If you don't BELIEVE what Jesus said then you are implying that He is a LIAR!
Are you waiting for Christ's 2nd Coming?
Jesus ASSURED his disciples at least 3 times that some of them would still be alive when he returned...
Note: All scripture is copied from the New King James Version unless noted otherwise.
1) Matthew 10:22 And you will be hated by all for My name's sake. But he who endures to the END will be saved. Matthew 10:23 WHEN THEY PERSECUTE YOU in this city, flee to another. For ASSUREDLY, I say to you, YOU WILL NOT HAVE GONE THROUGH THE CITIES OF ISRAEL BEFORE THE SON OF MAN COMES.
The END in verse 10:22 is the same END that is mentioned in Matthew 24:13... "But he who endures to the END shall be SAVED." What END was Jesus talking about? The answer is given in Matthew 24:3... "Now 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?" So Jesus was talking about the END OF THE AGE and NOT the END OF THE WORLD as the King James Version and other versions have translated it. That mistranslation has led to the False Doctrine about Jesus 2nd Coming occurring at the END OF THE WORLD!
Notice in Matthew 24:3 that the Disciples associated Christ's COMING with the END OF THE AGE. In Matthew 24:30-31 Jesus mentioned the "SON OF MAN COMING ON THE CLOUDS OF HEAVEN" and the gathering together of "HIS ELECT"... Matthew 24:30 Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, 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. Matthew 24:31 And He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and THEY WILL GATHER TOGETHER HIS ELECT from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. Jesus revealed WHEN this would happen in Matthew 24:34... "Assuredly, I say to you, THIS GENERATION WILL BY NO MEANS PASS AWAY TILL ALL THESE THINGS TAKE PLACE." So according to Jesus, His 2nd COMING would occur within that GENERATION!
The Disciples were not persecuted until after Pentecost in chapter 4 of Acts so Matthew 10:23 can't be about Christ coming to them before then while Christ was still in the flesh. This is about the same coming that the Disciples asked about in Matthew 24:3. The word "COMING" in 24:3 is translated from the Greek word PAROUSIA and it means Presence.
Word Summary: parousia: a presence, a coming
Transliteration: parousia
Phonetic Spelling: (par-oo-see'-ah)
Part of Speech: Noun, Feminine
Meaning: a presence, a coming
Strong's Concordance: coming, presence.
From the present participle of pareimi; a being near, i.e. Advent (often, return; specially, of Christ to punish Jerusalem, or finally the wicked); (by implication) physically, aspect -- coming, presence.
Be sure to read my article: HOW THE BIBLICAL AGES PROVE THAT CHRIST'S 2ND COMING WAS IN THE PAST
2) Matthew 16:27 For the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and THEN HE WILL REWARD EACH ACCORDING TO HIS WORKS. Matthew 16:28 ASSUREDLY, I say to you, THERE ARE SOME STANDING HERE WHO SHALL NOT TASTE DEATH TILL THEY SEE THE SON OF MAN COMING IN HIS KINGDOM."
Scripture reveals when people would be REWARDED ACCORDING TO THEIR WORKS... It was at the Great White Throne Judgment... Revelation 20:11 Then I saw A GREAT WHITE THRONE and Him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away. And there was found no place for them. Revelation 20:12 And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And THE DEAD WERE JUDGED ACCORDING TO THEIR WORKS, by the things which were written in the books. Revelation 20:13 The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And THEY WERE JUDGED, EACH ONE ACCORDING TO HIS WORKS. Revelation 20:14 Then DEATH AND HADES WERE CAST INTO THE LAKE OF FIRE. This is the second death. Revelation 20:15 AND ANYONE NOT FOUND WRITTEN IN THE BOOK OF LIFE WAS CAST INTO THE LAKE OF FIRE.
