Disturbing Hostility Toward Bible Prophecy: Why Does The Church Neglect This Profound Evangelism Tool?

Harbingers Daily ^ | 4/25/24 | Tim Moore

[Roman_War_Criminal]

Do you understand what you are reading?” And he said, ‘Well, how could I, unless someone guides me?’” (Acts 8:30-31).

One consistent criticism of Bible prophecy—or at least advocates of the importance of God’s prophetic Word—is that it has little relevance to individual believers, or the core work of the Church. Many pastors express reluctance to preach on prophecy because they have so many other concerns clamoring for their attention, from marriage and family issues to Satan and sin nipping at the heels of their flock.

Others are openly hostile toward Bible prophecy. Rick Warren, a prominent pastor who leads a huge church and is a best-selling author, characterizes prophecy as a “distraction” and says that anyone who lets himself get involved in distractions like studying prophecy “is not fit for the kingdom of God.” Another well-known advocate of re-envisioned Christianity, Tony Campolo, said, “Rigid Christians who believe in the possibility of Jesus’ soon return are a real problem for the entire world.” Clearly, these men express a hostility toward Bible prophecy that is disturbing.

Jesus’ own disciples expressed certain expectations based on their understanding of Old Testament prophecies. During one visit to Jerusalem, following Jesus’ prophecy concerning the destruction of the impressive Temple built by Herod, they came to the Lord privately and asked, “Tell us, when will these things happen, and what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?” (Matthew 24:3). Jesus did not dismiss their expectations or scoff at their understanding. And He certainly did not rebuke their interest in what had been prophesied. Instead, He expounded on the signs of His coming and of the end of the age.

Why Study Prophecy? The primacy of prophecy was introduced in the opening chapters of Genesis by God Himself and is woven through the entire book until the last chapter of Revelation. Uttered by God—either directly or through His prophets—it profits those who take it seriously.

Following His resurrection, Jesus asked Peter three times, “Do you love Me?” (John 21:15-17). But, in John 12:44, the rhetorical question behind His interaction with the crowd was, “Do you trust Me?,” even as He said, “He who believes in Me, does not believe in Me but in Him who sent Me.” And, since the spirit of prophecy is the testimony of Jesus, studying God’s prophetic Word helps us identify, understand, and share the Son.

In a very real sense, the greatest value of understanding Bible prophecy lies not in delving into secret knowledge accessible only to super saints of the Most High. It provides the motivation and insight to share the Gospel with the God-breathed Word and in the power of the Holy Spirit.

That brings us to the passage cited at the opening to this article and explains Philip’s mission on the road from Jerusalem to Gaza. Told by an angel to “Rise up and go south,” he got up and went (Acts 8:26-27). When he got there, he encountered an Ethiopian eunuch who was returning home after worshipping in Jerusalem. This man was obviously observant and traveled a long distance to come to the Temple. As devout as he was, the eunuch was unable to understand the prophetic writings of Isaiah: “He was led as a sheep to slaughter; and as a lamb before its shearer is silent, so He does not open His mouth. In humiliation His judgment was taken away; who will relate His generation? For His life is removed from the earth” (Acts 8:32-33, citing Isaiah 53:7-8).

Inspired by the Holy Spirit, Philip “opened his mouth and from this Scripture he proclaimed the good news about Jesus to him” (Acts 8:35). The Ethiopian’s eyes were also opened and he immediately expressed a desire to profess faith in Christ. Philip’s obedience and willingness to explain the truth of Messianic prophecy caused that new convert to go on his way rejoicing.

Another famous example of evangelism through prophecy is found in Peter’s first sermon at Pentecost. Found in Acts 2:14-36, it is a recitation of one prophecy after another fulfilled in the life and person of Jesus. Joel said, “I will pour forth of My Spirit on all mankind, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy…” “We are not drunk on wine but filled with the Holy Spirit of God.”

Speaking of the Messiah, David foretold: “You will not abandon My soul to Hades, nor allow Your holy One to undergo decay…” “Jesus the Nazarene, attested to you by God with miracles and signs… was delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God to be nailed to a cross and put to death at the hands of godless men… but God raised Him up again, because it was impossible for death to hold Him.”

David was also promised that one of his descendants would sit on his throne, though David remains dead and buried while Jesus lives again. That is why David also foresaw His exalted Son ascending into heaven, and he foreheard, “The LORD said to my Lord, sit at My right hand, until I make Your enemies a footstool for your feet…” “This is a promise that abides on Jesus, the Lord and Christ whom you have crucified.”

