Tabletalk Magazine, March 2004: The New Heavens and the New Earth

by Ligonier Ministries

Publisher:

Ligonier Ministries

, 2004

Overview

For more than thirty years, Tabletalk has existed as a magazine for laymen. Generally speaking, laymen receive either very little instruction in the weightier matters of the faith, or the instruction is too academic, thereby making the material largely inaccessible to average laymen. This is the reason Tabletalk exists — to bridge the gap between these two poles, to explain to the people of God important, biblical doctrines and events while admonishing them toward holy living.

Contributors include R.C. Sproul along with Kenneth Gentry, David King, Anthony Carter, Chris Donato, Sinclair Ferguson, Douglas Kelly, David Seng, George Grant, and R. C. Sproul Jr. Tabletalk features articles about topics central to the Christian faith and daily, in-depth Bible studies.

Contents

• "'I Believe in the Life Everlasting'" by R. C. Sproul
• "The New Creation" by Kenneth Gentry
• "The Reversal of the Curse" by Vern Poythress
• "The New Day" by David King
• "Last Things First" by Anthony Carter
• "Repentance from First to Last" by Chris Donato
• "Sabbath Rest" by Sinclair Ferguson
• "God's Rest for God's People" by Douglas Kelly
• "Forever Mercy" by David Seng
• "Coram Deo" from the Editors
• "Not of This World" by George Grant
• "Civilization and Its Discontents" by R. C. Sproul Jr.

Top Highlights

“Here Paul expresses apostolic ambivalence. He sees the good of his present life, yet yearns for his departure because of his assurance that it will mean gain. He uses the comparative form of the good by choosing the term ‘better’ to describe what follows this life. Indeed the comparative is further modified by the word ‘far.’ Thus Paul avers that the state that follows death is ‘far better’ than that which we presently enjoy.” (Page 7)

“At the last day we will be raised bodily from the dead (John 5:28–29; 1 Cor. 15:12–25). In our eternal estate we will inhabit a purified, refashioned earth—something of a new Eden (Rev. 2:7; 22:2), but with no prospect of failure (as was inherent in Eden, Gen. 2:17).” (Page 11)

“Secondly, the believer’s resurrection will be marked by the end of sin into endless holiness.” (Page 17)

“The creation was originally good, and the futility was imposed only later, at the time of the Fall. Hence, there is a genuine basis for believing that God will extirpate futility without thereby destroying the good creation as well. And that is what Romans 8:21 promises: ‘the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.’” (Page 14)

“In the same way, God unfolds the new creation in stages. The new creation is now with us, for ‘if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come’ (2 Cor. 5:17). Yet we are awaiting its final, corporeal establishment: ‘But according to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells’ (2 Peter 3:13).” (Page 9)

Praise for the Print Edition

Tabletalk has been a key ingredient in the diet of Christians conscious of their spiritual vitality.

—Michael S. Horton

Month by month, Tabletalk represents an oasis in a desert of false spirituality, mindless Christianity, and vapid conviction. Tabletalk represents theological rigor, biblical Christianity, and authentic Christian devotion. It is an antidote to the world of superficial Christianity. Read it and grow.

—R. Albert Mohler, Jr.

Tabletalk has been a wonderful resource in my own daily walk with the Lord.

—Ravi Zacharias

Product Details

• Title: Tabletalk Magazine, March 2004: The New Heavens and the New Earth
• Executive Editor: R. C. Sproul
• Editor: Burk Parsons
• Series: Tabletalk
• Publisher: Ligonier Ministries
• Publication Date: March 2004
• Pages: 60

About Ligonier Ministries

R. C. Sproul is founder and president of Ligonier Ministries and president of Ligonier Academy. He also servers as the senior pastor of Saint Andrew’s in Sanford, Fla., and he has written more than seventy books including The Holiness of God, The Intimage Marriage, Essential Truths of the Christian Faith, Following the Cross, and the R. C. Sproul Exposition Collection.

Burk Parsons serves as editor of Tabletalk and associate pastor of Saint Andrew’s in Sanford, Fla., and he is editor of the books Assured by God: Living in the Fullness of God’s Grace and John Calvin: A Heart for Devotion, Doctrine, and Doxology.