prophesied about these men also saying, Behold, the Lord comes with 10,000 of his saints, or his holy ones, to execute judgment on all, to convict all who are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have committed in an ungodly way and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against him. And we saw this, and there seemed to be some interest in eschatology, so we have, we're in the middle of a little excursus on eschatology, you know, the second coming, last things, those kinds of topics. And we began some a quick view of comparing premillennialism, amillennialism, and postmillennialism. And I'm assuming by now you know what those views are, so we don't need to spend a few minutes we have just in reviewing what those views are. But the point is for us to use the same methodology we used when we had the class in church government, and that is to say what's out there and which one fits the biblical data. And the reason we're doing that rather than just a pure inductive reason, you know, look at the data and then try to draw conclusions alone from that, is because we have to see who we are and where we are historically and contextually. The gospel does not begin with us. It's been around for a number of years. And the church has been around for a number of years. And we need to remember that we are people who we are. So we're going to use a methodology that kind of mixes those two approaches. So just as we did with the church government, we're doing that here. And as the discussion evolved here in the class, some people wanted to do a little bit more. So we talked a little bit about what the scriptures teach about the phrase, the last days. And we started to look at that. And what we're going to do is see how the New Testament uses that phrase. And I have a number of places that we can look at and see how the New Testament uses the phrase, or the term, and then look at a couple Old Testament ones, and we'll notice that the nature of some of the New Testament understanding of the last days, and some of the Old Testament, seem to contradict each other, and we have to ask the question, why? Why are these approaches differently, or so different? And I think we're gonna come up with an answer, as we're going to draw from Scripture, what Scripture teaches. We need to make sure we do exegesis and not eisegesis. Right? Okay. So what's the difference between exegesis and eisegesis? What does exegesis mean? What is ex? Out of. So we want to get the meaning of the text out of the text. Okay. What is eisegesis? into, we wanna read our own meanings and our understandings into the text. The second one is not good, right? Okay, what they're really saying, we are sovereign rather than scripture and our interpretation is what counts. Okay, rather we want to get the understanding into our exegesis. So we begin with this section on the phrase of the last days or the last times, and we looked at Acts 2, so let's quickly go there. And Acts 2 is what event historically in the church? Pentecost, right? So when we look at our timeline, okay? So somebody asked me what the C stands for here and what the J stands for there. What is the C on our timeline? Creation. It's not Christ. It's not when Christ came, it's creation, okay? And then we have the J is? the Judgment Day. And so this is the coming of Christ right there. So we can do an X or we can do a T. And somebody asked, what's the X for? The X is really a Chi. It's the beginning of the name Christos. It's a CH sound in Greek. And sometimes people would use a T, which really is a cross. That's when Christ died. And so we have Pentecost, which is right here historically. And we see that Peter on this day, He, the question is what's going on as these people are speaking in tongues. And everybody's hearing the gospel in their own language. And what we don't know is, you know, is somebody speaking. Any of you here speak more than one language? Okay. Right. So Brother Edgar there who speaks English and Spanish quite fluently. You used to speak Latin. Okay, good. So the question is, would Edgar be up there if Edgar were back then? Would Edgar be talking in whatever the language was and everybody was hearing it themselves? Or would there be Edgar and then standing next to Edgar would be Daphne, you know, and Edgar would be speaking in Spanish and Daphne would be speaking in Latin and there would be Ray over there speaking in English, right? So the question is, would it actually happen? And the answer is, we don't know, okay? But we need to know that some people seem to say, oh, look at the one, they were speaking one language and everybody was hearing it in their own. That doesn't seem to be what the text says. The text seems to be really saying that people were speaking different languages. Okay, but the question is, what's going on? And the accusation was, these guys are drunk. It's a pretty common accusation. And Peter says, in verse 14 of Acts 2, stands up and raises his voice and says, men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you and hear my words, for these are not drunk as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day. So that makes it around nine o'clock in the morning. But that which is spoken, but this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel. So Peter says, what's going on right here is a fulfillment of what Joel said back here. Now that's important. What's going on here is what Joel said. So when we ask the question, what is the term last days, last things, latter days, that kind of terminology, what