The Great Deception

The last of seven articles, "Right At The Door"

No one likes the idea of discovering they have been deceived. That they have been misled, snookered, misguided. When I first came to understand rightly the beast of Revelation 13 and 17 it took me awhile to admit that I must let go of the belief system which I had been taught about a pre-tribulation rapture. It was years later that I came to understand that the whole concept of a Great Tribulation was a roadblock to understanding Revelation accurately. So I don’t expect many who hold to dispensational teaching to accept this concept of a great deception easily. That is why I moved this seventh article from its original spot at number one, so it would not be a complete roadblock to considering the other concepts. Go ahead and wrestle with putting all the pieces together. I did, for years.

In the nineteenth and twentieth centuries a great deception captured the “enlightened” minds of scientists and educators around the world – Darwin’s theory of evolution. In that same time frame another deception captured the minds and hearts of the church. And it is no small matter, considering the end to which it leads. It is the doctrine of the Great Tribulation, a seven year period of alluring calm and then cataclysmic judgment, preceding the Millenium. Once this new concept became a foregone presumption, the debate in America amongst churches and Christians has largely revolved around the timing of the rapture, whether it occurs before, after, or in the middle of the Tribulation. Historically, though, debate centered on the Millenium, whether Jesus would return before the 1000 year reign on earth, after it, or whether it is allegorical.

So why is this doctrine of the Great Tribulation important, other than to win an argument. The answer has to do with spiritual awareness, preparedness, alertness to what lies ahead in God’s plan. God said it himself, “Surely the Sovereign Lord does nothing without revealing his plan to his servants the prophets” (Amos 3:7). That is the key purpose of Revelation, stated in the preamble: “The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, who testifies to everything he saw – that is, the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ. Blessed is the one who reads the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near” ( Rev 1:1-3). Revelation is God’s prophetic dis-closure of the end times (and beyond), so his people can know, be prepared, and be overcomers.

Consider, though, that we who are spiritually minded don’t have a real good track record of understanding God’s prophecy. Think back to how effectively God’s people were prepared by the extensive prophecies of Christ’s first coming. Only a minuscule handful of people recognized the baby Jesus to be Messiah. Even when Jesus did signs and wonders in their midst, still they could not correlate the evidence and testimony with what the prophets had written.

The typical Christian who holds to a pre-tribulation rapture says this of Revelation, “I’m just glad that I’m not going to be here.” I wish I could have a dollar for every time I have heard that said. This subtle view might best be labeled escapism, and it stands in stark contrast to being prepared for great distress. Jesus spoke about the signs of his coming and of the end of the age in Matthew 24. He warned of deception (so great that it will deceive even the elect, if that were possible), persecution, turning away from faith, increase of wickedness, love which grows cold, and great distress. He did not say anything about escaping it.

Whether or not the dispensational view of the tribulation is accurate or a great deception, it would be very wise to know and understand from whence it derived. Agreed? John Darby came up with a new teaching of “end times”, ca 1830, the idea to separate the seventieth week of Daniel’s Messianic prophecy from the previous 69 weeks (Daniel 9:24-27). He came up with the novel idea of setting apart this seven year period to the end of the church age, a unique and theretofore undiscovered dispensation. C.I. Scofield picked up on Darby’s idea and popularized the new teaching in his famous “Scofield Reference Bible” notes, first published in America in 1909. Then Moody Bible Institute and Dallas Theological Seminary put this seed to the wind. Today you can hardly find historical premillenial teaching of the Bible in America. Rather, teaching about the end times centers around colorful, detailed charts of the “seven year tribulation”. Only problem is, it’s not in the Bible. But with all the charts, books, and teachers to propagate it, how would anyone know that?

One of the most important things we need to do is think for ourselves…Biblically think for ourselves. There are countless patterns in the American church community that we just follow, without even asking, “Is that the most Biblical way to do it?” We need to test our actions and our beliefs against Scripture, always. Is it really in The Book? If you were to just sit down, read, and study the Bible for yourself, asking the Holy Spirit to show you the truth, without anyone telling you what they think it means, would you come to the same conclusion? If given the opportunity for an accurate assessment, might you be surprised how many of your beliefs and actions are because someone said that to you?

Take a good look at Daniel 9:24-27 for yourself. The Messianic interpretation of Daniel’s great prophecy would suggest that the Anointed One, Messiah, who will be cut off sometime after the 69th week (9:26), by crucifixion, is the one who will confirm a covenant (9:27), the “new covenant”, and the same one who will bring an end to sacrifice in the middle of the seventieth week (9:27; cf Heb 10:1-18). Accordingly, the 70th week follows the 69th week, sequentially, and the middle of the seven years corresponds to the end of Jesus’ public ministry and his unimaginable crucifixion. If that is true, then this prophecy has nothing to do with an antichrist. But what is considered, historically, to be a grand Messianic prophecy, has been categorically transformed into the great prophecy of the Antichrist -- he being the one who would establish a covenant, with Israel for seven years, and in the middle of that period abruptly put an end to temple sacrifice. For those who want to wrestle with this very difficult passage to interpret, the big question centers on the pronoun, “he”, in verse 27. Does the pronoun refer back to the “anointed one” (9:26-27) or to the ruler who will come and destroy the city and the sanctuary (9:27; namely Titus, in 70 AD, who serves as an antitype of the antichrist)?

The biggest hurdle to letting go of the Great Tribulation is probably not wholly doctrinal, but emotional, as well. It’s scary, very scary -- the thought that I may not escape this time of great distress. I’ll admit that one myself. It’s also an uncomfortable step into ambiguity, like being cut loose from your mooring not knowing where the current will take you. Then there’s this hurdle -- admitting I allowed myself to be misled. Ouch! Some may even fear they are being tempted into heresy if they change what they believe. Yes, it’s life-altering in many ways. But don’t be ensnared by wishful thinking, holding onto beliefs because they might be pleasing to imagine instead of appealing to evidence, rationality or reality.

I hope you enjoy wrestling with God’s prophecy, seeking to understand the realities of the rapidly approaching end of the age. America has enjoyed incredible prosperity for over 100 years, and dominated the world scene unscathed since World War 2. And the church in America has been swept along by it. We have not suffered, we have not been persecuted. We have enjoyed freedoms and tax breaks the like of which the Church has never known. We have grown soft, and fallen into a spiritual stupor. That is not the church to which Jesus wants to return. He wants a very special bride. May we be prepared for hardship, and thereby become all the more anxious and ready for the Lord’s return.