Sorry . . . Jesus Is Not Coming At Any Moment! : Part 1

Copyright 1994 - 2009 Endtime Prophecy Net

Published On : January 23, 2008

Last Updated : January 23, 2008

Matthew 24 Endtime Dissertation, Parable Of The Fig Tree,
Questions Posed, Many Bible Versions = No Christian Unity,
1948 - Israel Becomes A Nation, Opinions Molded By Popular
Preachers, Personal Biblical Research Aided By Holy Spirit,
Bible Self-Interprets, Problem: How Long Is A Generation?,
Jesus Didn't Say Fig Tree Is Israel, No One Knows The Day
And Hour, Danger Of Forcing Bible Prophecy To Fit Into Our
Personal Understanding, Preachers Disgraced By False Time
Prophecies, Damage Control - Blind Sheep Keep On Following,
The False Year 2000 Prediction Regarding Christ's Return,
Y2K Date Problem, End Of A Millennium, Significance of The
Number Seven, Archbishop James Ussher & October 23, 4004 BC,
Oslo Accords - Holy Covenant - Declaration Of Principles,
The Seven-Year Treaty - Temple Mount - Beast - Antichrist,
Is 1948 The Anchor Point Of Endtime Prophecy?, May 14, 1948,
Reza Shah Pahlavi And The Iran/Persia Naming Controversy,
Cyrus The Great, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi - The Shah Of Iran,
Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini And The 1979 Iranian Revolution,
Grand Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei And Mahmoud Ahmadinejad,
Arab Anti-Israel Attitude, Battle Of Armageddon, Y2K Glitch,
I Rejected The Year 2,000 "Jesus Is Coming" False Doctrine,
Believe Because God's Word Says So, God's Precise Timetable,
Temple Mount Radicals And Destruction Of Solomon's Temple



Recently, someone wrote to me concerning some of Jesus' words
found in Matthew chapter twenty-four, which, as some of you
will already know, deals in large part with the Signs of the
Endtime and the events which will lead up to Christ's Return,
and the end of the current world governmental systems. To be
more specific, this person's questions revolved around the
following verses:

"Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet
tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is
nigh: So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things,
know that it is near, even at the doors. Verily I say unto
you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things
be fulfilled. Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words
shall not pass away. But of that day and hour knoweth no
man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only."
Matthew 24:32-36, KJV

Concerning the previous verses, this person stated:

----- Begin Quote -----

I have a 2 part question about the fulfillment of the fig
tree parable:

1) Jesus mentioned the word "generation" in Matthew 24:36.
He stated that a specific generation would live to see His
return. He said that the 'generation' that lives to see
Israel become a nation would not pass from the earth.

So, what is a biblical 'generation'?

One person said it was 52 years and gave the following
reasons . . .

Luke 3:23-38, you have 77 generations from Adam to Jesus
Christ. That's a period of 4,000 years. Divided by 77 it
comes out to 51.9. 52 years.

Matthew 1:17, there were 42 generations between Abraham and
Jesus Christ. This covers a period of 2,160 years. Divide
the 2,160 by 42 and it comes to 51.4 years.

Is he right?

2)If so, then if we use the biblical definition of a
generation as 52 years. Then should we be looking at the
Lord's return as 52 years from 1948 (Israel becoming a
nation) OR the more recent date of 1967 after the
reunification of Jerusalem and the 6 Day War?

I ask simply because 1948 plus 52 years was the year 2000
which is obviously behind us . . .

And, 1967 plus 52 gives us 2019 . . .

I just wanted some clarification. Which date are we using as
our fulfillment of the fig tree parable? And why?

----- End Quote -----

Before answering this person's questions, allow me to point
out that in the King James Version of the Bible, which, as
some of you will know, is my Bible of preference, the word
"generation" is actually used in verse thirty-four, and not
in verse thirty-six as stated above. It's possible that this
person simply made a typographical error, or else they could
be using a different version of the Bible. This is a clear
example of why I have long believed that there should only
be one standard Christian Bible. As I've said before, how in
the world can we Christians ever hope to achieve any degree
of Christian unity, while we are all reading from different
Bibles, which have different words, or the same words but in
different places, or where some verses are entirely omitted,
or placed in footnotes? Given this lamentable situation, we
will never be able to fulfill the desire that the Apostle
Paul expressed when he stated:

"Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus
Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be
no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined
together in the same mind and in the same judgment."
1 Corinthians 1:10, KJV

That issue aside, as I pondered this person's message, it
occurred to me that perhaps they need to approach this issue
from a different perspective, because their current approach
is obviously causing them some difficulty, and presenting
challenges which they cannot seem to resolve. So to answer
their questions, I will offer the following for their, and
your, consideration:

While it is commonly assumed by some Bible scholars, popular
radio and television preachers and lay Christians that the
Parable of the Fig Tree is a reference to Israel becoming a
nation in 1948, there's absolutely nothing in the Scriptures
found in Matthew chapter twenty-four, which clearly states
that this is so. Nowhere in those verses does Jesus outright
say that the fig tree represents Israel becoming a nation in
1948. As far as I am concerned, this is simply one possible
interpretation; it is nothing more than speculation; it is a
theory; it is an assumption which has long been promoted by
certain pro-Israel Christians, and perhaps even by the Jews
themselves, even though the latter for the most part reject
Christ as being the Messiah. Perhaps the fig tree truly does
represent Israel; I honestly don't know; but Jesus does not
directly say this in His Endtime dissertation in Matthew 24.

Are you surprised by my pronouncement? You really shouldn't
be; unless you have allowed your understanding of the Bible
to be molded by some of these modern, popular, fast-talking
preachers, instead of reading God's Word for yourself, as
you are supposed to do, and allow God's Spirit to speak to
your heart concerning its meaning. That is precisely what
the Holy Spirit, and diligent, personal Scriptural research
is for. As I explain in other articles, the Holy Spirit is
our Guide, Teacher and Comforter. Jesus Himself stated on
one occasion:

"But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father
will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and
bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said
unto you."
John 14:26, KJV

Most of us have access to God's Word, either in print, or
via the Internet, or through a computer program, or by some
other way. So why have so many of you become so spiritually
lethargic, that you allow yourselves to be spoon-fed by some
fancy preacher who loves to bathe in his popularity, as he
stands before his huge congregation, (where most people do
not even know each other on a personal level), in a million
dollar church building?

I have stated a number of times before that the Bible will
in large part interpret itself, if we invest the time, and
read enough of it. It is like a great Divine Jigsaw Puzzle.
The more time we dedicate to reading the Holy Scriptures,
the more the pieces slowly begin to fall into their proper
place, and our understanding of God's Word begins to open.
The problem is that many Christians just aren't willing to
take the time to read it. As I point out in "Study, Work,
And Don't Be Ashamed!", it is our Christian duty to study
God's Word. The Apostle Paul wrote to his dear son in the
Lord, Timothy, the following admonition:

"Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that
needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of
truth."
2 Timothy 2:15, KJV

Another related article which emphasizes the importance of
reading God's Word, as well as properly understanding it, is
"Rightly Dividing The Word Of Truth"; and there are others
as well. I encourage you to search our site to find them. So
my point is, because some Christians rely so heavily on some
popular evangelist to tell them what God's Word means, they
open themselves up to possibly accepting erroneous beliefs,
which, in the end, may not be Scripturally sound at all.

Jeff Snyder, SysOp - Armageddon BBS  Visit us at endtimeprophecy.org port 23
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