The Coming of Christ in Judgment
Tis evident that when Christ speaks of HIS COMING; His being revealed: His coming in His kingdom; or His Kingdom coming; He has respect to His appearing in those great works of His power, Justice and Grace, WHICH SHOULD BE IN THE DESTRUCTION OF JERUSALEM and other extraordinary providences which should attend it (meaning the destruction of Jerusalem).
RC SPROUL (from The Last Days According to Jesus page 158)
“The coming of Christ in AD 70 was a coming in judgment on the Jewish nation, indicating the end of the Jewish age and the FULFILLMENT of a day of the Lord. Jesus really did come in judgment at this time, FULFILLING his prophecy in the Olivet discourse.”
Ministry and Its Challenges
Live from the Mecca of Mormonism, this is HEART OF THE MATTER where . . . Religious Nuts Meet Christian Fruits Face to Face. And I’m your host, Shawn McCraney.
Folks, we are in a type of ministry that rarely exists or stays around for two main reasons – First, we do not make ministry decisions based on how folks will respond. We try to teach the things that are rarely addressed with many of them being “hard to hear.” This leads us to the second reason ministries like this rarely exist – the things we say are often so hard to hear few support us financially. At least when we went after Mormonism we had people on the Christian side who loved what we were doing and we could make ends meet.
But speaking the truth ALWAYS comes with a price in this world – just look at the lives of John the Baptist, Jesus, His apostles, and millions of others who followed in their footsteps (and not in the applauded footsteps of MAN). Looking at the true martyrs of the early church, the persecuted truth speakers martyred by the Catholics, the Anabaptists martyred by the doctrinal police of the reformation, and on and on, this ministry is greatly blessed by comparison. And we do thank God for sustaining us when men have walked.
Additionally, while we could use your financial support we do not want MORE support from existing supporters NOR do we want anyone who is not in a position to help to feel guilty for not supporting us financially. We have always maintained that the greatest support people can give to this ministry is their prayers. However, if the Lord has led you and you are in a position AND you are not currently giving to the ministry please prayerfully consider Alathea Ministries – that’s all.
Understanding Jesus' Return
Because we are still content laden let’s continue on with our discussion of when the Bible says Jesus should return. Tonight we will try and wrap up all that the Gospels say relative to the subject and well begin by wrapping up the rest of Matthew 24 and then we’ll cite a few more highlighted instances for your consideration. But first, let’s have a word of prayer:
So far in Matthew 24 we have read through Jesus' words up to verse 35, where He said: (Matthew 24:35) Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away. Up to this point, Jesus has responded generally to the questions: “When shall these things be, and what shall be the sign of thy coming (note, they did not ask, when shall be the day of thy coming but the sign – which He has abundantly delivered), and the end of the age.”
The Specific Day of Return
Now it seems at this point he begins to speak directly to the actual day that He will return and says in verse 36: 36 But of that day (singular, meaning the specific day) and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only. Notice a change in focus compared to the previous verses where in verses: 19 He says And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days! And in verse 22 He says: “And except those days should be shortened,” there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened. And then in verse 29 he says: And immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun…
The Significance of Jesus' Return
Be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken. But suddenly, here in verse 36, he mentions a specific day? Why? Because up to verse 36, Jesus was describing to them when all the things He had been warning about would happen and the signs that would proceed His arrival. But now in verse 36, He addresses the actual day of His coming, which would wrap up the end of the age (or the “end of the world”). And so He says: 36 But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.
Not only does He get more specific here, Jesus admits something to His disciples – He did NOT know the day or hour of His return. “But my Father ONLY.” Jesus says. Plain and simple. In John 14:28, Jesus says to His disciples: John 14:28 “Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come again unto you. If ye loved me, ye would rejoice, because I said, I go unto the Father: for my Father is greater than I.” The Greek word for greater here is mide-zone, and it literally means, “larger and or older” but in scripture the word is used forty plus times and almost always means superior – like we would use greater . . . it just means greater.
