DID THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST ALREADY OCCUR?
Lesson One
INTRODUCTION
A. What Is Realized Eschatology?
1. As James Orr says, "By ‘eschatology,’ or doctrine of last things, is meant the ideas entertained at any period on the future life, the end of the world (resurrection, judgment) and the eternal destinies of mankind" (International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, James Orr, II:972).
1) "Realized" signifies accomplishment, hence, Realized Eschatology is a doctrine of completed last things.
2. According to its interpretation of the Bible, the end times were realized and accomplished in 70 A.D. at the destruction of Jerusalem.
1) In fact, we are told by a major proponent of this doctrine that "the fall of Judaism (and its far reaching consequences) is, therefore, a major subject of the Bible" (The Spirit of Prophecy, Max R. King, p. 239). [For an excellent review and rebuttal of this book, see "The Preterist View Heresy (1-VIII)," Bill Reeves, Truth Magazine, Vol. XVII, No. 9-16 (4 Jan. - 22 Feb., 1973).]
3. We are told that the second coming of Christ occurred at 70 A.D., at which time every spiritual blessing was perfected and made available to the world.
1) Due to fundamental failures in sound, Biblical interpretation, Christians are being taught that all prophecy of end-time events was fulfilled in 70 A.D., and to look beyond that date for the personal coming of Christ and the bodily resurrection of mankind followed by a judgment, is without Biblical authority.
4. Here is a sampling of this basic viewpoint of the doctrine from King's The Spirit of Prophecy:
1) "There is no scriptural basis for extending the second coming of Christ beyond the fall of Judaism." - p. 105
2) "...the end of the Jewish world was the second coming of Christ." - p. 81 (emp., King's)
3) "Prophecy found its complete fulfillment in the second coming of Christ, and now may be regarded as closed and consummated." - p. 65
· Thus, the second coming of Christ is made equal with the "fall of Judaism" (the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D.). To King, and some misguided brethren today, we dare not look to our future in anticipation of the coming of the Lord! All prophecies relating to it were fulfilled in 70 A.D.! Now, when it is shown that the personal, bodily return of our Lord is described in terms which cannot apply to the events of 70 A.D., the error of this doctrine will be fully exposed.
I. DID JESUS COME IN THE FIRST CENTURY FOLLOWING HIS ASCENSION?
A. There is ample evidence in the word of God that Jesus did indeed come in some sense (or senses) in the first century.
1. For example, He came in His kingdom (Matt 16:28) with power (Mark 9:1) on the day of Pentecost (Acts 1:4-5, 8; 2:1-4, 33).
1) Now, look how Jesus described the sending of the promised Comforter (the Holy Spirit) in John 14:18: "I come unto you."
2) Surely no one will conclude that this must mean a bodily coming of Jesus! How would He come? Not bodily, but representatively, through the Holy Spirit whom He would send (John 15:26).
2. Again, in Matthew 24:29-30, Jesus taught that during that generation "they shall see the Son of man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory" (24:34).
1) The context of Matthew 24 tells us how they would see Him.
2) The context of the chapter is the destruction of Jerusalem.
3) Unquestionably, Jesus did not appear bodily in 70 A.D. when Jerusalem fell.
4) Instead, verse 30 speaks of His presence in Jerusalem's judgment.
5) He authorized it, and brought it to pass.
3. Matt 26:64: Jesus told Caiaphas the same thing the night He was betrayed.
"Jesus said to him, 'You have said it yourself; nevertheless I tell you, hereafter you will see THE SON OF MAN SITTING AT THE RIGHT HAND OF POWER, and COMING ON THE CLOUDS OF HEAVEN.'"
1) Did Caiaphas see this or not?
2) Certainly he did, when Jesus sent the Roman armies to destroy the city of Jerusalem.
3) Caiaphas was familiar with the judgment language of the OT.
4) Jesus had made it clear to His contemporaries, that they would experience His wrath as Judge.
4. Matt 16:28: “Truly I say to you, there are some of those who are standing here who shall not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom” (cf. Mark 9:1-fulfilled in Acts 2:29-36).
