What Happens When Jesus Returns?

When & How Does Jesus Return?

Matthew 24:30, “and then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.” Few Christians understand what the “sign” is, which is the reason I am writing this article.

Probably the most prominent thing that is taught in the scriptures is that the Bible is a book of prophecy telling man about his history, past, present, and future. The most fascinating part is what we are yet to expect in the future. We as Christians are convinced that the Bible is the Word of God because we have seen so many prophecies having come to pass. Especially the ones that come to pass at specified dates and in the case of Jesus at his first advent even the time of day was specified. As the Lord himself states in Isaiah 42:9, “Behold, the former things are come to pass, and new things do I declare; before they spring forth, I tell you of them.” There is no other book in the world that even comes close to telling us of our future like the Bible does, and one of the greatest events the Bible talks about is the Coming and Return known today as the 1st and 2nd advents of our Lord Jesus who is the world’s Messiah.

The question is where are we regarding the Lord’s “Return” or the 2nd advent of Jesus? We are told in the scriptures, Matthew 24:42, “Watch therefore: for you know not what hour your Lord does come.” Also, Revelation 3:3, “Remember therefore how you have received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore you do not watch, I will come upon you as a thief, and you will not know what hour I will come upon you.” If you read carefully, you will notice that this suggests that if you do watch, you will know… The question then becomes what are we to watch for? It seems that most think that we don’t really have to watch because as stated in Revelation 1:7, “Behold, he comes with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all the kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him…” They therefore get the impression from this that at the instant of his return everyone is going to recognize him, especially when they see all the Christians in the world suddenly disappearing which they mistakenly conclude from their miss-interpretation of 1Thessalonians 4:16-17, “For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: 17Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord…” So, they think that they are to watch themselves; how they conduct their life. This is a good thing to do, this is not the complete thought that is given in the scriptures regarding what we are to watch for. Let’s look at some more scriptures that tell us what to watch for. And then we will come back to these scriptures and see how they fit together into the larger picture that the scriptures are drawing for us.

Acts 15:14-17, “Simon (Peter) has declared how God at the first did visit the Gentiles, to take out of them a people for his name. 15And to this agree the words of the prophets; as it is written, 16After this I will return, and will build again the tabernacle of David, which is fallen down; and I will build again the ruins thereof, and I will set it up: 17That the residue of men might seek after the Lord, and all the Gentiles, upon whom my name is called, says the Lord, who does all these things.” The fascinating thing that is stated here is the order of events which most seem to miss or ignore. The first event to take place is for the Lord to take out from among the Gentiles a people for his name, that is his Church often referred to as his Bride. And after he takes out from the Gentiles a people for his name, he “returns,” why? to “build again the tabernacle of David, which has fallen down; and I will build again the ruins thereof, and I will set it up…” It seems from this then, that the purpose for the rebuilding of the ruins of Israel is so that the rest of the world will “seek after the Lord”. But wait, are not the “ruins” of Israel being rebuilt? Does the scripture not state that he “returns” for the purpose of rebuilding the “tabernacle of David and the ruins of Israel”? If that is the case, how can we say that he has not yet returned? Simon Peter was quoting from Amos 9:11 so let us continue with Amos 9:14-15, “And I will bring again the captivity of my people of Israel [this began in 1878 Petah Tikva - Wikipedia] and they shall build the waste cities, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and drink the wine thereof; they shall also make gardens, and eat the fruit of them. 15And I will plant them upon their land, and they shall no more be pulled up out of their land which I have given them, says the LORD your God.” I am sorry but there just does not seem to be any way to spiritualize this into applying it to the Christian. And we should all agree that this has happened and is continuing on even to this day! Anyone who knows anything about history concerning the Jewish People knows that this has now taken place. How can one possibly think that the Israel of today is not the fulfillment of the scripture in Acts 15:16 and its reference to Amos 9? A nation has gone out of existence for over 1800 years and is reborn just as the scriptures state would happen. Can we just ignore this huge event? Of course not, but most misunderstand it, and being deceived by the Devil who is still the god of this world, they appear not to understand what it means as to the times in which we live.

