Marking Time: Forming Spirituality through the Christian Year

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Mark i ng T ime : Formi ng Sp i r i tua l i t y through the Chr i s t i an Year

II. Implications of Christus Victor Theology for Our Life and Witness

God’s Kingdom means the divine conquest over His enemies, a conquest which is to be accomplished in three stages; and the first victory has already occurred. The power of the Kingdom of God has invaded the realm of Satan – the present evil Age. The activity of this power to deliver men from satanic rule was evidenced in the exorcism of demons. Thereby, Satan was bound; he was cast down from his position of power; his power was “destroyed.” The blessings of the Messianic Age are now available to those who embrace the Kingdom of God. We may already enjoy the blessings resulting from this initial defeat of Satan. Yes, the Kingdom of God has come near, it is already present. This does not mean that we now enjoy the fulness of God’s blessings, or that all that is meant by the Kingdom of God has come to us. . . . [T]he Second Coming of Christ is absolutely essential for the fulfil ment and consummation of God’s redemptive work. Yet God has already accomplished the first great stage in His work of redemption. Satan is the god of This Age, yet the power of Satan has been broken that men may know the rule of God in their lives. The evil Age goes on, yet the powers of the Age to Come have been made available to men. To the human eye, the world appears little changed; the kingdom of Satan is unshaken. Yet the Kingdom of God has come among men [sic]; and those who receive it will be prepared to enter the Kingdom of Glory when Christ comes to finish the good work He has already begun. This is the Gospel of the Kingdom.

~ George Eldon Ladd. The Gospel of the Kingdom . Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 1959. pp. 50-51.

A. For the Church

1. As the people of God and the new humanity of God’s new creation, the Church is the people of the victory of the risen Christ, the very embodiment of Jesus in the world.

2. Clarification

a. The Church is the people of God, 1 Pet. 2.8-9.

b. The Church is God’s new creation, 2 Cor. 5.17-21.