The great artist Pieter Paul Rubens saw it, four hundred years ago. In his magnificent painting, shown above, titled "War in Heaven" (1619), Rubens portrayed the heavenly host casting down from out of the heavens a beastly horde. Where did he get such an idea? From the Bible, of course. Evidently, Rubens knew something (from Scripture) which seemingly very few know anything about, today.
I am somewhat reluctant to commit my thoughts on this subject to writing, because, I am still working through many details. It is not unlike trying to write a history of WWIII ~ before any of those battles have yet been fought. Except, the Bible does provide us with a broad, albeit sketchy, outline of future events. Nevertheless, I don't want to refrain from writing until that I have more detailed knowledge. For, my grasp of that "outline" appears, to myself, to be sufficiently clear (and increasing so), that I feel compelled to share with others the tremendous implications of what I believe I now understand about the meaning of Bible prophecy.
If Bible prophecy can only be rightly understood after that such prophecies have already been fulfilled: in that case, the "foretelling of future events" (prophecy) appears to have meaning and value only as an historical witness of the supernatural, divine nature of Scripture. But if that were the only purpose of Bible prophecy, then, why does Scripture speak of anything beyond the Rapture? For, it seems to me that, after the Rapture, the glorified saints shall then have direct and immediate knowledge of God's will and purpose, apart from the writings of Scripture.
Thus, it appears that Bible prophecy is intended by God to serve as a guiding light to the living Church, especially, to that generation which shall be most profoundly affected by reason of their personal involvement in End-time events. The New Testament was written to the Church of the New Testament. Before the advent of the Church Age, there was no New Testament written. And now that the Church Age is very soon to end, and a new dispensation to begin, ought we not to expect that the long hidden mysteries of the Bible (including both Testaments) must be revealed to this present generation (according to the promises of God in Scripture)?
Let me come more directly to my point(s) in this essay. In part 1 of this series, I presented an argument to the effect that we, Christians, need to understand and then to embrace a certain perspective related to that period of time (several years) between the closing (as a process) of the Church Age, and the advent (also a process) of the Millennial Kingdom Age. For the sake of clarity, I will henceforth refer to that intervening period of time, between those two Ages, as the "Great Transition."
I believe there are very good reasons why we should no longer view the Rapture as being an instantaneous end to the present Church Age; nor should we think of the Second Coming of Christ as being an almost equally sudden beginning of the coming Millennial Kingdom Age. It is now abundantly clear to me, that the events of the so-called Tribulation period are integral to that relatively brief time which I have termed the Great Transition. To be clear, the seven-year Tribulation period occupies only part, though perhaps the larger part, of a longer period of time which I have called, the Great Transition. (I want to stress, too, that I am not attempting to conjure up some novel doctrine suggested by terms and definitions of my own making. I do admit that I am presenting a new perspective~if not also, at some points, new interpretation~involving a significant portion of Bible prophecy.)
Let us consider the immense differences between the general conditions of the world throughout two millennia of the Church Age, contrasted with the general conditions of the world which shall obtain during the coming Millennial Kingdom Age. Whereas throughout the Church Age the world has been characterized by pervasive human suffering, largely resulting from the cruel influences of those "principalities,.. powers,.. rulers of the darkness of this world,.. [and] spiritual wickedness in high places;" (Eph. 6:12); and which, condition, has been punctuated only here and there and from time to time by the light of Christ in and through his Church. In stark contrast to that, the Millennial Kingdom Age is promised by God to be a time of great and widespread peace and prosperity, due to the bodily presence, and the overruling authority and influence, of Jesus Christ and of his saints; during which time (a thousand years) virtually all of the demonic powers, including Satan himself, shall be bound in and confined to the bottomless pit. In other words, the general condition of the Millennial Kingdom Age shall be a complete reversal of the currently prevailing conditions in this world.
That unspeakably great reversal of conditions throughout the world ~ involving (as it shall) the total conquest not only of every demon power but also of every human enemy of God, shall be accomplished not by any single event, nor yet on any single day. The great War, spoken of throughout the pages of Scripture, which shall reach its climax at the Second Coming of Christ, is not WWIII or Armageddon. Rather, it is the war between God's kingdom and Satan's. That is the conflict depicted in Ruben's dramatic painting (above). That War is even now about to reach its climax; although, it is still some time (at least several more years) from being over.
The Great Transition, of which I speak, involves all of the events ~ between right now and some time shortly after the Second Coming of Christ; during which time the final battles of the great War just mentioned shall be fought. When viewed in that light, both the timing as well as the purpose, of the Rapture, take on much deeper and clearer meaning. The Rapture then no longer appears, essentially, as "the great escape;" which many have represented that to be. (Notwithstanding, Scripture does say, in Luke 21:36, that the Rapture shall be the means whereby some~those who will be Raptured~shall "escape all these things that shall come to pass." But that is a reference to God's wrath which shall be poured out upon the world during the Tribulation.) Instead, the Rapture now appears to be "the great equipping," whereby all the saints of God shall be empowered and enabled both to "judge the world" (Romans 3:6; 1 Corinthians 6:2) as well as to "execute the judgment written" (Psalm 150)~which, execution of God's judgment, shall entail the complete overthrow of Satan's kingdom.