Many today feel that the Church is the tabernacle of David, and he returns to build his Church hence the aforementioned sited scriptures of those who feel we “don’t have to watch because we are going to be caught up in the air to be with him". But please bear with me as we consider some more scriptures that support the idea of his return for the purpose of building not just the tabernacle, that is, the Church, but also the natural house of David.

Romans 11:25-28, “For I would not, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the full number [of the Church, the 144,000] of the Gentiles be come in. 26And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, "There shall come out of Zion the Deliverer [the Church completed beyond the veil] and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: 27For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins. 28As concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes: but as touching the election, they are beloved for their fathers’ sakes.”

Most Christian Churches today try to spiritualize all these scriptures that are being cited. Well did Paul say that what happened to Israel was to be an example: 1Corinthians 10:11, “Now these things happened unto them by way of example; and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages are come.” It seems the Institutional Christian Church is in the same condition today that the Jewish Church was back in Jesus’ day. Luke 19:44, “and shall dash you to the ground, and your children within you; and they shall not leave in you one stone upon another; because you knew not the time of your visitation.” Jesus after his resurrection destroyed the Jewish nation, dashing all their hopes to the ground, why? “Because they did not know the time of their visitation”. For the most part the so-called Christian Church today also does not recognize the time or the purpose of his return, putting it yet into the future, as the Jewish people continue to do even to this day.

Another thing that Jesus stated which few bother to look into and which makes it impossible to spiritualize all these scriptures about Israel is found in Luke 21:24, “And they [the Jewish people] shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled.” This again states what the apostles asked Jesus on the day of his ascension, that the kingdom was to return to Israel, but it gives the when: stating when, “the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled". Obviously then, today, the times of the Gentiles has been fulfilled; this is an undisputable fact of history when one considers that Israel was reborn as a nation in 1948!

Jesus showed himself to the disciples for 40 days, and on the last day we read from Acts 1:6-11, “They therefore, when they came together, asked him, saying, Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel? 7And he said unto them, It is not for you to know times or seasons, which the Father has set within His own authority. 8But you shall receive power, when the Holy Spirit comes upon you: and you shall be my witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea and Samaria, and unto the uttermost parts of the earth. 9And when he had said these things, as they were looking, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight. 10And while they were looking steadfastly into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel; 11who also said, "You men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was received up from you into heaven shall so come in like manner as you beheld him going into heaven.” Several things that we want to note here, we have highlighted in bold. First, there is no rebuke to them for their belief that the kingdom was going to be restored to Israel, which today, has occurred. Also note that the language is cloaked with the idea that it was to occur upon his return. The second thing that is often misunderstood is what the angels meant when they said, “why do you stand looking into heaven?” Yes, he does come in like manner! The idea here is that few saw him go, and few will see him when he returns. If the angel had meant as most Christian people today are taught to believe, they would have continued to stand there gazing until they died. Obviously then watching the literal clouds is not the correct thought of the “like manner.” Yes, it was a cloud that received them out of their sight, but it is a “cloud of witnesses,” Hebrews 12:1, that can be seen that is making it plain that he has returned.

An interesting illustration of this “cloud” is found in Revelation 14:14, “And I saw, and behold, a white cloud; and on the cloud I saw one sitting like unto a son of man, having on his head a golden crown, and in his hand sharp sickle.” A Christian is supposed to have a heavenly perspective, and if you have flown above the literal clouds, you know that they are always white on top. But underneath the cloud can be a very different story. The earthly perspective of this same cloud is found in Joel 2:1-3, “Blow the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the LORD comes, for it is nigh at hand; 2A day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness, as the morning spread upon the mountains: a great people and a strong; there has not been ever the like, neither shall be any more after it, even to the years of many generations. 3A fire devours before them; and behind them a flame burns: the land is as the Garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness; yea, and nothing shall escape them.” And again in Amos 5:18-20, “Woe unto you that desire the day of the LORD! To what end is it for you? The day of the LORD is darkness, and not light. 19As if a man did flee from a lion, and a bear met him; or went into the house, and leaned his hand on the wall, and a serpent bit him. 20Shall not the day of the LORD be darkness, and not light? Even very dark, and no brightness in it.” Why is this the case? Because they do not understand what is happening even as it is to this very day.

