Click the Daniel 9 Link below for a Microsoft Word Document that shows a Flow Chart that I created a few years back.
A few things that I have discovered regarding eschatology:
Many are concentrating on the word “anti-“, as in Anti-Christ. Nothing wrong with that, except we need to bring the “UNBELIEVING” Jews in the picture, and way less focus on Christians. Maybe to the point of NO focus on Christians, really.
It is the Jews who are looking for a CHRIST, not an anti-Christ. So the Jews are the focus, not the Christians.
According to Galatians, Paul is the Apostle to the Gentiles, whereas Peter, James, and JOHN are apostles to the Jews. Now, SOMETIMES Paul writes epistles directly to the Jews. Both of Thessalonians being one huge example that not many people realize. Back in Acts, Paul is able to convert a number of Jews of Thessalonica, and the unbelieving Jews were giving the newly converted Jews a bad time, hence the UPLIFTING letters that Paul wrote to JEWISH BELIEVERS in both epistles of Thessalonians. We all know that Paul goes to the JEWS FIRST before going to any Gentiles. However, James, Peter, and JOHN’s responsibility is to the JEWS. Their focus is NOT the Gentiles. I say that for a reason. JOHN’s letter of Revelation is to JEWS, not the Gentiles. I could expound on this a much more, but I’ll leave it at that for a moment.
I could go thru all the proof texts as to WHY the Jews rejected Jesus, but that would take too much time.
The Jews must believe that their Christ had come, and therefore, THAT Christ is the anti-Christ. Nero would not be able to convince them, even if he had lived beyond his suicide. No one is going to be able to convince them, except:
Matthew 1:1 (Preface)
The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David…
Matthew 22:42 (Proof Text)
Saying, What think ye of Christ? whose son is he? They say unto him, The son of David.
Now, what nationality do you suppose the son of David is? Now, do a word search in the 4 gospels, “the son of David”, where people are crying out, “THOU SON OF DAVID”, etc. They know that their Christ is a Jew. Even the unbelieving Jews know that the Christ is a Jew. So any talk of Rome is outside the bounds, whether it be the 7th Day Adventists and others proclaiming that the anti-Christ is the Pope, or others claiming that it’s someone from the European Union, or the United Nations, et. al. The Anti-Christ must be Jewish, and circumcized, for the Jews to believe that their savior had come.
In addition, a timeline of events is extremely important, and a common theme, or denominator, that I have found is: THE SIXTH SEAL, which many mention.
Jesus mentions that sixth seal in Matthew 24, Mark 13, and Luke 21. The sixth seal is found in Revelation chapter 6. Peter mentions the sixth seal in Acts 2, and Joel mentions the sixth seal 3 times, not just once.
NOTE: Seal number 7 is the Great Tribulation, as found in Revelation chapter 8-16. Seals 1-6, as found in Revelation chapter 6 is not the Great Tribulation. And a final note, chapter 7 of revelation is a BREAK between seal number 6, and the opening of seal 7.
Peter mentions Seal Number 6, referencing Joel. This is due to the non-believing Jews mocking the believing Jews receiving the Holy Spirit.
NOTE: We are SEALED with the Holy Spirit. Sealed is an important word, because, the Sealing of 144000 unbelieving Jews in Revelation chapter 7 is right after the 6th Seal of Revelation chapter 6. So this is what Peter is talking about in Acts 2, regarding the end days.
Now it’s just a matter of connect the dots, from Jesus, and Peter, and Joel, and Revelation 6, and 7 *(sixth seal, sealing of 144000, and rapture, all events that are SIDE BY SIDE in the order of events).
Another NOTE: The latter part of Revelation 7, RIGHT AFTER the 144000 Jews are sealed. The People that John sees. They are located at the THRONE OF GOD. How many are there? They are the ones who CAME OUT OF…the NEXT CHAPTER, which the seal hasn’t even been opened yet. That is important, because this is the rapture, and Jesus mentions this also in Mark’s account of the end times.
