Divine Healing: Available through Christ
Divine healing and belief in its reality are reasonable on the ground of the divine promises that are expressed or implied in the Scriptures. These promises are of two main classes—general and specific. General promises are those made concerning whatever one may ask. Specific promises are those that offer something on certain conditions. Examples of general promises are as follows: “And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive” (Matt 21:22). “Whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith” (Mark 11:24). “Ask whatever you will, and it shall be done for you” (John 15:7). “If you ask anything of the Father, he will give it to you” (John 16:23). If these were the only promises of answers to prayer for the sick, they alone would furnish sufficient ground for belief in divine healing.
The specific promises of healing are very definite. In the Great Commission as recorded by Mark, Jesus said that other signs of healing would follow his earthly ministry. Mark wrote, “They will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover” (16:18). The healing of the sick promised here was not to be done through the apostles, but through those to whom the apostles were commanded to preach and who chose to believe.
Both salvation and healing are included in the Great Commission. A question has sometimes been raised as to the genuineness of this verse, but it is found in all but one of the four oldest Greek manuscripts and is generally accepted by textual critics. Though Matthew’s record of the Great Commission does not specifically promise healing, it is implied in the words “teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.” Jesus taught the apostles to pray for healing and commissioned them to teach others to do so, which implies his intention to answer such prayers.
The gifts of healing are represented in I Corinthians 12:9–30 as common in the Church at the time Paul wrote. He points out that they belong not merely to apostles but to whomsoever God might be pleased to give them. From these gifts of healing we might infer the fact of healing. No promise of healing is more specific than that given in James 5:14, 15: “Is any among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord; and the prayer of faith will save the sick man, and the Lord will raise him up; and if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.” The power to heal, according to this scripture, belongs not merely to the apostles who would soon pass away, but to the Church as a whole.
Divine healing is physical healing by divine power directly manifested in answer to prayer and faith. Because God is the author of nature and imminent in nature and his power is back of all its operations, all healing resulting from natural processes is in a sense divine healing. One may properly give thanks to God for such healing. Though healing comes through the use of natural remedies, it may be attributed to God, who has created all those things and given them whatever beneficial qualities they possess.
But none of these natural processes is divine healing in the sense that the Scriptures use it. Divine healing is not natural, but supernatural healing. It is a miraculous manifestation that transcends nature. Though it affects the material body, it does not take place by material means. As to its mode, it is like the new birth of which Jesus said, “The wind blows where it wills, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know whence it comes or whither it goes; so it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit,” (John 3:8). Likewise mysterious is the mode of God in the work of supernatural healing.
Though God’s will is generally to heal the sick, he is more concerned about spiritual and moral excellence than about physical health; therefore, God may allow us to go through periods of suffering. Thus, healing is not parallel with salvation. God’s will is always to save the soul, though not always to heal the body.
Divine healing may be either instantaneous or gradual. It seems probable the healings recorded in the Bible were nearly all, if not all, instantaneous. Of all the healings described in the New Testament, the fact that any were accomplished gradually cannot be positively shown. Because those healings were told in order to show the power of God, it was important that only instantaneous healings be recorded. But the Bible does not state that God did not then or will not now sometimes heal gradually. Neither is there any rational ground for excluding gradual healing by divine power. Many persons today are healed in answer to prayer. This is reason enough for believing that God will heal in this manner. To say an instance of healing is gradual is not to say it is indefinite or unreal. One may definitely begin to recover at a particular time from a disease of many years and in a few days’ time be completely restored. Such healings are not instantaneous but gradual; yet they are real.
Also, healing may be either partial or complete, or it may be either temporary or permanent and yet be genuine divine healing. Jesus once healed a blind man by two distinct stages. Not infrequently persons today receive partial healing in answer to prayer. Sometimes such persons receive complete healing later; in other instances they do not. Others are temporarily restored and soon after become afflicted again in the same manner. Many, however, are instantly and completely healed.