Hearing this clear reading of Bible prophecy and understanding its fulfillment in the person of Jesus, 3,000 of the people gathered in Jerusalem “were pierced to the heart” and cried out for salvation.

Testimonies Abound I could cite many examples of men and women pierced to the heart by Bible prophecy. Face to face with the truth that Jesus is the prophesied Christ, the Son of the living God; aware that He shed His own innocent blood according to God’s foretold plan of salvation; convinced that He died but did not undergo decay as He arose again and ascended to the right hand of the Father in Heaven; convicted of their own sin and the deserved penalty for their sin against God as forthtold in His Word; and believing His promise to prepare a place for those who trust in Him and rescue us from the wrath to come… men, women, boys, and girls have called upon the Name of Jesus and so have been saved.

Our friend and fellow evangelist Jimmy Phillips has been preaching Bible prophecy for 76 years. Asked why he emphasizes God’s prophetic Word, Jimmy answered, “I preach it first of all because the Bible teaches it. The Bible is without mistakes. And the holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Spirit.” Regarding the urgency of that message, Dr. Phillips said, “the convergence of the signs that we have today point to the Rapture of the Church.”

John Neese, the founder of SAC Orphans, has found that Bible prophecy connects him with children in Russia. They resonate with the hope and promise conveyed in prophecies pointing to our coming Lord.

George Collich, who was on staff at Lamb & Lion Ministries for many years, was drawn to the Lord as he listened to Dr. David Reagan teaching from Revelation.

Jack Hollingsworth, whose life was devastated by alcohol, became saved and then dedicated his life to becoming a singing evangelist eager to proclaim the prophetic truth that had set him free.

There’s Still Power in the Word John the Baptist asked the Pharisees and Sadducees, “Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?” (Matthew 3:7). Paul affirmed that among the blessings God gives to those who receive salvation is “to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, that is Jesus, who rescues us from the wrath to come” (1 Thessalonians 1:10). Without the prophetic Word, we would have no warning of the wrath and no anticipation of the rescue. Praise God that knowing both we are motivated to urgent evangelism.

Jesus told His disciples, “The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life” (John 6:63). Some Christians think the red-letter words of their printed Bible have special significance, having been colored by the editors to highlight the spoken words of Christ. That same pattern continues into Revelation in Bibles touted as “Red-Letter Editions.”

But what about the words recorded in Revelation 21:5-8? He who sits on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” And He said, “Write, for these things are faithful and true.” Then He said to me, “It is done. I am the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and end. I will give to the one who thirsts from the spring of the water of life without cost.”

Those words are not colored red by the editors of my Bible, yet they are clearly spoken by God. The same is true in Genesis 1:3, when our Creator God said, “Let there be light.”

The point is that whether words are in red or not, or in quotations or not, or even preceded by the phrase, “Thus saith the Lord…”, “all of Scripture is God-breathed and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16).

In short, all of God’s Word is Gospel-centered and evangelistic. And that most certainly includes His prophetic Word.

[Roman_War_Criminal]

End Times Ping

Please FReemail me if you wish to be added to or removed from
The End Times Ping List.

We are Blessed to study and know Prophecy.
All who look forward to Our King’s Return will get a crown.
I look forward to getting mine.

Maranatha!

[TalBlack]

Mine doesn’t neglect it. It was mentioned last Sunday in fact. I think there were some three hundred regarding Jesus .

[Lake Living]

