Intro to the End Times is a series walking through some of the key themes of the story of Jesus’ return from a historic premillennial perspective, with special focus on knowing the heart of Jesus as we partner with God through the most dramatic chapter of human history.

(Personal update: Hey, guys! I didn’t plan to take such a long break from this series, but I’m excited to be back. Over the past couple of months, in addition to traveling home to spend Christmas with my family and running a year-end partnership campaign, I posted a series of short videos about the beauty of Jesus on my Youtube, Facebook, and Instagram, which you saw if you are on my email list! I also started teaching a semester-long course on the Song of Solomon at The Prayer Room.)

What About the Church?

In my last post, I walked through all 21 of the major judgments of Revelation (7 seals, 7 trumpets, and 7 bowls). Most people, upon hearing all of this, immediately have this one question: What about the church?

First, let’s address the question of protection. Will the church experience the full brunt of the judgments the same as the rest of the world? NO! We may experience some of the side effects, and certainly life will be difficult in many ways, but God has promised to protect us from the harshest judgments.

Protected in the Midst

The first thing to keep in mind is that the judgments are aimed at the antichrist and his kingdom, not the church. God is not judging His own people. The judgments are a righteous response to the massive unrighteousness, injustice, and bloodshed of the kingdom of darkness.

Often, those who believe in a pre-tribulation rapture (which I do not) cite 2 Thessalonians 5:9, which says, “For God has not destined us for wrath…” as evidence that the church will not be on earth during the time of God’s wrath. To that, I would point out the context, which says that the church will not be surprised as by a thief in the night (this verse was discussed in detail in an earlier post), which is kind of a big point in favor of a post-tribulation rapture. But at the same time, I agree wholeheartedly with this verse, because even though there will be Christians on earth during the period of the tribulation, we will most certainly not be under the wrath of God! He will actually be protecting us in dramatic ways, just as He has done for His people throughout history.

Scripture contains a number of foreshadowings of this kind of end time protection, as well as some specific and clear end time promises for the church.

The Model of the Exodus

Describing the end times, God refers back to the exodus and says He will do those kinds of things again (Mic. 7:17). This refers not only the dramatic judgments on the wicked, but the dramatic deliverance for the righteous. Just as God preserved the Israelites in the region of Goshen while sending plagues on the Egyptians, He will once again protect His people in supernatural ways.

“As in the days when you came out of the land of Egypt, I will show them marvelous things.”
(Micah 7:17)

“But on that day I will set apart the land of Goshen, where my people dwell, so that no swarms of flies shall be there, that you may know that I am the LORD in the midst of the earth. Thus I will put a division between my people and your people.”
(Exodus 8:22-23)

The Model of the Ark

Another major reference point is the flood. Matthew 24:36-42 and 2 Peter 3:3-7 compare the sudden, shocking judgment of the flood to the judgments of the end times. 1 Peter 2:5-9 adds to this comparison by highlighting the preservation of Noah in the ark. God is fully capable of making distinction and aiming His judgments at the wicked while simultaneously preserving the righteous. He knows every hair on your head. He knows how to strike your next door neighbor and not you.

“If he did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a herald of righteousness, with seven others, when he brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly…then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment until the day of judgment.”
(1 Peter 2:5-9)

The Seal of God

In Revelation 7, right before the trumpet judgments start, an angel places a seal on the foreheads of believers. The trumpets are significantly more supernatural and destructive than the seal judgments that came before, so this is perfect timing for some upgraded protection! By the fifth trumpet judgment, when demon locusts rise from the abyss to sting people, we see that those with the seal are protected.

“Then I saw another angel… saying, ‘Do not harm the earth or the sea or the trees, until we have sealed the servants of our God on their foreheads.'”
(Revelation 7:2-3)

“Then from the smoke came locusts on the earth, and they were given power like the power of scorpions of the earth. They were told… to harm… only those people who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads.”
(Revelation 9:3-4)

Protection in the House of Prayer

The Bible has specific promises of protection for those who dwell in the house of the Lord. This applies most specifically to houses of prayer– sacred spaces set apart to host His presence in night and day corporate prayer and worship. These communities, especially within those walls, will be supernaturally protected in a unique way.

To “dwell” in His house or shelter isn’t just a synonym for “saved”. Many saved people don’t have this lifestyle. As Jesus’ return draws nearer, the understanding and expression of Christianity will come to revolve more and more around this kind of prayer-centered community. His house WILL be called a house of prayer (Isa. 56:7, Mt. 21:13).

“One thing have I asked of the LORD… that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life… For he will hide me in his shelter in the day of trouble; he will conceal me under the cover of his tent; he will lift me high upon a rock.”
(Psalm 27:4-5)

“He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty… Because you have made the LORD your dwelling place— the Most High, who is my refuge— no evil shall be allowed to befall you, no plague come near your tent.”
(Psalm 91:1, 9-10)

More Biblical Examples

Think of other biblical examples of protection that you know of:

• Israelites protected at Passover (Ex. 12)
• Three men protected in the fire (Da. 3)
• Daniel protected in the lions’ den (Da. 6)
• Elisha protected by an angelic army (2 Ki. 6:14-18)
• Jesus protected from the mob (Lk. 4:28-30)
• Apostles freed from prison (Ac. 5:17-21; 16:25-27)
• Paul protected from the snake bite (Ac. 28:3-6)

What about examples of provision?

• Manna, quail, and water in the wilderness (Ex. 15:22-27; 16; 17:1-7)
• The ravens feeding Elijah (1 Ki. 17:1-7)
• The multiplication of the oil (1 Ki. 17:8-16)
• The feedings of the 4000 and 5000 (Mt. 14:13-21; 15:32-38)
• The money in the fish’s mouth (Mt. 17:24-27)

Everything in the end times is more heightened than at any other time in history– including supernatural protection and provision. We will see these kinds of miracles again as God cares for His people in the middle of the storm!

Saying No to Fear

For the church, the end times isn’t about fear. We can be confident in the Lord no matter what comes. The same truths we look to now will apply even more strongly in that day:

“Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me.”
(Psalm 23:4)

“The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?”
(Psalm 27:1)

“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea.”
(Psalm 46:1-2)

“For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.”
(2 Timothy 1:7)

“There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear.”
(1 John 4:18)

For the church, the end times will be our finest hour as the Spirit is poured out in fullness with global revival (Jo. 2:28-32), and we get to receive the supernatural protection and provision of God. While the rest of the world is fainting from fear (Lk. 21:26), we will be radiant (Ps. 34:4-5) with joy and confidence as we partner with God in all the purposes of His heart!

