WHERE PEOPLE STAND ON THE END TIMES
CONSIDERING THE NEW Testament’s clear indication that Jesus will one day return, it should come as no surprise that polling finds that the vast majority of Bible believers in America embrace the idea that Christ’s second coming will one day unfold.
According to research conducted by Shibley Telhami, a fellow at the Brookings Institution’s Center for Middle East Policy and a professor for peace and development at the University of Maryland, 72 percent of Christians and 81 percent of Evangelicals, more specifically, professed a belief in the end times and the Second Coming, though they expressed uncertainty about when these events will unfold. Only 5 percent of Christians and 12 percent of Evangelicals told researchers in the 2015 survey that they believed that this key, end-times event would happen in their lifetime.1
These small proportions aren’t surprising in light of Jesus’s warning in Matthew 24:36 and Mark 13:32 that the “day or hour no one knows.” Despite the uncertainty, though, there is a sense among many Christians that the end times—regardless of how far off the final conclusion ends up being—are upon us.
Respondents in a separate 2010 Pew Research Center poll were asked to provide their views on whether Christ will return by 2050. While 48 percent of Christians said that He will definitely or probably (27 percent and 20 percent, respectively) return in the next forty years, others weren’t so sure; 38 percent said that it would definitely or probably not happen (10 percent and 28 percent, respectively).2
Clearly, it’s a mixed bag, as Christians balance the feelings of unease that many have in light of world events with Christ’s proclamation in Mark 13:32 that “not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son” know exactly when the end will come.
But perhaps the most telling research done on the subject of the end times came in 2013 when the Barna Group asked respondents, “Do you, personally, believe that the world is currently living in the ‘end times’ as described by prophecies in the Bible, or not?”
The results were stunning, with 41 percent of Americans answering affirmatively. More specifically, 54 percent of Protestants and 77 percent of Evangelicals felt that humanity was living in the last days. Catholics, however, took a very different view, with 73 percent rejecting such a notion. On the flip side, 45 percent of practicing Catholics said at the time that we are now living in the end times.3
On the racial front, there were also some intriguing breakdowns worth briefly noting. While 39 percent of white Americans said that we’re living in the end times, 48 percent of Hispanics and 54 percent of African Americans said the same.4
Differences were also observed among married people and families when compared to views among the general populace. Those who were married (46 percent) and families with kids at home (47 percent) said that they believed that we are living in the end times, with both of these latter statistics coming in higher than the national average (41 percent).5
As we’ve explored in previous chapters, many biblical experts believe that the troubling events unfolding in the Middle East directly relate to prophecy and, interchangeably, the end times.
LifeWay Research got a bit more specific on the eschatological front, finding in another 2013 study that one in three respondents believed that the ongoing crisis in Syria is “part of the Bible’s plan for the end times.” Now, it should be noted that the question underpinning this finding was quite specific, as researchers asked for agreement or disagreement with the following statement: “I believe the battles in Syria are all part of the prophecies of the Book of Revelation.” While 32 percent agreed, 49 percent disagreed, with the statistics carrying some weight, considering the specificity of the inquiry. Those who attended church once or twice a month were more likely to see this tie.6
And that wasn’t the only question that specifically invoked the Book of Revelation, with LifeWay asking whether respondents believed that US military involvement in the Syria crisis could lead to the Battle of Armageddon, as it is highlighted in the final book of the Bible; 26 percent agreed that it could.7
Additionally, one in five (18 percent) expressed their belief that the world would end during their lives, though 70 percent rejected such a notion.8
Telhami and the Center for Middle East Policy at Brookings spent quite a bit of effort discerning where Christians and, more specifically, Evangelicals stand on these issues. The professor, who has been studying public opinion about the Middle East for quite some time, said that he embarked on the research after noticing the intense interest that Evangelicals have in the region—an interest that is, no doubt, tied to theological views about the end times.
