SEMINAR INTRODUCTION

A.             The Scripture is unapologetically Israel-centered. Even a simple overview of the Scriptures will show that it is a book written almost entirely by Israel, for Israel, and about Israel. Being mostly a Gentile community we have to wrestle with this prior to the major shakings that are about to take place on the earth.

B.            Like the rest of the Scriptures, the subject of eschatology in the Scripture is completely Israel centered. Most of the church presently operates from a view of the Scriptures called Amillennialism. A simple way of viewing Amillennialism (which 99% of you were taught in the church) is that it views the eschatological promises to Israel from the Law, the Psalms, and the Prophets as being reinterpreted and realized in the cross, and resurrection of the Messiah. This view ultimately requires that Israel be reinterpreted into ‘Spiritual Israel’.

²⁵ And He said to them, “O foolish men and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken! ²⁶ “Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer these things and to enter into His glory?” (Lk 24:25 –26 NASB95)

¹⁴ “But this I admit to you, that according to the Way which they call a sect I do serve the God of our fathers, believing everything that is in accordance with the Law and that is written in the Prophets; ¹⁵ having a hope in God, which these men cherish themselves, that there shall certainly be a resurrection of both the righteous and the wicked. (Ac 24:14 –15 NASB95)

C.             The Scripture is actually laid out within a very simple storyline. The storyline was laid out in the beginning and simply reiterated throughout the Scripture. However, since most doctrine and theology within the church assumes that the storyline was redefined during the 1^st coming of the Messiah many of the major subjects in the Scripture have become nebulous and veiled in misperception.

D.             Not the least of these is the subject of the 2^nd coming of the Messiah. While presently the subject often produces confusion, strife, and self-preserving attitudes that are completely at odds with the Gospel; the subject was the sole hope of the early church.

¹¹ For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, ¹² teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, ¹³ looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, (Tt 2:11 –13 NKJV)

¹³ Therefore, prepare your minds for action, keep sober in spirit, fix your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. (1 Pe 1:13 NASB95)

E.               Both the subject of Israel and the subject of the 2^nd coming of the Messiah can only be understood in this context. Unless this simple framework for redemptive history is kept absolutely central, then the rest of what the Scripture says about the events which precede the Messiah’s coming will always seem contrary to his character. 

THE STORYLINE

A.             The simple storyline begins with Genesis 1. God’s creation is ‘very good’ and perfectly suited for the purpose which He had for it.

³¹ God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day. (Ge 1:31 NASB95)

B.            God’s chief creation and ‘vice-regent’[1] broke covenant with the Creator after being tempted by the Serpent, and choose to trust in their own ability to lead themselves and to govern the creation. God’s plan for the redemption for His creation involved subjecting His perfect creation to futility as well as promising a hope for it’s restoration.

¹⁵ And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”^{… 17} To Adam he said, …“Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat food from it all the days of your life. ¹⁸ It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field. ¹⁹ By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return.” ²⁰ Adam named his wife Eve, because she would become the mother of all the living (lit. ‘life’). (Ge 3:15 –20 NIV)

C.             This accomplished two things. First, through introducing men to difficulty, pain, and the fear of death (cf. Heb. 2:14-15) it exposed the frailty and complete inability of men to produce well-being through their own influence. During times of difficulty and suffering, the realities of the heart are exposed and men are confronted with their depravity.

D.             Second, it established a way for men to come back into trusting God’s leadership to lovingly restore us to the original perfection that we had in the beginning. The means from this moment forward to repent of rebellion and self-governance was to trust God to fix our problem and restore the earth through the Seed which He had appointed.

¹⁹ “Therefore repent and return, so that your sins may be wiped away, in order that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord; ²⁰ and that He may send Jesus, the Christ appointed for you, ²¹ whom heaven must receive until the period of restoration of all things about which God spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets from ancient time. (Ac 3:19 –21 NASB95)

E.             The appearing of the Seed was the preoccupation of all of the Godly Patriarchs. Lamech, the grandson of Enoch, named his son with the expectation that he would be the promised Seed.

²⁸ Lamech lived one hundred and eighty-two years, and became the father of a son. ²⁹ Now he called his name Noah (lit. ‘rest’), saying, “This one will give us rest (cf. ‘rest’ in Heb. 4) from our work and from the toil of our hands arising from the ground which the LORD has cursed.” (Gen 5:28-29 NASB)

F.              Yahweh also made a covenant with Abraham that the promised Seed would come through him, and that his offspring would restore blessing to the earth and it’s inhabitants from their present condition.

¹⁸ “In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.” (Ge 22:18 NASB95)

⁴ “As for Me, behold, My covenant is with you, And you will be the father of a multitude of nations. ⁵ “No longer shall your name be called Abram, But your name shall be Abraham; For I have made you the father of a multitude of nations. ⁶ “I will make you exceedingly fruitful, and I will make nations of you, and kings will come forth from you. ⁷ “I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you throughout their genera