Framing a futurist Pentecostal eschatology in the context of hope for the present life

Abstract

A literature review demonstrates that the futurist Pentecostal eschatology has been studied as an approach within Pentecostalism that emphasises a future-oriented expectation of God’s judgement and new life. The main aim of this article is to demonstrate that futurist Pentecostal eschatology has a present-life impact within the broader framework of the theology of hope. This study is based on a literature analysis and employs Moltmann’s theology of hope to show that Pentecostals’ futurist eschatology remains relevant in the present life. It argues that, as believers anticipate God’s judgement and new life in the future, this hope helps them face present challenges, representing the present outlook of futurist eschatology. The findings reveal that futurist Pentecostal eschatology provides hope for overcoming current life struggles. Hope perceives God as both transcendent and immanent, bringing the future into the present and the invisible into view. Hope in the promise of new life encourages Pentecostals to pursue a righteous life today. This perspective shifts how futurist Pentecostal theology is understood; it should not only be viewed from a future outlook but also from within the present context, through the broader framework of the theology of hope.
Contribution: The contribution of the current study is that the theology of hope is a relevant framework in which the present can be addressed while waiting for the future or what Titus calls the ‘blessed hope’.