[This reflection was published in the weekly news bulletin of Horley Baptist Church, 10/April/2022]
Have you ever had a bizarre conversation with someone? I remember at a church party an American came up to me and asked a question that I don’t think any of my English friends would ask.
“Are you an amillennialist, a premillennialist or a postmillennialist?”
“I’m a premillennialist,” I replied.
“Are you a pretribulationist, a midtribulationist, or a posttribulationist?”
“I’m a pretribulationist,” I said.
“That’s good,” he said, “so am I,” and with that he walked off!
I hope that you understood that conversation, but if not I’ll try and explain it.
I do not believe that you can be completely dogmatic about the order of everything that the Bible prophecies about the end of the age in which we are living. But what I was basically saying was this. I believe that when Jesus comes again, He will then establish His perfect kingdom on earth for a thousand years (premillennialism) (Rev 20 1-6). But prior to that, we who are trusting in Jesus as our Lord and Saviour, will not go through the time of tribulation in the world that will happen before His kingdom comes (pretribulationism) (Matt 24:30, 31).
What reminded me of that odd conversation? It is the problems we are going through now. We just seemed to be getting a more normal life with the pandemic, when a war broke out in Europe after more than 70 years of peace, as Russia invaded Ukraine. Then there are all the resulting problems forecast with high energy costs, high inflation and shortages of food in some parts of the world.
This sort of thing has happened throughout history, but Jesus said that before His return there would be signs of His coming. Wars and rumours of wars, famines, diseases (pandemics), inflation and earthquakes in place after place (Matt. 24), and this was also shown to John in Revelation 6.
But Jesus said we should not be troubled or frightened (Mat 24:6) and that when these things begin to happen we should look up and lift our head for our redemption and deliverance is near (Luke 21:28). Because at some time, perhaps soon, we shall be resurrected with glorious new bodies like the Easter resurrection body of Jesus, even if we haven’t actually died when He returns (1 Cor 15:50-57 & 1 Thess 5:13-18).
Along with other promises in the Bible, I believe that means that Jesus will suddenly return in the clouds to gather us to Him (Matt.24:30, 31) and we shall be with Jesus before that terrible tribulation happens. After the tribulation Jesus returns with us to earth to become king over the surviving people in the whole world, and we shall be with Him in His kingdom.
During His thousand year reign there will be no more invasions by one country against another, no pandemics, no pollution, no global warming and no poverty, because of His power, wisdom, justice and peace. That’s even before He creates the new heaven and the new earth (Rev 21)!
Oops – I’m becoming dogmatic, but I believe that we have good reason to be because of what the Bible tells us. In view of this let’s trust Jesus for the future, rejoice together and not worry in spite of our present problems.
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Contributed by Michael Goble; © the Author
