What follows is an article that Allen Brooks sent to me this morning. He has a radio show (webcast) that airs on Sunday Mornings from 8:30 am - 8:45 am. You can hear it on http://www.wcrk.com/index.html My understanding is that he lives in or around Morristown Tenn. If you would like to contact him do so through the station or contact me. BruceGosey@aol.com I will forward it on to him if it is not to argumentive or caustic. Enjoy the article and I hope you recieve it in the same spirit in which it was written and shared.
Coming Soon
I often hear from preachers, teachers, and other Christians the saying, "let’s get back to the Bible." "It says what it means and it means what it says." I agree with that statement so why don’t they let the Bible speak for itself.
To state it plainly, there are many verses of Scripture scattered throughout the New Testament which state clearly that Jesus Christ would come soon in that generation. Those references would have applied to those in the apostles’ generations—not our arena of time today or later. Those references are mentioned in terms such as "the time is at hand," it is the last time," "shortly,", "shortly come to pass," "quickly," "at the door," "as ye see the day approaching," "this generation," " some standing here shall not taste of death," etc.
The reasons that most traditional Christians refuse to accept the plain language of these scriptures is because they believe that Christ has to return visibly to the eye, the earth must literally burn up, dead bodies must come forth from the graves, there is a white throne judgement where everyone ever born must parade before the seat of God and receive their rewards of heaven or hell. There is no more sin, pain, suffering, and death.
And lastly all Christians will be in the presence of the Lord forever.
Therefore, since this has not happened because they cannot see it, feel it, smell it, touch it, hear it, nor experience it in their flesh, then it has not happened. And furthermore, no matter what the Bible says, if we can’t see it, it did not happen and Jesus and the apostles were mislead and wrong.
Folks, let me remind you, the Bible is God’s Word and God does not lie. Secondly, the Bible says that that which is seen is temporary, and that which is not seen is eternal.
Jesus, plainly said that "his kingdom does not come with observation". That means His kingdom cannot be seen with the fleshly eyeballs or carnal understanding.
However, I just want to read the scriptures in the Bible that speaks of Christ coming presence in the generation of the apostles and the first generation church.
Matthew 10:23 "But when they persecute you in this city, flee ye into another: for verily I say into you, Ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel, till the Son of Man come."
Matthew 16:28 "Verily I say unto you, There be some standing here, which shall not taste of death, till they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom."
Matthew 24:34 "Verily I say into you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled", that included " then shall you see the Son of Man coming in the clouds."
Matthew 26:64, Jesus saith unto him (Ciaphas), Thou hast said: nevertheless I say unto you, Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven."
Luke 32:32 "Verily I say into you, This generation shall not pass away, till all be fulfilled."
John 21:22 "Jesus saith unto him, If I will that he (John) tarry till I come, what is that to thee? Follow thou me. Jesus was talking about the death of John.
Romans 13:11-12 "And that, knowing the time, that now is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed. The night is far spent, the day is at hand, let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour
of light.
1 Cor 7:29 "But his I say, brethren, the time is short: it remaineth, that both they that have wives be as though they have none."
Romans 16:20 "And the God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly."
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 world (age) are come."
1 Cor 15:51 "Behold I show you a mystery" we (Paul) shall not all seep, but shall all be changed."
Philippians 4:5 The Lord is at hand".
Mark 1:15 "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand."
1 Peter 4:7 "But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer.
James 5:8 "Be ye also patient: stablish your hearts; for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh."
2 Tim 4:1 "I (Paul) charge thee (Timothy) therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall (is about to in the Greek) judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom."
1 Thessalonians 4:15 "For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we (Paul and his fellow Christians) which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep."
Verse 17 states: Then we (Paul and his fellow Christians) which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air: as so shall we ever be with the Lord."
2 Thess 1:7 "And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, in flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God."
1 Tim 6:14 "That thou keep this commandment without spot, unrebukeable, until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ."
Hebrews 1:2 "Hath in these last days, spoken unto us by his Son. We know Jesus comes in the last days, right and Hebrews says in these last days.
Hebrews 9:26 …but now once in the end of the world (age) hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself."
Hebrews 9:34 "For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry."
Hebrews 10:25 "Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is, but exhorting one another and so much the more, as ye see that day approaching."
James 5:3 "Ye have heaped treasure together for the last days."
James 5:7 "Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord."