The classical text on divine healing is James 5:13–18. There the Church is commanded to anoint the sick with oil in the name of the Lord and pray over them. Such anointing was practiced by Jesus’ disciples in their healing of the sick: “So they went out and preached that men should repent. And they cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many that were sick and healed them” (Mark 6:12, 13, italics added). What is the purpose of this anointing of the sick with oil? The oil in itself has no curative value when merely placed upon the head. Olive oil was commonly used for purposes of anointing. In special instances a costly perfume was used either mixed with the oil or alone as in the anointing of Jesus at Bethany. But in no case did the oil possess special healing properties. Oil is represented in the Scriptures as symbolic of the Holy Spirit. The anointing of the sick with oil signifies the Spirit and the power of God coming upon the sick to heal them. It is a very apt symbol and is therefore helpful to the faith of those afflicted. It is also an act of obedience, the practice of which helps to give definiteness and strength to one’s faith.
Similar in purpose to anointing of the sick is the laying on of hands in prayer for the healing of the sick. Jesus and the apostles often laid their hands upon the sick or touched them in order to heal them. The laying on of hands by those who are called to pray for the sick is a symbolic conveying of divine power, much as there was a giving of the Holy Ghost by the laying of the apostles’ hands upon believers.
There is no reason for believing the power of God is actually transmitted by the laying on of hands or that it might not come upon the sick person as well without this physical contact. But as a symbolic transmission of divine power to the body of the suffering one, it has much value in assisting the sick person to believe, and in making real to his or her consciousness the fact of the divine operation in healing.
The conditions for healing are few and simple. The primary and all-important condition is faith. Unbelief at Nazareth hindered the performance of many mighty works there. The disciples failed to cure the demoniac son because of their unbelief. Jesus said to one who questioned his ability, “All things are possible to him who believes” (Mark 9:23). In James 5:15 we read, “The prayer of faith shall save the sick.” The faith necessary to healing is not a mere theoretical or intellectual belief in God’s power, but a trustful and confident stepping out on the divine promise as it applies to the present need. It is a bold reliance upon God to heal a particular ailment at a particular time. Faith is not a mere arbitrary requirement for healing. Faith is that which connects God’s healing with the consciousness of the one who prays. [Byrum, Christian Theology, 493-98.]
Questions for Study, Chapter 11
1. Jesus taught by the example of healing the sick. Select one of the following passages and share the specific story with someone else: Mark 9:14–29; Luke 14:1–4; John 4:43–53.
2. 2.Some believe that divine healing ceased with the apostles. Using the following texts, explain why this is not true: James 5:14, 15; 1 Corinthians 12:9–30.
3. If you were asked to explain what you mean by divine healing, how would you state it and support it with Scripture?
4. Not everyone is healed—does this mean that those who are not have insufficient faith? Discuss this with a friend after reading 2 Corinthians 12:7–10. Record your reactions.
5. Mark 6:12, 13 and James 5:14 mention anointing with oil when praying for the sick. Is there healing virtue in the oil? What is the purpose of this act?
6. If you are sick and need healing, what does James 5:14 teach you to do?
Memorize
And Jesus went about … healing every sickness and every disease among the people.
—Matthew 9:35
Chapter 12
Ministry: The Christian’s Opportunity
The Great Commission (Matt 28:19–20) places both an opportunity and a responsibility before the believer in Christ. Our new life in Christ is for the purpose of service, even as our Master came to minister to human need (Matt 20:28). As exemplified in Jesus’ own ministry, prayer becomes primary in preparing for service (Mark 1:35) and in fulfilling his plan. “Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth laborers into his harvest” (Matt 9:38). More than a spiritual exercise, prayer is the indispensable ingredient in the Christian life and witness. It is the first requirement in being adequately prepared for any role of service in God’s Church.