does it mean? We have to notice that Peter says what happened there is a fulfillment of what Joel said. And then He says, And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God, that I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your young men shall see visions, your old men shall dream dreams, and of My men servants and of My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days, and they shall prophesy. But I will show wonders in heaven above and signs in the earth beneath, blood and fire and vapor and smoke. The sun shall be turned into darkness, the moon into blood, before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord, and it shall come to pass that whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. So Peter says, what's going on right now, meaning right here, is the fulfillment of Joel's prophecy that this is gonna happen in the last days. Now we saw when we looked at Joel, that Joel doesn't actually use the term the last days. Yeah, it's way too loud, isn't it? That's a C. That's a J-O-E-L. That's an arrow that goes like this. Okay. That's fine. I'm expressive too. Okay. That's an X and this is a J. Okay, I still remember the time I corrected my Greek spelling. I mean, how embarrassing that was. And the really embarrassing part is he was right and I was wrong. Okay, so Peter says what Joel prophesied is being fulfilled right now. And it's the last days. In the last days, these things are gonna happen. God says, I'm gonna pour out my spirit on all kinds of people. Males, females, young, and all kinds of white people. My spirit's gonna be poured upon them. And then there's gonna be this horrible judgment of the sun and the moon's gonna be turned to blood and everything else. And in the middle of all that, whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved, right? That's what he says. So did Peter think that Jesus' second coming was gonna be right here, historically? Doesn't seem to say that, right? When did Peter think the second coming was gonna be? We don't know. Scripture doesn't tell us. But it does tell us that Peter said this was the last days. The beginning of the last days, really, if we look at what's going on. So the last days are continuing on. That's the beginning of the last days. Now, one of the characteristics of the last days is this phrase at the end, whoever calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. Is that true then? Is it true here? Is it true here? Is it true here? Is it true here? That's the general characteristic of this phrase. Now, of course, that's true back here too, but that seems to be one of the interesting things that in the middle of all of this, what's going on, whoever will call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. That's characteristic of the last days. 1 Timothy chapter 4. Now, if you're a Seventh-day Adventist, you don't like this verse, or this passage. I'm quite serious. A friend of mine once told a guy I was talking with that Seventh-day Adventists don't preach out of this passage. See if you can figure out why. Now the Spirit explicitly says that in the latter times, here's the phrase, latter times rather than last days, okay, latter times, some will depart from the faith giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons. Strong language. This false doctrine that Paul's gonna talk about is a doctrine of demons. Ooh. Okay, remember we talked about the unforgivable sin and things like that, okay? Certain things are bad, not? Speaking lies and hypocrisy, having their own conscience seared with a hot iron, forbidding to marry, commanding to abstain from foods which God created to be received with thanksgiving to those who believe and know the truth. For every creature of God is good, and nothing is to be refused if it is received with thanksgiving, for it is sanctified by the word of God in prayer. Now, why does Seventh-day Adventist not like this passage? Because they're vegetarians, right? This says you can have a BLT. Now, what I had for breakfast today, some of you may not like, but it's a New Covenant meal. I had Spam and eggs. That's a New Covenant breakfast, right? I didn't hear any amens. You don't like spam and eggs? It's pork. The point is, what's gonna happen in these latter days that Paul says? People are gonna teach these doctrines of demons, right? And what's the doctrine of demons? You can't eat certain food, you shouldn't be getting married, all these kinds of things, right? When is that gonna happen? Who wrote the letter? Let's ask those kind of questions. Who wrote the letter? To whom did he write the letter? What was Timothy's job? He was a pastor where? At Ephesus, yeah. Now, is this relevant to Timothy's time back here? Or is this only relevant to this time right here just before the second coming? Well, the Spirit specifically says that in latter days, the latter days, these things are gonna be happening. Paul is telling Timothy, so Timothy will be a better pastor for those people, right? Be prepared. Don't get blindsided. You're a shepherd for God's people. During this last period, and here's when it was written, to Timothy back here, and it seems to be a general characteristic of the whole period, rather than just the period right here. Y'all agree? Otherwise, it's useless instruction to Timothy. Let's turn over a couple pages to 2 Timothy. You like that one better? That's better. You like that one better? That's better. That's better? OK. That was one that used to be the phone ring for Diane, that she said, no, no, no. OK. That was. She's