Cornerstone Class Outline for 2/24/19
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Announcements,
praises and prayer requests—Joe Kerns
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Good morning!
§ In a week or two we’ll be done with 2 Thessalonians.
I’m leaning towards doing the book of Hebrews next. Any thoughts on that?
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Here’s a handout
that shows three common views of the rapture, the Great Tribulation and the
second coming of Christ
§ All three views reflect a premillennial position,
which is the most common viewpoint among evangelical Christians.
§ This handout shows the “what” but not “why” of these
viewpoints, so it will probably raise more questions than it answers
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This morning
we’ll be studying 2 Thessalonians 2, which has to do with end-times theology.
I’d like to begin with a quote by Dallas Theological Seminary professor Robert
P. Lightner:
“…those classified as evangelical (conservative,
orthodox, or fundamental) have a great deal in common as they embrace the
historic Christian faith. Yet they battle fiercely with each other over things
to come. While they stand united when it comes to the great truths of the
historic Christian faith, they are sorely divided in their understanding of
God’s plan for the future…. We evangelicals simply have too much in common to
lose to the opposition because of our differences in eschatology. If we are not
careful, we may lose the battle for the faith while we win a few skirmishes
over eschatology.”
§ It’s worth noting that this cautionary quote is from
Dr. Lightner’s book, The Last Days
Handbook, which covers several different views of end-times theology
§ So, despite his caution, Dr. Lightner still believes
Christians should seek an understanding of Bible prophecy. After all, he wrote
a book about it.
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QUESTION: Do you
think it’s important to understand Bible prophesy? Why or why not?
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For those who
think Bible prophesy is unimportant, hang in there, because that’s what we’re
tackling this morning.
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Let’s read 2
Thessalonians 2:1-4 NIV:
“1 Concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and
our being gathered to him, we ask you, brothers and sisters, 2 not to become
easily unsettled or alarmed by the teaching allegedly from us—whether by a
prophecy or by word of mouth or by letter—asserting that the day of the Lord
has already come. 3 Don’t let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day will
not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the
man doomed to destruction. 4 He will oppose and will exalt himself over
everything that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sets himself up in
God’s temple, proclaiming himself to be God.”
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I need to confess
that I was an English major, not a math major. A lot of Bible prophecy requires
a good deal of calculation, etc. in order to come up with things like a
“7-year” tribulation.
§ Since I’m bad at math, you are more than welcome to
figure this out on your own.
§ Read Daniel 9:24-27 and Revelation 13 for details
about why the tribulation is perhaps 7 years.
· While looking at
your handout and 2 Thes. 2 1-4, let’s quickly cover the three views of the
rapture:
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In v. 1, those
who hold to the pretribulation rapture
see the phrase “our being gathered to him” as the rapture
§ Then, in verse two, they see “the day of the Lord” as
beginning immediately after the rapture.
§ Here’s another quote by J. Vernon McGee, who is a
pretrib advocate: “The Day of the Lord is a technical phrase that speaks of the
period beginning with the Great Tribulation and continuing through the
Millennium. It is a day that begins with judgment.”
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The posttribulation rapture folks see v. 1
“our being gathered to him” as both the rapture and the second coming.
§ They believe Christians will rise to meet the Lord in
the air, but then we will reverse course and come back down to earth with the
Lord.
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The midtribulation rapture would occur 3 ½
years into the Great Tribulation.
§ These folks hope to escape the worst part of the
Tribulation, the last 3 ½ years, when the full wrath of the Anti-Christ comes
out.
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QUESTIONS on 2:1-4
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Do any of you
hold to any one of these three views? If not, do you hold to a different view
of Christ’s second coming?
§ If appropriate, share your (Tom’s) view.
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The Thessalonians
had received false information that the day of the Lord had already come. But
Paul says in verse 3 that two things have to occur first. What are these two
things?
§ The rebellion must occur
§ The man of lawlessness is revealed
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Who is the “man
of lawlessness”?
§ I think the man of lawlessness is also known as the
Anti-Christ (1 John 2:18) and the Beast (Rev. 13).
§ Jesus spoke of “the abomination that causes
desolation” standing in the holy place. (Mat. 24:15, also mentioned in Daniel
9:27).
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Verse 4 says the
man of lawlessness will set himself up in God’s temple and claim to be God.
Scholars differ about just what this temple is. What do you think this temple
is?
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If this refers to
the Jewish temple in Jerusalem, then what is the fate of the current Dome of
the Rock?
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Application/Conclusion
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Closing prayer
