WHAT DOES THE FUTURE HOLD?

1.   Spread of the gospel message and the growth of the church.

Jesus established the church and promised to continue to build it until He returns (Matthew 16:18).  He also predicted that the gospel “will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations” (Matthew 24:14).  The growth of the church and wor1d evangelism will continue until the body of Christ is complete.  There is no specific prediction of how long the Church Age will last.  It will continue until the Lord returns to call the church home.

2.   Increase of wickedness and the spread of evil.

The Bible also predicts that the “increase of evil” will continue until the end of the age (Matthew 24:12).  Paul predicted that “there will be terrible times in the last days” and then defined those days as a time of unparalleled greed, avarice and selfishness (2 Timothy 3:1-5; 2 Pet 3:3-4).  Today these prophecies are being fulfilled at a startling pace.

3.   Rise of false prophets and apostate religion.

Jesus Himself warned about the coming of “false Christs” and “false prophets” (Matthew 24:4,24).  Peter predicted: “there will be false teachers” (2 Peter 2:1).  Paul called them “false apostles, deceitful workmen, masquerading as apostles of Christ” (2 Corinthians 11:13).  The Bible seems to indicate that false prophets and apostate religion will become worse as we get closer to the end (Jude 17-19).

4.   Return of Israel to the Promised Land.

“I will bring you from the nations…where you have been scattered,” wrote the prophet (Ezekiel 20:34).  “I will bring your children ... from the ends of the earth,” promised Isaiah (43:5-6).  In 1948, these ancient prophecies were fulfilled when Israel became a nation again after nearly 1,900 years in exile.  Ezekiel predicted a two-stage return: 1) Physical regathering; and 2) Spiritual rebirth (Ezekiel 37:1-14).

5.   Conflict in the Middle East.

The general picture of the future is one of turmoil between the Jews and the Arabs in the Middle East.  Jesus warned that there would continually be “wars and rumors of wars” in the future (Matthew 24:6-7).  The prophet Joel predicts the nations invading Israel in the last days – “multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision” (Joel 3:2-14 KJV).  Ezekiel (38:1-6) predicts a massive invasion of Israel in the “latter days” by a coalition of nations - Magog, Persia, Libya, Ethiopia, Gomer and Togarmah.  Collectively, the prophets foresee Israel back in the land but under constant threat of attack.

6.   The rapture of the church.

At some undated time in the future, Jesus will return to rapture the church (believers) to heaven.  When He was preparing to return to heaven, Jesus promised, “I will come back and take you to be with me” (John 14:3).  Paul predicted that those who had died in Christ “will rise first,” then the living believers “will be caught up” into the clouds and united with those who have been resurrected (1 Thessalonians 4:13-17).  The rapture will happen “in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet” (1 Corinthians 15:51).  The rapture precedes the tribulation period and fulfills the Lord’s promise: “I will keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come upon the whole world” (Revelation 3:10).

7.   Marriage of Christ and the church in heaven.

After the rapture and prior to the return of Christ to the earth, the “wedding of the Lamb” will take place in heaven (Revelation 19:7-9).  The marriage is followed by the “wedding supper” (the reception) and appears to last for seven years during the tribulation period.  Christ is pictured as the husband or bridegroom, and the church is pictured as the bride of Christ (see Ephesians 5:25-27; 2 Corinthians 11:2).  Following the pattern of traditional Jewish weddings in biblical times, Jesus pictured the promised engagement, followed by the departure of the groom to prepare a place for the bride, followed by the groom’s sudden return at “midnight” to call the bride away (Matthew 25:1-6).

8.   Rise of the antichrist and the false prophet.

Paul predicts the rise of the “lawless one” after the restrainer (indwelling Spirit in the church) has been removed (2Thcssalonians 2:3-8).  “Then the lawless one will be revealed,” Paul writes.  This seems to indicate that the identity of the antichrist will remain a mystery until after the rapture.  John calls him “the beast” in Revelation 13:1-10, and “the antichrist” in 1 John 2:22.  John also pictures this last great political leader being assisted by the “false prophet”- a false religious leader (Revelation 13:11-18).  Together, they deceive the whole world during the tribulation period.

9.      Development of a global system.

The book of Revelation clearly predicts the world of the future will combine a global economy (Revelation l3:16-17) with a world government (13:8; 17:1-18) and a world religion (13:8-12).  The global economy is already a reality!  The world government is already in the process of forming under the banner of democracy.  At the present time, the United States is the major player in the attempt to insure global peace and security.  While there is no real consensus of world religion today, such could easily happen after the rapture.  In the meantime, the sentiment of apostate Christendom continues to favor a religion of universal tolerance.

