Christians tend to believe what they are told, instead of what Scripture has taught or Scripture itself. Yes, there is a huge difference between the two.
For instance, we were told that Christ Jesus was nailed to the cross and died of crucifixion on a Friday, and He was resurrected early Sunday morning. Yet in Scripture, Jesus Christ clearly said, “He would be three days and three nights buried in the ground.” See Matthew 12:40. Jesus said: “For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.”
No matter how good a person is at manipulating days and nights, no way can three days and three nights be fitted into Friday to Sunday. TRADITION has it that Jesus Christ resurrected early morning of Sunday. Jesus Christ clearly died at three in the afternoon (Matthew 27:46, Mark 15:34; Luke 23:44-46, 9th hour, Jewish time) and was buried before the Special (high) Sabbath. See the following statements in Scripture. First, John 19:30-31.
“When Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished,” and He bowed His head and gave up His spirit.Since it was the day of Preparation, and so that the bodies would not remain on the cross on the Sabbath (for that Sabbath was a high day), the Jews asked Pilate that their legs might be broken and that they might be taken away.”
Next, John 19:38-42.
“After these things Joseph of Arimathea, who was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly for fear of the Jews, asked Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus, and Pilate gave him permission. So he came and took away his body. Nicodemus also, who earlier had come to Jesus by night, came bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds in weight. So they took the body of Jesus and bound it in linen cloths with the spices, as is the burial custom of the Jews. Now in the place where He was crucified there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb in which no one had yet been laid. So because of the Jewish day of Preparation, since the tomb was close at hand, they laid Jesus there.”
Jesus Christ was buried before the “high Sabbath,” the Jewish feast day, on the 15th of Nisan. The “Jewish Day of Preparation” was the 14th of Nisan before sundown. At sundown, at the start of the “high Sabbath”, no work can be done. The conditions for a Sabbath day when no work can be done apply to a special Sabbath. Yes, the “high Sabbath” could be any day in the week, for as long as it’s the 15th day of the Jewish month of Nisan.
So we see the Jews wanting to take Jesus down from the cross before sundown – the beginning of the “high Sabbath” – and also, Joseph and Nicodemus taking the body of Jesus, making all the necessary Jewish burial customs and laying Him in an empty and unused tomb before sundown. This was before the “high Sabbath” kicked in.
Now, to illustrate the impossibility of fitting Friday to Sunday to three days and three nights, let’s just – FOR THE MOMENT – agree with a Friday death by crucifixion at 3:00 PM, yet be mindful that the Jewish cycle for a day begins at sundown (6:00 PM) to before sundown the next day. Friday, 3:00 PM to before 6:00 PM (sundown) cannot be a day by any count. So the truth of the matter is, there was only one full Saturday, then at sundown it’s Sunday – which again, according to tradition, just hours later, Jesus Christ resurrected.
Obviously, Friday to Sunday is a misrepresentation of the Word of God. Mind you, it’s not a non-essential detail because the integrity of Jesus’ words is at stake.
I recall once, while I was still a seminary student, we had a mission exposure trip encountering Muslims. We met an Imam (a spiritual advisor and expert in Islamic Law), who is well-equipped with the Christian Bible. So he asked us a few questions that were based on Christian tradition but not supported by Scripture. One of the questions he asked was about Jesus’ three-day and three-night statements vis-a-vis Christian’s claim of Friday to Sunday burial and resurrection. No one was able to defend the faith when confronted by knowledgeable questions. Consequently, it’s not enough that we claim faith that is not according to knowledge. We will forever be struggling when confronted with legitimate challenges. How then can we convert intelligent people of other faith?
Christians have been chopping up theology or chopping up reading of the Bible and have become easy prey to tradition. Soteriology (doctrine of salvation) was disconnected from ecclesiology (doctrine of the church), also from eschatology (doctrine of last things), etc. Then, sad to say, once rebuked or challenged, they would justify it as inconsequential compared to the overall message. Worse, they would bring the “love one another” cliché.
We all commit mistakes believing in traditions that are not founded in Scripture. However, when corrected and proven wrong, we should not justify ourselves by using the “love one another” cliché. The Christian “love one another” teaching of Jesus Christ cannot be divorced from the need to hold on to the truth of the Scripture. See John 15:12-15.
“This is My (Jesus Christ’s) commandment, that you LOVE ONE ANOTHER as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down His life for his friends. YOU ARE MY FRIENDS IF YOU DO WHAT I COMMAND YOU. No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his Master is doing; but I have called you friends, FOR ALL THAT I HAVE HEARD FROM MY FATHER I HAVE MADE KNOWN TO YOU.”
Christians cannot simply “be the kind one”. The apostle Paul never used the “love one another” cliché when there was wrong committed. Persisting on a wrong can be a sin against the body of Christ, the church. See 1Timothy 5:17-20.
“Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching. For the Scripture says, “You shall not muzzle an ox when it treads out the grain,” and, “The laborer deserves his wages.” Do not admit a charge against an elder except on the evidence of two or three witnesses. As for those who persist in sin, rebuke them in the presence of all, so that the rest may stand in fear.”
Now, going back to my discussion on Jesus’ death and resurrection. For context, in Matthew 12, the Pharisees had been challenging the miraculous deeds (signs) of Jesus Christ. Among other things, the Pharisees attributed Jesus’ healing miracles and His casting out of demons to that of the prince of demons, Beelzebul. In response, Jesus made clear He cast out demons by the Spirit of God, thereby announcing the arrival of God’s kingdom (Matthew 12:28), which of course also meant He was the Messiah. In return, the Pharisees continued in their disbelief and asked Jesus to provide a sign that He indeed was the Messiah.
To prove without a doubt that indeed Jesus Christ was the Messiah who was to come, He gave them the sign of Noah – that, He would be three days and three nights in the ground before His resurrection.
To briefly point out the truth, allow me to highlight key passages only. See Matthew 12:22. “Then a demon-oppressed man who was blind and mute was brought to Him (Jesus Christ), and He healed him, so that the man spoke and saw. And all the people were amazed, and said, Can this be the Son of David?” (Take note, the “Son of David” was the prophesied coming Messiah; see 2Samuel 7:8-16; Matthew 21:9) But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, “It is only by Beelzebul, the prince of demons, that this man casts out demons.” Knowing their thoughts, He (Jesus Christ) said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and no city or house divided against itself will stand. And if Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand? And if I cast out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they will be your judges. But if it is by the Spirit of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.”
See also Matthew 12:38-40. “Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered Him (Jesus Christ), saying, “Teacher, we wish to see a sign from you.” But He answered them, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.”
Consequently, Jesus Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection have to be exactly three days and three nights before He would be seen alive. Anything short of that would be a discredit to His claim that He was the Christ, the Messiah. That can’t be non-essential in any sense because it had to be fulfilled exactly as Jesus Christ had pronounced, authenticating that indeed He was the Messiah. And if there was any contradiction to His pronouncement of three days and three nights, just a fraction short of that, the Jews could have denounced Jesus as having a fake claim to God’s promise of the Messiah.
The Jewish religious leaders of Old Covenant Israel recognized the veracity of Jesus rising back to life after three days and three nights, so they made sure it could not be fake. See Matthew 27:62-64.
“The next day, that is, after the day of Preparation, the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered before Pilate and said, “Sir, we remember how that impostor said, while He (Jesus Christ) was still alive, After three days I will rise.’ Therefore order the tomb to be made secure until the third day, lest His disciples go and steal Him away and tell the people, ‘He has risen from the dead,’ and the last fraud will be worse than the first.” Pilate said to them, “You have a guard of soldiers. Go, make it as secure as you can.” So they went and made the tomb secure by sealing the stone and setting a guard.”
Christians ought to be apologists (defenders) of the faith, not defenders of themselves. Once truths of the Scripture are challenged, compromised, or inadequately presented, we have a responsibility to correct and explain the truth. But we ought to know the truth firsthand before we can do so. In the Book of Acts, Apollos was described as eloquent in Scripture, but he only knew about John’s baptism. So he too was instructed by Priscilla and Aquila on the Scripture more accurately. Priscilla and Aquila practiced the Christian virtue of “loving one another” they taught Apollos more accurately about Christ Jesus our Lord. Similarly, Apollos embraced the correction and instruction in the spirit of loving one another. Go read Acts 18:24-28.
No Christian can sincerely say they are obedient to Christ’s command of “loving one another” – at least, not until we learn to love Christ Jesus and His word. Loving God’s Word means we are ready to protect at all times the integrity of Jesus’ Words and declarations. No ifs and no buts.
Perhaps for a time, some passages in Scripture might be unclear or vague to us. Yet, Scripture said, “Yes, if you call out for insight and raise your voice for understanding, if you seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures, then you will understand the fear of the LORD and find the knowledge of God.” (Proverbs 2:3-5)
In conclusion, let us meditate John’s writing on the virtue of love. See 1John 4:7-19.
“Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent His only Son into the world, so that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and His love is perfected in us.”
“By this we know that we abide in Him and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit [Keep in mind, Jesus said “His Words are Spirit and life, see John 6:63; John 12:49-50; Romans 10:17; 1Corinthians 2:9-14; 1Thessalonians 2:13; 1Peter 1:22-23]. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent His Son to be the Savior of the world. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as He is so also are we in this world. There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not abeen perfected in love. We love because He first loved us.”
Also, Peter’s words on God’s Word and loving one another. See 1Peter 1:22 to 2:3.
“Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart,since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God; for “All flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers, and the flower falls, but the word of the Lord remains forever.”And this word is the good news that was preached to you. So put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander. Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation— if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good.”
Let us refrain from using the “love one another” cliché as a way of escape when we have committed wrongs or misrepresentated the Word of God. Christ Jesus died for our sins to free us who believe in Him from our wrongdoings and shortcomings. Salvation is never a pass for saying nonsense and then atoning by claiming the “love one another cliché”. Scripture said, “Put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander (1Peter 2:1)”.
Christians should always be humble before the Word of God. Always ready to be corrected and rebuked when confronted by Scripture. Similarly, always be ready to learn and be equipped by the Bible.
“Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.” (2Timothy 2:15)
The apostle Paul instructed, “What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.” (Take note, Paul’s words and doings are in the Scripture. We can surely learn from him.)
Again, Paul instructed, “You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus, and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also.” (2Timothy 2:1-2)
Once more, Paul instructed, “Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching. Persist in this, for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers.”
Blessings!
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Sometimes even Christians feel and look defeated. If so, read Psalm 37. The first two verses said, “Fret not yourself because of evildoers; be not envious of wrongdoers. For they will soon fade like the grass and wither like the green herb.” Then in verses 7-9, the Psalmist continued, “Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for Him; fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way, over the man who carries out evil devices! Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath! Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil. For the evildoers shall be cut off, but those who wait for the LORD shall inherit the land.”
Thereby, the Psalmist encourages its readers, telling them not to be bothered by unrighteous gains or success, which in reality are temporal. However, it is true that with money, a lot of things and circumstances can easily be remedied. Yet, the Psalmist in verses 16-20 said:
Better is the little that the righteous has than the abundance of many wicked. For the arms of the wicked shall be broken, but the LORD upholds the righteous. The LORD knows the days of the blameless, and their heritage will remain forever; they are not put to shame in evil times; in the days of famine they have abundance. But the wicked will perish; the enemies of the LORD are like the glory of the pastures; they vanish—like smoke they vanish away.
