God's Judgement and Reconciliation For All

In a previous post, we dismissed the "hell of eternal torment" proposed by many people by first showing its absurdity, and then the Bible's declaration of God's intention to reconcile all of His creation to Himself.

Since we are currently living in an age which is dominated by sin, death and hostility towards God, there is clearly a lot that must happen to get mankind from where it is now to that promised reconciliation and peaceful state.

A broad brush stroke overview of the journey from here to there is outlined in the Scriptures and briefly described below.

It is a multi-age process with an advance party chosen and equipped in the current age, joined by a regathered and restored national Israel, to serve in Christ's kingdom age, followed by a final gathering and restoration of the rest of mankind at the end of time.

(Christ's kingdom age is often referred to as the Messianic Age by the Jewish community and as the Millennium by many in the Church community.)

Those in the Advance Party, also called the Body of Christ, are given the faith to believe that Jesus died for their sins and was resurrected to guarantee their life beyond the grave, and have subsequently committed themselves to serving Jesus as training for their future kingdom duties.

Serving Jesus in the current era also involves progressive correction and reformation into the image in which God originally made them. However, the journey to Christ-likeness will not be completed before the end of their lifetime on earth, so a future assessment and refining process is provided to ensure their perfection for service in the kingdom.

Paul explains this process when writing to the Corinthian believers in the Advance Party, who came to faith under his ministry.

Using the gift that God gave me, I did the work of an expert builder and laid the foundation, and someone else is building on it. But each of you must be careful how you build.
For God has already placed Jesus Christ as the one and only foundation, and no other foundation can be laid.
Some will use gold or silver or precious stones in building on the foundation; others will use wood or grass or straw.
And the quality of each person's work will be seen when the Day of Christ exposes it. For on that Day fire will reveal everyone's work; the fire will test it and show its real quality.
If what was built on the foundation survives the fire, the builder will receive a reward.
But if your work is burnt up, then you will lose it; but you yourself will be saved, as if you had escaped through the fire.
[1 Cor 3 : 10 - 15  GNT]

This judgement and refinement for believers occurs before Christ Himself.

For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.
[2 Corinthians 5 : 10  ESV]

Clearly, the more believers grow towards Christ-likeness during their lifetime on earth, the less refinement will be needed for their role in the kingdom.

When the last of the Advance Party is chosen and perfected, and Israel's regathering and restoration completed, the kingdom age begins. It is during this age, under the personal direction of Jesus Christ and the major judgement and restoration events at its end, that God completes His plan to reconcile all mankind.

But now Christ has been raised from the dead. He became the first fruits of those who are asleep.
For since death came by man, the resurrection of the dead also came by man.
For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive.
But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, then those who are Christ’s, at his coming.
Then the end comes, when he will deliver up the Kingdom to God, even the Father; when he will have abolished all rule and all authority and power.
For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet.
The last enemy that will be abolished is death. ...
When all things have been subjected to him, then the Son will also himself be subjected to him who subjected all things to him, that God may be all in all.
[1 Corinthians 15 : 20 - 28  WEB]

The New Testament has other references to this final result. Here's an example:

Christ existed before all things, and in union with him all things have their proper place.
He is the head of his body, the church; he is the source of the body's life. He is the first-born Son, who was raised from death, in order that he alone might have the first place in all things.
For it was by God's own decision that the Son has in himself the full nature of God.
Through the Son, then, God decided to bring the whole universe back to himself. God made peace through his Son's blood on the cross and so brought back to himself all things, both on earth and in heaven.
[Colossians 1 : 17 - 20  GNT]

Just as the perfection process for the Advance Party involves judgement and correction, as characterised by a refining fire at the end of this current age, so the remainder of mankind will experience judgement and restoration, also characterised by a refining fire at the end of the kingdom age.

However the scale of this latter process will be much larger than for the believers in the Advance Party as the final harvest will be dealing with the rest of mankind compared with only the first fruits in the former.
Indeed the Book of Revelation refers to the final judgement scene as the Great White Throne and its refinement facility as the Lake of Fire, giving an indication of their size.

The penalty for sin being paid for, death being abolished, God becoming "all in all", and all of creation being reconciled to God, are surely the outcomes we'd confidently expect from a loving heavenly Father who is in full control of His creation.

Judgement and correction/refinement are the methods God uses to complete that outcome for all - for those in the Advance Party and for those whose reconciliation awaits the end of time.

Blessings, Barry