Understanding End Times

A. The centerpiece of God’s eternal purpose is for Jesus to come back to establish His kingdom over all the earth as He joins the heavenly and earthly realms together. This is the interpretive key to understanding the end times. Without this foundational revelation, confusion is inevitable.

9 Made known to us the mystery of His will…10 that He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth. (Eph. 1:9-10)

B. Heaven speaks of the spiritual realm where God’s power and presence is openly manifest. Heaven is the place believers have gone for the last 2,000 years (the cross to the second coming) before receiving a resurrected body at the second coming to reign on earth (Rev. 5:10).

C. Earth speaks of the physical realm where human process, emotions and physical sensation reach their fullest expression. We see aspects of the natural and the supernatural dimensions operating together when Jesus appeared in His resurrected body to teach the apostles (Jn. 20-21; Acts 1:3).

D. God’s purpose has always been for His people to live together with Him in this way forever.

3 Behold, the Tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them… (Rev. 21:3)

E. There will be 3 types of people when Jesus appears in the sky to rapture the Church.

1) The redeemed who will be raptured during Jesus’ procession across the sky.
2) The reprobate who took the mark of the Beast will be judged and then killed.
3) The resisters are the unsaved survivors of the tribulation who refused to worship the Antichrist called “those who are left” or “who remain.” (Isa. 4:3; 10:20; 11:11; 49:6; 65:8; 66:19; Jer. 31:2; Ezek. 20:38-42; 36:36; Dan. 12:1; Amos 9:9-10; Joel 2:32; Zech. 12:14; 13:8; 14:16).

F. Jesus’ coming will be in context to a military conflict. He will travel through the city of Bozrah in Edom (Jordan) crushing the armies of the Antichrist on His way to liberate Jerusalem in the Battle of Jerusalem which ends the Armageddon Campaign (which lasts for 3½ years).

11 Behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him…in righteousness He judges and makes war…13 He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood…14 And the armies in heaven…followed Him on white horses. 15 Out of His mouth goes a sharp sword, that with it He should strike the nations…He Himself treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God…

16 On His robe… is written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS. (Rev. 19:11-16)