Intro to the End Times is a series walking through some of the key themes of the story of Jesus’ return from a historic premillennial perspective, with special focus on knowing the heart of Jesus as we partner with God through the most dramatic chapter of human history.

Revelation can be pretty overwhelming if you walk into it without a road map! Luckily, it’s not super complicated to get a basic overview of the flow of the book. In this series, we’ve already looked at the structural outline of Revelation, as well as a general timeline of the end times. You can also grab a downloadable outline and timeline to have before you at a glance.

In a brief nutshell, the structure of Revelation is fairly straightforward:

• Chapter 1 is an introduction and John’s vision of Jesus.
• Chapters 2-3 are letters to the seven churches.
• Chapters 4-5 are a vision of heaven, where God is worshipped and the Lamb is found worthy.
• Chapters 6-22 are the main storyline of the book, mostly revolving around three groups of seven judgments: seven seals, seven trumpets, and seven bowls. These form the main structure of Jesus’ battle plan to cleanse the earth and establish His kingdom.

Last post, we identified two lists of good guys and bad guys. Obviously Jesus is the chief good guy and Satan is the chief bad guy, and they each have a cast of characters that they use to accomplish their purposes. Now, let’s look at the drama that is unfolding around these characters.

Seven Seals

Revelation 6:1-16, 8:1-5

The tribulation officially begins as a seven-year period when the antichrist signs a seven-year peace treaty that brings a period of apparent peace and safety to the earth (Da. 9:27, 1Th. 5:3). It seems to be the answer to all the world’s problems, and the antichrist is celebrated as a brilliant leader; I imagine him winning the Nobel Peace Prize and appearing on the cover of every magazine in the world.

In the middle of this promised seven years of peace, the antichrist breaks his word, marches into the temple in Jerusalem, stops the sacrifices that have been occurring there, and declares himself to be God. This act, known as the “abomination of desolation,” (Da. 9:27, 11:31, 12:11; Mt. 24:15-22; 2Th. 2:3-4) kicks off three and a half years of the Great Tribulation… and this is when the seals start.

Revelation 5 shows a scroll in heaven with seven wax seals securing it closed. This scroll represents the title deed of the earth; in other words, it is authority to rule the world. All of heaven is searching for one who is worthy to open the scroll and claim this authority–and Jesus, the lamb who was slain, is the only one found worthy. Because He died on a cross as a sacrificial lamb, absolutely pure, He has proven that His heart is pure enough to bear this responsibility. This is the king we want. We know His love and mercy, and therefore we can fully trust Him to release whatever judgment God deems necessary.

So the lamb breaks the seals and in Revelation 6, the judgments begin.

1. First seal: White horse
   The antichrist is revealed riding on a white horse “conquering and to conquer.” This is when he breaks the treaty and declares his intention to conquer the earth.
2. Second seal: Red horse
   The rider of the red horse is “permitted to take peace from the earth.” As a result of the antichrist’s new campaign, the earth is plunged into a world war.
3. Third seal: Black horse
   As a result of the war, the world experiences economic upheaval as resources become expensive and scarce.
4. Fourth seal: Pale horse
   One fourth of the population of the earth die as a result of war, famine, illness, and even wild beasts.
5. Fifth seal: Martyrs cry out
   Many souls of martyrs cry out to God to avenge them, and He promises He will… but not yet, because more martyrs must be killed. (Martyrdom isn’t a judgment on the church; the antichrist is actually creating a bigger problem for himself by stirring up the zeal of both God and the church.)
6. Sixth seal: Signs in heaven and on earth
   Dramatic signs appear in the sky and an earthquake shakes the earth. The sky rolls back like a scroll, and even the wicked recognize the wrath of God. The details of this seal parallel with Joel 2:28-32, showing the dramatic outpouring of the Spirit on the church.At this point, an angel is released to seal the servants of God to protect them at a certain level from the judgments that are coming.
7. Seventh seal: Fire thrown to earth
   The prayers of the saints rise before God as incense, and fire from the heavenly altar is thrown to earth. This shows the impact of our prayers and an increase of divine authority granted to the church.

Seven Trumpets

Revelation 8:6-9:21, 11:15-19

Jesus compared the judgments of the end times to labor pains before a baby is born. The birth pains start with the signs of the times in the years before the tribulation, and contractions continue to increase, harder and closer together, as the earth gets closer to the “birth” of the next age. Therefore, the trumpets are more intense than the seals, and they happen in a shorter timeframe.

Most of the seals were fairly natural processes taking their course. A global conquerer arises, which leads to war, which leads to societal upheaval, which leads to famine and illness, and at the same time the antichrist is focusing his wrath especially on the church for getting in his way. By the sixth seal, it becomes very obvious that this isn’t just natural process but the hand of God, and that only intensifies into the trumpets.

1. First trumpet: 1/3 of vegetation burned
   Hail, fire, and blood are thrown to the earth, and a third of all vegetation is burned up.
2. Second trumpet: 1/3 of sea becomes blood
   Something like a burning mountain is thrown into the sea, and a third of the sea becomes blood, killing a third of sea creatures and destroying ships.
3. Third trumpet: 1/3 of water poisoned
   A star called Wormwood falls and poisons a third of earth’s rivers and springs, killing many who drink it.
4. Fourth trumpet: 1/3 of light darkened
   A third of the sun, moon, and stars are struck so that a third of the day and night is dark.The final three trumpets are announced as the first, second, and third “woes.”
5. Fifth trumpet/first woe: Demonic locusts
   Demonic locusts are released from the bottomless pit to sting anyone without the seal of God, and their sting causes intense pain but not death, and people will “seek death but will not find it”.
6. Sixth trumpet/second woe: 1/3 of mankind killed
   Angels are released to kill a third of mankind with plagues of fire, smoke, and sulfur. (Remember, one fourth of mankind was already killed in the fourth seal, leaving three fourths, and this trumpet kills one third of that, meaning that between these two judgments alone a full half of the earth’s population is killed.)
7. Seventh trumpet/third woe: Jesus returns
   The seventh trumpet or “last trumpet” (Mt. 24:31, 1Co. 15:52, 1Th. 4:16) is the climactic moment of history when the kingdom of the world becomes the kingdom of our Lord and He begins to reign on earth as King forever. This is the moment when the saints are resurrected and any saints left alive on earth are caught up to meet Jesus in the clouds, and all the saints receive new bodies. (I wrote an entire post on the resurrection here.)

