Almost Heaven
Well-known
I believe that of all the future events of Bible prophecy, Satan hates Jesus’ Second Coming the most. Because he cannot erase Jesus’ return from Scripture, he fervently attacks the pre-Tribulation Rapture. If he can make that seem ridiculous, along with belief in a seven-year Tribulation with a real antichrist oppressing Israel, he effectively diminishes the spectacular and glorious nature of Jesus’ return, at which time He destroys Satan’s reign on the earth through the man of lawlessness.
Those who say Jesus’ Second Coming is the next event on God’s prophetic calendar quash the earthshaking impact of how the Old Testament prophets and John describe it. An end-of-the-age return is exceedingly bland compared to the words of Revelation 19:11-20:4 or even Psalm 96:7-13.
That’s why I refer to such amillennial beliefs as “eraser theology.” For them, the proclamation of the Gospel far too often stops with the forgiveness of sins. They portray eternal life as a nondescript gathering of family members in the sky by and by. Absent from their preaching is the Lord’s comforting promise of resurrected bodies, warnings of the coming Tribulation, and our hope of reigning with Him.
Eraser theology cannot change what God’s Word says about Jesus’ glorious future as King over all the nations, but it does keep many saints from rejoicing in the wonders of all that lies ahead for them.
Amillennialists Erase the Awesomeness of the Day of the Lord
Amillennialism changes the awesomeness of the Day of the Lord into something rather ordinary by comparison. They dismiss the Old Testament prophecies of this day by characterizing its words as symbols that signify a reality far different than what the prophets intended at the time they wrote.
Through the prophets of old, the Lord spoke about a day when He would judge the world in real time; He repeatedly warned of the terrible devastation of this still future time. The descriptions of its horrors have never occurred in the history of the world (see Isaiah 13:6-16, 24:1-23; Joel 2:30-3:3; Zephaniah 1:14-18). One has to greatly change the meaning of the words in these passages to say this day occurred in the past or that the words have a spiritual connotation rather than a literal, futuristic meaning.
Jesus also spoke of this coming time of judgment in Matthew 24:21-22: “For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short.”
Those who say that the Lord’s words in these verses have already reached fulfillment reflect their disbelief in the Old Testament warnings about the Day of the Lord. Sadly, their effort to sanitize God’s Word of His wrath keeps believers in the dark regarding the future of the planet, muffles the Lord’s warnings for our day, and keeps focus of the saints earthbound rather than heavenward.
The Day of the Lord culminates with Jesus’ victorious return to the earth after His judgments have vanquished antichrist’s reign of terror. He returns as a conquering hero to inherit His kingdom.
Amillennialists Erase the Many Glories of Jesus’ Thousand-Year Reign
The adherents of eraser theology, the amillennialists, tell us that the church age is the promised millennial rule of Jesus over the nations. Please notice how just a few of the biblical depictions of Jesus’ earthly reign radically differ from our current experience on Earth where pain, suffering, and death prevail:
Amillennialists Erase the Preeminence of Jesus from His Return
In my book, Invitation to a Lavish Feast – Wisdom’s Path to the Pre-Tribulation Rapture, I explain how Colossians 1:15-20 verifies our belief that what the Apostle John wrote about in Revelation 19:11-20:10 is both literal and future. The popular views of the Second Coming, listed below, make it appear far less powerful and victorious than how the Bible describes it, and obscure the glories of His future rule over the nations.
Those who say there is no Rapture, no Tribulation, and no Millennial reign of Jesus perform a great disservice to the body of Christ. The Bible says that someday we will return with Jesus in great glory and we will reign with Him in His earthly kingdom. The scoffers say no; the Bible says yes!
Those who say Jesus’ Second Coming is the next event on God’s prophetic calendar quash the earthshaking impact of how the Old Testament prophets and John describe it. An end-of-the-age return is exceedingly bland compared to the words of Revelation 19:11-20:4 or even Psalm 96:7-13.
