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Full Preterism-Where is the scriptural evidence?

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yeshuasavedme

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-Would you point me to a place where I said there would be no people who sinned in the millennial reign? I do not believe that! and to my knowledge have never said such a thing at any time and believe you have misrepresented what I have said!
Those who enter the millennial Sabbath as the Blessed of the LORD will have children who must be born from above just like all in Adam must be, now -and that, I have said! Those Blessed of the LORD are born from above with the same eternal life that we have at this time -but God has no grandchildren and all born in Adam, of his seed, must be born from above to be sons of God in Spirit, to be regenerated in body, which is the 'goal' taught in the law.

"The sinner shall die an hundred years old"

I have failed nothing. Nimrod was the first spiritual seed of the wicked after the flood; even Ham was not of that wicked, though cursed.

No one on earth will be a child of the devil a 'born wicked spiritual son of the devil' in the Millennial reign, for the thousand years Sabbath; but the seed of Adam will continue through those who enter the reign unregenerated in body but born from above in Spirit, Believers, and they are the 'Blessed of YHWH' who enter into the millennial reign to populate it for the thousand years with the seed of Adam that is in them; and which seed will be in all who are unregenerated in body, though born again in Spirit, until the eighth day of creation, in which eighth day all seed of Adam will be cut off totally, forever.

Circumcision is the sign of the complete cutting off of the seed of Adam in the eighth day =the first day of the New Beginning in the regenerated heavens and earth.

It's all in the living oracles given to the nation that bears His name -and the oracles were given, beginning with Abra H am, the Father of the nation raised to be 'signs' to the world, from Jacob.

Not all in Adam are children of the devil: one has to be born a child of the devil in spirit as well as one must be born a child of God in Spirit to be a child of God.

In Adam all die, and all who are unregenerated and are resurrected in Adam will be cast aways in the lake of fire, but they will have thier own place there, each according to their deeds done in their body while they lived in it on this earth in their being.

But in Adam all are not born in the devil as his spiritual children by receving his lies and acting upon them; and all in Adam are not born in Christ as sons of God in Him by believing in His name, repenting of their sins and calling upon Him for Salvation, either.

The 'wicked generation' will not exist on this earth in the millennium, and they are those brethren in the wicked one who have become children of the devil by receiving his lies into their hearts and acting upon them in this life, and they are also those literal seed of fallen angels and the fallen angels who fathered them, who are 'brought forth' 'paraded out' for the day of destruction, as Job says will happen.

The literal 'seed' of those fallen angels were never written in the book of Life to come into their being in Adam, as sons of God; and in that book of Life, only, were all those 'in Adam', written down to come into being before the foundation of the world, to have Adam being as sons of God. -But the Adam being is dead, as son of God and must be born from above in the Spirit of the New Man, to be sons of God in Him.

All who are blotted out of that book who were written there 'in Adam' will join the devil in the lake of fire, but that lake of fire has differing degrees of rewards and lower levels of eternal torment, just as the eternal rewards of the righteous are differing in degrees, based upon their motives for service to the LORD after they are born into His family in Christ -even a cup of cold water given in His name will not lose a reward, Jesus says.

Notice that at the end of the millennium the devil will be released and go out to deceive the nations and those who join him will come against the Holy City and the throne in heaven, also, and at that time, the universe will be collapsed by the Creator; the elements will be melted, being on fire, burning with fervent heat, and a new heavens and a new earth formed from the same elements, in which there will be no death, no seed of Adam, only sons of God in Christ.

All who are 'out' (= 'away', not 'in') of the city, are 'out' of the New Man (for the city is the completed "Israel" house that He is building for His habitation, those born from above in Christ, representing the Holy of Holies of the eternal dwelling of the glory of YHWH's Presence), and are 'in Adam', 'in the lake of fire', which 'is' the second death, where there is no light of Christ, only the blackness of darkness forever, and where Jesus said they will be in the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, in that outer darkness, where the Holy Spirit is not 'hovering' and there is no Light -forever.

There will never come into the New Heavens and the New earth any thing that defiles, for God and the Lamb are the temple of that New Creation, and nothing will be 'in' His Light, nor come out of that darkness of the lake of fire, forever.

