End Times Jesus Is Coming Soon A Bible Study Course for Adults by Tim H. Gumm Leader s Guide Lesson One God s Word on the Future: Jesus Is Coming!... 2 Lesson Two The Unknown Day and Hour of Jesus Return... 7 Lesson Three While We Wait for Jesus Return... 13 Lesson Four The Events of Judgment Day... 20 Lesson Five The Judgment... 26 Lesson Six Millennialism... 34 Lesson Seven Dispensationalism... 43 Lesson Eight The Present Life in Light of Jesus Future Coming... 50 The material on this disk may be adapted, printed, and copied by the purchaser of this kit. However, the following notice must appear on each page of the student lessons: 2012 Northwestern Publishing House. All rights reserved. Used by permission. Ownership of this material belongs to either a congregation or an individual, but not both. Purchase by a congregation: Purchase of this material by a congregation gives Bible study leaders of that congregation permission to adapt and copy this material for use in one or more groups within that congregation. (Dual parishes may purchase one copy for use in both congregations.) Purchase by a pastor or other Bible study leader: Purchase of this material by an individual gives the buyer permission to adapt and copy this material for Bible classes he or she teaches or supervises. Buyer has permission to use this material only in the congregation he or she is currently serving or attending. Scripture is taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. All hymns, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from Christian Worship: A Lutheran Hymnal. 1993 by Northwestern Publishing House. Northwestern Publishing House 1250 N. 113th St., Milwaukee, WI 53226-3284 www.nph.net 2012 Northwestern Publishing House Published 2012 ISBN 978-0-8100-2436-6
End Times Leader s Guide Page 2 Lesson One God s Word on the Future: Jesus Is Coming! (End Times, pages 7-40) Goals 1. To acknowledge God as the only reliable source of information about the future. 2. To understand that everything God reveals about the future focuses on one big event. Opening Prayer Introduction Almighty and eternal God, Creator of all, you have planned the future, and what you have planned will certainly take place. We thank you that, by your grace alone and through faith in Jesus alone, our future is one of eternal bliss and joy. Strengthen our faith through the power of your Spirit. As we look ahead, keep our hearts and minds focused on Christ and his return in glory. Amen. How much of the future would you like to know? About which future events in particular would you like information? Answers will vary. Throughout human history, people have wanted to know about the future. The end of our world is the subject of this Bible study. The technical term for the area of biblical study that we will consider is eschatology. This word comes from the Greek word eschata, which means the last things. Among many Christians today, eschatology is a hot topic. More attention was given to eschatology in the 20th century than in any other Christian century. 1 Corinthians 2:2 I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. Romans 3:28 We maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from observing the law. While the Bible s teaching about the last things is very important, how can a focus on and preoccupation with eschatology become unhealthy? It may lead one to ignore or overlook the most important teaching in the Bible, the doctrine of justification by grace alone through faith in Jesus Christ alone. Without this doctrine no one can be saved. The other doctrines of Scripture do no eternal good if one does not know justification by faith. What is the proper relationship between eschatology and the doctrine of justification? While eschatology is not the chief doctrine in the Bible, it does hold an important place in Christian teaching and life. In some ways eschatology can properly be called
End Times Leader s Guide Page 3 the crown or the capstone of Christian theology. It shows us the end result of God s justification of the sinner by grace alone through faith alone. This teaching lifts our eyes to the ultimate goal to which we are heading. As such, eschatology is very practical for daily Christian living. It gives us hope for the future, influences our fundamental attitude about life on earth, and has a profound impact on our daily behavior. How can we know about the future? Psalm 139:1-4 O LORD, you have searched me and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue you know it completely, O LORD. Isaiah 14:24 The LORD Almighty has sworn, Surely, as I have planned, so it will be, and as I have purposed, so it will stand. Isaiah 41:22,23 [The LORD says,] Bring in your idols to tell us what is going to happen.... Declare to us the things to come, tell us what the future holds, so we may know that you are gods. Isaiah 46:9,10 I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me. I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. Who alone knows the future? Explain your answer. The simple truth is that only God knows the future. He is omniscient, that is, he knows all things, including the things that are yet to happen. Furthermore, God has plans for the future he directs the course of history and his plans will certainly take place. The ability to know and predict the future, then, is unique to God. Because this is so, the Lord issues the challenge found in Isaiah 41:22,23 to spirits or supposed gods, knowing that no one can meet that challenge. John 17:17 Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. 2 Peter 1:20,21 Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet s own interpretation. For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit. Revelation 22:6 These words are trustworthy and true. How has God chosen to reveal future events to us today? God has chosen to reveal certain future events by having them written in the Bible. God, who inspired all of Scripture, guided the human authors so that they wrote exactly what he wanted, including the future events he wanted revealed. Because the Bible is God s Word, we can be certain that what it reveals about the future is true and will certainly come to pass. God predicted many things that have already been fulfilled in human history. God also shared many detailed prophecies in the Old Testament about the life, death, and resurrection of the Savior. List several of these messianic prophecies. What percentage of them have come true? What confidence does this give us about the prophecies God has shared concerning the future of our world?
