Skip to main content

The Return of Christ

The teaching that Christ will return for His church before the tribulation, is a fairly new one by history’s standards. It was pushed mainly in the 1800s by many Puritans and several prominent preachers such as John Darby and later C.I. Scofield. In my teen years, I attended a church that was a huge proponent of this pre-millennial doctrine. For years, I never questioned it. Why should I? It sounded so nice that I might escape physical death and be free from intense persecution. There were also, at the time, books and movies being made that touted this same view, so it had to be true, right?

Of course, when I began studying the passages that supposedly support the idea of the rapture before the tribulation, I saw that such teaching was based more out of an ingrained system of thought, rather than out of genuine scriptural truth. Are there verses that could be plucked out of context and made to fit this view? Certainly. There are also many other passages that reveal something far different. Will Christ’s return be unexpected (1 Thessalonians 5:2)? Yes, but it will also be a day that the glory of His presence is revealed to all (Revelation 1:7). Study up on what Jesus said in Matthew 24 concerning His coming. It is not so easy to say with confidence that He taught pre-millinialism. Time does not permit me to go further into scriptures, seeing as we can debate all day long when Christ is coming.

My fear is that there are many Christians who hold to a pre-millinialist concept, not because of scripture, but simply because they may have heard one or two hardened preachers propagate it, they watched it get pushed on a motion picture and read fictional books about it, or they just want to feel like they are the privileged few who will not have to face any kind of persecution. We don’t want to think that we might face martyrdom under the rule of the anti-christ. Yet, do we truly believe we are better than the New Testament Church which faced horrific suffering at the hands of Pharisees and the Roman government?


Have we forgotten that, even if we were to experience some measure of the tribulation, God knows those who are His (2 Timothy 2:19) and will protect them from His wrath on this world (1 Thessalonians 5:9)? Whether Christ comes back before, midway, or after the tribulation, makes no difference to me. I know He is coming again in victory! He is faithful and His wrath can pass over His children just as the plagues in Egypt impacted the Egyptians, but did not affect the Israelites. I suppose I am just tired of seeing the average American Christian hold onto their pride and comfort without realizing that the apostle Paul once affirmed, “Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.” (2 Timothy 3:12) I ask the same question that Missionary Amy Carmichael posed in her poem No Scar, “...can he have followed far who hast no wound or scar?”

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Complacent Christianity

We have our spiritual programs, concerts, and conferences We have mounted our doctrines, promoted our denominations, and pushed our preferences We have booked calendars, busy lives, and countless bibles We have bumper stickers about faith, T-Shirts with scripture, and a mass marketed message of the gospel Yet, there is a steep decline in church attendance, a constant scorn for holy living, and a growing disdain for one's fellow man There is confusion over identity, carelessness over eternity, and an increase of biblical incompetence Perhaps it is because Christians have sought the favor of man above the fullness of the Spirit We have heralded our denominational differences, rather than proclaim the gospel to all who will hear it We mask our fear of complete surrender by hiding in a pew and handing over a tithe We timidly wade the surface of Christ-likeness rather than willingly take the glorious dive We must come

What Kind of Meeting Is It?

Every evening from August 5 th -8 th we will be having Worship services with Bro. Josh Aufdengarten as our special speaker. I debated on what to “call” this event. I know, I know, it should be called what every other person calls it, Revival. I suppose I am one who likes to stir the waters a bit. I simply called it RESTORATION DAYS. Though this may seem to be a minute difference. These are meetings specifically for strength and encouragement. I believe Restoration is a better word to be used than Revival. Revival implies a state of death, Restoration implies a state of weakness. The Christian has already, in Christ, been “made alive” 1 Corinthians 15:22, but he is called to “restore” others in the “spirit of meekness.” As I reflect on this meeting, I would like to put down a couple thoughts that I had written years back regarding Worship and Revival. God bless. “ Today, those who bear the Word of God on their lips seek to present it with a fancy flare. Preachers title their me

Go and Tell

Go and make disciples is the Master's call Go and tell the world that He is Lord of all Don't just sit idly by, while you wait for His return Don't be like a Jonah, anticipating the world to burn A true believer will proclaim the news of God's salvation A true believer humbly wears the scars of persecution To mag nify the name of Christ and redeem the time To invest for eternity and shine His glorious light So why do we rarely seek for ways to spread God's Word Why is it that our speech is only filled with politics, fashion, or sports Why do we fight and toil when it comes to making money But grumble and trudge around when it comes to witnessing Do we really believe what God said is true? Perhaps, we want to “have our cake and eat it too” We must learn that to be a disciple is to bear the cross of Christ To further the gospel through a holy testimony and a faithful life