Rom 3:1,2 What advantage then hath the Jew? or what profit [is there] of circumcision? Much every way: chiefly, because that unto them were committed the oracles of God. Much every way: chiefly, because that unto them were committed the oracles of God.

Hbr 5:12 For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which [be] the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat.
 
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yeshuasavedme

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To be in the wedding garment is to be in the regenerated body.
First, we receive the promise of the Spirit, given to Abra "H" am, but Abraham could not go to heaven on high until the Lamb was sacrificed and became the atonement, and descended and led captivity captive when He ascended on First of Firstfruits.

When the Creator created Adam, He "laqach" a rib from his side and formed his bride and brought her to him as 'bone of his bone, flesh of his flesh'.

When the YHWH shall "laqach" the Curch, He will bring the 'bride' to Israel, the New Man (YHWH of hosts who is come in fully human flesh is the New Man, the 'Israel' of God, the brother to Adam and Adam's Kinsman-Redeemer), which bride is to be 'bone of His bone, flesh of His flesh', regenerated from the dead Adam elements by the dissolving and reforming of them which is made possible by the blood that flowed from the side of the Salvation of YHWH, the New Man in flesh.

The regenerated Spirit will allow us access in Spirit, only, into the Holy of Holies in heaven; but to enter the true heavenly Holy of Holies to remain there, we must be in our regenerated bodies, which are typed and shadowed in the oracles of the holy garments that the priests were to put on, before they entered to minister before the LORD in the temple.
They left the garments in the temple, lest they defile them in this world, and we must put on the wedding garment which is the body in the likeness and image of the New Man, which body will be glorified in total being, body, soul, and Spirit, in the regeneration of the body.

"I shall be satisfied when I awake in Thy image"
these things are all taught in the living oracles, which preterism has never learned or been taught of the Holy Spirit about, and they need to learn the first principles of.
Hbr 5:12 For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which [be] the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat.


In the regeneration of the heavens and the earth, there will be no more wicked; the millennial reign of Peace is a foreshadowing of the eternal regenerated heavens and earth:
Pro 2:21 For the upright shall dwell in the land, and the perfect shall remain in it.
Pro 2:22 But the wicked shall be cut off from the earth, and the transgressors shall be rooted out of it.
Those who inherit this earth in the Firstborn will remain in it forever, in the regeneration of it.
 
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FreezBee

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Oh, first a minor detail: all this "riding on the clouds" stuff is interesting. We can trace it back to bronze age Phoenicia. Baal Hadad was called "the Rider of the Clouds", an appropriate name for a thunder god!

The new growth season started with rain storms in late autumn. In the literature this is described as Baal's battle against Prince Yam ("Sea") and Judge Nahar ("River"). The raindrops being the arrows of Baal, and Yam striking back with the waves of the sea. The small rivers were dry outside of the rain season, but of course filled with water now - this water released by Baal from the imprisonment by Nahar.

Much of this scenario were copied by the Israelites and later went into Christian talk. It's all allegory, and should be interpreted accordingly.


Then, this is a GREAT thread. I actually came here to ask for some information about preterism, and here it all is! Now, I believe in miracles


- FreezBee
 
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Hidden Manna

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The Biblical Last Days.

To understand out study of the “last days” and show how it could be possible, they were fulfilled in the last days of the Old Covenant there are three very important Biblical truths that must be established. First, the years from the cross to the desolation of Jewish system in Jerusalem in the A.D. 70 is the last days of the covenant of the law. It is stated time and again that the New Testament was written in the final years of the “world that then was,” otherwise known as the Old Covenant or Old Testament era (Heb. 1:2). This is the period of the “last days”, or “end of the age,” which saw its fulfillment.

By presenting Scripture in such a way, as to allow it to speak for itself, we will see that the New Testament is a collection of books written in the “last days” of the Old Covenant, all of which display the ‘earnest expectation’ of the believers that the last days would be in their lifetimes.