The Trinitarian Creed System
Part of the Trinitarian creed system of Man is to say that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are co-equal. I do not understand this belief in light of what Jesus Himself says. In our CAMPUS Milk group, we are in John 12 and not to get too far off topic Jesus says some words that completely confirm my view of God and to me, completely refute Trinitarianism. This is what John 12:44-50 says: John 12:44 Jesus cried and said, “He that believeth on me, believeth not on me, but on him that sent me. 45 And he that seeth me seeth him that sent me. 46 I am come “a light” into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness. 47 And if any man hear my words, and believe not, I judge him not: for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world. 48 He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day. 49 For I have not spoken of myself; but the Father which sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak. 50 And I know that his commandment is life everlasting: whatsoever I speak therefore, even as the Father said unto me, so I speak.
We have long likened the true and living invisible God to love, fire, and light – and we have long said that His light, and fire and love filled His only literal Son who was completely Him covered in flesh, to reveal the Invisible God to the world. In any case, we can see here that Jesus (the Man) as in “no man knows the day or the hour” Jesus did not know the exact time ONLY His Father did.
Comparison to the Days of Noah
Then He adds this caveat: 37 But (in other words, “But where I cannot tell you the exact day or hour” I can tell you this) as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. 38 For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, 39 And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
Now, in the first 35 verses, Jesus is describing the signs of his coming and the end of the age. I believe the signs were exactly that – signs that would stand out amidst an otherwise typical everyday life scenario. At verse 36, Jesus, having described the signs of His coming, reveals that the exact day and hour He cannot say.
The Coming of the Lord
What Jesus does in verses 37 through 39 is warn them to remain alert because the day of His actual coming will be like the day it started raining on Noah and His ark. People will be doing regular things – eating, drinking, marrying and getting betrothed, and nobody was aware that the day was at hand until the first rain drops fell. And He wraps this up saying to them: “So shall the Coming” (not the sign of His coming anymore but His actual coming) be.
The Rapture and Its Interpretation
Now, the next verses are rejected by traditional preterists as speaking of the rapture because of its connection to Noah and the flood. Instead they suggest that verses 40-42 are speaking of the wicked being taken (as they were in the days of Noah) and not the righteous. This is what verses 40-42 have Jesus say:
40 Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left. 41 Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left. 42 Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.
I am of the personal opinion that this does in fact speak of the rapture of believers who were in the Lord’s Church prior to 70 AD. I think it is entirely possible that they were Jewish converts who recognized the Messiah for who He was (from the promises in the Old Testament) and so they being the faithful received and believed on Him and were rewarded by being taken up prior to the utter destruction of Jerusalem. Were all believers taken then? Can’t say. Maybe the gentile converts were left to carry the word forward. Maybe John was too. All I can say is Jesus has plainly described the signs of His coming and he is speaking of one being left and one being taken in the context OF His coming. Taking scripture plainly, it seems to me that what He was describing to four of His twelve applied to them and one would be left in the field when another was taken.
A Parable and a Warning
What we can also say, definitively, is that to take these passages and apply them to our day totally ignores the setting, the audience, and the context of what Jesus says here in Matthew 24. At verse 43 Jesus now offers these four apostles a parable. It is given in light of what He has just said about not knowing the day or hour and that His coming would be a surprise. So He adds:
43 But . . . know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up.
44 Therefore (in light of this parable, He warns these four) be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.
To me, the Lord is saying, you know the signs – look for them. But remember, things will also appear quite normative – as they were in the days of Noah before the rain began to fall. And at this point He appears to instruct them on being good servants now, on living up to what they were called to do in His name in the face of all this. So He says (or asks):
45 Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season? 46 Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing. In other words, Jesus seems to say, “Which of you will be found a faithful and wise servant? Which of you, who have been made a ruler over my church will do my will, and feed my household and will be seen as a blessed servant because you are so doing such things when I return.”
