Four Views of the End Times

SESSION 1 – Keep Your Eyes on the Right End!

End-Times Craziness

Outline

1)     If we focus on the wrong end, the end times can be:

·         Confusing

·         Dangerous

·         Even violent

2)    Focus on the right end – Jesus

·        Revelation 22:13 - ¹³ I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.

(1)  Jesus is the beginning and the end

(2)  Arius denied that Jesus is the beginning and end

·         Acts 1:6-8 - ⁶ Then they gathered around him and asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?”  ⁷ He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. ⁸ But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

(1)  Jesus’ followers got focused on the wrong end

·         Matthew 28:19-20 - ¹⁹ Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

(1)  Jesus provided his people with a mission

3)    Jesus is the end point and goal of God’s work in history

 This is a dangerous study.  It’s a study about the end of time, after all.  It’s a journey to the end of the world.  This is the stuff of prophetic placards. Apocalyptic films, and frightening visions.

According to scripture, the end of time is not the ultimate end or goal of God’s plan.  In fact, the endpoint of the divine plan is not any temporal event at all.  The endpoint and goal of God’s work in human history is Jesus.  Jesus is the source of the created order (John 1:3, Colossians 1:16).  He is, in the words of the Nicene Creed, the one “by whom all things were made.”  Yet Jesus is more than the source of God’s story; he is also the goal of all that God is doing.  He is not only the beginning but also the end.  And how should we respond to this truth?  By “fixing our sight on Jesus, the captain and completer of our faith” (Hebrews 12:2).  Jesus is the ultimate goal of God’s plan.  That’s why the biblical authors could describe the entire time between Jesus’ victory over death and the end of time as “the last days” (Acts 2:17, Hebrews 1:2).

Questions

·         When you planned to participate in this study, what did you expect to learn about the end times?

·         Was this initial expectation focused on “the right end” or “the wrong end”?

·         In Revelation 22:13, John described Jesus as “the Alpha and Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.”  Who did John present as “Alpha and Omega” in Revelation 1:8 and 21:1-7?

o   Revelation 1:8  ⁸ “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.”

o   Revelation 21:1-7    Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,”^[a] for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. ² I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. ³ And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. ⁴ ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’^[b] or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”

⁵ He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”

⁶ He said to me: “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give water without cost from the spring of the water of life. ⁷ Those who are victorious will inherit all this, and I will be their God and they will be my children.

·        Now compare the words of John with ancient prophecies found in Isaiah 41:4 and 44:6.  What does this suggest to you about who John understood Jesus to be?

o   Isaiah 41:4  ⁴ Who has done this and carried it through, calling forth the generations from the beginning?  I, the Lord—with the first of them and with the last—I am he.

o   Isaiah 44:6 ⁶ “This is what the Lord says—Israel’s King and redeemer, the Lord Almighty: I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is no God.

·      Study Acts 2:14-18 and Hebrews 1:1-2.  According to these passages, how long have believers in Jesus been living in “the last days”?

o   Acts 2:14-18  ¹⁴ Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: “Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say. ¹⁵ These people are not drunk, as you suppose. It’s only nine in the morning! ¹⁶ No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: ¹⁷ “‘In the last days, God says,
I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy,
your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams.  ¹⁸ Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy.

o   Hebrews 1:1-2  In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, ² but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe.

·        Read carefully the question about the kingdom that came from the followers of Jesus.  What event were these early followers of Jesus eagerly anticipating?

·         What event did Jesus want his followers to anticipate?

·         How did the apostles want or expect Jesus to respond to their question?

·         Judging from the response of Jesus, where did he want his followers to focus their concerns?

Focusing on the Goal of God’s Plan

Whenever the precise order of events at the end of time becomes our primary focus, we are focusing on the wrong end.  A few folk may respond to such a false focus by seeking an increasingly specific schedule for the termination of time.  Still fewer may gravitate toward extremist cults.  But, even among the most stable individuals, the results of fixing our eyes on the wrong end are far from the best.  Such a focus tends to lead us toward tension, anxiety, and a desire to stockpile more and more details about the end times.

It is true that, when Jesus was asked about events related to his coming in judgment, Jesus may have given his followers a few signposts.  Yet the closing parable of this same discourse made it clear that his primary concern was not for them to have a detailed understanding of each event.  His desire was for them to be prepared whenever the end might come (Matthew 24:3, 42-51).

Even after his resurrection, when the apostles demanded details about the end of time, Jesus replied curtly, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed in his own authority”-then, he immediately reminded them of their responsibility to share with others what they had seen in him (Acts 1:8).

Where This Study is Going

From the words of Jesus and Paul, it seems that the result of studying the end times should not be a fleeting consolation that comes from knowing more details about the future.  Instead, where our study should drive us is toward a simultaneous sense of rest and responsibility that is found only through the gospel of Jesus.  The result should not be increased speculation about the end of time but an increased capacity to work for the glory of Jesus the Messiah while watching and waiting for his return.

That’s why my goal in this study is not merely for you to know more about the end times.  Instead, my desire is for you to know more of the One whose arrival fulfills a divine design that is more ancient than time.  If you signed up for this study looking for formulas to calculate the day when time will end, you are likely to be disappointed.  If your heart is hungry for Jesus, my hope is that you will be satisfied far beyond your wildest dreams, because Jesus is the goal and endpoint of God’s plan for history.  If the end of time is a puzzle, Jesus is the corner pieces. Only when Jesus stands in the most prominent places can the end-times puzzle begin to make sense.                                                   Four Views of the End Times by Timothy Paul Jones, PhD  Published by Rose Publishing  (All study notes and information is provided as follow-up to this DVD Study provide at North Coast Church Wednesday Morning Men’s Bible Study and is not intended to be duplicated in any way.)