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RETURN TO SYLLABUS
1 THESSALONIANS
LESSON #02
INTRODUCTIONDEFINITIONS AND DOCTRINAL POSITIONS
v MEMORYVERSE: PSALMS 24:10
v BEFORE WE BEGIN OUR ACTUAL VERSE BY VERSE STUDY OF1 THESSALONIANS, WE NEED TO MAKE SURE WE ARE ALL ON THE SAME PAGE. THEREFORE, WE WILLSTART WITH SOME BASIC DEFINITIONS AND DOCTRINAL POSITIONS.
Ø THE DEFINITIONS OF SPECIFIC EVENTS:
§ THE RAPTURE OF THE CHURCH:
· WHAT IS THE RAPTURE?
¨ READ 1THE 4:15-17
¨ READ 1COR 15:51-52
¨ THE WORD RAPTURE DOES NOT APPEARIN THE BIBLE.
Ø THE WORD RAPTURE IS TAKEN FROMTHE PHRASE, CAUGHT UP IN 1THE 4:17.
§ WHILE THE WORD IS NOT INTHE BIBLE, THE EVENT CERTAINLY IS.
¨ ACCORDING TO 1THES 4:17, THE RAPTURE OCCURSWHEN JESUS CHRIST MIRACULOUSLY REMOVES BELIEVERS IN JESUS CHRIST FROM THIS EARTH AND TAKESTHEM TO HEAVEN.
¨ ALL THREE OF THE MAJOR DOCTRINAL POSITIONS WEWILL DISCUSS, PRE-TRIBULATION, MID-TRIBULATION, AND POST-TRIBULATION, RECOGNIZE THEVALIDITY OF THIS EVENT BASED ON SCRIPTURE.
§ THE TRIBULATION PERIOD:
· WHAT IS THE TRIBULATION?
¨ READ JER 30:7
¨ READ MAT 24:21-22
Ø THIS IS A PERIOD OF TIME, 7 YEARS IN LENGTH,PROPHESIED BY MANY OF THE OLD TESTAMENT PROPHETS
§ IT IS A PERIOD WHEN APERSON CALLED THE ANTI-CHRIST WILL RULE ON EARTH.
§ IT IS A PERIOD WHEN GODWILL AGAIN DEAL WITH THE JEWS AS A NATION. (JER 30:7)
§ IT IS A PERIOD OF SEVEREDEVASTATION, DESTRUCTION, AND DEATH WORLD WIDE.
· MOST OF THE BOOK OF REVELATIONTAKES PLACE DURING THIS 7 YEAR TIME PERIOD.
Ø JESUS REFERRED TO THE LAST 3 ½ YEARS OF THIS7 YEAR PERIOD AS THE GREAT TRIBULATION (MAT 24:21 REV 7:14)
§ THE BATTLE OF ARMAGEDDON:
· READ REV 16:16
· READ REV 19:17-21
¨ THIS IS A BATTLE THAT CONSISTS OF THE ARMIESFROM EVERY NATION GATHERED IN THE VALLEY OF MEGGIDO IN ISRAEL.
¨ THE FOCUS OF THIS BATTLE IS TURNED AGAINSTCHRISTS COMING DURING THE EVENT OF THE SECOND COMING.
§ THE EVENT OF THESECOND COMING OF CHRIST:
· READ ACT 1:11
· READ REV 19:11-16
¨ AS MENTIONED IN OUR LAST LESSON, THE EVENTOF THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST IS THAT SINGLE POINT IN TIME WHEN CHRIST DESCENDS TO THEEARTH WITH HIS BELIEVERS FOR THE PURPOSE OF ESTABLISHING HIS KINGDOM ON EARTH.
¨ BEFORE HIS CRUCIFIXION, JESUS SAID HE WOULDCOME AGAIN. (MAT 24:3, 27-28)
§ THE MILLENNIAL KINGDOM /THE MILLENNIUM:
· READ REV 20:2-7
¨ THE WORD MILLENNIUM DOES NOTAPPEAR IN THE BIBLE. HOWEVER, THE WORD MEANS = A THOUSAND.
¨ THIS IS A THOUSAND YEAR PERIOD OF TIME WHENBELIEVERS WILL RULE AND REIGN WITH CHRIST DURING CHRISTS KINGDOM ON EARTH.
¨ DURING THIS ONE THOUSAND YEAR PERIOD, SATANWILL BE BOUND AND UNABLE TO FUNCTION.
Ø DOCTRINAL POSITIONS:
§ WE HAVE BRIEFLY LOOKED ATTHE DEFINITIONS OF 5 MAJOR EVENTS FROM SCRIPTURE. HOWEVER, WE HAVE NOT DISCUSSED THE TIMESEQUENCE OF THESE EVENTS.
