Isa 60:14 ,18 “. . . And they shall call you The City of the LORD, Zion of the Holy One of Israel. . . . but you shall call your walls Salvation, And your gates Praise.”
We are the City of God, the New Jerusalem descending from heaven. Jesus said you must be born from above (John 3:7) destined to FILL the earth with the knowledge of the GLORY of the Lord (Hab.2:14) This is our destiny; this is our purpose. Every doctrine and belief must be measured against God’s eternal purpose to create a man in His image and likeness to FILL the earth with the knowledge of the GLORY (nature and character) of the Lord. Our doctrinal beliefs because our BELIEFS determine our ACTIONS, and our actions impact our world. Modern Christianity, especially in the Western mindset, has been so influenced by a deeply entrenched Christian religious system... like the Jews, centuries ago, and we have been in Babylonian captivity so long that it feels NORMAL. There is a New Reformation happening throughout the Christian world. The revelation of the true grace of God is growing by leaps & bounds. With the aid of television, the internet, especially FB & Twitter, the word is getting out. The revelation of God’s grace is taking Christians past the guilt & condemnation of Religious tradition that has kept God’s people off-balance and in bondage for centuries. The natural step after coming to the revelation that God’s judgment & wrath is no longer a factor, leads one to look forward. The first obstacle they hit is the rapture and the tribulation, or Armageddon. A future judgment and wrath of God on man, doesn’t line up with the finished work of Christ. If Armageddon is in the future, then Jesus’ work is not finished. We are going to be looking are a few obstacles to going forward, and propose some possibilities for you to consider. History of dispensational theology: (also called Pre-Trib. Rapture or Futurism) Ribera – Jesuit priest, during the Reformation. Emmanuel Lacunza (aka: Rabbi Ben Ezra), a Jesuit priest wrote: (published 1812). “The Coming Messiah in Glory & Majesty”. Edward Irving published Lacunza’s book in 1827 in English. John Nelson Darby - Plymouth Brethren (1830). C.I. Scofield – Congregationalist, published “The Scofield Reference Bible” (1909), D. L. Moody - American Evangelist. At the time of the Reformation, the early Protestants widely held and were convinced the Popes were the supreme individual embodiment and personification of antichrist, and the Roman Church, the Harlot System of Revelation seventeen. This understanding was responsible for bringing millions of believers out of the Roman Catholic religious system. It therefore became expedient for certain Roman Catholic theologians to turn the attention of the people away from the Papacy, and this they endeavored to do by inventing a counter-interpretation to that held unanimously by the Protestants. Rather than viewing the drama of the book of Revelation spiritually and historically, they would consign it all to a brief period of time at the end of the age. It was a Jesuit priest named Ribera who, in the days of the Reformation, first taught that the events in the book of Revelation were to take place literally during the three and a half years reign of the ‘future antichrist’ at the end of the age. He was the first to break the time continuum of Daniel’s prophetic seventy weeks. By putting antichrist off into the future, that would take the ‘heat’ off of the Papacy, as Luther and the Reformers were exposing the ‘man of sin’ as the Roman Papal system. Later, Emmanuel Lacunza, also a Jesuit priest, built on Ribera's teachings, and wrote a book titled "The Coming of Messiah in Glory and Majesty." Lacunza, however, wrote under the assumed name of Rabbi Ben Ezra, supposedly a learned Jew who had accepted Christ as his Savior. He thus conspired to get his book a hearing in the Protestant world; they would not even permit it in their homes coming from a Jesuit pen, but as the earnest work of the "converted Jew”, they would consume it with avid interest! (Aren’t we still somewhat this way in the Church today?) Within the pages of this elaborate forgery, Lacunza taught the new idea that Jesus returns not once, but twice, and at the first stage of His return He "raptures" His Church so they can escape the reign of the future antichrist. His book was first published in Spanish in the 1812. Later, Edward Irving became a leading figure of the Catholic Apostolic Church of England. Irving discovered Lacunza's book and was deeply shaken by it, and in fact translated it into English, and it was published in London in 1827. A man by the name of John Nelson Darby was the leader among the Plymouth Brethren from 1830 onward and was a prolific writer. Irving and Darby were contemporaries, though associated with different spiritual movements. Darby developed and organized "futurism" into a system of prophetic teaching called dispensationalism. A Congregationalist preacher by the name of C.I. Scofield came under the influence of Darby and the Plymouth Brethren. The Scofield Reference Bible was destined to have a tremendous impact upon