The priesthood of all believers affords the opportunity for every Christian to serve in some significant ministry. The Bible knows no designation such as clergy and laity, for we have all become “kings and priests unto God” (Rev 1:6). Every believer is a minister in the New Testament meaning of the word. We have become a “royal priesthood” as stated in 1 Peter 2:9, thus giving to each person a direct access to God’s grace and power. As such, we are expected to be involved in the continuing ministry of the Church, exercising the gifts that God has given to us. Such a ministry will require maturity of both pastor and people, recognizing that each has a unique contribution to make in ministry. Where the Holy Spirit predominates we should be able to accept one another and not be threatened by the ability of other members of the Body. Evangelism, or the heralding of the Good News, is the task of every Christian. Jesus said, “Go therefore and make disciples … teaching them to observe all that I have commanded” (Matt 28:19–20) and “Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in hither the poor, and the maimed, and the halt, and the blind” (Luke 14:21).
While some would limit evangelism to specific areas such as personal soul winning, Scripture views the task as being much larger in scope. Every Christian is a witness in a very unique way and therefore is an evangelist in outreach for Christ. Jesus acknowledged the breadth of heralding the gospel when he read, “The spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised” (Luke 4:18). Each age may demand new methods of evangelism, but the message of redemption remains the same.
Visitation is a part of our Christian ministry. In an age of computerized technology, condominiums, and word processors, we have difficulty finding time to visit very much with other persons. But James wrote, “Religion that is pure and undefiled before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world” (1:27). Even families have little time for person-to-person conversation and listening. The believer in Christ places greater value on persons than programs and profits. Jesus had time to visit with the woman at the well (John 4:1–30) and it changed her life and the community in which she lived. Visitation maintains communication among the family of God and serves as a contact with the world in which we live. Orphanages, nursing homes, prisons, hospitals, and retirement centers are only a few of the opportunities to minister through visitation.
Social ministries, or those services extended by the people of God to relieve human suffering, become the privilege of each believer. Jesus mentioned many of these responsibilities in Matthew 25:31–46, as he referred to our accountability in the judgment. He spoke of the naked, the hungry, the thirsty, the imprisoned, the sick, all representing the needs of humanity to which we are to minister. This ministry has been hindered by those who divide the gospel into personal and social categories. There is only one gospel, and it mandates that true evangelism must consider the personal and social needs of every person. The displaced person who has been dehumanized by the cultural caste systems of our day needs to know that the Church cares. If we are the body of Christ, then we must demonstrate Jesus’ compassion for those caught up in the disasters of human experience.
Preaching and teaching enable us to equip others to share in the opportunities that God gives to his Church. While questioned by some, a need will always exist for the proclamation of the gospel. Paul wrote, “It pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe” (1 Cor 1:21). For that very reason God gives gifts to prepare us to serve adequately. Again Paul wrote, “And his gifts were that some should be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers” (Eph 4:11). With the continued increase in world population and new discoveries in communications, we are to share this message with all people. There is a need for preachers and teachers both locally and worldwide. Jesus said, “Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest” (John 4:35).
As servants of God there is a place of ministry for every believer. To follow the example of Christ we must be willing to meet needs wherever they are to be found. We are committed to serve wherever the Lord places us (1 Cor 12:18).
Questions for Study, Chapter 12
1. According to Jesus’ example, what is the first priority in preparing to minister to the needs of others? (See Mark 1:35 and Matthew 9:38.)
2. What does the phrase “priesthood of all believers” mean to you? (See Revelation 1:6 and 1 Peter 2:9.)
3. Paul lists for us at least eighteen different gifts of the Spirit (1 Cor 12; Rom 12; Eph 4). Study these gifts and attempt to discover what gift or gifts God has given you. If you are not certain, discuss it with your pastor or church school teacher.
4. Why is it difficult in some congregations for spiritual gifts to be exercised? Discuss and reflect on the location of 1 Corinthians 13 in Paul’s letter to the Corinthians—is love the determining factor?
