This collection of addresses from the 2010 Philadelphia Conference on Reformed Theology focuses on the ‘last days’—a period that began with the resurrection of Christ and will continue until His return. Specific emphasis is put on the Christian hope amidst this present age of evil. Featuring contributions from a wide range of authors, this book has some strong chapters and others that fall a bit short of the mark, but the overall effort is helpful.

The resurrection is our hope. It is not just something that shapes the way we anticipate the future. It really is an indicator of what we believe about everything—what we believe about God and His relationship to the world, what we believe about creation, providence, and redemption. Getting the resurrection right is essential for understanding everything in Scripture, from promise to fulfillment. [53]

We don’t even use the language of death anymore. We speak of ‘passing away’…but ‘passing away’ is very different from dying. More troubling is the fact that there is no resurrection for people who pass away. [56]

If Christ has not risen bodily from the dead, then it doesn’t matter what therapeutic benefits Christianity has had in your life. The net effect is that you have believed a hoax. It isn’t useful, it isn’t advantageous, and it hasn’t made you a better person. It’s a hoax; you have placed your faith in a lie. [62]

It is all for nothing if Jesus is still decaying in a tomb in Palestine today. There is no compensation for Him living on in our hearts. What did the old hymn say, ‘You ask me how I know He lives? He lives within my heart.’ That is not the gospel. There is no hope if Jesus Christ’s material body was not somehow reorganized and reenergized by the powers of the age to come and thus raised from the dead. [62]

Our problem is not our bodies. Our souls are not somehow the ‘real’ us. We are both body and soul, never meant to be separated. This is why death is so unnatural. [66]

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