There are many reasons. I’m sure I won’t be listing all of them. The western church has been at ease in Zion. It has some doctrines that have helped develop that ‘comfort’ that (I believe) are not biblical. I’m not going to get into a scripture throwing contest. I will just say this… not many are willing to live the crucified life that Jesus calls us to. We have wanted Jesus and the world too - but mostly settled for the world. The last real move of God in the U.S. was back in the late 60’s early 70’s. The book, The Late Great Planet Earth was terrible from a sound biblical perspective but it got people talking. I believe many came to Christ through the end time warnings it raised. Unfortunately, it became like the story of the Boy Who Cried Wolf. Jesus was going to be coming back almost every weekend. Every news item was used to warn of Jesus eminent return. Call it rambunctious but eventually, it turned people off. The heretic, Rick Warren, calls eschatology a diversion. The Bible warns that at the end, men will be lovers of themselves. We could talk hours just on that! It also says evil men will get worse and worse. Have you checked out our government lately? Jesus warned about deception more than anything else when his disciples asked about his return and the signs leading up to it. I attend a wonderful church. The pastor is solid and preaches the Word well. We have a great choir - wonderful music and pretty good worship (not like the Assembly of God church I once attended, but pretty good). In all my 13 yrs there, there has never been a message on eschatology. I think it’s because it’s a complicated subject and getting people saved is seen as primary (as if the two were unrelated). I think another reason is that most pastors know there’s a ton of stuff on Youtube and if people are interested, well, they can go there. It’s frustrating when you see many signs of Christ’s return all over the world. I feel the four horsemen are saddled up and the white could ride very soon.

[Ezekiel]

Why Study Prophecy?

>>>

David was also promised that one of his descendants would sit on his throne, though David remains dead and buried while Jesus lives again.

That is why David also foresaw His exalted Son ascending into heaven, and he foreheard, “The LORD said to my Lord, sit at My right hand, until I make Your enemies a footstool for your feet…”

U.S. Space & Rocket Center

Visiting Marshall

NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center is situated on the U.S. Army’s Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Alabama. Visitors are welcomed at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center, Marshall’s official Visitor Center. U.S. Space & Rocket Center visitors can learn more about Marshall’s legacy and ongoing work.

Interactive exhibits and historic artifacts demonstrate our critical role in supporting the breadth of NASA’s exploration and science missions. Visitors will learn how Marshall develops, integrates and manages complex space systems and scientific research projects that continue to yield exciting and innovative scientific discoveries.

https://www.nasa.gov/marshall/visit-marshall-space-flight-center/

~ EZ

[TomEd]

Fools who shout “SHEPHERD!” too many times in vain make common cause with wolves who harm the sheep.

