correll@brahms.udel.edu (Sharon J Correll) (10/18/90)
Since we've been talking about prophecy, Revelation, and the signs off the times in here, I have a question about the interpretation of certain verses in the New Testament. Matthew 24:I-forget-which-verse says: And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached throughout all the world as a witness to all nations, and then the end will come. Or something like that. I always thought that it meant what it said, that a basic fulfilling of the Great Commission was necessary before Christ's return. But then I heard someone say that it was only referring to Paul's missionary efforts. Supposedly there is something in one of his epistles where he says, "We have preached the gospel throughout all the world," referring to the Roman Empire. Is there such a verse? Could Matthew 24 be referring only to that? Similarly, there are quite a few passages in Revelation that talk about "every nation and tribe and language and people" (the same words are used over and over, sometimes in a different order) hearing the gospel and being represented before God's throne. To me that sounds a lot more universal and inclusive than Paul's missionary outreach within the Roman Empire. In other words, I always felt that the current missionary outreach to the really remote parts of the world was a fulfillment of Revelation where it indicates that there will be those among these remote people groups who are part of the Church. What is the most common understanding of these verses? -- ---\ Sharon Correll \--------------- ----\ University of Delaware \-------------- -----\ Academic Computing and Instructional Technology \------------- ------\ correll@sun.acs.udel.edu \------------