Seven Bowls

Revelation 16:1-21

If the trumpets were doubled in intensity from the seals, the bowls are tripled from the trumpets. At this point, the timeframe is even more condensed, and Jesus is on the earth in person, riding on a white horse with an army of resurrected saints behind Him (19:11-16), setting captives free from the antichrist’s oppression and laying waste to his kingdom. He is making His way toward Jerusalem, where the antichrist will engage Him in a final climactic battle.

Notably, the trumpets and bowls both closely mirror the plagues on Egypt during the exodus. Up to now, the exodus has been one of the most supernatural series of events in history, with the flood being the only other event in the same category. God promised that the events of the end times would be similar to the flood and would far surpass the events of the exodus (Je. 23:7-8, Mi. 7:15-17, Mt. 24:37-41, 2Pe. 3:4-7).

1. First bowl: Sores
   Horrible sores are released on everyone with the mark of the beast.
2. Second bowl: Sea becomes blood
   In the second trumpet, only 1/3 of the sea become blood. Here, the transformation is complete. Every sea creature dies.
3. Third bowl: Rivers become blood
   Now, not only is the sea blood, but every river and spring, as a just response to the bloodshed of the antichrist’s kingdom.
4. Fourth bowl: Sun scorches
   The sun burns people with fierce heat, and they respond by cursing God.
5. Fifth bowl: Darkness
   The antichrist’s kingdom is plunged into darkness. People are still in pain from the rest of the bowls combined, and they continue to curse God.
6. Sixth bowl: Demons assemble the nations for battle
   Demonic spirits sent by the antichrist gather the kings and their armies to Jerusalem for battle against Jesus.
7. Seventh bowl: Earthquake and hail
   A great earthquake completely destroys the cities of the earth, and even mountains and islands. Hundred-pound hailstones also fall, along with lightening and thunder. People continue to curse God.

The Mercy in the Judgments

All of this is so intense! How are we to think about these judgements? Are they unfortunate embarrassments, a stain on the heart of the God of love? Of course not! As the saying goes, “God is good, all the time, and all the time, God is good.” Even in His judgments, He is good.

A few perspectives to keep in mind:

1. These judgments are against the antichrist and his kingdom, NOT against the people of God. We will be on the earth, but God has many ways to protect us, just like Israel was protected during the plagues of Egypt, and Noah was protected during the flood (2Pe. 2:4-9).
2. The most intense judgments, the seven bowls, occur after Jesus returns at the seventh trumpet and gives us resurrected bodies. At that point, we will be absolutely invincible to any danger.
3. The judgments start slow and increase gradually to give people time to repent and choose mercy. Mercy is always, always available, up until the moment people make the final choice of choosing the mark of the beast.
4. Much as Israel saw the plagues of Egypt as God’s mercy toward them in rescuing them from slavery, the end time judgments will be God’s mercy toward His church. He is burning with zeal to defend and avenge her against persecution and martyrdom at the hands of the antichrist.
5. At the same time as the judgments are happening, it’s also the most glorious time for the church as we are maturing into full-grown, white-hot, pure love as the Bride! The Spirit is being poured out in unprecedented ways and we are seeing revival and a great harvest of souls as God draws hearts to himself! (See my post on how the end times are “great and terrible” all at once.)

Still, these judgements are intense, and it’s tempting to want to pull back from them… but God has been reminding me lately of Jesus’ words in Isaiah 63:4: “For the day of vengeance was in my heart, and my year of redemption had come.” If this day is in His heart, I want it to be in mine too.

Let’s go on the journey of staring at these seals, trumpets, and bowls, talking to the Lord about them, and learning to see the beauty and mercy in His judgments.

Intro to the End Times is a series walking through some of the key themes of the story of Jesus’ return from a historic premillennial perspective, with special focus on knowing the heart of Jesus as we partner with God through the most dramatic chapter of human history.

As we discussed in an earlier post, the end times are good and bad all at once. Similarly, the characters in play represent both heroes and antagonists. Some of these might be familiar to you, but others you might not have considered before.

Good Guys

Of course Jesus is our central Good Guy, and He uses many others to accomplish His purposes in partnership with Him.

1. God the Father

The Father is the one ultimately running the show, together with the Son and the Spirit. At the time of Jesus’ ministry, Jesus said that no one knew the timing of the last days except the Father only (Mt. 24:36). The end times belong to God the Father; they are His end times and all the purposes of His heart will be accomplished during the unfolding of the judgment and redemption that will mark those days.

2. Jesus (the Bridegroom, King, Judge, Lamb, etc)

Jesus is the one destined to be at center stage forever when He comes. He is coming back to judge the nations, marry His bride, and rule as king forever. (In a recent post, we talked about Jesus in these three roles, as bridegroom, king, and judge.)

3. The Holy Spirit

The ministry of the Holy Spirit will be more active than ever during the end times as He fulfills every prophecy written about the last generation. The Joel 2:28-32 outpouring will finally occur in fullness, and the entire church will walk in unprecedented power, fully submitted and in agreement with God. The Holy Spirit will do the work in our hearts to bring us into full love and maturity, so we can be the equally yoked “bride in white” of Revelation 19:7-8.

4. Angels of God

Angels appear many times in Revelation and other end times passages. They are servants of God who do His bidding on the earth and in the spiritual realm, often protecting and supporting His people. In the end time drama, there are specific angels with specific assignments to accomplish. (In fact, the word “angel” appears 79 times in the book of Revelation!)

5. Prayer Movement

Before Jesus comes back, the understanding and expression of Christianity will shift to center more around night and day prayer and worship than at any time in history. We’re already seeing many expressions of this on the earth today:

• Praying churches – Congregations that prioritize prayer as a primary ministry, running multiple hours of prayer daily (Example: Upper Room)
• Houses of prayer – Prayer ministries that run as many consistent hours of prayer as possible, though they may or may not run 24/7 (Example: The Prayer Room)
• Prayer burns – Monthly, annual, or occasional night and day prayer “burns” for a set length of time (Example: Burn 24-7)
• Stadium prayer events – Large events rallying people to prayer and fasting for revival (Example: Contend and its predecessor TheCall)
• Prayer towers – Prayer rooms where one person at a time takes a turn praying in shifts 24/7 (Example: Indonesia prayer towers)

6. Two Witnesses

There will be two powerful prophets in the last days drama with a unique ministry (Zc. 4:1-14, Ma. 3:1, 4:5-6, Re. 11:1-12). These two men will prophetically proclaim the word of God and back it up with unprecedented power, such as fire coming out of their mouths to kill their enemies. For the three and a half years of the great tribulation they will perform miracles, prophesy in power, and encourage the church immensely. At the end of the three and a half years, God will allow the antichrist to kill them, but they will rise from the dead three and a half days later.