Second, The faithfulness of God. Remember, God is faithful, II Peter 3:9. “God is not a man that he should lie,” Numbers 23:19. The faithfulness of God not only involves doing WHAT has been promised, it means doing it WHEN IT WAS PROMISED

Third, The time statements in the Bible. In Daniel 10-12 is a vision encompassing a period of time from 536 BC to the fall of Jerusalem in 70 AD; about 600 years. Two times in this text Daniel was told “the appointed time is long” and “the vision refers to many days to come” (10:1,14). Remember, this vision was relayed to Daniel from God. While God is not bound by time, he was communicating to man who is bound to time. God called this 600 year period of time “long;” he said it involved “many days.” God can most assuredly tell time and read a calendar!

Before we begin our study on the last days let me first say that while God is not bound by time like man when God speaks to man He speaks in a language that man can understand, thus when something is said to happens “soon” in man’s time God is recognized as “faithful and true” to His promise when it is fulfilled. God gives us an illustrations of His “true faithfulness” in the event of the birth of Isaac. Isaac was born at the set time of which God promised Abraham (see Genesis 18:13-14; 21:1-3)

The Bible says it is inspired, II Timothy 3:16. The original word translated “inspired” literally means “God breathed.” The thought of the Bible being from God suggests that since God is perfect or infallible, and the Bible is from Him it ought to be infallible as well. Specifically, if the Bible made a promise that something would happen within a specified time frame, if that event did not happen when and as promised the Bible’s claim to inspiration falls.

It is Jehovah himself that gave the criteria for determining whether a prophet was true or false; if a prophet’s prediction did not come true (within the time the prophet said it would) he was a false prophet, (see Deuteronomy 18:19-22) If God does not keep the when part of his promises, he has not kept his promise! The inspiration of the scriptures demands complete fulfillment of every aspect of God’s promises.

God’s years are endless; “from everlasting to everlasting thou art God” Psalms 90:2. Isaiah calls Jehovah “the Father of eternity” 9:6-9. However when God communicate with man, he uses (time statements) that man can understand. What are time statements?
The time statements are how “God communicates with man in terms of Time.” The time statements are literal imminent statements as seen in (Genesis 18:13-14; 21:1-3) The time statements refer to soon events of Jewish importance.

In Ezekiel 7, God through Ezekiel said the Day of the Lord was at hand. The Day of the Lord in this context was when God used Babylon to punish Israel for her sin. This is the concept of the Day of the Lord; it is not an “end of time” idea. It is when God used a nation to punish another as it related to his chosen people. In chapter 11 Israel responded to the threat of coming judgment. They insisted that although Ezekiel said it was at hand it was really not. It was time to build houses, not worry about judgment. One can almost hear some of those people: “Well, yes, Ezekiel has said the Day of the Lord is at hand, but after all, ‘one day is with the Lord as a thousand years and a thousand years is as a day,’ Psalms 90:4”

When Israel “elasticized” God’s words of imminence into relativity, ambiguity and meaning-less-ness, God responded. In Ezekiel 12:21ff, [Please, take the time to get your Bible and read it for yourself!] Adonai told Ezekiel to tell Israel that her days of changing the time for his predictions were over. He had said judgment was at hand; Israel said it was not at hand. Jehovah would not tolerate it.

Ezekiel was instructed to tell Israel that in that generation judgment would fall just as Jehovah had indicated when he said it was at hand. [Have you read those verses for yourself yet? If not, why not do it right now and see for yourself that what we are saying is true?] What we have then, is an example of man saying that while God had said something was imminent it really was not; it was for a long time off. We have God’s response; when God said “at hand” he meant “at hand!” He did not mean hundreds or thousands of years; he meant “soon!” God, Himself rebukes this interpretation of His time statements. “God employed the language of humanity to communicate His message in the Bible to humanity in humanity’s own time statements.
 
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Hidden Manna

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Another example of man changing the meaning of God’s time words is in Amos. God warned Israel the time had come for her to be judged, 8:2-3. In spite of the warnings Israel “put far off the evil day.” In spite of God’s warning that judgment was at hand they insisted “All things continue as they were,” They refused to believe God meant “the end has come.” As a result God said “Woe” to them for putting of His words! 6:3. As we have just seen if God do not keep the when part of the time statements then He has not kept his promise! Jehovah would not tolerate this interpretation of His time statements. He rebukes it Himself in scripture.

Most honest students of the Bible already realize that the New Testament is full of time statements that point to an imminent last days of the Old Covenant. Once Scripture is allowed to speak for itself, one cannot honestly deny the overwhelming amount of Scripture passages which declare that the last day prophecies were to “shortly come to pass.” By listing these numerous verses, we can see that the first century saints believed they were living in the last days of the Old Covenant. Peter specifies. “Who (Christ) verily was fore ordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you.” (1 Peter 1:20)

The apostle John made a similar statement: 1 John 2:18 Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time. Here, the same word “eschatos” is used for “last.” However, the Greek word for “time” is slightly different, though very related: it is the Greek word “hora” defined by Strong’s as: 5610. hora, ho’-rah; appar. a prim. word; an “hour” (lit. or fig.):--day, hour, instant, season, X short, [even-] tide, (high) time.

John believed they were in the last or farthest season or hour of the Jewish age.

Peter specifies the range of this period, commonly called the “last days,” in his sermon in Acts 2:16-21. He declares that, it was fulfilling the prophecy of (Joel 2:28-32). What is significant about Peter’s statement is that he was claiming that they were in the last days. The writer of Hebrews expressed this identical sentiment as he began his discourse comparing the fading Old Covenant with the Everlasting New Covenant:

Hebrews 1:1-2 God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spoke in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, {2} Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; Jesus was manifested, not at the beginning, or start of the last days but “during the last days.” The period between A.D. 30 and 70 is, as the apostle Peter describes it, “these last times” (1 Peter 1:20).

“Hath in these last days” the writer confirms. Without any speculation those in the first century believed they were in the last days. Certainly the writers of the New Testament were very aware of those passages we have studied involving the last days of Judah and Jerusalem. Therefore it is safe and logical to say that the New Testament writers believed that they were in the last days of the Jewish age.

The apostle John made this time statement: 1 John 2:18 Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time. Here, the same word “eschatos” is used for “last.” However, the Greek word for “time” is slightly different, though very related: it is the Greek word “hora” defined by Strong’s as: 5610. hora, ho’-rah; appar. a prim. word; an “hour” (lit. or fig.):--day, hour, instant, season, X short, [even-] tide, (high) time.

John believed they were in the last or farthest season or hour of the Jewish age. Paul believed the same:

Rom 13:11 And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed. There are two different Greek words used here translated as “time.” In the first cause Paul says “knowing the time.” The Greek word here is “2540. kairos, kahee-ros’; of uncert. affin.; an occasion, i.e. set or proper time:--X always, opportunity, (convenient, due) season, (due, short, while) time, a while. Comp. G5550.” Strong’s.

In the second clause Paul uses the phrase “high time.” “High time” is the same Greek word used in first John. Both Paul and John firmly believed that they were in the last time or days of the Jewish age. Paul believed they were living in the end of the Jewish age as well: 1 Cor 10:11 Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the age are come.

Paul was describing the history of the Jews and their rebellion against God in the wilderness. We should not ignore the fact that Paul, in discussing the ancient rebellion which took place in the wilderness says it was written for their admonition, upon whom the ends of the age are come.

New consider the time statements of James as he addressed the unbelieving Jews: James 5:1-4 Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you. Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are moth eaten. Your gold and silver is cankered; and the rust of them shall be a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh as it were fire. Ye have heaped treasure together for the last days. Clearly James taught that these men were in the last days.

Jude, in describing the same group of unbelieving Jews, also speaks of this period, although with a different phrase: But, beloved, remember ye the words which were spoken before of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ; How that they told you there should be mockers in the last time, who should walk after their own ungodly lusts. (Jude 1:17-18)

The word “time” is the Greek word chronos, defined by Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance as: 5550. chronos, khron’-os; a space of time. The word “last” is defined as: 2078. eschatos, es’-khat-os; a superl. prob. from G2192 (in the sense of contiguity); farthest, final (of place or time):--ends of, last, latter end, lowest, uttermost. Certainly we can conclude from Jude that they were in the farthest or uttermost space of time of the Jewish age. They were in the last days of the Jewish state.

The impression of the Apostles is the nearness of ‘the end’ is worthy of notice that there is a marked gradation in the language of the different epistles. Going from know that in the last days perilous times will come To the last times and the last times became the last days, and the last days become the last hour [escath wra esti]. The period of expectation and delay was now over and the decisive moment was at hand. “And that, knowing the time.. The night is far spent, the day is at hand. (“Romans 13:11-12)

There are many other passages that could be used to support the fact that the first-century believers and particularly the apostles believed unanimously that they were in the end of the Jewish age or the last days of the Jewish age. The fact is that anytime Scripture uses the phase “last days” it means, a period from 30-70 AD. This was the period during which the Apostles were preaching and writing, the “last days” of Old Covenant Israel before it was forever destroyed in the destruction of the Temple (and the Old Covenant sacrificial system) not the end of the world or physical universe.
 
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yeshuasavedme

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You have added your own private interpretation to the above.
In no place does the Scriptures say the Jewish age was in it's last days! No place! Nada!

The Scriptures teach that this earth had a beginning of days, and will have an end of days: and then a new beginning of days begins when this present creation is melted with fervent heat, when the heavens are rolled up as a garment, and being on fire they melt: and the heavens and the earth will be regenerated from the same elements that were created in the beginning of days -in Genesis 1.

The Scriptures teach that Jesus Christ came in the last days of this present creation's days: in the fifth millennium, as the fifth 'day', and He came as the Living Spirit that is represented by the river of Life that flows from the throne of Ezekiel's temple -in the millennium- which river coming from the throne gets so deep after four thousand cubits that one cannot cross over.

It is in the fifth millinnium, the fifth thousand (as in the fifth 'day'), that He ended the spiritual death of our being by cleansing us with His blood of sprinkling upon His prepared New creation Human being body, while it hung upon the cross, which was the true altar of sacrifice represented in the temple Moses was given the plan for.

He brought Life to the dead in the fifth millennium, ending the death of separation from the Living Spirit that began the day Adam fell -and we are all fallen in Adam, in our 'being', and He adopted us who are born again, from that time of His resurrection from the dead, when He breathed on the disciples and said "Receive the Holy Spirit": and then, when He received from the Father the glory -that Adam lost- He sent that glory to dwell in we who are born from above -in a measure- until we receive our adoption bodies at the resurrection of the dead and the "laqach" =rapture, of the living -which is the harvest of the Gentiles that comes at the beginning of the last week of Daniel's weeks, that He saw that would be, until the Messiah reigns.

When the LORD Jesus tarried to go to raise Lazarus from the dead, He tarried as a prophet, for Lazarus' raising in the fifth day of his death (he was dead four days before the LORD raised him from death in his same body, unregenerated), was a sign of Jesus being the Resurrection and the Life.

He said, "I AM the resurrection and the Life"; Martha said "I know that he will be raised [in his physical person, in his body] in the last day" (=of this present creation, as promised, regenerated), but Jesus showed that spiritual death ended in the fifth day of this present creation, when He put away the sin of Adam that separated us from the Life, once, for all, by raising Lazarus in the fifth day -Lazarus means "He whom God helps".

God helped us all, who are in Adam, by sending the Lamb of God to be our atonement in the fifth Day of this present creation, to put away our separation from the Living Spirit and the Presence of His glory.

Israel was 'smitten' for their unbelief, as a nation, but in the third day =after two days, they will take words and return to the LORD, and He will raise them up, as He has promised. Hosea saw that.

Those two days end and the third day begins for the nation of Israel -which was smitten for unbelief- in the year 2069: if you take the Day of Pentecost (when He sent His Presence of glory to dwell in the Church), as the time to reckon from, then that two days ends in 2033, and Israel will be raised up again as the vineyard of YHWH, whose New Man human being name they bear as a sign of the adoption: and He will return, and He will dwell in their midst, reigning from restored Jerusalem over this present creation for the times of refreshing that He has promised for this earth -and promised to His own people, whom He called without repentence to be His people who bear His name and whom He glorifies with His presence, in Person.