That’s why I refer to such amillennial beliefs as “eraser theology.” For them, the proclamation of the Gospel far too often stops with the forgiveness of sins. They portray eternal life as a nondescript gathering of family members in the sky by and by. Absent from their preaching is the Lord’s comforting promise of resurrected bodies, warnings of the coming Tribulation, and our hope of reigning with Him.
Eraser theology cannot change what God’s Word says about Jesus’ glorious future as King over all the nations, but it does keep many saints from rejoicing in the wonders of all that lies ahead for them.
Amillennialists Erase the Awesomeness of the Day of the Lord
Amillennialism changes the awesomeness of the Day of the Lord into something rather ordinary by comparison. They dismiss the Old Testament prophecies of this day by characterizing its words as symbols that signify a reality far different than what the prophets intended at the time they wrote.
Through the prophets of old, the Lord spoke about a day when He would judge the world in real time; He repeatedly warned of the terrible devastation of this still future time. The descriptions of its horrors have never occurred in the history of the world (see Isaiah 13:6-16, 24:1-23; Joel 2:30-3:3; Zephaniah 1:14-18). One has to greatly change the meaning of the words in these passages to say this day occurred in the past or that the words have a spiritual connotation rather than a literal, futuristic meaning.
Jesus also spoke of this coming time of judgment in Matthew 24:21-22: “For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short.”
Those who say that the Lord’s words in these verses have already reached fulfillment reflect their disbelief in the Old Testament warnings about the Day of the Lord. Sadly, their effort to sanitize God’s Word of His wrath keeps believers in the dark regarding the future of the planet, muffles the Lord’s warnings for our day, and keeps focus of the saints earthbound rather than heavenward.
The Day of the Lord culminates with Jesus’ victorious return to the earth after His judgments have vanquished antichrist’s reign of terror. He returns as a conquering hero to inherit His kingdom.
Amillennialists Erase the Many Glories of Jesus’ Thousand-Year Reign
The adherents of eraser theology, the amillennialists, tell us that the church age is the promised millennial rule of Jesus over the nations. Please notice how just a few of the biblical depictions of Jesus’ earthly reign radically differ from our current experience on Earth where pain, suffering, and death prevail:
- Jesus reigns over all nations for one thousand years (Psalm 2:7-9; Revelation 20:1-10).
- The Lord rules with a “rod of iron,” signifying that justice will prevail everywhere on the earth (Psalm 2:7-9; Isaiah 11:1-5; 32:1). Injustice ceases to exist on planet Earth during His rule.
- An angel places Satan in a “bottomless pit” from which he cannot escape, oppress the saints, or oppose the Lord’s agenda for one thousand years (Revelation 20:1-4).
- Wars cease to exist throughout the duration of His rule; peace prevails in every corner of the planet (Psalm 46:8-10).
- Christ rules from Mount Zion (Psalm 48:1-8).
- People enjoy long lifespans such that they consider death at age one hundred a premature death and attribute it to sin (Isaiah 65:20-25).
- “All peoples, nations, and languages. . . serve” the Lord Jesus (Daniel 7:14).
Amillennialists Erase the Preeminence of Jesus from His Return
In my book, Invitation to a Lavish Feast – Wisdom’s Path to the Pre-Tribulation Rapture, I explain how Colossians 1:15-20 verifies our belief that what the Apostle John wrote about in Revelation 19:11-20:10 is both literal and future. The popular views of the Second Coming, listed below, make it appear far less powerful and victorious than how the Bible describes it, and obscure the glories of His future rule over the nations.
- Preterists say that it happened in AD 70 either spiritually or with a clash of chariots in the sky that only a few people saw.
- Those who adhere to Dominion Theology say Jesus returns after the church inaugurates millennial conditions on the earth and rules without His physical presence.
- Amillennialists place Jesus’ return after the current age, which is His Kingdom.
Those who say there is no Rapture, no Tribulation, and no Millennial reign of Jesus perform a great disservice to the body of Christ. The Bible says that someday we will return with Jesus in great glory and we will reign with Him in His earthly kingdom. The scoffers say no; the Bible says yes!
