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From Eternity to Here: Rediscovering the Ageless Purpose of God

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Have you ever read one of those books that articulated everything you already knew into far better words than you could articulate them? Have you devoured a book because it gave reason and explanation for truths that you merely feel? Have you ever known that this book you are giving your time and thought to, is to become a field guide for the journey you are already on? Have you ever finished a book with the words, "I need to buy a copy of that for everyone I know?"

I have had that happen twice in my life. The first time was several years ago when I read Tom Davis' "Fields of the Fatherless". Then the second was last night as I finished Frank Viola's "From Eternity to Here." This book rocked my world not because it introduced a new idea, but because it quilted together the very truth of God, and his passionate needs, desire, and longing for community with his creation.

The book is divided into three sections. The first section lays out the Biblical narrative in such a way that it emphasizes the church as the bride as an eternal passion of God from before the beginning of time. Perfectly connecting the heroes of the Old Testament, with the wonder and mystery of John's gospel and apocalypse, Viola illustrates that the church as the bride is not a metaphor to help us better understand the authority structure of the Christian home, but instead it is the deep mystery of God hidden in Christ before the foundation of the world.

In the second section, Viola repeats his wonderful ability to beautifully connect the Biblical narrative together to elevate in our minds the importance of God's search for a dwelling place. From the foreign land where he sent Abraham, to the tabernacle of Moses and the tabernacle of David, to Solomon's Temple, through the incarnate life of life Jesus, and ultimately into his church which is the House of God, the Lord's resting place.

Finally in his third section, Viola switches from story teller to scholar to reveal the depth of meaning in the gospels and in the Pauline writings about the church as the body of Christ. This section does not read with the majestic eloquence of the first two, and yet it's content resonates deeper, and more meaningfully than any other in the book. Once again Viola slaughters theologians desire to reduce the the realities of God's Kingdom into a metaphor, this time it is the body of Christ. Viola notes with meticulous detail how the church is the REAL physical incarnation of Christ on earth now. He reinforces our dependence on Christ and gives us truth to use as a weapon against Satan's attack on our worth and righteousness. As Christ is the head and mind of the church, we are it's body, and we are therefore in a mutual need of eachother for the life giving dependence of a physical body. He ties all the thoughts together, to note how if we are the "seed of heaven" then as a new species on earth we live not intertwined into the affairs of the old species, but as colonist of the new Kingdom which is fulfilled at the reconciliation of all things.

This book is Viola's magnus opus! I have read his other three books, and they are each great teaching. However, this work is not a book to be studied, it is a very window into the passionate erotic love of God for his creation, and for his desperate need to extend the community of the triune God among them. I say without reservation, this book will change the way you see God. It will set you free from the limited metaphor of systematic theologies. It will release you from the minimized boxed God of a religionist allegorical reinterpretation of the narrative of God. It will welcome you as participants into God's eternal purpose.

Erasmus famously quipped, "when I have a little extra money I buy books, if there is any left over I buy food." Reading this book is more important than any meal you will eat this week. If you must go hungry, and get a hold of the book. "From Eternity to Here" will feed you from a source that this world knows nothing about.

This book delivered above all that I expected. After all, the title is pretty bold (I think). Just think about it...From Eternity to Here? What does that mean?

I've been a Christian for most of my life and this book is so affirming in many ways. Frank's explanations of The Bride of Christ, The House of God, and finally, the Body of Christ and the Family of God brought so many things together for me in terms of our identity as people. This book had so many OMG moments for me. I devoured the book in one weekend but I will definitely reread it with highlighter in hand. This book is more than a 'good read'. It was an absolute God Encounter. Thanks Mr. Viola for writing it.

Length:: 0:45 Mins

After having read its cover description along with numerous other reader reviews online, I was as excited about beginning this read as any book I have picked up in a long time. I am fascinated by the exploration of the central metanarratives that encompass God's purpose in creation - and their implications for our local bodies of believers and for ourselves. This is precisely what this book set out to accomplish, so I was all ears (or, in this case, all eyes.)

Having now read the book in its entirety, I will describe my overall response as a bit disappointed. There is certainly much to like. Viola was true to his intention and purpose to describe God's ageless purpose in terms of three themes that stretch throughout the whole of Scripture. There were definite moments where I was underlining and nodding my head and eagerly turning the pages. But there were also moments of significant disconnect; moments where I found myself wanting to go along with him but struggling to buy into what (at times) felt like a forcing of the biblical text to fit the image he was developing.

In this critique I should make it clear that I share Viola's guiding principle of a Christocentric view of both the Old and New Testaments. I agree with him that the books of the Old Testament - regardless of their genre - ultimately point to Jesus Christ, and are only fully understood in that context. I am also not opposed to the careful use of typology and believe that a thorough examination of the Old Testament could (and should) reveal some wonderful connections to Christ that most of us have never considered before. Further, I found much of Viola's interpretation to be reasonable and even compelling based on the textual references. However, certain moments in the book reminded me of someone I once heard who listed all of the eerily similar connections between the Lincoln and Kennedy assassinations (Lincoln and Kennedy both contain seven letters... both married in their thirties to women in their twenties... Lincoln was shot in Ford Theater, Kennedy was shot in a Lincoln vehicle made by Ford, etc. etc. At some point, the sheer volume of the seemingly small coincidences are enough to make you start thinking, "Maybe there really is something to this.")

I acknowledge that this is an exaggerated comparison, and I again want to state that as a whole, I appreciate and agree with many of Viola's conclusions at the big picture level. I should also add that I likely might not have struggled in this way but for the unhesitating and confident style with which the author makes his assertions. In other words, even the smallest, most tenuous interpretations are stated as fact, rather than as possible interpretations of the text looking backward through the lens of a specific narrative point-of-view.

Despite my struggle with parts of Viola's hermeneutic, there was much I appreciated about this book. I'm fairly convinced that the three major images and themes he presents are - at their core - helpful and theologically-sound descriptions of God's grand purpose in creation. I am excited about his passion to make Christ central in our theology and practice, and his descriptions of our relationship to the rule of God toward the end of the book were some of the clearest I've read.

I can understand the many glowing reviews this book has received. However, I have been surprised how little discussion I've seen so far about Viola's handling of the biblical text. I believe he could have handled some of his interpretations a bit more cautiously and would have been more effective at making his points.

As I was reading this book, I kept thinking "I thought I knew God and the Bible, but how have I missed this?" Viola describes the eternal purpose of God in such a way that I have never heard, and it captivated me from cover to cover. I feel like I have been set free to know God in a way I never imagined. This book takes away the religious language and institutional and systematic framework that are typical of most writings about God, and it stirs up a deep longing for the reality of a free and intimate relationship with Him and His people. From Eternity To Here is, by far, the best book I have ever read.

This is a wonderful book. You want to savor every page. But it puts our puny story in perspective with God's eternal plan. What a great God and what a great plan. Viola has again given us much to wrestle with, to chew on and to comprehend the important of understanding God's role and part in history. It is a big story and Viola helps put it all in perspective.

From Eternity to Here: Rediscovering the Ageless Purpose of God

When I was a kid I loved those Connect-the-Dots books. I could sit for hours doing pages and pages of those books to uncover the mystery that was in the matrix of the dots. Until all the dots were connected, the dots were isolated entities without a lot of significance. But when you connected the dots, a picture would emerge much to my delight. That's what made these books so much fun.

And this is what brother Frank has produced. As each dot is skillfully connected, a picture emerges that dazzles our minds and thrills our hearts. He has connected the dots of so many biblical stories that all of us are so familiar with. But until this book, many of these stories were like those isolated dots of our childhood books. As much as we loved reading the stories, or hearing about them in Sunday school or a preacher's sermons, we just weren't given the big picture and how everything is spiritually, lovingly and gloriously connected by our God in the face of Jesus Christ.

The other thing that Frank has done is uncover some of the depths of these stories that have been hidden from us. In reading through these well-known stories, I found myself scribbling the word "Wow!" in the margins. I discovered that I didn't know them like I thought I did. It was as if I was reading them for the first time, unvarnished and unveiled in glories I had never seen before.

