X-5. WHY PRETERISM is FALSE TEACHING!

SPELLING EDITED

X-5. WHY PRETERISM is FALSE TEACHING!

 

This study in God's word is written to those who are SEEKING the TRUTH of the WHOLE word of Almighty God. This study is not to try and prove that all FUTURIST prophecy teachers are correct and all preterist teachers are wrong. But rather, this study will show that the truth is somewhere down the MIDDLE of being extreme futurist prophecy teachers and extreme preterist already fulfilled and 70 AD prophecy teachers. What I mean by this is that, in TRUTH, some things have indeed been fulfilled in 70 AD and in more recent years but on the other side some things are indeed in the future to yet be fulfilled.

I usually begin by ASKING the question if a doctrine is true or not, but this time I decided to jump right in stating plainly that “preterism” is a false teaching. For you see, to me, it is so obviously false that I find it hard to believe that there are some who truly believe that the prophecies of the time of the great tribulation have ALREADY been FULFILLED and there is NO FUTURE great tribulation yet to come. And here are just some of the reasons for WHY I believe that “PRETERISM” is a FALSE teaching.

Let us begin this study by reading what some of the first-century Christians believed. You see my dear brothers and sisters in our Lord Jesus Christ, according to Polycarp, the bishop of the church of Smyrna, mention in the Book of Revelation, was also a disciple of the Apostle John. And Polycarp says that the book of Revelation was written AFTER the destruction of Jerusalem. You can do an Internet search on Polycarp’s letter called “To the Philippians” that he writes and see that Polycarp's church, the church of Smyrna, did not exist in the days of the Apostle Paul BEFORE the destruction of Jerusalem.

You see dear brothers and sister in our Lord Jesus Christ, the church of Smyrna recorded in the book of Revelation is not mentioned in the Book of Acts, nor is it spoken of in any other New Testament letter or epistle to the churches because the church of Smyrna did not exist BEFORE the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD.

Likewise, the churches at Sardis, Thyatira, Philadelphia, and Laodicea, are not mentioned in the book of Acts that most Bible scholars believe span 30 years of early church history. And that would be anywhere from 31 AD to 64 AD depending on which year you believe that Jesus was crucified and resurrected from the dead. Most Bible scholars agree that it was around 90 AD to 95 AD that John wrote the Book of Revelation which was well AFTER the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD. But preterists disagree and CLAIM that the Book of Revelation was written BEFORE 70 AD. But what does HISTORY tell us?

In one of the works or writings of Irenaeus entitled, “Against Heresies”, we can read in chapter 13:18 where Irenaeus tells us when John had his apocalyptic vision and wrote the book. “For that (Referring to the vision of the Apostle John) Irenaeus wrote the following: 

 

“We will not, however, incur the risk of pronouncing positively as to the name of Antichrist; for if it were necessary that his name should be distinctly revealed in this present time, it would have been announced by him who beheld the apocalyptic vision. For that was seen not a very long time since, but almost in our day, towards the end of Domitian's reign” (written 180 AD).

 

Now, some Preterists will argue and claim that the writings of Irenaeus are in poor condition, so therefore, we cannot be sure of their accuracy in being copied.

To me, this is a weak argument because we can quote word for word many verses of Scripture in the Bible from memory. So if we were reading a Bible that had some water damage then we could easily fill in the damaged verses that were faded away. But there are many other early church writings so we do not have to depend upon the “memory” of the early church writers.

So then, let us consider some other early church writings. I will only cite a few, and you can do your own research if you desire more early church writings.

Here is one early Church writing called, The Shepherd of Hermas, that was written early on in the 2nd Century. And it states that “the great tribulation that IS COMING,” Now, it would be nonsensical or make no sense whatsoever to make such a statement of a YET COMING great tribulation, IF SO BE that the early church during the SECOND Century well AFTER 70 AD truly believed that the time of great tribulation had already been FULFILLED in 70 AD as the Preterist prophecy teachers CLAIM.

Now, I fully realize that not all believers in the early church believed the SAME things but one thing is for SURE. And that is if they were preterist believers in the early church there would have been other Christian writers writing about the heresy. For you see, many of the early church writings were letters WARNING other believers of FALSE teaching. You see IF the futurist view was indeed a heresy there would surely be some early church writing exposing it as a heresy. And IF there were a “PRETERIST” point of view in the early church then you can be sure that there would be SOME writings teaching this view or some writing exposing the errors of this view.

So since NO writing that I myself am aware of have been found by the early church writers teaching that the time of great tribulation was FULFILLED during the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD, then I myself must REFUTE this false teaching. But please understand that I am not simply refuting preterism solely on the ground of it NOT being found in early church writings. For you see, there is also a massive amount of sound Scriptural evidence to prove beyond any shadow of a doubt that ALL preterism is FALSE teaching.

Please understand that I am only citing a few early church writings to show my readers and seekers of the truth that Preterism did NOT exist in the early church otherwise WHY would these writing like the Didache that was basically used as a “CHURCH MANUAL” so to speak not show any such teaching that the time of great tribulation had already PAST?

The Didache was no later than around 100 A.D. And it states as well that the time of great tribulation is yet FUTURE.

 

“Watch for your life's sake. Let not your lamps be quenched, nor your loins unloosed; but be ye ready, for ye know not the hour in which our Lord cometh. …. For in the last days, false prophets and corrupters shall be multiplied, and the sheep shall be turned into wolves, and love shall be turned into hate; for when lawlessness increaseth, they shall hate and persecute and betray one another, and then shall appear the world-deceiver as Son of God, and shall do signs and wonders, and the earth shall be delivered into his hands, and he shall do iniquitous things which have never yet come to pass since the beginning. … And then shall appear the signs of the truth; first, the sign of an outspreading in heaven; then the sign of the sound of the trumpet; and the third, the resurrection of the dead; yet not of all, but as it is said: The Lord shall come and all His saints with Him. Then the world shall see the Lord coming upon the clouds of heaven.” [Didache, XVI]

 

Now, even though the exact words “the great tribulation” are not used in the above quote, anyone can clearly see that all the above-mentioned events take place DURING the time of great tribulation.

One more quote from Irenaeus, who lived in AD. 120-202, writes the following about a yet FUTURE event saying.

 

“It is, therefore, more certain, and less hazardous, to await the fulfillment of the prophecy, than to be making surmises, and casting about for any names that may present themselves, inasmuch as many names can be found possessing the number mentioned; and the same question will, after all, remain unsolved. ... But he indicates the number of the name now, that when this man comes we may avoid him, being aware who he is: ... But when this Antichrist shall have devastated all things in this world, he will reign for three years and six months, and sit in the temple at Jerusalem; and then the Lord will come from heaven in the clouds, in the glory of the Father, sending this man and those who follow him into the lake of fire; but bringing in for the righteous the times of the kingdom, that is, the rest, the hallowed seventh day; and restoring to Abraham the promised inheritance, in which kingdom the Lord declared, that many coming from the east and from the west should sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob” [Irenaeus: Against Heresies, Book V, XXX].

 

Once again, I want to make it clear to my readers that I am not exposing the errors of preterism based SOLELY upon the writing of the early church, but rather I am simply laying a strong foundation, which will be PROVEN by the word of TRUTH, the Holy Bible, that preterism is a FALSE teaching. But the HISTORICAL FACT that the early church taught NOTHING even resembling the preterist point of view should raise a RED FLAG to all preterists to honestly and sincerely take a CLOSER look at what they have been taught by their church denomination. Now let us move on to the word of Almighty God to prove that preterism is a FALSE teaching.

Let us SUPPOSE for just a moment that preterism is true and that 70 AD is the complete FULFILLMENT of ALL of Matthew chapter 24. And ALSO a complete FULFILLMENT of all of the book of Revelation EXCEPT for Revelation 20:10 through Revelation 22:21 the end of the prophecy of the book of Revelation, according to the teaching of preterism.  And, therefore, according to the teaching of “PRETERISM”, we are NOW living in the age of the MILLENNIUM that is NOT a LITERAL 1000 years, but rather, an age of an unspecified number of years as ALL preterist Christians teach.

Please keep in mind that in order for a prophecy to be fulfilled, then that supposed fulfillment MUST meet ALL the criteria of the prophecy. For example, since the prophecy of Jesus foretells that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem and HISTORY supposedly proves that Jesus was born in Rome, then Jesus could not be the Messiah EVEN IF all of the other prophecies FIT perfectly with Jesus as being the Messiah. Are you following what I am pointing out to you? Also, another example is that not ALL od the prophet in Isaiah 9:6 was “completely” fulfilled at the virgin birth of Jesus. Yes, the CHILD was BORN or fulfilled at the virgin birth but the Son GIVEN was not fulfilled until the Son of MAN, Jesus laid down his life on the cross. And the final stage of the prophecy in Isaiah 9:6 is yet to be fulfilled in the world yet to come WHEN the government will be laid upon his shoulders. And I assure you that Jesus did NOT come to reign as King over the earth in 70 AD.

You see something that is SIMILAR to meeting the fulfillment of prophecy does NOT make that something be the EXACT fulfillment of that prophecy. In order for a supposed fulfillment of prophecy, then that supposed fulfillment must meet ALL the things foretold in that prophecy or it is NOT the EXACT fulfillment of that prophecy.

Now, with all this in mind of “PARTIAL” fulfillments of prophecy, let us go to Matthew chapter 24 first. And then, we will take a closer look at what the WHOLE word of God clearly teaches about the Millennium being a LITERAL 1000 year reign of Jesus.

For those of my readers who may be unaware some preterist use Matthew 24:31 as one of THEIR PROOF texts dogmatically demanding that this ONE verse of Scripture demands that ALL of the prophecies in Matthew chapter 24 had to be fulfilled in the FIRST century because it plainly states THIS generation shall NOT pass away until ALL these things are FULFILLED. And, according to the preterists “interpretation” of verse 31, it was the first-century believers who were the WHO that this prophecy was given to.

 

Here is Matthew 24:31.