· THERE IS A VAST DIFFERENCE OFOPINION REGARDING THE TIME SEQUENCE SIMPLY BECAUSE THE BIBLE DOES NOT CLEARLY IDENTIFYEACH EVENT WITH A TIME SEQUENCE.
¨ SOME EVENTS ARE MORE CLEARLY DEFINED INRELATIONSHIP TO TIME THAN OTHER EVENTS.
¨ A TIME SEQUENCE FOR ALL THESE EVENTS ISTHEREFORE BASED ON LOGIC, EMPHASIS, SCRIPTURE, AND ITS INTERPRETATION.
· WE WILL NOT DISCUSS ALL DOCTRINALPOSITIONS REGARDING THE TIME SEQUENCE OF EVENTS BUT ONLY THE MAJOR ONES. THESE DOCTRINALPOSITION NAMES ARE NOT IN THE BIBLE BUT CHOSEN BY THEOLOGIANS FOR THE PURPOSE OF STUDYINGTHESE EVENTS AND THE DIVIDING OF TIME.
Ø DOCTRINAL POSITIONS OF THE RAPTURE OF THECHURCH:
§ WHEN IN TIME DOES THERAPTURE OF THE CHURCH OCCUR IN RELATION TO THE 7 YEAR TRIBULATION PERIOD? THE FOLLOWINGDOCTRINAL POSITIONS IDENTIFY THIS TIME SEQUENCE.
§ PRE-TRIBULATION RAPTURE:
· THIS POSITION STATES THAT THERAPTURE OF THE CHURCH OCCURS BEFORE THE TRIBULATION PERIOD OF 7 YEARS.
§ MID-TRIBULATION RAPTURE:
· THIS POSITION STATES THAT THERAPTURE OF THE CHURCH OCCURS IN THE MIDDLE OF THE TRIBULATION PERIOD OF 7 YEARS, 3 ½YEARS AFTER THE TRIBULATION BEGINS.
§ POST-TRIBULATION RAPTURE:
· THIS POSITION STATES THAT THERAPTURE OF THE CHURCH OCCURS AT THE END OF THE 7 YEAR TRIBULATION PERIOD JUST BEFORE THEEVENT OF THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST.
Ø DOCTRINAL POSITIONS OF THE MILLENNIAL REIGNOF CHRIST:
§ WHEN DOES THE SECOND COMINGOF CHRIST OCCUR IN RELATION TO THE MILLENNIUM PERIOD OF 1000 YEARS? THE FOLLOWINGDOCTRINAL POSITIONS SEEK TO ANSWER THAT QUESTION.
· A-MILLENNIAL POSITION:
¨ THIS POSITION STATES THAT THE MILLENNIUM ISNOT A LITERAL 1000 YEARS REIGN OF CHRIST ON EARTH. INSTEAD THE TERM MILLENNIUM REPRESENTSCHRIST REIGNING IN OUR HEARTS SPIRITUALLY.
Ø FOR DECEASED BELIEVERS, HE REIGNS IN THEIRHEARTS IN HEAVEN.
Ø FOR LIVING BELIEVERS, HE REIGNS IN THEIRHEARTS ON EARTH.
¨ CHRIST COMES BACK TO EARTH AFTER THISSPIRITUAL MILLENNIUM.
¨ BELIEF IN THIS DOCTRINAL POSITION COMES FROMA MAN NAMED ORIGEN WHO ALLEGORIZED AND DE-EMPHASIZED A LITERAL INTERPRETATION OF THEBIBLE.
Ø THE BELIEF WAS POPULARIZED BY THE THEOLOGIAN,AUGUSTINE (354-430 AD).
· PRE-MILLENNIAL POSITION:
¨ THIS POSITION STATES THAT THE MILLENNIALREIGN OF CHRIST OCCURS AFTER THE TRIBULATION PERIOD AND AFTER THE EVENT OF THE SECONDCOMING.
Ø IN THE EARLY CHURCH, THIS VIEW WAS CALLEDCHILIASM DERIVED FROM THE GREEK WORD MEANING 1000. IT IS THE EARLIEST AND MOSTWIDELY HELD VIEW REGARDING THE MILLENNIUM THEN AND NOW.
· POST-MILLENNIAL POSITION:
¨ THIS POSITION STATES THAT THE CHURCH WILLSPREAD OVER THE EARTH CHRISTIANIZING THE WORLD. CHRISTIANITY CAUSES THE WORLD TO BECOME BETTER AND BETTER USHERING IN THEMILLENNIUM PERIOD. THEN CHRIST WILL RETURN TO EARTH AFTER THE MILLENNIUM TO PERFORM THEFINAL JUDGMENT.
Ø THIS VIEW FIRST APPEARED BETWEEN 1105 AND1202 AD.
