth as comforter (John 14:6). So the Holy Spirit performs a work on earth while Jesus Christ is performing a work in heaven. Seventh-day Adventists believe that this work is the same work observed from different angles. Jesus Christ in heaven is performing a work for us while the Holy Spirit on earth is performing a work in us. Both work together to bring history to the climax that will end at the Second Advent of Jesus the Christ. For my purposes, I will not differentiate between the work of Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. In this paper I will only speak of the Holy Spirit?s work in humanity on the earth rather than talk about Jesus Christ?s work in heaven.

In the next few posts I will serialize a paper I wrote to address this question. In this post I will give the introduction of the paper:

The Second Advent and Passivity: A Position Paper on Eschatology

As one reads the literature produced by many who accept a literal Second Advent of Jesus Christ, one sees what I believe to be a problematic emphasis on passivly waiting and seeing God unfold what God said would happen in the Bible. In many cases there is nothing for humanity to do and the Christian simply watches with “inside information” on what will happen in the end. This kind of eschatology can promote a passivity that merely supports the status quo in the world. I believe that there will be a literal, visible Second Advent where Jesus Christ will break into human history to fully set up the Kingdom of God on this earth. However, this belief does not necessarily promote passivity or mere acceptance of the status quo. I will show that this kind of emphasis on passively waiting actually postpones the Second Advent of Jesus Christ.

The Seventh-day Adventist church teaches that right now both human and divine agencies are in a work that is a pre-requisite to the Second Advent. In other words there is something that humanity, with the help of God, must do before the Second Advent can take place. In this paper, I will describe this work as bringing God?s intention for humanity. At creation, we see God?s original intention for humanity. At the Second Advent, we see God?s ultimate intention for humanity. Today in the ongoing work of Christ and the Holy Spirit, we see God seeking to implement God?s current intention for humanity.

We cannot fully describe any of God?s intentions for we don?t have a full record of creation neither do we have a full record of how the Kingdom of God will look after the Second Advent, but we can catch a glimpse. We can catch a glimpse of these intentions by appealing to ethnic tradition as exemplified in the yearnings of the slaves in their spirituals. We can catch a glimpse by theological reflection on the demands of justice and mercy. We can catch a glimpse by looking at God?s intentions in the Bible and in the doctrines and teachings of my own and other ecclesial traditions. In this paper, I will organize my reflection with three primary symbols from my ecclesial tradition that speak to God?s intention and humanities work in bringing God?s intention. My guiding purpose is to show how reflection on God?s intention can help to sidestep the possibility of passivity in light of the Second Advent.