God is just. He will never allow injustice to go unpunished, while the blameless will never fall short of God’s faithfulness, and He justly rewards them eternally.
True blessedness is not in the abundance of temporal things, but with the assurance of God’s favor and grace – at all times and circumstances. See Luke 12:13-21.
Someone in the crowd said to Him (Jesus Christ), “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” But He said to him, “Man, who made Me a judge or arbitrator over you?” And He said to them, “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” And He told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man produced plentifully, and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’ And he said, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.”’ But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.”
On the other hand, the Psalmist in verses 23-29 said:
The steps of a man are established by the LORD, when He delights in his way; though he fall, he shall not be cast headlong, for the LORD upholds his hand. I have been young, and now am old, yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken or his children begging for bread. He is ever lending generously, and his children become a blessing. Turn away from evil and do good; so shall you dwell forever. For the LORD loves justice; He will not forsake His saints. They are preserved forever, but the children of the wicked shall be cut off. The righteous shall inherit the land and dwell upon it forever.
It is sad that many times, even Christians, fall into the temptation of covetousness. The apostle Paul wrote, “But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.” (1Timothy 6:9-10)
Jesus Christ is indeed victorious and reigning over all creation since His ascension, and from that time onward has been seated at the right-hand throne of God. True also that His rule and dominion were fully completed by His return, thereby giving His people the full blessings of His kingdom.
All matters on Earth would appear trivial to His reign and kingdom. For His blessings, though many times unseen, are eternal, whereas those of the world will always be temporal. So Jesus Christ said:
“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it.” (Matthew 13:44-46)
Christians should recognize the true value of God’s kingdom. Hence, finding it should at all costs keep it even at the price of losing earthly wealth which is temporal. But sadly, a lot of people, even Christians spiritually blind, have chosen to seek and keep temporal things even at the cost of forsaking eternal blessedness. Click on the links and read Matthew 19:16-24; Mark 10:17-25; Luke 18:18-25 for Jesus’ teaching on this subject.
Bear in mind that Scripture said, “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.”(Matthew 6:24)
Jesus Christ, this time in Matthew 6:19-21, emphasized the same point and said: “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
So, the apostle Paul, in Colossians 3:1-2 said:
“If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.”
Once we have learned the Lord’s teachings, as well as those of Paul’s, then no earthly circumstances could make us believe we are defeated or losers in this world. Neither could our circumstances deter us from thanking God for His bountiful blessings and grace. It is significant to note, the Psalmist in verses 10-11 promised:
In just a little while, the wicked will be no more; though you look carefully at his place, he will not be there. But the meek shall inherit the land and delight themselves in abundant peace.
The eschatological expression “a little while” appeared in several Scriptural prophecy speaking about God’s coming judgment. To name a few, Jeremiah 51:33; Hosea 1:4 and Haggai 2:6-9.
Psalm 37:10-11 was a prophecy on the Coming of Jesus Christ. So we see Jesus Christ verbalized Psalm 37:11, thereby announcing the fulfillment of His Coming. See Matthew 5:5-6.
“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.”
Interestingly, see below, in Hebrews 10:35-38, Scripture once more used the same expression “a little while”, but added, “the coming one will come and will not delay”. Without a doubt, the Bible this time was speaking about the Return of Jesus Christ.
Therefore do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised. For, “Yet a little while, and the coming one will come and will not delay; but My righteous one shall live by faith, and if he shrinks back, My soul has no pleasure in him.”
Take note, the Psalmist spoke of the promised happening in “a little while”, from the completion of Psalms to Christ, which was about 600 years. Whereas, Hebrews also used “a little while” but added “and the coming one will come and will not delay”. Therefore, we know that Scripture is infallible and always true. How then can the traditional belief of a future return of Jesus Christ be credible? Now two thousand years and ongoing, not be a delay?
The truth of the matter is, that Jesus Christ spoke of His Return within the generation of His immediate apostles. See Matthew 16:27-28.
For the Son of Man is going to come with His angels in the glory of His Father, and then He will repay each person according to what he has done. Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom.
I don’t think there are still living apostles of Jesus Christ somewhere today, hiding from people’s sight, do you?
Mind you, Matthew 16:27-28 is not an isolated declaration. On numerous occasions, Jesus Christ and His apostles spoke of the nearness of His coming. To read more about this topic, click on the links and see my blogs entitled “The Unending Last Days” and “Dating the Book of Revelation”. Once more, Jesus Christ fulfilled Scripture just as the Word of God had declared. The Return of Christ was fulfilled within the generation of John and company, the immediate apostles of Jesus. To read more on this topic, click on the link and read “Confused Christianity”.
So always look up, not down. For the essence and true reality of God’s kingdom and our blessedness – it is present already, in its fullness, now not later.
Moreover, the whole of Psalm 37 was right, encouraging its reader to trust God at all times and circumstances, for eternal deliverance and salvation is true with Him – the Lord of lords, the King of kings, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Blessings!
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This morning I saw on my Facebook a website entitled “The Endtimes Insider”; well, I didn’t even bother to read it. Why? ‘Cause the Bible never spoke of the END TIMES but the TIME OF THE END.
Daniel 12:4 “But you, Daniel, SHUT UP THE WORDS AND SEAL THE BOOK, UNTIL THE TIME OF THE END. Many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall increase.”
In Daniel, the vision concerning the “time of the end” was sealed, but in Revelation – the time of the apostle John- it was unveiled. Telling us therefore that the fulfillment of the things concerning the time of the end is at hand. It could never be in our future, for John lives some two thousand years away from today.
See Revelation 5:1-5
“Then I saw in the right hand of Him who was seated on the throne A SCROLL WRITTEN WITHIN AND ON THE BACK, SEALED WITH SEVEN SEALS. And I saw a mighty angel proclaiming with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the scroll and break its seals?” And no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll or to look into it, and I began to weep loudly because no one was found worthy to open the scroll or to look into it. And one of the elders said to me, “Weep no more; behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered, so that He can open the scroll and its seven seals.”
See also Revelation 22:8-10
“I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I heard and saw them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who showed them to me, but he said to me, “You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers the prophets, and with those who keep the words of this book. Worship God.” And he said to me, “DO NOT SEAL UP THE WORDS OF THE PROPHECY OF THIS BOOK, FOR THE TIME IS NEAR.
It is also important to note that Daniel’s prophecy (Daniel 12) was quoted by Jesus Christ (Matthew 24:21) concerning the destruction of the Jewish temple (Matthew 24:2), which certainly occurred within the lifetime of the apostle John. There is therefore no point believing that there is an impending end time.
To everyone who insists otherwise, saying there is yet an impending end time, read and understand Jesus’ words from Revelation 22:5-6.
And he said to me, “These words are trustworthy and true. And the Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, has sent his angel to show his servants what must soon take place.” “And behold, I am coming soon. Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.”
Also Revelation 22:10
And he said to me, “Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is near.
Finally, Revelation 22-16-20.
“I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you about these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star.” The Spirit and the Bride say, “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.” And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price. I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book, and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book.
He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!
Postscript: The intention of this blog is always to enlighten peoples’ understanding of the Scripture. Jesus Christ said, “If you abide in My word, you are truly My disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
Let us therefore seek to know the truth of God’s words, for only then may we truly have assurance of all things.
Blessings!
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Despite clear utterance from the Lord Jesus Christ that His return or parousia would be during the lifetime of the apostles, it has been rejected and denied by the futurists – actually, that includes the majority of professing Christians. See my blog “Confused Christianity” on Jesus’ assurance concerning His return.
One of the most often used arguments may be found through the writings of Luke, see Acts 1:9-11.
“And when He (Jesus Christ) had said these things, as they were looking on, He was lifted up, and a cloud took Him out of their sight. And while they were gazing into heaven as He went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw Him go into heaven.””
They believe “Jesus returning in the same manner as He was taken” means a physical return. Was it?
First, let us see where Jesus was going at His ascension. See John 20:17.
“Jesus said to her (Mary), “Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to My Father and your Father, to My God and your God.’””
Jesus was ascending to His glory, to God the Father in heaven. Isn’t that where Jesus exactly told the disciples He was going? See John 14:2.
“In My Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?”
Sometime after His ascension, Jesus Christ appeared to Stephen. See Acts 7:55-56.
“But he (Stephen), full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. And he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.””
In other words, after His ascension, Jesus Christ, now glorious, is at the right hand of God. Finally, Paul also said the same about Jesus after His ascension. See 1 Timothy 3:16.
“Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of godliness: He (Jesus Christ) was manifested in the flesh, vindicated by the Spirit, seen by angels, proclaimed among the nations, believed on in the world, taken up in glory.”
Nowhere in Scripture would you find Jesus returning in the flesh, but with the cloud. Isn’t that what Luke wrote in Acts 1:9?
“And when He (Jesus Christ) had said these things, as they were looking on, He was lifted up, and a cloud took Him out of their sight.” (Acts 1:9)
Consequently, the angels were testifying about the imminent fulfillment of God’s kingdom and judgment as prophesied in Daniel 7:13-14.
““I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and He came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before Him. And to Him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed.”
Incidentally, Jesus made it clear He wasn’t establishing a physical kingdom; see John 18:36.
“Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews. But My kingdom is not from the world.””
Finally, Jesus said His kingdom cannot be observed but is present. See Luke 17:20-21.
“Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, He (Jesus Christ) answered them, “The kingdom of God is not coming in ways that can be observed, nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘There!’ for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.””
Aren’t futurists proclaiming the exact opposite of Jesus at His return and the conflicting realities of His kingdom?
Note: Futurist are those who insist and teach that Jesus’ Return is yet to come.
Blessings!
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One of the major doctrines of the futurist camp has to do with the belief in a rapture. Futurists are those who supposed the Return of Jesus Christ is yet to happen. See my blog “Confused Christianity” for the futurist perspective. Again, as I have said in my previous blog (Delusions of Rebuilding the Temple) futurists are great storytellers, though having no valid biblical passages to support their claim. They are good at sensationalizing from nothing.
Now, the supposed “rapture” doctrine was taken from a verse found in the letter of Paul, see 1 Thessalonians 4:17.
“Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord.”
The translation “caught up together” is presented by the futurist camp as the rapture. Here is a summary of their storytelling, at least the most popular version of their narrative:
The rapture of 1 Thessalonians 4:17 would be succeeded by a period of Seven Years Tribulation, after which Christ Jesus together with the church would return. Without going any further in their storyline, I detected an error with their presentation.
The futurists also said only true Christians would be raptured, leaving nominal or professing Christians behind for a second chance to surrender to Christ.
Would any dare say Christians today are better and more faithful as compared to the apostles James, Peter, John, and the rest?
If indeed only the faithful ones would be raptured, why then was the apostle John enduring the tribulation and left behind? See Revelation 1:9-10.
“I, John, your brother and partner in the tribulation and the kingdom and the patient endurance that are in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos on account of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet”
Without a doubt, John claims he was already in the tribulation, yet he was not raptured to escape the tribulation as suggested by futurists.
John also said, “I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s Day”, literally referring to the Day “belonging to the Lord (Greek #2960)” – an adjective pertaining to the “Day of the Lord”. See 1 Thessalonians 5:2.