47 Verily I say unto you, (He says at verse 47) That he shall make him ruler over all his goods. And then He gives them a warning saying:
48 But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, “My lord delayeth his coming;” 49 And shall begin to smite his fellowservants, and to eat and drink with the drunken; 50 The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for
The Return of Jesus
It is an obvious stern warning to these four that they need to remain vigilant until the day He appears. To not rest back on their laurels, to refuse the attitude of eat drink and be merry but to hold fast serving until His return. But this is just one view of verses 45-51. There is another just as cogent thought that says Jesus here was speaking of the prophets of the House of Israel in his description of their ultimate destruction. You have to decide what you think Jesus is speaking to – I just hope you will avoid the temptation to assign these passages to you and this age in a physical sense of the modern church. So that is Matthew 24 (along with insights taken from Mark 13 and Luke 21-24 which cover the same teaching of Jesus on the Mount of Olives.
In my opinion, the Lord would have been highly misleading, and frankly incorrect, if He has spent all of this time talking with four (of His twelve) and describing all of this stuff, and personalizing it to them (“ye,” “ye,” “you,”) only to have been describing a bunch of stuff not applicable to them. Let me sort of pull some other highlight verses from the Gospel accounts to bolster my argument that the Bible clearly says Jesus returned in 70 AD before going to the phones. They are found in: Matthew 16:27-28, John 21:21-23, Matthew 26:64, Matthew 10:23.
Insights from Matthew 16:27-28
Okay, to Matthew 16:27-28 Jesus clearly says something reasonable and logical about His return. He says: Matthew 16:27 For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his works. 28 Verily I say unto you, There be some standing here, which shall not taste of death, till they see the Son of man coming in his kingdom. Now, this is pretty straight forward, isn’t it? 28 Verily I say unto you, There be some standing here, which shall not taste of death, till they see the Son of man coming in his kingdom.
Do you know how the futurists explain this? They say Jesus was speaking of the Holy Spirit falling on the day of Pentecost. I’ve never heard of the Holy Spirit called the Son of man, have you? But it’s the only way to explain this unless they agree that He already came at another time – like 70 AD – but they won’t admit that. So they say that the Holy Spirit falling on Pentecost is the fulfillment of this passage.
Examination of the Original Greek
By the way, to add some flame to this powder keg of a passage, let me give you a few additional bits of information about them. When we read in the King James verse 27, where Jesus says: Matthew 16:27 For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his works. We really don’t get much information from the English about our question: “When does the Bible say Jesus will return?” But when we turn to the Greek our eyes are illuminated. Why? Because when the first line says “For the Son of man shall come” The word shall in Greek is “mello,” which does not allow for a long period of time to pass between the pronouncement and the fulfillment. This is why all the literal new testament translations say “For the Son of Man is about to come in the Glory of His Father.”
Now, when futurists argue that this speaks of Pentecost we know that this could NOT mean Pentecost because well after Pentecost the apostles were still writing about “the glorious appearing to come.” If Jesus words here were fulfilled at Pentecost, we would never read Paul saying in Titus 2:13 that they were: “Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of our great God and our Savior Jesus Christ.” Finally, note one last important little detail – the phrase coming of the Son of Man or the words coming (tied to) the line Son of Man, are ONLY used by Jesus in Matthew, Mark and Luke? Never anywhere after Jesus life do any of the apostles use the phrase Son of Man in connection to Christ coming. The Apostles always refer to Him (post ascension) as the Son of God, and only in Acts is Son of Man used.
Jesus' Return and His Identity
but it is not in connection to his return but to His standing on the right hand of the Father. I point this out because Jesus, when speaking of His return always uses the title Son of Man in connection to it because His return was going to be for His brethren the Jews – and to them this was how He referred to Himself. Even to Caiaphas he referred to Himself as the Son of Man coming in the clouds, not the Son of God. When Paul (apostle to the Gentiles) writes of Him it is NEVER Son of Man, but always Son of God. I say this so we have yet another evidence that Jesus came back to the House of Israel, His brethren, as the Son of Man but there is no reference of His return to the rest of the world (who know Him as the Son of God). By the way, one more aside to this line of thinking:
My daughter Cassidy pointed out to me that in some ways the Christian church is no different than Jews today. “What do you mean?” I asked. “Well,” she said, “the Jews today are still waiting for the Messiah to show up on the scene and a lot of Christians are still waiting for Him to come back. But both parties have yet to see that He has both come (the first time) and that He has come back (the second time) and everything is finished- in Him. A fantastic point.
