Can We Understand Prophecy?
By L. A. S.
The leading Methodist organ in this country, the New York Christian Advocate, says it is impossible to know anything about the time of Christ’s promised return to this earth. After speaking of some “latter-day prophets” who have attracted more or less attention within recent years by their claims and predictions based professedly on the inspired writings, among these being at the present time the pastor of the First Baptist Church of New York City, Rev. J. M. Haldeman, the Advocate says:— After watching the rise and fall of prophets of the Haldeman type, and a careful study of the Scriptures, of two propositions we feel certain:— First, that no man can prove by any alleged correspondence between contemporary events and what is written in the Bible, whether Christ is personally to come within one thousand or ten thousand years of the present date. A great deal is included in this statement; more we think than the Advocate would care to maintain. It casts a serious reflection upon the wisdom and veracity of the Author of inspired prophecy. The Bible, it is to be noted, is full of prophecies concerning Christ’s second coming. The very first prophecy that we have record of after the fall and expulsion from Eden, was a prophecy of the second advent, made by “Enoch, the seventh from Adam.” Jude 14, 15. The very last prophecy of the inspired Word is, “Surely I come quickly;” and between these two are other prophecies almost innumerable of this transcendent event, testifying to the great importance; God has attached to a knowledge of it on the part of his church. Are we then to conclude that notwithstanding all these we can not really know anything definitely about it? For example, our Lord himself, in answer to the question of his disciples concerning the signs of his coming, mentioned a number of prominent signs, and said: “Now learn a parable of the fig tree; when his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh: so likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that He is near, even at the doors.” See Matthew 24; Mark 13; Luke 21. It is absolutely certain from these texts that the Saviour designed his church should know the time when his coming was nigh at hand. He left also the solemn admonition: “And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares.” “Watch ye therefore: for ye know not when the Master of the house cometh, . . . lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping.” The evil servant who should begin to say in his heart, My Lord delayeth his coming, and should grow careless and worldly, would be taken by surprise by the coming of the day of the Lord, and would have his portion with the hypocrites and unbelievers. All this is most positive evidence that the Christian church is to know when the day of the Lord is near, and its members are responsible for the attitude they assume toward that event, whether of watching for it, or of treating it as an event still far away in the indefinite future. “Ye, brethren,” wrote Paul in his letter to the Thessalonians, “are not in darkness, that that day should overtake5you as a thief.” Those addressed in this statement were not the Thessalonian believers, for Paul in his second letter told them explicitly that the day of Christ was not then at hand, and would not come until after the “falling away,” which was to reveal the “man of sin.” But Paul does plainly say that the Christian church will not be in the dark about the time of the Lord’s coming when it is at hand. To be in darkness, and be overtaken by that day as by a thief, is plainly set forth as a condition displeasing to God, and that will shut away salvation from the soul. “Unto them that look for Him” (Christ), wrote Paul to the Hebrews, “shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.” The true people of God will at the time of Christ’s return be looking for him. And could any one acquainted with the character of God and the history of his dealings with mankind and his purpose for his people, possibly suppose that he would have his church in ignorance of the time of such an event as the return of their Redeemer to the earth in the glory of his second advent, to reward his saints and execute judgment upon the nations? Would God have his people come up to the time of this most stupendous of all events since time began,—an event of such transcendent interest and consequence to them and to all the world,—entirely ignorant that such an event was to occur? Can any one suppose that the Saviour, when he comes to his redeemed ones in his beauty and glory, would not be pleased to have them expecting him and waiting for his appearing? And can we consistently suppose that with the Word of God filled so full of prophecies concerning the second advent, and of warnings against being overtaken unexpectedly by the day of the Lord, now, nearly two thousand years after the latest of these prophecies was written, nothing can be known as to whether that event will take place ten years hence or ten thousand years hence? If such a supposition be true, then God is inconsistent, and his word is a failure. What are the prophecies of Christ’s advent for, if not to be understood? The history of the church from the first advent down to the present is marked out in Bible prophecy, and by those prophecies we may know our location upon the stream of time and our proximity to the end. That is what prophecy is for. The signs leading up to the time of the second advent—such as the darkening of the sun and moon, the falling of the stars, “distress of nations, with perplexity,” the heaping together of earthly treasure by the rich, described by James, the running to and fro and the increase of knowledge, foretold by Daniel, the decrease of the Ottoman power described in Daniel 11, and others that might be mentioned, have been fulfilled, and can be pointed to as plain evidences that the day of the Lord is very much less than a thousand years distant, if the Word of God means anything at all. If these prophecies have not been fulfilled by events of recent history, then the fulfilment of prophecy can never be known and understood by human minds, and the prophetic portions of God’s Word may be cast aside by the church as of no practical importance, and we may conclude that God either put them there by mistake or to amuse himself and mystify human minds. But let no man charge the Omniscient with folly. There is one prophecy in particular to which we would cite the Advocate as bearing directly on the question whether present-day events correspond with what is written in the Bible concerning Christ’s return. It is a prophecy uttered by Christ himself. “This gospel of the kingdom,” he said, “shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.” Does the Advocate see no signs to-day of the spread of the gospel to all districts of the earth? Does it see nothing of significance in the wonderful multiplication of Bibles and their publication in almost every known tongue and distribution in every land by the British and Foreign and American Bible Societies and other missionary agencies? Does it not see just at this time Tibet, the last stronghold of heathenism, about to be entered by the Christian missionary bearing the glad tidings of the kingdom of Christ? Does it not see Roman Catholic strongholds in South America, the Philippines, and in other places, shaking off Rome’s yoke and opening the door to the gospel? And has the Advocate taken note that a people proclaiming the messages of the three angels of Revelation 14,—the hour of God’s judgment, the fall of spiritual Babylon, and the warning against the image and mark of the “beast” power, preparatory to the visitation upon men of the seven last plagues, are going to every people and nation on the earth, proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom? When this proclamation shall have been completed, then the words of the prophecy will be fulfilled, and then, as surely as God and the Bible are true, the end shall come. There have been and are many false christs, but there is nevertheless a true Christ. There are many fanciful and false prophecies, but there are also true prophecies. Many false religions may claim the Bible as their authority, but the Word of God is true, and is given us to be understood. The counterfeit should not lead us to discard the genuine. Christ is coming again; the day of his return is at hand. And blessed are they who discern the signs of the times and are waiting and watching for his coming.
L. A. S.