 

“Verily I say unto you, THIS generation shall not pass, till ALL these things be fulfilled.”

 

Now again, it is ASSUMED that the “THIS” generation is speaking of the generation to WHOM Jesus was speaking to, at the time of the ministry of Jesus which was around 27 AD or 28 AD to 31 AD to 33 AD. And this would fit the year 70 AD as a POSSIBLE fulfillment of THAT generation in the day of Jesus as being the “THIS” generation that would be alive when ALL these things were, supposedly, to have already been FULFILLED according to the view of PRETERISM. After all, this IS one of THEIR PROOF texts.

However, in order to CORRECTLY INTERPRET the WHO of “THIS” generation being spoken about in verse 34, we must consider the WHOLE context of Matthew 24. So for now to keep this study as short as possible, we will just read Matthew 24:29-34 to see what ALL these things that MUST be SEEN are referring for the generation to be the “THIS” generation.

 

Matthew 23:29-34.


Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun 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:

30. 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.

31. 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.

32. NOW learn a parable of the FIG tree; WHEN his branch is yet tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is nigh:

33. So LIKEWISE you, when you shall see ALL these things, know that it is near, even at the doors.

34. Verily I say unto you, THIS generation (Speaking of the generation the SEES ALL these THINGS, which INCLUDES the SIGNS in the SUN, MOON, and STARS) shall not pass, till ALL these things are FULFILLED.”

 

First of all, the Greek word that is translated as “THIS” also means “THAT” or THAT generation that shall see in the future ALL these signs will no pass away to all these things are fulfilled. Here is how E-Sword defines the Greek word that is translated as “this” generation.


G3778

οὗτος, οὗτοι, αὕτη, αὕται

houtos houtoi hautē hautai

hoo'-tos, hoo'-toy, how'-tay, how'-tahee

Including the nominative masculine plural (second form), nominative feminine singular (third form), and the nominate feminine plural, (fourth form). From the article G3588 and G846; the he (she or it), that is, this or that (often with the article repeated): - he (it was that), hereof, it, she, such as, the same, these, they, this (man, same, woman), which, who.

 

Now, the ALL these things that will be FULFILLED BEFORE THIS of before THAT generation that SEE ALL these THINGS that Jesus spoke of in Matthew 24 will ALSO SEE Jesus COMING in great clouds of glory. In other words, the VISIBLE SECOND coming of Jesus MUST, without fail, be FULFILLED during the “THIS” or “THAT” generation who SEES ALL the things that Jesus spoke of in Matthew chapter 24 in order for that or this generation in our day to be the CORRECT generation to have SEEN ALL of these things to KNOW that their redemption was drawing near and even at the door.

 

Let us now take a look at Luke 21:5-32.

 

“And as some spoke of the TEMPLE, how it was adorned with goodly stones and gifts, he (Jesus) said,

6. As for THESE things which you behold, (Speaking of the TEMPLE) the DAYS will come, in the which there shall not be left one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.

7. And they asked him, saying, Master, but WHEN shall these things be? AND what SIGN will there be when these things shall come to pass?

8. And he said, Take heed that you be not DECEIVED: for many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and the time draws near: go you not, therefore, after them. (Here Jesus is warning us about men like Sun Myung Moon, Jim Jones, Marshall Applewhite, David Koresh, and the yet coming Muslim Mahdi just to name a few who are and will be FALSE Christs in OUR day that MANY Christians have written about warning other Christians)

9. But when you shall hear of wars and commotions, be not terrified: for these things must first come to pass; BUT the END is NOT by and by. (Yes, the church and the Jews around 70 AD obviously heard of wars and rumors of wars. And Jesus said, BUT the END is NOT yet. In other words, MORE SIGNS MUST be fulfilled or SEEN before any generation can be the CORRECT “THIS” of “THAT” generation spoken of by Jesus in Matthew 24:34)

10. Then said he unto them, Nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: (Did this happen from the time of Jesus to 70 AD?)

11. And great earthquakes shall be in divers (Or different) places, (I have heard people say that this not only meaning of divers, as in, many different places all over the world but also in places where earthquakes have never happened before. So again, did this also happen in 70 AD?) and famines, and pestilences; and fearful sights and GREAT SIGNS shall there be from heaven. (Did the church in 70 AD SEE these great signs from heaven in the SUN, the MOON, and the STARS, as well?)

12. But BEFORE all these, they shall lay their hands on you, and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues, and into prisons, being brought before kings and rulers for my name's sake. (Certainly, the early church did indeed see much tribulation and even some Christians THOUGHT that the day was at hand BECAUSE of their being persecuted. But Paul ASSURED them that the day of the Lord was NOT at hand and NOT for them to be deceived of trouble because that day of the Lord will NOT come UNTIL TWO things take place FIRST. A great falling away or apostasy AND the Antichrist being made known to the church. Please read 1 Thessalonians chapter 2 and chapter 3, which we will cover further on in this study)

13. And it shall turn to you for a testimony. (Meaning that the angels that God has placed in charge over you will see what the evil men do to you and your faithfulness to forgive them and walk in love, then so great is your reward in heaven for your works show a good testimony)

14. Settle it, therefore, in your hearts, not to meditate before what you shall answer:

15. For I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which all your adversaries shall not be able to gainsay nor resist.

16. And you shall be betrayed both by parents, and brethren, and kinfolk, and friends; and some of you shall they cause to be put to death. (So be SURE that all your family and close friends are truly born again, filled with the Holy Spirit, and rooted and grounded in God's word. Otherwise, there MAY be a mole in your midst in the days ahead seeking to save their own life by betraying your hiding place. You see, there will be some in prison awaiting death and there will be some in hiding. And there may be some in parts of the world where the killing hand of the radical Muslims have not reached. I have heard testimonies of Muslims who have become very devout and faithful Christians who are in hiding in Muslim dominated countries who desire to get out of their country to live in peace. The number of Christians in hiding in Muslim dominated countries will grow more and more as the day of our Lord approaches. And Jesus WARNS those in hiding to stay in hiding and NOT believe the rumors that Jesus has come. For you see, in the “Islamic” prophecy, Jesus will be coming with the Islamic Mahdi but that is NOT what the Bible itself teaches. Everyone in the whole world will know WHEN Jesus comes again so do NOT be deceived by anyone who says we have found Jesus, come and see him for yourself)

17. And you shall be hated of all men for MY name's sake. (Showing us that these are CHRISTIANS to whom these words are spoken and NOT to the JEWS as some FALSELY teach like the PRE tribulation prophecy teachers)

18. But there shall not a hair of your head perish. (This doe not mean that not one Christians will die physically, but rather, that not one Christian will PERISH in the lake of fire if they endure unto the end to remain faithful to NOT DENY Jesus as the SON OF Almighty God who died on the cross for their sins)

19. In your patience possess you your souls. (Meaning no matter if we live or die we KNOW we shall ever be with the Lord)

20. And when YOU shall SEE Jerusalem compassed with ARMIES, then know that the desolation thereof is nigh. (Or when you shall SEE the ABOMINATION of DESOLATION spoken of by Daniel the prophet, then KNOW that the DESOLATION of Jerusalem draws near. Please read the study WHAT IS THE ABOMINATION OF DESOLATION?)

21. Then let them which are in Judea flee to the mountains, and let them which are in the midst of it depart out, and let not them that are in the countries enter thereinto. (Meaning for those who are in Judea and the surrounding countries to GET OUT and those in other countries to NOT go there. I am sorry, but I cannot accept the “interpretation” of the abomination of desolation as being a PIG being sacrificed on the Temple Mount as being “THE” abomination spoken of by Daniel the prophet)

22. For these be the days of vengeance, that ALL things which are written may be fulfilled. (And ALL these things INCLUDE the VISIBLE SECOND coming of Jesus where EVERY EYE shall SEE him and the NATIONS will mourn. So again I am sorrow but I myself cannot see the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD as being “THE” abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel. One possibility of the abomination that will eventually lead to the desolation of Jerusalem is the Islamic Dome of the Rock that was PLACED where it ought not to have been placed)

23. But woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck, in those days! for there shall be great distress in the land, and wrath (Speaking of the wrath of Satan in Revelation 12:12-17) upon this people.

24. And they (NOT the CHRISTIANS, but rather, the “THEY” here is speaking of the JEWS being SCATTERED once again in the future all over the LAND in every Muslim nation and having no more homeland) shall fall by the edge of the sword, and (They the JEWS and possible some Christians who will choose to NOT flee Judea in that day) shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled. (This is speaking of the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD, PLUS the taking of the Jews being led into the captivity of the Muslims from the time of the construction of the Dome of the Rock from 685 AD to 706 AD to 1948 when the Jews began returning to their homeland. But at the END of the TIMES of the Gentiles be fulfilled there will be another WAR against Jerusalem to make her DESOLATE that is YET FUTURE and even at the door in our day as I am writing this study in December of 2015. And in THAT day the Jews will be scattered on final time to be taken captive in Muslim-dominated countries. And when that happens then Jesus will come to deliver them. But the rapture of the church will occur first to PROVOKE the children of Israel to jealousy)

25. And there shall be SIGNS in the SUN, and in the MOON, and in the STARS; and upon the earth distress of NATIONS, (Please notice the PLURAL of nations and NOT just the one nation of Israel. This is, again, showing that not all of these things are speaking of ONLY the destruction of the TEMPLE in Jerusalem in 70 AD as all preterist Christians falsely teach. These freat sign in the heavens will cause DISTRESS in all nations all over the world) with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; (The root word of perplexity means having no way OUT of what shall be coming upon the earth. The situation will seem HOPELESS, as in, the END of the world is at hand. And a nuclear war would cause perplexity. Revelation 11: teaches us that Jesus will destroy those who ARE destroying the earth. So a nuclear war in the Middle East is one possibility. Another possibility is that the “world” could wrongly interpret the coming of Jesus as a UFO invasion to take of the earth. Men’s hearts will fail or people will have heart attacks for fear of what is coming upon the earth. Please read the study “WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY ABOUT UFOS?” Also, what did hurricanes and tsunamis have to do with the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem in 70 AD? NOTHING, because these kinds of signs will grow worse and worse in the LAST days leading up to the last 3 1/2 years of the seventieth week of Daniel. For that is WHEN WE shall see the Antichrist and the abomination set in place that causes Jerusalem to be made DESOLATE)

26. Men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken. (The POWERS of the heaven being shaken is speaking of the WAR between Satan and his angels against Michael and his angels. At this time the STARS will fall from heaven like figs off a fig tree shaken in the wind. This great WAR in heaven the SKIES of the earth will take place IMMEDIATELY AFTER the 3 1/2 years of the GREAT tribulation. Now it is impossible for a LITERAL STAR to fall to the earth. So seeing the ANGELS are called STARS I myself am seeing that Satan and his angels being CAST DOWN OUT of the MIDST of heaven as being the STARS falling from heaven instilling FEAR in the hearts of mankind who do not know what is going on. Again, please read the study WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY ABOUT UFOS? for a deeper understanding of how SOME in the WORLD will see the coming of Jesus as an invasion from aliens of another world. Now it may be that a meteor shower will be the stars that far from heaven, but if this be the case then these meteors with not burn up in the atmosphere like most meteor showers that I have seen that do NOT strike FEAR in the hearts of men)

27. And then shall they SEE the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.

28. And when THESE things BEGIN to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draws nigh. (So when we see Jerusalem surrounded by armies we have 3 ½ years or less before we see the SIGNS in the SUN, MOON, and STARS and the powers of heaven be shaken and a great earthquake such as has never been before on the earth, which will USHER IN the SECOND coming of Jesus IMMEDIATELY AFTER this 3 ½ years of GREAT tribulation that has never been the like nor ever shall be again. Again not ALL these things have been FULFILLED as yet. Can you not see my dear brothers and sisters in our Lord Jesus Christ, that in order for 70 AD to have been the FULFILLMENT of Matthew 24 and Revelation chapter 1 through chapter 20 verse 4 or verse 10 depending on which preterist Bible study you are reading, then ALL the prophecy must have been fulfilled in 70 AD as well. Yes, I agree that 70 AD certainly fulfills the destruction of the TEMPLE but that is only ONE of the things Jesus spoke of and it was only ONE of the questions the disciple asked Jesus. Please read “MATTHEW 23:1-31 EXPLAINED!” for an in-depth verse by verse study on the THREE questions the disciples asked Jesus)

29. And he spake to them a parable; Behold the fig tree and all the trees;

30. When they now shoot forth, you see and know of your own selves that summer is now nigh at hand.

31. So likewise you, when you see these things come to pass, know you that the kingdom of God is nigh at hand. (The phrase “nigh at hand” has been used all through the history of the church for almost 2000 years. So to ME, the Bible is written in such a way so that EVERY generation truly believes that they are the “THIS” generation. I believe God did this so that the church would not be dormant and stop preaching the gospel. Jesus used this phrase to refer to the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem that took place over forty years after his resurrection. You see, Jesus is not all KNOWING as some teach. Jesus did NOT perceive as yet the day and hour of his return. But Jesus did perceive that the generation that does see ALL these things will be the generation the SEES his COMING as well. And the generation of 70 AD did NOT see the VISIBLE SECOND coming of Jesus where the NATIONS, as in, all nations all over the world shall mourn)

34. Verily I say unto you, THIS (Or THAT) generation shall NOT pass away, till ALL be fulfilled.”

 

Again, the phrase “TILL ALL BE FULFILLED” must, without fail, INCLUDE the VISIBLE SECOND coming of Jesus to gather the faithful saints to himself and execute the WRATH of Almighty God the Father upon the NATIONS of the world who are seeking to kill every last Jew and every last Christian especially in that part of the world in the Middle East.

In other words, it is IMPOSSIBLE for the generation in the day of Jesus to be the “THIS” generation to SEE ALL these things, because Jesus has NOT VISIBLY returned as yet. And this goes for EVERY generation from the time of Jesus to this very day, because the SECOND coming of Jesus where EVERY EYE shall see him has NOT taken place as yet. It is still yet FUTURE.

Now some preterist Christians try and argue that Jesus returned INVISIBLY to try and FORCE their interpretation of a NON-literal 1000 year reign of Jesus. You see some preterist Christians make the CLAIM that we are NOW living in the MILLENNIUM of an unspecified number of years meaning that the 1000 year reign of Jesus does NOT mean a LITERAL 1000 years.

So again, let us ASSUME for another moment that the preterists’ INTERPRETATION is correct and the 1000 year reign of Jesus is NOT a LITERAL 1000 years as they CLAIM.

Remember what I have taught over and over in almost every study I write that ANY interpretation must AGREE with the WHOLE word of God in order for that interpretation to be the CORRECT interpretation. In other words, ANY interpretation that CONTRADICTS any other part of God's word is NOT a correct interpretation.

So then, the word of TRUTH, the Holy Bible, clearly and plainly STATES that the YEARS of man, DURING the preterist interpretation of the reign of Jesus as being as “an unspecified number of years” that Jesus will reign, will be 100 years of age where EVERYONE will live out their FULL 100 years of age and NONE will die prematurely. Please read Isaiah 62:20 which needs NO interpretation to those with eyes to see.


Isaiah 61:20.

 

There shall be NO MORE thence an infant of days, NOR an old man that HAS NOT FILLED his days: for the child shall die a HUNDRED YEARS OLD; but the sinner being a HUNDRED YEARS OLD shall be accursed.”

 

So the word of TRUTH, the Holy Bible, makes it QUITE clear that there is the COMING of an AGE where ALL of mankind will live to be a FULL 100 years of age and NO MORE will an infant DIE until he or she has lived a FULL 100 years of age.

Now, IF SO BE that the INTERPRETATION of those who teach preterism that CLAIM that we are ALREADY living in this AGE of an unspecified number of days then ALL of the words of God MUST AGREE. And CLEARLY, the preterist “interpretation” that we are living in the 1000 year reign of Jesus right NOW does NOT agree with the WHOLE word of God. For you see, not everyone is NOW living to be a FULL 100 years old. There are many people, including some Christians who are dying premature deaths. And the age of man in this present world is only 70 years, and if by strength, it is 80 years.

You see, since the day Jesus rose from the dead to this very day, there has NOT YET been any number of days where ALL of mankind from an infant to an old man lived a FULL 100 years of age. Can you not see that this present world is NOTHING like the 1000 year reign of Jesus?

But if you INTERPRET the 1000 year reign of Jesus to be a LITERAL 1000 year reign that is yet FUTURE, then and ONLY then will you have an AGE where ALL of the MORTAL humans will live a FULL 100 years of age while ONLY the Christians will be given eternal life to become immortal humans who will reign with Jesus over the mortal humans. Now some preterists have somehow gotten the WRONG idea that ALL of mankind EXCEPT the Christians and the remnant of Jews will be slain at the second coming of Jesus.

This is simply NOT the TRUTH of the WHOLE word of Almighty God. Please read Zachariah 14:16 which clearly and plainly STATES with NO interpretation needed that there will be those LEFT alive of ALL nations even those NATIONS that fought AGAINST Israel.

 

Zechariah 14:16.

 

“And it SHALL come to PASS, that EVERY ONE that is LEFT of ALL the nations which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles.”

 

Now, I ask you my dear brothers and sisters in our Lord Jesus Christ, has THIS ever happened at ANY time from 70 AD to this present day? NO, it has NOT. Jesus has NOT returned to make WAR with the nations who will IN the FUTURE come and fight against Israel. Nor have ALL of mankind left alive after that WAR come up every year to worship the King, the LORD of the host. Also, I am seeing that the keeping of the feast of tabernacles by ALL nations DURING the literal 1000 year reign of Jesus does NOT mean the “literal” feast of tabernacles. But rather, it means that people of all nations will be SAVED during the literal 1000 year reign of Jesus from year to year during all parts of every year. And each saved person will begin to worship Jesus from year to year as more people are saved every day of every year. The Hebrew word translated as “go up” also means to begin to spring up, which, to me, sounds a lot like people getting SAVED and God TABERNACLING IN them, as opposed to Sabbath-keeping Christian “interpretation” of people keeping the “literal” feast of tabernacles during the 1000 year reign of Jesus.

What some Christians have not seen or understood as yet is that there is going to be THREE groups of people DURING the LITERAL 1000 year reign of Jesus. One group of people will be CHRISTIANS, those found to be the good and faithful servants unto the end who will be given ETERNAL LIFE at the SECOND coming of Jesus to rule and reign WITH Jesus over the OTHER TWO groups of people who will be in MORTAL bodies that can DIE. God will grant that THEIR age will be a FULL 1000 years of age and NO MORE will an infant DIE until he or she lives out their FULL 100 years. So the other TWO groups of people living in their MORTAL bodies will be the remnant of Israel and those Gentile people LEFT of ALL the other NATIONS of the world.

And besides these things, the word of TRUTH, the Holy Bible, clearly and plainly STATES that there will be NO WARS during this LITERAL 1000 year reign of Jesus. Please read Isaiah 2:4, which again, needs NO interpretation.

 

Isaiah 2:4.

 

“And he (Jesus) shall judge among the NATIONS, (Again, nations is in the plural speaking of those LEFT alive of ALL the NATIONS) and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks: nation shall NOT lift up sword against nation, NEITHER shall they LEARN WAR ANY MORE.”

 

This is speaking of DURING this 1000 year reign of Jesus not one single nation will LEARN to make WAR any more during this reign of Jesus. But AFTER or at the END of the LITERAL 1000 year reign of Jesus Satan will be loosed from being BOUND these 1000 years to once again TEACH the nations to make WAR one final time. Have you ever WONDERED WHY God would LET Satan the devil LOOSE again after he had his ENEMY bound for a literal 1000 years? If so please read the study UNDERSTANDING WHY?, which will answer many questions of WHY God ALLOWS evil in this present world.

But my point right now is that there has NEVER been a time on the earth since Jesus rose from the grave to this present time where there has NOT been some war somewhere on the earth. So again, the literal 1000 year reign of Jesus is speaking of a yet FUTURE fulfillment that will take place AFTER the literal VISIBLE SECOND coming of Jesus.

Therefore, anyone who believes or teaches that the second coming of Jesus is at the END of a NON-LITERAL age of an unspecified number of years that we are SUPPOSEDLY living in NOW is believing and teaching FALSE doctrine. For you see, Satan is loosed at the END of the 1000 year reign of Jesus which is WHEN all preterist Christians CLAIM that Jesus is coming again. So WHEN are all these other prophecies going to be fulfilled? When will all nations come year after year to worship the King the Lord of host DURING the 1000 year reign of Jesus? It certainly is NOT happening now in this present world, Also, WHEN will the LIFESPAN of man be 100 FULLS years of age where not one single person dies prematurely? It is certainly NOT happening NOW in this present world. The Bible also says that Satan will be BOUND for 1000 years during the Millennial reign of Jesus. And that is certainly NOT the case in this present world. The Bible says that Satan will be let loose and that he will ascend out of the bottomless pit for a LITTLE season or for a very short time to deceive the nations to make war against God’s mortal people.

Can you not see my dear brothers and sisters in our Lord Jesus Christ, that the ONLY solution is to interpret the 1000 year reign of Jesus as a LITERAL 1000 years for there to be enough time for generations of mankind to live a FULL 100 years of age before they DIE.

You see AFTER the literal 1000 year reign of Jesus comes the JUDGMENT of those who have NOT received eternal life at the coming of Jesus. Let us read Revelation chapter 20 being interpreted in the LIGHT of the WHOLE word of Almighty God and you will see what I mean about there NOT being enough time at the END of the literal 1000 years for ALL the prophecy to be FULFILLED in that short time after the 1000 years has ended.

 

Revelation 20:1-15.

 

“And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand.

2. And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and BOUND him a thousand years, (This mean NO MORE TEMPTATION, no more oppressing mankind with sickness and disease, no more premature deaths, and no more WAR  for a literal 1000 years, Again, NONE of which has happened as yet from Jesus to this present age in any generation or age. Therefore, DURING the LITERAL 1000 year reign of Jesus Satan will be BOUND for that 1000 years which is still yet FUTURE)

3.  And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should DECEIVE the nations NO MORE, TILL the thousand years should be FULFILLED: (And that means that DURING the literal 1000 year reign of Jesus there will be NO MORE works of the devil for a 1000 years. Remember that Jesus went about HEALING all who were OPPRESSED of the DEVIL with those sicknesses and diseases. So NO MORE SICKNESS and DISEASE during this literal 1000 year reign of Jesus. And, clearly, this is NOT happening in this present world which is wrongly “interpreted” to be the NON-literal 1000 year INVISIBLE reign of Jesus by ALL preterist Christians) and AFTER that he must be loosed a little season (Speaking of after this literal 1000 year reign of Jesus with NO MORE works of the devil. No more temptation to sin. No more sickness and disease, no more premature death. And no more WAR until AFTER this literal 1000 year reign of Jesus)

4. And I saw THRONES, (More than one throne) and THEY sat upon THEM, (Speaking of MORE than just one person sitting on just ONE throne) and judgment was given unto THEM: (Know you not that WE shall JUDGE the angels and RULE and REIGN WITH Jesus for a LITERAL 1000 years?) and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, AND for the word of God, (Speaking of the FIRST group of the TWO witnesses. The two witnesses are the ONLY TWO groups of people who stand for the one true and only Almighty God AND His SON Jesus. And these two witnesses are the CHRISTIANS during this PRESENT world and the JEWS during the literal 1000 year reign of Jesus during the world yet to come) and which had NOT worshiped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads or in their hands; and they LIVED and REIGNED WITH Christ a thousand years.(Now, obviously, there have been no Christians who were given immortality in 70 AD who are reigning WITH Jesus right now during this present world. So again, the 1000 year reign of Jesus ca NOT possibly be an “an unspecified number of years” as all preterist Christians CLAIM)

5. But the REST of the DEAD lived not again UNTIL the thousand years were finished. This is the FIRST resurrection. (The FIRST resurrection is ONLY for the DEAD who are IN Jesus Christ AT his coming. The unsaved Jews will NOT take part in the FIRST resurrection, but rather, the unsaved Jews will be saved ALIVE in their MORTAL bodies at the second coming of Jews to LIVE during the 1000 year reign of Jesus in their MORTAL bodies. And ONLY the Christians during this PRESENT world will receive ETERNAL LIFE at the second coming of Jesus. The REMNANT unsaved Jews and the people left of the nations will have families from generation to generation. And they will be taught of the Lord, as in, they will be taught the gospel of salvation. So from year to year throughout each year, many people will be saved just like people are being saved in this present world. And then, at the END of the literal 1000 year reign of Jesus, there will be ANOTHER resurrection of the dead. BUT)

6. Blessed and holy is he that has part in the FIRST resurrection: on such the SECOND DEATH HAS NO POWER, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ and shall REIGN with him a thousand years. (Please notice that the word “LIVE” is not in this verse which tells me that that ONE of the TWO witnesses speaking of the JEWS will LIVE in their MORTAL bodies while the other witness speaking of the Christians during this PRESENT world shall LIVE in their IMMORTAL bodies during the literal thousand-year reign of Jesus)

7. And when the thousand years are EXPIRED, Satan shall be LOOSED out of his prison,

8. And shall go out to DECEIVE the NATIONS (NOT the CHRISTIANS in their immortal bodies and not the saved Jesus during the literal 1000 years, but rather, Satan will DECEIVE SOME those LEFT of ALL nations. And most likely speaking of the natural descendant of Ismael and Esau who will one day fight against Jesus at his second coming. It is these NATIONS that Satan will once again DECEIVE AGAIN at the end of the literal 1000 years) which are in the four quarters of the earth, (Or in the FOURTH quarter or in ONE-FOURTH of the earth) Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. (Now at the BEGINNING of the 1000 years there was only a “remnant” LEFT alive of the NATIONS as well as a “remnant” of the Jews left alive. But at the END of the 1000 years their numbers have gone to be as the SAND of the sea which will be a multitude that cannot be numbered)

9. And they (The deceived at the END of the 1000 years) went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: ( Speaking of those saved DURING the 1000 year reign of Jesus. For you see, Jesus will rebuild the city of Jerusalem and the cities that will be destroyed in the FIRST war of Armageddon, during his 1000 year reign) and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them. (Speaking of the second half of God’s wrath. For you see, the first half of God’s wrath was LIFTED lest God would not leave Himself a REMNANT of His people Israel alive)

10. And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet ARE, (Remember that at the BEGINNING or right BEFORE the 1000 year reign of Jesus was the ONE and ONLY SECOND coming of Jesus who defeated the ANTICHRIST, and the angel cast the antichrist and the false prophet ALIVE into the lake of fire. Now, the verb “ARE” is not in the original text but we can clearly see that there are TWO judgments. And we can clearly see, that the beast and the false prophet will be hudge worthy OF the lake of fire 1000 years before Satan will be judged guilty as charged at the end of the 1000 years. This again, PROVES a LITERAL 1000 years between the time that the beast and the false prophet were cast alive in the lake of fire and the time that Satan, the fallen angels, and all the wicked are judged and cast into the lake of fire to be destroyed. The words where the beast and the false prophet are does not necessarily demand that they are still yet alive being tormented for all eternity, but rather, the DEVIL is cast into the lake of fire) and shall be tormented day and night forever and ever. (I believe that IF any are tormented from an eon to an eon, or from an age to another age, then it will ONLY be Satan and the fallen angels who will be tormented day and night for an AGE or until the age of the little season ends. There are several ways to interpret this verse of Scripture. Please read the study DOES REVELATION 20:10 teach ETERNAL TORMENT?)

11. And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.

12. 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 (The word translated as another also means a DIFFERENT book was opened. So this is speaking of ANOTHER book of life and NOT the LAMB’S Book of life at the beginning of the 1000 years. You see, the CHRISTIANS during this present world will have been ALREADY judged and will have ALREADY received their reward of ETERNAL LIFE at the coming of Jesus BEFORE the 1000 years. And the second death will have NO POWER over them after they are CHANGED in a twinkling of an eye to becoming IMMORTAL humans AT the SECOND coming of Jesus BEFORE the literal 1000 year reign of Jesus BEGINS. So these OTHER books at the END of the 1000 years will be for the REST of the dead and those who remained alive after this FINAL WAR at the END of this literal 1000 year reign of Jesus. This FINAL war is NOT the battle of Armageddon that will be fought BEFORE this literal 1000 year reign of Jesus. Anyway, at the second and FINAL judgment ANOTHER book of life, as well as some other books, will be opened) and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the BOOKS, according to their works.

13. And the sea gave up the dead which was in it, and death and hell delivered up the dead which was in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. (You see, there will be RIGHTEOUS people who DIE DURING this literal 1000 year reign of Jesus. Therefore not ALL the dead who are raised will be the WICKED. In other words, ALL the wicked form Adam to the END of the 1000 year reign of Jesus what are DEAD will be raised at this SECOND and only other resurrection to take place after the FIRST resurrection of the dead in Jesus Christ, and then the wicked shall be cast into the lake of fire to be DESTROYED. And the RIGHTEOUS both the righteous who remained alive during the final war of God and Magog and the righteous who died during this war or who died at any point during this literal 1000 year reign of Jesus shall be given eternal life just as the Christians were already given eternal life right BEFORE this literal 1000 year reign of Jesus)

14.  And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. (This means NO MORE death and ALL the righteous will live forever never more to die. Almighty God the Father HIMSELF will descend down will His CITY, the NEW Jerusalem, and the Eternal Spirit, who alone is the Father, will dwell with immortal humans for all eternity on the new earth the He Himself will create AFTER the literal 1000 year reign of Jesus and AFTER the final Day of Judgment at the END of the literal 1000 year reign of Jesus)

15. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.”

