to be manifested together with Him in glory

One of the ideas associated with the Acts 28:28-view, is that the ecclesia, which now is being formed, will not appear with Christ on earth. This is peculiar, because, ever so precisely, in one of the prison-letters, Paul recorded the following:

Whenever Christ, our Life, should be manifested, then you also shall be manifested together with Him in glory. Colossians 3:4

In this letter, Paul states that the faithful are united with Christ as Head and Body (Col.1:18). This means that the members of the body, the ecclesia, have an intimate share in His position. He is currently hidden and so are we, hidden together with Him (Col.3:3). As believers, while here on earth, we are for that reason motivated to seek the things which are above, where Christ is (Col.3:1). Down here on earth, Christ is now hidden, but it is our expectation that He, before long, will appear. Where that appearance will take place, does not need to be mentioned, because the context makes this clear. But even when this logic eludes us, then it must be clear that regardless of where Christ appears, by definition, the believers will appear with Him. And since Christ in glory will appear on earth (2Thes.1:10), the members of his Body will, then and there, in whatever way, have their share in this appearance. all the saints with Him Also, in other places in Scripture, this is referred to. Who are e.g., “all the saints” which are mentioned in Zechariah 14:5, which will accompany the LORD, when He will place his feet on the Mount of Olives (:4)? Zechariah does not explain it. Concerning angels, we never read that they are called “saints”, which suggests that it refers to people. But which people? What Zechariah did not know and could not know (it was hidden), is not difficult for us to understand: the appearing of the Messiah in glory to Israel will take place in accompaniment of the people that are now hidden with Him, that is, the ecclesia, which is His Body! But this, then, also means that before this ecclesia can appear WITH Christ, she will have to be gathered TO Him. Indeed, Paul already wrote about it in his earlier letters: “Lo! a secret to you am I telling!” (1Cor.15:51); “by the word of the Lord” (1Thes.4:15).

Delen: