“The kingdom of God in the new heaven and the new earth is also the harvest of God, the fruition of all his purposes from the foundation of the world. The realization of man’s glorious destiny in Christ is the flowering and fructification not merely of the good seed of the gospel planted in the soil of his heart but also of the good seed of Christlikeness, which is the true significance of his constitution in the image of God, planted in the heart of his being at creation. The purpose of creation is reestablished and achieved in the grace of regeneration. This involves the realization of the cosmic order and harmony of all things—not, however, in a merely static sense, as though it were no more than the recovery of the [way things were before], that is, of an original fixity of being, but in accordance with the dynamic and vibrantly progressive will of God which is the energy that interpenetrates the whole of his creation. Eden ordered and harmonious though it was, was but the beginning, not the full end, of the Creator’s design for the cosmos. Man…was made lower than the angels only for a little while; [Man’s] true destiny was always intended to be higher than the angles, in union with Christ, the true Image of his being, crowned with glory and honor, ‘far above all rule and authority and power and dominion,’ participating in his [Christ’s] lordship over all the works of God’s hands.” (410-411, emphasis GGM)