The Great White Throne Judgment occurred in Heaven and was AFTER the Resurrection of the Dead (Rev. 20:13). Death and Hades were Cast into the Lake of Fire (Rev. 20:14) as well as "ANYONE NOT FOUND WRITTEN IN THE BOOK OF LIFE". The Death that was cast into the Lake of Fire was NOT Physical Death but Death in Hades. When people died before Christ's Resurrection they went to Hades to await The Great White Throne Judgment. When people die now they don't go to Hades to await Judgment. Hades was thrown into the Lake of Fire. I believe that when people die now, they are judged immediately and the Believers go to Heaven and the Unbelievers go to the Lake of Fire... 2 Corinthians 5:10 "For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad."
The Heaven and Earth that fled away (Rev. 20:11) were not the LITERAL Heaven and Earth but it was symbolic language for the old covenant and its people. The same symbolic language is used when GOD chose Israel and gave them the Mosaic law... Isaiah 51:16 And I have put My words in your mouth; I have covered you with the shadow of My hand, That I may plant THE HEAVENS, Lay the foundations of THE EARTH, And say to Zion, 'You are My people.' " GOD was speaking about what he HAD done. He gave Israel the LAW (Mosaic Covenant) to plant the heavens and lay the foundations of the earth. Obviously GOD was not speaking about the LITERAL Heavens and Earth since they were created long before Israel was given the Mosaic Law! Therefore, the New Heaven and Earth in Revelation 21 must be symbolic language for the new covenant and its people - the Believers in Jesus Christ.
The Apostle Paul revealed that the Lord Jesus Christ was ABOUT TO Judge the Living and the Dead... (YLT) 2 Timothy 4:1 "I do fully testify, then, before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who is ABOUT TO JUDGE LIVING AND DEAD at his manifestation and his reign" (Young's Literal Translation). The Greek word "MELLO" is used in the greek text and it means "TO BE ABOUT TO":
The Apostle Paul also revealed that there was "ABOUT TO BE" a Resurrection of Both the Righteous and Unrighteous... (YLT) Acts 24:15 having hope toward God, which they themselves also wait for, that THERE IS ABOUT TO BE A RISING AGAIN OF THE DEAD, BOTH OF RIGHTEOUS AND UNRIGHTEOUS (Young's Literal Translation).
If the translators had translated the Greek word MELLO into English properly then there would not be so much confusion about the timing of the resurrection and the judgment! Most likely, the translators believed Christ's COMING was in the FUTURE so their BIAS would not allow them to translate the text properly since it refutes their False Belief of FUTURIST Eschatology!
What did Jesus mean in Matthew 16:27 when he said that "the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father"? Had GOD the Father ever come to earth before? Answer: YES!
One example is when GOD the Father came in the Judgment upon Babylon... Isaiah 13:4 "The noise of a multitude in the mountains, Like that of many people! A tumultuous noise of the kingdoms of nations gathered together! The LORD of hosts musters The army for battle. Isaiah 13:5 They come from a far country, From the end of heaven—The LORD and His weapons of indignation, To destroy the whole land. Isaiah 13:6 Wail, for the day of the LORD is at hand! It will come as destruction from the Almighty." Notice in verse 6 that this was described as a "day of the LORD". There are several examples of the "day of the LORD" in the old testament.
John said that "No one has seen God at any time." (John 1:18 & 1 John 4:12). Therefore, when GOD came to Destroy Babylon no one saw him. A foreign army of the Medes was the tool that GOD used to Destroy Babylon... Isaiah 13:17 "Behold, I will stir up THE MEDES against them, Who will not regard silver; And as for gold, they will not delight in it. Isaiah 13:18 Also their bows will dash the young men to pieces, And they will have no pity on the fruit of the womb; Their eye will not spare children. Isaiah 13:19 And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, The beauty of the Chaldeans' pride, Will be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah." The judgment upon Sodom and Gomorrah is another example of a "day of the LORD".
Christ's 2nd Coming was in the manner of the Father's Coming in Isaiah 13... John 5:19 "Then Jesus answered and said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; FOR WHATEVER HE DOES, THE SON ALSO DOES IN LIKE MANNER."
