1 Corinthians 15:23-27 NASB But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, after that those who are Christ’s at His coming, [24] then comes the end, when He hands over the kingdom to the God and Father, when He has abolished all rule and all authority and power. [25] For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet. [26] The last enemy that will be abolished is death. [27] For HE HAS PUT ALL THINGS IN SUBJECTION UNDER HIS FEET. But when He says, “All things are put in subjection,” it is evident that He is excepted who put all things in subjection to Him.
Ephesians 1:20-23 NASB which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, [21] far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. [22] And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him as head over all things to the church, [23] which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.
Hebrews 2:5-8 NASB For He did not subject to angels the world to come, concerning which we are speaking. [6] But one has testified somewhere, saying, “WHAT IS MAN, THAT YOU REMEMBER HIM? OR THE SON OF MAN, THAT YOU ARE CONCERNED ABOUT HIM? [7] “YOU HAVE MADE HIM FOR A LITTLE WHILE LOWER THAN THE ANGELS; YOU HAVE CROWNED HIM WITH GLORY AND HONOR, AND HAVE APPOINTED HIM OVER THE WORKS OF YOUR HANDS; [8] YOU HAVE PUT ALL THINGS IN SUBJECTION UNDER HIS FEET.” For in subjecting all things to him, He left nothing that is not subject to him. But now we do not yet see all things subjected to him.
So, will all things be put in subjection under the feet of Jesus one day, or have all things already been put in subjection under the feet of Jesus? Yes!! If you follow the sequence of the verses I listed above, you will see a truth that is sometimes hard to understand. The Ephesians passage says that the Father has (past tense) put all things in subjection under the feet of Jesus, and the 1 Corinthians passage, verse 27, says the same thing, using the past tense. There is a dilemma, though, for verse 25 of 1 Corinthians 15 says He must reign until He has put all his enemies under his feet. What’s intimated in these verses is that something has already been done as a finished work yet has not been fully manifested in time and space. Notice what Hebrews 2 says when speaking of God subjecting all things under man, who has been appointed over the works of God’s hands. It says in verse 8 that all things have already been put in subjection under our feet, and it says that putting in subjection all things to us, He left nothing that is not subject to us, and yet it continues in saying, “but now we do not yet see all things subjected to us.” What is this all about? This is about the finished work of Christ at the cross and our union with him and his victory, which has already been accomplished but is being enforced and manifested day by day. Because I’m in Christ, whatever is under His feet is under my feet, but often, we find ourselves fighting by faith to see the victory of Christ, which has already been won, manifestly realized. The reign of Christ began 2000 years ago in his resurrection, and the enemy has been fully defeated. The strongman has been bound up, so in that sense, we can certainly declare that everything has already been put in subjection under the feet of Jesus and ours, but the cosmic conflict that you and I are engaged in every day is fought by faith, as we go forth proclaiming and enforcing the victory of Jesus one person at a time. In conventional wars, battles are fought that will eventually accomplish the war being won, but for the Christian, the war has already been won, and the battles we fight daily are fought in light of that fact. The kingdom of heaven is here! The reign of Christ has begun! The enemy has been defeated, but he is a trespasser without any legal right to tread on our lives. Our calling is to never be discouraged no matter what battle may be lost because the war has already been won. We are called under the banner of Love, to go forth in the name of Jesus as those in union with his very life, enforcing and manifesting that victory until we see the full manifestation of his reign being realized on this earth.