5. According to Matthew 28:19–20, is evangelism the only task of the Church? If so, please define what you mean by evangelism.
6. How many visits have you made in the last six months that were initiated by the need of others or the prompting of the Holy Spirit?
What, according to James 1:27, does this say about your personal relationship with God?
7. With our emphasis upon preaching and teaching in the church, how can we implement the teaching of social ministry as referred to in Matthew 25:31–46?
Memorize
But whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister; and whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant.
—Matthew 20:27–28
Chapter 13
The Kingdom of God: A Present Reality
Jesus came to establish a spiritual kingdom. When before Pilate, he said, “My kingship is not of this world; if my kingship were of this world, my servants would fight, that I might not be handed over the Jews” (John 18:36). Christ rejected the idea of an earthly, carnal kingdom. Every kingdom that has been built by force has fallen; and if Christ’s kingdom were established on the same principle, it would be no better than the kingdoms of this world. An earthly kingdom is inadequate for God’s kingdom.
The kingdom of God is not political, nor is it comprised only of Jewish people. Everything about the kingdom is spiritual. It is composed of spiritual people who have been born again. Paul wrote, “For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh: But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter, whose praise is not of men, but of God” (Rom 2:28–29). The Kingdom has a spiritual city as its central rallying point (the heavenly Jerusalem). Spiritual battles are fought. The Kingdom will last not just for one thousand years; “[God] shall reign over the house of Jacob forever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end” (Luke 1:33). This agrees with Daniel’s prophecy of an everlasting kingdom. Christ established this kingdom at his first coming.
The kingdom of God is a spiritual experience. Jesus taught his disciples to “seek first [God’s] kingdom” (Matt 6:33). He declared, “The kingdom of God is preached, and every one enters it violently” (Luke 16:16). The kingdom of God is a spiritual inheritance. Paul wrote, “He has delivered us from the domination of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son” (Col 1:13). (Note that this act of God is already accomplished.) Entrance into the kingdom is by the experience of the new birth, for Jesus said, “Unless one is born anew, he cannot see the kingdom of God” (John 3:3). Consequently, to be born again is to be in the Kingdom.
Paul emphasizes the spiritual nature of the Kingdom by saying, “For the kingdom of God is not food and drink but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit” (Rom 14:17). He again records this testimony, “Flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God” (1 Cor 15:50). This kingdom does not signify some future earthly reign; it represents the reign of righteousness enjoyed by the people of God since Christ came to proclaim it. Already the people of this kingdom were “kings and priests unto God” (1 Pet 2:9). Paul declares that “they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in the life by one, Jesus Christ” (Rom 5:17).
Christ is universal king, Lord of heaven and earth. Before his ascension he claimed this dominion saying, “All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth” (Matt 28:18). This universal dominion is also expressed by Paul: “Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come: and hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things” (Eph 1:20–22).
Yes, Christ is king in the present tense. He has already conquered sin and death. His subjects acknowledge his sovereign lordship and wait expectantly for his return.
Questions for Study, Chapter 12
1. According to Mark 1:14, what did Jesus come into Galilee preaching?
2. Who are the subjects of Christ’s kingdom and how do they gain acceptance? (See Matthew 18:3 and John 3:13.)
3. According to John 19:36, is the kingdom of God one of military might?
4. Great importance is placed upon the Jewish nation and its place in Kingdom teachings. In your own words, explain what Paul says in Romans 2:28–29 about the true Jew.
5. In what manner did Jesus speak of his kingdom in Luke 13:18–21?
6. Paul clearly states the nature of the Kingdom in Romans 14:17. List what it is and what it is not.
7. Kings are in control, having power to accomplish their purpose. According to Matthew 28:18, is Christ the King in control today?
Memorize
The Kingdom of God cometh not with observation: Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you.