Not everyone agrees with how I view Acts 15:16 about the Lord’s return, and what the tabernacle of David represents. I really respect Gloria Zendler and her feelings on the subject are as follows.

[My thinking is that the reference to the tabernacle of David is to natural Israel. The tabernacle there means the earthly restored nation. The Tabernacle is a picture of the new creation and the development of the Christ as in Hebrews, but tabernacle also has a generic application for an earthly dwelling as in "tabernacling in the flesh." I see the Acts 15 text as a synopsis of God's plan--first development of the church class, the "people for his name,” then the restoration of Israel, the "tabernacle of David" [David was the nation's king not a priest], then the return from the grave of the rest of mankind, the "residue of men." I also think the phrase, "and all the Gentiles who are called by my name," is a reference to the church class who in association with their Lord will administer the restoration work in the Kingdom and to whom returning mankind will look for their instruction in righteousness. This is different from what most brethren think. I have had discussions with others on this last point and somehow, they seem to equate the residue of men to the Gentiles on whom his name is called.]

Another interesting place in the scriptures that talk about a cloud which pictures the Lord’s return is found in Exodus 19:9-15, “And the LORD said unto Moses, Lo, I come unto you in a thick cloud, so that the people may hear when I speak with you, and believe you forever… 10And the LORD said unto Moses, Go unto the people, and sanctify them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their clothes, 11And be ready against the third day: for the third day [the day of the Lord] the LORD will come down in the sight of all the people upon mount Sinai. 12And you shall set bounds unto the people round about, saying, Take heed to yourselves, that you go not up into the mount, or touch the border of it: whosoever touches the mount shall be surely put to death: 13There shall not an hand touch it, but he shall surely be stoned, or shot through; whether it be beast or man, it shall not live: when the trumpet sounds long, they shall come up to the mount. 14And Moses went down from the mount unto the people and sanctified the people; and they washed their clothes. 15And he said unto the people, Be ready against the third day: come not at your wives.” Notice the items I have highlighted in bold…

I come unto you in a thick cloud: Spiritual meaning: The purpose of the cloud is so that the people cannot see him directly so that they are not blinded by the light, as was Saul on his way to Damascus Acts 26:13-14. Again, this was done for our understanding so that we might see the Lord in the midst of all the trouble (the antitypical cloud) seeing that it is he that has been changing the world and setting up Israel as his mountain/Kingdom that you should not touch. Zechariah 2:8 “For thus says the LORD of hosts, “After glory He has sent me against the nations which plunder you, for he who touches you, touches the apple of His eye.”

be ready against the third day: Spiritual meaning: Just as Jesus was in the grave parts of 3 days, so also it is parts of 3000 years that is being represented since Jesus came down and spoke in the place of Moses to the people. Yet it may be even more literally true when the 3rd millennial day occurs in 2033 (33 at Jesus resurrection to 2033 which may be the finishing time of the Churches resurrection) (see: Selection of the Lamb on the 10th)

Whosoever touches the mount shall be surely put to death: Spiritual meaning: Israel is the mount of God, and if you go against Israel; well just look at what has happened to those who have fought against it since it has become a nation again. Need I say more?

When the trumpet sounds long, they shall come up to the mount: This refers to the 7th trumpet as pictured occurring on the 7th day of Joshua going around the walls of Jericho, also the 7th trumpet of Revelation 11:15. Interestingly, in Revelation the average length of the sounding of those trumpets is around 2000/7=285 years. Maybe that is what it will take to wake people up!

come not at your wives: I believe this is a spiritual reference to Revelation 14:4, “These are they which were not defiled with women; for they are virgins. In other words, we need to be careful against being defiled by the doctrines which Satan’s Churches of Christ teaches. Especially the most blasphemous; those that teach the doctrine of hell fire and brimstone.

