The Tribulation Period

Stripping away the apocalyptic imagery:

7 seals (Rev.6:1-14,8:1-5)
. Judgments of war/conflict/strife
.Economic hardship/famine
.Domination/destruction/deprivation/death

7 Trumpets: Rev.8:6-9,21,11:15-19

.Judgment of natural disasters
.Untimely deaths
.Unnatural contamination of water and environment
.Mass murders

7 Bowls of Gods Wrath (Revelation 16:1 21)

.Sickness/diseases/festering sores
.Contamination of natural ecosystem like oceans,rivers, and streams
.Scorching of humanity by the Sun
.Plagues
.Humanity cursing God and refusing to repent
.Natural disasters like earthquakes, and hailstorms

Significance of "sevens". 7 is a number of completion/perfection. The tribulation will last as long as it needs to last to suit God's purposes.

Conclusion: the Tribulation has been ongoing during the entire Church age and will continue, getting progressively worse, until Jesus returns.

Let's say we agree. :). What are the signs of the end of the age?

I think we are seeing signs of the end of the age.

But I believe that when Jesus was talking about signs if the end of the age, he was talking about the end of the JEWISH age and the destruction of the temple within the lifetimes of his disciples. But even he used apocalyptic imagery so cannot be taken absolutely literally.

I think the spirit of Antichrist is rampant; I certainly do not believe in a literal one person who will fit that bill. But the AC influence is increasing exponentially it seems.

Unfortunately I do think things will get much worse, but the purpose of this tribulation period is twofold: 1) to bring unbelievers to repentance (quite frankly I do not believe we are seeing this yet) and 2) to purify and strengthen the true Church. It is likely that #1 has not occurred because #2 has not (yet) occurred.

I respect that a lot.

I left behind my "left behind" eschatology a few years back after looking into alternate views from different sources, and trying to read scripture without all my ingrained presuppositions, which is not easy.

I still don't have a perfect system worked out in my mind because I think there is a lot of mystery in the apocalyptic scriptures. Further I think there was purposeful "coded" language used by Paul and John because the churches they were writing to were under persecution, and if they just "named names" in their letters they probably could not have been circulated widely (because they would have been confiscated). In other words, they were purposefully vague.

I wrote: "I think we are seeing signs of the end of the age."

I meant to qualify this a tad, by saying that so did the very early church (look at all the "soon" and "near" statements referencing the return of Christ.

But one thing can be said with absolute certainty- we are closer now than they were then, unless full preterists are correct which I exceedingly doubt.