Last week we covered the four cardinal points on the compass that will help us to navigate through these times, and to understand biblical prophecy. These four points are the basis for the paradigm that we construct for understanding the times, and preparing for them. Before we construct this paradigm, we need to understand a few more basic principles about where we are going with this, and what we are trying to accomplish in this study.

If we are going to do this study, we want it to be very serious, and I am going to address some things that you have possibly never heard before. We are not going to tackle any issues that are not addressed in the Scriptures. But to be straightforward with you now, my perspective on many of these are different from any that I have ever heard or read anywhere else. Therefore, I want to be even more comprehensive in explaining how I came to these positions.

Also, I am sharing with you some basic principles that I have learned after many years of study. Even so, in most cases the final result of this study will be to come to some general conclusions, not absolutes. These general understandings can help us immensely in the times ahead, but they will not answer all of our questions, and maybe not even some of the biggest ones.

We can come up with conclusions to some of these, but I believe we are dependent on the timing of the Lord to reveal them if we want the truth. As Paul Cain once said to me, “Most heresies are the result of men trying to carry to logical conclusions that which God has only revealed in part.” I think this is a profound truth which has a great deal of historical evidence to back it up. We do not want to go beyond what the Lord has revealed at this time, and will therefore possibly be left with more questions than answers in some areas.

Stirring up more questions than answers is actually one of my purposes for this study. There is another great spiritual law I am hoping to bring into play with this—If we seek, we will find. I have sought long and hard for some understanding, and believe that I have been given some. However, if we all “see in part,” and “know in part,” I am trusting that this study will stir some of you to seek answers to some of these important questions which no one has been given yet.

You may wonder if that could possibly be true. Yes. The Scriptures confirms that it can. Consider this from Daniel 12:1-4:

The understanding of Daniel’s visions was to be sealed up “until the end of time.” Actually the word “time” is not found in the original text, and this would be translated more accurately “until the end,” assuming the end of the age. That understanding seems to be given in these things now as a sign that we have indeed come to the end of this age. As Daniel was also told, this would be marked by many traveling back and forth, and knowledge increasing—two of the greatest hallmarks of our time.

It is time to understand these prophecies, and those who seek will find. Though I think we will come to some very clear conclusions, one of the most important purposes of this study is not to just give answers, but to stir up seeking hearts.

For this reason you may need to brace yourself for some answers that may be very different from any that you have heard before. So that you are not overly shocked by some of these, let me tell you my general perspective on this subject.

I have studied in some depth almost every view on the subject of eschatology. My conclusions are that there is some merit to every perspective that I have studied, and to date I do not remember studying anyone’s material on this without learning some things. I realize that there are teachings on this subject that are in basic conflict with other teachings on the matter, but I have a respect for them all, and think there is at least some merit to all of them. It is not my purpose to debunk any perspective, but rather to “examine everything carefully;” and hold fast to what is good.”

I also think that because we “know in part” it is a mistake for anyone to think that their part is the whole picture, and many have made this mistake. Even if at the conclusion of this study we think that we know more on the subject than others may at this time, this is no reason to become arrogant. This very thing has caused some to become dogmatic and inflexible about things that I do not believe merit this, and has blinded them to seeing other parts to this which they need to make a complete picture.

In my opinion, I have never studied a single eschatology that I felt was even close to a complete picture of this subject. The more any study claimed to be complete, or the final position on a matter, the more it seemed to be filled with contradictions, or even in conflict with other Scriptures on the subject. This mentality of thinking we have the whole when the very Word itself says we all “know in part,” will set us up for deception regardless of how much we learn.

I am not claiming to have the complete picture on this subject, but that is honestly my pursuit. I know that it will not all come through me. Even so, I want to understand all on this subject that God will allow. We are told repeatedly that “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble” (James 4:6). Therefore, we want to gain knowledge from this study, while resisting the spiritual pride that would make us think we know all there is on what we are going to cover, or that would make us resist correction from those who hold to other views.

Now let’s look at a few of the most basic basics on this subject. If you will, these are like the fluid in the compass that allows it to turn and keep pointing in the right direction even when we turn and may get off course for awhile.

Principle #1: There is a difference between principles and laws. There are exceptions to principles, but laws are consistent. What we are doing here is establishing principles for interpreting biblical prophecy, not laws. There may be exceptions to all of these principles.

Principle #2: God purposely made biblical prophecy ambiguous, and only established principles for understanding them rather than laws because He does not want them to be easily understood. They are for earnest seekers of truth who also maintain the fruit of the Spirit and the humility that He can give His grace to.

