Some Interesting Links . . .

This may come as a big surprise to some of you, but this will be no surprise to our wives!  Click here: Men Create More Housework for Women - Yahoo! News

Even the BBC thinks Al Gore is full of it.   Click here: BBC NEWS | Science/Nature | Global temperatures 'to decrease'

It is always a good thing when theological liberals get their collective noses bloodied when they attempt to oppress the faithful remaining within their denominations.   The Virginia court has just ruled--thankfully--that a number of Bible-believing Episcopalians get to keep their own church properties.  This means that the unbelieving church bureaucrats can't kick these faithful congregations out of their own church facilities.   Click here: Big Win for Va.'s Breakaway Anglican Parishes in Property Fight | Christianity Today | A Magazine of Evangelical C

This is must reading.  Historian Paul Maier discusses those horrific days when the Jerusalem temple was destroyed by the Romans back in A.D. 70.  Funny, none of the historical sources say anything about Christ coming back . . .   Hmmm . . .   Click here: Not One Stone Left Upon Another - Christian History

Comments

[Alan Kurschner]

Indeed. And as Christ made it very clear in Matthew 24, the Parousia of Christ was to "cut short" the great persecution against elect believers.

And given that the turmoil surrounding AD 70 was against unbelievers, and that Matthew 24 describes the great tribulation as being against the elect of believers, the two events cannot be one and same event.

[Ivan]

This issue has caused me much pause to sit back and shake my head, and realize it is not as easy to decipher as any camp would declare.

Of course 1 Cor. 15, 1 Thess. 4 [The Second Coming] have "NOT YET" occurred. We do live in the "already and the not yet".

And of course it is just as true that some NT prophecies of Jesus did in fact come true in the first century.

Very tough issue that many well-read Reformed men disagree regarding. This is no slam dunk.

Jesus' own wording of "the Son of Man coming" is amazing to me; not clear but amazing [laughter].

1. Matthew 10:23

The "you" is clearly his disciples.
Something is going to happen to them and soon.
What? The Son of Man will come.


2. Matthew 16:27-28
"The Son of Man will come in the glory of his Father with his angels... there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom."

Again referring to his immediate audience- his disciples, and something will happen soon.
What? The Son of Man coming in his kingdom.

3. The Olivet Discourse?
What is its context?
In Matthew it immediately follows Jesus scathing woes upon the wicked, rebellious Jewish Church Leadership.

And Jesus says "this gospel will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come." 24:14

Then Jesus makes it sound like all hell is going to break loose in the cosmos and earth!
Abomination of Desolation
Great Tribulation
Coming of Son of Man will be like lightning
Sun Darkened
Moon not giving light
Stars falling from heaven
Powers of heaven shaken

Sounds to me like Jesus was borrowing much OT prophet language.

Again Jesus says
"Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven..."
"Send his angels to gather his elect"

Then Jesus use his punch line:
"this generation will by no means pass away till all these things are fulfilled..."

What we can say in response to Full Preterists "Jesus himself using the phrase Son of man comes / or coming of Son of Man" does not necessarily mean Second Coming.
Our Dispensationalist friends need to see that as well.

To add to the amazing picture however, the beginning of Revelation 1:1 introduces the Revelation of Christ as something that was going to occur "soon", and Smyrna in 2:10 was "soon" going to suffer.

In 1:7 Jesus is said to be coming on the clouds and every eye will see him.

When preaching this Easter, I couldn't help but notice that when Jesus was being set up, lied about, and falsely judged at that "kangeroo court" of Caiaphas, Jesus told him, "In the future you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven" Mt. 26:64

As God came on the clouds to destroy Egypt, Jesus was now saying He will come on the clouds and wipe out Jerusalem.

Don't know how to fit all of this together yet, but I do know it is fascinating to see Jesus with absolute certainty proclaim his sovereignty, his power.

That's the Jesus we worship!
He is the Alpha and the Omega!