 

Can you not see my dear brothers and sisters in our Lord Jesus Christ, that there is NOT enough time from the time that Satan is loose to the SECOND coming of Jesus AT the END of a NON-literal unspecified number of years for all the prophecies that most DEFINITELY have NOT been fulfilled as yet to BE fulfilled at the END of a so-called INTERPRETED non-literal 1000 year reign of Jesus.

Let me now list the ERRORS in a NON-literal INTERPRETATION of the literal 1000 year reign of Jesus that I myself have found. First of all, I believe the biggest error is to try and interpret everything SYMBOLICALLY. And on the same note, it is equally in error to try and interpret everything LITERALLY. The best approach is to interpret as much as possible in a LITERAL sense and then when common sense does not allow a literal interpretation, then it is assumed that the Bible is speaking FIGURATIVELY. But always remember that any interpretation MUST AGREE with the REST of God's clear, plain, and simple word that needs no interpretation whatsoever to know its true meaning in the light of the whole word of God.

 

#1. First of all, Jesus will NOT REIGN in his Father's kingdom ON the EARTH, UNTIL Jesus comes again. This is just common sense and also Scriptural, according to Acts 3:21, which clearly teaches us that Jesus MUST remain in heaven until the restitution of all things. And the word “THINGS” is NOT in the original text. So the restitution of the ALL is speaking about the SAVING of the ALL of whosoever who will believe in this present world. In other words, when the FULNESS of the GENTILES will be saved THEN God will turn AGAIN a SECOND time to deliver His people, the children of Israel, according to Romans 11:25 and Isaiah 11:11.

 Jesus said he would come again and that every eye will SEE him. Clearly, this has NOT happened as yet. We as Christians are not ruling and reigning with Jesus as yet. We have not received our immortal bodies as yet so Revelation 20:3-6 has NOT been fulfilled as yet and, therefore, the time of great tribulation has not been COMPLETELY fulfilled as yet, and it will not be completely fulfilled UNTIL the VISIBLE second coming of Jesus.

 

#2. EVERY passage of Scripture speaks of a LITERAL and VISIBLE coming of Jesus where EVERY EYE shall SEE him coming in great clouds of glory and not ONE single verse ever teaches us of a SECRET coming. There is ONE and ONLY ONE SECOND coming of Jesus. NO SPLIT in two-part second coming as those who teach a PRE trib escapism rapture of the church. And NO so-called INVISIBLE coming like the Jehovah's Witnesses falsely teaches as well as the Sabbath-keeping churches like the 7th Day Adventist falsely teach. There is only ONE return of Jesus, which is IMMEDIATELY AFTER the last 3 1/2 years of the GREAT tribulation and right BEFORE his literal 1000 year reign.

 

#3. ONLY those who are IN Jesus Christ AT his SECOND coming will be given ETERNAL LIFE. Therefore ACCORDING to those who wrongly teach that the second coming is at the END of a NON-literal 1000 years, not ONE Jew and not ONE of those Gentiles left of the nations will have a chance to receive eternal life because they will NOT be IN Jesus Christ at his coming, no matter WHEN the second coming of Jesus is interpreted.

 

#4. There MUST be a LITERAL 1000 year reign of Jesus who those who are NOT in Jesus Christ at his SECOND coming to be TAUGHT of the Lord.

 

#5. THEN there must be a little season for those TAUGHT of the Lord to be TEMPTED to see if they will ENDURE unto the END like those of us who will endure unto the end to obtain ETERNAL LIFE at the SECOND coming of Jesus BEFORE this literal 1000 years of Jesus where we will rule and reign OVER those in their MORTAL bodies who will be TAUGHT of the Lord by US the faithful Christians.

 

#6. There must be a literal 1000 year reign of Jesus to allow enough time for those in their MORTAL bodies to live a FULL hundred years, to build houses, to bear children, and for their children to live a FULL 100 years and so on for several generations.

 

#7. There must be a LITERAL 1000 year reign of Jesus for Satan to be BOUND because Satan is CERTAINLY NOT BOUND in this present age. Satan still yet DECEIVES people and the “PRETERISTS” are the perfect example by being DECEIVED that Satan is BOUND right NOW in this PRESENT age.

 

#8. There must be a LITERAL 1000 year reign of Jesus where mankind does NOT learn WAR any more during that 1000 years. And if you even remotely think that this has already been FULFILLED, then all I can say is that you are TRULY DECEIVED by Satan, which again proves my point that Satan is NOT yet BOUND for a literal 1000 years.

 

#9. There must be a LITERAL 1000 year reign of Jesus for people of ALL NATIONS as in EVERY person to come year after year to Jerusalem where the city of God will bet set above Jerusalem for every man to come and worship the King the Lord of hosts. I for one have NEVER heard of such a time of any length where every person must go to Jerusalem to keep the feast of tabernacles. Therefore the 1000 year reign of Jesus is yet FUTURE.

#10. There must be a LITERAL 3 ½ years of GREAT tribulation that is YET FUTURE because Jesus HIMSELF says that he will come again IMMEDIATELY AFTER this time of tribulation.

 

#11. The second coming of Jesus has NOT come as yet, because the word of TRUTH, the Holy Bible, clearly and plainly teaches us that the coming of Jesus will be VISIBLE and EVERY EYE shall SEE him coming in great clouds of glory.

 

#12. It is IMPOSSIBLE for the dead in Jesus Christ, to be raised from the dead, given eternal life in order to live and REIGN WITH Jesus for a literal 1000 years, IF SO BE that the 1000 year reign of Jesus is a NON-literal unspecified period of time that we are SUPPOSEDLY living in RIGHT NOW. I myself do NOT see any of my SAVED relatives who have died that are now LIVING and reigning WITH me NOW while I am SUPPOSED to be living and reigning with Jesus NOW in this PRESENT world as the “preterist” CLAIM.

 

#13. It is IMPOSSIBLE for us to be living in a NON-literal 1000 year reign of Jesus that we are SUPPOSEDLY living in NOW because Isaiah prophesies that DURING this time the lion will eat grass or straw like an ox, the wolf and the lamb will dwell together and eat together, and lions will dwell with a young calf and no animal will harm another animal or person in the kingdom age where even an infant can play in a den of snakes without being harmed in any way. I do not know about you but this is NOT a description of this PRESENT age that we are living in NOW that is SUPPOSED to be the NON-literal 1000 year reign of Jesus.

 

#14. Jesus told Israel plainly that he will not return UNTIL they say, Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. You see dear child of God, before the Olivet discourse in Matthew 24 Jesus stated in Matthew 23:31-39 to the multitude and to his disciples, things concerning that generation, but I will only quote the last four verses. You can read the rest of Matthew 24 on your own.

 

Matthew 23:31.

 

“Verily I say unto you, ALL THESE things shall come upon THIS (Or THAT) generation.”

 

Then in the next three verses, Jesus explains his own desire of what he wants for them but then goes on to tell them how it is actually going to be and what they will do and see. Here is what Jesus told the “THIS” GENERATION of HIS day as he wept about THAT future generation.

 

Matthew 23:32-39.

 

“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you that kill the prophets, and stone them which are sent unto you, how often would I have gathered your children together, even as a hen gathers her chickens under her wings, and you would NOT! (And BECAUSE of their REJECTION of Jesus being their MESSIAH Jesus prophesied the judgment of THAT GENERATION in the following two verses)

38. Behold, your HOUSE (Or your TEMPLE) is left unto you DESOLATE.

39. For I (Jesus HIMSELF is speaking here to the GENERATION of his day saying for I say unto you, YOU, (Speaking off the GENERATION in the time Jesus was crucified ABOUT that future generation at the time of his COMING) shall NOT see me henceforth, TILL YOU, (Speaking of the JEWS in the LAST days many generations in the FUTURE) shall SAY, Blessed, is he that comes in the name of the Lord.

 

So the TRUTH of the matter is that Jesus has NOT come again, because NOT ONE single GENERATION of his people the JEWS have ever CALLED upon his name saying,

 

Blessed is he that comes in the name of the Lord.

 

#15. The GENERATION in the day of the ministry of Jesus was always asking for a SIGN and Jesus told THAT GENERATION that there would have NO SIGN except that of Jonah. 

 

Please read Luke 11:29,30.

 

“And when the people were gathered thick together, he (Jesus) began to say, THIS is an EVIL generation: they seek a SIGN; and there shall NO sign be given it, (Referring to the very GENERATION to whom Jesus was speaking shall NO SIGN be given) BUT (Or except for) the SIGN of Jonas the prophet.

30. For as Jonas was a sign unto the Ninevites, so shall also the Son of man is to this generation.”

 

We all know the story of how Jonah was sent to this wicked city of Nineveh to preach REPENTANCE so that they would REPENT. So likewise, was the Son of man, sent to Jerusalem to PREACH repentance, but the GENERATION of Jesus did NOT repent and receive Jesus as their MESSIAH.

The MAIN point here is the the “THIS” generation of Jesus was to be given NO OTHER SIGN except Jesus being CRUCIFIED, in the belly of the earth 3 days and 3 nights and RESURRECTED after the third day so that they would KNOW that he was their MESSIAH. SOME believed in Jesus as their Messiah, but most Jews as a whole REJECTED Jesus as their Messiah so God turned to the Gentile in order to PROVOKE Israel to jealousy so that they would REPENT and turn to him. Then the word of God says that he WILL one day in the FUTURE turn AGAIN to his people the JEWS.

Then Jesus gathers together his DISCIPLES ONLY to teach them about the SIGNS that the GENERATION that would see his coming will SEE. And his disciples asked Jesus THREE questions. In other words, the disciple of Jesus did NOT ask the ONE question of when the TEMPLE shall be destroyed, but rather they asked Jesus THREE questions. Let us now read what has come to be called the Olivet discourse or the Sermon on the Mount of Olives in Matthew 24:1-34. You can read the whole of this passage of scripture fully explained in the study MATTHEW 24:1-31 EXPLAINED!, where I show the errors of a PRE tribulation rapture of the church, but for now, we will just cover the first four verses.