7. Prophets of God

Many will follow in the footsteps of the two witnesses by also operating in a great measure of authority.  They will release power across the earth, perform similar miracles, and give similar prophetic words, to a lesser extent (Eph. 4:11-13; Re. 11:18, 16:6, 18:20-24). Also, God will out His Spirit on all His people, so that all saints will prophesy with a new measure of clarity and boldness (Jo. 2:28-32). 

Bad Guys

Everything Satan does is a counterfeit of what God does. God has His Christ, and Satan has his antichrist. God has His Bride, and Satan has his harlot. God will have a great revival, and Satan will have a great falling away.

1. Satan:

Satan is described as the father of lies and a roaring lion and a crafty serpent (Jn. 8:44, 1 Pe. 5:8, Ge. 3:1). If you look at God’s ultimate end time objectives and think of Satan aiming for the opposite of every one, that’s a good start. Ultimately, he wants what he has always wanted: to deceive humanity into worshipping him as god. He will mostly do this through the antichrist and false prophet, along with the Harlot Babylon. He behaves like an animal backed into a corner, holding nothing back and lashing out “because he knows that his time is short.” (Re. 12:12) At the same time, he is arrogant past all rationality in attempting to thwart God’s purposes.

2. Harlot Babylon:

Babylon is one of the largest end times themes in scripture (check out especially Re. 17-18 and Je. 50-51). The Harlot Babylon will be a worldwide culture of every kind of wickedness that also has tangible systemic realities affecting politics, economics, religion, etc. The harlot system will “soften up” the world to receive the antichrist.

3. Antichrist:

The antichrist will be Satan’s main instrument during the end times. This man will rise to power and deceive the earth. He will sign a seven-year peace treaty with Israel and the surrounding nations which begins the seven-year tribulation, then in the middle of the seven years he will break the treaty and declare himself to be God and go on a killing spree against all who oppose him. This event is called the “abomination of desolation” (Da. 9:27). (Da. 7:7-25, 8:23-25, 9:26-27, 11:31-45; Mt. 24:15-24; 2Th. 2:1-12; Re. 13:1-8, 11:7-10)

4. The False Prophet:

The antichrist is gonna need a right hand man. His job is to deceive the world and direct them to worship the antichrist. He will speak persuasively and have great demonic power. He will be the one administrating the antichrist religion, including the image of the antichrist that the entire world will be commanded to worship. (Re. 13:11-17, 16:13, 19:20, 20:10)

5. Other False Prophets:

Just like there will be many of God’s prophets following in the footsteps of the two witnessed, there will be many other false prophets following in the footsteps of the antichrist’s chief false prophet. They will operate in demonic authority and power across the earth (Dt. 13:1-5; Isa. 44:24-27; Je. 50:36; Zc. 13:1-6; Mt. 7:15-23, 24:11, 24; Mk. 13:22; 2Pe. 2:1; 1Jn. 4:1). These prophets will perform false signs and wonders that will also lead many people astray (Re. 13:12, 13, 14, 15, 16:14, 17:8).

6. Wicked Men:

Evil will reach its fullness in the last generation. People will embrace every sort of wickedness imaginable, including slavery, murder, witchcraft, theft, sexual immorally, brutality, abuse, and betrayal (Re. 18:13, 9:21; 2Ti. 3:2-3; Mt. 10:21).

Distinguishing Light and Darkness

The final generation, especially the final three and a half years, will be the most intense the earth has ever experienced. As God is separating light from darkness, the wheat and the tares are growing up together (Mt. 13:24-30). In the final chapter, there will be no more grey area; the cast of characters on the end time stage will either be fully aligned with God or fully aligned with the enemy.

At the same time, I don’t want to say that it will be easy to tell the difference; the enemy’s camp will be really deceptive and convincing. That’s why it’s so crucial to get grounded in the Word ahead of time so that we can distinguish truth from lies. As Daniel says, “He shall seduce with flattery… but the people who know their God shall stand firm and take action. And the wise among the people shall make many understand.” (Da. 11:32-33) Let’s be those who know our God and are equipped with wisdom to make many understand the truth!

Intro to the End Times is a series walking through some of the key themes of the story of Jesus’ return from a historic premillennial perspective, with special focus on knowing the heart of Jesus as we partner with God through the most dramatic chapter of human history.

(Full disclosure: I love to recommend resources to help you in your journey, and when I do I use Amazon affiliate links. If you purchase something through my links, I may receive a small commission. But if there’s a resource you want, I encourage you to get it wherever works best for you!)

Approaching Revelation

For many people, the book of Revelation is synonymous with the end times. It’s certainly not our only source of information; there are 150 chapters in Scripture about the end times and an estimated 550 Old Testament references in Revelation alone. In fact, Revelation itself has almost no brand new information, but in many ways it is the bow on top that ties details together and gives us a helpful framework for understanding the storyline.

As we get into studying Revelation, there are two main keys we’ll need to keep in mind:

1. Stay Hungry and Humble

A lot of people consider Revelation the “scary book” or just plain confusing; there are even some great memes about how confusing Revelation is.

Everyone starts by being confused– but no one is supposed to stop there. How mean would it be of God to write an entire book of the Bible that He knew would be out of our reach?

Understanding Revelation certainly isn’t easy, but nor is it super complicated. God has made His truth available to all, not only to the smartest, richest, or most academic. However, it doesn’t come without effort for anyone. It takes a good bit of time and intentionality, but the fog will lift. Read it and pray about it a lot, and make the Bible itself your main source of information, rather than immediately running to commentaries and outside resources. (When you have a question, pray about it and read Bible verses before googling!)