******Notice, if you will, that Jesus doesn’t mention anything regarding the 7th Seal in regards to his end times prophesy. That is extremely important to see. Not one word.
So, we escape (in a “secret rapture”, or FLY AWAY (for those who make fun of the term)) the 7th seal. Seals 1-6 is not the Great Tribulation. Seals 1-6 is not the wrath of God. It’s just a prelude. They are just the OBVIOUS warnings that Jesus spoke of events PRIOR TO the rapture, and because Jesus never mentions anything of the 7th Seal, then the conclusion is…resurrection is NOT YET. So it can’t be rapture/resurrection. Look at the 5th Seal for example. It’s nothing more than a Q&A. Question: “HOW LONG”, answer, “NOT YET, WAIT”. Does that sound like the wrath of God to you? NOT YET! Besides, Seal number 5 is BEFORE Seal number 6 that Jesus definately mentions in the gospels.
The destruciton of the temple in 70 AD is NOT, I repeat, NOT in relation to the end times prophesy. THAT generation did NOT SEE the rest of the things that Jesus indicated, regardless of the claims of those who think that they did.
A JEW must walk into that Temple proclaiming to be God, not a Gentile. That negates out ROME, or the European Union. It also negates out the 70 AD destruction of the Temple.
So, the 6th seal is the focal point to set the written timeline in order, before, and after, with clues mentioned by Peter from Acts 2, Joel, Jesus from Matthew 24 AND Mark 13, AND Luke 21, and Revelation chapters 6-7, and the realization that Jesus never mentions any event in seal number 7, and why? Because we are NOT APPOINTED unto the wrath of God.
Here is a side note:
Romans 4:15 (KJV)
Because the law worketh wrath:
It seems that MOST are dismissing the Jews in the story, when it’s all about the Jews, NOT THE GENTILES. Gentiles are involved, but are NOT the focus. Let’s also keep in mind that Jesus came for the lost sheep of the House of Israel (those under the law of Moses). His conversations in end times is directed at the Jews, believing Jews at that, hence FLEE TO THE MOUNTAINS (not the Rocky Mountains). Those in 70 AD, they fled the country, not to the mountains.
Finally, the word CHURCH in Revelation 1-3 is JEWISH ASSEMBLIES, not believers of BOTH JEWS and GENTILES. Jewish believers (assemblies). The definition of the English word CHURCH, of the Greek Ecclesia, is…assembly. When I was a child, we had church is school all the time in the gymnasium. ASSEMBLIES.
In regards to Post Trib, in my view, that is LIKENED, if you will, to the Catholics purgatory on a different scale. WHO, other than the Catholics, believe in purgatory? So are we really to trust CHURCH FATHERS on eschatology matters who believe in a purgatory? No wonder some make fun of Darby, because they still trust Church Fathers.
Now, for those who believe in MULTIPLE resurrections, just because of the words FIRST resurrection, here is a simple response to those people:
The FIRST resurrection is for those who DIED, “in Christ (Christian)”, meaning DEAD believers. The Righteous. There is NO OTHER RESURRECTION for the righteous. But there is also a resurrection of the UNRIGHTEOUS, and that is the 2nd resurrection. Those unrighteous will DIE AGAIN, hence, the 2nd Death. So there is ONLY one resurrection for the righteous, and one resurrection for the unrighteous. Now, regarding the righteous who DIDN’T DIE to begin with, they are CHANGED to a resurrected body, just not resurrected, because they never died to begin with. Resurrection is only for those who DIED, not for the ones who are “ALIVE AND REMAIN”. They are CHANGED, hence, “WE SHALL NOT ALL DIE”. Why is this so hard to understand? It’s so simple.
So, this should also put to bed that Revelation chapter 4, “COME UP HITHER” is not the rapture. It’s not pre-trib, it’s pre-GREAT trib. It’s also not post trib or preterist, either.
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