the beliefs of many, when three million copies were published in the first 50 years. Through this Bible, Scofield carried the teaching of the rapture into the very heart of evangelism. So here we have the chain of influence: the Jesuit priest Ribera's writings influenced the Jesuit priest Lacunza, Lacunza influenced Irving, Irving influenced Darby, Darby influenced Scofield, Scofield and Darby influenced D.L. Moody, and Moody influenced the Pentecostal Movement. The Assemblies of God is today by far the largest Pentecostal denomination in the world. In 1914 they were a small movement, and they needed Sunday School and study materials for their churches so they bought it from Moody Press and had their own cover stitched on it. This had its impact on Pentecostal theology and that is how the Pentecostal movement became influenced by the rapture doctrine- by a direct chain right back to the Roman Catholic religious system. What does the Scripture have to say?: Acts 2:32-35 “This Jesus God has raised up, of which we are all witnesses. Therefore, being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He poured out this which you now see and hear. "For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he says himself: 'THE LORD SAID TO MY LORD, "SIT AT MY RIGHT HAND, TILL I MAKE YOUR ENEMIES YOUR FOOTSTOOL." Psalms 110:1-2 The LORD said to my Lord, "Sit at My right hand, Till I make Your enemies Your footstool. The LORD shall send the rod of Your strength out of Zion. Rule in the midst of Your enemies!” Acts 3:20-21 “and that He may send Jesus Christ, who was preached to you before, whom heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, which God has spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began.” (Amplified Bible says “heaven must receive and RETAIN UNTIL the time for the complete restoration...”) Heb.10:12-13 “But this Man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God, from that time waiting TILL His enemies are made His footstool.” (The word “waiting”, or: expecting” in the KJV, in Greek is ekdechomai, meaning to “accept from some source”, i.e. (by implication) to await, expect, look, tarry for, wait for.) 1 Cor.15:24-25 “Then comes the END, when He delivers the kingdom to God the Father, when He puts an end to all rule and all authority and power. For He must reign UNTIL He has put all enemies under His feet.” It is important to note that the word “END” in that verse is telos in Greek meaning to set out for a definite point or goal; properly, the point aimed at as a limit. It is the same root word used in the following verses and translated as PERFECT: “But when that which is PERFECT is come, then that which is in part shall be done away.”(1 Cor.13:10); “...Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a PERFECT man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ...” (Eph.4:13). So when 1 Cor.15 says “then cometh the END”, it is not necessarily speaking of the END as a cessation or a stopping place, rather it is the Church arriving at a pre-determined destiny. And that destiny is the Church manifesting the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, with all enemies under our feet... it is the restitution of all things forfeited by Adam, the complete restoration we just read of in Acts 3:20-21. That which is in-part being done away with, we are called to the fullness of the Spirit, rather than just the ‘earnest’ of the Spirit. We are not looking for Jesus to return half way to get us out of this world, rather we are looking to have dominion in this world as that is what we are SENT for. Notice that in Jesus’ apostolic High Priestly prayer in John chapter 17, He prays specifically concerning this; v15 “I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth. As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent (apostello in Greek) them into the world. And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they also may be sanctified by the truth. "I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word;” Neither should we be looking for the imminent return of Jesus Christ, because it is obvious from the verses above that Jesus does not return until something specific happens; until His enemies are UNDER HIS FEET. In light of these Scriptures, we must ask the question ‘Where are Christ’s feet?’ We know that Jesus Christ is the HEAD... now then, are feet connected directly to the Head? NO, there is a BODY between the Head and the feet! This is the meaning of Romans 16:20 “And the God of peace shall bruise Satan under YOUR feet shortly.” The enemies of Christ are put under the feet of His Body as the kingdoms of this world ARE become the Kingdom of the Lord and His Christ. The Church at large in the last 150 years or so has missed understanding, and therefore missed apprehending a large part of Her destiny by giving so much attention to a prophetic end time interpretation of very questionable origins, as we have seen above. Consider the following Scriptures that give us an idea of our destiny: Isaiah 45:18 “For thus says the LORD, Who created the heavens, Who is God, Who formed the earth and