A posture of spiritual hunger and humility to search out and submit to God’s Word is the only way you’re going to gain insight. Come like a child, don’t lean on your own understanding, and search for wisdom like treasure. The Holy Spirit will be faithful to lead you into all truth. (LK. 18:17, Pr. 3:5, Pr. 2:3-5, Jn. 16:13)

2. Take the Plain Sense Meaning

Revelation is mostly pretty straightforward. No, it’s not completely literal, but where there are symbols, the meanings are given pretty clearly. Some details will seem too dramatic to be realistically possible, but remember we’re talking about the God who flooded the whole earth and parted the Red Sea, and the second coming of Jesus Christ to the earth far surpasses anything in history! We may have gotten all smart and modern, but God is still old-fashioned and supernatural– yesterday, today, and forever.

There are simple, practical ways to recognize symbolism. Words like “mystery” and “sign” are big clues, and then those symbols will be quickly interpreted by the text itself. Here are some examples of these tipoff words:

• “The mystery…is this (Re. 1:20)
• “A great and wondrous sign appeared in heaven (Re. 12:1)”  
• “Then another sign appeared in heaven (Re. 12:3)”
• “I saw in heaven another great and marvelous sign (Re. 15:1)”
• “I will explain to you the mystery of the woman and of the beast she rides (Re. 17:7)”

The key is to let Scripture interpret Scripture rather than looking for more abstract meanings based on guesswork or outside information. Keep reminding yourself that God really did give us the Bible to be understood by anyone anywhere who is hungry and humble, and He’s not trying to create shadowy puzzles that only the elite can solve.

Outline of Revelation

This is the outline of Revelation that has been invaluable to me in my study the past 8 years. I’ve outlined Revelation myself in detail more than once, and this framework has proven an excellent skeletal structure.

We can first break Revelation into four major sections:

• PART 1: John’s Calling (Re. 1)
  John is called to prophesy about the end times. He gives specific truths about Jesus’ majesty—truths that form the way he prophesies about the end times, and that are meant to equip us.
• PART 2: Seven Letters (Re. 2-3)
  Jesus gives seven letters to seven churches. The instructions Jesus gives to these seven churches about overcoming sin give us practical insight into what we too must overcome today.
• PART 3: Jesus Takes the Scroll (Re. 4-5)
  The scroll represents the title deed of the earth and Jesus’ battle plan to cleanse the whole earth in preparation for His rule. Jesus’ battle plan is seen in the events of Revelation 6-22.
• PART 4: Jesus’ Battle Plan (Re. 6-22)
  Jesus’ battle plan is written in the scroll and includes the Great Tribulation judgments against the Babylon religion and the Antichrist’s empire. In these chapters, Jesus reveals His main storyline of love to cleanse the earth of evil.

Parts 1, 2, and 3 are rich but not too confusing. Part 4 is the longest section, and that’s where the main storyline kicks off. The first thing that you need know about Part 4 is that it is broken into ten smaller parts: five chronological sections and five angelic explanations, alternating.

The chronological sections happen in order, as written, and tell us what happens to the antichrist’s followers in the twenty-one judgment events (seven seals, seven trumpets, and seven bowls), which intensify in severity as they unfold.

The angelic explanations are “pauses” in the storyline in which an angel explains to John more context about the events he is seeing. They answer questions arising from the chronological sections: Why is God’s wrath so severe? What will happen to us? Angels explain to John what will happen to God’s people, including what Jesus will do to help the saints and what the Antichrist will do to persecute them.

• Chronological Section #1 (Re. 6)
  The SEAL JUDGMENTS against the kingdom of darkness.
  • Angelic Explanation #1 (Re. 7)
    The saints receive PROTECTION from judgments and from falling away from the truth.
• Chronological Section #2 (Re. 8-9)
  The TRUMPET JUDGMENTS against the Antichrist’s empire.
  • Angelic Explanation #2 (Re. 10-11:14)
    The saints receive DIRECTION by the great increase of prophetic ministry.
• Chronological Section #3 (Re. 11:15-19)
  The SECOND COMING PROCESSION and the rapture of the Church. At the seventh and last trumpet (1Co. 15:52; 1Th. 4:16, Re. 10:7), Jesus will replace all governmental leaders on earth in a hostile takeover. He will lead a royal procession across the earth. He will first travel across the sky to rapture the saints (every eye will see Him, Re. 1:7), then through the land of Edom (modern-day Jordan; Isa. 63:1-6; Hb. 3:12) destroying His enemies, then to Jerusalem and the Mount of Olives (Zch. 14:2-5).
  • Angelic Explanation #3 (Re. 12-14)
    The antichrist’s violent CONFRONTATION against the saints and all that is good in society requires that all his evil governments be replaced
• Chronological Section #4 (Re. 15-16)
  The BOWL JUDGMENTS destroy evil infrastructures in society (Ps. 2:9).
  • Angelic Explanation #4 (Re. 17-19:10)
    The SEDUCTION of society by Babylon’s evil religion will permeate and infiltrate every social structure, requiring that Babylon be totally destroyed.
• Chronological Section #5 (Re. 19:11-20:15)
  Jesus’ TRIUMPHAL ENTRY to Jerusalem (Re. 19:11-21:8).
  • Angelic Explanation#5 (Re. 21-22)
    The RESTORATION of all things (Ac. 3:21; Re. 21:9-22:5).

How to Use This Outline

There you have it! I recommend using this outline as a study resource as you’re reading. As you’re getting used to the book, try creating your own outline fleshing out this structure.

Especially when I started studying Revelation, I liked printing this timeline and keeping it handy alongside my Bible. The pdf below includes the outline as well as a couple of timeline charts that are also great reference material.

I also learned an ingenious trick for keeping myself oriented in my Bible as I’m reading as to whether I’m in a chronological section or an angelic interpretation. In my Bible, I drew a red box in the margin around the chronological sections, and a blue box in the margin around the angelic interpretation sections. I also wrote along the side either CS or AE and a number with a keyword.

In this picture below, you can see I have Revelation 11:15-19 marked off in red as “CS #3: Second Coming” and Revelation 12 begins “AE #3: Confrontation”. With this trick, I can see at a glance by the color in the margin whether I’m in a chronological section or an angelic explanation.

As a bonus idea, you can also see that I like to highlight all 21 judgment markers (such as “first trumpet”, “second trumpet”, etc.) with green, and I highlight all names and descriptions of God in pink.

Revelation is such a rich book, and so crucial for the church to understand. The enemy has spent generations convincing us that it’s not meant for us or too confusing for us to grasp, and it’s high time we take back what God has given to us. I pray these resources encourage and empower you to dive into Revelation with a hungry and humble heart and seek out the treasure in it!

Intro to the End Times is a series walking through some of the key themes of the story of Jesus’ return from a historic premillennial perspective, with special focus on knowing the heart of Jesus as we partner with God through the most dramatic chapter of human history.

