Mike McClellan 1
The bible tells us that Jesus spoke to His disciples 2,000 years ago, telling
them that he would return, that he was “coming again.” His promise remains one of
the most central themes in the myriad of Christian belief systems. Except for a
very small minority, Christians still believe he is coming again, the Parousia, the rapture. Is His promise still valid? Has He
yet to return? Or did He make the promise only to break it in the lifetime of
those to whom He spoke?
The
following is taken from the Bible. All verses are from the King James Version
unless otherwise noted.
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.
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. (Matthew 16:27-28)
The
language is clear. Jesus told his disciples that some of them would not taste
of death – would not die – before he returned, until he came into his kingdom.
If
you’ve been mistakenly taught that the verses above refer to Jesus’
Transfiguration, read Revelation 20:12 which coincides with Matthew 16:27 in
describing a Judgment Day scenario:
And I saw the dead,
small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book
was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those
things which were written in the books, according to their works. (Revelation 20:12)
Jesus
was, again, clearly referring to his second coming before that present
generation passed.
Again,
Jesus tells his disciples:
And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in
heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see
the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.
And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a
trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one
end of heaven to the other.
Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch
is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that
summer is nigh: So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that
it is near, even at the doors.
Verily I say unto you, This generation
shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled. (Matthew 24:30-34)
Again,
Jesus describes certain events and warns those who are listening to him that “This generation
shall not pass, till all these
things be fulfilled.” He is speaking about their present
generation.
Although
the above scriptures clearly convey that Jesus was talking about his present
generation, there are many other references in the New Testament indicating that
the writers of the Gospels and Epistles as well as the followers of Jesus
firmly believed that Jesus was speaking of their present generation and not
some future time hundreds or thousands of years down the road.
Jesus
spoke to his followers again about his coming; according to the book of
Matthew:
And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake:
but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.
But when they persecute you in this city, flee ye
into another: for verily I say unto you, Ye shall not have gone over the cities of
The
cities of
What I mean,
brothers, is that the time is short. From now on those
who have wives should live as if they had none; those who mourn, as if they did
not; those who are happy, as if they were not; those who buy something, as if
it were not theirs to keep; those who use the things of the world, as if not
engrossed in them. For
this world in its present form is passing away. (1 Corinthians 7:29-31 - NIV)
Paul
tells the Corinthians that time is short and that the world in its
present form is passing away. His words have a strong sense of
urgency, rather than being a mere suggestion. Paul believes the world is
presently passing away. He is not speaking of some event which could take place
2,000 years in the future.
Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood
cannot inherit the
In
this passage, Paul tells the Corinthians We shall not all sleep. Again, Paul is
convinced, and is convincing the Corinthians, that the second coming of Christ
is imminent in that generation and not all who hear his words will “sleep” or
die prior to Jesus coming.
In
the following portion of the letter which Paul writes to the Thessalonians he
discusses those who remain alive in the present tense.
For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord,
that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them
which are asleep.
For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with
a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the
dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive
and remain shall
be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever
be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words. (1 Thessalonians 4:15-18)
The
New Testament is abundantly filled with references to the immediacy of Jesus’
return.
But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch
unto prayer.
(1 Peter 4:7)
God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his
Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things... (Hebrews 1:1-2)
In
1 John, the false prophets foretold by Jesus who existed in that time period to
give notice of the end times are discussed.
Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the
spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into
the world. Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of
God: And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus
Christ is come in the flesh is not of God... (1 John 4:1-3)
According
to the bible, Jesus said he would return in the generation in which he lived.
He said the sign of the Son of Man would appear in heaven. He said all the
tribes of
Jesus
did not return as he said he would. He did not return as his disciples believed
and preached that he would. Jesus did not come in the disciples generation. He
did not come in any generation. The disciples all died. Jesus’ promise was
broken; worthless. The disciples believed and lived a false hope; they were
misled.
Jesus
didn’t come then and he isn’t coming in the future. Those who cling to the
broken promise and false hope of his return will be just as disappointed as the
disciples who died looking in vain for the second coming of their Christ.
[Jesus
never came the first time either.] He
isn’t coming again! It is all fiction!
Footnote:
1. [ http://www.angelfire.com/pa/greywlf/comingagain.html ]