Es-ka-tuh-logical

I frequently get asked, "Hey Adam, what are your beliefs on the end times?"

Okay, that's not entirely true.

...Actually, it's not true at all. But that's beside the point.

Don't worry, this isn't going to be another post about how the end is near and we all have to be ready. I just felt like sharing my views on the end times. That's what blogs are for: idiots like me who want to share their opinions.

So, end times theology. In theological terms, this is called "eschatology." Basically, for a Christian, this is about how Jesus will return at the end of time, remake and renew everything and rule on a perfect earth in bodily form. It's in the Bible, so that much is sure. What people often don't agree on is the means through which this will happen.

There are a lot of views on this, mainly all centered around what is called "the millennium." If you've ever read Revelation, or at least the last few chapters, there's a point where it talks about a thousand years when Jesus will lock Satan up and rule the earth. Is this literal? That's the question, one for which there are four views at least.

Postmillennialism. Big word there. This is the view I know least about. But if I know correctly (and any postmillenialists out there, please help me out if I get this wrong), they believe that what will happen is that the church will succeed in its mission so greatly that there will be a long period of peace, which may or may not be a thousand years. Jesus doesn't literally live on earth at this time, but will come afterward to judge the world and remake it.

Amillennialism. This is the view that we are already in the millennium. The millennium is seen here as a symbol for the church age (the time between Jesus' first and second comings). Now, what about Satan being locked up for a thousand years? I think a verse the amillennialist will reference is Jude 1:6: "And the angels who did not stay within their own position of authority, but left their proper dwelling, he has kept in eternal chains under gloomy darkness until the judgment of the great day." So at the end there will not be a period of peace before Jesus' rule. Jesus will just come, judge, and renew.

Premillennialism. Here's where we have some fun. This is the third and fourth view. One of these views is the most popular and widespread view in the church today, but I'll get to that in a minute. These two views agree that there will be a seven-year period known as the Great Tribulation before the millennium that Jesus will rule. The millennium is a literal thousand years. Where they divide is on this thing called the rapture. Premillennialists are the only ones who believe in this, citing this verse: "Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord" (1 Thes. 4:17 ESV). What gives us two views here is when (if) this rapture will occur.

• Classical premillennialism. Now we're getting really technical. We'll call this "post-trib." This group believes that the rapture will happen after the Great Tribulation, if at all. Those who don't believe in a rapture will say the previous verse "may be symbolism." They cite the fact that the rapture wasn't explicitly taught about until the 19th century.
• Pretribulational premillennialism. Holy crap those are big words. We'll refer to this as "pre-trib." This school of thought believes that Jesus will secretly rapture all the church before the Great Tribulation. They cite verses such as 1 Thessalonians 5:9: "For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ."

So where do I stand? If you had asked me a few years back, I would've told you I was pre-trib. The reason behind that was the same reason as my previous Arminianisn: I thought it was the only way to go, that the Bible explicitly taught it and all other views were ridiculous because they weren't in the Bible. But Arminianism and Calvinism is another post entirely that I'll probably never write.

Nowadays, I fall into the category of "yes."

I believe that Jesus will return in bodily form to judge the world, renew it and make it perfect, and rule with His people forever and ever on the earth. Beyond that, I have absolutely no idea what will happen. The view that persuades me most these days is post-trib, with or without a rapture. But I'm not convinced enough to say that that's the view I hold. I don't know that it matters when Jesus will return, just that He will. And He will be, and already is, victorious.