Charles Cooper explains the starting point, nature, and cutting off point of the Great Tribulation. This event that is associated with Antichrist’s persecution against the Church is not to be confused with the event of the Day of the Lord’s wrath, which follows after the Great Tribulation. This presentation was given last October in O’Fallon Missouri at an Eschatology forum.
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At the 2008 Orlando Prewrath Conference, Charles Cooper gave a lecture on Matthew’s interpretive employment of “Pattern Fulfillment.” Cooper also explains that each of the gospel writers contain key metaphors that serve to illuminate Jesus’ teaching of his Return.
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…if it feels like the Rapture, if it smells like the Rapture, it probably is the Rapture.
“Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. (30) Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. (31) And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.” – Matt 24:29-31 ESV
Preterists interpret this passage as already fulfilled in AD 70 referring to God’s judgment on the nation of Israel. Pretribulationalists interpret this passage as being fulfilled in the future at the battle of Armageddon. And neither of these positions believe that it has any application to the Church.
Both preterists and pretribulationists are in error. This passage does apply to the Church, and is a reference to the rapture at the Second Coming of Christ.
If we compare Scripture with Scripture, particularly with Paul’s teaching of the Second Coming and the rapture, we can be confident that they are not talking about two different events.
Click here to see a comparison of parallels between Jesus and Paul.
At the 2008 Prewrath Conference in Orlando, Charles Cooper explicated Matthew’s purpose in his account of the Olivet Discourse found in Matthew 24, distinguishing it from Mark and Luke’s account and purpose.
Matthew 24 is applicable to the Church, contra Preterism and Pretribulationism. Preterists commit a fundamental fallacy of assuming that the question and purpose in Mark and Luke’s version of the Olivet Discourse is the same as that in Matthew’s, thus flattening the respective purposes for each. But Matthew is not concerned with the question asked in Mark and Luke’s account, but rather he takes the teaching of Jesus and expands on it to serve a larger (eschatological) purpose — this important point is repeatedly missed by preterists. With any discussion or debate with a preterist, this point is fundamental and primary to all other subsequent discussions.
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