The Final Restitution

Origianlly published April 13, 2006

apokatastasis - Restitution or restoration (the only time used in the New Testament)

Acts 3:20-21 - And He shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things...

You and I cannot move past religious curiosity without the revelation of the Holy Spirit who prophesied this Word about a coming restitution of all things. I honestly believe that the final restitution is at hand, but our desire to know Christ and be significantly used of Him in these last days has been fossilized by the many years of cultural lifestyle and Spiritual stagnation. As we watched the Twin Towers fall did we not feel an unsettling fear, a Spiritual shaking, and a sense that God was speaking to all of us that we are at the end? Jesus Himself told us that the end would resemble the days of Noah when God brought restitution to the earth by a colossal flood of His judgment. I am afraid for the world and for the lukewarm church as the enormous cloud of God's storm of judgment waits in the wings. This world is not what God had envisioned and He has promised to come and restore all things and rule and reign Himself from the city of Jerusalem.
Everything that people are talking about these days is meaningless. Immigration, gas prices, interest rates, joblessness, democracy, and all the other earthly issues that man thinks he can work out are sounding brass and tinkling cymbals because we should be consumed with the coming judgment of God. Jesus was consumed with God's judgment and He offered Himself to be judged in our place. His whole mission was to take God's judgment because He knew how destructive His Father's judgment was and that it was coming. In order for God to restore His will on this earth He will consume all evil Restitution is God's business, our business is regeneration. The quest for restitution by the hand of man and his government is nothing more than vain witchcraft which has its ups and downs but its end is judgment.
But the indictment against us is that even if we recognize the world and the church are headed in the wrong direction we still are not consumed with the presence of the Lord. We will never experience the presence and power of Almighty God until we confess that we are fairly indifferent about having a fiery and passionate walk with Christ that consumes us. There is little time left. The clock races toward a fearful day. Lucifer plays his sweet lullabies to the church and we awake to our pleasures and sleep to the truth of God's Word. And those of us who reject the seeker church and the plastic church growth strategies, we are content with identifying the obvious with little power or revival in our own lives. OK, even though this commemoration of the resurrection, Easter, was made by man, let us repent and diligently seek Him. If we could see the Spirit world for five minutes it would revolutionize our lives!
The restitution of the world will come soon by force at the angry hand of Almighty God. But our restitution began when we were regenerated by the Spirit of Grace as He responded to our heart-cry of faith placed upon the Son of God. But never forget that there came with that free gift a pouring out of the wrath of God upon His own Son for us, and the Angel of Death has "Passed-over" us. We see "through a glass darkly" now, but one day we will see face to face. I remember waking up the morning after the night I had been born again upon a mountain overlooking the brilliant skyline of New York City. After opening my eyes I again entered into the realization that Jesus was real and alive and that I had met Him last night an I felt such a desire to know Him more. I still had a long journey to become "like Him". There is coming a moment when we open our Spiritual eyes for the first time in heaven and at an instant we will not only realize that we became a follower of Jesus in our former life, but "we will see Him as He is". Love Him, praise Him, worship Him, experience Him, and a million other accompanying realities when ushered into His celestial dwelling place - FOREVER. And not only will we "see Him as He is", but we will be "Like Him!" The primary goal of Lucifer is to keep souls from gaining eternity with the Lord of Lords, but one of his most effective ways to accomplish that is to keep True saints from a deeper life of walking in His presence with obedience and worship. Remember, the Father is a "rewarder of them that diligently SEEK HIM".

Precious Holy Spirit, please "break up the fallow ground" of our hearts and break the cords and desires of this world that we may win Christ. Amen