Understanding Bible Prophecy Series (7 of 7)

Today Living for Tomorrow

Prophecy is much more than times, symbols, beasts and kingdoms; it’s about how you live now—and in the future—says Marvin Moore.

All Bible prophecy tends to point toward one of two great events—either Jesus’ first coming two millennia ago, or His second, at some time in the future. His first advent, as it was called, was precisely predicted, thus the Magi knew it was imminent and travelled to Bethlehem. Of His Second Advent, there are no precise time predictions, only a general “time of the end.”

People have tried to determine its timing, however. During the late 1970s and early 1980s there was a great deal of enthusiasm for 1988 as the year, or at least for what some called the beginning of the Tribulation. Christians also speculated about several other dates for Christ’s return during the last half of the 20th century: 1964, 1994 and 1996. And there was a great deal of speculation either that Jesus would come or that the Tribulation would begin just prior to or during the year 2000. Of course, none of this has happened.

Obviously believers are aware of and anxious for Christ’s return, which is better than total indifference. However, date setting, including the effort to identify the year of Christ’s return, also has a negative side—for Christ Himself warned us against making the attempt. He said that we cannot know the day or hour of His coming (see Matthew 24:36), and we should probably also include the year on the general principle that He was encouraging us to avoid guessing the time in any specific sense.

Something Jesus said shortly before He returned to heaven supports this conclusion. His disciples asked Him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?” (Acts 1:6). He answered, “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority” (verse 7). “Times” and “dates” are broader than “day” and “hour” and therefore rule out speculation about years also.

If Jesus’ only advice had been not to speculate about hours, days or years, we could forget about His coming altogether, since we have no idea when it will happen. However, Jesus didn’t want us to do that either, for after giving several signs of His coming, He said, “When you see all these things, you know that it is near, right at the door” (Matthew 24:33).

So, Jesus does want us to be aware of the nearness of His coming. And it is very near.

If you accept that Jesus is coming soon and that the point of prophecy is really to determine how you live (Matthew 25), as suggested in Jon Paulien’s “The Nature of Bible Prophecy,” how would that affect your life? Following are three suggestions as to how it should:

1. Prepare ourselves. The knowledge that Jesus’ coming is near should motivate us to prepare ourselves spiritually, not just for His return but for the period of trouble or tribulation (see Daniel 12:1) that precedes it. God’s people will have to pass through that time.

That trouble will challenge the character of every human being. And Satan’s deceptions at that time will be so subtle that even God’s own people will be in danger of falling for them (Matthew 24:24). So, personal spiritual preparation is essential.

2. Reach out to others. Jesus commanded His followers to “go and make disciples of all nations,” promising them, “I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matthew 28:19, 20). Till He comes, we are to continue spreading the truth of God’s love and His salvation.

Two of Jesus’ parables bear out this truth. In one parable (Matthew 25:14-30), He told of a wealthy landowner who left three servants in charge of his estate while he went on a long trip.

hen the master returned (representing the second coming of Christ), He commended two of the servants, who had made a handsome profit. The third man, who had neglected his responsibility, was condemned to “the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

Jesus is the landowner who went on a long journey. Obviously, He expects His servants (Christians) to keep busy doing the work of His kingdom.

In the parable of the sheep and the goats (Matthew 25:31-46), Jesus clarified what this work is: feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, and visiting those who are sick and in prison. Spreading the gospel means more than preaching from the Bible; it means doing good because we love all God’s children.

3. Avoid anxiety. Finally, we should avoid being overly anxious about the time of Christ’s return. Attempts to identify the year of Christ’s return are futile. Jesus came at just the appointed time 2000 years ago (see Galatians 4:4), and He’s going to come on time again. However, He’s working to God’s timetable, not ours. What seems a long delay to us isn’t so to God.

Unfortunately, attempts to set dates for His return, even if based on biblical prophecies, make it difficult for Christians to avoid anxiety. And this is true for more than just those who set the dates. Invariably, the passing into history of one speculative date after another affects the thinking of every Christian. Eventually, some give up hope of Christ ever returning.

For any reader who thinks that way, consider Christ’s promise to His disciples, who, as they watched Him ascend into the sky with the expectation of His return in their lifetime, were told by an angel, “This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way as you have seen him go” (Acts 1:11).

This is the climax of all Bible prophecy and the climax of human history. It is God wanting to make things right in our world and live with us forever. It’s worth being ready for.

LIFE TOMORROW

The Bible says that when Jesus returns to this world with all His angels, there will be a tremendous upheaval in nature (Revelation 6:12-17). He destroys those who would destroy His followers and gathers up those who have been faithful to Him. It is then that a new millennium begins—when God’s people live and reign with Him for a thousand years.
The final two chapters of the Bible picture the new heaven and new earth. In many respects these two chapters of the Bible resemble the very first two in Genesis. Once again the tree of life is central. But instead of being in a garden we have a city. In this city—the New Jerusalem—God’s people find a home for eternity. It would be nice to know more about life in this city where people never die.
Bible prophecy is best understood as it comes to pass (see John 14:29). But why hasn’t God told us more? He has said, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away” (Revelation 21:3, 4).
Perhaps the reason God hasn’t told us more is because He wants us to focus on the Giver rather than what He is giving. If you’re with someone you love dearly, you aren’t concerned about anything else. The main thing is that you are together.
Christianity is about having a love affair with God. Christians who do this find themselves living comfortably in this present age, yet as citizens of a another, which God is yet to bring to pass.—Graeme Bradford