Jesus used symbolic language in Matthew 24:29 which was similar to the symbolic language used by Isaiah in Chapter 13... Matthew 24:29 "Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken."
Isaiah 13:10 For the stars of heaven and their constellations Will not give their light; The sun will be darkened in its going forth, And the moon will not cause its light to shine.
Isaiah 13:13 Therefore I will shake the heavens, And the earth will move out of her place, In the wrath of the LORD of hosts And in the day of His fierce anger.
The symbolic language used in the preceding verses is known as Apocalyptic language and should NOT be interpreted LITERALLY! If you interpret Apocalyptic language as literal instead of symbolic then please answer the following question:
How could the STARS FALL FROM HEAVEN in Matthew 24:29 if they had been DISSOLVED and FELL in Isaiah 34:4?
Isaiah 34:4 All the host of heaven shall be dissolved, And the heavens shall be rolled up like a scroll; All their host shall fall down As the leaf falls from the vine, And as fruit falling from a fig tree.
Did GOD create more stars to replace the ones that had fallen?
Be very careful that you don't make the mistake of taking something literal in scripture when it is meant to be symbolic!
So if Jesus returned in the manner of GOD the Father - He would come in Judgment and He would use an army to execute it.
Jesus told the scribes and Pharisees that Judgment would come upon them for shedding the blood of the righteous... Matthew 23:29 "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! Because you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous, Matthew 23:30 and say, 'If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets.' Matthew 23:31 "Therefore you are witnesses against yourselves that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets. Matthew 23:32 Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers' guilt. Matthew 23:33 Serpents, brood of vipers! How can you escape the condemnation of hell? Matthew 23:34 Therefore, indeed, I SEND YOU PROPHETS, WISE MEN, AND SCRIBES: SOME OF THEM YOU WILL KILL AND CRUCIFY, AND SOME OF THEM YOU WILL SCOURGE IN YOUR SYNAGOGUES AND PERSECUTE FROM CITY TO CITY, Matthew 23:35 THAT ON YOU MAY COME ALL THE RIGHTEOUS BLOOD SHED ON THE EARTH, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. Matthew 23:36 Assuredly, I say to you, ALL THESE THINGS WILL COME UPON THIS GENERATION.
In the gospel of Luke Jesus prophesied about the Destruction of the Temple and Jerusalem... Luke 19:41 Now as He drew near, He saw the city and wept over it, Luke 19:42 saying, "If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. Luke 19:43 For days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment around you, surround you and close you in on every side, Luke 19:44 and level you, and your children within you, to the ground; and THEY WILL NOT LEAVE IN YOU ONE STONE UPON ANOTHER, because you did not know THE TIME OF YOUR VISITATION."
Luke 21:5 Then, as some spoke of the TEMPLE, how it was adorned with beautiful stones and donations, He said, Luke 21:6 "These things which you see—the days will come in which NOT ONE STONE SHALL BE LEFT UPON ANOTHER THAT SHALL NOT BE THROWN DOWN."
Luke 21:20 "But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then KNOW THAT ITS DESOLATION IS NEAR.
On the way to His Resurrection - Jesus told the women of Jerusalem not to weep for Him but to weep for themselves and their children... Luke 23:27 And a great multitude of the people followed Him, and women who also mourned and lamented Him. Luke 23:28 But Jesus, turning to them, said, "Daughters of Jerusalem, DO NOT WEEP FOR ME, BUT WEEP FOR YOURSELVES AND FOR YOUR CHILDREN. Luke 23:29 For indeed the days are coming in which they will say, 'Blessed are the barren, wombs that never bore, and breasts which never nursed!' Luke 23:30 Then they will begin 'TO SAY TO THE MOUNTAINS, "FALL ON US!" AND TO THE HILLS, "COVER US!" ' This was fulfilled after the 6th Seal was opened... Revelation 6:15 And the kings of the earth, the great men, the rich men, the commanders, the mighty men, every slave and every free man, hid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains, Revelation 6:16 and said to the mountains and rocks, "Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and FROM THE WRATH OF THE LAMB! Revelation 6:17 FOR THE GREAT DAY OF HIS WRATH HAS COME, and who is able to stand?"