Jesus and Peter's Discussion
Then we have a unique discussion Jesus has with Peter in John 21. Peter has just been rebuked (in a sense by the Lord, and was reminded that he had denied the Lord and was then told by Jesus that he was going to suffer for His name's sake. We then read at verse 20:
John 21:20 Then Peter, turning about, seeth the disciple whom Jesus loved following; which also leaned on his breast at supper, and said, Lord, which is he that betrayeth thee? 21 Peter seeing him saith to Jesus, “Lord, and what shall this man do? 22 Jesus saith unto him, “If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? follow thou me.” 23 Then went this saying abroad among the brethren, that that disciple should not die: yet Jesus said not unto him, He shall not die; but, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee?”
Now, you’re going to have to put away your magical thinking here (like the LDS who, depending on who you talk to, believe both Cain, John, and the Three Nephites are still walking around on the earth today having not died). But here Jesus plainly tells Peter, what business is it of yours if I want this disciple (who was presumably John) to live until I return? This automatically implies that His return would be within a reasonable period of time – not some 2000 years later. In fact, a rumor was spread that the disciple would not experience death but John clarifies the matter, and bringing in reason says in verse 23:
Jesus said not unto him, “He shall not die;” but, “If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee?” It stands to reason then that they believed Jesus' return would come within a reasonable amount of years and not so far out in the future that magical thinking had to be put in place, right?
Jesus Before Caiaphas
In Matthew 26 we read of Jesus standing before Caiaphas, the High Priest. This is what the account says at verse 63:
Matthew 26:63 But Jesus held his peace. And the high priest answered and said unto him, “I adjure thee by the living God, that thou tell us whether thou be the Christ, the Son of God.” 64 Jesus saith unto him, Thou (Caiaphas) hast said: nevertheless I say unto you, Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.”
That is one heck of a bold statement and it would have no wriggle room at all to prove Jesus' return except for two points. Reading it in the English it seems to have Jesus telling Caiaphas that He would personally see Jesus both sitting at the right hand of power and coming in the clouds of heaven.” The problem is Caiaphas died in 37 AD – so was Jesus wrong? The key, as usual, lies in the Greek. Let me re-read verse 64 with proper Greek tense.
64 “Jesus saith unto him, Thou (singular
Understanding the Fulfillment of Jesus' Words
“You, Caiaphas” hast said: nevertheless I say unto you (plural – the Nation that Caiaphas represented), Hereafter shall ye (plural – the nation that Caiaphas represented there in Jerusalem) shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.” Understanding the verse in this manner allows us to see that first, Jesus was not wrong, and two, His words were fulfilled when the people Caiaphas represented as high priest of that area at the time were around when Jesus returned in 70 AD.
Jesus' Instructions to His Disciples
Finally, in Matthew 10 beginning at verse 18 Jesus says to His disciples: Matthew 10:18 And ye shall be brought before governors and kings for my sake, for a testimony against them and the Gentiles. 19 But when they deliver you up, take no thought how or what ye shall speak: for it shall be given you in that same hour what ye shall speak. 20 For it is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you. 21 And the brother shall deliver up the brother to death, and the father the child: and the children shall rise up against their parents, and cause them to be put to death. 22 And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved. 23 But when they persecute you in this city, flee ye into another: for verily I say unto you, (this is the applicable part) Ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel, till the Son of man be come.”
Interpretations of Matthew 10:23
The Revised Version puts this last verse this way: “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.” (The TCNT) says: “But, when they persecute you in one town, escape to the next; for, I tell you, you will not have come to the end of the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.” And Weymouth’s literal Translation says: “ . . . for I solemnly tell you that you will not have gone the round of all the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.” Again, was Jesus wrong – or have we been wrong all along? I would strongly suggest the latter.
