“11 ¶ for the grace of god has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, 12 instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age, 13 looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great god and savior, Christ Jesus, 14 who gave himself for us to redeem us from every lawless deed, and to purify for himself a people for his own possession, zealous for good deeds.” (Tit 2:11-14 NAS95)
One of the things that should be in common for all Christians is that we are eagerly looking for the return of our King, the Lord Jesus Christ. That is our Blessed Hope, His glorious appearing. Is there any topic more focused on than prophesy concerning the end times? There are many things that we don’t know, such as the date and time of his return. Because of what we don’t know there has been much speculation. I believe that these facts make it important that we as Christian acquaint ourselves with what the Scripture does clearly say concerning Christ’s return. Our beliefs need to be rooted in the clear reading of Scripture, not theological conjecture. If we don’t pay close attention to what the Scriptures say we could easily end up as the religious leaders of Jesus day, not recognizing the time of His return.
I have arranged these chapters in an order that I hope will give you an understanding of what the Scriptures tell us about the timing of Christ’s return. It is important that we do not allow our preconceived ideas to hinder us from understanding the clear and simple truths that God would have us to know.
“23 ¶ now may the god of peace himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our lord Jesus Christ. 24 faithful is he who calls you, and he also will bring it to pass.” (1Th 5:23-24 NAS95)
Bob Gunderson