Am I going to have a hard time studying eascatology

Don't worry about the rapture and end times events because most of that is hogwarsh. The biggest end times event that Jesus wants you to worry about (based on what the NT teaches) is this:

"Jesus is coming back. So live now in light of that hope."

If you can get that one sunk down into your heart then you know all you need to know about eschatology.

JohnB445 said:

I got born again August 4th 2018. So this is around my 6th month in the faith.

I have not yet read the 4 gospels, only got to Matthew 22. Or all the Pauline epistles.

I went straight to the book of revelation and end time prophecy.

Am I missing out on some vital things?

I want to figure out the rapture and the 2nd coming. Along with other end time events.

Click to expand...

John - take baby steps the topic of some of the questions you ask are fairly deep theology so I would be concentrating on building a new Christians foundation rather than trying to dive too deeply too quickly. I would suggest that for the moment you put away all the commentaries, all the youtube videos and sit prayerfully with your Bible hopefully one in plain English (assuming English is your first language) and work through a New Testament daily reading plan. If you have an electronic Bible most of the apps have reading plans, or go to www.biblegateway.com create yourself an account and start with something like:

Bible Reading Plans - New Testament in a Year - NIV - Today's Reading

There are lots of other plans to choose from, but I would be starting small and not trying to read all of the Bible in a year (or not yet anyway).

Anyway slow down, read prayerfully you Bible daily like this:

1. Start with prayer (asking God to open your eyes and your heart to his Word)
2. Read the set text through completely looking for key terms or words that resonate with you.
3. Read the set text again - this time slowly hovering over those key terms or words you found in the first read through.
4. Sit quietly reflecting on those terms and words the piqued your interest.
5. Finish in prayer

Remember - Rome was not built in a day...

PS... The Olive Tree Bible Study app is available for phones, tablets, Windows and Mac - it contains some free software to get you started but you can build a fairly inexpensive Bible Study library or you can throw lots of money at it. Other options are Logos Bible Software (can be expensive), Accordance Bible Software (can also be expensive if you let it ).

JohnB445 said:

I got born again August 4th 2018. So this is around my 6th month in the faith.

I have not yet read the 4 gospels, only got to Matthew 22. Or all the Pauline epistles.

I went straight to the book of revelation and end time prophecy.

Am I missing out on some vital things?

I want to figure out the rapture and the 2nd coming. Along with other end time events.

Click to expand...

Have you been baptized with the Spirit?

JohnB445 said:

I got born again August 4th 2018. So this is around my 6th month in the faith.

I have not yet read the 4 gospels, only got to Matthew 22. Or all the Pauline epistles.

I went straight to the book of revelation and end time prophecy.

Am I missing out on some vital things?

I want to figure out the rapture and the 2nd coming. Along with other end time events.

Click to expand...

Although I am discouraged from responding for your lack of response to my previous replies to your many topics I will respond. I strongly advise refraining from diving into eschatology, until you have read all (or nearly all and many books multiple times) of Scripture and have a firm grasp of theology proper, soteriology, and other branches of theology first. Countless errors have been made by people who have neglected the plain teachings of Scripture in favor of the more obscure and difficult to interpret and understand passages.

Tree of Life said:

Don't worry about the rapture and end times events because most of that is hogwarsh. The biggest end times event that Jesus wants you to worry about (based on what the NT teaches) is this:

"Jesus is coming back. So live now in light of that hope."

If you can get that one sunk down into your heart then you know all you need to know about eschatology.

Click to expand...

I agree - the statement of Faith we use each Eucharist:

Christ has died,
Christ is risen,
Christ will come again.

gordonhooker said:

John - take baby steps the topic of some of the questions you ask are fairly deep theology so I would be concentrating on building a new Christians foundation rather than trying to dive too deeply too quickly. I would suggest that for the moment you put away all the commentaries, all the youtube videos and sit prayerfully with your Bible hopefully one in plain English (assuming English is your first language) and work through a New Testament daily reading plan. If you have an electronic Bible most of the apps have reading plans, or go to www.biblegateway.com create yourself an account and start with something like:

Bible Reading Plans - New Testament in a Year - NIV - Today's Reading

There are lots of other plans to choose from, but I would be starting small and not trying to read all of the Bible in a year (or not yet anyway).