Another scripture that describes what would happen at the Lord’s return is found in Matthew 24:44-51, “Therefore be also ready: for in such an hour as you think not the Son of man comes. 45Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord has made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season? [extending the “Marriage Supper” to those who remain] 46Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he has come shall find so doing. 47Verily I say unto you, that he shall make him ruler over all his goods. 48But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delays his coming [saying after he has “returned” that his return has not yet occurred] 49And shall begin to smite his fellow servants, and to eat and drink with the drunken [those who do not recognize his return, drunken with the teachings of unfaithful churches that just want your money] 50The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looks not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of, 51And shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” What this is clearly saying, is that when the Lord returns, he chooses one of those that are watching to make him the messenger to the Church to give them “meat in due season” about the timing and purpose of his return. Note: the one who does this is the same one that sounds the trumpet. This is the same thing that is taught in Revelation 3:20, “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hears my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.” It is interesting that most Christians today will admit that we are at “the end of the age,” and living in the time described by the message given to the seventh stage of the Church, where this scripture is cited. But what they fail to recognize is that this is the stage of the Lord’s return. Note that to the previous stages he states that he is coming, but to the seventh stage, he states that he is “standing at the door” now when someone is standing at the door knocking, that does not mean he is coming, Or does mean he is here. And Jesus is saying that he wants to have a “meal” with you, that same meal spoken about in Matthew 24:45. So do we historically find someone that announced his return? We do it in a big way. The person’s name is Charles Russell. Note also when Jesus was resurrected, he did not show himself to all the people, but, as stated in Acts 10:41, “Not to all the people, but unto witnesses chosen before of God, even to us, who did eat and drink with him after he rose from the dead.” So also, I believe the Lord reveals himself here at the end of the age to those he has “chosen” as in the three steps, 1. Called, 2. Chosen, and 3. Faithful. Today the general “Call” has ended, it remains for those “Chosen” to keep their crowns and remain faithful unto death. We at this time are eating of the marriage supper, also called the Latter Rain… (see also in appendix: When is the Marriage of the Lamb)

The other part of the Matthew 24:48-51 “But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delays his coming [saying after he has “returned” that his return has not yet occurred] 49And shall begin to smite his fellow servants, and to eat and drink with the drunken [those who do not recognize his return, drunken with the teachings of unfaithful churches who hate those who say he has returned] 50The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looks not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of, 51And shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” This is describing the ‘tare’ class spoken of in the parable of the wheat and tares Matthew 13:24-29 & 36-43 where the tares or weeds are burned i.e. cease to profess Christianity because of Christianity now becoming unpopular. Being seen as full of hypocrites. In the resurrection they will then be found weeping and gnashing of teeth for their deeds will be made manifest 1 Corinthians 3:10-15.

The Double and Russell

When Charles Russell was alive, he started an organization/publishing company called “The Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society.” Today that organization has come to be known as the Jehovah’s Witnesses. After Russell died, the publishing company was forcefully taken over by a man named Joseph Rutherford who systematically instructed those who followed the Watch Tower to reject most of the major teachings that Russell believed in, including the time of the Lord’s return delaying it 40 years. I believe this was to fulfill again what was stated in Matthew 25:48-51 “But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delays his coming; 49And shall begin to smite his fellow servants, and to eat and drink with the drunken; 50The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looks not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of, 51And shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” One of the first things Rutherford (who took over after Russell died) did was to change what the Watch Tower publications taught concerning the belief that the Jewish people have anything to do with God’s plan to use them as his witnesses, even though today this particular teaching has become more or less an accepted belief even amongst many Christians. Rutherford taught that those who followed him, that is, The Watch Tower are God’s chosen witnesses hence their adoption of the name, “Jehovah’s Witnesses.” But the Bible is clear that the Jewish people are God’s witnesses, not because they have followed his ways, but because their Fathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob followed him and because he loved them and is watching over their offspring. He is now disciplining their children for their wrong actions and yet he still considers them his people! They (the Jewish people) are God’s witnesses to the world, for the world to take note as to how he is able to correct people from their wrong ways, and to show the world his patience and mercy with them, even when the world can see the Jewish people’s bad behavior. Note Jeremiah 16:10-21, speaking of the Jewish people God says, “And it shall come to pass, when you shall show these people [the Jewish People] all these words, and they shall say unto you, Wherefore has Jehovah pronounced all this great evil against us? Or what is our iniquity? Or what is our sin that we have committed against Jehovah our God? 11Then shall you [referring to Jesus and the Christians] say unto them, Because your fathers have forsaken me [not referring to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob but to their children which became “fathers” after they entered the promised land] says Jehovah, and have walked after other gods, and have served them, and have worshipped them, and have forsaken me, and have not kept my law; 12and you have done evil more than your fathers; for, behold, you walk every one after the stubbornness of his evil heart, so that you hearken not unto me: 13therefore I cast you forth out of this land into the land that you have not known, neither you nor your fathers; and there shall you serve other gods day and night; and I will show you no favor!!!. 14Therefore, behold, the days come, says Jehovah, that it shall no more be said, As Jehovah lives, that brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt; 15but, Jehovah lives, that brought up the children of Israel from the land of the north, and from all the countries [not just Babylon at the end of the 70 years Babylonian captivity] whither he had driven them. And I will bring them again into their land that I gave unto their fathers. 16Behold, I will send for many fishers, [Jewish Zionists] says Jehovah, and they shall fish them up; and afterward I will send for many hunters [Hitler and other Jewish haters], and they shall hunt them from every mountain, and from every hill, and out of the clefts of the rocks. 17For mine eyes are upon all their ways; they are not hid from my face; neither is their iniquity concealed from my eyes. [notice they are brought back in unbelief.] 18But first [before I bring them back] I will recompense their iniquity and their sin double, because they have polluted my land with the carcasses of their detestable things and have filled mine inheritance with their abominations.