Good or Bad?

There seem to be two major perspectives on the “good or bad”-ness of the season of time right before Jesus comes back.

On the one hand, the end times are sometimes presented as all bad bad bad— judgment, destruction, persecution, Christians huddled underground while the antichrist hunts them down and demon locusts swarm the earth. This seems to be the expectation behind the saying “hope for the best, prepare for the worst” as I discussed in an earlier post, as though being on earth during the end times is the worst thing that could possibly happen to us.

On the other hand, the story is sometimes presented as all good and no bad— that we’re going to experience massive global revival, the church is going to spread the Kingdom all over the earth, nations will acknowledge Jesus as Lord, and THEN Jesus will come back. (The theological term for this view is postmillennialism, sometimes referred to as “victorious eschatology”. There are other beliefs beside these two, but these are the ends of the spectrum and represent the most common off-balance perspectives I’ve seen in the modern church.)

As is often the case, the truth is a bit of both.

I appreciate that the first view takes Jesus’ warnings seriously. Whether people who hold that view are pre- or post-trib, it’s great that they have a healthy sobriety about the intensity of what’s coming.

On the other hand, I appreciate that the second view takes Jesus’ promises seriously. We really were promised that we would do greater things because of the Holy Spirit in us. I believe we really will see a great revival before Jesus comes. The Kingdom of God really is at hand!

Great and Terrible

Here’s the key: As the famous opening line of Charles Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities goes, “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.” The end times are going to be really bad and really good– at the same time.

Several passages in Scripture provide a helpful phrase for thinking about this dichotomy.

“For the day of the Lord is great and very terrible; who can endure it?”
(Joel 2:11 NKJV, see alse Joel 2:31, Malachi 4:5)

The Day of the Lord (which, depending on context, can refer to the entire scope of the end times or the specific day when Jesus appears in the sky) is both great and terrible!

(Note: The phrase does seem to be reiterating rather than contrasting–ie, in this context “great” and “terrible” mean just about the same thing–but if we imagine “great” in the contemporary sense of “very good” it gives us a helpful framework for what we see elsewhere all over Scripture. In other words, we’re borrowing “great and terrible” from its context as a handy phrase to describe the contrasting dynamics of the storyline.)

Wheat and Weeds

Jesus told a parable of a man who owned a wheat field, but an enemy came and planted weeds alongside the wheat. The servants asked if they should try to uproot the weeds right away, but the owner told them that they might pull up the wheat along with the weeds. At that stage, neither the wheat nor weeds had reached maturity enough to be properly distinguishable. Instead, the servants were instructed to wait until both the wheat and the weeds reached full maturity, and then they would be separated at harvest time (Mt. 13:24-30).

This is a picture of the end times. God is going to let both the righteousness of the church and the wickedness of the world reach full maturity. At that point, there will be a clear, sharp distinction between what is of God and what is not. Right now, we’ve got a bit of a grey area–a lot of the church looking like the world, and a lot of the world just seeming like nice people. In the final chapter, the difference will be stark. The light will get brighter and the dark will get darker, at the same time.

The Father is zealous to bring His Son’s bride into full holiness and maturity so that she stands beside Him equally yoked in love and righteousness. At the same time, He’s going to allow wickedness to grow into maturity so that when He does judge the earth, it will be absolutely clear that it’s fully, rightfully deserved. This vindicates His justice and righteousness.

Great Things

As a kid with a pre-trib rapture expectation, I used to pray that I would somehow get to stay on earth during the tribulation because I was so excited about the idea of seeing everything God would do during that time. Here are just a few of the exciting things God will do on earth during the period of time shortly before Jesus’ return (I developed some of these ideas more in my post about God’s ultimate end time objectives):

1. Outpouring of the Holy Spirit
   We will see the church operating in greater power than ever before as the promise of Joel 2:28-32 is fulfilled worldwide (“I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh…”) We saw a partial fulfillment at Pentecost in Acts 2, but the context of Joel 2 is clearly eschatological. That day is coming, and we really will do “greater works” than Jesus did (Jn.14:12-14)!
2. Great Revival
   In conjunction with this outpouring, we will see a massive end-time harvest of souls! The gospel will be proclaimed with power to every people group (Mt. 24:14, Re. 14:6), so that every nation, tribe, and tongue on earth will be represented before the throne (Re. 7:9). This hasn’t happened yet, but top missions organizations say we’re very close!
3. Supernatural Provision and Protection for the Church
   There is ample precedent in Scripture for God protecting His people in the middle of crisis, like Noah on the ark during the flood or Israel during the plagues in Egypt. Israel’s birth as a nation was marked by this kind of dramatic protection and provision, and we will see these miracles again (Mi. 7:15, Re. 7:2-3)! The house of prayer especially will be a place of supernatural shelter (Ps. 27:5, Ps. 91).
4. Global Prayer Movement
   In the last days, as the drama increases, there will be a steady soundtrack of prayer and worship arising like incense from every corner of the earth (Isa. 24:14-16, Isa. 42:10-12, Mal. 1:11). God is raising up those who will cry out for justice and for His purposes for Israel until He comes (Isa 62:6-7, Lk. 18:7-8). This is what we’re seeing around the world even now.
5. Maturity of the Bride
   God is raising up the church to be an equally yoked bride for Jesus! When He comes, we will be presented to Him “without spot or wrinkle… holy and without blemish.” (Eph. 5:27) God is working this in us even now, and the end times will see the church walking in the fullness of our identity in confident hope and unshakable lovesickness.
6. Justice Accomplished
   Jesus’ heart burns for justice! He longs to make all the wrong things right. He will declare war on wickedness like we’ve never seen and will bring destruction against Satan and the antichrist’s kingdom while vindicating and defending His people. Ultimately, He will fully establish His kingdom on earth in which perfect justice will reign forever (Ps. 89:14, Isa. 9:7).

Terrible Things

At the same time as the “great” things are happening, plenty of not-so-great things are also occurring. All of this is part of God’s storyline, and there is purpose in everything, but these things will call for great endurance and faithfulness.

