End Times Resources
Filed under: End Times
I have been reading some great posts lately and wanted to take this post to highlight some amazingly insightful wordcast articles on the end times. In light of my previous post we do need get a better perspective of the end times and how important it is in walking out our salvation. So please check out these articles and leave some comments if you found them interesting.
- The Church’s Incomplete Gospel (Part 1)
- The Church’s Incomplete Gospel (Part 2)
- Knowing the Bible in Light of the End Times
- Getting a Perspective of the End Times
- I Don’t Want to be Offended
- The Primary Issue
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March 2nd, 2007 at 4:08 pm
Do any of these talk about the bubble????
March 3rd, 2007 at 2:34 am
No, none of these talk about the bubble Jen. Sorry to disappoint.
March 3rd, 2007 at 2:42 am
3 things I know:
1. Jesus is the son of God
2. We are his Children whom he loves
3. There is a bubble (even if only in my strange little world)
March 3rd, 2007 at 11:29 pm
I have just one question… do you read anything unrelated to KC?
March 4th, 2007 at 12:17 am
@Katrina: Yes, many resources and wordcasts I read are unrelated to KC. However, I like to read whatever challenges me to go deeper into God, and on this particular topic I believe these posts had a particular insight that I have not seen elsewhere.
I’d be very interested to see other resources on this topic that you have seen that I am not aware of. Please post those resources here b/c I’m always looking for more insight into eschatology.
Thanks for contributing to the site with your thoughts.
March 4th, 2007 at 12:58 am
Thanks for doing all the leg work so all I have to do is come to your awesome site and get fed with these deep insights. Your posts are challenging!
March 4th, 2007 at 1:02 am
I think it’s good to learn about the end-times and stuff, but I think it’s much better to be learning about more practical things first, like forgiveness and grace and practical christianity. Those are the kind of things that really do things. You don’t want to get lost in the “profound”ness of christianity and skip the basics. One step at a time, if you ask me. Otherwise it’s a little too much like somebody fascinated with trigonometry and never thinking about multiplication and division. To me, we’re still on the second level.. although it’s still great to learn from the people who know more. But let’s not get lost in the things that we will be ready for when the time comes in a few years, at least. God has a lot more material for us before we get there. We’re still elementary students.
Bubble?!
March 4th, 2007 at 1:15 am
no need to get too excited or anything.
March 4th, 2007 at 1:18 am
*comment was not directed at karina*
March 4th, 2007 at 1:42 am
@Karina: I would suggest reading End-Times Simplified. It would clear up many of the issues you brought up.
The study of the end-times as David Sliker put it, “is meant to motivate us, stir us, awaken us, and poke at our complacency and self-satisfied pride.” I think every believer (young and old in the faith) needs this “urgency of the hour” motivation to walk out their salvation.
Also, in an interview Pam Olsen had with Marcus Meier she asked:
Pam: “What would you say to us as leaders of an IHOP that we need to do…”
Marcus: “I would say the 3 main things are: Example, Eschatology, and Intimacy. People have to be fueled to do the house of prayer; you have to have strength inside; to continually say no to opportunities, saying no to your flesh, saying no and just sitting in a prayer room. And the strength comes from 1. the urgency that the study of eschatology, the study of the end-times brings to your heart; the urgency of this is important because perilous times are coming on this earth and people who know God have to arise from the church. 2. the study of intimacy… 3. example…”
Thanks so much for your comment and your desire to run hard after God and searching after what that looks like. I enjoy these discussions that spur me on in the faith and make me articulate why I believe and live the way I do. Thank you for that challenge.
March 4th, 2007 at 11:24 pm
@ Karina: The way you worded your comment it sounds to me as if you’re saying that studying the End Times is something we get to once we have settled out all the other stuff. Almost as if it’s not that relevant, so let’s get to it on our day off.
I think this mindset is a serious error. Let me tell you why.
You stated a concern that by studying end-times we would be skipping over the practical things of forgiveness and grace. You called it practical Christianity.
I would say – and I bet you agree – that the Primary Biblical example of Practical Christianity is Sermon on the Mount. Matthew 5, 6 & 7.
Keeping that in mind let’s talk about math. You Said:
The thing is, it’s impossible to spend any time studying trig without having a concrete grasp on multiplication and division. Trigonomotry is built on the foundations of practical math.
Back to Sermon on the Mount: if you read the whole exhortation it ends with Jesus’ promise of a coming storm and how we can survive it.
So you’re right. As we study and pursue what you called practical Christianity it will strengthen us to be prepared for the end-times.
But we must study the end-times. Did you know there are over 100 chapters in the Bible with the End-Tiimes as their primary focus? Did you know that the final generation before Jesus returns is talked about more than ANY OTHER generation in the whole Bible?
To say that we don’t need to study end-times is to say that God didn’t ration out the topics of the Bible correctly. To say “let’s not get lost in the things that we will be ready for when the time comes” is to ignore the teachings of Jesus and understimate the dillusion that is coming.
“Take Heed that no one deceives you…Watch Therefore…Be Ready”
It is critical to purse and apply forgiveness and grace like you said, but it is also critical to know the hour we live in.
You said we were still elementary students. But did you know that escatology is an elementary topic? Just ask the early Apostles…their message was: “The Kingdom of God is at Hand.”
March 5th, 2007 at 12:23 am
I agree that studying the end times is important, but to ONLY study the end times is not what God wants us to do. He said the number one commandment is to love the Lord with all your heart, mind and strength. By studying the end times you see how in love the church is with Christ and the other way around, but you don’t see the practical steps to get there. You get the vision of how things are going to be, but not necessarily HOW you fall in love.