5. The Jews were familiar with its O.T. usage.
1) Judgment on the earth (Isa 26:20-21).
"For behold, the Lord is about to come out from His place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity;"
2) Judgment on Israel and Judah (Mic 1:2-7).
"3 For behold, the Lord is coming forth from His place.
He will come down and tread on the high places of the earth."
6 For I will make Samaria a heap of ruins in the open country,"
3) Judgment on Judah (Joel 2:1-2; Zeph 1:14-16).
"Blow a trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm on My holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble, for the day of the Lord is coming; surely it is near," (Joel 2:1).
"Near is the great day of the Lord, near and coming very quickly; listen, the day of the Lord!" (Zeph 1:14).
B. Clouds are often associated with God’s presence.
1. Lev 16:2: “…I will appear in the cloud over the mercy seat.”
2. Num 11:25: “Then the LORD came down in the cloud and spoke to him…”
3. Ps 104.3: “…He makes the clouds His chariot…”
1) No visible appearance. He came in judgment and power.
2) A cloud can’t be stopped or manipulated.
3) This phrase does not demand a visible appearance.
4) Ps 9:2-10: Judgments of God (also “a stronghold for the oppressed”).
4. Every Jew would apply this phrase to a national doom of some kind.
They just didn’t believe it would happen.
1) Judgment on Egypt (Isa 19:1-10).
"Behold, the Lord is riding on a swift cloud and is about to come to Egypt; the idols of Egypt will tremble at His presence, and the heart of the Egyptians will melt within them" (Isa 19:1).
· "swift cloud" = BABYLON (Dan 1:1-2; Hab 1:5-11).
2) Judgment on Judah and Jerusalem in 586 BC (Jer 4:11-13).
"11 In that time it will be said to this people and to Jerusalem, 'A scorching wind from the bare heights in the wilderness in the direction of the daughter of My people — not to winnow and not to cleanse, 12 a wind too strong for this — will come at My command; now I will also pronounce judgments against them. 13 "Behold, He goes up like clouds, and his chariots like the whirlwind; His horses are swifter than eagles. Woe to us, for we are ruined!"'"
· Clouds – Babylonian captivity.
· The Jews never heard this language used to refer to the end of time.
3) Restoration of Israel (Ezek 34:12-13).
"As a shepherd cares for his herd in the day when he is among his scattered sheep, so I will care for My sheep and will deliver them from all the places to which they were scattered on a cloudy and gloomy day. 13 I will bring them out from the peoples and gather them from the countries and bring them to their own land; and I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, by the streams, and in all the inhabited places of the land."
C. They would see or discern His presence when this destructive judgment occurred.
1. Yes, Jesus Christ came in judgment in 70 A.D., but it was not His bodily return!
1) Similar language is used to describe His coming in judgment against the powers persecuting the saints (Rev 1:7 (cf. Rev 19:11-21).
2) None of these "comings" of the Lord prevent a future coming of Christ in bodily form at the end of time!
2. The A.D. 70 doctrine would make every mention of the "coming of the Lord" or "day of the Lord" mean the same event, regardless of its usage in context.
1) It is a fact of Biblical interpretation that the same phrase can have different meanings.
2) For example, take the expression "laid hands upon." In Acts 4:3, it means to arrest. In Acts 13:3, it means to commend. In Luke 13:13, it means to heal. In Acts 8:17 and 19:6, it means to impart spiritual gifts. To arbitrarily assign one meaning to this phrase every time it is used would result in absurdity! Yet, this is exactly what the A.D. 70 doctrine does with "coming of the Lord" and "day of the Lord."
II. THE PROBLEM WITH LIMITING THE "COMING OF THE LORD" TO 70 AD IS DEMONSTRATED BY AT LEAST THREE PASSAGES IN THE NT
A. Acts 1:9-11, where angels tell the apostles that Jesus "will come in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven" (11).
1. In what manner did Jesus go into heaven?
1) Jesus ascended into heaven actually and personally, in His resurrected body (Luke 24:39).