1. Judgments
   21 judgments are listed sequentially in the book of Revelation (seals, trumpets, and bowls). These are various supernatural crises and plagues that God will send on the earth against wickedness. Note that these judgments are NOT directed at the church! We will feel some of the effects, but God’s wrath is against the antichrist’s kingdom, not us. The church will experience a large degree of supernatural protection (see Great Thing #3 above).
2. Persecution
   Satan will be on full blast against the church and also the people of Israel. He hates what God loves, and knowing that time is running out, he will attack God’s people will all the energy of a rabid animal backed into a corner (Re. 12:12-17).
3. Deception
   The closer we get to Jesus’ return, the harder the enemy will be working to deceive the earth. The Harlot Babylon system that precedes the antichrist will seduce the world with false peace (1Th. 5:3) as many different “truths” are accepted openly. Then the antichrist will demand worship as God, backing up his claim with dramatic signs and wonders (2Th. 2:3-4, 9). To beware of deception was Jesus’ foremost instruction concerning the end times (Mt. 24:4).
4. Wickedness
   As the weeds grow up alongside the wheat, the wickedness of the earth will be growing up into maturity. Before the Flood, mankind was thoroughly corrupt and thought only of evil continually (Gn. 6:5), and Jesus promised that the time of His coming would be much like the time of Noah (Lk. 17:26). Right now, God is mercifully holding back the full extent of potential evil, but He will take the brakes off and let true depravity reveal itself (Mt. 24:12, 2Ti. 3:1-5, Re. 9:12).
5. Creation’s Groan
   The earth itself is groaning with longing for that day (Ro. 8:19-23), when it will be freed from the curse of the fall. These groans can be seen to manifest in natural disasters like earthquakes and hurricanes, animal attacks (yes, this is a whole entire thing in eschatology!), and even diseases like COVID-19.
6. Great Falling Away
   As the distinction between darkness and light get clearer, decisions will be forced and many in the church who didn’t have strong root systems and allowed their hearts to grow cold will find themselves drifting away (Mt. 24:10-12, 24; 1Ti. 4:1; 2Th. 2:3). I personally have a number of friends who have already drifted away from Jesus and embraced beliefs and choices that are starkly against Him. Many more are on shaky ground, building their faith on a shaky foundation that won’t stand when the storm hits.

Preparing for Both Dynamics

The church that lives through all of these dynamics will need to be firmly rooted and grounded in the knowledge of God. We will need to know deep in our bones that He is good and trustworthy and be prepared to be faithful unto death, as the accusations of the enemy attack us and we see the “terrible” dynamics on the rise. At the same time, we need to be prepared to carry the revival that God will pour out. We need humble hearts reaching to carry more and more of the presence of God so that we can partner with Him fully in all He wants to do.

The answer to being prepared for both of these dynamics is the same: get oil. Matthew 25:1-13 describes five virgins (like bridesmaids at a wedding) who were wise and five virgins who were foolish. The wise ones prepared ahead of time by making sure they had enough oil in their lamps to last until the bridegroom came, no matter how long it took. The foolish ones ran out of oil and tried to get more but in the process found themselves missing the opportunity of meeting the bridegroom.

We need the oil of intimacy. We need a deep and intimate history of relationship with Jesus that will anchor our hearts through the storm and position us to join Him in carrying revival.

Intro to the End Times is a series walking through some of the key themes of the story of Jesus’ return from a historic premillennial perspective, with special focus on knowing the heart of Jesus as we partner with God through the most dramatic chapter of human history.

(Full disclosure: I love to recommend resources to help you in your journey, and when I do I use Amazon affiliate links. If you purchase something through my links, I may receive a small commission. But if there’s a resource you want, I encourage you to get it wherever works best for you!)

Unfortunately, the study of the end times has been one of the areas that has been under attack in the church. The enemy is eager to create confusion about this most glorious and vital subject. In this post, I want to identify and briefly respond to some of the ideas that are currently floating around in the church. A few of these especially could be whole posts in and of themselves– leave me a comment and request which ones you’d like to see further developed!

I personally used to hold some of these ideas, and other people close to me still hold some of them. This post is not meant to shame or attack any individual who finds themselves resonating with any of these statements, but I want to be clear and honest about the truths that I see in Scripture. We’re all on a journey, and it’s maturity and wisdom to continually be open to refining.

1. Things Will Basically Continue Like Always

People have a tendency to imagine that life as they know it will continue basically undisturbed for a long time. It’s hard to wrap our minds around the proposition of everything changing overnight– but it’s happened before, and it will happen again. The best example is the flood in the days of Noah, when the people of that time thought life would continue indefinitely like normal, until they were caught off guard by judgment. Jesus made the connection clear (Matthew 24:37-39), and Peter followed suit (2 Peter 3:3-7):

“…scoffers… will say, ‘Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation.’ For they deliberately overlook this fact, that the heavens existed long ago, and the earth was formed out of water and through water by the word of God, and that by means of these the world that then existed was deluged with water and perished. But by the same word the heavens and earth that now exist are stored up for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly.”
(2 Peter 3:3-7)

Of course, as I highlighted in part 1 of this series (Does God Want Us to Understand the End Times?), we aren’t supposed to be caught unaware. We need to take seriously the fact that one day everything will change, and prepare ourselves to thrive as the church in that day. As I write this in May 2020, COVID-19 is already starting to shake up our “normal,” but this is only the slightest tremor compared to the cataclysmic shaking that will come.

2. Studying the End Times Is a Distraction From More Important Things

It’s true we ought to “major on the majors, and minor on the minors”. However, if we’re taking our cues from how much the Bible talks about the end times, it turns out that it’s actually a rather major point! In fact, every single New Testament writer wrote about the end times. In total there are over 150 chapters in Scripture  that are primarily about that generation. Paul even made sure to teach the new church in Thessalonica about the end times during his brief three weeks there (Acts 17:1-2, 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12).

Keeping our hearts set on the day of Jesus’ coming and God’s end time purposes will actually push us into focusing on all those other things with a sharper perspective. I care far more about sanctification and evangelism, just to name two things, now that I see them in context of eternity and Jesus’ return. In fact, Jesus and the apostles regularly used the end times to motivate people into holy living. Check out my previous post in this series (Why Should We Study the End Times?) for more practical benefits of focusing on the end times!

3. We Can’t Understand the End Times Anyway

I sympathize with those who feel overwhelmed, but allowing that to be a permanent obstacle isn’t wise. God put 150 chapters about the end times in Scripture, Jesus commanded us to understand, the whole Bible is “profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16), and the subject is the most glorious, dramatic, global transition in human history…. it really seems like God wants us to get it! He knew that it would seem overwhelming, but He gave us everything we need in His Word and He gave us His Spirit to help us know the mysteries of God (1 Corinthians 2:9-16).

