ETERNAL IS A PROBLEM IF YOU HAVE A “PURPOSE”

ETERNAL IS A PROBLEM IF YOU HAVE A “PURPOSE”
Slow down here… ’cause to me, this is a big thought.
You see, I use to be involved in the Gene Edwards’ “house church” movement.
He got started in the 70s in Isla Vista, California.
I fell in with his group there in 1977.
Well, one of the “founding” teachings of Gene was a mass of vague, meaningless, hard-to-follow ideas called “THE ETERNAL PURPOSE OF GOD”.
My problem with this is that… a PURPOSE has limits. If your PURPOSE is to fix the toilet, you begin, you fix it, and you end your purpose and clean up your tools.
But the general meaning of ETERNAL — is “without beginning and without ending”.
So, a PURPOSE that has no beginning and no end — is no purpose at all.
The Concordant Literal New Testament fixes this idea in EPHESIANS 3:11…
and tells us about GOD’S EONIAN PURPOSE. — A PURPOSE that is limited by the eons, and is finished when the eons are done.

Sorry… just thinking aloud… but I had to work out this idea, because I was really influenced by Gene at one time.
By the way… if you can follow Gene’s lesson on THE ETERNAL PURPOSE OF GOD… it basically means “the church is the bride of Christ and the church and Christ will rule FOREVER AND EVER.”

To me… THE EONIAN PURPOSE OF GOD… is a sweeter, better idea… it’s basically this: God will become all in all. During the eons, there be twouble, but after the eons, all is well.

Grace to y’all.
Jones.