I have not kept it secret by any stretch of the imagination that I have changed my theological views drastically over the years, particularly over the two decades. One of the areas that was impacted the most in my early twenties was the area of eschatology. Was there such a thing as a Pre-Tribulation rapture? Was Christ's kingdom going to be a literal, physical kingdom that we had to wait for? Was there any point in polishing the brass on the Titanic if it's going to sink anyway?
For clarity, that last sentence is an analogy for whether or not the church should even bother trying to transform the world if it's doomed to failure anyway. A common theme amongst many prominent Dispensationalists.
This time of year, we often sing the hymn "Joy to the World", which has anything but a defeatist attitude towards the Kingdom of Christ and the reign of Christ over the earth. Why? Didn't Isaac Watts understand how hopeless things were until Christ returned? Fortunately, Watts lived at such a time when this view of history and the idea of a secret rapture as an escape hatch to avoid dealing with the world didn't exist. So, what did men like Watts believe? In order to understand why Watts had such an optimistic outlook, there is one place we need to look and one place only: the holy scriptures themselves. What did Christ actually teach about His own kingdom? What prophetic statements are made about Kingdom of God that we can hold to. Is there a reason to be optimistic about any of it?
Today's lesson examines just that. Yet, with as much scripture and as much ground as I tried to cover, there is still much to say about the subject, but I did my best to lay out the fundamental principles for why the beliver should have an optimistic outlook on the Kingdom and why that hope should spur us on in our fulfillment of the great commission.