—Luke 17:20–21
Chapter 14
The End of Time: Jesus Comes Again
We are living between two advents of Christ in this world. At the first he appeared incarnate to reveal the way of salvation and to make atonement for sin. He will come again at some future time in great power and glory to raise the dead, judge the world, and destroy the earth.
That Christ will come again to the world is the common belief of Christians of all schools of thought. But those who believe the New Testament have abundant proof that Jesus will surely come again. “When I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself” (John 14:3). “As the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of man” (Matt 24:27).
“The Lord himself will descend from heaven” (1 Thess 4:16). “Our commonwealth is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ” (Phil 3:20). “Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him” (Heb 9:28). The Scriptures clearly teach a second, personal, visible coming of Christ that is yet to come.
As the straining eyes of the wondering disciples saw their ascending Lord rise higher and higher until a cloud finally obscured him from their view, two angels said to them, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven” (Acts 1:11). As Jesus’ ascension was visible and personal, so will be his second advent, according to these words from Matthew: “Hereafter you will see the Son of man seated at the right hand of Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven” (26:64). The disciple also records these words of Jesus: “Then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory” (Matt 24:30). The Book of Revelation declares, “Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, everyone who pierced him; and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of him” (1:7).
The time when Christ will return to earth is fully known to God. That he does know it is affirmed by Paul: “He has fixed a day on which he will judge the world” (Acts 17:31).
But while God knows the time of the second coming of Christ, it is known to no person. Jesus said, “Of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only” (Matt 24:36). To most persons living when he comes, the advent of Christ will be unexpected. It is not to be preceded by any great change in the natural order of things. Jesus explained, “As were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of man. For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and they did not know until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of man” (Matt 24:37–39). In this text the moral state of the world at Christ’s coming is not under consideration. It merely shows that as that awful catastrophe came suddenly and without warning, so the second advent will be unexpected by the world at large. Peter wrote, “The day of the Lord will come like a thief” (2 Pet 3:10).
A general resurrection is taught by the Bible, as is indicated in the following scriptures. “Many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt” (Dan 12:2). “The hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come forth, those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of judgment” (John 5:28, 29). “There will be a resurrection of both the just and unjust” (Acts 24:15).
All these texts clearly teach a general resurrection. The same truth is definitely implied in the texts that state that the righteous shall be raised up “at the last day” (John 6:39, 40, 44, 54). There is no day after the last day, and no resurrection can take place a thousand years after the last day. That the dead will be raised at the time of the second advent is clear from 1 Thessalonians 4:16 and I Corinthians 15:21–23.
The Scriptures very definitely set forth the fact of a future judgment: “The Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trial, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment until the day of judgment” (2 Pet 2:9); “He has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed” (Acts 17:31); “We shall all stand before the judgment seat of God” (Rom 14:10); “It shall be more tolerable on the day of judgment for the land of Sodom than for you” (Matt 11:24). The people of Sodom had long since died, but Jesus here represents their judgment as yet to come. It will be coincident with the advent of Christ.
The most elaborate and specific account of the judgment given in the Bible is that contained in Matthew 25:31–46, where it is represented as taking place immediately following the second coming of Christ. Jesus said, “The Son of man is to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay every man for what he has done” (Matt 16:27). And Paul wrote, “Christ Jesus … is to judge the living and the dead” (2 Tim 4:1).
The judgment will take place after the general resurrection. Jesus declared, “For the hour is coming, when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come forth, those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of judgment” (John 5:28, 29). The distribution of reward and punishment subsequent to the resurrection implies judgment. John wrote, “And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Also another book was opened, which is the book of life, And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, by what they had done. And the sea gave up the dead in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead in them, and all were judged by what they had done” (Rev 20:12, 13).
The statement that the sea gave up the dead who were in it implies the resurrection. Subsequent to that, the judgment is said to occur at the end of the world: “‘Let both grow together until the harvest; and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, Gather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.’ … The harvest is the close of the age … . So will it be at the close of the age” (Matt 13:30, 39, 40).