The day can be on or around -and calendars are not accurate, that man keeps, anyway, but Israel is guaranteed to be raised up in -not exactly on the first day of- the third millinnium, as a day, since they were smitten as a nation.

Scripture teaches that the last day of this present creation will be a Sabbath of rest for this present creation, in which the Prince of Peace will reign from restored Jerusalem for the thousand year Sabbath rest, which is the "Times of refreshing" =the Sabbath of the days of earth- that Peter preached would be sent when He returns to this earth to reign and Jesus told the Jewish disciples, who asked if He would restore the kingdom to ISrael at the time of His ascension that the Father has put in His own hands the times and seasons -of that promise of restoration, but to preach the Gospel of the kingdom and to occupy till He comes was previously told them.

His kingdom is coming, His will shall be done on earth as it is in heaven, and we are to pray for the peace and the establishment of Jerusalem and for Jerusalem to be made a praise in this present earth -if we make mention of the LORD, that is, for He is returning to reign in the temple that He gave Ezekiel to write the plans of, that He will enter in Person as the glory of the LORD, to rule as High Priest and High King =the Firstborn, over this present creation from for the Sabbath Day of rest, the thousand year millennial kingdom..

"Soon" He is coming, and it is without remedy when it happens. "Now" is the day of salvation -tomorrow will be too late!

The Gospel is, that the kingdom is coming, the redemption is paid and the LORD who bought the brother's kingdom back is returning to take possession and will root out every tare, every wicked one, and cast them into the everlasting fire, and reign from His cleansed kingdom for a thousand year Sabbath, called the Day of the LORD.

If one will be in His kingdom and not a cast away, then they must be born from above, while He is calling His adopted sons to the table of the Father in His kingdom that He is coming to reign over.

The Last Day of this creation is a Sabbath of a thousand years, called the Day of the LORD.
We are in the last days of this present creation, and have been since the LORD came at the beginning of the fifth millinnium.
Soon, He will come and cleanse His kingdom of all the wicked, and reign for the Last Day of peace, on earth.

In the millennium, the temple will still be a type and teaching of what the LORD has done and will do for eternity.
Eze 47:5 Afterward he measured a thousand; [and it was] a river that I could not pass over: for the waters were risen, waters to swim in, a river that could not be passed over.
 
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Hidden Manna

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yeshuasavedme said:
You have added your own private interpretation to the above.
In no place does the Scriptures say the Jewish age was in it's last days! No place! Nada!

How Long is Long?




The question is often raised concerning why there is so much emphasis on the shortness or brevity of time in relation to the Lord's parousia or coming. Many are disturbed that those of us who teach the Lord's return in 70 A.D. cite several passages which state nearness, a little while, at hand, this generation, quickly and shortly to come to pass regarding the parousia of Christ (Matt. 10:23; 16:26,27; 24:32-34; Lk. 21:31-32; Rom. 13:ll-12; 16:20; 1 Cor. 7:26; 10:11; Phil. 4:5; Heb. 10:37; Jas. 5:8; 1 Pet. 4:5,7,17; 1 Jno. 2:18; Rev. 1:1-3; 22:6,10,12). It seems as though the Holy Spirit in such passages is "grieving" them.

Those who are disposed to oppose and complain feel that using all the above passages as well as others as supportive evidence of the imminent first-century return of Christ at the destruction of Jerusalem is just plain unfair and prejudiced exegesis. They assert that every time statement depicting the Lord's coming does not indicate nearness of that event from the first-century standpoint. By way of contrast to the numerous passages cited above a grand total of one, O-N-E scripture is usually presented in defense of a long period of "milleniums" occurring between the "going away" and "coming again" of Christ. The proof-text is Matthew 25:19 which reads, "After a long time the Lord of those servants cometh, and reckoneth with them." To all familiar with Matthew 25, this text is taken from the parable of the talents.

As before stated, the purpose of raising this point is to discredit and nullify the arguments made from the scriptures on the first-century nearness and shortness of time of Christ's return. This "long time" reasoning however, squarely aligns one in conflict with scripture. It is acknowledged by many that the passages teach imminence but in the same breath many will assert that this one scripture reference of "long" time negates, cancels or otherwise modifies the whole multitude of scriptures which clearly teach the imminence of Christ's return. By what reasoning or logic such conclusions are drawn yet remains a mystery to this writer.

