Troublesome TopicKEY #4 Use Biblical Terminology Properly

You will notice that I often use the phrase “end of the age” instead of the “end times.” I previously used the same terminology others in Christendom use, but that has changed recently due to the influence of Lynn Thrush. Lynn does an excellent job explaining why our modern term “end times” and our use of “last days,” are unbiblical, misleading, and dangerous. I will attempt a summary of what Lynn writes.

The phrase “last days” was used by Old Testament prophets and New Testament Apostles alike to indicate what we call the new era, the new way in which God was working, or the New Covenant. The previous arrangement had been the former covenant; this new covenant was the latter covenant, hence the “latter days”, or the “last days.” On the day of Pentecost Peter quoted Joel (see Acts 2:17-18) and used the words “in the last days” to refer to the era that was just beginning with the pouring out of the Holy Spirit on that celebration of Pentecost; it is the age we are now in. Peter clearly understood the prophecy of Joel as referring to his own day, not some far-off future event. According to the Holy Spirit speaking through Peter, the “last days” are the days of the Holy Spirit.

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Notice the same phrase used in Hebrews 1:1-2, “in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son. Clearly the phrase “last days” in Hebrews refers to the era in which we live, starting with Jesus. It does not refer to the end of the world.

Now consider the Bible’s use of the word “end.” The Greek word for “end” also means “completion, fulfillment” or even “perfection.” It points to the end toward which one is proceeding. Observe this example from Paul writing about Jesus: “For Christ is the end of the law, with the result being righteousness for those who believe” (Rom 10:4). Jesus is not the termination of the law, but the fulfillment of it. The redemptive work of Jesus is what the Law was working toward all this time. The modern phrase “end times prophecy” focuses on what has not yet happened whereas the biblical term “end” refers to God’s great purpose that was begun on the cross and is being worked out in human hearts.

The next lesson is: KEY # 5 Don’t Try to Figure it Out

Footnotes

1

Lynn Thrush, Soaring Hope, pp. 153-154.