[TomEd]

~~~ The Gospel of Life vs. The “gospel” of death ~~~

As Jewish psychologist Rollo May pointed out, death is our age’s pornography, that which decent people refuse to talk about.
Therefore a ‘gospel’ morbidly obsessed with one’s own death comes across as creepy, manipulative, coarse, vulgar, and something not to be taken seriously. It’s a MUSLIM kind of piety. Goodies on hold, reserved for me after I die, if I meet the criteria.

Speaking of censorship, let me mention the two things you’ll never find in the traditional tracts at the back of the church:

* The Kingdom of God, and
* The King.

The “Jesus” of the tracts is a salvation appliance. Insert coin A, utter incantation B, pull handle C, and VOILA! Out pops ONE (1) item of Personal Eternal Fire Insurance! (This may have something to do with dispensationalism, and its ‘gospel’ that goes nowhere and does nothing in this age.)

MY Gospel, and the Bible’s, celebrates LIFE breaking into a dying world, a river of LIFE flowing from the throne of God that heals all that it touches, a Lord of LIFE Who rose from the dead and LIVES with us today, making us more ALIVE that we’d ever dreamed. ALIVE with joy, hope, purpose, and mission. We have so many opportunities in THIS life to experience, work with, and rejoice in our God. More than can be crammed into just this life, but more than enough to fill every second of every day with transcendent meaning.

Eph. 2:10 energizes my “day job” as a teacher. Every student has a sense of purpose, of mission, of vocation, of having been “designed” to DO something. Christian, Hindu, Muslim. Gay or straight. It’s hard-wired into us. And matters more to us than life itself. At Gallipoli, and Dien Bien Phu, soldiers were motivated to incredible heroism by a blunt command to “go and die,” knowing that their deaths would bring victory a little bit closer.

We have a message that will grab the attention of those around us — God is at work. In Jesus Christ, He has broken into this fallen world, and launched the process of setting it aright. Life is NOT a closed system, a Skinnger Box, a zero-sum game, winding down to nothing.

YOU, too, can have a piece of that action. YOU, too, can be in on what God is up to. As He is creative, and Creator, the ultimate Maker, so too will serving Him inspire you to make, to do, and to create. And the world will be better because you heard, and heeded, the call to get with His program.

Do you see the difference here? One “gospel” worries about death, and seeks to use Jesus to escape it. The Bible’s gospel focuses on LIFE, and the duty we have to let our God use US for His glory, and the blessings of our children and neighbors.

[metmom]

Others are openly hostile toward Bible prophecy. Rick Warren, a prominent pastor who leads a huge church and is a best-selling author, characterizes prophecy as a “distraction” and says that anyone who lets himself get involved in distractions like studying prophecy “is not fit for the kingdom of God.” Another well-known advocate of re-envisioned Christianity, Tony Campolo, said, “Rigid Christians who believe in the possibility of Jesus’ soon return are a real problem for the entire world.” Clearly, these men express a hostility toward Bible prophecy that is disturbing.

They probably would have reacted to the prophecy of His first coming the same way.

That thought doesn't seem to occur to people, that those who scoff about the prophecy over HIs second coming would likely for HIs first as well.

They sound like they'd have joined right in with the Pharisees.

Since Jesus came according to SCRIPTURE and not according to how they were expecting Him, they rejected HIM.

People need to be careful when deciding to accept or reject teaching whether they are accepting or rejecting it based on their expectations of how it's being fulfilled.

[metmom]

. The book, The Late Great Planet Earth was terrible from a sound biblical perspective but it got people talking. I believe many came to Christ through the end time warnings it raised.

That's how I came to Christ. When you look around at the world and see how prophecy is being fulfilled before your eyes, it can be very convicting.

[Big Red Badger]

300 regarding JESUS!———Amen.
.
That is Fulfilled Prophecy and That is what moves a Questioning heart to put Faith and a grounding in Scripture!
.
Look at Isaiah concerning Jesus or the state of Israel/Jerusalem and their Judgements.
.
Our Future is up to debate -—but the Word confirming the Word is Powerful !
.
Future events deciphered by man is usually
a bit off by levels.
.
Unless you are dealing with a scoffer...
Then it’s touch and GO.

[ducttape45]

It all boils down to satan wanting to put the church to sleep, to infiltrating it with wolves, to making it ineffective in today's world. Laodecia lives in America, and honestly, around most of the world as well.

But for those of us who are trying to stir up a sleeping church, to trying to encourage the masses to stay alert, we see it for what it is and if nothing else, it prods us on.

[Salvavida]

Because the cowardly, arrogant, prideful, addicted church won’t even resolve fundamental differences among them, in order to have ONE consistent voice.

It doesn’t disciple and it doesn’t administer church discipline. So it has lost its voice.

[Ms. AntiFeminazi]

Excellent post and thread. Thank you.

[brent13a]

Christianity (every “denomination”) is a paulinist construct perpetuated by earthly men. No christian denomination has a real prophet because Christianity doesn’t adhere to Jesus’ words/teachings. Christians follow Paul. Christian “prophecy” is eisegesis (reading what you want into scripture). All of this numerology and bible code nonsense (the “bible is a creation of paulinist men 1,000+ years ago so why would heaven pay any attention to 2,000 years of false nonsense). Jesus himself said not to divinate the “end times”: "Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. If people actually followed Jesus’ teachings and not the paulinist nonsense then people wouldn’t have time nor a need to falsely prophesize and spread their idiocy around.

[small farm girl]

Our pastor is teaching through Revelation now :) Not that you asked, but Rick Warren been off my list for years, since he took to the pulpit to castigate anyone near the Capitol on J6 and carry on about God anointing our kings 🙄

[moonhawk]

As a Catholic I find your comments intriguing. Do you belong to a particular church? If the Bible is a Pauline construct, how does one know/learn what Jesus taught?

[Roman_War_Criminal]

Ours is too.
It’s a good way to separate the wheat from the tares when Revelation gets taught.

Warren is a bootleg “preacher”. He misquotes every verse of Scripture at any given opportunity.

I’m very thankful to hear that The Holy Spirit moved you to keep clear of him.

[Roman_War_Criminal]

What utter nonsense! Your entire post BTW...

You can believe whatever you want about “paulinst” theory, but Jesus Himself appeared to Paul and every letter Paul wrote that is in Holy Scripture was inspired by The Holy Spirit.

It’s not even worth wasting time getting into a discussion with you over this.

Have a nice day!

[Roman_War_Criminal]

God Bless You!

[Roman_War_Criminal]

A lot of us put a lot of effort into waking up the dead/sleeping “church”.

At this very late hour folks either believe it or they don’t.

Seems like God is about to finally cut those off who just insist on believing the lies they want to accommodate their lives.

2 Thessalonians 2 talks about this in great detail.