“Over the past two years, it’s very clear that the focus on the Middle East is principally among Evangelicals in ways that really supersede any community in the United States, including Jewish Americans,” Telhami told me. “It’s very clear that this has become a key constituency for the Middle East in America.”9
The researcher said that he spent much time diving deep into who Evangelicals are and what they believe, contending that many past polls have simply lumped together Evangelicals and born-again Christians into a singular group, explaining that isn’t necessarily the most accurate way to explore the data.
“People assume they’re very similar and people assume that also; that helps with enhancing the size of the sample, particularly doing a national sample of all Americans,” Telhami explained. “It turns out there [are] really important differences.”10
While 90 percent of Evangelicals say that they are also born again, the same doesn’t come to fruition when assessing the opposite dynamic, as nearly half who say that they are born again don’t call themselves Evangelical. By dividing these groups, Telhami felt that he was able to yield more representative results.11
On the political front, he noted that Evangelicals make up 23 percent of the Republican Party, but that if one sets them aside and measures the remainder of party affiliates, he or she would recognize that “the rest of the Republican party—on matters related to Israel and the Middle East—is not different from the rest of the population.”12
Evangelicals, thus, hold unique views, with religious faith and devotion driving some of their perspectives on international affairs—opinions that are likely shaped and impacted by what they believe will come to fruition during the end times.
“When you inquire further into the theological aspects with end times and the belief in end times and the relationship, their expectation of . . . the biblical interpretation of prophecy—whether it’s literal or not—you find that there’s a huge correlation between those who believe that end times will happen, and some roughly 17 percent believe it’s going to happen in this century,” Telhami said.13
Showcasing just how differently Evangelicals think about the end times from their non-Evangelical Christian cohorts, consider that the vast majority of Evangelicals—79 percent—believe that violence across the Middle East “is a sign that the end times are nearer,” with only 43 percent of non-Evangelical Christians saying the same.14
While Telhami wasn’t surprised that Evangelicals would place more of a focus on prophecy than “traditional Christians,” he said that the sweeping proportion of Evangelicals who embraced various eschatological views stunned him. “What surprises [me is] how large a majority of Evangelicals believes in this, that this really is a sign and that something is going to happen in Israel, things are going to turn against Israel as you get closer to end times,” he said.15
Telhami said that he isn’t sure whether the influx of negative news coming from the Middle East is exacerbating end-times beliefs, or whether they have historically been this pointed, though he plans to keep exploring the subject.16
As for some of the more specific findings involving the Middle East, Telhami’s research found that the majority of Christians (55 percent) and Evangelicals (75 percent) believe that certain events must happen concerning Israel before Jesus’s return—sentiment that is commonly derived from Old and New Testament analysis, as explored throughout this book.17
Probing deeper, he found that one of the key events would be the ability of Israel to include all of the land that was once promised to the Israelites in the Old Testament, with the larger umbrella group of Christians surveyed differing from the Evangelical cohort. Overall, 51 percent of non-Evangelical Christians and 63 percent of Evangelicals said that they believe this is essential before the Rapture or Second Coming can unfold, according to the survey results.18
Also, concerning Israel, 73 percent of Evangelicals posited that the world would turn against Israel as the end times approach, with just 49 percent of non-Evangelical Christians agreeing. Those proportions in mind, it isn’t at all surprising, then, that Evangelicals expressed more favorable views toward the Jewish state. Overall, 45 percent of Americans sampled said that they believe that the modern-day Jewish people are God’s “chosen people,” though 49 percent disagreed; 55 percent of Republicans answered affirmatively, with just 33 percent of Democrats saying the same.19
On a final note, there was another question in the survey that might point to just how much modern-day Israel is a part of the Evangelical fabric. When Telhami asked in an open-ended question which “national or world leader” they admire most, 16 percent of Evangelicals named Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu—the most chosen individual among that cohort—with Ronald Reagan (11 percent) and Barack Obama (10 percent) following. Among Republicans as a whole, Netanyahu and Reagan tied with 12 percent; only 1 percent of Democrats chose Netanyahu.20
Now that we have an understanding of where Christians stand on these issues, it’s important to explore the opinions of American faith leaders.