Testimonies of Rev Dr John Tay & Dr Bernard (Dated 5 May 2021)
Rev George Ong’s Comments:
Both Rev Dr John Tay, a former Professor & Head of the Department of Paediatrics, National University of Singapore (1988-1995) and Dr Bernard, who has a PhD from Nottingham University, UK, write in favour of the Post-tribulation position and against the Pre-tribulation doctrine.
Please bear in mind that these testimonies were written several years ago and so their appointments, titles and church attending and pastoring are correct only at the point of writing.
Testimony of Rev Dr John Tay
Dear Pastor George, thank you for preaching on The Rapture and Great Tribulation on 15 Feb, 2015 at the worship service which I attended at Hakka Methodist Church.
I totally agree with you that the Pre-tribulation doctrine is unbiblical and a false teaching.
The problem is that many pastors and preachers have been taught the wrong doctrines and have not really studied the scriptures themselves.
That the rapture will occur before the tribulation is clearly a false teaching that is not founded on scriptures, yet taught so widely in the churches.
There is not a single explicit scripture to show that rapture will take place before tribulation, whereas there are a number of scriptures that show the rapture will occur towards the end of the tribulation.
This position can also be demonstrated from the book of Revelation.
Revelation 16:15 clearly states Christ coming as a thief occurs only after the 6th bowl.
It is located very late in the chronology of Revelation between the 6th and 7th bowls.
The 7th bowl is the fall of Babylon, and the coming of Christ at Armageddon.
Why would Jesus be coming “as a thief” AFTER six plagues are already poured out, if Pre-tribbers claimed that He had already come “as a thief” about seven years BEFORE they were poured out?
If Pre-tribbers teach that Christ comes as a thief before the Tribulation, why would Jesus warn, “Behold, I come like a thief,” just when Armageddon is about to begin?
This clearly debunks the false Pre-tribulation rapture doctrine which sees Christ coming as a thief as a warning about not missing the Pre-tribulation rapture seven years before the battle of Armageddon.
Rev Dr John Tay
Dean of the Faculty of Biblical Studies, Bethany International University
Former Dean & Vicar of St Andrew’s Cathedral (Anglican), Singapore
Former Professor & Head of the Department of Paediatrics, National University of Singapore (1988-1995).
Holds 2 doctorates in genetics and is a writer of many books
Testimony of Dr Bernard
After years of painstaking study and research in the spirit of the Bereans (Acts 17:11), George has reached a firm conviction about the falsity of the Pre-trib position and the truth of the Post-trib doctrine that is solidly anchored on scriptures.
The Pre-trib position is a relative newcomer in biblical theology (less than 200-years-old) and is based on inferences and a less than robust exegesis of scripture.
The Post-trib position, however, is clearly taught in the scriptures and is the view firmly held by the Apostles, Church Fathers, and Reformers like Martin Luther and John Calvin.
God’s people, whether Israel in the Old Testament or the Christian Church throughout her history, have always been going through great tribulations, great certainly from their historical perspective.
One grave misunderstanding in eschatology concerns ‘the end times’ or ‘the last days’.
Many who subscribe to the Pre-trib position understand the end times or last days to refer to that period of time just before Christ’s second coming.
However, a careful study of scriptures will reveal that since Christ’s first coming, the Church has been in the last days (Heb 1:2), and these last days are characterised by tribulations.
There is no clear scriptural teaching that the last generation of Christians, who are alive just before Christ’s second coming, will enjoy the special privilege of being spared or will escape any tribulation.
George’s teaching on this subject, which I attended, certainly deserves a hearing and will definitely challenge your position and cause you to rethink your theology of the last days.
It may confuse or upset you but what’s important is whether his teaching is clearly based on scripture.
If you are passionate about truth and pursuing nothing but the truth, give George a chance to open the scriptures to you.
PhD from Nottingham University, UK.
A former pastor, a former theological educator,
An independent theologian and a senior learning specialist in the marketplace, Singapore