[INTRODUCTION]

THE PRE-TRIBULATION, POST-TRIBULATION, MID-TRIBULATION THEORIES
Why another book about prophecy? Well, the answer is simple. It’s because there is more about prophecy that needs to be said. Because in this book I will be adding new understanding to the prophetic revelations that already belong to the Church and because I will be rearranging some events on the prophetic time line, I want to introduce the book by looking at the three recognized theories/doctrines that already exist in the church community; i.e., the pre-tribulation, post-tribulation, and mid-tribulation doctrines.

To help us visualize the doctrines, we’ll look at some illustrations; but we should note that in the illustrations there are two terms that, although they are not in the Bible, have widespread acceptance in the church community. One is the term Rapture, which does no harm to our study of prophecy for it describes beautifully the emotional state the Church will experience when Christ returns for His Bride, the Church. But the other term "the seven years [7 years] of tribulation"--as we’ll see when we get on into the book--was ill-conceived, being unscriptural, inaccurate, and misleading.

THE PRE-TRIBULATION THEORY/DOCTRINE
The first theory/doctrine that we’ll look at is the pre-tribulation doctrine. This doctrine theorizes that Christ will return for His Church before "the seven years of tribulation," which as we’ve just said, is a man-made term without Scriptural basis. True, the Bible speaks of end-time tribulation and Jesus Himself speaks of a great tribulation that will be associated with the end of our age; yet, the Scriptures do not set a length of time for either period of tribulation. (As we'll see further on in our study, there is disagreement as to if  The Tribulation Period and the Great Tribulation period are one and the same.)  According to the pre-tribulation doctrine, the Church will be spared the time of tribulation and it will return with Christ after seven years to help Him establish His kingdom on the earth for His thousand-year rule. The first illustration depicts the "pre-tribulation doctrine."

THE POST-TRIBULATION THEORY/DOCTRINE
The second theory/doctrine we’ll illustrate is known as the post-tribulation doctrine. It would have the Church going through seven years of tribulation before it is taken up to be with the Lord. It has little acceptance in the Church because it is very vague about what happens after the Rapture, and very few prophetic events have a place on its time line. The following illustration represents the "post-tribulation doctrine."

THE MID-TRIBULATION THEORY/DOCTRINE
The final illustration portrays the mid-tribulation doctrine, which would have the rapture of the Church taking place in the middle of a seven-year period of tribulation. It would have the Church going through the first half of the period but be taken out of harm’s way when God’s wrath is poured out during the last half of the period. This teaching receives more acceptance in the Church than the other two because more of the prophetic events of Scripture find a place on its time line. The following drawing illustrates the "mid-tribulation doctrine."

Because all three doctrines are formed around the erroneous seven years of tribulation, therefore, all three are unsound. When I received this discernment, it came with much understanding that was new to me as it might be to many of you. It is the goal of this book to share this understanding with all who love Christ and who look forward to His return. Although the book is intended to be inspirational, it can be used as a textbook and as such, the chapters can be used individually to teach their subject matter. It is recommended to the beginning student of prophecy, however, that the book be first read as an inspirational book to be enjoyed. Any concepts or terms that were hard to grasp the first time around should fall into place for those who are inclined to read it the second time. It is my prayer that you will have as much joy in reading the book as I had in receiving and preparing it.

Prayerfully Yours,

Don Love