I CHRIST’S COMING FOR HIS SAINTS (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18)
The next event to occur is the coming of Christ to take His people home to heaven. This is known as the Rapture. Christ will descend from heaven. The bodies of believers who have died will be raised. Living believers will be caught up together with them to meet the Lord in the air.
Note the following facts about coming of Christ.
1. It may happen at any moment (Revelation 22:7).
2. Only those who are truly saved will participate (1 Corinthians 15:23).
3. It takes place instantly, “in the twinkling of an eye” (1 Corinthians 15:52).
4. Not all believers will die but all will be changed (1 Corinthians 15:51). They shall be like Christ (1 John 3:2; Romans 8:16-25).
II THE TRIBULATION (Matthew 24:5-31)
After the Rapture, the earth will experience a period of great suffering and sorrow known as the Tribulation. During this period, the Jewish people will return to the land of Palestine in unbelief. A great evil ruler will arise known as Antichrist (meaning against-Christ). He will demand worship from the people. It will be a time of such great suffering that unless the days were shortened, no life would survive. However, God will preserve those Jewish people who have been faithful to Him.
III CHRIST’S COMING TO REIGN (Malachi 4:1-3)
Toward the end of the Tribulation period, the Lord Jesus Christ will come back to the earth in great power and glory. He will destroy His enemies, including Antichrist, and judge those nations which persecuted faithful Jews. Satan will be bound in the bottomless pit for 1000 years.
IV THE MILLENNIUM (Isaiah 32:1; 35:1-7; 65:17-25)
When His work of judgment has been completed, Christ will set up His kingdom on the earth. Jerusalem will be His capital. He will reign upon the earth for a thousand years. This period is known as the millennium. It will be an era of peace and happiness. We read that nature will be entirely different, for the lion will lie down with the lamb. The desert will blossom like the rose. Men will live to very old ages. It will be a time of great prosperity. There will be no wars. Although sin will not be entirely absent, it will be punished immediately whenever it occurs.
V THE JUDGMENT OF THE GREAT WHITE THRONE (Revelation 20:11-15)
At the end of Christ’s 1000-year reign, the Judgment of the Great White Throne will take place. This is the judgment of the wicked dead. No saved persons will be involved. The graves will give up the bodies of unbelievers, and hades or hell will give up their souls. They will then stand before Christ to be judged. Because their names are not found in the Lamb’s book of life, they will be found guilty and sentenced to the Lake of Fire to suffer conscious and eternal punishment.
VI ETERNITY (Revelation 21:1-8)
The final picture of the future is the eternal state. The earth as we know it will have been destroyed by fire. Time, as we know it, will have ceased. All true believers will be enjoying endless happiness in heaven. All who have rejected the Savior will be suffering in the blackness of darkness forever. The question that faces each one of us we draw to the end of these Bible studies is this, “Where will I spend eternity?”
What Christians Believe
Chapter 12: Future Events
Copyright, 1949, 1951, by Emmaus Bible School
Chicago, Illinois
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