Notice “I will send for many fishers” & “I will send for many hunters” the one speaking here is our Lord Jesus "spiritually” at the time of his return. Russell never saw the “hunters”, that is, Germany under Hitler, or the formation of the State of Israel, as he died in 1916. And only a small group of Bible Students broke from the Watch Tower and continued with his teachings. Russell was intrigued with the use of the word “double” in the above text and linked it to another in Zechariah 9:9-12, “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, your King comes unto you: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass. 10And I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim [the 10-tribe kingdom] and the horse from Jerusalem, and the battle bow shall be cut off [cease to fight for them] and he shall speak peace unto the gentiles: and his dominion shall be from sea even to sea, and from the river even to the ends of the earth. 11As for you also, by the blood of your covenant I have sent forth your prisoners out of the pit wherein there is no water. 12Turn you to the strong hold, you prisoners of hope: even today do I declare that I will render double unto you.” This text is cited in Matthew 21:5 and applies to the time that Jesus’ rode into the city of Jerusalem in triumph as Israel’s true King. It is hard to mistake the meaning of this double today. Jacob the grandchild of Abraham died around 1813 BC which began the time that the Lord began to deal with the twelve children of Israel (Jacob) as a nation. God’s favor to the nation of Israel therefore lasted 1845 years until Jesus who, similar to (Jacob having twelve children) had twelve apostles, rides into the city of Jerusalem, is hailed King of the Jews and pronounces upon the Jewish nation “Behold, your house is left unto you desolate” (Matthew 23:38) to fulfill the above cited text in Zechariah 9:9-12. If then their favor lasted 1845 years, is it not reasonable to assume that the “double” would mean that their corresponding disfavor would also last 1845 years as God is a God of Justice? When we add 1845 years to AD33, the time that Jesus pronounced the “double” to begin, we come to the year 1878. God, true to his word, in 1878 he raised Benjamin Disraeli, the only person of Jewish descent ever to become a Prime Minister of England. Disraeli made it possible for the Jewish people to buy land again in Palestine that is, present day Israel.

And thus it was in 1878, that Petah-Tikva, the first Jewish city was created in Palestine https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Petah_Tikva. Note: today Petah-Tikva is a suburb of Tel Aviv which was the Jewish capital of Israel until 1950 at which time the capital was moved to Jerusalem. In 1948, when Israel began to be recognized by the rest of the world as an independent country, at that time the border was drawn right through the middle of Jerusalem. This was in fulfillment of Zechariah 14:2 which states, “For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city.” That is exactly what happened to those on the wrong side of the border that was drawn through the middle of Jerusalem in 1948. This border stood until 1967 when Israel was attacked by Egypt, and Israel responded by taking the whole Sinai desert, and pushing the Jordanian Arabs out of Jerusalem. Satan is still the god of this world, but Jesus is now King of Israel even though the Jewish people still do not recognize him. Most of Christianity fails to recognize that Jesus is the one that is bringing the Jewish people back to Israel. Because most of Christianity feels that you must believe in Jesus in this lifetime to be saved at all, they fail to understand why Jesus would be dealing with the Jewish people. Therefore, most just ignore what is happening in Israel today. Christians need to realize the purpose of the second resurrection that Jesus spoke of in John 5:28-29 “Marvel not at this: for the hour comes, in which all that are in the tombs shall hear his voice, 29and shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life [first resurrection] and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of judgment.” The second resurrection. Also note: Romans 11:25-28.