James 5:9 ..behold the Judge standeth before the door.
Matthew 24:33 "Jesus said, So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it (he) is near, even at the doors."
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."
Revelation1:1 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."
Revelation 1:3 "Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand."
Revelation 2:25 "But that which ye (John and his generation of Christians)have already hold fast till I come."
Revelation 3:11 ‘Behold, I come quickly." The word quickly is the Greek word "tachu" which means shortly, without delay, or soon. It could mean suddenly, but it context of the rest of the scriptures, it appears to mean without delay.
Revelation 10:6 "And sware by him that liveth for ever and ever, who created the heaven, and the things that therein are, and the earth, and the things that therein are, and the sea, and the things which are therein , that there should be time no longer.’ Time no longer does not mean the end of time, it meant no further delay. The greek word here is "chronos and means an uncertain space of time as contrasted to a fixed occasion. Even Scofield says this means there will be no more delay.
Revelation 22:10 "Seal not the saying of the prophecy of this book: for the time is at hand."
Revelation 22:6 "…the Lord God of the holy prophets sent his angel to shew unto his servants the things which must shortly be done." To show to John the things which must shortly be done" This was written to John and his contemporary Christians not us.
Revelation 22:7 "Behold I come quickly."
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 testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly."
Revelation 1:7 "Behold he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him and they also which pierced him, and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, amen."
Folks, the bottom line is that Jesus plainly taught his disciples that he would return in their generation. The problem is that most folks will not accept this because they expect a physical eyeball return, a physical eyeball resurrection, a physical eyeball judgement, a physical eyeball new heaven and new earth and physical eyeball rule of Christ in his body on some earthly throne.
This is exactly what the first century Jews wanted.
But it did happen in the spiritual eternal world. Jesus came in judgement and vindication against Israel, Jerusalem, the temple, and the old covenant world. Jesus told his disciples when it would happen in Matthew chapter 24 and said it would be in that generation.The physical part of this is evidenced in the facts of Israel’s history as recorded by historians. However, the spiritual , unseen in only evidenced by the Words of Christ in the Bible, the bringing in of salvation through grace which is the new covenant. Our passing from sin-death to life in Christ, and our living in the presence of God in Jesus Christ (where two or three are gathered in my name, I will be in their midst). Our being granted to be able to be in the Holy of Holies in prayer in the presence of God almighty. When are God’s people going to wake up and realize that Jesus has truly kept his word to us. Blessed be the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen
I often hear from preachers, teachers, and other Christians the saying, "let’s get back to the Bible." "It says what it means and it means what it says." I agree with that statement so why don’t they let the Bible speak for itself.
To state it plainly, there are many verses of Scripture scattered throughout the New Testament which state clearly that Jesus Christ would come soon in that generation. Those references would have applied to those in the apostles’ generations—not our arena of time today or later. Those references are mentioned in terms such as "the time is at hand," it is the last time," "shortly,", "shortly come to pass," "quickly," "at the door," "as ye see the day approaching," "this generation," " some standing here shall not taste of death," etc.
The reasons that most traditional Christians refuse to accept the plain language of these scriptures is because they believe that Christ has to return visibly to the eye, the earth must literally burn up, dead bodies must come forth from the graves, there is a white throne judgement where everyone ever born must parade before the seat of God and receive their rewards of heaven or hell. There is no more sin, pain, suffering, and death.
And lastly all Christians will be in the presence of the Lord forever.
Therefore, since this has not happened because they cannot see it, feel it, smell it, touch it, hear it, nor experience it in their flesh, then it has not happened. And furthermore, no matter what the Bible says, if we can’t see it, it did not happen and Jesus and the apostles were mislead and wrong.
Folks, let me remind you, the Bible is God’s Word and God does not lie. Secondly, the Bible says that that which is seen is temporary, and that which is not seen is eternal.
Jesus, plainly said that "his kingdom does not come with observation". That means His kingdom cannot be seen with the fleshly eyeballs or carnal understanding.
However, I just want to read the scriptures in the Bible that speaks of Christ coming presence in the generation of the apostles and the first generation church.
Matthew 10:23 "But when they persecute you in this city, flee ye into another: for verily I say into you, Ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel, till the Son of Man come."
Matthew 16:28 "Verily I say unto you, There be some standing here, which shall not taste of death, till they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom."
Matthew 24:34 "Verily I say into you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled", that included " then shall you see the Son of Man coming in the clouds."