This understanding isn’t reserved for the elite or the educated; most of humanity throughout history has been fairly uneducated. You don’t need a doctorate or access to a huge theological library to understand the main and plain truths of God’s plan. All you need to do is cry out in humility and diligently seek wisdom (Proverbs 2:1-5). (For more, I suggest the first post in this series, Does God Want Us to Understand the End Times?)

4. Revelation Is the Scary Book

In addition to being confusing, Revelation is often perceived as the “scary book”. Of course it has some pretty intense and dramatic events, but the first verse sets the tone for the rest of the story– it’s the “revelation of Jesus Christ” (Revelation 1:1)! It’s not called the revelation of the antichrist or the end times. First and foremost, it’s meant to reveal Jesus.

Even in the intensity of the storyline, we see the heart of God on display. The judgments don’t start till chapter 6, and before that we see the beauty of Jesus in His glory (ch. 1), the faithfulness and kindness of Jesus toward His church (ch. 2-3), the glory of the heavenly throne room (ch. 4), and the worthiness of the Lamb (ch. 5). Even the judgment series are intercut with declarations of the goodness of God and His love for His bride, and the final chapters climax with our wedding to Jesus Himself when He comes to set up His kingdom, uniting heaven and earth forever (ch. 19-22). This is a glorious storyline that ushers us directly into the heart of Jesus!

5. It Will All Just Pan Out

Some people eschew terms like pre-trib or post-trib and call themselves “pan-trib,” as in “everything will just pan out.” This sounds clever, but it’s really an irresponsible approach. Even the saying “hope for the best, prepare for the worst” usually means “let’s hope we’ll just be raptured out of the way before the scary stuff starts” and doesn’t really embrace the glory of what God wants to do through the church during the time of the “worst”. Personally, I’ve never met a “hope for the best” person who is actually taking seriously preparing for the “worst.”

Of course God’s plans will come to pass with or without your understanding and participation, but no one on earth will be able to escape dealing with this. The question is, how will it pan out for you? Will you be found standing with God in agreement and partnership with His desires? Or will you and those who follow your example (your family, etc.) be confused, offended, and deceived?

6. Every Generation Thought It Was Them

This is a common misconception, but a brief survey of history shows it’s not quite true. While there have been localized communities of believers scattered throughout history that believed they were living in the final generation, it’s always been small groups not even representing 1% of believers on earth. There have only been two generations in which a majority of the global body of Christ has sustained a conviction (temporary surges of belief provoked by world crises notwithstanding) that they were the last generation: the first century church, and the modern church in the earth today.

Almost every time I’m in a conversation and share my belief that Jesus’ return is near, to my surprise, I gets nods and agreement! The Holy Spirit is growing this conviction in the church today, and it’s even impacting the secular world. What does it tell us that apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction is an entire genre in the Christian and secular entertainment industries alike?

7. Jesus Is Coming Any Minute to Rapture Us Before the Tribulation

This is a very common belief in much of the Western church today, although it wasn’t common until the early 1900s and doesn’t appear at all until 1825. It’s a far larger topic than I can cover in detail here, so for the moment I’ll point you to a teaching session from Brad Stroup at The Prayer Room called Disproving the Pre-Tribulation Rapture Theory. Another excellent resource is the book Not Afraid of the Antichrist by Dr. Michael Brown and Dr. Craig Keener.

Just to give a couple of verses to start you in the right direction, check out 2 Thessalonians 2:1-4 and Matthew 24:29-31. Both give clearly discernible, sequential timing indicators as to when the second coming and rapture will occur, including 1) the great falling away, 2) the revealing of the antichrist and his claiming to be God in the temple, and 3) the tribulation.

“Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him [rapture], we ask you, brothers, not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, either by a spirit or a spoken word, or a letter seeming to be from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come. Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion [great falling away] comes first, and the man of lawlessness [antichrist] is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God.”
(2 Thessalonians 2:1-4)

“Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect [rapture] from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.”
(Matthew 24:29-31)

If you’re interested in a more thoroughly developed post on this subject, leave me a comment!

8. Bible Prophecy Is All Symbolic Anyway

I remember reading prophetic passages in Isaiah and being so confused because I had no idea where they fit in the story of God, so I concluded they must be symbolic. That was easier because I could make them mean whatever vague, encouraging thing I wanted. However, the Bible isn’t meant to be read like that. One of the keys to Scripture interpretation is to take things for their plain-sense meaning. In other words, assume things are generally literal unless the text clearly indicates otherwise.

So many things in the history of Scripture are fantastic and hard to imagine, but really did happen! The flood, the parting of the Red Sea, the virgin birth– all literal! When Jesus came the first time, there were so many specific prophecies that would have been easy to take symbolically, but they were in fact fulfilled exactly as written. (I wrote more about this in my post What Jesus’ First Coming Says About His Second Coming.) The end times are no different. God will be faithful to fulfill His word; we don’t have to make up symbolic interpretations that leave Scripture subject to any convenient meaning.

9. The End Time Prophecies Already Happened

Many dear friends of mine, plus teachers and ministries I respect deeply, believe that the end time prophecies in Matthew 24, Revelation, and the other prophetic scriptures already happened in 70 AD at the destruction of Jerusalem, or progressively at other points in history. This leads them to conclude that there is not an end time tribulation in our future, and things will mostly just get better and better until Jesus comes back.

There are a number of problems with this theology (and much of it is tied to our theology of Israel– God still has many future promises for His people! I recommend One King by Samuel Whitefield and When A Jew Rules the World by Joel Richardson.) but this post is already too long so here I’ll just say that none of the events in history, including the destruction of Jerusalem, can account for ALL the details that are promised in the end times. Matthew 24:21-22 says “there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved.” The scale of the global end time drama is off the charts, even nearly causing the extinction of the human race. That has never even come close to happening!

Why Does It Matter?

As I wrote previously, what we believe about the end times has huge impact on how we live and how we prepare. If we really are living in the end times (stay tuned for a post on how to recognize the signs), then it is urgently important for the church to have a biblical perspective of not only what will happen, but how God feels about these events and what response He’s looking for.

My passion in talking about these things isn’t to argue over details or to be right for the sake of being right. I have a burden for the church to be in allignment with the heart of Jesus for the sake of love. He deserves a bride who is in full agreement and partnership with Him as the most crucial hour in human history begins to unfold. Lord, help– renew our minds and conform our hearts to Yours!