Popularity of Historicism

[Nottheworld]

Since Jesus didn't return at the end of the 1260 years, you know you are misusing the forty two months. "And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months" (Rev. 13.5). This hasn't happened yet.

[Nottheworld]

A Brief Summary Concerning Things to Come

It might be helpful to conclude with a brief summary of the end-time events. The first thing to come is the rapture of the overcoming believers. All who have the cross wrought deeply in their lives will be raptured. But those who are saved and yet mix with the world and compromise with sins will remain on earth and pass through the Great Tribulation. Only the victorious and watchful saints are ready to be received (the rest of the saved believers will go through the Great Tribulation and be received at the sounding of the seventh trumpet). All this pertains to Christians.

During that time the Roman Empire will be revived, and a very strong person shall be her emperor. He will be given certain powers by Satan in order to perform signs and lying wonders. He will call himself Christ and steal the hearts of many Jews. At that period, the Jews have already returned to their native land, but most of them are unbelievers. They shall rebuild the temple and restore their former worship and sacrifices. Out of fear towards outside powers, they will make a pact with the Antichrist for seven years in order to receive his protection. No doubt, there will still be a remnant who believe in the word of God and oppose the name of the false Messiah.

In the midst of these seven years, there will come forth a sign in heaven, for the red dragon (Satan) will be cast down from heaven to the earth. He will be filled with hatred towards the saints of God—those Jews who bear witness for God. He will stir the heart of the Antichrist—the Roman Emperor—to oppose those Jews.

But just as Satan persecutes those who belong to God, so God will punish those who belong to Satan. The "trumpets" and the "bowls" spoken of in the book of Revelation shall be the manifestations of God’s wrath towards the Antichrist and the inhabitants of the earth. In punishing the world, God will still expect them to repent, but the world will persist in evil and will not repent.

Through the power of Satan, the Antichrist will break his covenant, cause all sacrifices and offerings to cease, and will set up the idol image—that wing of abomination—for people to worship. The false prophet will come forth to persuade people to worship the image. As soon as the image is set up, the remnant will immediately flee to the wilderness. Although Satan will use every means to destroy them, God shall take care of them during the three and a half years.

Having no outlet for his wrath, Satan shall turn to persecute those Christian believers who have not previously been raptured. Many will be martyred. But at the sounding of the seventh trumpet, the believers who remain on earth shall also be raptured because they will have learned obedience through sufferings and will have now been perfected.

Then will the Antichrist gather together all nations to come and attack the Jews (the war of Armageddon). The Jews will flee from the city (see Zech. 14). This will happen at the conclusion of the last seven mentioned in Daniel, when the Lord Jesus will come from heaven with His saints and His feet will touch the Mount of Olives. He will save the children of Israel and destroy the nations which war against Him. Then shall commence the millennial kingdom.

Such is a general outline of the book of Revelation. However, those who believe in the Lord and have been faithful, watching, ready, overcoming, and praying will have already been raptured to heaven before these things shall come upon the world. There will be no need for them to go through the Great Tribulation. Therefore, we need to have the spirit of rapture now. We must have the experience of rapture in spirit before we can find it fulfilled in body. Our spirit should go to heaven first, and then our body will follow suit. May we not be entangled in the things of this world so that we may go when the time comes. The "powers of the age to come" (cf. Heb. 6.5) should be manifested in the lives of the saints today. But, alas, many today seem to fall short.

Lord, will You be gracious? Lead us and keep us that we may seek the truth, that we may have the light of the future to illumine our current course, that we may let the future judgment seat of Christ induce us to judge ourselves at present, and that we may taste the future joy now so as to strengthen our communion with the Spirit of the Lord today. Let us not study this most blessed book as though it were a kind of mental examination, but may the study of it radically change our lives and works. Amen.

[PeteWaldo]

The Year-Day Theory

Recently the study of prophecy had earned for itself a bad reputation among believers because of the so-called year-day theory. According to this theory, many numbers of days in the Scriptures are computed as though a day were a year [even Isaac Newton made this mistake with all kinds of calculations], thus fostering predictions as to the precise date for the second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ....

"The folly of interpreters has been to foretell times and things by this prophecy [Revelation], as if God designed to make them prophets. By this rashness they have not only exposed themselves, but brought the prophecy also into contempt. The design of God was much otherwise. He gave this and the prophecies of the Old Testament, not to gratify men's curiosities by enabling them to foreknow things, but that after they were fulfilled they might be interpreted by the event, and his own providence, not the interpreters', be then manifested thereby to the world. For the event of things predicted many ages before will then be a convincing argument that the world is governed by Providence." - Sir Isaac Newton

2 Timothy 3:1 This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. 2 For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3 Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, 4 Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; 5 Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away. 6 For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts, 7 Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.

But turn on the TV and listen to the futurists and dispensationalists! "88 reasons Jesus is coming in 1988", and on and on ad nauseum throughout the following decades.