In reading "From Eternity to Here," I was constantly imbued with a fresh sense of awe and gratitude for the profound love that our Lord has for His church. It is a glorious thing to recognize our Lord as a Redeemer, but how much more glorious it is to know Him as the One who loves us with such passion that He is willing to go to any measure, suffer any pain, even the agonies of the cross, as our Warrior-Groom, to bring us to His bridal chamber, a glorious bride without spot or wrinkle. The Bride is as glorious as the Groom, because the Bride and the Groom are One.

Do read "From Eternity to Here," and you will find yourself falling in love with Him all over again. What a Savior we have! What a Lord! What a Divine Lover is our God in the face of Jesus Christ!

When Christ our Lord comes, He will be glorified in His saints and Christ Himself will be marveled at in all those who have believed. II Thessalonians 1:10

As I read "From Eternity to Here", each chapter resonated with something deep within me. It was as if I was hearing about the greatest news ever told for the first time; and yet, it seemed to also affirm something that I already knew. The reason being that Frank Viola masterfully examines and traces the central themes that run throughout the Scriptures from beginning to end. As those themes are developed, the beauty and majesty of Jesus Christ is seen more clearly, and His astonishing love for the world and His people is revealed more fully.

After reading this book, I view the Bible differently; I view the Lord and how I relate to Him differently; I view my "calling" and purpose in life differently; I view the church and her function differently; and I view lost humanity differently.

A big thanks to Viola for his dedication in unfolding the Scriptures in a creative way and unveiling the priceless truths that are contained within them.

With the release of "Pagan Christianity" and "Reimaging Church" in the past two years, Frank Viola's message has brought about a great deal of commotion in Western Christianity. His straight-forward manner will confront fan and critic alike with the theme of his writing. His writing style is full of content without being overly intellectual. Viola manages to grad the attention of the reader and keep it until the conclusion.

In his latest book, "From Eternity to Here," Frank Viola expresses his passion for, what he calls, "God's eternal purpose." Stepping out of a self-focused view of Christianity, that views all events in relation to personal benefit, Viola paints a picture of the heart of Father before the Fall. What was on the heart of God before humanity fell? What remains God's primary purpose in the scope of eternity? These questions are addressed throughout the book in a biblically-sound, narrative manner.

As one who has read many theological books, it is clear that Frank Viola has a deep passion for Jesus Christ and for His Bride, the Church, comprised of those who walk in a life of intimacy with their Savior. Many books currently being released in the Christianity marketplace seem heavy on opinions, but empty and lifeless. It is clear that Frank Viola's message, though controversial to some, comes from a heart of passion for Christ and Him alone.

I heartily recommend this book to those interested in knowing what God's purpose really is.

Matthew Berry
rawreligion.com

God's Love Story
A Book Review of "From Eternity to Here: Rediscovering the Ageless Purpose of God" by Frank Viola
Reviewed by David D. Flowers

Growing up I remember hearing folks call the church the "Bride of Christ." I only believed it to be one more way to speak of "heavenly" things. Like many things within institutional Christianity, it was nothing more than a metaphor in a line of many metaphors that were used to talk of God's love for his children. Viola explains in his book that it is more than a fanciful, nice way to speak of the church... it is "God's central purpose." Paul called it "the eternal purpose" (Eph. 3:11).

From Eternity to Here is the fourth book in a five-book series on radical church restoration. (Fifth book is set to be released Sept. 09) Out of all the books Viola has written, this volume reveals the driving passion behind his life and all of his work. He writes, "in beholding God's central purpose, I found my own purpose. In touching His passion, I found my own passion" (p.13).

Viola effectively communicates this passion in three parts. The first part is entitled "A Forgotten Woman: The Bride of Christ." Viola begins by pointing his readers to the "hidden romance" between the great lover (God) and his beloved (the church).

Viola says, "There was a woman inside of God before time" (p.41).