“For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.”
In other words, John was already in the tribulation, which Jesus Christ in Matthew 24 relates to His soon coming, an event preceding His Return, fulfilling His words concerning the Day of the Lord – God’s Judgment Day. See Matthew 24:15-21.
““So when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let the one who is on the housetop not go down to take what is in his house, and let the one who is in the field not turn back to take his cloak. And alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days! Pray that your flight may not be in winter or on a Sabbath. For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be.”
The reference to Daniel’s prophecy has to do with the destruction of Jerusalem and its temple. See “Delusions of Rebuilding the Temple” for perspective.
So what happened? John said the tribulation was happening, occurring in his days. He was suffering and exiled for his faith but not RAPTURED.
There are loose ends in the futurist storybook. Here is a guide from Scripture concerning prophetic teachings. See Deuteronomy 18:18-22.
“I (God) will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brothers. And I will put My words in His (Jesus Christ) mouth, and He shall speak to them all that I command Him. And whoever will not listen to My words that He shall speak in My name, I Myself will require it of him. But the prophet who presumes to speak a word in My name that I have not commanded him to speak, or who speaks in the name of other gods, that same prophet shall die.’ And if you say in your heart, ‘How may we know the word that the LORD has not spoken?’— when a prophet speaks in the name of the LORD, if the word does not come to pass or come true, that is a word that the LORD has not spoken; the prophet has spoken it presumptuously. You need not be afraid of him.”
It is easy to tell a wonderful story that is nice to hear and comforting to the heart. But if it isn’t founded on the truths of the Scripture, then it should be better not to fall into such hallucinations and embrace it as truth.
Blessings!
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Without a doubt, 21st-century Christianity comes in many shapes and forms. Christians differ in doctrines, but they seem to be unified in believing that the return of Jesus Christ is still in the future, though it has been millennia since Jesus promised His apostles that He would be coming in their generation. See Matthew 16:27-28.
“For the Son of Man is going to come with His angels in the glory of His Father, and then He will repay each person according to what he has done. Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.””
The synoptic Gospels – Matthew, Mark, & Luke – have the same assurance concerning the imminent return of Christ:
“And He (Jesus Christ) said to them (apostles), “Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God after it has come with power.”” (Mark 9:1)
“For whoever is ashamed of Me (Jesus Christ) and of My words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when He comes in His glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels. But I tell you truly, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God.”” (Luke 9:26-27)
Not only that, Jesus Christ sending out the twelve apostles, instructing them on His message, said, “And proclaim as you go, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’” (Matthew 10:7)
“At hand” in the original Greek language means “near,” and near cannot by any means be thousands of years and continuing, as suggested by the Futurists. Jesus Christ did not just give them the message to proclaim, but He reinforced the message with the assurance that it was indeed occurring soon. See Matthew 10:23.
“When they persecute you (the apostles) in one town, flee to the next, for truly, I say to you, you will not have gone through all the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.”
As I researched the validity of Jesus’ words, it’s sad, actually disgusting, to find known Bible scholars saying, “No, Jesus was confused or hallucinating when He uttered those words.” Some dismissed the passages saying, “There must be another meaning for that, but we just have to find out.”
Funny that for as long as the passages or verses are convenient to their theological position, they adhere to the Words of Christ, but if it doesn’t, then it’s excuses after excuses. Scripture does not need affirmation from men; rather, the Bible is the dispenser of truth because it is the Word of God.
One of the key disciplines in interpreting Scripture involves recognizing “time statements.” However, Futurists often overlook these time statements in the Bible, particularly in the New Testament, and instead suggest that they refer to the future. It’s important to remember that what the apostles considered “the future” is no longer future to us today.
Hence, statements like “this generation” in Matthew 24:34 no longer make an impact on the readers, for time statements have been disregarded. See Matthew 24:29-34.
“29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 30 Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 31 And He will send out His angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. 32 “From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near. 33 So also, when you see all these things, you know that He is near, at the very gates. 34 Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place.
So some have suggested “this generation” refers to the generation who saw the literal signs of Matthew 24:29-34. Yet, they miss out on John’s confession in Revelation that he was already in tribulation. See Revelation 1:9.
“I, John, your brother and partner in the tribulation and the kingdom and the patient endurance that are in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos on account of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus.”
Scripture is a unity. The apostles’ writings cannot be different from the Words of Jesus found in the Gospels, the Book of Acts, or the Book of Revelation. Jesus’ words have their foundation in the Old Testament Scripture. The entire Bible is a cohesive revelation concerning the declaration and fulfillment of God’s words.
See Luke 24:44.
Then He (Jesus Christ) said to them (The disciples), “These are My words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about Me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.”
In recent years, we have witnessed the rise of fake news online. Most people now get their news from the web, particularly from platforms like Facebook and YouTube. Unfortunately, fake news spreads easily because many individuals click to watch or read without considering the source or the intent of the uploader or poster.
Even if a Facebook post or YouTube video contains factual information, ignoring the date it was published can severely affect its relevance today. The same principle applies when reading and studying the Bible. It is essential to recognize the audience’s relevance, the timing of statements, and their historical accuracy. Failing to do so can lead to misinterpretations of Scripture, whether by inexperienced readers or poorly informed pastors.
Jesus Christ warned, “Can a blind man lead a blind man? Will they not both fall into a pit?” (Luke 6:39)
Find someone who can teach you the disciplines of studying Scripture. Avoid using human-tailored Bible study materials, as they often reflect human influence. It’s important to recognize that even within different Bible translations, traces of human interpretation can be found. Let me be clear: the Bible itself is perfect, infallible, and without error; the issues arise with the translations.
You don’t need to be a scholar of Greek, Hebrew, or Aramaic, but it is beneficial to read the Bible by comparing different translations. Additionally, learning to use language tools, such as lexicons, is essential for in-depth Bible study. There are many free lexicon tools available online or for download. You just need to find someone knowledgeable to guide you in using these tools effectively.
It’s never too late to start studying Scripture and practicing proper exegesis. Ultimately, Scripture reveals truths about salvation that extend beyond our physical needs and concerns, addressing both our current lives and eternity. Don’t let yourself become part of confused Christianity.
Peter, in the words of Acts 3:6, declared, “I possess neither silver nor gold, but in the name of Jesus Christ, I offer you what I have.” Share this article freely, for you freely receive. Take note, underlines and highlights are clickable links for definitions or Bible references. Stay updated by heading to our about page and subscribe directly to receive notifications in your inbox. Blessing!
I saw a YouTube video posting saying “Jesus is coming, Be ready,” but wait, how did he know? Didn’t they also claim that no one can know the day or the hour?
Like everyone else, I came to faith embracing the same teachings and declarations. But in my twenty-one years of reading and studying the Bible, I have found more contradictions than truths with their prevailing teachings.
Can we Christians simply ignore statements of Jesus Christ concerning His return and say otherwise? Look and see:
“For the Son of Man is going to come with His angels in the glory of His Father, and then He will repay each person according to what he has done. Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom.””Matthew 16:27-28
“And He (Jesus Christ) said to them (Jesus’ immediate audience including the apostles), “Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God after it has come with power.””Mark 9:1
“For whoever is ashamed of Me (Jesus Christ) and of My words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when He comes in His glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels. But I tell you truly, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God.””Luke 9:26-27
“When they persecute you (the apostles) in one town, flee to the next, for truly, I say to you (the apostles), you will not have gone through all the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.”Matthew 10:23
A lot of Christians may have thought of the same thing before, during, and after the First World War, and again with the second one, that Jesus is coming soon. Yet, we knew nothing like what they had claimed happened. Sad to say, it was precisely due to such failed declarations that challenges to the Christian faith have increased.
We have seen similar trends happening again and again. Young people would join a Christian fellowship or Bible study group, excitedly seeking the truth, but after a while, a lot would walk away in search of true Scriptural teachings. Many would find none, so they gave up the search, turning cold and simply becoming attendee Christians. Some would only go by practice, meeting together with friends but not necessarily truthfully seeking the truth. Then as they grow older, when worries and challenges of life start to confront them, many would become like any of the first soils in the parable of Jesus Christ (Matthew 13:18-23).
Our Christian mission is to declare the message of the kingdom, not to impose millennia-old traditions that have no solid foundation in Scripture. In this pandemic, once more, many are interested to know what truly lies ahead. Hence, we see and hear pulpit messages and fellowship gatherings focusing on the topic of eschatology – the doctrine of the last things.
Funny, a lot also claim that the Jewish temple would be rebuilt for a third time. May I ask where in the Bible speaks of a third rebuilt Jewish Temple?
In biblical history, Solomon built the Jewish temple which was destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 B.C. Seventy years after the exile of the Jews (Judah, the Southern kingdom), the temple was rebuilt during the time of Nehemiah and Ezra. It came about due to God’s promise of return and rebuilding by the Jewish people found in the Book of Jeremiah and Daniel. However, in the same vision shown to Daniel regarding the rebuilding, a second another destruction, a final destruction, was also announced (Daniel 9).
Herod the Great worked on the expansion and beautification of the second temple. This is the same temple during the time of Jesus’ earthly ministry and those of the apostles. And Jesus Christ spoke of its destruction, affirming therefore the vision and prophecy of Daniel in all three Synoptic Gospels of the Bible – Matthew 24, Mark 13, and Luke 21.
In Revelation, John saw the vision and the reality of the Holy City and the New Heavenly Jerusalem (Revelation 21). This is misrepresented and missing in the modern teaching of the Bible.
One of the primary disciplines in studying the Bible is to recognize audience relevance, time statements, and the context of the passage. That is violated in the presentation of modern preachers and teachers of the Bible.
Listen to the words of Jesus Christ, see Matthew 15:12-14.
“Then the disciples came and said to Him (Jesus Christ), “Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this saying?” He answered, “Every plant that My heavenly Father has not planted will be rooted up. Let them alone; they are blind guides. And if the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit.””
Do your reading of the Scripture. Don’t just listen to the preaching or teaching of a pastor simply because he is popular or because it is the popular teaching. Beware that when Jesus Christ came teaching and preaching, many found His teaching new and strange ‘cause it was not according to the popular teachings of His time.
“And they were all amazed, so that they questioned among themselves, saying, “What is this? A new teaching with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey Him (Jesus Christ).””Mark 1:27
“And they took him (the apostle Paul) and brought him to the Areopagus, saying, “May we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting?”Acts 17:19
“Jesus said these things in the synagogue, as He taught at Capernaum. When many of His disciples heard it, they said, “This is a hard saying; who can listen to it?”“John 6:59-60
Check for yourselves the truthful teachings of the Scripture. Learn to discern truthful teaching of the Bible from man-invented ideas misquoting Scripture. Do not be afraid to challenge conventional Christian ideas or teachings if Scripture proves otherwise.
Remember the words of Jesus Christ.
““Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.”Matthew 7:13-14
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Utopia – an imagined place or state of things in which everything is perfect.
I have previously written about my conversion to Christianity on my blog entitled “Regarding Wilmer”. A few days after my only son was buried, a Bible study was started at our home and continued every Monday evening, which lasted for two years. Since then, it has become my habit to read the Bible at every opportunity available to me. I must have read the whole Bible five times over and over – from Genesis to Revelation – to the point that I have practically memorized Scripture. I can easily quote Scriptural verses together with their chapter and verse number. Two pastors handled our Bible study, the first for six months, then I was entrusted to his pastor-brother, who mentored me one-on-one, so altogether two years. I must say, the two, of course, coupled with my regular reading of the Bible, were instrumental in my rapid growth in Christianity. I was then encouraged to study in a seminary for further equipping.