Anyway slow down, read prayerfully you Bible daily like this:

1. Start with prayer (asking God to open your eyes and your heart to his Word)
2. Read the set text through completely looking for key terms or words that resonate with you.
3. Read the set text again - this time slowly hovering over those key terms or words you found in the first read through.
4. Sit quietly reflecting on those terms and words the piqued your interest.
5. Finish in prayer

Remember - Rome was not built in a day...

PS... The Olive Tree Bible Study app is available for phones, tablets, Windows and Mac - it contains some free software to get you started but you can build a fairly inexpensive Bible Study library or you can throw lots of money at it. Other options are Logos Bible Software (can be expensive), Accordance Bible Software (can also be expensive if you let it ).

Click to expand...

e-sword is another good one. It's free to download Bibles that are no longer or never were, under copyrights, and others are inexpensive to download. Strong's Concordance, ....
e-Sword: Free Bible Study for the PC

ipad, iphone, Mac apps as well

JohnB445 said:

I got born again August 4th 2018. So this is around my 6th month in the faith.

I have not yet read the 4 gospels, only got to Matthew 22. Or all the Pauline epistles.

I went straight to the book of revelation and end time prophecy.

Am I missing out on some vital things?

I want to figure out the rapture and the 2nd coming. Along with other end time events.

Click to expand...

Yes, you are missing out on vital things if you do not have a knowledge of Jesus in the Gospels. Learning Him, knowing Him is more important then figuring out which end times theory you subscribe to. "That I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death (Phillipians 3:10)"

JohnB445 said:

What do you mean?

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If you have been baptized with the Holy Spirit then you would be speaking with new tongues...

JohnB445 said:

contradiction here

Is speaking in tongues a necessary sign of salvation? | CARM.org

Click to expand...

Baptism WITH the Spirit is one of the 3 Baptisms; it is not the One Baptism that saves us though.

I'm going to go out on a limb here and expose a little about myself. Y'all be kind please.

Unlike just about everybody else, I came to a saving faith through an intensive study of Revelation. So I can understand your question about your leaning in that direction, John.

I was raised as a nominal Catholic, then went to full atheist in college. When I met my born-again wife about 10 years later it was "Love me, love my Lord" or else. So, I started going to her conservative evangelical church with her. Naturally, I was getting the Gospel message, but it just wasn't sinking in.

Then someone introduced me to Chuck Missler's 25-session Revelation Bible study. Not only was this a fascinating trip throughout the entire Bible ... as Revelation draws from and leads one to just about every chapter in the other 65 books ... but it gave me a very clear picture of my eternity without the Lord. In other words, it scared me straight.

I then followed up with Mr. Missler's Genesis study. And was awed at how it all tied together.

After all that, the Lord gave me deeper appreciation of the Gospels and Epistles. I could see the beginning from the end, how it all tied together, and how it was all much, much bigger than me ... God-sized, in fact.

Long story short, I gave myself to the Lord just before our wedding, and we have been married going on 38 years now.

Since this is a personal, heart-felt answer to John's question about eschatology I don't wish to debate and have to defend against Chuck Missler's detractors, or get into any kind of Revelation discussion. I'm just letting John know that for some it does take getting deeper into the hard subjects for understanding to sink in.

My only warning to John is to be very careful who your mentor is if you are contemplating a journey through Revelation. I highly recommend Chuck Missler's hermeneutical approach. He died last year, but most of his Bible studies are available on YouTube.

JohnB445 said:

How does one get the third Baptism?

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The two other baptisms are 1. Water baptism and 2. baptism WITH the Spirit (and fire) These two baptisms cannot save us

JohnB445 said:

...
Am I missing out on some vital things?

I want to figure out the rapture and the 2nd coming. Along with other end time events.

Click to expand...

I think the teachings of Jesus in the Gospels are much more important than what is said in Revelation. I recommend to focus on the teachings of Jesus, if you truly want to be a disciple of Jesus.


Jesus therefore said to those Jews who had believed him, "If you remain in my word, then you are truly my disciples. You will know the truth, and the truth will make you free."
John 8:31-32

JohnB445 said:

I got born again August 4th 2018. So this is around my 6th month in the faith.

