Imagine you are a time traveler who has traveled back to the 1800s. You meet Abraham Lincoln and reveal to him that you have arrived form the 21st century. He might ask you how people send messages in the 21st century; you could try to explain how the mail system works. How would you describe it? You’re trying to communicate how fast an email really is delivered; but you’re trying to do it in a way that wouldn’t totally blow his mind. Would you use imagery with which he’s familiar? Perhaps you would tell him it’s like a postman riding his horse at 500 miles per hour. Or, you might liken it to delivering a message by train from New York to Los Angeles in less than one day.
That’s the conundrum we face when trying to understand difficult versus in the Bible, especially on themes like eschatology. The prophetic writers of Scripture were limited to conveying God’s mysteries in language their readers would understand. Two to three thousand years later as we read these prophetic Scriptures through a 21st century lens, it is possible to come up with strange, speculative interpretations. This especially happens when we don’t understand what those Scriptures would have meant to a first century believer, or to a Jew living in the time of the Old Testament prophets.
Table of Contents:
Preface
Chapter 1: Eschatology: A First Look
Chapter 2: Jesus: The First Fruit of the Dead
Chapter 3: Understanding the End Times
Chapter 4: Understanding the New Covenant
Chapter 5: Understanding Matthew 24 – Question One
Chapter 6: Gnosticism
Chapter 7: Exegesis and Eisegesis
Chapter 8: Understanding Matthew 24 – Question One Continued
Chapter 9: The Abomination in the Holy Place
Chapter 10: The Great Tribulation
Chapter 11: Closing Question One
Chapter 12: Understanding Matthew 24 – Question Two
Chapter 13: Understanding Matthew 24 – Question Three
About the Author:
Michael Scantlebury is the founder and senior elder of Dominion Life International Ministries, as well as apostle and founder emeritus of the Kingdom Impact International Network. He travels and ministers a strong Kingdom message out of a burning desire to see the Church come to full maturity for greater function on Earth. He lives with his wife, Sandra, and their three adult children in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada and is the author of over twenty-four books.
