Prophecy and the Doctrines of Grace

Man has always been intrigued with what will happen in the future. The three most basic questions of man’s existence are: (1) Where did I come from? (2) Why am I here? and (3) Where am I going? In the book of Job, which predates even Abraham, the question arises ‘If a man dies, shall he live again?’ (Job 14:14). This question is echoed many times in the New Testament. In Matthew 24:3, when Jesus introduces the destruction of the temple, his disciples ask, ‘When shall these things be? And what will be the sign of your coming, and of the end of the age?’ Even scoffers, such as those in II Peter 3:4, raise the question, ‘Where is the promise of his coming?’ However, the Bible gives absolute certainty, even in its earliest writings, that Jesus will come again. Job 19:25 states, ‘For I know that my Redeemer lives, and that he shall stand at last upon the earth.’

A large portion of the Bible is prophetic in nature. Many Old Testament prophecies speak of Christ’s first coming – his birth, life, death, and resurrection. Jesus Christ is truly the focal point of history. Our calendar is even divided by Jesus’ birth. His first coming was redemptive in nature. Jesus states in Mark 10:45, ‘For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.’ Having accomplished this tremendous work of redemption, Jesus then arose from the dead and ascended into heaven. However, before his death, he gave his disciples specific promises, such as in John 14:3, that he would come again. Acts 1:11 states, ‘Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come again as you see him go up into heaven.’ Jesus will come again to consummate history and to judge the world.

A second major topic to be examined is the primary theme of scripture – the grace of God.

We know from passages such as Romans 8:29-30 that our salvation spans over all of time. The five acts of God mentioned here on our behalf – foreknowledge, predestination, calling, justification, and glorification, form the golden chain from eternity past to eternity future.

The unfolding of God’s gracious dealings with fallen man can be traced all the way back to Genesis 3:21, where God provided a covering for Adam and Eve after their sin in the garden. In verse 15 of this same chapter, there is the first messianic promise that God would provide a remedy for sin. Genesis 3:15 reads, ‘And I will put enmity between you (the serpent) and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; he shall bruise your head, and you will bruise his heel.’

Throughout the Old Testament, man brought animal sacrifices as a covering for their sin. This is first seen in the narrative of Cain and Abel in Genesis 4. These sacrifices all pointed to Christ’s ultimate and final atonement for sin on Calvary’s cross. Old Testament passages such as Psalm 22 and Isaiah 53 foretell this event. Just as the cross separated two criminals, so it also divides all of mankind into two categories – the saved and the condemned. I Corinthians 1:18 says, ‘For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved, it is the power of God.’

There is a great prophetic aspect to the grace of God. As we will see, many Biblical themes that are introduced in the opening chapters of Genesis come to full fruition in the closing chapters of Revelation.

In the entire span of church history, good and godly men have debated the particular details surrounding Jesus’ return. This writing attempts to examine these issues in the light of scripture. Paul states in I Corinthians 13:12, ‘For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then shall I know just as I also am known.’ This is also spoken of in the fourth chapter of Ephesians. In expounding upon the doctrine of the church, Paul says that teaching is given to edify and equip the body of Christ. He then states in verses 13 through 16 that as we speak the truth in love, we come to the unity of the faith, to a perfect man, and to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. II Timothy 2:15 admonishes, ‘Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a workman that does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.’

The different views of prophecy, which we will examine, are as follows:

1)      Premillennialism teaches that the millennium is a literal one thousand year period in which Jesus will establish an earthly kingdom from Jerusalem. The nation of