Matthew 26:64, Jesus saith unto him (Ciaphas), Thou hast said: nevertheless I say unto you, Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven."
Luke 32:32 "Verily I say into you, This generation shall not pass away, till all be fulfilled."
John 21:22 "Jesus saith unto him, If I will that he (John) tarry till I come, what is that to thee? Follow thou me. Jesus was talking about the death of John.
Romans 13:11-12 "And that, knowing the time, that now is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed. The night is far spent, the day is at hand, let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour
of light.
1 Cor 7:29 "But his I say, brethren, the time is short: it remaineth, that both they that have wives be as though they have none."
Romans 16:20 "And the God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly."
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 world (age) are come."
1 Cor 15:51 "Behold I show you a mystery" we (Paul) shall not all seep, but shall all be changed."
Philippians 4:5 The Lord is at hand".
Mark 1:15 "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand."
1 Peter 4:7 "But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer.
James 5:8 "Be ye also patient: stablish your hearts; for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh."
2 Tim 4:1 "I (Paul) charge thee (Timothy) therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall (is about to in the Greek) judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom."
1 Thessalonians 4:15 "For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we (Paul and his fellow Christians) which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep."
Verse 17 states: Then we (Paul and his fellow Christians) which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air: as so shall we ever be with the Lord."
2 Thess 1:7 "And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, in flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God."
1 Tim 6:14 "That thou keep this commandment without spot, unrebukeable, until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ."
Hebrews 1:2 "Hath in these last days, spoken unto us by his Son. We know Jesus comes in the last days, right and Hebrews says in these last days.
Hebrews 9:26 …but now once in the end of the world (age) hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself."
Hebrews 9:34 "For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry."
Hebrews 10:25 "Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is, but exhorting one another and so much the more, as ye see that day approaching."
James 5:3 "Ye have heaped treasure together for the last days."
James 5:7 "Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord."
James 5:9 ..behold the Judge standeth before the door.
Matthew 24:33 "Jesus said, So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it (he) is near, even at the doors."
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."
Revelation1:1 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."
Revelation 1:3 "Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand."
Revelation 2:25 "But that which ye (John and his generation of Christians)have already hold fast till I come."
Revelation 3:11 ‘Behold, I come quickly." The word quickly is the Greek word "tachu" which means shortly, without delay, or soon. It could mean suddenly, but it context of the rest of the scriptures, it appears to mean without delay.
Revelation 10:6 "And sware by him that liveth for ever and ever, who created the heaven, and the things that therein are, and the earth, and the things that therein are, and the sea, and the things which are therein , that there should be time no longer.’ Time no longer does not mean the end of time, it meant no further delay. The greek word here is "chronos and means an uncertain space of time as contrasted to a fixed occasion. Even Scofield says this means there will be no more delay.
Revelation 22:10 "Seal not the saying of the prophecy of this book: for the time is at hand."
Revelation 22:6 "…the Lord God of the holy prophets sent his angel to shew unto his servants the things which must shortly be done." To show to John the things which must shortly be done" This was written to John and his contemporary Christians not us.
Revelation 22:7 "Behold I come quickly."
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 testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly."
Revelation 1:7 "Behold he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him and they also which pierced him, and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, amen."
Folks, the bottom line is that Jesus plainly taught his disciples that he would return in their generation. The problem is that most folks will not accept this because they expect a physical eyeball return, a physical eyeball resurrection, a physical eyeball judgement, a physical eyeball new heaven and new earth and physical eyeball rule of Christ in his body on some earthly throne.
This is exactly what the first century Jews wanted.
But it did happen in the spiritual eternal world. Jesus came in judgement and vindication against Israel, Jerusalem, the temple, and the old covenant world. Jesus told his disciples when it would happen in Matthew chapter 24 and said it would be in that generation.The physical part of this is evidenced in the facts of Israel’s history as recorded by historians. However, the spiritual , unseen in only evidenced by the Words of Christ in the Bible, the bringing in of salvation through grace which is the new covenant. Our passing from sin-death to life in Christ, and our living in the presence of God in Jesus Christ (where two or three are gathered in my name, I will be in their midst). Our being granted to be able to be in the Holy of Holies in prayer in the presence of God almighty. When are God’s people going to wake up and realize that Jesus has truly kept his word to us. Blessed be the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen
