As the student of Scripture reads the Bible’s predictions of the end of human history, they often wonder if these pictures about the future are feasible or absurd—especially when this subject has been surrounded by so much fanaticism and wild speculation. From Edgar Whisenant’s 88 Reasons Why the Rapture is in 1988 to Harold Camping’s repeated false predictions of the rapture, the faithful student of Scripture can easily fall into cynicism regarding the Bible’s predictions of the end of human history.
However, if careful students of Scripture surrender this subject to the fanatics, then the fanatics would have successfully accomplished their purpose: rendering God’s predictions of the future useless or absurd. Moreover, if we surrender every area of theology that has been misused by a heretic, then we would be forced to abandon the Bible altogether!
Jesus himself taught that no one can know the exact time of his return (Mt. 24:36). However, the Bible does offer a global picture regarding the end of history, giving us a general time for the return of Christ. For years, critics of the Bible scoffed at this picture. However, in recent years, we see that the Bible’s global scenario is quickly coming into focus—just as the Bible predicted millennia ago.