Has someone ever told you that it doesn’t matter what you believe about
the Second Coming of Jesus as long as you believe in a Second Coming?
It sounds nice, doesn’t it? But is that a wise way to approach to
approach the Scriptures? Is that a wise way to approach our Lord’s return?
Permit me
to offer a few examples of varying approaches to the 2nd coming:
Generally speaking, Post-Millennialists believe that the Church will be
able to usher in a virtual golden age on earth, a literal or metaphorical
thousand-year reign of God’s kingdom where evil is more or less vanquished.
After that time, Jesus will return.
Pre-millennial, pre-tribulationalists believe that before Jesus returns
to usher in a literal 1,000 year kingdom on earth, there will be a Great
Tribulation. However, before that Great Tribulation unfolds, Jesus secretly
takes all the true Christians off of the earth so they don’t have to experience
any of the terrible events coming upon the earth. Then, at the end of the Great
Tribulation, Jesus returns with all the raptured Christians coming
behind Him to triumph over the enemies of God.
Those who believe in pre-millenial, post-tribulation/pre-wrath teaching
believe that the rapture of the Church and the Second Coming of Christ will
basically occur at the same time, the end of the Great Tribulation. The Church
will therefore be around while the Antichrist is on earth deceiving and doing
his worst to Christians, and encouraging countless numbers of us to fall away
from the living God. After the Second Coming and gathering of the true Church, God
pours out the seven bowls of His wrath on the rest of unbelieving humanity and
Jesus reigns on earth for 1,000 years.
There are certainly more views than those three, but I believe it’s fair
to say the majority of Christians around the world today fall close to one of
those camps.
What about the early Christians? Well, though their writings don’t show
them entering into the heated eschatological debates modern theologians
frequently partake of, they certainly had their opinions on the matter. And,
with what could be argued as being only a couple of rare exceptions, they
believed Christians would be on the earth throughout the Great Tribulation. I demonstrate several examples of this fact in my book, New: Wineskins and the Simple Words of Christ.
The early Christians took Jesus seriously and simply. They took Him at
His word. So in Matthew 24, when
Jesus said He would return in the clouds to gather His people to Himself after
many of His disciples fell away, they believed Him. When He said His return would
be after the Antichrist was already on the scene, deceiving and destroying
those on earth, they believed Him. When He said His return would be after
the tribulation of those days, they believed Him.
What
effects could these varying eschatological beliefs have on our daily lives?
If, as a post-millennialist, you believe the Church will bring about a golden
age, an age almost like heaven on earth, then I believe it’s fair to assume
that you could be inclined to view Transhumanism as a tremendous blessing. Transhumanism
is the belief that through blending humanity with technology and genetic engineering,
we can eventually achieve not only immortality, but essentially a divine
status. Amazingly, there is already a significant population of Christians pushing this movement. Like Adam and Eve, they believe that through our own
efforts we can become as God is.
I used to be in the pre-millennial, pre-tribulation camp. With them, I
was betting my life on being rescued out of the world before all hell breaks
loose. At that time in my life, accompanying my faith in that teaching was a
subtle belief that though Jesus may want me to fight for Him, He generally wouldn’t
ask me to suffer for Him. But as I’ve written in numerous blogs (you can read
two examples here and here), the Scriptures and the early
Christian writings bear witness to a vastly different testimony.
A little over a half-decade ago, I began to align myself with the
post-tribulation and pre-wrath camp. Two factors that contributed to the shift
in my doctrinal stance were the early Christian writings and beginning to read
the Scriptures more simply as they did. And the more I have meditated on the possibility
of going through the Great Tribulation, the more I have accepted the truth that
suffering for the faith is supposed to be a normal part of the Christian life.
As you
can see from the excerpt below, the early Christians felt the same way.
Then they
shall deliver you up to tribulation, and shall kill you, and you shall be hated
by nations for my name’s sake. … When you see the abomination of desolation,
which is spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place (let the
reader understand), then let them which are in Judea flee to the mountains. …
for there shall be great tribulation, such as has not occurred from the
beginning of the world until now, nor ever will. …
But
immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun shall be darkened, and
the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and
the powers of heaven shall be moved. And then the sign of the Son of man shall
appear in heaven, and all the tribes of the earth shall mourn, and they shall
see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with great power and glory.
And He shall send His angels with a great trumpet, and they shall gather
together His elect from the four winds. …
And these
are not new or sudden things which are now happening to Christians; since the
good and righteous, and those who are devoted to God in the law of innocence
and the fear of true religion, always advance through tribulations … in the
hardship of a narrow path. – Cyprian 205CE Volume 5, p. 878-879
[CD-ROM]
Hurricane season is clearly upon us. When one is
bearing down upon the coast, a Christian can either believe that God won’t let
a terrible storm touch him and his family, or he can prepare his house for the
worst. If the storm misses his family, wonderful! Praise God! But if it comes, will he have been ready to persevere through whatever the weather brings?
i want to point out the 3 Different times in the book of Revelations Jesus explains that there are 3 groups and how in none of them the Church is going through Jacobs trouble. 1. (Revelations 7) The 144000 are sealed (Verse 3-7) The multitude from every tongue and nation appear before the throne of God. (Verse 9-17) Check out this quote 13 Then one of the elders addressed me, saying, “Who are these, clothed in white robes, and from where have they come?” 14 I said to him, “Sir, you know.” And he said to me, “These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation. They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Pay attention here guys these people come out of the "great tribulation" Yet we know from the text that none of the Judgments written on the scroll have been read so "Jacobs Trouble" has not yet begun, yet they are coming out of the "great tribulation". Not even the 7th seal has been opened! 2.Revelations 14 once more we have group number 1 the 144,000 Here described as the (These have been redeemed from mankind as firstfruits for God and the Lamb). (Verse 14-16) We have the earth being harvested from a cloud by one like a son of man, with a golden crown on his head. And then we have a 3rd group in (verse 17-20) who are threw it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. 20 And the winepress was trodden outside the city, and blood flowed from the winepress, as high as a horse's bridle, for 1,600 stadia. Yes guys the same "winepress" that JESUS treads on in Revelations 19:14 And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses. 15 From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule[c] them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. And last as i explained previous in revelations 12. The man-child who shall rule the nations (body of Christ) the women Israel who is the grapes and Michael who is the 144000 out of Israel.
ReplyDeleteThanks for reading. You may be right in your interpretation. I guess we'll find out. Grace & peace to you.
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