 

Matthew 24:1-4.

 

“And Jesus went out, and departed from the temple: and his disciples came to him for to show him the buildings of the temple.

2. And Jesus said unto them, See you not all these things? Verily I say unto you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.

3. And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?

4. And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.”

 

Now, in case you did NOT see the THREE DISTINCT questions that the DISCIPLES of Jesus specifically asked Jesus we will go through these four verses again one by one EXPLAINED.

 

Matthew 24:1 says.

 

“And Jesus went out, and departed from the TEMPLE: and his DISCIPLES came to him for to show him the BUILDINGS of the temple.”

 

This is pretty straight forward and does not need much explaining, but I would like to point out to the disciples of Jesus AT this time consisted of his people, the JEWS ONLY, and they were proud of their beautiful TEMPLE and they were showing it off so to speak to Jesus.


Matthew 24:2 says.

 

“2. And Jesus said unto THEM, (His DISCIPLES that were ALL Jews that were proud of their Temple) See you not all these things? Verily (Or TRULY or of an ASSURANCE) I say unto you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.”

 

This is basically the SAME thing that Jesus told the MULTITUDE AND his disciples in the previous charter that we just discussed, but evidently, it went in one ear and out the other so to speak. And his disciples did not understand what Jesus was telling them so Jesus is telling the PLAINLY here that their beautifully TEMPLE is going to be completely DESTROYED. Jesus is laying the foundation that WE speaking of ALL who believe on will become the TEMPLE of the living God, and that there will be no more Temple made with HANDS. Please read the study THE POWER AND AUTHORITY OF THE BELIEVER!

 

Matthew 24:3 says.

 

“3. And as he (Speaking of Jesus) sat (Sat WHERE? Jesus sat) upon the mount of Olives, the DISCIPLES came unto him (Or the DISCIPLES came unto or over to JESUS sitting down on the mount of Olive) PRIVATELY, saying, Tell us, #1. WHEN shall these things be? AND #2. what shall be the sign of your coming, AND #3. of the end of the world?”

 

Now the very first thing that I want you to noticed and to CONTINUE to stay FOCUSED upon is the FACT that Jesus is now speaking to his DISCIPLES in PRIVATE. This is very important to UNDERSTAND because there are some FALSE teachers and some FALSE teachings that will try and DECEIVE you into believing that this whole chapter of Matthew 24 has NOTHING whatsoever to do with the CHURCH, but rather that this chapter is speaking about the JEWS ONLY in the last days during the time of the GREAT tribulation.

I know that I am getting ahead of myself, but I can not stress enough how vitally important it is to keep this entire chapter in the CONTEXT of where it is found and the CONTEXT clearly teaches us that Jesus is speaking DIRECTLY to his DISCIPLES ONLY, which will become his CHURCH in PRIVATE.

The next thing that I want you to see from verse 3, is that the disciple of Jesus or the CHURCH of Jesus ask Jesus THREE questions, which are as follows.

 

 Question #1.

 

...Tell us, WHEN shall these things be?...”

 

In other words, the DISCIPLES of Jesus, the FOLLOWERS of Jesus, or more PRECISELY the CHURCH of Jesus is asking Jesus question number 1 in PRIVATE saying. Tell us, WHEN shall THESE things be or shall when shall they take place?

Now, the THESE things are referring back to what Jesus just said in the previous verse about the DESTRUCTION of the TEMPLE and the city of JERUSALEM where not one stone will be left upon another.

 

Question #2. 

 

...AND WHAT shall be the SIGN of your COMING,...”

 

So here we are given a clue as to the fact that not EVERYthing that Jesus told his disciples is recorded in the Bible. To ME, it appears that when Jesus told us, his church, about the destruction of the TEMPLE of Jerusalem that the disciples of Jesus somehow CONNECTED this DESTRUCTION of the TEMPLE with the COMING of Jesus, because they ALSO ask the question of WHAT shall be the SIGN of your COMING.

In other words, the disciples wanted to know is there anything ELSE other than the DESTRUCTION of the TEMPLE and the city of JERUSALEM that we should be LOOKING for to in order to KNOW when you are COMING is one interpretation?

Another interpretation is that they REMEMBERED the word of Jesus saying to THIS EVIL GENERATION that NO sign would be given EXCEPT the sign of Jonah so the DISCIPLES of Jesus were asking Jesus in PRIVATE as to WHAT the SIGN of his COMING would be.

No matter how you interpret these words, KNOW that the disciples of Jesus were asking MORE than just about the destruction of the TEMPLE.

 

Question #3. 

 

“...AND of the END of the WORLD?”

 

So then, evidently, Jesus had talked to his disciple about the END of the WORLD or the end of this PRESENT AGE, and they wanted to know that if WHEN the city of Jerusalem was DESTROYED would this be a SIGN that the END of this present age was near at hand.

Please keep in mind the WHOLE word of God and REMEMBER ALSO the words of Jesus who clearly and plainly told us that he himself nor the angels nor any man KNOWS the day and the hour of his coming, but that ONLY his God and Father in heaven KNOWS the day and the hour of his SECOND COMING.

But Jesus did PERCEIVE some SIGNS of his coming and said to us, his church, that the “THIS” GENERATION that SEES ALL these signs shall NOT pass away until ALL these things Jesus spoke to us, his CHURCH, in Matthew 24:1-34 and one of those THINGS was his SECOND COMING where EVERY EYE shall see him and the NATIONS speaking of ALL the nations of the world shall MOURN at his coming in clouds of great glory making WAR with those nations that are making all-out WAR against Israel. And THIS generation I personally believe is OUR generation or at the very least the generation of our children.

So if you INTERPRET Matthew 24:34 as being WHEN Israel began to BLOSSOM returning to their HOMELAND in 1948 and you ASSUME that a generation is 70 to 80 years, then that places either the time of the great tribulation to start in the year 2018 to 2028. OR this places the SECOND COMING of Jesus to be in the year 2018 to 2028. NOT that I am setting any dates of the coming of Jesus, but rather, I am just sharing with you my readers what OTHER are speculating.

I myself am looking for the SIGN of Jerusalem being completely surrounded by Muslim Islamic ARMIES seeking to wipe the nation of Israel off the face of the earth. Now, I do NOT limit these ARMIES to be just the Muslim armies because I do see the possibility of Russian and China being involved as well with interest in the OIL in the Middle East. So both Russia and China could be ALLIES to the Muslims by supplying them with weapons in order to increases FAVOR with the Muslims who basically own the majority of the oil fields in relation to all the active oil fields in the entire world. To ME, this is the WINE of fornication spoken of in the Book of Revelation and the HOOK spoken of in the Book of Ezekiel.

I am also looking for the SIGN of NO RAIN for 3 1/2 years in Israel spoken of in Revelation chapter 11.

And thirdly, I am looking for the FEARFUL signs in the SUN, MOON, and STARS that will USHER IN the SECOND COMING of Jesus. I personally do NOT see these signs as being mere ECLIPSES simply because eclipses of the sun and moon do NOT strike FEAR in the hearts of men. Now, I am not ruling out the possibility of there being eclipses as a sign that will occur at the second coming of Jesus, but rather, I am saying that, to ME, these signs in the SUN, MOON, and STARS need to strike FEAR in the hearts of mankind because that is what the word of TRUTH says they will do.

 

#16. Now, some preterists argue making the CLAIM that the “THIS” generation must, without fail, be the very generation in the day of Jesus because he used the word “THIS”.

 

Well, IF SO BE that this is a CORRECT INTERPRETATION then EVERY time the word of God says YOU or THIS then it must, without fail, NOT be speaking to us, the church. I mean, to ME, this argument is so ridiculous that I am not even going to waste your time going through HUNDREDS of verses proving beyond any shadow of a doubt that the Bible was written to the entire world and NOT just that the ONE GENERATION in the day of Jesus ONLY. Also, remember that the Greek word translated as “this” also means “THAT” generation that shall see these signs.

 

#17. Rather, Jesus says also speaking of a FUTURE generation use the words “in THE generation”. 

 

Please read Matthew 19:28,29.

 

“And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That YOU which have FOLLOWED ME, (Speaking of EVERY BELIEVER who is following Jesus whether they have died or whether they have remained alive unto the coming of Jesus) in the REGENERATION (Speaking of OUR CHANGE from mortal to immortal at the FIRST resurrection) WHEN the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, (Speaking of the LITERAL 1000 year reign of Jesus) YOU ALSO shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. (These twelve thrones seem to be reserved for the twelve disciples of Jesus but this is not the only verse in the Bible so this does NOT mean that ONLY the twelve disciples will RULE and REIGN with Jesus for a LITERAL 1000 years during the LITERAL Millennial kingdom of Jesus)

29. And EVERYONE (Of my followers) that has forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for MY NAME'S sake, shall receive a hundredfold and shall inherit everlasting life.

30.  But many that are FIRST (Speaking of the JEWS who were given the gospel of so great a salvation FIRST) shall be last; and the LAST (Speaking of the saved Jews AND Gentile nations who BELIEVE. That is to say, only the saved Jews and the saved Gentiles in this present world that God turned to after his people Israel rejected their Messiah) shall be first.”

 

#18. Jesus speaking to not only the generation in his day but toe all generations from Adam to this present day shall NOT see his RETURN and drink the fruit of the vine UNTIL that DAY when Jesus shall drink the fruit of the vine with his FOLLOWERS in his Father's kingdom speaking of the LITERAL 1000 year reign of Jesus. 

 

Please read Matthew 26:27-29.

 

“And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink you all of it;

28. For this is my blood (NOT his LITERAL blood like the Roman Catholic Christians falsely teach. Jesus has not even gone to the cross at this point in time. The fruit of the vine we take at communion is a SYMBOLIC REMEMBER of the shed blood of Jesus that he shed for our sins and not for ours only but for the sins of the whole world. So it is the BLOOD of Jesus the CUP that he bore for the sins of the world that is the cup of blood) of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.