2. Acts 1:9-11: Five phrases are used which emphasize that actual sight was involved on this occasion.
1) 9: His apostles "were looking" as Jesus was taken up.
2) A cloud received Jesus "out of their sight."
3) 10: The apostles were "gazing intently into the sky" when two men in white apparel appeared to them.
4) 11: These messengers asked the apostles, "Why do you stand looking into the sky?"
5) 11: And finally, the apostles were assured that Jesus would return in like manner as they had "watched Him go into the sky."
3. The apostles actually saw Jesus' bodily ascension.
1) This is the manner in which He will return (1 Thes 4:16-17).
2) Jesus did not come in bodily form, nor was He personally seen in the events of the coming of the kingdom (Matt 16:28; John 14:18), the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD (Matt 24:30), or in the defeat of the persecuting powers in the book of Revelation (1:7).
· Christ's personal, bodily return is yet future!
B. 2 Peter 3:5-7, 10-11: The A.D. 70 advocate "spiritualizes" away the meaning of the word of God.
1. By His word, God created and then destroyed the world with water.
1) By that same word of God, the heavens and earth which now exist are stored up for fire, awaiting a day of judgment against ungodliness.
2. The A.D. 70 advocates try to make the heavens and earth (3:7, 10), which shall meet a fiery end, the Jewish economy (as do the Jehovah's Witnesses). But, this is to no avail.
1) The world which was overflowed with water is now stored up for fire. 2) This fiery judgment shall occur on "the day of the Lord" (3:10), at His "coming" (3:4).
3) Was the world of Noah's time actually flooded?
4) Then the world which now exists shall actually be destroyed with fire! 5) If this verse had been fulfilled in 70 A.D., none of us would be here!
3. The abuse of this passage illustrates the error in Biblical interpretation which is present in this system of error.
1) As D. R. Dungan notes: "Many seem disposed to regard themselves as at liberty to make anything out of the Bible which their theology may demand or their whims require. And if, at any time, they find a passage that will not harmonize with that view, then the next thing is to find one or more words in the text used elsewhere in a figurative sense, and then demand that such be the Biblical dictionary on the meaning of that word, and hence that it must be the meaning in that place." (Hermeneutics, Dungan, p. 217)
· The A.D. 70 doctrine attempts this with "the day of the Lord" and His "coming" in 2 Peter 3:4-11, but it finds no support here!
C. 1 Corinthians 15: The Resurrection chapter teaches a future, bodily resurrection from the dead.
1. While the A.D. 70 doctrine says the resurrection is past already (having occurred in 70 A.D.), this passage decisively refutes that claim.
1) To the Realized Eschatologist, the primary meaning of 1 Corinthians 15 is the resurrection of Christianity out of Judaism, not the resurrection of mankind at the personal return of Jesus Christ.
2. To briefly set forth their case, hear Max King on what is resurrected in 1 Corinthians 15:
"Next (1 Cor 15:35-44, bold, bh), Paul answers questions concerning how the dead are raised and with what body they come forth. The primary application (bold, bh) deals with the development and rise of the Christian system itself, with a secondary application belonging to believers and their state within the system. The natural body that was sown (verse 44) answers to the fleshly or carnal system of Judaism in which existed prophecies, types, and patterns from which came the spiritual body designed of God....The natural body (emp., King's), receiving its death blow at the cross and beginning then to wax old and decay (Heb 8:13), became a nursery or seed-body for the germination, growth, and development of the spiritual body by means of the gospel.
"Thus, out of the decay of Judaism arose the spiritual body of Christianity (bold, bh) that became fully developed or resurrected by the end-time (bold, bh). Hence, this is the primary meaning of Paul's statement, ‘It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body and there is a spiritual body’"
(The Spirit of Prophecy, King, pp. 199-200).
1) The assumed definitions and applications in that quotation alone show the subjective nature of this doctrine!
2) The Scriptures are twisted to say what has already been decided, namely, that Christianity arose out of Judaism, an event which we are told was completed in 70 A.D.!