I’ll be your huckleberry
When the fulness of time had come God sent forth His Son…
Yes, the fulness of time in relation to the sending forth of the Son had come, so He was sent forth. “Who was foreknown from the foundation of the world and was manifested in these last times for you.” Peter “manifested” is a key word in understanding prophetic fulfillment.
Still much interpretation as to the application and meaning of the words- by no means obvious even to Peter…
“Whom the heavens must receive until the period of the restoration of all things spoken of by all the prophets from the foundation of the world” Acts 3
The heavens still receive Him. When he comes forth at the end of this age, the “epiphanea, parousia, apokalypsis” will be completed for this age but there will still be ages to come in the dispensation of the fulness(pleroma) of times, until the “manifestation” of the restoration of all things is complete. Pleroma is the same word as in “For so it pleased the Father for all the fulness to dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile all things to himself by the blood of His cross”(Col 1) "filled up to all the fulness of God (Eph 3)
Hebrews 2:8 You have put all things in subjection under his feet.” For in that He put all in subjection under him, He left nothing that is not put under him. But now we do not yet see all things put under him.
Ro 8:23 Not only that, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body. 24 For we were saved in this hope, but hope that is seen is not hope; for why does one still hope for what he sees? 25 But if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with perseverance.
Hoping for what we do not see is the very meaning of “eshcaton”(imo) as it is unveiled throughout the administration of it. which is ongoing until it has all “come down from heaven”, i.e. manifested.
It is finished, He has overcome, but that seed of restoration first filled the body of Jesus, then the body of Christ, ultimately the whole creation/cosmos including time. It has “times” yet in which to play out, therefore there is still an eschaton remaining, one for which the entire creation groans in eager anticipation,
For the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God. 20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, *in hope 21 that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God.
What an eshcaton that is!
2 Tim 4 I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom;
1 Timothy 6:14 That thou keep this commandment without spot, unrebukable, until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ:
Titus 2:13 Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;
1 Peter 1:7 That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:
Jesus has appeared, is appearing and will appear. He was and is and is to come. Until all time is fulfilled/completed, there is an eschaton.
pléróma: fullness, a filling up
Original Word: πλήρωμα, ατος, τό
Part of Speech: Noun, Neuter
Transliteration: pléróma
Phonetic Spelling: (play’-ro-mah)
Short Definition: fullness, fulfillment, completion
Definition: (a) a fill, fullness; full complement; supply, patch, supplement, (b) fullness, filling, fulfillment, completion.
Time is being filled up, the receptacle for all of Gods works. If God rested from His works on the 7th day does that mean there was no more eshcaton? It could appear so taken out of whole cloth.
1 Cor 15:25 For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet. 26 The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death. 27 For he hath put all things under his feet. But when he saith all things are put under him, it is manifest that he is excepted, which did put all things under him.28 And when all things shall be subdued unto him,** then** shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all in all.
There is a when and a then and therefore there is an eshcaton.
God will become all in all, he has not yet, but the work is done in Chrst- I think on that we agree- “It is finished” in Christ, but is yet to appear in pleroma/fulness. That will occur through a dispensation of the fulness of time, the completion of the ages, and at the very least, there is an eschaton to the subjection of the last adversary, and God becoming all in all. As long as time remains there will be adversaries and they are being subjected, until every knee bows, in heaven, on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confesses that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.
REV 5;11 And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands;
12 Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing.
13** And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever.**
verse 13 being the fulfillment of Phil 2:9-11; Col 1:15-20; Eph 1:9-11; Rom 8:18-25; 1 Cor 15:22-28 and Romans 11:30-36
Clearly(to me anyway ) as long as there is a future, and that future having a point of closure in which God has become all and all, every enemy subjected, reconciled and restored- all gathered inbto one in love and light and life- there is a dispensation as yet not dispensed, an administration not yet complete, an eshcaton as yet unfulfilled in earth(as it is in heaven) - yet to “come down from heaven” but “coming” like the dawn grows into the fulness of mid-day.
oikonomia: stewardship, administration
Original Word: οἰκονομία, ας, ἡ
Part of Speech: Noun, Feminine
Transliteration: oikonomia
Phonetic Spelling: (oy-kon-om-ee’-ah)
Short Definition: stewardship
Definition: management of household affairs, stewardship, administration.
Eph 1:10 NIV to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment–to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ.
NAS an administration suitable to the fullness of the times, that is, the summing up of all things in Christ, things in the heavens and things on the earth.
We are in the midst of a great administration. The plan set forth before the foundation of the world. The plan paid for and the resources secured when God sent forth His Son, the plan complete when God becomes all in all.*