The future judgment will be a general judgment in the sense that all people both good and evil will be judged at one and the same time. The Scriptures are replete with such proofs. Several texts already quoted concerning the future judgment represent it as a general judgment. This is especially clear in the discourse of Jesus recorded in Matthew 25:31–46.
The Word of God is the primary standard of judgment. In the nature of things, people are obligated to obey whatever commandments God has given them. But they are responsible and subject to God’s law only so far as that law has been given to them. Jesus said, “The word that I have spoken will be his judge on the last day” (John 12:48). Paul said, “All who have sinned without the law will also perish without the law, and all who have sinned under the law will be judged by the law” (Rom 2:12).
Future Punishment: Hell
The doctrine of future punishment is supported by both scriptural and rational proofs.
The Scriptures represent the punishment of the wicked as taking placed after the close of this life; “The rich man also died and was buried; and in Hades, being in torment, he lift up his eyes,” (Luke 16:22, 23). The wicked will be punished when Christ comes again: “For the Son of man is to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay every man for what he has done” (Matt 16:27). The future punishments of the wicked are represented as being by “eternal fire” (Matt 25:41); they will be cast into a “lake that burns with fire and sulphur” (Rev 21:8) or a “furnace of fire” (Matt 13:42). The wicked are to be thrown into “outer darkness” (Matt 8:12), or into “gloom of darkness” (Jude 13). They are to have “no rest, day or night” (Rev 14:11), undergoing pain of a “second death” (Rev 21:8) and “eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord” (2 Thess 1:9, NAS).
Future Blessedness: Heaven
Future blessedness is to be experienced in heaven. This is a truth of both the Scriptures and reason. In the Scriptures it is represented as being “eternal life” (Matt 25:46), “eternal weight of glory” (2 Cor 4:17), knowledge (1 Cor 13:8–10), worship (Rev 19:1), association with holy men and angels (Heb 12:22–23), and as communion with God (Rev 21:3).
The happiness of the righteous in heaven will consist of various elements. (1) They will be secure from the possibility of being lost forever. (2) They will be forever free from all earthly sorrow and pain. John wrote, “[God] … will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain any more” (Rev 21:4). They shall no longer be tempted by sin or troubled by sinful surroundings. (3) They will then know God as they are now known of him. “They shall see his face” (Rev 22:4) and “see him as he is” (1 John 3:2). (4) The righteous will there have joyful fellowship with all the holy and truly great. (5) The righteous will have the opportunity for indefinite enlargement of all faculties. We may well believe that the righteous will live and learn forever there.
The reality that these wonderful facts represent is probably beyond the capacity of our finite minds. As Paul wrote, “No eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man conceived what God has prepared for those who love him” (1 Cor 2:9). [Ibid., 634ff.]
Questions for Study, Chapter 14
1. Some self-styled prophets have attempted to predict the exact time of Christ’s return. What does Scripture say about this? (See Matthew 24:27, 36.)
2. While some speak of an erroneous “secret rapture” when Jesus returns, how does this correlate with Revelation 1:7?
3. Will there be only one or two returns of Christ? Some present teachings imply that Jesus will return once to catch away his bride, the Church, and again to judge the world. Consider 1 Thessalonians 4:16–17 and 1 Corinthians 15:21–24.
4. There will be only one general resurrection, leaving no room for a supposed millennial reign. Consider Acts 24:15 and John 6:39, 40, 44, 54. List your thoughts on this.
5. At the final judgment we will be judged by whom and by what standard? (See John 5:22; 12:48.)
6. Eternal retribution, or future punishment for sin, is clearly taught in Scripture. Using the following texts, indicate what you believe that punishment to be: Luke 16:22, 23; Matthew 25:41; Revelation 21:8.
7. Our human minds cannot conceive of what heaven—the reward of the righteous—will be like. From the description in Revelation 21:1–7, describe what you think it will be.
Memorize
It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment.
—Hebrews 9:27