Judgment Result Number 1: Christ Is Vindicated
I kept looking in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven One like a Son of Man was coming, and He came up to the Ancient of Days and was presented before Him. And to Him was given dominion, glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations and men of every language might serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion which will not pass away; and His kingdom is one which will not be destroyed. Dan. 7:13, 14, NASB.
This passage is pregnant with meaning. Taken in the context of the flow of Daniel 7, the verses do not speak about the Second Advent, but rather of Christ's coming in the judgment scene. The stage was set for it in verse 9 and 10, which pictured the public placement of thrones, the arrival of the Father, and opening of the books containing the evidence that forms the basis of the final judgment. Now, Daniel describes Christ as "One like a Son of Man" joining the Father in the final work of judgment before They bring an end to earthly history.
The vision shows that the judgment ends in favor of Jesus, who at its conclusion receives everlasting dominion. That decree seals forever the fate of Satan and renders God's universe secure for the eternal ages to come. And Jesus' vindicating judgment involves His followers in the victory. Thus a judgment in favor of the work of Jesus on earth is also a verdict for the final and eternal justification of those who have chosen to accept the benefits of His incarnation, life, death, and resurrection.
One of the most interesting things about this judgment scene is that it pictures Jesus as "One like a Son of Man." It is the verse that led Him to choose that title as His favorite description of Himself during His earthly ministry. He chose it rather than Messiah or Christ because that designation had acquired too many ideas related to a conquering king. To avoid that, Jesus elected to identify Himself as "the Son of Man."
Interestingly, John the revelator picks up the title of the Son of Man again in Revelation 14:14-16 to depict Jesus coming in the clouds of heaven at the end of time to take His people home. As a result, we can see that the Jews were not altogether wrong when they visualized the Messiah as a conquering king. But they weren't completely correct, either. In reality, the ministry of Jesus as the Son of Man has two aspects--the first as suffering servant and the second as coming King. The final judgment utilizes the accomplishments of the first phase of His work as the justification for the second, in which He is given everlasting dominion.
I kept looking in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven One like a Son of Man was coming, and He came up to the Ancient of Days and was presented before Him. And to Him was given dominion, glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations and men of every language might serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion which will not pass away; and His kingdom is one which will not be destroyed. Dan. 7:13, 14, NASB.
This passage is pregnant with meaning. Taken in the context of the flow of Daniel 7, the verses do not speak about the Second Advent, but rather of Christ's coming in the judgment scene. The stage was set for it in verse 9 and 10, which pictured the public placement of thrones, the arrival of the Father, and opening of the books containing the evidence that forms the basis of the final judgment. Now, Daniel describes Christ as "One like a Son of Man" joining the Father in the final work of judgment before They bring an end to earthly history.
The vision shows that the judgment ends in favor of Jesus, who at its conclusion receives everlasting dominion. That decree seals forever the fate of Satan and renders God's universe secure for the eternal ages to come. And Jesus' vindicating judgment involves His followers in the victory. Thus a judgment in favor of the work of Jesus on earth is also a verdict for the final and eternal justification of those who have chosen to accept the benefits of His incarnation, life, death, and resurrection.
One of the most interesting things about this judgment scene is that it pictures Jesus as "One like a Son of Man." It is the verse that led Him to choose that title as His favorite description of Himself during His earthly ministry. He chose it rather than Messiah or Christ because that designation had acquired too many ideas related to a conquering king. To avoid that, Jesus elected to identify Himself as "the Son of Man."
Interestingly, John the revelator picks up the title of the Son of Man again in Revelation 14:14-16 to depict Jesus coming in the clouds of heaven at the end of time to take His people home. As a result, we can see that the Jews were not altogether wrong when they visualized the Messiah as a conquering king. But they weren't completely correct, either. In reality, the ministry of Jesus as the Son of Man has two aspects--the first as suffering servant and the second as coming King. The final judgment utilizes the accomplishments of the first phase of His work as the justification for the second, in which He is given everlasting dominion.
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