To see how the aforementioned prophecies of Jesus were fulfilled in the 1st Century please download and read the following...
DESTRUCTION OF JERUSALEM - BOOK BY GEORGE PETER HOLFORD (PDF)
"An Absolute and Irresistible Proof of the Divine Origin of Christianity: Including a Narrative of the Calamities which Befell the Jews, So Far as They Tend to Verify Our Lord's Predictions Relative to that Event. With a Brief Description of the City and Temple" - 1805 AD.
The Destruction of Jerusalem is an extraordinary Preterist account that demonstrates that the End Times, so-called, occurred nearly two thousand years ago by showing facts in a convincing manner that no contradictory view (i.e. modern 'End Times' beliefs) can offer.
Would Jesus be visible or invisible at His 2nd Coming? After all, Revelation 1:7 states that "EVERY EYE WILL SEE HIM"... "Behold, He is coming with clouds, and EVERY EYE WILL SEE HIM, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen."
The short answer is NO... Every eye did NOT see Him! Those who are still looking for Christ's Return or Futurists like to use Revelation 1:7 as a prooftext to prove that Christ has not returned yet since there are no writings about anyone seeing the 2nd Coming of Christ.
The words "EVERY" and "ALL" are often translated from the same Greek word "PAS". Therefore, the phrase "EVERY EYE SHALL SEE HIM" could also be translated as "ALL EYES SHALL SEE HIM".
PAS is USED 1,238 times in 1,071 verses in the New Testament. In the KJV it is translated as ALL, ALL MANNER, EVERY, EVERY ONE, EVERY THING, WHOLE, WHOSEVER
Did you know that in the New Testament - "ALL" doesn't ALWAYS mean ALL and "EVERY" doesn't ALWAYS mean EVERY?
3 PROBABLE EXAMPLES of when "EVERY" DOESN'T REALLY MEAN EVERY from the BOOK of REVELATION
1) Revelation 6:15 And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and EVERY bondman, and EVERY free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; Revelation 6:16 And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: Revelation 6:17 For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?
Are we to believe that EVERY MAN whether they were free or a slave hid themselves in the mountains? That sounds like Hyperbolic (HYPE) Language to me in order to emphasize how bad the Wrath of the Lamb was going to be.
2) Revelation 16:3 And the second angel poured out his vial upon the sea; and it became as the blood of a dead man: and EVERY LIVING SOUL DIED in the sea.
EVERY LIVING SOUL DIED in the Sea? If that's true then there would be no men left to be scorched in Revelation 16:8 and none left to gnaw their tongues in Revelation 16:10... Revelation 16:8 And the fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun; and power was given unto him to SCORCH MEN WITH FIRE. Revelation 16:10 And the fifth angel poured out his vial upon the seat of the beast; and his kingdom was full of darkness; and THEY GNAWED THEIR TONGUES FOR PAIN, Revelation 16:11 And blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, and repented not of their deeds.
3) Revelation 18:17 For in one hour so great riches is come to nought. And EVERY SHIPMASTER, and ALL the company in ships, AND SAILORS, and AS MANY AS TRADE BY SEA, stood afar off, Revelation 18:18 And cried when they SAW THE SMOKE OF HER BURNING, saying, What city is like unto this great city!
Are we to believe that EVERY SHIPMASTER and SAILOR and EVERYONE that TRADED via the Sea actually SAW THE SMOKE of Mystery Babylon as she Burned? Again, this sounds like Hyperbolic Language to me.
So did anyone SEE Jesus at His 2nd Coming? Answer: YES!
Read my article - EVERY EYE SHALL SEE HIM to find out WHO Saw Jesus at His 2nd Coming.