I had doubts about the idea of going to school again, considering my age and time limitation, since I also have to provide for my family, with two daughters still studying. After my conversion to Christianity, I have been so passionate about the faith, and wanting to learn more, so I would eagerly listen and watch every available Christian program, both on radio and television. It was then that I realized that there are a lot of different explanations for a single verse of the Scripture. I knew in my heart that God could not have meant different meanings for His Word, therefore some of the explanations must be erroneous but which one? So I decided to enter seminary study even just for a subject every semester. To make the long story short, I eventually entered full-time study four years later after my initial enrollment as a part-time student.
I remember the day we first arrived at the seminary premises, my youngest daughter – only nine years old at that time – uttered the word “Heaven”. She seemed to have a sense of euphoria knowing that we would be residing in the seminary until my graduation. But the feeling of euphoria was short-lived. We soon realized that’s not true. Looking back, I thank God my family didn’t backslide on their faith, though I don’t mean to say we had a totally bad experience in the seminary. Just as I have said in my previous blog, most of my professors and seminary staff have been kind and a blessing to us.
God truly is amazing. Our experience in the seminary prepared us for our next journey – my pastorate work. But this time, I was armed with my experience and reminded by the Words of Jesus, “Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves (Matthew 10:16).”
I have been out of the organized Christian congregation and organizations for more than six years now. Together with my wife and the support of my two daughters, we have been joyfully doing Bible studies in our own small and little way. Gone are the hurts and sad experiences of yesteryears. But as you can see from our about me webpage, we have gone independent and our ministry would primarily focus on Unlearning Tradition and Relearning Scripture. And we know that in doing so, we may have unintentionally stepped on the feet of other Christian ministries. Let us assure you that that was never our intention. Consider us your partner in further learning the truth of the Scripture.
Anyway, as I had said before, eschatology – the study of the last things (click here for a better understanding of eschatology) – has been my favorite. Having lost a son, I certainly want to know for sure what the Bible says on the topic of death. However, in the course of my study on the topic, both in the seminary and later on, the study of Jesus’ Second Coming came head-to-head with the supposed teaching on the final destination of the Christian death.
And on the topic of the Second Coming, it is common for Christians to have an idea of euphoria – it’s more of a utopia once Jesus Christ has returned. Here is the explanation of Got.Questions.Org
The second coming of Jesus Christ is the hope of believers that God is in control of all things, and is faithful to the promises and prophecies in His Word. In His first coming, Jesus Christ came to earth as a baby in a manger in Bethlehem, just as prophesied. Jesus fulfilled many of the prophecies of the Messiah during His birth, life, ministry, death, and resurrection. However, there are some prophecies regarding the Messiah that Jesus has not yet fulfilled. The second coming of Christ will be the return of Christ to fulfill these remaining prophecies. In His first coming, Jesus was the suffering Servant. In His second coming, Jesus will be the conquering King. In His first coming, Jesus arrived in the most humble of circumstances. In His second coming, Jesus will arrive with the armies of heaven at His side.
The Old Testament prophets did not make clearly this distinction between the two comings.This can be seen in Isaiah 7:14, 9:6-7 and Zechariah 14:4. As a result of the prophecies seeming to speak of two individuals, many Jewish scholars believed there would be both a suffering Messiah and a conquering Messiah. What they failed to understand is that there is only one Messiah and He would fulfill both roles. Jesus fulfilled the role of the suffering servant (Isaiah chapter 53) in His first coming. Jesus will fulfill the role of Israel’s deliverer and King in His second coming.Zechariah 12:10 and Revelation 1:7, describing the second coming, look back to Jesus being pierced. Israel, and the whole world, will mourn for not having accepted the Messiah the first time He came.
After Jesus ascended into heaven, the angels declared to the apostles, “‘Men of Galilee,’ they said, ‘why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven’” (Acts 1:11). Zechariah 14:4 identifies the location of the second coming as the Mount of Olives. Matthew 24:30 declares, “At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory.”Titus 2:13 describes the second coming as a “glorious appearing.”
The second coming is spoken of in greatest detail in Revelation 19:11-16, “I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and makes war. His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one knows but he himself. He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God. The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean. Out of his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. ‘He will rule them with an iron scepter.’ He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.”
Merriam-Webster Dictionary defined “utopia” as a place of ideal perfection especially in laws, government, and social conditions. That is exactly the expectation and understanding of Christians once the Second Coming was fulfilled. So that explains why even well-known Christian writers and scholars would suggest that Jesus was hallucinating when He told His immediate disciples that He would be coming in their generation. See a statement made by famed Christian theologian C.S. Lewis.
Famed Christian theologian C.S. Lewis, author of The Chronicles of Narnia, said this about this passage:
“Say what you like,” we shall be told, “the apocalyptic beliefs of the first Christians have been proved to be false. It is clear from the New Testament that they all expected the Second Coming in their own lifetime. And, worse still, they had a reason, and one which you will find very embarrassing. Their Master had told them so. He shared, and indeed created, their delusion. He said in so many words, ‘this generation shall not pass till all these things be done.’ And he was wrong. He clearly knew no more about the end of the world than anyone else. It is certainly the most embarrassing verse in the Bible.” (C.S. Lewis, The World’s Last Night: And Other Essays, p.97)
As you can see, C.S. Lewis, in his book entitled “The World’s Last Night: And Other Essays” on pages 97-98 made that statement. Click here to read a free PDF copy of the said book. Herein are the passages that they denied as infallible – without error:
In Matthew 24:34, Jesus Christ assured His disciples – Peter, James, John, and the others – telling them the certainty of the destruction of Jerusalem together with the temple – the sign of His return in their generation. See Matthew24:2,15-31, saying “Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place.”
In Matthew 16:27-28, Jesus Christ told His disciples that He would build His church (Matt. 16:18-19), and about His impending death and resurrection (Matt. 16:21), then assuring the twelve that His return would be within their lifetime, saying, “For the Son of Man is going to come with His angels in the glory of His Father, and then He will repay each person according to what He has done. Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom.”
In Matthew 10:23, Jesus Christ sent out the twelve to preach about the arrival of God’s kingdom (Matt. 10:5-6), telling them about the dangers and importance of their message, saying, “When they persecute you in one town, flee to the next, for truly, I say to you, you will not have gone through all the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.”
Do you understand the implication of isolating some of Jesus’ promises, making it appear it’s not true or He was wrong, simply because it does not conform to the idea of utopia once Jesus Christ had returned? In effect, C.S. Lewis and the likes have put the Words of Christ to the test. In Matthew 4:7, at the temptation of Jesus Christ, He told the devil, “Again it is written, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’”
Are we free to pick and choose which promises of the Scripture are true or not, simply because it does not agree with our ideas? Don’t we understand that was precisely the temptation of Adam and Eve when the Serpent put the Word of God to a test?
The popular and prevailing understanding of Jesus’ Second Coming, without a doubt, is difficult to unlearn. But an in-depth study of the Scripture would certainly liberate us from the trap. Let us first take a second look at the statement of Got.Questions.Org on the topic of the Second Coming:
First, about GotQuestions.Org’s explainer on the topic of the Second Coming of Jesus Christ, “The Old Testament prophets did not make clearly this distinction between the two comings.”
What distinction?
The second coming of Christ will be the return of Christ to fulfill these remaining prophecies. In His first coming, Jesus was the suffering Servant. In His second coming, Jesus will be the conquering King. In His first coming, Jesus arrived in the most humble of circumstances. In His second coming, Jesus will arrive with the armies of heaven at His side.
That was a correct observation, but it does not mean the First and Second Comings would be separated by millennia and ongoing. The First and Second Comings actually refers to the fulfillment of Leviticus 23 Seven Jewish Festivals, which could be simplified as two Jewish Harvest Festivals – the Spring and Fall Festivals.
The Spring harvest festival began with both the Passover and Unleavened Bread feasts; next, the Feast of Firstfruit; and lastly, the Feast of Weeks or Pentecost. All four festivals had been fulfilled with the supposed “First Coming of Jesus Christ”.
For the Passover and unleavened bread, see 1 Corinthians 5:7-8.
Cleanse out the old leaven that you may be a new lump, as you really are unleavened. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. Let us therefore celebrate the festival, not with the old leaven, the leaven of malice and evil, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
For the Feast of Firstfruit, 1 Corinthians 15:20.
But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.
And for the Feast of Weeks or Pentecost, Acts 2:1-4,12-21,38-41.
When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance. (Acts 2:1-4)
And all were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” But others mocking said, “They are filled with new wine.” But Peter, standing with the eleven, lifted up his voice and addressed them: “Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and give ear to my words. For these people are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day. But this is what was uttered through the prophet Joel: “‘And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; even on my male servants and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy. And I will show wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below, blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke; the sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood, before the day of the Lord comes, the great and magnificent day. And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.’(Acts 2:12-21)
And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.” And with many other words he bore witness and continued to exhort them, saying, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation.” So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls. (Acts 2:38-41)
The second half of the Seven Jewish Feasts refers to the Fall Harvest Festival – namely, the Feast of Trumpets; the Day of Atonement; and lastly, the Feast of Booths, covering the supposed Second Coming of Jesus Christ. To read more about the Fall Harvest Festival, go to my blog “Let The Reader Understand”
Hence, Jesus in Matthew 24:29-35 said:
Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And He will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. “From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near. So also, when you see all these things, you know that He is near, at the very gates.Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.
Here goes the most embarrassing verse, according to C.S. Lewis. Jesus Christ told His disciples that His return would be upon “this generation” – the generation that would see all that He had spoken, mainly the destruction of Jerusalem and its temple. It happened in 70 A.D., therefore it was indeed witnessed by the first generation of Christians, possibly including John, a witness in the tribulation. See Revelation 1:9.
I, John, your brother and partner in the tribulation and the kingdom and the patient endurance that are in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos on account of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus.
John cannot be talking about any other tribulation because Jesus Christ said:
For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. (Matthew 24:21)
Here is an excerpt from Got.Questions.Org regarding Jerusalem Temple:
Cline states that the city was completely destroyed at least twice, once by the Babylonians under Nebuchadnezzar (2 Kings 25:8-10) and again by the Romans under Titus in AD 70.
The coming of Jesus Christ was the inauguration of the New Covenant, promised in the Old Testament Scripture, which will be completed upon His return. See first Jeremiah 31:27-34.
Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with the seed of man and the seed of beast. And it shall come to pass that as I have watched over them to pluck up and break down, to overthrow, destroy, and bring harm, so I will watch over them to build and to plant, declares the LORD. In those days they shall no longer say: ‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge.’ But everyone shall die for his own iniquity. Each man who eats sour grapes, his teeth shall be set on edge. Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah,not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, declares the LORD. For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD: I will put My law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be My people. And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they shall all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.
Next, in Hebrews 12:22-26, the author of Hebrews speaking to believers awaiting the return of Christ Jesus said:
But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel. See that you do not refuse Him who is speaking. For if they did not escape when they refused Him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape if we reject Him who warns from heaven. At that time His voice shook the earth, but now He has promised, “Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.”
