Skip to main content

The End of Time

In his masterpiece work, Pilgrim Theology, Dr Michael Horton explains in layman's terms the Reformed theological perspective of past and present doctrines. His summary of the book of Revelation and understanding of Matthew 24 is concise and clear. Thus the following extended quote will help us grasp a seemingly difficult teaching called Amillennialism. 

"It is easy to summarize Jesus' sequence of events (in Matthew 24): (1) destruction of the temple in Jerusalem ("the abomination of desolation" [Mt 24:15], which occurred in AD 70); (2) the tribulation of those days” (v. 29), involving long period of persecution, apostasy, general calamities, and yet the progress of the gospel throughout the world; (3) the coming of the Son of Man from heaven; (4) the gathering of the elect; and (5) the last judgment.

"The immediate recipients of the book of Revelation would certainly have recognized themselves in our Lord's description of the great tribulation, as would believers today who are enduring fierce persecution for the name of Christ. In a series of snapshots, Revelation moves back and forth between heavenly and earthly scenes of persecution and ultimate victory. In vivid apocalyptic imagery Revelation reprises the history that Jesus summarized in his Olivet Discourse. In both of these accounts, the next event we are awaiting is the return of Christ to judge the living and the dead and to consummate his everlasting kingdom."

Did that make sense to you? More later. 

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Tottering!

I was watching my one year old grandson, Brandon, today. He had on some baggy little shorts, weird flip-flops over his socks, and he was tottering. It made me think about how I often feel these days. Funny how that when we are little and "innocent" and tottering in our baggy pants, with our little potbelly sticking out from under our t-shirt we look precious. When we are older and tottering in our low slung trousers and the same potbelly, we looks pathetic! I guess that the two drastically opposite points of view are based on the viewer's chronological perspective. Brandon is growing and I'm dying. He is cute because the little guy has a lot to learn and we love to see him progress. The old guy has already had his chance at learning and what he is progressing toward is not quite so much fun to ponder. When I have these weird thoughts I praise my God because He never lets go of my hand whether a tottering little guy or an old one. And I found this verse to prove my po...

What Are You Worth?

What are you Worth?  Have you ever thought about what you are worth? In investing circles there is a term used to gauge this exact question, it's called Net Worth. You take all of your assets, like property owned, funds in your bank account, clothes, jewelry, car, etc.. You total all of these things. You then take everything you owe, like mortgage, car loan, and credit card debt, and you subtract these items from the first total. This gives you your net worth. That number represents where you are financially. Most people never stop to think about this number because they don't understand anything about it. They never have two nickels to rub together. They live from hand to mouth and know (or at least believe) nothing will ever change so, they fall into the "daily grind" mentality. Psalm 49 should be a great encouragement to such as these. The sons of Korah write about them. These sons write about all of us. They call all people everywhere to listen to their wisdom. Bo...

Church Isn't a Place

  Many times we say, I'm going to church on Sunday. What some fail to understand is that "church" isn't a building. I remember our pastor saying, "the church is an organism, not an organization." He was teaching us the Bible truth about the church. Jesus Christ is the head of the body, and the church is his body on earth. Another pastor once said, "God's hands have human fingers." This is a difficult concept for some to grasp, pun intended. However, it is important to understand that God accomplishes his work through human beings. He uses us, the church, to do his will and work. It's not that if we don't do his will that he is stymied. But he does use willing servants. To be in the church, one must be a part of the family. You cannot be in the church if you don't have the Savior. The church is not for the lost; it is for the edification of the saved. The lost can come and hear the message of salvation. But the church is made up of t...