Note that Zechariah 14:3-5 goes on to say, “Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle. 4And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south. 5And you shall flee to the valley of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal: yea, you shall flee, like as you fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah.” This is symbolic language! After Israel became a nation in 1948 with half of Jerusalem in captivity, the largest exodus of Jews from the rest of the world began in earnest to flee to Israel, and all who know much about the history of Israel recognize that it is God that has been fighting for her because she continues to win all her battles even when the odds are totally stacked against her.

Ezekiel 37 & 38 makes it very clear what will shortly transpire (I believe within the next 15 years). It speaks of the rebuilding of Israel as a nation to the point that she becomes self-sufficient and living securely as a free people which to date has effectively been fulfilled. Russia, the strongest of the nations that support the Arabs who hate the Jewish people will eventually be swayed by Turkey and Iran to come down and wipe out Israel. They will, of course, lose the battle at which time all nations will recognize that it was God through his Son Jesus that has been fighting for Israel. At that point Israel also will recognize that Jesus was and still is their Messiah and that it is he that has been gathering them back to their land, the land that God promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. As stated in Isaiah 40:1-2 “Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, says your God. 2Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned: for she has received of the LORD'S hand double for all her sins.” Notice again that the comfort was to come after the “double” was accomplished, that is, 1878.

Again, referring to Israel and the double in Isaiah 61:6-7, “But you [the Jew’s after the Church is complete] shall be named the Priests of the LORD: men shall call you the Ministers of our God: [in the Kingdom for which we pray] you shall eat the riches of the Gentiles, and in their glory shall you boast yourselves. 7But for your shame [for not keeping the law and rejecting Jesus] you shall have double; and for your confusion they [referring to the Gentiles] shall rejoice in their portion: therefore, in their land they [the Gentiles] shall possess the double: everlasting joy shall be unto them.” Can you not see the two parts here? How could the Lord have made it more plain?

Isaiah 11:11-12, “And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall set his hand again the second time to recover the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea. 12And he shall set up an ensign for the nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth.” This occurs after the double at the same time spoken of in Hosea 6:11, “Also, O Judah, he has set a harvest for you, when I return the captivity of my people.” Again, this began to occur in 1878 with the Balfour Declaration in England. I find it fascinating that much of Christianity today is taught to believe that there will be a 7-year tribulation period when they say the “man of sin” will sit in the rebuilt temple that Ezekiel describes. This is a new teaching of Christianity which began after Israel became a nation, born out of institutional Christianity’s beliefs that only Christians are to be saved. So nominal Christianity will do the same thing that the nominal Jewish people did, that is, they will refuse to believe that the Kingdom of God is being set up in Israel, and they will fight against it for the most part. It is Satan that is sowing this particular belief amongst blinded Christianity today. Christianity today is essentially in the same position that the Jewish people were when they failed to recognize Jesus at his first advent. Today institutional Christianity has failed to recognize that we are living during the time of his second advent and they are as Revelation 3:16-17 states, “So then because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spew you out of my mouth. 17Because you say, "I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked.” This is essentially the same thing he stated and did to the Jewish people that did not recognize his first advent. And that is the reason that they have come up with their strange 7-year tribulation beliefs, using prophecies which have their true fulfillment in the distant past. Satan is the one sowing this doctrine amongst foolish Christianity today to fight against God’s setting up of Israel, and to sow the seeds for him to use at the end of the thousand-year kingdom of Christ.