More important even than how this perspective affects our understanding of the Rapture, is how this teaching may be transformative, for Christians in this present time. Rather than faithful Christians seeing themselves as persecuted members of a tiny and powerless minority amongst a vast ocean, as it were, of heathens and apostates ~ and with only the Rapture to look forward to, as the means whereby to escape the sufferings of this world. What if, instead, those same Christians saw themselves as God's soldiers on the front lines of a cosmic War, with all of Heaven's resources available to them through prayer; and the fast-approaching Rapture not as a means of escape from that War, but as a vital and supernaturally powerful element of God's eternal plan for assuring total victory to his people? That cosmic War shall by no means be concluded, at the time of the Rapture. But after the Rapture, it's quickly going to get way "too hot in the kitchen," for the devil and his crew:
"And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, and prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him." (Revelation 12:7-9)When shall that happen? Right after the Rapture.
Let's draw out the implications of this teaching even further. Let us suppose that the Rapture shall occur within, say, the next ten years (actually much sooner than that, in my opinion). If the Rapture is now imminent (even ten years out), then, we ought very earnestly to be preparing ourselves, and helping as many others as possible to prepare, for that momentous event. That means that we should be living our lives every moment as if we truly believe that we shall soon be called out of this world, in the "twinkling of an eye." Such an outlook also means that we must not be focused on preparing to remain in this world much longer. Christ's injunction, "Occupy till I come" (Luke 19:13~which is in the context of a parable), is not a license to occupy oneself with the things of this world: which things we are explicitly commanded to "love not."
Moreover, if the Rapture is imminent, then, so too is the Tribulation. Understanding the true nature and purpose of the Tribulation, is imperative for understanding what should be our role in this world, as Christians, at this present time. The Tribulation shall not, I repeat, it shall not be a time of God's mercy and salvation, especially, not to the Gentiles. But it is emphatically, explicitly revealed in Scripture, that the Tribulation shall be a time when God's wrath will be poured out in fury; during which time, the entire population of the world shall come very near to the brink of total annihilation (Matthew 24:22; Mark 13:20).
Yes, there will be some, though comparatively very few individuals, who will survive the Tribulation. But the Bible tells us that virtually all of the kingdoms of this world shall be subjugated by means of God's wrath during the Tribulation. (Beware of the phenomenally popular teaching involving the so-called "Seven Mountains" of cultural influence~an heretical teaching derived from so-called "Dominionist theology" (link), which is being very widely propagated by many well known "Christian" personalities. That heretical teaching claims that the Church is essentially going to take over the world~without a Rapture~and, so, make the world a holy place and thus suitable for Christ's return. I am not suggesting anything like Dominionist teaching.) Nevertheless, I am forthrightly stating, that:
- God's anger towards the God-hating world, and, especially, towards apostate "Christianity," is already kindled and burning white-hot;
- God is going to destroy the so-called "Seven Mountains" above mentioned (government, business, education, media, arts & entertainment, family, and religion), throughout the whole world, during the Tribulation.
Should we then suppose that government can yet be redeemed, before the Rapture? Or, that any secular system of education can yet be redeemed, prior to the Rapture? What about "religion;" can that be redeemed before Jesus returns? God forbid that anyone is so naive as to believe that "arts & entertainment," or even the media, can be redeemed and made to serve godly purposes! "Family," then; may we not at least hope to redeem~not individual families~but, the Family, as a godly institution among society? You tell me. But if you answer in the affirmative, I will say you are an ignorant fool.
What, then? I have said that the perspective I am recommending is transformative, for Christian persons. Are we thus to become cynics and doom-sayers? No. But as true prophets, warning the masses to "flee from the wrath to come." As truth-tellers, pointing the way to Jesus Christ as the one and only way to God. As the "light of the world;" as the "salt of the earth:" holding forth the Word of God in truth. As "good soldiers of Jesus Christ," "enduring hardness," and doing all we can to strengthen our fellow-soldiers. Not least, as the devil's worst nightmare (in this generation), tearing down "strongholds" of the enemy and destroying, in the Name of Jesus Christ and by the power of the Holy Ghost, the works of darkness where ever we encounter those (as Christ leads us).
And, as judges of righteousness. In order to so represent Christ, we must be judges. The commandment in 2 Timothy 4:2, to "reprove, rebuke, [and] exhort," is predicated upon the Christian's ability and prerogative, through God, to exercise righteous judgment. And not only with respect to each Christian's own decisions and conduct. But the aforementioned commandment expressly pertains to reproving and rebuking and exhorting others.
No comments:
Post a Comment