This story begins with Adam and Eve and continues throughout all of Scripture as the true lover is seen through foreshadowing. Viola beautifully describes in detail this great love story between the lover and the beloved that will one day be the wife of God. The story of Adam and Eve is a picture of a greater story. Eve came out of Adam after creation... she was a "new creation."

"Now Adam is a symbol, a representation of Christ, who was yet to come" (Rom. 5:14).

Viola is a master storyteller. He has been captivated by God's love story and is able to wonderfully reveal "the mystery" of Christ to a new generation. "The Holy Spirit must open the eyes of His people in every generation for them to grasp it" (p.25).

Out of Christ comes his Bride! Finally, a woman for the Lord to love. Viola writes, "All love stories, whether intentional or unintentional, are patterned after this heavenly romance" (p.91).

It is not that God was lonely or that the Trinitarian community was inadequate. It is because "God is love" that he is not content to keep this love to himself. Viola states that the "superabundance of God's love required a receptacle that was not within the Trinity" (p.40).

God always intended to share his community with his creation. The nature of God's love is that is given, received, and returned to him. Without God's creation, he is a "frustrated lover" (p.58). God is sovereign and in control of the future, but indeed frustrated.

Part II is entitled "An Eternal Quest: The House of God." The chapters within this section look at the divine passion from another perspective. God is homeless and he desires a house that he and his Bride may have a family.

Viola traces God's quest for a house throughout the Scriptures. As he traces God's search from Adam to Jesus, he says, "The house of God is not a thing... it is the Lord Jesus Christ" (p.155).

The last half of this section gets personal and compares our own journey to being like that of Israel's history. Like Israel, as members of the Body of Christ, we must make a choice as to which house we will dwell in. Put another way... what kind of house are we going to be for God?

Egypt: the world system that is driven by pleasures and places earthly pursuits above pursuits of our heavenly home and King.

Babylon: organized religion that is a mixture of fallen humanity and the divine; characterized best by hypocrisy and described best as the "counterfeit of the New Jerusalem." Many of God's people live there and they will only find themselves building a community centered on man and not Christ and his purposes.

The Wilderness: this is the place where those who leave the world and organized religion will find themselves. It is a place of transition. "To sift us, to reduce us, and to strip us down to Christ alone" (p.191). This is a time of detox. Yet... it is not our home!

The old wineskin must be down away with so that the new can come. The home for which we were made is a land of freedom and one that flows with "milk and honey."

Part III is entitled "A New Species: The Body of Christ & The Family of God." This section speaks of Christians being resident aliens. The Bride of Christ is to remain pure and holy as she awaits her bridegroom.

The church is a "new species." Viola traces this language through the New Testament. A language that many Christians have failed to recognize and apply to their lives.

Viola simplifies Body life as an act of gathering around Jesus Christ. This is our purpose. Likewise, it should be our passion. Yet, the Body of Christ has been forced into an institution and she has forgotten God's eternal purpose. She has lost sight of the bigger picture and the great landscape of God's love story. She has been preoccupied and polluted by a theology that leaves out the ageless purpose of God.

How does the church live out the ageless purpose of God? Viola writes, "Very simply: by loving the Lord Jesus as His bride and learning to live by His indwelling life" (p.288).

The book closes with a brief glimpse into Viola's journey and a call to return to the Headship of Christ in the church that is reflective of the divine image and God's eternal purpose.

Viola writes, "Recognizing that Jesus Christ is the incarnation of all spiritual things will change your prayer life. It will change your vocabulary and the way you think and talk about spiritual things. And it will ultimately change your practice of the church" (p.303).

If we seek the centrality and supremacy of Christ and know that our riches are in a Person and not in things meant to further our individual pursuits... we shall be fashioned into that beautiful Bride and usher in the Kingdom. At last... God will dwell with his people when heaven comes to earth at the marriage of the Great Lover and his Beloved.

I recommend this book, especially for those who have been lost in our narcissistic evangelical ecclesiology.

For the brave... I suggest Pagan Christianity?: Exploring the Roots of Our Church Practices

For those who know there must be more to Body Life than you have experienced... I encourage you to read Reimagining Church: Pursuing the Dream of Organic Christianity