So indeed, the coming of Jesus Christ was the arrival or commencing of the New Covenant. And it also said, “Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.” In other words, the shaking of the heavens and earth had occurred before, it’s not a happening only at the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. Since we adhere that the Bible is infallible, without error, then it demands that the statement is a truthful and factual.
In that case, if we follow the ideas concerning the Second Coming of Jesus Christ, then why are we still here? There seems to be no utopia after all.
You know what, it was because those were Hebrew covenant language. Yes, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth (Genesis 1:1)“ was/is a covenant language.
Now see Isaiah 64:1-12. Isaiah, knowing that God’s judgment was upon Israel, the destruction of Jerusalem and its temple by the Babylonian and the Jewish exile, pleaded for God’s mercy said:
Oh that You [the LORD God] would rend the heavens and come down, that the mountains might quake at Your presence— as when fire kindles brushwood and the fire causes water to boil— to make Your name known to Your adversaries, and that the nations might tremble at Your presence! When You did awesome things that we did not look for, You came down, the mountains quaked at Your presence.From of old no one has heard or perceived by the ear, no eye has seen a God besides you, who acts for those who wait for him. You meet him who joyfully works righteousness, those who remember you in your ways. Behold, you were angry, and we [Israel] sinned; in our sins we have been a long time, and shall we be saved? We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment. We all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away. There is no one who calls upon Your name, who rouses himself to take hold of You; for You have hidden Your face from us, and have made us melt in the hand of our iniquities. But now, O LORD, you are our Father; we are the clay, and You are our potter; we are all the work of Your hand. Be not so terribly angry, O LORD, and remember not iniquity forever. Behold, please look, we are all Your people.Your holy cities have become a wilderness; Zion has become a wilderness, Jerusalem a desolation.Our holy and beautiful house, where our fathers praised you, has been burned by fire, and all our pleasant places have become ruins.Will you restrain yourself at these things, O LORD? Will you keep silent, and afflict us so terribly?
In biblical history, Nebuchadnezzar is most famous for the conquering of Judah and the destruction of Judah and Jerusalem in 586 BC
The first destruction of Jerusalem and its temple was God’s rejection of His people, Israel. Isaiah said, that at His (first) judgment in 586 BC, the Babylonians destroyed Jerusalem (Isaiah 64:10-11), God came down (Isaiah 64:3), and the mountains quaked at His presence.
If we take the Hebrew language literally and follow the ideas of the traditional teaching on the Second Coming, God came down in 586 BC, so utopia follows – the history of mankind should have ceased right then and there. Don’t you think we truly need to Unlearn Tradition and Relearn Scripture?
The Son of Man coming in the cloud was a Hebrew metaphor for the coming final judgment of God against Old Covenant Israel. See Daniel 7:9-14.
As I looked, thrones were placed, and the Ancient of Days took His seat; His clothing was white as snow, and the hair of His head like pure wool; His throne was fiery flames; its wheels were burning fire. A stream of fire issued and came out from before Him; a thousand thousands served Him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him; the court sat in judgment, and the books were opened. “I looked then because of the sound of the great words that the horn was speaking. And as I looked, the beast was killed, and its body destroyed and given over to be burned with fire.As for the rest of the beasts, their dominion was taken away, but their lives were prolonged for a season and a time. “I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a Son of Man, and He came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before Him.And to Him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him; His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and His kingdom one that shall not be destroyed.
The “Son of Man” is Jesus Christ. See Matthew 10:23.
When they persecute you in one town, flee to the next, for truly, I say to you, you will not have gone through all the towns of Israel before the Son of Mancomes.
See also Matthew 16:13-16,24-28.
Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” … Then Jesus told His disciples, “If anyone would come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul? For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done. Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Mancoming in His kingdom.”
Lastly, Matthew 24:27-35.
For as the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather. “Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And He will send out His angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. “From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near. So also, when you see all these things, you know that He is near, at the very gates. Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.
A lot of people who deny the Words of Christ, that He was coming in the lifetime of Peter, James, and John, do not realize that without the return of Jesus Christ, “salvation remains to be a promise, not yet a reality”. See Hebrews 9:28
So also Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for Him.
See also Revelation 14:12-20.
Here is a call for the endurance of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus. And I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.” “Blessed indeed,” says the Spirit, “that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them!”Then I looked, and behold, a white cloud, and seated on the cloud one like a Son of Man, with a golden crown on his head, and a sharp sickle in his hand. And another angel came out of the temple, calling with a loud voice to Him who sat on the cloud, “Put in your sickle, and reap, for the hour to reap has come, for the harvest of the earth is fully ripe.” So He who sat on the cloud swung His sickle across the earth, and the earth was reaped. Then another angel came out of the temple in heaven, and he too had a sharp sickle. And another angel came out from the altar, the angel who has authority over the fire, and he called with a loud voice to the one who had the sharp sickle, “Put in your sickle and gather the clusters from the vine of the earth, for its grapes are ripe.” So the angel swung his sickle across the earth and gathered the grape harvest of the earth and threw it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. And the winepress was trodden outside the city, and blood flowed from the winepress, as high as a horse’s bridle, for 1,600 stadia.
Do you realize what you have just read? Christians who have died have finally found rest, only after God’s final judgment on the city of Old Covenant Jerusalem. That is why, before Christ’s Second Coming and final judgment, Revelation 6:9-11 said:
When He [Jesus Christ] opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the witness they had borne. They cried out with a loud voice, “O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you will judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” Then they were each given a white robe and told to rest a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brothers should be complete, who were to be killed as they themselves had been.
That is exactly what I have been explaining before the denial of Christ’s return has created an eschatological divide with the doctrine of Christian death. To understand further, go to my blog “The Eschatological Divide”.
Therefore, the Second Coming of Jesus Christ halted the Old Covenant, while the New Covenant was completed. So it’s not the utopia that follows but the fullness of the New Covenant, for we are now in the Christian age, and the Eternal Gospel must be proclaimed to all. And Scripture spoke of no end for the New Covenant or the Christian Age.
See 2 Corinthians 5:16-21. Here is an “already but not yet” statement from Paul. He asked the believers to focus on what’s about to completed, not on what’s passing away.
From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh [circumcision]. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard Him thus no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to Himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making His appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake He [God the Father] made Him [Jesus Christ] to be sin who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.
See Revelation 14:6-8.
Then I saw another angel flying directly overhead, with an eternal gospel to proclaim to those who dwell on earth, to every nation and tribe and language and people. And he said with a loud voice, “Fear God and give Him glory, because the hour of His judgment has come, and worship Him who made heaven and earth, the sea and the springs of water.” Another angel, a second, followed, saying, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great, she who made all nations drink the wine of the passion of her sexual immorality.”
Old Covenant Jerusalem was Babylon the Great, not Rome, as it was traditionally taught and believed. See Revelation 17:3-5. Babylon the Great was the woman seated on a scarlet beast, which had seven heads and ten horns.
As you can see, if your compass is defective, you would never locate the right direction. The same may be said of Scripture. If you misidentify a biblical reference, off you go with your imagination.
The “seven heads” are seven mountains (or hills in Greek) on which the woman was seated. Revelation 17:9-10 says “The seven heads also are seven kings, five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come, and when he comes he must remain only a little while.”
Rome is always known (click here) as the city on seven hills. The Seven heads were the Seven Kings or Emperors of Rome – namely: 1st, Julius Caesar (44 BC); 2nd, Augustus Caesar (27BC – 14AD); 3rd, Tiberius Caesar (14-37 AD); 4th, Caligula Caesar (37-41 AD); 5th, Claudius Caesar (41-54 AD); and finally, 6th, Nero Caesar (54-68 AD). Source: click here.
Note: Jews have always considered Julius Caesar as the first of Rome’s emperors. They are more inclined to call him king. See John 19:15 – “We have no king but Caesar.” It was said that under Julius Caesar, Judaism was officially recognized as a legal religion, a policy followed by the first Roman emperor, Augustus. Source: click here.
“Five have fallen, one is” – that was Nero Caesar. Therefore, the Book of Revelation was written by John during Nero’s reign, not in the late 90s as suggested again based on tradition.
The “woman,” “Babylon the Great”, also was the “great city”. See Revelation 17:18, where John revealed that it was the great city where Jesus Christ was crucified (Revelation 11:8); therefore it was Old Covenant Jerusalem. Isn’t it clear that all prophecies of Scripture had been fulfilled?
So what now? The apostle John in Revelation 22:7-20 has these remaining important last words from the Lord Jesus Christ.
And behold, I am coming soon. Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book. I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I heard and saw them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who showed them to me, but he said to me, “You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers the prophets, and with those who keep the words of this book. Worship God.” And he said to me, “Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is near.(Revelation 22:7-10)
Note: Unlike Daniel who was told to seal the book, for the things he wrote refers to the time of the end (it’s the time of the end, not end times; see Daniel 12:9), John was told not to seal this book of the prophecy – meaning, it’s a revelation – for the time is near (see Revelation 22:10). It’s near to John and his audience, not to us who are millennia away from the time of Christ’s revelation. Next …
Let the evildoer still do evil, and the filthy still be filthy, and the righteous still do right, and the holy still be holy.” “Behold, I am coming soon, bringing My recompense with Me, to repay each one for what he has done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.” Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life and that they may enter the city by the gates. Outside are the dogs and sorcerers and the sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices falsehood. (Revelation 22:11-15)
Note: See the urgency and certainty of Christ’s warning: “Behold, I am coming soon”. “Soon” by any means cannot be two thousand years ago and ongoing. It is also significant to understand that it was only upon His return that believers or Christians may have the right to the tree of life (eternal life) as well as to enter the city by the gates – the true Holy City, the New Jerusalem. See Revelation 21:2. And upon His return, outside the city are “the dogs and sorcerers and the sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices falsehood” (Revelation 22:15). I don’t see any earth-ending scenario here but the separation of God’s people and those who love falsehood. Don’t you think it makes sense that the Eternal Gospel of Jesus Christ should still be preached even after God’s Final Judgment and the fall of Babylon the Great – again, Old Covenant Jerusalem? See Revelation 14:6-8.
Then I saw another angel flying directly overhead, with an eternal gospel to proclaim to those who dwell on earth, to every nation and tribe and language and people. And he said with a loud voice, “Fear God and give Him glory, because the hour of His judgment has come, and worship Him who made heaven and earth, the sea and the springs of water.” Another angel, a second, followed, saying, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great, she who made all nations drink the wine of the passion of her sexual immorality.”
Hence, Habakkuk 2:14 said:
Woe to him [Old Covenant Jerusalem] who builds a town with blood and founds a city on iniquity! Behold, is it not from the LORD of hosts that peoples labor merely for fire, and nations weary themselves for nothing? For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.
Habakkuk was referring to the eternal preaching of the Gospel spoken in Revelation 14:6. So we see despite attempts in history to silence the Bible and suppress the truth, the Word of God would always be proclaimed at any time, and any place. Next …
“I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you [John] about these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star.” The Spirit and the Bride say, “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.” And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price.I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book, and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book. He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!
Note: Can you see, underlined, the invitation for eternal life remains open? And the assurance and certainty of things written by John was attested by Jesus Christ Himself. Therefore, despite the lousyness of modern-day Christianity, let it not be a reason for anyone to reject the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Let us discern carefully what we have heard, by checking every declaration and statement vis-a-vis with the Word of God.