29. But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, (Again, NOT a LITERAL cup of BLOOD, but rather, a cup of wine that Jesus said he would NOT drink AGAIN) UNTIL THAT DAY I drink it new with YOU  (Speaking of ALL my followers) in my Father's kingdom.”

 

Well, I can only speak for myself, but I personally have NOT seen ANY time in HISTORY to this present day where the ENTIRE church, as in, true faithful believers have sat down in our Father's kingdom to drink of the fruit of the vine WITH our Lord and Savior Jesus the Christ.

 

#19. Even when SYMBOLISM is used in the Bible for prophecy there is always a literally FULFILLMENT. A literal Jesus was born to a literal virgin in a literal or actual existing town of Bethlehem in his day. Jesus literally died on the cross for our sins and not only for our sins but also for the sins of the whole world so that WHOSOEVER BELIEVES on Jesus shall not perish, but rather inherit eternal life in the world YET to come speaking of the LITERAL 1000 year reign of Jesus. If not, then nothing WHY are you a Christian? I mean IF SO BE that ALL has been fulfilled and Jesus has ALREADY come and this present day IS paradise, then you truly are DECEIVED by the enemy.

 

Yes, I fully realize that not ALL preterists believe that Jesus has ALREADY come again, but SOME do. But from what I have read, ALL preterists do indeed truly believe that we are NOW living in a NON-literal unspecified number of years that they call the Millennial age. And it is true that some preterists believe that Jesus has come either INVISIBLE or in a way where Jesus uses the nations of this world to JUDGE Israel like the Babylonian empire long before Jesus was even born. So some preterists say that Jesus came back to use the ROMAN army to judge Israel and then he went back to heaven, but that he will also come again VISIBLY sometime in the FUTURE.

But I myself must stay TRUE to the word of TRUTH, the Holy Bible, that clearly teaches us of ONLY ONE SECOND coming of Jesus and NOT a SPLIT second coming in two or more parts. NOW, does the Bible ITSELF teach us of an INVISIBLE coming of Jesus? Does the Bible ITSELF teach us of even more than one so-called INVISIBLE comings for a short time and then returning back to heaven to wait for his VISIBLE coming. These are ALL MAN MAN false teachings to TRY and make an ASSUMED interpretation in order to FIT into their theology or THEORY. A theory is an UNPROVEN assumption that something is true WITHOUT producing hard EVIDENCE. We will take a closed look at WHY ALL preterists have come to believe what they believe further on at the end of this study is about to conclude in just a moment.

 

#20. A couple of angels told the disciple of Jesus that Jesus would RETURN in a LIKE manner as they SAW him leave watching a VISIBLE ascension of Jesus into the clouds and out of SIGHT. 

 

Please read Acts 1:9-12 and notice how many words speak of SEEING a VISIBLE ascension of Jesus.

 

Acts 1:9-12.

 

“And when he had spoken these things, while they BEHELD, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their SIGHT.

10. And while they LOOKED a steadfastly TOWARD heaven AS he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel;

11. Which also said, You men of Galilee, why stand you GAZING UP up into heaven? This SAME Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall SO COME come in LIKE MANNER manner as you have SEEN him go into heaven.

12.  Then returned they unto Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is from Jerusalem a Sabbath day's journey.”

 

Now, recall the words of Jesus saying to us, his church, WHEN you shall BEGIN to SEE these things come to pass, then LOOK UP for YOUR REDEMPTION draws NEAR and NOT your JUDGMENT draws near. We the church were NEVER told to LOOK for some kind of so-called INVISIBLE return of Jesus. This is all garbage and FALSE man-made teaching of DECEIVE Christians. I used to be deceived by the so-called invisible SECRET pre-tribulation rapture of the church coming of Jesus BEFORE the time of Great tribulation that was invisible to the WORLD but not to the faithful Christians who are ready and watching. But the Holy Spirit has led me out of that false doctrine to see the error of that teaching as well. If you have been taught the pre-tribulation or the mid-tribulation doctrines the please read all the studies under the heading >>>PROPHECY- THE COMING OF JESUS!<<<

 

#21. The CONTEXT is what determines the CORRECT meaning of a verse. So Matthew 24:34 MUST be INTERPRETED by its CONTEXT and NOT by the word “THIS” generation ONLY. And part of the context of verse 34 in Matthew 24:32,33.

 

Please read Matthew 24:32,33.

 

“NOW LEARN a parable of the FIG tree; When his branch is yet tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is nigh:

33. So LIKEWISE you, when you shall see all these things, know that IT is near, even at the doors.”

 

Right after Jesus ANSWERS TWO of the THREE questions of his disciples in PRIVATE Jesus says to us, his church.

Matthew 24:32.

 

NOW LEARN a parable of the FIG tree; WHEN his branch is yet tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is nigh:”

 

Jesus is giving us MORE information to KNOW WHEN his SECOND COMING will be. Even if you do NOT interpret the FIG tree as being ISRAEL like the Old Testament uses as a symbol for Israel the example or parable can still be used to let us know that when we SEE ALL the SIGNS Jesus gave to us in Matthew 24;1-34 coming to pass then we will know that his COMING is very near.

But I myself, for now, lean toward Israel being the BUDDING FIG tree which BEGAN to bloom and blossom in the year 1948. So, to ME, Jesus is saying WHEN you SEE Israel being restored as a nation then KNOW that my COMING is NEAR. Then Jesus said in the next verse.

 

Matthew 24:33.

 

“So LIKEWISE you, when you shall see ALL THESE THINGS, know that IT (My COMING) is near, even at the doors.”

 

In other words, Jesus is saying when you SEE Israel budding and blossoming as a new nation then you will also BEGIN to see ALL THESE OTHER SIGNS that I have told you about. They will be STARTING with earthquakes in many different places all over the earth, pestilence or all sorts of deadly disease speaking all over the world like never before, hurricanes, tsunamis, and violent storms like never before, and war after war and rumors of even more wars and these are just the BEGINNING of sorrows.

For after this you shall see the ABOMINATION of DESOLATION spoken of by the prophet Daniel. But before all of this, you shall be persecuted and some of you killed for MY NAME'S sake. So this is NOT speaking of ISRAEL ONLY as some FALSELY teach.

Jesus goes onto say that AFTER we SEE Jerusalem SURROUNDED by ARMIES that this would be a time of GREAT tribulation or PERSECUTION of both the JEWS and the CHRISTIAN like never before nor ever shall be again.

Then IMMEDIATELY AFTER we see ALL these things we the CHURCH along with the rest of the world will SEE great FEARFUL SIGNS in the SUN, in the MOON and in the STARS, which will USHER IN the VISIBLE SECOND COMING of Jesus where EVERY EYE shall SEE Jesus coming in great clouds of glory making WAR with all the ISLAMIC MUSLIM nations who are making war with Israel as well and killing Christians.

God takes NO pleasure in destroying the WICKED but the very wicked or the wicked must be slain in order for at least SOME Muslims to REPENT and call upon the name of Jesus asking for mercy. So all who call upon Jesus in that DAY shall be saved ALIVE to go into the LITERAL 1000 year reign of Jesus to be TAUGHT of the Lord in TRUTH. Satan will be BOUND during this LITERAL 1000 year reign of Jesus, which to ME proves beyond any shadow of a doubt that we are definitely NOT living in some kind of so-called NON-literal unspecified number of a NON-literal 1000 year reign of Jesus.

 

#22. One has to LITERAL and WILLFULLY convince themselves into a DENIAL that the prophecies of the Old Testament, the prophecies of Jesus, and the prophecies in the Book of Revelation have ALL been FULFILLED except for revelation 20:10 through the end of the prophecies in Revelation 22:21 as plainly STATED by some who call themselves a “PRETERIST”.

 

This would mean that Jesus will NOT come until the END of the so-called NON-literal 1000 year reign of Jesus, which would then DEMAND some kind of INVISIBLE return of Jesus, some kind of INVISIBLE NON-literal resurrection of the dead in Jesus Christ in order to have ALREADY FULFILLED Revelation 20:4-9.

 

Revelation 20:4-9.

 

“And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshiped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads or in their hands; (All these things take place DURING the 3 1/2 years of the GREAT tribulation which did NOT take place in 7- AD or in 1938 as some Christians CLAIM. But rather, the 3 1/2 years of the great tribulation is yet future from the time of this study written in 2015) and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. (Speaking of the FIRST RESURRECTION and our CHANGE to be glorified with IMMORTAL bodies of flesh and bone like Jesus in the REGENERATION which will take place AT the VISIBLE SECOND coming of Jesus when he is coming to rule and reign in his Father kingdom for a LITERAL 1000 years with us ruling and reigning WITH Jesus in the LITERAL 1000 year reign of Jesus)

5.  But the REST (Which means EVERY ONE ELSE and therefore DEMANDS that there are just TWO and ONLY TWO resurrection. The FIRST resurrection of the dead IN Jesus Christ ONLY that takes place BEFORE the LITERAL 1000 year reign of Jesus so that we can LIVE and REIGN WITH Jesus just like the word of TRUTH, the Holy Bible LITERAL states in Revelation 20:4 that we just read. And the ONLY other resurrection will NOT take place until the END of this LITERAL 1000 year reign of Jesus where the REST) of the dead lived NOT again UNTIL the thousand years were FINISHED. This is the first resurrection. (This SECOND and FINAL resurrection is NOT the FIRST resurrection. You have to understand Old English that speaks BACKWARDS to what we do today. Just read this verse from several different translations where NONE of them will lead you to believe that the first resurrection is at the END of some kind of NON-literal 1000 year reign of Jesus. I mean THINK this through for your self dear children of God. Be CONSISTENT in how you INTERPRET the Scriptures. If you are going to DEMAND that this is speaking of our SPIRITUAL RESURRECTION, then you MUST ALSO demand that this FIRST resurrection take place at the END of your so-called NON-literal 1000 year reign of Jesus that WE are supposed to be REIGNING WITH Jesus NOW must also be placed at the END of your NON-literal 1000 year as well)