10. The tribulation period.

Despite efforts at world peace, the rule of the antichrist will be marked by wars of mass destruction, environmental disasters and divine judgments (Revelation 6:1-16; 9:16-18). Daniel (12:1) calls this period a “time of distress.”  Zephaniah (1:14) calls it the “great day of the Lord.” Jeremiah (30:7) calls it “a time of trouble for Jacob.”  John calls it the “wrath of the Lamb” (Revelation 16:16).  Most pretribulationalists view the tribulation period as being simultaneous with the seven years of Daniel’s seventieth week (Daniel 9:24-27).  We believe the antichrist will make a peace treaty with Israel during this period only to break the treaty at the midpoint of the tribulation period (Daniel 9:2 7).

11. The battle of Armageddon.

The prophetic picture indicates a series of wars of mass destruction are coming in the future (Revelation 6-18).  These will result in nearly half the population of the world being destroyed (Revelation 8:7; 9:16-18).  Eventually these wars will culminate in a final battle at “the place ... called Armageddon” (Revelation 16:16).  The mountains will be “soaked with blood” (Isaiah 34:3).  “All the nations that fought against Jerusalem” will be destroyed (Zechariah 14:12-13).  In the end, Christ Himself will return and conquer the beast and the false prophet, casting them into the lake of fire (Revelation 19:11-20).  Satan will be bound in the abyss for a thousand years (Revelation 20:1-2).  The greatest battle in the history of the world will be won when Jesus conquers the enemies of God by the power of His spoken word (Revelation 19:15,21).

12.      Triumphal return of Christ.

Jesus predicted that one day “the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky...They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory” (Matthew 24:30).  Zechariah (14:3-4) predicted that “his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives” and it will “sp1it in two” when He returns.  Isaiah (63:1-4) pictures Christ marching in triumph in blood-splattered garments on the “day of vengeance.”  Revelation 19:11-16 describes Him coming on a white horse with the church, robed in white, at His side.  He “judges” with eyes of “blazing fire” and “makes war” with the “sharp sword” of His spoken word.  He treads the “winepress ...of the wrath of God” when He comes to rule as “King of kings and Lord of lords.”

13.      Millennial kingdom.

The Old Testament prophets pictured the coming Messianic Age as a time of peace and prosperity for Israel when “they will beat their swords into plowshares” and “nation will not take up sword against nation” (Isaiah 2:2-4).  They also foresaw the Messiah reigning “on David’s throne and over his kingdom” (Isaiah 9:6-7).  The New Testament pictures this as a time when Christ rules on earth with His bride, the church, for 1,000 years (Revelation 20:1-6).  During this time we will ‘reign on the earth” as kings and priests with Christ (Revelation 5:10).  Those who have survived the tribulation will live on into the millennial kingdom as life continues on earth for 1000 years.

14. Great white throne judgment.

After the 1,000-year reign, Satan will be loosed from the abyss and attempt one last time to overthrow the kingdom of God (Revelation 20:7-10).  This time he will be permanently defeated and cast into the lake of fire.  The millennial kingdom will be transferred into the eternal kingdom of God (1 Corinthians 15:24), and the great white throne judgment settles the eternal condemnation of all the lost of all time whose names are “not found written in the book of life”(Revelation 20:11-15).  At that time, even “death and hell” will be thrown into the lake of fire that is the “second death.”

15. Eternity.

The Bible pictures the eternal state as one of perpetual bliss where paradise is regained.  The “tree of life” is restored (Revelation 22:2) and the redeemed of all time live together in the “new heavens” and “new earth” with the “new Jerusalem” as their central dwelling place (Revelation 21:1-23).  Tears are wiped away and there will be “no more death or mourning or crying or pain” (Revelation 21:41).  Isaiah (65:19) predicted, “the sound of weeping and crying will be heard no more.”  God the Father and Christ the Lamb are pictured as the light and the temple of the eternal city (Revelation 21:22-23).  The twelve gates of the city are named for the twelve tribes of Israel and the twelve foundations for the twelve apostles, emphasizing the eternal unity of the redeemed people of God (Revelation 21:11-14).  Jesus said: “I am the resurrection and the life.  He who believes in me will live, even though he dies” (John 11:25).  This is the great promise of Christ.  He calls us to faith in Him and then promises to reward us with eternal life (John 3:16; 4:36; 5:24).  The Bible pictures eternity as a place of great activity as we serve Christ forever.  In the meantime, we are “pilgrims” passing through the temporary domain of earth on our way to our ultimate home.  Joe Stowell writes: “To claim the pilgrim’s identity means that we always know we’re not home yet.  For us, the best is yet to come.”  Until the trumpet sounds, or death comes to usher us into eternity; we are to keep our eyes on the Savior (Hebrews 12:2).  He is the focus of Bible prophecy.  The prophets predicted His first coming with incredible accuracy, and they have done the same for His second coming.  Jesus said: “When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near” (Luke 2 1:28).  Whatever else is coming in the future, we can rest assured that Jesus is coming again!

Consequently, we should continue seeking to know about His return; however, more importantly we should ensure we know Him when He returns.