My Quick Thoughts on ‘Rapture’ and Our Real Eschatology

I, following the work of NT Wright, have entirely unique views of the events in Revelation. And it is more in line with the “Post-Millennial” school and with the Authenticity of the New Testament…

I, following the work of NT Wright, have entirely unique views of the events in Revelation. And it is more in line with the “Post-Millennial” school and with the Authenticity of the New Testament as intended by First Century Christians.

“The Heavens and Earth shall pass away” means more that the earth and its face Will dramatically alter; read not that it will burn up in a fire ball. And also know that Revelation mostly took place in the immediate future of when it was written, such that the sufferings and arrival of Satan and the Beast was alluding to Nero, persecuting Christianity in Roman times, and the destruction of the Second Jewish temple in 70AD. The events ‘in heaven’ in the book of Revelation take place on the Earth: as in, “on Earth as in Heaven.”

What NT Wright highlights is that people won’t be beamed up to either heaven or hell, but rather resurrected to live an eternal life on a newly recovered Earth, actually in ‘the New Jerusalem.’ A city which is essentially laid out architecturally and in conception in Revelation (having twelve gates, high walls of special stone, the tree of life, permanent light and so on and so on). So what matters is life after life after death.

All this nonsense of blue beams of light taking us up into the clouds to live in the clouds as a spirit is 19th century Liberal Christian misgivings. They were influenced by  Platonism, and Epicureanism (the corruption of this world and this life), as well as Medieval authors like Dante who invented fictional eschatological end-destinations. Actually the bible is quite scant on ‘Raptures’ bullet points. I think “The living and the resurrected dead will be caught up together in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air (1 Thessalonians 4:17)” Is one of the few instances relating stereotypical ideas of Rapture. But why again would this mean you sit in the clouds playing a harp, forever. NT holds that it could simply be a resting place/phase for the soul before being resurrected proper.

It’s much more evident in reading Revelation with the Post-Millennialist framework that the Earth is meant to get better and better, then, those in Christ will resurrect to live in the New Jerusalem. It’s even hard for me to say definitely who will go to hell as it just says “those written in the Book of Life” will essentially be chosen. But nobody knows who’s in the Book but Christ himself.

I think in terms of ‘burning’ the chaff (unsaved souls) would be burned up immediately and once and for all-rather than burning over and over for eternity in a lake of fire which would just be ridiculously gratuitous. And then is it only the wicked who even suffer this quickened burning, such that their substance is simply annihilated for eternity once and for all.

Finally I believe that God does not ‘need’ people for any purposes outside himself- he is radically omnipotent in every way. But he creates us out of an act of pure love, and here’s the most important part. We were created with the sole purpose of Worshipping him, worshiping Christ. Wherein we act as priests in a priesthood who were designed explicitly to worship our God, (which means faith in Christ and being-in Christ). Entailing somewhat also good works which can mean our daily careers or endeavours which are good in the sight of God. But note that we will not be judged by our works. It’s more that works are an outgrowth of faith. But again driving to a 9-5 job is rightly considered works. It doesn’t all have to be acts of charity or saving the world.

Hope this helps you see things as I grasp them. It’s an unfolding mystery that we will never finish contemplating.

But more importantly you don’t have to grasp the whole mystery in order to be saved. For that you simply need faith and love of Christ.

God bless, - Greg