Last Days

Teacher

Richard Sutton Preacher

Lesson Summary

During the class, Richard Sutton explained that the concept of the rapture is not a first‑century Christian teaching but a doctrine that emerged in the early to mid‑19th century, primarily from Adventist roots and later spread through movements such as the Jehovah’s Witnesses and various evangelical revivalists. He traced its historical development, noting its absence in the early church, the Catholic period, and the Reformation, and highlighted how it gained momentum through figures like Charles Taze Russell and Billy Sunday before becoming mainstream via Billy Graham and Campus Crusade. Sutton then turned to Scripture, specifically Acts 2, to illustrate the biblical pattern of repentance, baptism, and receiving the Holy Spirit, arguing that this foundational response should shape our understanding of the "last days" rather than later doctrinal inventions. The teacher emphasized the immediate response of the first believers on Pentecost: hearing Peter’s proclamation, they were "cut to the heart" (Acts 2:37) and asked, "What shall we do?" Peter answered with a clear call to repentance and baptism (Acts 2:38), resulting in about three thousand new believers that day (Acts 2:41) and a continual addition of the saved (Acts 2:47). Sutton concluded that modern practices like the sinner’s prayer, though useful, must be rooted in the biblical call to genuine repentance and baptism, aligning with the church’s mission to prepare for the events of the last days.

Key Scriptures