On the other hand, Jesus Christ also has warned against diversions or extractions of His Word, the Book of Revelation. Anyone who does so, judgment and forfeiture of eternal life would be the consequence. Surely, that is a scary end, so I embarked on studying the Scripture in-depth to know the truth and be assured of entrance to God’s kingdom.
I know my detractors would also be claiming they speak the truth, so it should be a prudent thing to listen to both sides of the argument and reflect on Scripture to see which one is the truth. Most of you have heard their side of the argument, so perhaps you can give my exposition of the Scripture a chance. At the end of the day, it’s about faith, our salvation, and eternity.
There was no utopia after all, but a New Covenant. But if you mean utopia as in Jesus Christ is Lord of lords and King of kings, make no mistake He was/is victorious (Revelation 17:14; Revelation 5:5), and He reigns now and forevermore (Revelation 19:6). Therefore, in Christ Jesus, we have eternal blessedness, now and beyond this present existence, indeed we are having it now.
Blessings!
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The Covid-19 pandemic has been around for a year now. Until today, its origin remains to be a matter of opinion, nothing conclusive or official. Just when vaccines are set to roll out, a couple of new variants or mutations of the virus have emerged and is now spreading, even as the original strain remains uncontainable. So once again Christians, especially among futurists camp, have asked, “Aren’t we now in the time of tribulation?” (see blog entitled “The Eschatological Divide” to understand the different perspective on the study of the Last Things)
What is a virus?
Viruses are microscopic parasites, generally much smaller than bacteria. They lack the capacity to thrive and reproduce outside of a host body.
Viruses teeter on the boundaries of what is considered life. On one hand, they contain the key elements that make up all living organisms: the nucleic acids, DNA or RNA (any given virus can only have one or the other). On the other hand, viruses lack the capacity to independently read and act upon the information contained within these nucleic acids.
Science or virology, the branch of science that deals with the study of virus has no definite answer on the origin of the virus (click here to read) except that virus is part of nature. But the COVID-19 virus or any other viruses that causes illness is a mutation not innate in itself. So, though everything has its beginning with God’s creation, and virus may be part of nature, the COVID-19 virus, same with the HIV-Virus or Swine-flu (H1N1 virus) is not a creation of God but a mutation from His original creation. As Christians, we need to see the importance of such difference. For God is good, everything He created is very good, no evil or harm could originate from Him.
See this BBC Documentary entitled “Understanding Viruses”produced in 2017. A couple of years before the emergence of COVID-19 virus, that documentary video was made to explain the possible causes of pandemics, like what we are experiencing today. For a shorter version of the explanation, click here. Epidemics or pandemics caused by viruses are man-made, not from God.
Travels, explorations, deforestations and many other human activities could be a trigger for dormant viruses to enter the human body, be its host, then mutation occurs until it becomes a deadly transmissible virus. It would be prudent then not to blame or make God the cause of the COVID-19 virus, but simply see that it is due to human error – intentionally or unintentionally.
Now on the merits that the new strain is further proof that we are in the tribulation period of the last days. Again, my short and repeated answer is “NO, NO WAY ARE WE IN TRIBULATION.”
Now, if by “tribulation”, you mean a great time of trouble due to the deaths, sickness, and the accompanying economic hardships, make no mistake we are in a difficult times. What I reject is the idea that this COVID-19 and its accompanying hardship are the alleged signs spoken by the Bible connected to Matthew 24:21. “For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be.” The great tribulation, as it has been discussed today among Christians, is believed to be a 3-1/2 years of trouble, a prelude to a Second Coming of Jesus Christ? It’s a myth that has been repeated, therefore becoming a trend, which no Bible-loving Christian should even consider.
See the explanation of GotQuestions.Com regarding the “Great Tribulation“:
The Tribulation is a future time period when the Lord will accomplish at least two aspects of His plan: 1) He will complete His discipline of the nation Israel (Daniel 9:24), and 2) He will judge the unbelieving, godless inhabitants of the earth (Revelation 6 – 18). The length of the Tribulation is seven years. This is determined by an understanding of the seventy weeks of Daniel (Daniel 9:24-27; also see the article on the Tribulation). The Great Tribulation is the last half of the Tribulation period, three and one-half years in length. It is distinguished from the Tribulation period because the Beast, or Antichrist, will be revealed, and the wrath of God will greatly intensify during this time. Thus, it is important at this point to emphasize that the Tribulation and the Great Tribulation are not synonymous terms. Within eschatology (the study of future things), the Tribulation refers to the full seven-year period while the “Great Tribulation” refers to the second half of the Tribulation.
The above explanation is basically the teaching of modern-day Christianity, the futurist view. As you can see, they have verses of Scripture supporting their position or teachings, which was mainly from Daniel 9:24-27. But before we dig into the passage, let us determine its context or background. See Daniel 9:1-2.
In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, by descent a Mede, who was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans— in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, perceived in the books the number of years that, according to the word of the LORD to Jeremiah the prophet, must pass before the end of the desolations of Jerusalem, namely, seventy years.
In Daniel 5:30, Scripture said Darius ruled over the kingdom of Babylon after he had defeated Belshazzar the Chaldean king (Babylonian king). Daniel previously had prophesied about four Gentile kingdoms ruling over Jerusalem (Daniel 2:27-45). The four Gentile kingdoms were namely Babylon (Daniel 2:37-38; 7:4); Mede-Persia and Greece (Daniel 2:39; 7:5-6; 11:1-2); then Rome (Daniel 2:40; 7:7-8; Revelation 13:1; 17:7-12). We know the fourth kingdom was Rome, for it’s the city seated on seven hills (Revelation 17:9). Click on the link “Rome” to see the validity of its claim.
Daniel mentioned Jeremiah’s prophecy – “seventy years must passed before the end of the desolations of Jerusalem”. See Jeremiah 25:8-9,11.
Therefore thus says the LORD of hosts: Because you have not obeyed My words, behold, I will send for all the tribes of the north, declares the LORD, and for Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, My servant, and I will bring them against this land and its inhabitants, and against all these surrounding nations. I will devote them to destruction, and make them a horror, a hissing, and an everlasting desolation … This whole land shall become a ruin and a waste, and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years. Then after seventy years are completed, I will punish the king of Babylon and that nation, the land of the Chaldeans, for their iniquity, declares the LORD, making the land an everlasting waste.
Now back to Daniel 9:1-2. The Seventy Years Babylonian Captivity was over, so Daniel confessed Israel’s sin, and he pleaded and prayed for God’s mercy and restoration and the rebuilding of the temple (Daniel 9:17).
The LORD God replied in a vision, the Seventy Weeks of Daniel 9:24-27 – “the time for God to end the transgression of Israel and the holy city, to put an end to sin, and to atone for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal both vision and prophets, to anoint a most holy place.” Jesus actually quoted Daniel 9:26 in Matthew 24:15-21. See and compare below.
And after the sixty-two weeks, an anointed one shall be cut off and shall have nothing. And the people of the prince who is to come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. Its end shall come with a flood, and to the end there shall be war. Desolations are decreed. (Daniel 9:26)
So when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let the one who is on the housetop not go down to take what is in his house, and let the one who is in the field not turn back to take his cloak. And alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days! Pray that your flight may not be in winter or on a Sabbath. For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be.(Matthew 24:15-21)
Matthew 24:15-21 then is a commentary to Daniel 9:24-27, specifically 9:26.
Isn’t it ironic for Daniel? He pleaded for God’s mercy, restoration and the rebuilding of the temple (Daniel 9:17), yet though God did talk about a rebuilding (Daniel 9:25), He also spoke of a final destruction (Daniel 9:26), so until today the temple remains desolate. The exact location where the temple was once standing before its destruction is now occupied by the Dome of Rock.
See Daniel 9:25 – rebuilding of the temple.
Know therefore and understand that from the going out of the word to restore and build Jerusalem to the coming of an anointed one, a prince [Hebrew 5057], there shall be seven weeks. Then for sixty-two weeks it shall be built again with squares and moat, but in a troubled time.
See Daniel 9:26 – a second and final destruction of the temple.
And after the sixty-two weeks, an anointed one shall be cut off and shall have nothing. And the people of the prince [Hebrew 5057] who is to come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. Its end shall come with a flood, and to the end there shall be war. Desolations are decreed.
Click on the link to know about “Julian the apostate”, emperor of Rome. He ordered the rebuilding of the Jewish temple but failed. That was long before the Dome of the Rock was built on the temple site. No, he wasn’t a believer of Christianity; hence he was called an apostate. His sole purpose for rebuilding the temple was to disprove Christianity – Jesus Christ and His promise to return in the generation of His disciples destroying the temple (Matthew 24:1-3, 15-28).
Now back to our discussion on Daniel 9:24-27. It is important to understand that the “prince” of verse 25 is also the “prince” of verse 26; both refers to the “Anointed One,” the Christ or Messiah. Such a reading of the Scripture is in accordance to the basic principle of hermeneutics, the science of interpreting Scripture. But the futurist teaches that the verse 25 “prince” refers to Jesus Christ, while verse 26 is the anti-Christ, even if both are the same Hebrew noun. You may want to ask your pastors to verify if indeed that’s how they interpret it.
Messiah comes from the Hebrew word mashiach and means “anointed one” or “chosen one.” The Greek equivalent is the word Christos or, in English, Christ. The name “Jesus Christ” is the same as “Jesus the Messiah.”
Jesus fulfills the role of Prophet, Priest, and King, which is further evidence to His being the Messiah. He is a prophet, because He embodied and preached the Word of God (see John 1:1–18; 14:24; and Luke 24:19); a priest, because His death atones for our sins and reconciles us to the Father (see Hebrews 2:17; 4:14); and a king, because after His resurrection God gave all authority to Him (see John 18:36; Ephesians 1:20–23; and Revelation 19:16).
Though it’s true that historically the Romans attacked and destroyed Jerusalem and burned down the temple in AD 70, it was to fulfill the Day of God’s vengeance; see Luke 21:20-24.
But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation has come near. Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, and let those who are inside the city depart, and let not those who are out in the country enter it, for these are days of vengeance, to fulfill all that is written. Alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days! For there will be great distress upon the earth and wrath against this people. They will fall by the edge of the sword and be led captive among all nations, and Jerusalem will be trampled underfoot by the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.
The “times of the Gentiles” refers to the four Gentile kingdoms ruling over Jerusalem – again namely, Babylon, Mede-Persia, Greece and Rome – prophesied by Daniel, and he clearly explained that during the reign of the fourth kingdom – Rome – the kingdom of heaven would appear and be established (Daniel 2:36-45). In the New Testament time, both John the Baptist (Matthew 3:1-2) and Jesus Christ proclaimed “the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 4:17). Fact is, Jesus Christ declared before the Pharisees, the kingdom of heaven has arrived. See Luke 17:20-21.
Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, He [Jesus] answered them, “The kingdom of God is not coming in ways that can be observed, nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘There!‘ for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.”
Many have speculated about a revived Roman Empire in an effort to align their beliefs and teachings with that of Daniel 2, so that their futurist view on the Second Coming of Jesus Christ could possibly stand. But it could not be sustained simply because it’s not from the Word of God, rather an invention of man. Nowhere in the Bible did it spoke of a revived Roman Empire.
