Jesus' Return

Age : 37 Joined : 14 Jan 2007 Posts : 3115

I used to never think about this at all...but the older I get, I do:

Ever since I was a kid, I've heard Christians say "Jesus is coming soon!" I always just took it cuz I know "soon" to God could be 50-100 years...no biggie.

But, thinking about it deeper, every generation of Christians beginning with the first church thought they would SEE Jesus' Return in their lifetime. If you ask any random Christian now, they would probably say that they believe Jesus is coming back in time for them to see it while still living...my mom even thinks so.

My point is, every generation of Christians for 2 thousand years has believed this and it still hasn't happened...MANY believed it would be by Y2K, and that obviously wasn't the case.

1. Why do we (Christians) always think we will be THE generation to see it?

2. Why do we try to decipher it from the Bible when the Bible PLAINLY states "No man will know the hour..."?
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Joined : 06 Apr 2007 Posts : 1064

I don't think I will see it (from here, anyway). . . although I'd love to.
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Age : 22 Joined : 04 Jun 2007 Posts : 1477

Excellent observation study

I have oft wondered that as well. I chock it up to the fact that every generation seems to think the world has gotten soooo badddd, that it's GOT to be soon. In the 60s people were afraid of a second ice age coming. 40 years later, in the midst of the supposed 'ice age', we're going nuts over global warming. cheers

Everyone's got to have a cause and the feeling of gravity surrounding a 'cause' is greatly increased by the sense of urgency. What better way than to convert the heathens then to convince them they are not JUST going to hell, but that they are going to hell very soon!!!!

I hope I'm making sense.
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... a chill rises from the soil ...
... and contaminates the air ...
... suddenly ...
... life has new meaning ...

Man in Morph Age : 40 Joined : 08 Apr 2007 Posts : 8527

I also think it's because many want it to be so. All I know is that, cheers

to the Lord a day is like a thousand years and a thousand years is like a day. Each day is one day closer though.

Subject: Re: Jesus' Return Thu Jun 21, 2007 7:57 pm

One reason may be people's erronious "Left Behind" eschatological views, they think they see the "signs" taking place.

Age : 33 Joined : 06 Apr 2007 Posts : 2366

Play it LOUD!! Age : 51 Joined : 06 Jan 2007 Posts : 11691

Points:

1. To answer your two questions directly, as a starter here. A: IMO (that's a really BIG IMO) this second coming of CHRIST is a world--shattering--literally--and important event. People want to be present for the return of GOD's MESSIAH. People show a tendency to stare at a car wreck on the road.......how much greater is the tendency for Christian's (of all ages) to want to see the second coming of their SAVIOUR?? B: IMO people are dense. Christians can be just as dense as the non-Christian. They are told not to do a lot of things in the Bible. But......they are still done. Sin. Sin nature. Same thing with this IMO. GOD says plainly......signs (of HIS return) are one thing, certainty--total certainty--(of HIS return) is quite another. GOD says not to set certain dates. Duh....."Let's disobey!!" Same old same old Shawn.......same thing as with any other of GOD's commands and wishes.

2. The movie Scourge speaks of......i've never seen, and have no desire to. The Left Behind series?? Never read, and i've no desire to. I tend not to be in the *eschatological and cultural mind--set* that most American Christians tend to be in. I'm somewhat of an *outsider to the norm* because of my not being in *lock-step and unison* with the majority of American Christian's eschatological and rapture beliefs.

3. That said, in point two above, I fully believe that CHRIST will come back in the next several decades. Perhaps 4 to 6 decades out.......and probably (IMO) sooner than later. But......be patient, things must develop eh?? Also......if i'm wrong i'm wrong. No biggie, been wrong before.

There........now that i've said that, tear me limb from limb, would not be the first time that's happened. Shocked

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Age : 37 Joined : 14 Jan 2007 Posts : 3115

I think, that like most things, what God has in mind and what we think He has in mind are 2 totally different things. We're looking for one thing, but it's really going to be something else.
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Mission Of One Age : 38 Joined : 03 Jan 2007 Posts : 5408

Age : 37 Joined : 14 Jan 2007 Posts : 3115

Man in Morph Age : 40 Joined : 08 Apr 2007 Posts : 8527

I'm with you Scourge. I think those books are pretty good fiction. Fiction being the key word. Actually I take it back,I read the first one and was really dissapointed. Have you ever read any Paul Maier? He helped inform my beliefs a lot.

Age : 32 Joined : 20 Jun 2007 Posts : 379

As far as I'm concerned it will happen when He's good and ready...I think He may be waiting in the wings right now, but we don't know. We just gotta have faith...it will happen!
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Age : 33 Joined : 06 Apr 2007 Posts : 2366

No, I haven't read anything by Paul Maier. The thing that really annoys me is that LaHaye and Jenkins, whether they realize it or not, are playing off of our culture's postmodern tendencies. Jacques Derrida, one of the late postmodern thinkers and founders of the movement, stated that the most inoffensive method to effectively indoctrinate people is to take the message one wishes to communicate and wrap it up in fictitious narrative. His point being that people will more likely read and accept one's opinions if they're woven into a compelling narrative rather than presented as straight, propositional truth. I'll be damned if that's not what influenced LaHaye and Jenkins to write the Left Behind series. While I completely disagree with their Dispensational interpretation of Revelation, they could've at least found someone at Dallas Theological Seminary who possesses a thoroughgoing knowledge of the background and history of Revelation to assist them in their writing of the series. It would've at least given a little more weight to their message. Thanks to the platform given to them by Joe Scarborough and others, people have been duped into believing that those men are experts in the interpretation of Revelation. This assertion couldn't be more misleading and incorrect. It amazes me how many of the people whom the general public touts as 'experts' are some of the most unqualified people around who have no right to be making dogmatic statements. LaHaye's grimy hands were also involved in last year's remake, The Omen - 666, and it shows whenever Scripture is discussed in the film. He can't even represent his own Dispensationalism correctly. BTW, he was featured in the FX docudrama, Revelation 666, which served as last year's introduction to the remake. I loved the film purely for it's great storytelling and acting, but not as a lens through which I'd seek to understand Revelation or the antichrist. The writers did a superb job of taking everything that was great about the original and updating those elements for today. The changes made to the story were wise ones. In fact, I like the remake better than the original, although neither of them bears any resemblance to the portrait of the antichrist painted for us in 2 Thessalonians 2:1-21, 1 John 2:18-27, 4:1-6, 2 John 1:7-11, or Revelation 13.

Age : 22 Joined : 04 Jun 2007 Posts : 1477

Subject: Re: Jesus' Return Fri Jun 22, 2007 1:06 pm

BTW, I have the entire Left Behind series on audio drama, will sell at a nominal price, when I move to Florida, I'd like them to be......."left behind"! Laughing

Play it LOUD!! Age : 51 Joined : 06 Jan 2007 Posts : 11691

Oh my!!

Make audio copies of them all......and then send us all a copy. cheers

(Right around April 1st) lol!

_________________
"The 'farce' is strong with Obama-Wan." words of Scourge.

One of the twins: I'm the one who likes it all....

Age : 22 Joined : 04 Jun 2007 Posts : 1477

_________________
... a chill rises from the soil ...
... and contaminates the air ...
... suddenly ...
... life has new meaning ...

Master of the Axe Joined : 06 Apr 2007 Posts : 510

Age : 33 Joined : 06 Apr 2007 Posts : 2366

Age : 22 Joined : 04 Jun 2007 Posts : 1477