made it, Who has established it, Who did not create it in vain, Who formed it to be inhabited:” Psalms 37:29 “The righteous shall inherit the land, And dwell in it forever.” The word translated as land is erets in Hebrew, meaning the earth, land, nations, the world. Romans 4:13 “For the promise that he would be the heir of the world was not to Abraham or to his seed through the law, but through the righteousness of faith.” Did you catch that?... heir of the WORLD! Galatians 3:29 “And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.” Daniel 7:22,27 “and a judgment was made in favor of the SAINTS of the Most High, and the time came for the saints to POSSESS the kingdom.... Then the kingdom and dominion, And the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven, shall be given to the PEOPLE, the saints of the Most High. His kingdom is an EVERLASTING kingdom, And all dominions shall serve and obey Him.” There is so, so much more to be said on this subject. This was written to give you a taste of possibilities to be explored. We should be much more concerned with the Church ‘growing up’ rather than ‘going up’! We have a tremendous future as we grow up and apprehend that which the Father has destined for us. What I believe regarding the “End Times”: I believe in the optimistic view of the Kingdom of God being present and growing, as was taught and believed before the Darbyism of the 1830s became popular. I believe when the New Testament writers spoke of the last days, they were referring to the end of the old covenant age (AD 30–70), not the end of the world. I believe when Jesus spoke of His coming, He was using Old Testament apocalyptic language to describe His coming in judgment upon Jerusalem in AD 70. I believe Daniel’s prophecy of seventy weeks was referring to Christ and completed by Christ. I do not believe Daniel 9 teaches a future seven–year Tribulation. I believe the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70 fulfilled the Great Tribulation, the day of vengeance, and the time of Jacob’s trouble. I believe in the return of Christ, the resurrection of the dead, and the final judgment. I do not believe in a secret rapture of Christians prior to the return of Christ. I believe antichrist is a first century name for Gnosticism and perhaps other false teachings. I do not believe the Bible prophesies a future one-world ruler. I believe the Beast of Revelation is a reference either to the person of Nero or the Roman Empire (depending on the context). I believe the Israel of God, the New Jerusalem, the Ekklesia, is and always has been the true inheritor of His covenant promises. This is not based on race but faith. I believe the Kingdom of God arrived with Jesus’ first coming and will fill the whole earth in preparation for His final return. I believe at the restoration of all things, the church meets Jesus in the air, and returns with Him in their glorified bodies. Recommended Reading: I have categorized the following books so that you can find more information about any specific end time topic. I hope you have enjoyed this as a clear and concise introduction. I am not endorsing everything in each of the following books, but for the most part, each of them has been of benefit to me in my journey. Swallow the meat, spit out the bones. God bless! A GOOD OVERVIEW AND INTRODUCTION: The Last Days According to Jesus by R.C. Sproul Last days Madness by Gary DeMar UNDERSTANDING MATTHEW 24: Is Jesus Coming Soon? by Gary DeMar Matthew 24 Fulfilled by John L. Bray The Great Tribulation by David Chilton The Olivet Discourse Made Easy by Kenneth Gentry THE HISTORY OF THE MODERN VIEW: Whose Right It Is by Kelley Varner 10 Popular Prophecy Myths Exposed and Answered by Gary DeMar ISRAEL’S PLACE IN THE ENDTIMES: Exploding the Israel Deception by Steve Wohlberg (Jewish Christian author) Israel and Bible Prophecy by John L. Bray 10 Popular Prophecy Myths Exposed and Answered by Gary DeMar Zion’s Christian Soldiers? by Stephen Sizer EZEKIEL 36–38 (GOG AND MAGOG): Why the End of the World Is Not in Your Future by Gary DeMar ZECHARIAH 12 AND 14: One chapter in Last Days Madness by Gary Demar DATING THE WRITING OF THE BOOK OF REVELATION; Before Jerusalem Fell by Kenneth Gentry The Early Church and the End of the World by Gary DeMar and Francis Gumerlock Redating the New Testament by John A.T. Robinson THE DESTRUCTION OF JERUSALEM: Josephus: The Complete Works The Destruction of Jerusalem by George Peter Holford THE EARLY CHURCH UNDERSTANDING OF THE ENDTIMES: The Early Church and the End of the World by Gary DeMar THE ANTICHRIST: The Man of Sin of 2 Thessalonians 2 by John L. Bray The Beast of Revelation Identified by Kenneth Gentry COMMENTARIES ON THE BOOK OF REVELATION: The Great Tribulation by David Chilton Days of Vengeance by David Chilton The Book of Revelation Made Easy by Kenneth Gentry Navigating the Book of Revelation by Kenneth Gentry Revelation for Everyone by N.T. Wright The Art of Revelation by Jonathan Welton The Seven Churches of Revelation by Jonathan Welton RAPTURELESS by Jonathan Welton
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