"Theirs was also a dualism of time. History was divided into two basic periods - the present era still dominated by the power of Satan, and the age to come in which Satan and his force would be destroyed and God's reign actualized. (SOUND FAMILIAR) We might like to think of this double dualism in the way shown in figure 2-1. The vertical dimension represents a cosmic dualism and the horizontal dimension a temporal (or historical) dualism. (The term "cosmic" is used here to mean that which is build into reality in any time or place.)" (Page 59)
The human response to him is both a historical event and an event that has trancendant value. It is not unlike the way a simple physical gesture (an embrace or a kiss) is both a historical and temporal event and at the same time an expression of the reality of love - a reality that transcends the single event. Consequently, one of these additional features of the Gospel of John its story is that time is both historical and BEYOND HISTORY. So, for instance, the temporal sequence of crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension that we know so well from the Gospels (especially Luke) is blurred in the Fourth Gospel. . . Time is penetrated by and permeated with the divine realm, beyond time. The result is that temporal sequence is obscured.(Page 64)