The Harvest

Why is it so difficult for Christians today to recognize that he has returned? For the same reason the Jewish people did not recognize him at his first advent. Expecting the wrong thing at the right time: Luke 3:15, “And as the people were in expectation, and all men mused in their hearts of John, whether he were the Christ, or not.” So today all Christian people have been in expectation of the Messiah for around 180 years because of the signs of the times. They say he is coming soon. What? Does he travel so slowly that it has taken him over 180 years to get here? All Christians today, and for a long time, have believed that they are living in the end of the age. The end of the age is as it states the time of harvest described in the parable of the wheat and the tares. Therefore, we are living in the time of the harvest described in the parable. Matthew 13:30, “Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest, I will say to the reapers, Gather together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn… 39The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the age; and the reapers are the angels.” That harvest then has been going on for about 150 years.

Remember there was a harvest at the end of the Jewish age. The reapers there were the Apostles and those who recognized him at his first advent. Now we are living at the time of his second advent and the angels spoken of in the parable are again those that recognize him as here at this end of the Gospel age. Note that if we are at the end of the age and in the time of the harvest, that this is one of the signals that he has returned. This is graphically illustrated in Revelation 14:14-15, “And I looked, and behold a white cloud, and upon the cloud one sat like unto the Son of man, having on his head a golden crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle. 15And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to him that sat on the cloud, Thrust in your sickle, and reap for the time is come for you to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe.” Revelation is full of graphic imagery used to illustrate what is happening. Notice he is on top of the cloud. The cloud is white because the perspective is from the top. If you were, as most, living in the world, your perspective would be from underneath that cloud. That perspective as stated before is given in Zephaniah 1:14-18, “The great day of the LORD is near, it is near, and hastes greatly, even the voice of the day of the LORD: the mighty man shall cry there bitterly. 15That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of waste and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness, 16A day of the trumpet and alarm against the fenced cities, and against the high towers. 17And I will bring distress upon men that they shall walk like blind men, because they have sinned against the LORD: and their blood shall be poured out as dust, and their flesh as the dung. 18Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of the LORD'S wrath; but the whole land [World War] shall be devoured by the fire of his jealousy: for he shall make even a speedy riddance of all of them that dwell in the land.” This describes our day with two world wars, three if you include the cold war, and what about the depression… and today’s terrorism. There has never been a time of trouble in the world like there has been in the last 110 years and the world has changed very dramatically! Isn’t that what all are expecting Messiah’s return to bring? Great changes in the world! The old world is passing away right in front of us. The institutional Christian world is ignorant of the new world now being set up. Even our presidents talk of a new world order being set up. Just as the Jewish people were ignorant of Jesus’ first advent and the changes it brought, most of the Christian world sees these changes as coming from Satan, but it is the Lord working to turn an already evil world into his world, a world where the desire of all nations that is, a true “Democracy” can exist.

Of the 60 million European military personnel who were mobilized from 1914 to 1918, 8 million were killed, 7 million were permanently disabled, and 15 million were seriously injured. Then in 1918 the Spanish flu hit and killed another 17 million. WW2 had 70 to 85 million fatalities. that is, 2 to 3 times as many as WW1..

Christians should be asking how to know when the harvest began! This is actually not that difficult to answer. Note that Hosea 6:11 states, “Also, O Judah, a harvest is appointed, when I return the captivity of my people.” So, ask yourself, has the Lord returned the captivity of the Jewish people? There can be no question of that in anyone’s mind, as it is obvious beyond any question! Today this is an undisputed fact of history. So again, ask when did the Lord return the captivity of his people? As stated earlier, it was returned in 1878 when Disraeli, the only person of Jewish descent ever to become a Prime Minister of England (at that time ruler of ½ the Christian world). Disraeli made it possible for the Jewish people to buy land again in Palestine that is, present day Israel. And so it was in 1878 that Petah Tikva, the first Jewish city, was created in Palestine. Also, remember that this is the exact same date that the 1845 years double points to. Tell me, what does it take to wake up a sleeping Christian? This really is not that difficult to understand especially to those who claim to be “spiritually minded.” Indeed, Jesus’ coming has been like a thief to those not watching or, shall we say, not knowing what to watch for. It is not enough to just watch your character. You must also watch what God is doing in the world and try to understand his word and where we are in the stream of prophetic time.