BUT! (and thas one huge but) Studying end times inspires you to be righteous and intimate and to GET the vision of how the church will be. As you said, Shawn, end times and the sermon on the mount both go hand in hand. One is not greater than the other..
I think a lot of the time, people can get too involved in studying the end times cause it’s a huge epic thing. And it should be studied, but if you study it too soon (before you fully comprehend that God loves you as He loves the Son) then you’ll just get confused and scared.
I guess what I’m trying to say is…just study the whole gul-dern bible!
March 5th, 2007 at 1:30 am
@Evan: That’s a great point Evan. We must have balance; both Intimacy with Escatology; we can’t put either on the back burner, we must study them together. If we are too focused on Intimacy we lose sight of the big picture, but if we are too focused on the big picture, we lose sight of the here and now and the how.
However, you said:
Yet you cannot study the end-times too soon. Thanks to the research at this great resource, the following information comes into play: We think of the term “Gospel” meaning “good news of salvation”, but it actually comes from the Roman tradition of meaning the “good news” of a new King coming to power. So from the very beginning of when a new believer is introduced to Jesus and the “Gospel” is shared, the end-times is/should be a part of that good news because Jesus is coming to reign on the earth with us. This is not scary! This is GREAT NEWS! News to be excited at and to give us fuel for the journey until He does come. And that is why we should study eschatology along-side sermon on the mount / intimacy from the very beginning.
March 5th, 2007 at 10:26 am
We do need balance, but I don’t know if we’re capable of determining that balance.
For the past 18 months eschatology has been the primary focus of my Bible study and commentary purchases.
For two years before that it was Song of Songs.
Now I’m back in Song of Songs.
It’s all through the leading of God. He knows the precise mixture for us. It’s our job to get our hearts before the fire of the Word and let the Holy Spirit lead us through the seasons of life.
If someone is excited about studying the end-times or intimacy, or whatever then let them go for it. The Lord will keep them balanced. It’s out of line for us to look at individual’s study tracks and say “you’re not studying what I’m studying. You’re missing God.”
March 5th, 2007 at 12:11 pm
Well, there’s nothing like a good end times post to get people commenting out of the woodwork!
I agree with the comments about balance. Here’s my perspective based on my experience: I grew up learning about the “practical” things-love, forgiveness, etc., but the study, or even mention of the end times was completely off-limits. People who talked about the end times were all wierd, kooky and off-base, and might not, in fact, even be saved. Or so I was told. Clearly, that’s not the case, though.
Let me tell you from firsthand experience-studying the practicals without any concern for eschatology can produce complacency and laziness. I’m not saying that always happens, but I know that’s what happened to me and a lot of people in the youth group I grew up in. With urgency and immediacy of the return of Christ missing from my perspective, I found it hard to stay motivated in the daily routine of life. And I found evangelism especially hard, as well.
I am still a baby when it comes to eschatology, though, probably not even in elementary school! But I will say that just pausing to consider the fact that Jesus might come back in my lifetime makes me live differently. It makes loving and forgiving people easier. It makes fasting easier. It makes evangelism not only easier, but much more necessary.
That said, I agree with Evan and Karina that only studying the end times, or studying it without a solid grasp on the intimacy message is not the answer. I also agree with Shawn’s point that the balance between the two can be seasonal, and that it is something God leads us to, not something should just arbitrarily decide.
Didn’t realize I had so much to say on this subject! I’m really enjoying this discussion, though. I love hearing different people’s opinions about it!
March 5th, 2007 at 5:59 pm
I would guess that much of the issue stems from the fact that many wouldn’t connect to the idea that the subject of the end-times IS the gospel, at least in the fullest sense of what constitutes the “good news”.
The good news (in the minds of the apostles) was NOT “you can be forgiven for your sins”. The good news was that the Jewish Messiah (and King of the Earth) had come, His kingdom had been established, and was coming in fullness when the King returned. Entrance into the kingdom of God required repentance (Acts 3:19). Repentance came through the new birth and faith in the Messiah through grace that none may boast. Soooo – “forgiven for sins” was a significant and critical part of the apostolic gospel. It was not, however, the ONLY component – it was a “sub-unit”.
The Second Coming of Jesus and the reality of our life with Him after His return was a major part of the message and one of the main pastoral strategies of the apostles to people in crisis and tribulation.
Part of the reason it is easy for us in the west to overlook that point is because we are not in tribulation or real persecution and trial. Our problems really ARE “light and momentary”, especially compared to the “light and momentary” afflictions that were a part of Paul’s life.
It is imperative that we connect to what enabled Paul to see HIS troubles as “light and momentary” so that we can say the same thing when real trouble comes to our front door. We cannot allow the luxury of time and comfort to enable us to ignore the anchor of eternal perspective that rooted Paul’s heart in the confidence of Christ’s leadership over his life.
Thus, a better way to say “study the end-times” is to say “get an eternal perspective”. Mostly because people associate the former with time-charts and popular fiction; thus they lose the centrality of the latter.
David Sliker
March 6th, 2007 at 3:03 pm
@David: Thanks for commenting, your wisdom brings much perspective to the topic.
I encounter many people, especially on the college campus, that overlook this “eternal perspective.” Not to say that I have it all figured out, but I am continually trying to approach all of life, all of christianity through that lens. I know that as I apply that lens to my study of the scriptures God is continually changing my mindset, but how do you practically go about moving others in the same direction?
Also you said:
That is very profound in that being one of the main pastoral strategies of the apostles, but I see very little of that lens and that reality in the west. How do you think that we will see changes corporately, or what do you think it will take for the west to start seeing things from this reality, and what can we do individually to help others?
March 6th, 2007 at 9:55 pm
In answer to your question, I think we need more people in the church to be compelled by reality.
March 17th, 2007 at 1:19 pm
hi…good site.