Biblically Approaching End Times Eschatology

By:  Dale Weckbacher

Mark 13:32

"But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.

NKJV

Attempting to predict future events is something that peaks most people's curiosity.  Most of us spend time planning our days, planning vacations, our careers, and even our retirement.  Much as we like to believe we can accurately anticipate future events and thus successfully plan our lives, we quite often find our plans change and end up not looking at all what we had planned.  Thus is the study of end times eschatology, the study of biblical end times prophecy.  

Many who followed Jesus during His ministry believed he would enter Jerusalem and overthrow their Roman oppressors.  This is why they waved palm branches and declared him king when he entered Jerusalem on Palm Sunday.  These people anticipated Jesus being the conquering king but failed to consider biblical prophecy foretelling of the suffering servant of Isaiah 53 and Psalm 22.  Their plans failed to consider that Messiah had to first come and die for their sins.  Such was their discouragement over their anticipated plan for their life under the rein of Jesus the conquering king that many of them were among those hurling insults at Jesus when he hung on the cross.

Mark 13:32 reminds us that no one, no angel, and not even Jesus Himself knows the day of the Lord’s second coming.  The act of attempting to predict the day, week, year, or even the decade of the Lord’s return is a waste of time and has led to many foolish predictions throughout the ages. 

In his book “A Rabbi Looks at the Last Days,” Rabbi Jonathan Bernis speaks of several of these foolish predictions dating from 960 AD to Harold Camping in 2011.  In each of these instances, the predicted date of the second coming of Jesus Christ came and went with no glorious appearing or rapture occurring.  These individuals fell into the trap of trying to predict the future based on an interpretation of Biblical prophecy, of course ignoring Mark 13:32.  As we endeavor to study end times eschatology, we must insure we do not fall into the same trap. 

The biblical approach to end times eschatology involves

1)      Encouraging one another – 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, a discourse on Jesus Christ’s return for His church, commonly referred to as the rapture, ends with “comfort one another with these words.”  (1 Thessalonians 4:18)  We live in a world full of evil.  Recently we have witnessed atrociously evil acts against Christians.  21 Ethiopian Christians executed in Libya, (1) and North Korea publically executing people for the crime of watching South Korean television and possessing a Bible.  (2)  During these troubling times, finding comfort in knowing that the Lord Jesus Christ is returning for His Church, to take them out of this trouble is comforting and gives us hope.  Jesus death on the cross provides eternal life for those choosing to believe (John 3:16), not eternal life in this troubled world but eternal life in the future earthly kingdom of God.  God’s people are not immune from the evils of this world, they just have hope, knowing all the troubles and evil of this world are temporary. 

2)      Living lives worthy of our high calling in Christ – Since the second coming of Christ could occur at any time, we should live our lives in a manner worthy of our relationship with Christ.  This is not something we do out of compulsion, but something we do out of our love for the sacrifice Jesus made on our behalf on the cross.  As the Lord tarries in His return so as to allow everyone the opportunity to accept Him as their savior (2 Peter 3:9) we do not want to be like the foolish virgins who failed to prepare for the coming of their bridegroom (Matthew 25:1-13).  I for one want to be seen serving my Lord when he returns and not participating in the things of this world. 

3)      Sharing our faith so that others can enjoy eternity with the Lord, away from the troubles and evils of this world – Jesus last words to his followers before ascending to the Father was to go into all the world and preach the Gospel (Mark 16:15).  We preach the Gospel with both our words and in how we live our lives.  The members of the early church fearlessly spread the Gospel and turned their world upside down (Acts 17:6).  Even though we do not know the specific date of the return of Christ, we do know that each day we live brings us one day closer to the Lord’s glorious return.  Knowing this should encourage each of us to fearlessly share our faith with friends, family, and people we meet, giving them an opportunity to enjoy eternity with the Lord. 

Even though it can be fun to look at current events and compare them with Bible prophecy in an attempt to predict when the Lord may return, this is not how God wants us to study end times eschatology.  Instead, the study of end times eschatology is to biblically be approached to give us hope, encourage us to live our lives worthy of the high calling we have from the Lord, and as a call to action to fulfill the Great Commission of Christ to share the Gospel with everyone.  As we approach our study over the next seven weeks based on Rabbi Bernis’ book, let us do it in a biblical manner. 

1. McLaughlin, Eliott C. ISIS executes more Christians in Libya, video shows. www.cnn.com. [Online] CNN, April 20, 2015. [Cited: May 15, 2015.] http://www.cnn.com/2015/04/19/africa/libya-isis-executions-ethiopian-christians/.

2. Ryall, Julian. North Korean firing squads reportedly execute 80 for watching foreign films. news.nationalplst.com. [Online] National Post, November 12, 2013. [Cited: May 15, 2015.] http://news.nationalpost.com/news/north-korean-firing-squads-reportedly-execute-80-for-watching-foreign-films.