My question is, how many of you that are predicting this now, also were of the same mindset at that time? If so, when it didn't happen how did you feel about it and how did your churches explain the situation to the congregation? "Whoops, we were a little off on that one".
Ironically, most of the churches that I've been a member of, have been "Pre-Trib." Thus, most of the pastors' views have been, "We don't have to worry about all that stuff that will happen during the Tribulation, we won't be here." I am not "Pre-Trib", based on my own study a am more "Post-Trib" or possibly "Pre-Wrath" (depending on one's definition of said "Wrath"). However, that is a discussion that would be sure to derail the thread, but I'd be happy to discuss via PM's or another thread as to why.
I have heard of churches that were looking for the 2nd coming at Y2K and even read at least some of the arguments "why", the main one being that since there were 6 days of creation and "one day is as a 1000 years, and 1000 years is as one day to God" that equates to 6000 years from the Garden of Eden to "the End". Basically this can be divided into three 2000 year blocks: The Garden of Eden to Abraham ("The Age of Creation/The Flood"), Abraham (and the Abrahamic Covenant, which is the beginning of "Israel") to Jesus ("The Age of Israel") and finally from Jesus to the Millenium ("The Church Age"); these 3 ages will be followed by one final 1000 year period "the Millenium" where Jesus reigns as King on earth while Satan is "locked up in the Abyss" (with a final battle with Satan at the end of the 1000 years when Satan is released from the Abyss.)
While all of this isn't something I disagree with, the churches that taught Y2K was the "end of the Church Age" made some mistakes. Mistakes that I (and others) recognized and understood at the time. So, no I wasn't "prepping" for the end of the world at Y2K, neither were the vast majority of Christians I knew at the time. The problem (which again I saw at the time) is that they were basing their calculations based on man's reckoning of years, not God's, and they also made a couple of assumptions:
- They assumed the "Church Age" began with Jesus's birth. My belief is that the Church Age, the Age of Grace began when Jesus paid for our sins at the cross, died and rose alive 3 days later. (Resurrection Sunday). This would put "the end" somewhere around 2033, not 2000. Another point is that Biblical Historians have calculated that Jesus was not born "year 0" but somewhere between 3 and 7 BC. The Bible doesn't say how old Jesus was when He began His ministry on earth, or how old He was when He died and resurrected. According to historians (both secular and Biblical) this happened in either AD 32 or 33; if Jesus was actually born 7 BC that would make Him 40 years old at the cross (using 33 AD); the number 40 has a lot of Biblical significance and is often related to "trials": 40 years in the desert by Israel after the Exodus; 40 days of fasting by Moses and Jesus.
- They assumed that man's calculation of years is the same as God's. We're basing ours off of our understanding of our planet's movement in the solar system; God is basing His off of His perfect knowledge. I'm not saying there's a huge discrepancy, but we're likely to be off a year or two (either direction).
There have also been other "leaders" and books written that attempted to use various methods to say "here's when the Tribulation will begin". As far as I know, none of these have been adopted by, nor followed by "mainstream" Christian churches.
I am basing my assumption that we are fast approaching those times based on what is going on around me. The darkness that is falling upon the earth and people all over the earth looking for
someone for
anyone to stand up and "save them." In other words, the world is looking for a messiah, but having rejected the one true Messiah (Jesus) the only one they'll get is Satan's counterfeit: the Antichrist.
How will we truly know who the Antichrist is, how will we know that the final 7 year "Tribulation" has begun? We won't, not until the Antichrist steps into a newly rebuilt Jewish temple and proclaims that he (the Antichrist) is God.
"The man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, displaying himself as being God." - 2nd Thessalonians 2:3-4
This verse tells us that this is how the Antichrist (the man of lawlessness) is revealed: he sits in the "holy of holies", the innermost chamber of the Jewish temple where only the High Priest of Israel and God Himself are allowed. (God will not actually "honor" this temple, so nobody would be "struck dead" for entering the Holy of Holies as was the case during Old Testament times.
What are believers to do when we see this happen?
"Therefore, when you see the abomination of desolation which was spoken of through Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place—let the reader understand— then those who are in Judea must flee to the mountains. Whoever is on the housetop must not go down to get things out of his house. And whoever is in the field must not turn back to get his cloak."
Leave, immediately, head for the hills, wilderness, anywhere out of the cities. Grab your SHTF bag and go.
"And when the dragon saw that he was thrown down to the earth, he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male
Child. But the two wings of the great eagle were given to the woman, so that she could fly into the
wilderness to her place, where she was nourished for a time, times, and half a time, away from the presence of the serpent." - Revelation 12:13-14
I could be wrong in my interpretations here, but logically (and historically) the most likely place to "survive" is outside of the cities, in small communities of like-minded people "out in the woods."
