God is introduced to us in the very first verse of the Bible: “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth”. As the creator, God is shown to be all-powerful and all-knowing.
God created the heavens and the earth for His own glory: “For the earth will be filled With the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, As the waters cover the sea”.
Right from the very beginning God intended the earth to be inhabited by men and women: “For thus says the Lord, who created the heavens, who is God, who formed the earth and made it, who has established it, who did not create it in vain, who formed it to be inhabited: ‘I am the Lord, and there is no other’”.
The Kingdom
The Bible tells us that the ultimate fulfilment of God’s plan and purpose with the earth will be achieved when the earth will be inhabited by those who praise Him in their lives. The Bible refers to this time as the kingdom of God. This kingdom will be very different from any nation before it. It will fill the whole world, be a time of peace and prosperity and will be ruled over by God’s son, Jesus Christ.
After Jesus ascended to heaven and while his disciples were still looking up into the sky, two angels appeared and spoke to them saying, “Why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven.”
What about us?
How do we fit into God’s plan?
Those who have tried to follow God in their lives will be given the opportunity to live in the Kingdom of God. If they have died before Jesus’ return they will be raised from the dead.
This is another belief that differentiates Christadelphians from most other Christians, who believe that the ultimate reward for the righteous is a place in heaven. The Bible makes no such promise.
The Bible teaches that the reward for those who have tried to follow God in their lives will be a place in God’s kingdom. So Christadelphians follow Jesus’ teaching to his disciples and pray for Jesus to return to the earth and establish God’s kingdom.