Take note that Luke 21:20-24 is similar to Matthew 24:15-21; both spoke of the desolation of Jerusalem. Also, just as Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, was servant of God for His judgment against Jerusalem. Rome serves the same purpose in the second and final destruction of Old Covenant Jerusalem (Romans 13:1-4).
Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God.Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment. For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, for he is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God’s wrath on the wrongdoer.
Who was the governing authority at the time of Paul? No other but Rome.
Now, see again Daniel 9:25.
Know therefore and understand that from the going out of the word to restore and build Jerusalem to the coming of an anointed one, a prince, there shall be seven weeks. Then for sixty-two weeks it shall be built again with squares and moat, but in a troubled time.
The “seven weeks” spoken along with the Anointed One – no other but Jesus Christ – refers to the Day of Pentecost. See Leviticus 23:15-16, the Feast of Weeks or Pentecost.
You shall count seven full weeks from the day after the Sabbath, from the day that you brought the sheaf of the wave offering. You shall count fifty days to the day after the seventh Sabbath. Then you shall present a grain offering of new grain to the LORD.
Pentecost is significant in both the Old and New Testaments. “Pentecost” is actually the Greek name for a festival known in the Old Testament as the Feast of Weeks (Leviticus 23:15; Deuteronomy 16:9). The Greek word means “fifty” and refers to the fifty days that have elapsed since the wave offering of Passover (week). The Feast of Weeks celebrated the end of the grain harvest. Most interesting, however, is its use in Joel and Acts. Looking back to Joel’s prophecy (Joel 2:28–32) and forward to the promise of the Holy Spirit in Christ’s last words on earth before His ascension into heaven (Acts 1:8), Pentecost signals the beginning of the church age.
Note: To amend gotquestions.org’s explanation on the Pentecost, I added open close parentheses “week” to make clear Pentecost has to be 50 days after the third festival of the passover week, which is the feast of firstfruits (click link to see Scriptural support) – the day Jesus Christ resurrected. Click on ligonier.org to see explanation.
Interestingly, Daniel 9:26 said: “And after the sixty-weeks, an anointed one shall be cut off[Hebrew 3772] and shall have nothing.“
The Complete Word Study Bible Dictionary said “cut off [Hebrew 3772]”is a verb meaning to cut off, to cut down, to make a covenant. This word can mean literally to cut something down or off, as grapes (Numbers 13:23, 24) or branches (Judges 9:48, 49).It can also be used figuratively, as with people (Jeremiah 11:19; 50:16). Another important use of this word is to make a covenant (lit., to cut a covenant), perhaps deriving from the practice of cutting an animal in two in the covenant ceremony. God made a covenant with Abraham (Genesis 15:18); Abraham made one with Abimelech (Genesis 21:27). Finally, this word can also mean to destroy, as in Micah’s prophecy (Micah 5:10).
Amazingly, the apostle Paul spoke of the same idea – that is, being cut off from the New Covenant. See Romans 9:1-8.
I am speaking the truth in Christ— I am not lying; my conscience bears me witness in the Holy Spirit— that I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, my kinsmen according to the flesh. They are Israelites, and to them belong the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises. To them belong the patriarchs, and from their race, according to the flesh, is the Christ, who is God over all, blessed forever. Amen. But it is not as though the word of God has failed. For not all who are descended from Israel belong to Israel, and not all are children of Abraham because they are his offspring, but “Through Isaac shall your offspring be named.” This means that it is not the children of the flesh who are the children of God, but the children of the promise are counted as offspring.
See also Romans 11:13-24.
Now I am speaking to you Gentiles. Inasmuch then as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I magnify my ministry in order somehow to make my fellow Jews jealous, and thus save some of them. For if their rejection means the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance mean but life from the dead? If the dough offered as firstfruits is holy, so is the whole lump, and if the root is holy, so are the branches. But if some of the branches [Jews] were broken off, and you [Gentiles], although a wild olive shoot, were grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing root of the olive tree, do not be arrogant toward the branches. If you are, remember it is not you who support the root, but the root that supports you. Then you will say, “Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in.” That is true. They were broken off because of their unbelief, but you stand fast through faith. So do not become proud, but fear. For if God did not spare the natural branches, neither will He spare you. Note then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but God’s kindness to you, provided you continue in His kindness. Otherwise you too will be cut off. And even they, if they do not continue in their unbelief, will be grafted in, for God has the power to graft them in again. For if you were cut from what is by nature a wild olive tree, and grafted, contrary to nature, into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these, the natural branches, be grafted back into their own olive tree.
How then should we understand Daniel 9:26? It’s about Christ Jesus’ offering of the New Covenant (see Heb 9:8-15) – salvation by faith, not by circumcision – but since the Jews rejected and crucified Him, they ceased to be God’s covenant people, except of course those who have believed in Him.
In the next verse, Daniel 9:27, it was Jesus Christ then who made a strong covenant with many for one week. Again, not the anti-Christ as alleged and taught by the futurist. The one week is what remains for the completion of the Seventy Weeks of Daniel 24, which actually was about Jesus Christ and His salvation and judgment. See again Daniel 9:27a.
And He [Jesus Christ] shall make a strong covenant [eternal covenant; Hebrews 13:20] with many for one week, and for half of the week He shall put an end to sacrifice and offering.
The half of the week obviously refers to Jesus’ first coming; His sacrifice, death and resurrection made the Old Covenant law on sacrifice and offering obsolete. See Hebrews 8:13.
In speaking of a new covenant, He makes the first one obsolete. And what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away.
Next, Hebrews 9:15-26.
Therefore He [Jesus Christ] is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, since a death has occurred that redeems them from the transgressions committed under the first covenant. For where a will is involved, the death of the one who made it must be established. For a will takes effect only at death, since it is not in force as long as the one who made it is alive. Therefore not even the first covenant was inaugurated without blood. For when every commandment of the law had been declared by Moses to all the people, he took the blood of calves and goats, with water and scarlet wool and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book itself and all the people, saying, “This is the blood of the covenant that God commanded for you.” And in the same way he sprinkled with the blood both the tent and all the vessels used in worship. Indeed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins. Thus it was necessary for the copies of the heavenly things to be purified with these rites, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. For Christ has entered, not into holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true things, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf. Nor was it to offer Himself repeatedly, as the high priest enters the holy places every year with blood not his own, for then He would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. But as it is, He has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself.
Did you notice what Hebrews said? The coming of Jesus Christ was the end of ages. It was therefore truly the last days, not an unending last days if we follow the futurist idea of the Second Coming. You may want to read my blog entitled “The Unending Last Days”.
Now, continuing on Daniel 9:27b, see explanation in Luke 21:20-24.
And on the wing of abominations shall come one who makes desolate, until the decreed end is poured out on the desolator.
It was God who made Old Covenant Jerusalem desolate, but of course historically it was the Romans, the people of the Prince – the Anointed One, Jesus Christ. Just as Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon was God’s servant for His vengeance against Jerusalem during its first destruction.
In conclusion, since the “seven weeks” of Daniel 9:25 refers to the Pentecost, the last of the four Jewish spring festivals, fulfilled by Christ Jesus at His First Coming. Daniel 9:26-27 then fulfilled the last three Jewish Fall Festivals – namely, the Feast of Trumpets (Leviticus 23:23-25), the Day of Atonement (Leviticus 23:26-32), and lastly, the Feast of Booths or Tabernacle (Leviticus 23:33-43). It should be noticeable that with the fulfillment of the three Jewish Fall Festivals, it also fulfilled Daniel 9:24:
The Jews and the holy city to finish transgression, to put an end to sin – that’s God’s Final Judgment (Matthew 24:29-31), the Feast of Trumpets.
To atone for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness – that’s the Wedding Banquet (Matthew 22:1-14), the day of Atonement.
To seal both vision and prophet, and to anoint a most holy place – that’s the New Jerusalem (Revelation 21:2-6), the Feast of Booths.
It therefore makes no sense believing that the present COVID-19 pandemic is a proof that we are in the time of tribulation. Let me narrow down my arguments to two points:
First, according to Jesus’ own words, the great tribulation refers to the destruction of the Jewish temple in Jerusalem. Is there presently a temple standing to be destroyed that we should be misled into believing we are at the time of tribulation?
Lastly, when John wrote to the seven churches of Asia, the apostle clearly said he was in tribulation, which was millennia ago. According to the futurist teaching, the tribulation is a period of seven years, not two thousands years and continuing.
To end, allow me to quote Jesus’ words.
Let them alone; they are blind guides. And if the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit.
Matthew 5:14
Do not blindly follow and listen. Study the Bible. Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Chief Shepherd of God’s flock, in Matthew 24:15 said, “Let the reader understand“. Don’t you yet understand? If you wish to understand better, reach out to us here. We would be more than willing to help.
Blessing!
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During the pandemic, many Christians believe we are in the “last days.” This belief has been largely influenced by novels and books that discuss the supposed signs of the impending rapture and the Second Coming of Jesus Christ.
About a century ago, a pandemic known as the “Spanish Flu” lasted for a couple of years and claimed many lives. If that generation had shared a similar mindset, they might have believed they were experiencing the “last days.” However, here we are today, facing a new pandemic and many people are once again believing we are in the last days. So, it seems this is the “last last days” following the last days a century ago. This concept doesn’t make sense.
The Bible does speak of the “last days,” actually five times in the New Testament Scripture. Let us explore them each, starting with Acts 2:16-21,36-38,40.
But this is what was uttered through the prophet Joel [cf. Joel 2:28-32]: “‘And in the last daysit shall be, God declares,that I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; even on My male servants and female servants in those days I will pour out My Spirit, and they shall prophesy. And I will show wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below, blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke; the sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood,before the day of the Lordcomes, the great and magnificent day. And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.’ (Acts 2:16-21)
“Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.” Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit … And with many other words he bore witness and continued to exhort them, saying, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation.” (Acts 2:36-38,40)
What was the occasion of Acts 2? It’s the day of Pentecost, it’s the fourth of the Seven Jewish Feasts; see Leviticus 23:15-17.
You shall count seven full weeks from the day after the Sabbath, from the day that you brought the sheaf of the wave offering [the Resurrection Day of Jesus, cf. Leviticus 23:10-11]. You shall count fifty days [literal meaning of “Pentecost”] to the day after the seventh Sabbath. Then you shall present a grain offering of new grain to the LORD. You shall bring from your dwelling places two loaves of bread to be waved, made of two tenths of an ephah. They shall be of fine flour, and they shall be baked with leaven, as firstfruits to the LORD [cf. Acts 2:41; 2 Thessalonians 2:13].
The time for God’s harvest began at Pentecost, see Acts 2:41“So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls.”
See also 2 Thessalonians 2:13.
But we [Paul and his co-workers] ought always to give thanks to God for you [the Thessalonians believers], brothers beloved by the Lord, because God chose you as the firstfruits to be saved, through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth.
Pentecost was the second of three Jewish Harvest Festivals when Jews from everywhere were required to appear before the LORD in Jerusalem. See Deuteronomy 16:16.
“Three times a year all your males shall appear before the LORD your God at the place that he will choose: at the Feast of Unleavened Bread, at the Feast of Weeks [Pentecost], and at the Feast of Booths. They shall not appear before the LORD empty-handed.”
