CHAPTER 1: THE DAY OF THE LORD...WHEN?
The Bible contains so many fantastic promises. Some are directed at individuals. Some are directed to a particular people and some are directed only to those who are living in the modern era. God promised Abram that if he would leave his native country, God would make him the father of a great nation and through that nation all families of the world would be blessed (Genesis 12:1,2 and 3).
God promised the Israelites that if they would seek His face out of humility and purity, He would heal their land (2 Chronicles 7:14).
Jesus promised His disciples that they would enter the kingdom of Heaven with much suffering. Nevertheless He promised them that He would be with them even to the end of the age. No matter what fiery trial the apostles would face, Christ's spirit would be with them. That same promise applies even to today's believers.
The greatest promise that Jesus ever made to His followers was when He said He would leave them but promised to return for them and take them to His glorious and eternal kingdom
"Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God also believe in Me...I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go... I will COME AGAIN and receive you to Myself; that where I am you may be also." (John 14: 1,2, and 3)
Wow what an awesome promise! Jesus promised all His elect that He will someday return for them and take them to His Father's house where there will be many beautiful mansions. We know this teaching as the glorious Second Coming of Christ and His earth-shaking second coming could occur on any given day!
Note that these verses appear only in John's Gospel. The other three gospel accounts contain what some scholars call the "Olivet Discourse." In Matthew 24, Mark 13, and Luke 21 Jesus talks to His disciples in private and fortells to them of events concerning the time of the end. He tells of earthquakes, wars, famines, persecution, and the rise of false religious leaders who will lead many astray. It is curious that John's Gospel does not contain these words. There is no talk of wars and rumors of wars in John's account. Instead Jesus makes this fabulous promise to His elect, "I will COME AGAIN and receive you onto Myself."
How do we know that Jesus will return? Because Jesus promised He would. He is God the Son and God the Son would never break a promise. Listen to His words that are recorded in Revelation 22:12:"Behold I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me to give to every man according to his work."
Quickly? Exactly what is His idea of quickly? "It has been 2000 years and He still hasn't returned," some might ask. All I can say is that according to Acts 17:31 God has appointed a date for the Second Coming. For believers this is great and joyous news. Paul wrote:"...looking for that blessed hope and the glorious appearing of our Great God and Saviour Jesus Christ" (Titus 2:10)
But for those of us who do not know Jesus as Saviour and Lord, the day of the Second Coming will be a day of sheer terror.
"Behold the day of the Lord comes. Cruel, with both wrath and fierce anger. To lay the land desolate; And He will destroy it's sinners from it." (Isaiah 13:9)Our real question should not be "How much longer will it be until Jesus comes back?", but "If He were to come back today, am I ready to meet Him?"This chapter deals with the subject of eschatology, or the study of the end-times according to the Bible. Since God knows the beginning from the end (Rev. 22:13) and since God wrote the Bible, let's hear what He has to say about the end-times.Here are some things to remember. In this chapter I want to highlight some basic end-time study rules.1. I HAVE NO CLUE I want everyone to know that I have no magical formula for calculating the last day or even the last year. Enough jokes have been made about Bible experts who have dogmatically calculated a certain future date only to have nothing happen. God has choosen a date on which He will judge the world. God has choosen not to reveal that date. Let's respect His sovereignty. All we can say for sure is that the Second Coming is 2000 years closer today than it was at the time of Peter and Paul. The believer's mission is to live a God honoring life. Let's let Jesus worry about His arrival schedule.2. NO SENSATIONALISM ALLOWED My presentation of the end-times will be done in a responsible and sensible manner. It seems that every time there is a tragedy the Ira Einhorns of the world screem "Conspiracy". There will be no doomsday-hype or conspiracy theories in my book. If you want bizarre end of the world sensationalism, buy a supermarket tabloid.3. THIS IS MY BEST COMPOSITE My presentation of biblical eschatology isn't the thoughts of only one Bible teacher but several. I've researched the end-time views of teachers like Hal Lindsay, Hank Hanegraaff, Chuck Swindoll, Perry Stone, Jack Van Impe, Jack Chick, Harold Camping, Billy Graham, and LaVerne Tucker.Much like Creation and the doctrine of Hell, I have endevored to review the beliefs of several different teachers, separate truth from error, and form my own composite that best aligns itself with the Bible. Eschatology is no different. Each of the above authors has something important and insightful to say on the subject. Nevertheless no Bible teacher is 100% accurate when it comes to eschatology. Personally I've tried to be as accurate as possible.