In Matthew 16:28 Jesus said that some would "NOT TASTE DEATH TILL THEY SEE THE SON OF MAN COMING IN HIS KINGDOM". Scripture reveals that Jesus received His Kingdom after His Ascension... Daniel 7:13 "I was watching in the night visions, And behold, ONE LIKE THE SON OF MAN, Coming with the clouds of heaven! He came to the Ancient of Days, And they brought Him near before Him. Daniel 7:14 AND THERE WAS GIVEN HIM DOMINION, AND GLORY, AND A KINGDOM, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: HIS DOMINION IS AN EVERLASTING DOMINION, WHICH SHALL NOT PASS AWAY, AND HIS KINGDOM THAT WHICH SHALL NOT BE DESTROYED.
Jesus' Coming in His Kingdom occurred at His 2nd Coming and would have had to have occurred in the 1st Century in order for His disciples to see Him while they were still alive.
3) Jesus said in Matthew 24:34 & Luke 21:32: Assuredly, I say to you, THIS GENERATION WILL BY NO MEANS PASS AWAY TILL ALL THESE THINGS TAKE PLACE.
WHAT "THINGS" had Jesus talked about previous to Matthew 24:34 & Luke 21:32?
ANSWERS:
Matthew 24:3 = TEMPLE DESTRUCTION / Luke 21:6
Matthew 24:5 = FALSE CHRISTS / Luke 21:8
Matthew 24:6 = WARS & RUMORS OF WARS / Luke 21:9
Luke 21:11 = EARTHQUAKES, FAMINES, PESTILENCES, FEARFUL SIGHTS AND GREAT SIGNS FROM HEAVEN
Matthew 24:9 = PERSECUTION OF SAINTS / Luke 21:12
Matthew 24:10 = BETRAYAL / Luke 21:16
Matthew 24:11 = FALSE PROPHETS
Matthew 24:12 = LAWLESSNESS
Matthew 24:14 = GOSPEL PREACHED TO THE NATIONS
Matthew 24:15 = ABOMINATION OF DESOLATION / Luke 21:20 = JERUSALEM SURROUNDED BY ARMIES
Matthew 24:21 = GREAT TRIBULATION / Luke 21:23 = GREAT DISTRESS IN THE LAND AND WRATH UPON THIS PEOPLE
Luke 21:24 = FALL OF JERUSALEM (Judeans Killed or Taken Captive)
Matthew 24:30 = CHRIST'S 2ND COMING / Luke 21:27
Matthew 24:31 = RESURRECTION
The WRATH was from the LAMB, the Son of GOD and it was upon the land of JUDEA and the JUDEANS. It was NOT UPON the WHOLE WORLD! Luke 21:23 "But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! FOR THERE WILL BE GREAT DISTRESS IN THE LAND and WRATH UPON THIS PEOPLE." Who was THIS PEOPLE? What PEOPLE were KILLED or TAKEN CAPTIVE?
Luke 21:24 And they will fall by the edge of the sword, and be led away captive into all nations. And Jerusalem will be trampled by Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled... I have heard some Futurists claim that Jerusalem is still being trampled by the Gentiles so Luke 21:24 has not been fulfilled. The city known as Jerusalem today is not the Jerusalem of scripture. The Jerusalem that was to be trodden down or trampled by the Gentiles was the Jerusalem that existed when the prophecy was given. It was NOT some future city that was built on the ruins of old Jerusalem in 135 AD during the reign of the Roman Emperor Hadrian and named Aelia Capitolina and then renamed Jerusalem later in the 4th century. Scripture reveals how long Jerusalem would be trampled by the Gentiles... Revelation 11:2 "But leave out the court which is outside the temple, and do not measure it, for it has been given to the Gentiles. And they will tread the holy city underfoot for forty-two months." The city of Jerusalem and the Temple were Destroyed in the summer of AD 70.
Either Jesus DID what he said he was going to do WHEN he said that he was going to do it or he LIED and is NOT the Messiah!
So if you claim to be a Christian and don't believe what Jesus said then you need to go to your prayer closet and ask GOD to forgive you for your lack of FAITH in the WORD and ask Him to help you see the light!