6. Blessed and holy is he that has a part in the FIRST resurrection: on such the SECOND DEATH has NO power, but they SHALL BE priests of God and of Christ and SHALL REIGN with him a thousand years. (So ACCORDING to the “PRETERIST” THEORY that the FIRST resurrection is at the END of some kind of NON-literal 1000 year reign of Jesus still DEMANDS a LITERAL 1000 year reign of Jesus AFTER their so-called NON-literal 1000 year reign of Jesus in order for there o be a SECOND resurrection 1000 year AFTER the FIRST resurrection. But the word of TRUTH tells us NOTHING of a NON-literal 1000 year reign of Jesus AND another LITERAL 1000 years, but rather, clearly and plainly speaks of just ONE LITERAL 1000 year reign of Jesus. So WHY do preterist NOT believe that the 1000 years is a LITERAL 1000 years? Please read the study “WHAT IS PRETERISM?” where I explain all the WHYS for why preterists believe what they believe)

7. And when the thousand years are EXPIRED, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, (And we KNOW without a doubt that Satan is NOT bound in the PRESENT world we are NOW living in with DECEPTION all around us. So it is IMPOSSIBLE for us to NOW be living in some kind of NON-literal 1000 year reign of Jesus of an unspecified number of years as most all preterist CLAIM)

8. And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea.

9. And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them.”

 

Verses 8 and 9 are speaking of a SECOND WAR that will be the FINAL war that will take place at the end or AFTER the LITERAL 1000 year reign of Jesus and God will pour out the LAST HALF of his WRATH. Let us take some time to look at SOME of the WHYS of why preterists believe what they believe.

First, almost all preterists interpret the word “THIS” in Matthew 24:34 as being the generation in the day of Jesus which we have already looked at in this study so I will not go over it again.

Secondly, almost all preterists interpret the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple in 70 AD as being the complete fulfillment of the GREAT tribulation which many prophecy teachers say is the entire seventieth week of Daniel and Jacob's time of trouble that is for the JEWS ONLY and NOT the church. Again, we have already looked at that false interpretation as well. I will add that while the destruction in 70 AD is “AN” abomination it is not “THE” abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel the prophet. And I will also add that while the construction of the Dome of the Rock is “AN” abomination it is NOT “THE” abomination the will make Jerusalem be desolate. In other words, there is a YET COMING abomination that will make Jerusalem desolate. Please read WHAT IS THE ABOMINATION OF DESOLATION?.

Thirdly,  almost all preterists have trouble interpreting the 1000 year reign of Jesus as being a LITERAL 1000 years. For the full explanation please read the study WHAT IS PRETERISM? But for now, just briefly, their line of reasoning is that since ALL the wicked are destroyed at the second coming of Jesus and ALL Christians are given ETERNAL LIFE at the second coming of Jesus, then HOW can those who have been given ETERNAL LIFE and the SECOND DEATH have NO power over them be TEMPTED again when the devil is loosed after the 1000 year reign of Jesus?

When a brother in the Lord wrote to me as to WHY he had to believe in a NON-literal 1000 years the above is what he wrote to me. Immediately, I saw that the problem of some preterists Christians not being able to see a LITERAL 1000 year reign of Jesus is because they are basing their interpretation on a FALSE ASSUMPTION made by all PRE-tribulation rapture Christians.

In other words, they are ASSUMING that the PRE-trib teaching that ALL the wicked are destroyed at the second coming of Jesus is the TRUTH and it is NOT the truth. Zechariah 14:16 clearly and plainly states with NO interpretation needed that there will be those LEFT of the NATIONS living in their MORTAL bodies DURING the 1000 year reign of Jesus.

Fourthly, almost all preterists INTERPRET the words of Jesus in Revelation 1:1 and Revelation 22:7,12,20 as coming SOON. So they ASSUME John is speaking of HIS generation in the first-century church. Let us read Revelation 22:7,12 and 20 first.

 

Revelation 22:7.

 

“Behold, I come QUICKLY: blessed is he that keeps the sayings OF the PROPHECY of THIS book.”

 

Revelation 22:12.

 

“And, behold, I come QUICKLY; and my REWARD is WITH ME, to give every man according as his work shall be.”

 

Revelation 22:20.

 

“He which testifies these things saith, Surely I come QUICKLY. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus.”

 

Now again, almost all preterists, as well as Christians who believe and teach a PRE tribulation escapism rapture of the church INTERPRET these words of Jesus as meaning SOON, as in, at any time and right away in THIS generation no matter what generation throughout all of church history. Actually, pre-tribulation teaching was not around till the year 1830, according to several sources.

But in TRUTH, the word translated as “QUICKLY” simply means quick, as in, FAST like a FLASH of LIGHTENING or in a TWINKLING of an eye. In other words, our CHANGE will be so FAST that there will NOT be enough time to REPENT at the second coming of Jesus so be READY at all times. NO true Christian is going to use ANY excuse as a LICENSE to sin as some falsely teach that a POST tribulation gives Christians a license to sin because they will KNOW that Jesus is NOT going to come TODAY. What a lame argument for a pre-tribulation rapture of the church.

Anyway, almost all preterists do believe that the SECOND coming of Jesus has NOT yet come seeing that they state in their beliefs that Revelation 20:10 through the END of the book of Revelation has NOT been fulfilled.

So my point is WHY does this word “QUICKLY” cause them to INTERPRET that ALL of Revelation MUST be already fulfilled in the FIRST-century simply BECAUSE Jesus said he would come QUICKLY? This makes no sense whatsoever because many preterists do NOT believe that Jesus has come VISIBLY as yet.

 

Let us move on to Revelation 1:1.

 

“The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to show unto his servants, THINGS which must SHORTLY come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John:”

 

Most preterist Christians teach that it is IMPOSSIBLE for Revelation to be for anyone EXCEPT for the FIRST-century church because John said these things will SHORTLY come to PASS.

Well. using the preterists’ LOGIC then ALL the things in the ENTIRE book of Revelation MUST, WITHOUT FAIL, had to be without any doubt have ALREADY been FULFILLED in the FIRST-century INCLUDING the VISIBLE coming of Jesus AND Almighty God creating the NEW heaven and the NEW earth and we are NOW dwelling IN the NEW Jerusalem.

Can you not see my dear brothers and sister in our Lord Jesus Christ, how ridiculous this preterist INTERPRETATION is to INTERPRET Revelation 1:1 as ALL THINGS in the book of Revelation MUST come to pass SHORTLY, as in, the FIRST-century church? But then say, well, ALL BUT the second coming of Jesus and the new heaven and the new earth.

John simply said that Jesus came to show him THINGS that must SHORTLY come to pass and NOT Jesus came to show him ALL things that must shortly come to pass or EVERYTHING must shortly come to pass. First of all, some things were already in the PAST when John wrote what he saw. Other things were PRESENT in John’s day, and yes, SOME things would indeed come to pass SHORTLY. But NOT the destruction of the temple in 70 AD because that had already PAST at the time of John writing the Book of Revelation.

In other words, the CORRECT way to interpret Revelation 1:1 is that John was shown MANY things and SOME of those THINGS must SHORTLY come to pass while other things took place throughout history while yet again SOME things are still YET FUTURE even in our day in 2015.

Also, the Greek phrase that is translated as “must SHORTLY come to pass” literally reads things that are binding to be coming in SWIFTNESS which means that WHEN SOME of these things BEGIN to take place they will be coming in SWIFTNESS. Jesus said unless those days be SHORTENED then NO flesh would be left alive.

 

So then in conclusion.

 

“THIS (Or THAT) generation will not pass away until ALL these things take place”

 

INCLUDING the VISIBLE second coming of Jesus.

 

“...when you (In THAT generation) shall see ALL these things, know that it (The second coming of Jesus and the rapture of the church) is near, even at the doors”

 

“For I say unto you, (The REMNANT of Jews in THAT generation) You shall not see me henceforth, TILL you shall say, Blessed, is he that comes in the name of the Lord.”

 

So Jesus will not come again UNTIL the FULNESS of the GENTILES are saved and the JEWS are ready to repent and turn back to God and call upon the name of the Lord.

It is sad to say that as a whole the church has fallen short to witness to the JEWS. Please do not misunderstand what I am saying, I know there are some great ministries out there reaching out to the Jews, but the church as a whole is sadly not doing all they can do to reach the JEWS for Jesus.

One final point that some preterists fail to see or admit is that the Bible often has dual fulfillment and things that had already happen in history PARALLEL a yet FUTURE fulfillment that will meet ALL the details of the prophecy.

For example, the prophecy of Joel about the Spirit of God being poured out on ON flesh was only PARTIALLY fulfilled on the day of Pentecost. This is a continuing prophecy throughout every generation and will not be completely fulfilled until the literal 1000 year reign of Jesus. Joel says that there will be an EARLY AND a LATTER rain.

Also, Acts to was NOT a COMPLETE fulfillment of Joel chapter 2 and chapter 3, because the SIGNS in the SUN, MOON, and STARS were not fulfilled NOR was the great and notable day of the Lord FULFILLED in Acts 2:19,20.

So then, just because HISTORY has some events that fit SOME of the prophecies does NOT mean that these historic events are a COMPLETE fulfillment so therefore it is IMPOSSIBLE for there to be a YET FUTURE fulfillment.

OPEN your eyes my dear brothers and sisters in our Lord Jesus Christ because there IS YET COMING a time of the 3 1/2 years of the GREAT tribulation whether you believe it or not! If you are a preterist Christians then I implore you to read all the studies under the heading >>>PRETERISM!<<< And if you are a pre-trib or mod-trib Christians then I implore you to read all the studies under the heading >>>PROPHECY- THE COMING OF JESUS!<<<

Thanks for reading and may God bless you richly as you continue to seek the truth of the whole word of Almighty God our Father.

 

Your brother in our Lord Jesus Christ,

Brother Mark.

 

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