This is going to be a little bit longer post than usual. Stick with me and I think it’ll make sense in the end. Well, I certainly hope so.

I’ve been teaching on the subject of eschatology for the past couple of weeks in the church I serve. It’s been really fun because it’s brought up some really good conversations after I’ve finished my teachings. I’ve had questions about the alleged “eschatological” Temple that according to some will be rebuilt before Jesus returns. There’s been questions about different books and teachers. But more than anything, there’s been discussion about the timing of Jesus’ return.

I think this is largely because I’ve been really emphasizing that the “Great Tribulation” was inaugurated when Jerusalem was surrounded and the Temple was destroyed (66-70AD) a number of years after Jesus was crucified. In fact, I’ve been stressing that the church is a “last days” people of God. In other words, we’ve been living in the “end times” since Jesus’ first coming. That’s an important concept when we’re thinking about how the kingdom of God is to be understood and when we realize that we are living in the last days.
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