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When God declares believers are justified by faith, he is announcing in advance the verdict that will be declared on the last day. The end time has reached into the present time, and this eschatological declaration belongs to believers now because Jesus has been declared to be in the right by his death and resurrection. (44)

God's purposes aren't fulfilled in a beautiful arc that curves upward in a smooth, unbroken narrative. Instead, the story of salvation is full of fits and starts, advances and retreats. By the time the NT opens it seems hope for redemption had ground to a halt, but suddenly God acts, invading the world in Christ. The end-time promises are fulfilled but in a startling way—eschatologically and apocalyptically! (32)

For anything to be good, truly good, there must be love in it.… There must be love for the gift itself, love for the subject being depicted or the story being told, and love for the audience. Whether the art is sculpture, farming, teaching, lawmaking, medicine, music, or raising a child, if love is not in it—at the very heart of it—it might be skillful, marketable, or popular but I doubt it is truly good. (119)