Perspectives Magazine, one of the better Apostolic magazines in production, asked us to participate in a survey they were conducting to be published in their Opinions page. Due to their space constraints, my full contribution could not be published and the editing left some important things out. Not their fault, just the nature of publishing.
We were honored to be included in their survey and are avid readers of the magazine. To subscribe to Perspectives click here.
I'm including their request, along with my response below.
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Theme: How our current economic crisis may play into end time prophecy.
1. Do you feel our current economic crisis could be a key part of end time prophecy? How? Explain what the scenario might be that this economic situation could bring about.
2. Do you personally feel that the World will recover from our current Recession or Depression? Is this THE ONE or will there be another that will usher in the AntiChrist?
3. If you were to guess, just how close to you think we are to the rapture? 5 years? 10 years? 20 years?
4. Do you feel the church will experience any tribulation from world conditions prior to the rapture?
5. Is there scriptural support for a great endtime revival (ingathering) prior to the rapture of the church? What scripture?
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My response:
As bad as our economy has gotten and as bad as it may get in the next few months, I am reluctant to attribute end-time significance to every event that seems to make life difficult for us on this earth. That would be a form of "newspaper eschatology." Seeing a "prophecy fulfillment" in every disaster or war reported in the newspaper does not help prepare the Church for the Lord's coming. On the contrary, you can cry, "wolf!" only so many times until those that have been in church for a greater part of their lives stop listening to the same old scare tactics, "The end is near, look at this microchip!", "the end is near, the US is at war!", "the end is near, the Jews signed a treaty!".
Do I believe the Lord is coming soon? Yes, definitely. I believe the Lord could come at any time, but we are not waiting for any specific prophetic fulfillment before that happens. Christ’s coming is imminent, and its only announcement will be the trump of God. How close are we to the Catching Away? To speculate of 7, 10 or 20 years is to miss the point. We are always only a blinking of an eye away from seeing Him in the clouds.
One of our movement’s greatest needs is for a responsible eschatology. We need to study Bible prophecy in a methodical, exegetical way, based on sound principles of hermeneutics, not on that day's newspaper, nor on some prophecy teacher’s speculations. Brethren, our only infallible guide is the Word of God. "Whether there be [human-given] prophecies, they shall fail..." but God’s Word remains forever!
G. Jorge Medina
Defenders of the Faith
www.defendersweb.com
Author and Compiler, Upholding Our Future Hope: An Apostolic Response to Preterism
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