Principle #3: Biblical prophecy is not given for the evangelism of the lost, but for the guidance of believers. To unbelievers these are going to seem foolish because the Holy Spirit can only understand them. There will be a tendency to bend or add to the prophecies to make them more specific and understandable if we try to use them for this purpose, which is a mistake.

As a counter to this last principle, some may bring up the fact that multitudes of people have been converted after reading books on eschatology, or even novels that promote a certain view. Though I will rejoice in whatever way someone comes to a saving faith in Jesus, no one can really do this unless the Holy Spirit is drawing them. If the Holy Spirit is drawing someone they are going to come almost regardless of what we say.

As a new believer, I led many people to the Lord while telling them things that I later found out to be wrong. However, what I told them about the atonement of the cross for the forgiveness of their sins, and the Lordship of Jesus, was accurate even if some of the things that I used to get their attention on Him proved later not to be.

Now, even though we can expect there to be exceptions to these principles, they are not only useful and helpful, but essential in laying a foundational understanding of biblical prophecy. Of course, the Lord could have laid out plainly some absolute laws to prophetic interpretation that would have made it much easier. But as we stated in Principle #2, God does not want them easily understood. If we are going to grow in the knowledge of what He is doing, we are going to have to also grow in His character and nature. Therefore, what we are studying is meant to change us, and even increase our humility and dependency on the Holy Spirit.

Even so, our goal is to seek clarity and depth of understanding on the things that we learn. We should be able to grow in confidence, while maintaining a teachable spirit. We want the parts that we add to our map of the coming times to have substance before we agree to use them. Then we want them to fit together correctly so that this map takes shape, and our confidence grows in how we are applying it to our life.

If I was about to sail across a sea that I had never sailed before, and I had been given a number of maps of this sea by others who had sailed it, and they all seemed to be very different from each other, even in conflict with each other, the first thing I would do is try to find any points of agreement on them. That is what I have personally done in my studies of eschatology. Even though some eschatologies are in basic conflict with other views, there are amazingly some points of agreement that can be found. This does not alone give them complete merit, but it does give them some, and should get our attention.

One thing I found was that those who had at least a general knowledge of history would agree on many more things than those who seemed to have little or no knowledge of history. This caused me to study history to ascertain many of these things, which I have been doing now for almost thirty years. The end result has been that my own present eschatological view is a combination of the historical and futuristic views. I did find that there are ways to combine them in which they do not always conflict with each other. More importantly, they do not conflict with the Scriptures, which taking one or the other of these views seems to always do in at least some ways.

Even so, as stated, my perspective on this whole subject is different than any I have ever read or studied because of this. Therefore, I think if anyone does this study with us with the intention of just having their understanding of a popular eschatology confirmed, then they will almost certainly be disappointed. If you are afraid to look at things from a different perspective, you should not go any further. You should not do anything that you cannot do in faith, and for some, this kind of study is not what they need in their life at this time. You will know when it is right to pursue it, if ever.

Everyone does not need to know many of the things that we are about to study. The main thing in our life is to abide in Christ day by day. If you are abiding in Him, you will be in the right place, doing the right thing, regardless of whether you understand all of these things are not. We are supposed to be on the path of life. If this study does not give you life at this time, use your time to study what does.

Also, by using the “four cardinal points” that we will use in this study, I am not implying that there are not other ways to view the times, biblical prophecy, or what we should be doing to prepare for them. As stated previously, there are many other “points of view” just as there are many other degrees on a compass. Though it is my opinion that the points we are using as the “cardinal points” are the four most important, there is no question that other outstanding teachers of Bible prophecy would dispute some or all of my main points, and interject others in their place. I think we should leave open the possibility that they are right on some, and maybe even all of them, but for this study these are the ones we shall use, while always keeping an openness to the views of others. Again, one thing we know is that we all “know in part,” so we therefore expect others to have parts to this picture that we do not have.

Even so, we are this week going to set a course for our future study so that we can examine the biblical prophecies of our times with some depth. We will start with our cardinal point one: Seeking first to understand what God is doing, not the devil. This is our spiritual “magnetic north” from which all of our other points on the compass are determined in relation to biblical prophecy. To be sure that we know clearly where this is, we will review the entire plan of God in next week’s study, which we will actually do in a few brief paragraphs. Once we have a clear picture of where we are going, we will then seek each week to add something to the map that gives us increasing clarity about where we are, and where we need to go next to get to the final destination—doing the will of God in our time.