Matthew
Are the Day of the Lord and the Second Coming of Christ two separate events, or were Jesus and the apostles describing the same approaching judgment? By examining the prophetic language of the Old Testament alongside the teachings of Jesus, Paul, Peter, and John, we discover a remarkable connection. Could these passages be pointing to one climactic fulfillment in AD 70, when Jerusalem was judged and the old covenant age came to an end?
Who were the stones John the Baptist spoke of in Matthew 3:9? For years, I accepted the traditional interpretation without question. But a closer examination of John’s audience, the Old Testament prophets, and the meaning of “raise up” reveals an intriguing possibility. Could these stones represent something entirely different from what we’ve always been taught?
One of the greatest fears I have encountered among Christians is the fear of being deceived. I have talked with people who are genuinely afraid to question what they have been taught because they believe that entertaining a different understanding of Scripture could lead them away from the truth.
One of the most sincere questions I have heard since embracing fulfilled eschatology is this: If the prophecies concerning the coming of Christ have been fulfilled, what are we hoping for now?
Enemies would come against Jerusalem. They would surround her. They would construct a fortification around her. The inhabitants would be shut in on every side.
One of the most familiar interpretations of Revelation 12 is that the dragon drawing a third of the stars from heaven describes Satan taking one third of the angels with him in some prehistoric rebellion. But there is a serious problem with beginning there: Revelation never says these stars are fallen angels.
When James rebuked the rich in James 5, he was not simply giving a general warning against wealth or someone rich in our day and time as many assume.
Many Christians have been taught to read themselves directly into the words “we which are alive and remain,” as though Paul were describing Christians living thousands of years later.
The Old Testament established the imagery of God’s vineyard, the winepress, and Jerusalem being trodden underfoot in covenant judgment.
The parable of the ten virgins is one of those passages that has been pulled out of its setting for so long that many people read it as though Jesus were talking about Christians thousands of years later, waiting for a future “end of the world” event.
Many Christians have been taught that one day God will destroy the physical universe in a global fire. Yet when the Scriptures are read according to their historical context, original audience, covenantal language, and time statements, a different picture is revealed.
This is one of those passages we often read without stopping to consider the full weight of what Jesus actually said. Jesus connected three things together: Heaven and earth passing. Not one jot or tittle passing from the Law. All things being fulfilled.
When most people hear the words “the last days,” their minds immediately jump to our generation. Wars. Earthquakes. Political turmoil. Moral decline. Israel. Technology. A coming Antichrist. A rebuilt temple. The end of the world.
When most Christians hear the phrase “the Day of the Lord,” their minds immediately go thousands of years beyond the New Testament into our future.
One of the most common passages used to teach a future physical return of Jesus to the earth is Acts 1:11.
When we read about Christ “coming in the clouds,” we should first ask how the Bible had already used that language.