It seems manifest that the answer to such an apparent contradiction lies within the context of the chapter itself. The question to which this article is addressed is simply this: In the context of Matt. 25:19, how long is "long"? First,observe the parable's leading statement. "For the kingdom of heaven is as a man traveling into a far country, who called his own servants, and delivered unto them his goods," (Matt. 25:14). The kingdom is likened to a man traveling. Now that statement alone is ground for pause especially with respect to time. Often one overlooks this fact perhaps because of preconceived notions about the remoteness of end-time events. Jesus, however, places the teaching of this parable in the realm or time frame of his earthly creatures. Remember, the kingdom of heaven is as a man traveling into a far country.

Secondly, this man called his own servants and delivered unto them his goods. To one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one, according to their several ability (verse 15).

Third, two of these same servants traded and increased the profits of their master by one-hundred percent. The other, a wicked and slothful servant "dug in the earth and hid his lord's money." It is in connection with these events that it is said, "After a long time the lord of those servants cometh, and reckoneth with them." Observe, it is the same man or lord who traveled into the far country that returned to take account of those same servants to whom he had delivered his goods. This episode therefore, was during the lifetime of a man, of him and his servants in particular.

The parable does not teach per se, that a man is likened to the kingdom, but that the kingdom was likened to a MAN! The correct applications of the parable would therefore harmonize with what is true of a man. And one thing is absolutely certain, i.e., it is not true of a man that his lifetime extends over 2,000 years! Thus, to apply "after a long time the lord of those servants cometh...," to a period stretching two-thousand years and beyond is more "elasticity" than God has ever placed in the time of a man's life, Methuselah included! (See Gen. 5:27). To say the least, such reasoning is wild, weak and reckless exegesis perhaps motivated by the fear of losing ground on traditional "yet future" second coming theories.

Of a man's lifespan it is said, "...For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away" (Jas. 4:14). Little here is from "oligos," and means short, brief or small, (Bagster, page 286, 1977 edition). Viewing the significance of this point through the magnifying glass of reason it is clear that since a man's life is a short time or vapor, then the isolated events of his life are by contrast even shorter. Therefore, the "journey" of the man traveling into a far country and his subsequent return would be indeed short or small time-wise by comparison to the already short lifetime of the man. One must then understand "after a long time," as relative to the reckoning of time from a human standpoint or life span.

To a man whose days are threescore years and ten, [70 years], and if by reason of strength fourscore years [80 years], (Psa. 90:10), 37-40 years of that time (the Biblical time-frame for the restoration of all things and the parousia of Christ), is a long time. Concerning this "long time," it is half a life time in the latter case and over half a life span in the former. In the case of the profitable servants, it was a long time to work and serve the master before the reward was received. In the case of the wicked servant it was long enough time for him to become lax and unconcerned about serving his lord and may have even promoted an attitude which suggested, "My lord delayeth his coming," or raised the question, "Where is the promise of his coming?" Even Abraham, the father of faith in whose steps of faith all of his children (Christians) should walk collapsed under the pressure of time that seemed long delayed in the fulfillment of the promise concerning Isaac. It was only about 25 years from the time God promised to fulfillment but Abraham weakened in just over a decade and went in to Hagar. (Gen. chapters 12,17,21).

Surely, with our modernized high-tech society where everything is delivered to us in micro mili-seconds and "absolutely positively overnight," many of us would balk at the thought of having to wait 37-40 years to receive a promise, especially when it would mean intense suffering and severe persecution as that described in the New Testament. In this respect, such a period of a man's life could properly be styled a long time. But in view of the brevity of a man's life, this relative "long time" is but a little while.

In conclusion, the scriptural answer to the question, "How long is long"?, in Matthew 25:19 is not very long at all, actually less than forty years being part of a man's life span. It therefore harmonizes with all the other teachings and time statements of nearness and shortness regarding the Lord's parousia. Yes, this one, 0-N-E "long" argument on the question of the time of Christ's return still leaves one coming up just a bit short!