End Times Leader s Guide Page 4 The leader may want to prompt the class by recalling some of the messianic prophecies listed on pages 18 and 19 of End Times. If time allows, some of these prophecies might be read and, if need be, explained. One hundred percent of the messianic prophecies were fulfilled in Jesus Christ. The fulfillment of these predictive prophecies is a strong proof that the Bible is a book inspired by God, that the religion of the Bible must be the true religion, and that the prophecies about the future of our world are likewise reliable and will also be fulfilled. Other sources of information about the future 2 Chronicles 33:6 [King Manasseh] sacrificed his sons in the fire in the Valley of Ben Hinnom, practiced sorcery, divination and witchcraft, and consulted mediums and spiritists. He did much evil in the eyes of the LORD, provoking him to anger. Isaiah 47:13,14 Let your astrologers come forward, those stargazers who make predictions month by month, let them save you from what is coming upon you. Surely they are like stubble; the fire will burn them up. What practices, used by many people today who seek information about the future, does God condemn? Since God alone knows the future, he forbids people to seek information about the future from any other source. In defiance of God, some people dabble in the occult, seeking information from the devil and evil spirits who do not know the future. God condemns these practices. Furthermore, God condemns the use of astrology and horoscopes superstitious beliefs that the heavenly bodies influence events on earth. Isaiah 8:19,20 When men tell you to consult mediums and spiritists, who whisper and mutter, should not a people inquire of their God? Why consult the dead on behalf of the living? To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, they have no light of dawn. Deuteronomy 18:21,22 You may say to yourselves, How can we know when a message has not been spoken by the LORD? If what a prophet proclaims in the name of the LORD does not take place or come true, that is a message the LORD has not spoken. What two tests are we to apply to anyone today who claims to be a prophet with a new revelation from God? Rather than discarding the claim, the Bible gives us two tests that we should apply to anyone who claims to bring a new revelation from God. These are the two tests: (1) Does the new revelation agree with the previously inspired revelation of the Bible? (2) Do the prophecies of the supposed prophet come true? If time permits, the leader may want to mention Nostradamus, whose popularity continues to this day. Some people have claimed that Nostradamus was able to foretell the future in the poems that he wrote. Two things should be noted about the predictions of Nostradamus: (1) They are so vague and ambiguous that they could mean most anything to anyone. (2) The more pointed predictions of Nostradamus did not come true. For examples of two such poems, see End Times, page 24.
End Times Leader s Guide Page 5 One big, future event Acts 1:10,11 They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. Men of Galilee, they said, why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven. 2 Peter 3:10 The day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare. All of the predictive prophecies of the Bible that have not yet been fulfilled focus on one big, future event. What is it? There is one focal point of the predictive prophecies of the Bible that have not yet been fulfilled: the visible return of our Lord Jesus Christ in power and great glory on the Last Day to usher in heaven and hell for all eternity. How do you know that it is a single event and not a series of events strung out over a long period of time? The singular day of the Lord as well as other singulars used in Scripture (for example, coming, revealing, appearing ) indicate a single event. Agree or disagree. God has not revealed the future of our lives or of the nations in the world because it is not important for us to have this information. Although many claim the Bible contains this information in particular, the future of nations it does not. God s wisdom is unequalled. In his wisdom, he has chosen not to reveal this information. Neither has God chosen to reveal the future of our lives, good or bad, knowing that it is generally not best for us to have this information. Rather, God calls on us to trust in his love, providence, and protection. As we do, he wants us to focus on that one thing about the future that is necessary for us to know that one great, future event he has revealed: the coming of our Lord Jesus on the Last Day. Mark 10:29,30 I tell you the truth, Jesus replied, no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age... and in the age to come, eternal life. As we continue our study, it is important to understand that our Savior is properly at the center of human history and that all of human history is oriented around his two comings: his first coming in Bethlehem and his second coming on the Last Day. Into which two periods has Jesus first coming divided human history? Into which two periods will his second coming divide human history? The first coming of Christ was the watershed event separating Old Testament history from New Testament history. Our traditional calendar system highlights this fact by referring to the Old Testament years as B.C., that is, before Christ. New Testament years are referred to as A.D., that is, anno Domini, in the year of our Lord.
End Times Leader s Guide Page 6 The second coming of Christ will be the watershed event separating the present age of the New Testament era from the age to come, that is, eternity. The leader should mention that Scripture also refers to the entire present age of the New Testament as the end times and the last days. A biblical time line, then, is very simple. Creation First Coming of Christ Second Coming of Christ Heaven Eternity B.C. A.D. the present age Hell the age to come Summary The almighty God is the only reliable source of information about the future because he alone knows the future. In his remarkable grace, God has chosen to reveal certain future events to us through his inspired Word, the Bible. Everything God has revealed about the future focuses on one great event: the visible return of our Lord Jesus on the Last Day. History is moving toward that one moment. Closing Prayer During the week Great God, what do I see and hear? The end of things created; The judge of mankind shall appear On clouds of glory seated. The trumpet sounds; the graves restore The dead which they contained before: Prepare, my soul, to meet him! O Christ, you died, and yet you live; To me account your merit, My pardon seal, my sins forgive, And cleanse me by your Spirit. Beneath your cross I view the day When heav n and earth shall pass away, And thus prepare to meet you. (CW 208:1,4) 1. Read Revelation 1:1-20 (the introduction to the final book of the Bible). 2. Read End Times, pages 41-51 and 199-215.