Synopsis "The Sum of All Ages: A Biblical History of Mankind"
In this narrative we lay out the groundwork for a detailed study of the sum of all ages in four sections: Eternity Past, Ages Past, Present Age, and Eternity Future. We shall start at the beginning-before time as we know it to set the stage of God's creation of this planet, which we call Earth. Our theme is prophecy! Prophecy is history written in advance. Prophecy's accuracy hinges upon the dependency of the One who is history-that person is Jesus Christ. Bible prophecy is God's description of future events (Acts 15:18). God's Word contains 10,385 predictions. Each one has been or will be fulfilled in the minutest of detail. God's Word has proven itself by not failing even in one small point concerning Christ's First Advent. Prophecy concerning the Second Coming is also being fulfilled leading up to the end of this age, and skeptics must forever admit they failed to believe the Son of the Living God (Rom. 3:4). He will come again (Acts 1:11). Must one reject Christ's salvation and forever exist in the torture of the eternal judgment? No other religion but Christianity has written prophecies that have been fulfilled during our lifetime. There is only one prophecy remaining on the timeline of the ages before the Son of God-Jesus Christ returns to this earth as he prophesied; the rapture of the Church, which signals Seven-year tribulation and the race to judgment of the world. Prophecy is the theme of the Old Testament, and the key to all the promises of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Prophecy has been neglected by many preaching pastors, and the congregations are milk-fed and immature in the Word of God. God is the author of prophecy. He is the creator of all things past, present, and future, the first and the last, and there is no other God in the universe, because He created everything. He holds the world in his hands and controls our next breath. Regarding the Christian dead, the Bible teaches that the body is asleep in one place (the grave) whereas the soul is alive in another place (heaven). To be "absent from the body" is to be present with the Lord (2 Cor. 5:8). When Christ returns at the Rapture, he brings those that sleep (are dead) with Him (1 Thess. 4:14). You ask, How can He bring the dead with Him and still come for the dead (cf. 1 Thess. 4:16)? The souls and spirits are with the Lord, but the bodies are in the grave of the earth. That's why Christ brings the "dead" (souls and spirits) with Him so they may be reunited with their bodies. That is why the dead in Christ rise first. With all the information that now hides in the shadows of our minds revealing why and how the Lord will return for the Church, His Appearing is still clueless for most Christians. Even the New Testament writers expected the Lord's return at any moment (Phil. 3:20). All signs of the Lord's return have to do with the coming of Christ to set up his Kingdom on Earth (The Millennium). The end-time signs are only indicators of the approaching Rapture, because this event precedes the establishment of the Kingdom by seven years: the Tribulation, Daniel's 70th week of years. What relationship exists between the Rapture and prophetic signs? None! The Rapture is a "blinking of the eye" and the Church is evacuated before the great judgment of the Tribulation hour, which is all about Israel! There are two "appearing" of Christ at the Second Coming. Christ "snatches" (rapture) out the Church before the Tribulation (His Appearing) and meets His Bride (Church) in the heavens. Christ returns as the roaring Lion of Judah (His Revelation) at the time of Armageddon (His Revelation). Of course, there are many views about tribulation, the millennium, rapture and the Second Coming. We shall deal with all these questions here in this narrative.