In Peter’s sermon, he referenced the prophet Joel (Joel 2:28-32), stating that its fulfillment began at Pentecost. This event marked the beginning of the countdown to the last days, leading up to the Day of the LORD (Acts 2:17,20), which is also the day of God’s vengeance. This concept is further supported by Luke 21:20-22.
But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation has come near. Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, and let those who are inside the city depart, and let not those who are out in the country enter it, for these are days of vengeance, to fulfill all that is written.
The “day of the Lord” then was the day of God’s vengeance against Jerusalem. This is also highlighted in Matthew 23, where the Lord Jesus Christ pronounces several “woes” against the scribes and Pharisees. Pay special attention to the highlighted verses 36-38 to understand who will experience God’s vengeance and when it will take place.
Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers. You serpents, you brood of vipers, how are you to escape being sentenced to hell? Therefore I send you prophets and wise men and scribes, some of whom you will kill and crucify, and some you will flog in your synagogues and persecute from town to town, so that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah the son of Barachiah, whom you murdered between the sanctuary and the altar. Truly, I say to you, all these things will come upon THIS GENERATION. O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it!How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! See, your house is left to you desolate.
It is clear that Jesus stated, “God’s vengeance would be upon the generation He spoke against” (Matthew 23:36). He specifically referred to Jerusalem when He said, “See, your house is left desolate” (Matthew 23:38). This provides us with both the “who” and the “when”—Jerusalem during Jesus’ generation. The “house” left desolate refers to the Jewish Temple. Jesus further explained this in His discourse; see Matthew 24:1-3.
Jesus left the temple and was going away, when His disciples came to point out to Him the buildings of the temple. But He answered them,“You see all these, do you not? Truly, I say to you, there will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.” As He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?”
Without a doubt, the last days lead to the Day of God’s vengeance, the Day of the Lord, the Second Coming, and the end of the age—the end of the Old Covenant Age, as noted in Hebrews 8:13.
In speaking of a new covenant, He makes the first one obsolete. And what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away.
Without the Temple, the Jewish people ceased to be God’s covenant people. I remember previously writing about this topic but can’t remember which blog. If you find it worthwhile to dig deeper, you may find the topic in my previous blogs.
The countdown to the “last days” began at Pentecost and continued until the destruction of Jerusalem. You can see for yourselves that the Jerusalem Temple no longer stands today. This was the sign understood by the disciples of Jesus regarding the fulfillment of the Day of the Lord (Matthew 24:3) and the Second Coming of Jesus Christ.
The second passage in the New Testament Scripture that spoke of the “last days” may be found in 2 Timothy 3:1-7.
But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people. For among them are those who creep into households and capture weak women, burdened with sins and led astray by various passions, always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth.
Although it is unfortunate, the recent revelation and confirmation by Christianity Today concerning Ravi Zacharias, a prominent preacher within a Christian organization, serves as a notable example of 2 Timothy 3:5. The Gospel of Jesus Christ represents the power of God, as stated in Romans 1:16.
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.”
Such an arrogance and bad hermeneutics for some to believe, claim, and teach that the power is with us Christians. Let me be clear, the power is not with the Christian but by the Gospel (Romans 1:16). So Paul, in Philippians 2:12-13 said:
Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.
In reference to 2 Timothy 3:5, the formerly renowned preacher failed to experience the transformative power of the Gospel. Therefore, Scripture states, “Having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people.”
This was Paul’s second letter to Timothy. In this letter, Paul warned Timothy about the challenges he would face in his ministry, emphasizing that the last days would be a difficult time. Paul provides descriptions of people’s behavior during these last days in 2Timothy 3:1-5, which aligns with Peter’s words spoken at Pentecost about the “last days” (see Acts 2:40). Peter urged the Jews at Pentecost by saying, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation,” using many other words to bear witness and encourage them.
Interestingly, on the first chapter of 2 Timothy, Paul did imply that the Day of the Lord was coming in his generation; see 2 Timothy 1:15-18.
You are aware that all who are in Asia turned away from me [Paul}, among whom are Phygelus and Hermogenes. May the Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, for he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chains, but when he arrived in Rome he searched for me earnestly and found me— may the Lord grant him to find mercy from the Lord ON THAT DAY!—and you well know all the service he rendered at Ephesus.
Onesiphorus must still be alive for him to find mercy on the Day of the Lord. Again, as I have said in my other blogs, the Lord Jesus Christ again and again did spoke of His Return in the days of His apostles. See Matthew 10:23.
When they persecute you [the apostles, see Matthew 10:1-5, Jesus was speaking to them] in one town, flee to the next, for truly, I say to you, you will not have gone through all the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.
Also see Matthew 16:27-28.
For the Son of Man is going to come with His angels in the glory of His Father, and then He will repay each person according to what he has done. Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom.”
Now, let’s see the next passage that spoke of the “last days”; see Hebrews 1:1-2.
Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days He has spoken to us by His Son, whom He appointed the heir of all things, through whom also He created the world.
The “last days” then covers the people of Jesus’ generation – those who had heard firsthand from the Son, Jesus Christ, the last and Great Prophet of God. So again, Hebrews agrees with both Acts and 2 Timothy that the New Testament people mentioned in Scripture were living in the last days leading to the Day of the Lord.
Next, we have James 5:1-3.
Come now, you rich, weep and howl for the miseries that are coming upon you [the actual audience of James]. Your riches have rotted and your garments are moth-eaten. Your gold and silver have corroded, and their corrosion will be evidence against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have laid up treasure in the last days.
Lastly, 2 Peter 3:1-4.
This is now the second letter that I am writing to you, beloved. In both of them I am stirring up your sincere mind by way of reminder, that you should remember the predictions of the holy prophets and the commandment of the Lord and Savior through your apostles,knowing this first of all, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires. They will say, “Where is the promise of His coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation.”
Here, the apostle Peter was rebuking false teachers – see 2 Peter 2:1-2 – for denying the imminent or soon coming of Jesus Christ.
But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction. And many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of truth will be blasphemed.
What was that they denied about the Master, Jesus Christ? It was His promise to return, again see 2 Peter 3:1-4, the continuing narrative of Peter regarding the heresies of the false teachers (2 Peter 2:1-22).
This is now the second letter that I am [Peter] writing to you, beloved. In both of them I am stirring up your sincere mind by way of reminder, that you should remember the predictions of the holy prophets and the commandment of the Lord and Savior through your apostles, knowing this first of all, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires. They will say, “Where is the promise of His coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation.”
Come to think of it, two millennia cannot be soon by any measurement, don’t you think? Peter assures the Lord’s coming was soon in his generation; see 2 Peter 3:13, again the continuing narrative of Peter on the same discourse.
But according to His [Jesus Christ] promise we [Peter and his contemporaries] are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.
Again Scripture made clear that Peter and his contemporaries indeed was expecting the soon return of Jesus Christ. Still not convinced? Let’s see 1 Peter 4:7. “The end of all things is at hand; therefore be self-controlled and sober-minded for the sake of your prayers.”
Peter said “the end of all things is at hand.” The Scripture Direct, an online lexicon explained that “at hand” in Greek means “the occurrence of a point of time close to a subsequent point of time”. In other words, the time Peter spoke of “the end of things” was close to the time of its fulfillment, so indeed it was the “last days”. However, if it hasn’t been fulfilled, as it was/is taught today, then the end of things which was spoken two thousand years ago cannot in any means be close (at hand) to Peter’s days than closer to us, as claimed by the popular and traditional teachings.
One more, in 1 Peter 5:1-4.
So I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed: shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly; not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock. And when the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory.
The “glory to be revealed” refers to the coming of Jesus Christ, the chief Shepherd, which Peter assures his audience “they are partakers of the coming glory” – the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. Again the lexicon Scripture Direct explained “partaker” means “one who participates with another in some enterprise or matter of joint concern,” and in the case of 1 Peter 5:1, it spoke of Peter’s audience as the partaker or participants of the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. Once again, it agrees with Jesus’ repeated declaration that His Return would be in the days of His generation – the generation of Jews that crucified Jesus Christ.
See Numbers 32:13.
And the LORD’s anger was kindled against Israel, and He made them wander in the wilderness forty years, until all the generation that had done evil in the sight of the LORD was gone.
A Jewish generation is forty years. In Exodus, as revealed through Number 32:13, the Jews, who were first to received God’s covenant at Mount Sinai, wandered in the wilderness for FORTY YEARS and perished because they broke the covenant. So they failed to enter the Promised Land. At the time of Jesus, the Jews were offered the New Covenant – the Gospel – but they rejected Christ, the mediator of the New Covenant and crucified Him. See Hebrews 12:24.
And to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.
FORTY YEARS later, beginning with the earthly ministry of Jesus Christ (30 A.D.) that generation of Jews perished with the fall of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. Similarly forty years, a generation, coincidence? Of course not, because the Exodus account actually foreshadowed both the First and the Second Coming of Jesus Christ.
In conclusion, Matthew 3:10-12 narrated the story of John the Baptist as he spoke of the last days – the judgment and regathering of God’s people.
Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. “I baptize you with water for repentance, but He [Jesus Christ] who is coming after Me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in His hand, and He will clear His threshing floor and gather His wheat into the barn, but the chaff He will burn with unquenchable fire.”
The cutting down of the tree analogy leaving only the stump alludes to God’s declaration found in Isaiah 6:8-13.
And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” Then I said, “Here I am! Send me.” And He said, “Go, and say to this people: “‘Keep on hearing, but do not understand; keep on seeing, but do not perceive.’ Make the heart of this people dull, and their ears heavy, and blind their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed.” Then I said, “How long, O Lord?”And He said: “Until cities lie waste without inhabitant, and houses without people, and the land is a desolate waste [the Day of the Lord], and the LORD removes people far away, and the forsaken places are many in the midst of the land. And though a tenth remain in it, it will be burned again, like a terebinth or an oak, whose stump remains when it is felled.” The Holy Seed is its stump.
Who was the “holy seed”? See Galatians 3:16.
Now the promises were made to Abraham and to his offspring. It does not say, “And to offsprings,” referring to many, but referring to one, “And to your offspring,” who is Christ.
The doctrine of the “last days” has intrigued many, and it was/is one of the most misinterpreted idea or concept in the Bible. Simply because readers of the Bible approached the Scripture with a preconditioned mind, the “Second Coming of Jesus Christ” is still in the future. I remember once in the seminary, a professor of mine introduced the idea of the possibility that all Scripture has been fulfilled, meaning even the Second Coming event has been fulfilled. Everyone’s immediate reaction was to reject outright the idea without even considering a second look in the Scripture. The same mistake was/is happening then and now. People will adamantly reject the idea outright, yet if challenged to give a passage in Scripture proving that the Second Coming truly is still in the future, I seriously doubt that it would stand. I’m offering a friendly challenge that proponents of the future Second Coming offer a passage in the Bible that could sustain the popular and traditionally existing belief.
After considering all five times, “the last days” was mentioned in the New Testament Scripture, and all agreed that the generation of the apostles were living in the “last days”. It’s definitely a “last days” – not an unending last days as it would appear in the argument of everyone who insist the Second Coming is still in the future.
Blessings!
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Unlearning Tradition, Relearning Scripture 