As biblical knowledge decreases both inside and outside the church, the number of alternative beliefs increases exponentially. I see this in the emails I receive as well as in the comment sections of my podcasts when, after reading a few of them, I exclaim, “I didn’t know anyone believed that!”
This problem goes beyond matters related to Bible prophecy. Almost every week, I see a meme on Facebook that directly contradicts the words of Ephesians 2:1-10. Such posts make our salvation, as well as the Lord’s continuing love for us, dependent on our behavior, our good works.
The words of Scripture must be the sole basis for all that we believe.
In a day when social media blasts us with such a vast assortment of false beliefs on every conceivable matter, it’s more important than ever that we know what the Bible says about the fundamentals of our faith. And of course, that includes reminders of the biblical basis for our hope in Jesus’ soon appearing, which is so often the target of ridicule in today’s world.
I read statements such as this almost every week: “There’s not one verse in the entire Bible that supports a pre-Tribulation Rapture.” Hmmm, I remember hearing similar accusations dismissing Jesus’ deity when I dealt with Jehovah’s Witnesses in the past. Those who say such things assume their listeners will accept what they say at face value without pursuing the matter for themselves.
Our Blessed Hope Is Biblically Based
Don’t let the scoffers take your eyes off the prize. We have a solid biblical basis for our belief in a pre-Tribulation Rapture. Many verses confirm our hope, and together, they form a compelling and convincing case for placing the Rapture before the start of the seven-year Tribulation.
The words of 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 verify that there will be such a thing as the Rapture. It’s a biblical event; as Ed Hindson wrote about a few years ago, people may disagree with us on its timing, but the opinion that there’s no such thing in God’s Word is totally false.
As we keep reading in 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11, we discover the Lord’s assurance of deliverance from the wrath of the Day of the Lord. Those who say Revelation chapters 6-18 are all allegory or past history must do some pretty fancy footwork to explain why the Lord, through the Apostle Paul, promises our deliverance from a future extended period of wrath upon the earth, one that Jesus later referred to in Revelation 3:10.
I often hear others insist that the Rapture and Second Coming are the same event. Yet when we compare what the New Testament says about the two events, we recognize that it’s impossible for them to happen at the same time. Jesus’ words in John 14:1-3 confirm that there will be a time when He comes for us, and at the same time, we will go to Heaven to the place He’s preparing for us rather than stay on the earth.
There’s a great deal of biblical evidence that confirms our belief in Jesus’ imminent appearing.
It’s All About the Words
If there’s one thing that has long confused me, it’s this: Many pastors who rightly proclaim a biblically-based Gospel depart from their adherence to the words of Scripture when it comes to our “blessed hope” and the future of Israel.
They readily affirm that Christ precisely fulfilled prophecy with His first coming. However, they apply a totally different approach to what the Bible says about His Second Coming, His thousand-year reign, and the restoration of Israel. Why is that?
What one believes about Bible prophecy rests on how one interprets the words of the biblical text based on the assumptions one brings to it. For example, the words of Scripture tell us there must be a future for Israel, but others apply symbolical meanings to them and reach a far different conclusion.
Dan Price, the Director of International Ministries for The Friends of Israel Gospel Ministry, explained the difference well in a recent article on Harbinger’s Daily: “Ultimately, every opinion on eschatology boils down to issues of hermeneutics, the discipline of how you interpret the Bible. Because I hold to a literal (historical, grammatical) interpretation of Scripture, even when reading prophecy, I naturally use a futurist interpretive method. In other words, when I read prophecies or promises that have obviously not been fulfilled physically, I assume, like the original audience, that those events must still be in the future. This basic principle of hermeneutics leads to a premillennial systematic theology of eschatology. Those that hold other positions on eschatology? Their hermeneutics led them there, too.“
Words matter. Yet so many in the church today reach conclusions on matters of faith based solely on emotions, human wisdom, preconceived assumptions, and a limited knowledge of all that Scripture teaches.
There are some highly gifted and skilled orators in today’s pulpits who lead their listeners astray with their dismissal of God’s promises to Israel and their redirection of our “blessed hope” to matters pertaining solely to this life. That’s why it’s more important than ever for believers to have a thorough knowledge of Scripture so they can develop the “powers of discernment” needed in today’s world (see Hebrews 5:11-14).
The events swirling around us shout with the message that our wait for Jesus’ appearing is nearing an end. But it’s also necessary to take time to reflect on why we believe what we do, so we don’t succumb to discouragement at what we see happening in our world.
