Hanover Baptist Church

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Eschatology – A Study of the End Times

Lesson 1:  Introduction to Eschatology

Memory/Key Verse: 

“Neither give heed to fables and endless genealogies, which minister questions, rather than godly edifying which is in faith: so do.” (1 Tim. 1:4)

I.  Overview of the Pre-Millennial/Pre-Tribulational Model

II.  Methodologies of Prophetical Interpretation

A. Historicist

B.  Preterism 

C.  Allegorical or Idealist

D.  Futurist – (proposed)

III. Views as to the Millennial reign of Christ

A.  Post-Millennialism 

B.  Amillennialism

C.  No Millennialism

D.  Pre-Millennialism –( proposed)

IV.  Views as to the timing of the Rapture of the Church

A.  Post-Tribulationalism

B.  Mid-Tribulationalism

C.  Pre-Wrath Rapture

D.  Partial Rapture

E.   Pre-Tribulational Rapture – proposed

                          i.      Believers Not Subject to God’s Wrath: (John 5:24, I Thessalonians 1:10; 5:9; Rev. 3:10)

                        ii.      Early Presence of Church in Heaven (Rev. 5 & 6)

                      iii.      Absence of Church During God’s Wrath (Rev. 4-8)

                      iv.      Parallel Events (Rom. 14:10; 2 Cor. 5:10, Rev. 19:9)

V.  Fundamentals of understanding Prophecy:

A.  You must be born-again (John 3)

B.  Prayer (1 Pet. 4:7)

C.  Reliability of Scripture (2 Pet. 1:21, Matt. 5:18; Luke 16:17, 2 Tim. 3:16)

D.  Biblically well rounded (2 Tim. 2:15)

E.  Chronological Order

F.  Literal versus Allegorical

G.  Leave unknown unknown (Rev. 10:4).

H.  Don’t substitute other groups for Israel :

I.  Other views

J.  Terms with multiple meanings

i.  Beast

ii. Kingdom

iii. Babylon

K.  Avoid a single focus on prophecy

The Next Lesson: 

·         Lesson 2:  The Rapture (The Second Coming – Phase 1)

·         Memory Verses for next week:

1 Thess. 4:16-17:  “For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:  then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.