How in the world can something over 2,000 plus years be soon or near after looking in Daniel where he was told to seal the books for the time was a far off? If you add the years from Daniel all the way to Revelation, it will seem to add up between 500 to 600 years. So, how can a number that is 600 be far off and another number which is 2,000 plus more years added, as time goes by, while waiting for the return you are looking forward for, be near? It sounds totally impossible to me for something to be near when we have already gone way over 600 years, after the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70, that was considered far off for Daniel. I hope that this gives you something to think about.


Revelations 22
The Time Is Near
6 Then he said to me, “These words are faithful and true.” And the Lord God of the holy prophets sent His angel to show His servants the things which must shortly take place.
7”Behold, I am coming quickly! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.”
10And he said to me, “Do not seal the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is at hand.
 
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armothe

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AnthonyE1778 said:
One of my key reasons for believing in the pre-tribulation rapture is ....
History clearly records that the Christians of the first century were enduring severe tribulation. Martyrdoms such as beheadings, crucifixions, burnings and beatings were common from the years 30-70AD. Some like to believe we are currently living in the tribulation period. Be glad you will never have to experience anything as brutal as the disciples did.
Revelation 1:9 “ I, John, your brother and fellow partaker in the tribulation and kingdom and perseverance which are in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus..”
AnthonyE1778 said:
I just cannot understand how anyone can follow a preterist line of thinking in light of current world events.
That is because you are making the mistake of reading the bible with 20th century goggles. The books of the bible consist of letters, poems, historical readings and personal entries written to contemporaries. The letters of Paul for example were written to real people during a real time (60s AD) consisting of real words that applied to the original audience. Attempting to transplant 20th century meaning into 1st century literature is disasterous.
AnthonyE1778 said:
When was the Gospel preached to all the nations?
Colossians 1:6, “All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God's grace in all its truth.”
Colossians 1:23, “if you continue in your faith, established and firm, not moved from the hope held out in the gospel. This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become a servant.”
Romans 1:8, “First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is being reported all over the world
Romans 16:25-26, “Now to Him who is able to establish you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery which has been kept secret for long ages past, but now is manifested, and by the Scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the eternal God, has been made known to all the nations, leading to obedience of faith;”
AnthonyE1778 said:
What about China's 200-million-man army?
Yeah, what about it? Scripture please?
AnthonyE1778 said:
When did 100-pound hailstones fall from the sky?
Josephus records 100lb stones fell from the sky as Roman trebuchets/catapults launched these limestone projectiles at Jerusalem's walls. A common tactic at the time was to cover them with black tar and set them on fire.
AnthonyE1778 said:
Why did we have the rebirth of Israel? If Jerusalem was forever removed from being the burdensome stone, why has it now returned to that status?
It was removed from its burdensome stone. The Old Mosaic Law was fulfilled in Christ blossoming into a new covenant free from the spiritual death of sin open to not just Jews - rather all mankind.
AnthonyE1778 said:
They say that although the "resurrection" happened in 70 AD, the bodies of Christians were left in the grave.
That's because the resurrection consists of a spiritual cleansing from sin-death to rebirth through Christ. God resurrected man by sending Christ to conquer sin and establish the new covenant. The new covenant was not finalized before the old covenant was put out of its misery by the destruction of the Jewish temple - the crux of Mosaic law. The resurrection was a spiritual, positional change between God and man.
AnthonyE1778 said:
Preterists take the dangerous step of spiritualizing all passages of Scripture.
So instead of taking the Harlot riding on a beast to mean Jerusalem's dispicable allegiance to a pagan nation - you'd rather it mean to be a literal/physical prostitute saddled up on the back of a literal/physical seven-headed dragon? (Rev. 17)

-A
 
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armothe

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Perhaps consider that your expectations are incorrect.

John 18:36 - Jesus answered, `My kingdom is not of this world;
Luke 17:20 - And having been questioned by the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God will come he answered them, and said, `The kingdom of God does not come with observation; nor shall they say, Look, here; or look, there; for look, the kingdom of God is within you.'
Matthew 12:28 - "But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.

-A
 
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