I have not yet read the 4 gospels, only got to Matthew 22. Or all the Pauline epistles.

I went straight to the book of revelation and end time prophecy.

Am I missing out on some vital things?

I want to figure out the rapture and the 2nd coming. Along with other end time events.

Click to expand...

Yep .... lots of OT references in revelation ... and of course different interpretations of revelation based on the theology behind them ... but hey ... it's always good to be in the Word of God ;o)

May the Lord lead you through His Word. Amen.

JohnB445 said:

I got born again August 4th 2018. So this is around my 6th month in the faith.

I have not yet read the 4 gospels, only got to Matthew 22. Or all the Pauline epistles.

I went straight to the book of revelation and end time prophecy.

Am I missing out on some vital things?

I want to figure out the rapture and the 2nd coming. Along with other end time events.

Click to expand...

Good luck with that one. Since I am 30 years ahead of you and "been there-done that" in terms of thousands of hours of study and listening to preachers, and what I will tell you is this....(just take it for what it's worth....you don't have to believe me here)....
But concerning prophecy: it isn't possible to decipher its meaning until AFTER the event happens. Its purpose is to prove that God knows the end from the beginning and that he is all powerful.

Though I enjoyed all of it, I can now look back and see how you can both prove and disprove the rapture using the bible. But you can also have a multi-faceted view on WHO goes and who stays. It is quite fascinating. The problem to me is that it usually hardens peoples hearts towards thinking that THEY are the chosen people and everybody else is no better than a diseased rat.

Read Matthew. Then read it again. And again. Pay close attention to what he teaches in chapters 5 & 6.
I mean really let it sink in. Then, take that and check it against any religious theory you encounter.
His teachings really help keep you from getting lost.

Bless

JohnB445 said:

I got born again August 4th 2018. So this is around my 6th month in the faith.

I have not yet read the 4 gospels, only got to Matthew 22. Or all the Pauline epistles.

I went straight to the book of revelation and end time prophecy.

Am I missing out on some vital things?

I want to figure out the rapture and the 2nd coming. Along with other end time events.

Click to expand...

I'd never recommend someone young in the faith reading the Revelation. Not because I don't think it's an important book, but because it's the single most contentious, confusing, and complicated book in the entire Canon of Scripture. It shouldn't be surprising to learn, then, that it was the last book to receive widespread acceptance in the Church. Even as late as the 8th century it was still debated. It's full acceptance in the Christian East was--as I understand it--largely because of the persuasive arguments put forward by St. John of Damascus in favor of it.

Of all the books that are in the Canon no book has caused more disagreement, confusion, and frustration than the Revelation of St. John.

There are no fewer than four distinct schools of interpretation when it comes to the Revelation:

1) Futurist - The book is chiefly concerned with things that are still yet future.

2) Historicist - The book is chiefly concerned with things that have been gradually unfolding over the course of history. Things which were future from the author's perspective may be past for us today.

3) Preterist - The book is chiefly concerned with things from the author's own time.

4) Idealist - The book is chiefly concerned with themes and ideas, not necessarily specific events of any one point in time, either past, present, or future.

And sometimes these four schools can overlap in some way, some might hold that there are double meanings, so one might argue that both a Preterist and Futurist reading are valid, the immediate concern of the text was with things contemporary with the author, but also speaks of things in the future as well. That's just one example of how complicated it can get.

I tend toward the Preterist and Idealist schools. I think the immediate meaning of the text involves things contemporary with the author's own time, so I see "the Beast" as referring to the Roman Emperor, and Roman imperial power more broadly; but also recognize that there is a larger theme of oppression that can exist in any time. The message of Christ's victory, and of His coming again in the end, as a message of hope not just for those Christians who were suffering under Roman oppression during the reign of Domitian when John wrote the Revelation; but also a message of hope for all of us, that God's victory in Jesus is both the certain reality because He is risen from the dead, and the hope we look forward to because, ultimately, Jesus will return and all things will be made new. So no power on earth can ever destroy the hope we have in Christ.

Don't try and tackle the Revelation so early, there's no rush. Focus on the Gospels, read the letters of St. Paul, read the Psalms. I'd even recommend reading Leviticus before the Revelation, if only to illustrate how complex and crazy the Revelation can be.

-CryptoLutheran