Ø WORLD WAR I AND II PROMPTED THE DEATH OF THISVIEWPOINT.
Ø HOWEVER, IT WAS RESURRECTED IN THE1980S AND CALLED, DOMINIONISM, RECONSTRUCTIONISM,KINGDOM NOW, ETC.
v SUMMARY:
Ø THERE ARE MANY OTHER DOCTRINAL POSITIONSREGARDING THE RAPTURE OF THE CHURCH AND OTHER DOCTRINAL POSITIONS REGARDING THEMILLENNIUM. HOWEVER, THOSE MENTIONED HERE ARE THE MOST POPULAR ONES.
Ø THE DOCTRINAL POSITION OF THE AUTHOR OF THISSTUDY IS:
§ PRE-TRIBULATION RAPTURE
· THE RAPTURE OF THE CHURCH OCCURSBEFORE THE TRIBULATION PERIOD.
§ PRE-MILLENNIALISM
· THE EVENT OF THE SECOND COMING OFCHRIST OCCURS AFTER THE TRIBULATION PERIOD AND BEFORE THE MILLENNIAL REIGN OF CHRIST ONEARTH.
Ø THERE IS ONE QUESTION THAT FREQUENTLY OCCURSAND CAUSES MUCH MIS-UNDERSTANDING. THAT QUESTION IS, ISNT THE RAPTURE AND THE EVENTOF THE SECOND COMING THE SAME EVENT?
§ THERE ARE SOME WHO BELIEVETHAT THEY ARE THE SAME EVENT. HOWEVER, IF WE COMPARE SCRIPTURE WITH SCRIPTURE, WE CANEASILY SEE THAT THERE ARE ENOUGH DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE TWO TO JUSTIFY MAKING THEM 2SEPARATE EVENTS.
| THE QUESTION | THE RAPTURE | THE EVENT OF THE 2ND COMING |
| WHO SEES CHRIST COME? | BELIEVERS IN JESUS CHRIST 1THE 4 1COR 15 |
ALL MANKIND ON EARTH MAT 24:30 |
| HOW DOES CHRIST COME? | LIKE A THIEF (NOT TO STAY) 1THE 5:1-4 |
LIKE A KING (TO STAY) REV 19:16 |
| WITH WHOM DOES CHRIST COME? | ANGELS 1THE 4:16 |
SAINTS AND ANGELS 1THE 3:13 MAT 25:31 |
| HOW CLOSE TO THE EARTH DOES CHRIST COME? | IN THE CLOUDS IN THE AIR 1THE 4:17 |
HIS FOOT TOUCHES THE MT. OF OLIVES ZEC 14:4 |
| WHERE ARE THE SAINTS WHEN CHRIST COMES? | SOME ARE DEAD ALREADY IN HEAVEN AND SOME ARE ALIVE ON EARTH 1THE 4:15 |
GATHERED FROM THE 4 CORNERS OF HEAVEN MAT 24:31 |
| WHAT ARE THE SIGNS TO LOOK FOR REGARDING THIS APPROACHING EVENT? | THERE ARE NO SIGNS GIVEN IN SCRIPTURE. THIS EVENT COULD HAPPEN AT ANY MOMENT WITHOUT WARNING. | MANY SIGNS ARE GIVEN: THE EVENTS OF THE TRIBULATION PERIOD, THE RULE OF THE ANTI-CHRIST, THE BATTLE OF ARMAGEDDON, ETC. MAT 24:29-30 |
§ TO UNDERSTAND THE BOOKS OF1 AND 2THESSALONIANS, WE MUST UNDERSTAND THAT THE RAPTURE AND THE EVENTOF THE SECOND COMING ARE TWO SEPARATE EVENTS. BOTH OF THESE EVENTS ARE MENTIONED IN 1 AND2 THESSALONIANS.
HOMEWORK
1THESSALONIANS 1
THIS IS A SELF-STUDY. PLEASE DO NOT SEND HOMEWORK ANSWERSTO THE TEACHER FOR CORRECTION.
v APPLICATIONOF THE INTRODUCTION:
Ø IF YOU ARE NOT FULLY CONVERSANT WITH EACH OFTHE DOCTRINAL POSITIONS IN THIS LESSON, REVIEW THEM THIS WEEK.
v PREPARATIONFOR 1THESSALONIANS 1
Ø READ1THE 1:1-10
§ FOR WHAT IS PAUL THANKFULIN THIS CHURCH?
§ WHICH OF THE THREE DO YOUTHINK IS THE MOST IMPORTANT, FAITH, HOPE, OR LOVE? WHY?
§ WHAT CHARACTERISTICS MAKETHIS CHURCH IN THESALONICA A MODEL CHURCH?
v MEMORYVERSE: 1 THESSALONIANS 1:7
