What will the final state of the redeemed look like? Throughout the history of the church, conceptions of the final state have tended to minimize the promise of the new heavens and new earth. In contrast to the historical dominance of spiritual, heavenly, non-temporal conceptions of the final state, the last two decades have witnessed a rise in conceptions that include the redemption of material, earthly, and temporal reality. These “new creation” conceptions have included proposals regarding the fulfillment of Old Testament land promises. In New Creation Eschatology and the Land, Steven L. James argues that in recent new creation conceptions of the final state there is a logical inconsistency between the use of Old Testament texts to inform a renewed earth and the exclusion of the territory of Israel from that renewed earth. By examining a select group of new creationists, James shows that the exclusion of the territorial restoration of Israel in a new creation conception fails to appreciate the role of the particular territory in Old Testament prophetic texts and results in an inconsistent new creationism.

In recent years, more and more Christians have come to appreciate the Bible's teaching that the ultimate blessed hope for the believer is not an otherworldly heaven; instead, it is full-bodied participation in a new heaven and a new earth brought into fullness through the coming of God's kingdom. Drawing on the full sweep of the biblical narrative, J. Richard Middleton unpacks key Old Testament and New Testament texts to make a case for the new earth as the appropriate Christian hope. He suggests its ethical and ecclesial implications, exploring the difference a holistic eschatology can make for living in a broken world.

New Creation Millennialism is a creative new offering on the same topic as the author's seminal 1992 monograph After the Thousand Years: Resurrection and Judgment in Revelation 20. It introduces a powerful new interpretative approach to chapters 19-21 of the Book of Revelation. Its conclusion--that the thousand years of Revelation 20:1-10 begins at the glorious, world-shattering coming of Jesus Christ and has the new creation as its setting--flows from four observations about the literary design of Revelation: (1) John narrates ten or more visions of the glorious coming of Christ, making a simple chronological reading strategy impossible. (2) John gives clear verbal indications that he understands his vision of a devil-led attack by "Gog and Magog" upon the "beloved city" (Rev. 20:7-9 || Rev. 20:13-15) as representing the resurrection and final judgment of the devil and "the rest of the dead," who, like the devil, are to be incarcerated in the underworld "until the thousand years are ended" (Rev. 20:2-3, 5, 7). (3) John gives clear indications that the new creation and the coming to earth of the New Jerusalem (Rev. 21:1-2) attend Christ's coming in glory and are not to be assigned to a place after the thousand years of Revelation 20 (compare Rev. 19:5-9; 21:2, 9). (4) John offers multiple clues that the visions he narrates in Revelation 19-21 cover the same eschatological subject matter as those Isaiah narrated in the Isaiah Apocalypse (Isa. 24-27). This study not only solves the historically perplexing puzzles of Revelation 20 but also points to a new and radical theological understanding of the final fate of the unrepentant. Chapter 1 presents a new exposition of Rev. 19:5-21:8, demonstrating the elegance and explanatory power of the new creation millennialism interpretive paradigm. Chapters 2 and 3 lay out the insuperable difficulties that are faced by historic premillennialism and amillennialism, respectively. Chapter 4 presents a rebuttal to key amillennial arguments against the possibility of a premillennial reading of Rev. 20:1-10. The Conclusion sums up the gains made by the new creation millennialism approach and offers some theological reflections. An appendix introduces a number of ancient and modern interpreters of Revelation that have contributed to the new creation millennium interpretive paradigm.

Baptism and the Lord's supper are more than rituals of passage; they are means of deep fellowship with God. John Mark Hicks shows how our baptism and meetings at the table grow out of Jesus' experience and how they reflects, embody, and radiate the gospel in its fullness. -- Book Cover

It is traditional to think we should praise Abraham for his willingness to sacrifice his son as proof of his love for God. But have we misread the point of the story? Is it possible that a careful reading of Genesis 22 could reveal that God was not pleased with Abraham's silent obedience? Widely respected biblical theologian, creative thinker, and public speaker J. Richard Middleton suggests we have misread and misapplied the story of the binding of Isaac and shows that God desires something other than silent obedience in difficult times. Middleton focuses on the ethical and theological problem of Abraham's silence and explores the rich biblical tradition of vigorous prayer, including the lament psalms, as a resource for faith. Middleton also examines the book of Job in terms of God validating Job's lament as "right speech," showing how the vocal Job provides an alternative to the silent Abraham. This book provides a fresh interpretation of Genesis 22 and reinforces the church's resurgent interest in lament as an appropriate response to God.

Discover and understand the different Christian views of what heaven will be like. Christians from a variety of denominations and traditions are in middle of an important conversation about the final destiny of the saved. Scholars such as N. T. Wright and J. Richard Middleton have pushed back against the traditional view of heaven, and now some Christians are pushing back against them for fear that talk about the earthiness of our final hope distracts our attention from Jesus. In the familiar Counterpoints format, Four Views on Heaven brings together a well-rounded discussion and highlights similarities and differences of the current views on heaven. Each author presents their strongest biblical case for their position, followed by responses and a rejoinder that model a respectful tone. Positions and contributors include: Traditional Heaven - our destiny is to leave earth and live forever in heaven where we will rest, worship, and serve God (John S. Feinberg) Restored Earth - emphasizes that the saved will live forever with Jesus on this restored planet, enjoying ordinary human activities in our redeemed state. (J. Richard Middleton) Heavenly Earth - a balanced view that seeks to highlight both the strengths and weaknesses of the heavenly and earthly views (Michael Allen). Roman Catholic Beatific Vision - stresses the intellectual component of salvation, though it encompasses the whole of human experience of joy, happiness coming from seeing God finally face-to-face (Peter Kreeft). The Counterpoints series presents a comparison and critique of scholarly views on topics important to Christians that are both fair-minded and respectful of the biblical text. Each volume is a one-stop reference that allows readers to evaluate the different positions on a specific issue and form their own, educated opinion.

New Creation introduces readers to the thrilling, biblically-based vision of a whole world created by and to be redeemed by God. Written at an eminently accessible level, it shows how endings (or eschatologies) animate our lives. It rehearses the biblical story from an eschatological angle, emphasizing that Christian eschatology entails a politics. It then delves into how eschatology affects the priesthood of all believers, peace-making, prayer, and creation (including the rocks and trees, dogs and bees, and maybe even sex). With a light hand, it provides biblical cultural background where needed. Throughout, it connects theological groundings to present-day life, Christian discipleship, and contemporary issues. Here is a view of eschatology that bypasses escapist Rapture theology and puts forward a robust, exciting life now and in the age to come, very different from New Yorker cartoons featuring the afterlife as a bland, boring affair of strumming harps on clouds.