not here. She's out trying to fix it out. OK. Just a little bit of Second Timothy 3. OK? Just a little bit. Because it's lunchtime, and the teenagers will rise up and thump on me if we take too much time. OK? 2 Timothy 3, but know this, that in the last days, perilous times will come. The last days, perilous times will come. For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power, and from such people turn away. For of this sort are those who creep into households and make captives of gullible women loaded down with sins, led away by various lusts, always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. Now as Janus and Jambres resisted Moses, so do these also resist the truth, men of corrupt minds disapproved concerning the flesh, for they will progress no further, for their folly will be manifest to all as theirs also was. Now, you see all this list of really nasty behavior traits? It's really nasty stuff. When is that gonna occur according to Paul? In the last days. Now, you can see, can you not? Somebody's saying, that's talking about the time just before Jesus comes again, it's gonna be really bad. Now, let me ask you a question. Is it that way now? Was it that way 10 years ago? Was it that way 100 years ago? How about during the Reformation? Okay, okay. So let me ask you this, when during this period, to wherever we are today, has it not been that way? It hasn't, right? That's Paul's point. That's a general description of the last days. That's this whole period. Again, when was this written? Right back in here, Paul talking to Timothy, pastor, how he can be a better pastor. Timothy, don't be blindsided. During the last days, things are gonna be bad. Any questions on those so far? We got a whole bunch of other ones. Yes. Yep. No, I think rather that this was true back in these days too. So the question is, why is Paul bringing it up in second in first Timothy four one and second Timothy Three, why does he bring it up and say, this is the characteristic of this period, right? That's your question. Okay, who's got an answer? Yeah. Very good. This is like two Sundays in a row, this woman come up with good theology answers. I'm impressed. Exactly. Because when we look at the Old Testament prophecies of the last days, things are going to be great. That's the point. Because we've got to put all the data together, don't we? What did the apostles say to Jesus just before he goes up? Is now the time you're gonna restore the kingdom? They still missed it, didn't they? And what did Jesus say? Don't worry about it, just go out and be a missionary, right? Preach the gospel, okay? That's the point. And I think that when we look at the prophecies of the last days in the Old Testament, and we bring those together with the statements of the description of the last days of the New Testament, what we have to see is the great thing, and now I'm giving the next week's lesson, the great thing that was prophesied here is something we don't realize because we're right in the middle of it. Right? Familiarity breeds contempt. Shakespeare said it and he's right. What is the great thing from the Old Testament? All kinds of people are going to worship the true God. All kinds of people, like the water covers the sea. Now, how many of you people here are converted Jews? Raise your hand. Don't see any hands. Do you see how that's the fulfillment of this prophecy back here of the last days? We're in the middle of this, and we don't realize how great it is and what great things we have. And that, when we look at that Old Testament, and we bring the New Testament data together, we're going to see what it is and what's going on. And you're exactly right. OK? Yes? It occurs to me that no one knows the date of any hour of the week and night. and so it's not gonna be any specific thing, it's a thought, kind of like you're saying. Told you all the time. So you mean Harold Campion was wrong when he told us today? Yeah, he was, unfortunately. And God's name was dragged through the mud, was it not? What a shame, right? He used to be a wonderful preacher. Yeah, John. So would it be your opinion then? My opinion doesn't count. going to be great and wonderful, the last days that they were speaking about really is after the final judgment. No, no, it's this period here. I think it's this period here. That's right, because we have all kinds of people that worship the true God. How many people are believers today? The answer is, I don't know, but there's at least millions, right? Okay, how many people have been saved since the time of the Lord coming to today? I don't know, but at least millions, right? Now you compare that to back here. What was the statement to encourage Elijah? There are 7,000 that have not bowed in need of Baal. That was a big deal, Elijah. Look at where we are today. Okay, that's my point. Familiarity breeds content. We don't know how great it is and the great work that God has done, okay? But in the middle of all that, we're going to see, it's going to be the description of sin. We're way over time. Okay, let's pray. Father, we thank you that we see in your word the truths that are there. You are working out your gospel. You have begun the work, you will complete it, and you will do it all the time. You will be saving people all the time until Jesus comes again, and then forever we will be with you. Forgive us our sins and encourage us from the great truths of what Jesus has done and is doing and what you are doing as the Holy Spirit is being poured out upon all kinds of people. In Jesus' name, amen.