All of them, 19th century John Nelson Darby styled futurists. (widely acknowledged as "The Father of Modern Dispensationalism")

[Nottheworld]

"The folly of interpreters has been to foretell times and things by this prophecy [Revelation], as if God designed to make them prophets. By this rashness they have not only exposed themselves, but brought the prophecy also into contempt. The design of God was much otherwise. He gave this and the prophecies of the Old Testament, not to gratify men's curiosities by enabling them to foreknow things, but that after they were fulfilled they might be interpreted by the event, and his own providence, not the interpreters', be then manifested thereby to the world. For the event of things predicted many ages before will then be a convincing argument that the world is governed by Providence." - Sir Isaac Newton

Prophets are not be known (Eph. 4.11) by their prophecy? Knowing God's providence and who are the prophets is not a mutually exclusive affair. You can have both as being true. We should know who is in the work for the Church and by so knowing we observe more of God's providence. Since Newton's prophecies failed, we know he was falsely prophesying just as we know you are falsely prophesying because nothing happened in 1978 as you predicted and you contradict yourself because you change up "time, times and half" to be 1260 years sometimes and other times you change into 2500 years, altering the text that is contradictory. It would mean John was deceived also. In the 1335th year bring us to 2023. Newton has 2060. When these days pass and Jesus does not return or returns sooner, we can know with more proof you are false prophet. 1948 and 1967 Jesus did not return either. There were still wars and rumors of wars. You directly violate God's word which says...

"But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only" (Matt. 24.36). So you can't predict a year, but you can know as you approach the season (Matt. 24.33). The Bible repeatedly warns us about trying to set a date for the return of Christ (Mark 13.32-33). Amillennialism is teaching a "false Christ" with their dates of 1948, 1967, 1978, 2012, and 2060. While you approach the season you can know when Jesus returns only, and when you are in the Tribulation you can count down the 7 years too (1 Thess. 5.2,4) though amillennialists will be oblivious to what is happening because they have another date in mind. You couldn't have know years in advance based on amillennial calculations. Believers will know by the trumpets of the Tribulation when they are upon us and being in 1000 years after which the earth is burnt up (2 Pet. 3.10). We are not to speculate when Jesus will return-what amillennialists constantly do. Rather, we are to be ready at all times for His return (Matt. 24.42-44; Luke 21.28; 1 Thess. 5:6).

2 Timothy 3:1 This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. 2 For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3 Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, 4 Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; 5 Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away. 6 For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts, 7 Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.

Amillennialists are "high minded", "ever learning" about their prophecies that never come true and "never able to come to the knowledge of the truth." "Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away." If you are an amillennialist after you read all this, repent. As painful as it is to accept premillennial, slowly give into its precepts.

But turn on the TV and listen to the futurists and dispensationalists! "88 reasons Jesus is coming in 1988", and on and on ad nauseum throughout the following decades.

All of them, 19th century John Nelson Darby styled futurists. (widely acknowledged as "The Father of Modern Dispensationalism")

Both are sinning in their own way. I don't have the problem of amillennialists because I don't violate God's word about times, time and half, nor the 1000 years. Nor do I violate the futurists who are not abiding in the word of God which says we can't know when Jesus returns until it is nearly upon us. I have said that Jesus must return before the year 2100. I say this because Israel has already been a nation (the prophecy fulfilled) for over 60 years. Jesus said when Israel because a nation again, the time is near (Matt. 24.32) By 2100 it will be 150 years. Things happening around us are showing interesting data. The debt/gdp of countries has never in history been this high before. Money is being printed at the fastest rate ever. We have hit peak oil. Nuclear proliferation is wide spread with over 400 nuclear power plants in the world and at least 400 more in the planning stages. Oil will be over $200 soon, the battle of Armageddon over oil and hostility towards Israel is near.

Did you find any false prophecies by John Darby like for Isaac Newton? I don't agree with him that the whole Church is raptured before the Tribulation since first rapture is according to readiness. The believers not taken but left (Matt. 24.40-41) are raptured before the bowls of the 7th trumpet. They don't enter into the last 24 months (3rd woe or 7th trumpet) which is the wrath of God. Verses that support this are by the conditional statements given in Matt. 24.42, Luke 21.36, Rev. 3.10, 7.9 (before the trumpets) and 12.5 for first rapture; and pre-wrath rapture is at the sounding of the last trumpet for the general resurrection shown in Rev. 11.15, 14.14-16.

[Churchwork]

The Sabbath Year foreshadows the time when creation will be delivered from the bondage of corruption.

"You are to consecrate the fiftieth year and proclaim freedom in the land for all its inhabitants. It will be your Jubilee, when each of you is to return to his property and each of you to his clan" (Lev. 25.10).

"In the hope that the creation itself will also be set free from the bondage of corruption into the glorious freedom of God's children" (Rom. 8.21).

This is the regeneration of the world with Jesus' throne on Earth during the millennial kingdom.

"And Jesus replied, 'I assure you that when I, the Son of Man, sit upon my glorious throne in the Kingdom, you who have been my followers will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel'." (Matt. 19.28).