Thief in the Night

1Thessalonians 5:1-10 “But of the times and the seasons, brethren, you have no need that I write unto you [apparently, we do now]. 2For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night [quietly to take his jewels, the Church]. 3For when they shall say, Peace and safety [Woodrow Wilson Wilson’s Dec. 2, 1913 State of the Union Address states: “The country… is at peace with all the world… foreshadowing an age of settled peace and good will.” It reflects diplomatic optimism before WWI erupted in July 1914.] Then sudden destruction comes upon them [1914 WWI, depression, WWII, the Cold War, and now Terrorism…] as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape. 4But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. 5Ye are all [supposed to be] the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness. 6Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober. 7For they that sleep, sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night. 8But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet, the hope of salvation. 9For God has not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, 10Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him.” Nevertheless, it is a true saying: Proverbs 10:5, “he that sleeps in harvest is a son that causes shame.” Revelation 16L15, “Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watches, and keeps his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame.” It is high time that Christianity awakes from her drunken sleep so that the shame of their ignorance does not appear. Revelation 14:8, “And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.” Why does Protestantism drink her wine and become drunk with her into such a stupor? Wake up! The signs of his presence are all around you. Adjust your prophetic expectations to fit the signs of the times and don’t buy the Roman Church’s doctrines of the Anti-Christ which is what the foolish virgins in Matthew 25:8-9 have done, not knowing what to buy.

Ask yourself the question, how does a thief in the night come to steal Jewels? Does he come with horns blowing or does he come quietly while people sleep? In the late 1800’s when he returned it was quiet. But today from the perspective I am trying to give you here, the sound is deafeningly loud as stated in 1Thessalonians 4:16, “For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven, with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God.” The only reason you can’t hear it is because Satan has lulled you into a drunken sleep which is why the 7th stage of the Church is “Spewed out of his mouth” Revelation 3:16.

Matthew 24:30-31, “And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven [Israel’s return to their Land and becoming a nation] and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power [he is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored] and great glory [that is why the world has changed so dramatically]. 31And he shall send his angels [messengers telling the people about his 2nd advent] with a great sound of a trumpet, [7th trumpet] and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds [winds of war WW1, WW2, Cold War… and one to go read Ezekiel 38] from one end of heaven to the other.” If you want to be of the elect, you need to wake up! And begin proclaiming that he has returned and join in with the reapers and put off the foolishness that is being taught by the sleeping drunken institutional Churches that are still drunk with “wine”, the doctrines of the Roman Church and her Protestant harlot daughters that is, the antitype of the Pharisees’ and Sadducees of Jesus’ day. The elect recognize him at his return; the tares (imitation Christians) do not recognize him, hence the separation of wheat and tares. Revelation 17:4-6, “The woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet, and bedecked with gold and jewels and pearls, holding in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the impurities of her fornication; 5and on her forehead was written a name of mystery: "Babylon the great, mother of harlots and of earth's abominations." 6And I saw the woman, drunk with the blood of the saints and the blood of the martyrs of Jesus. When I saw her, I marveled greatly.” Note that all the reformers of past centuries recognized that the “Mother of harlots” was the Roman Church, and the Man of Sin was the office of the Pope as he is head of the Roman Church (read the original forward to the King James Bible). The Pope, backed by the Roman Catholic Church, started a counter reformation, teaching a doctrine that said that the “Man of Sin” was an individual, not the office of the “Pope” as Protestants back then believed, and that the man of sin will sit in the rebuilt temple in literal Israel instead of the true temple of God which you are supposed to be, that is, the Church. Today’s Protestant Churches (that no longer protest against the Roman Church) have bought that interpretation and have become the “children” of that “harlot,” which is what the foolish virgins in the parable of the 10 virgins have bought for doctrine.

In Matthew 24:3 it states “And as he sat upon the Mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? And what shall be the sign of your coming, and of the end of the world?” Many Christian people today will say that they see the signs of his coming, but very few have looked at the Greek word that the translators have translated “coming.” If they did, they would discover that the translators were very biased by their theological views in their translation. The English word “coming” comes from the Greek word “Parousia,” pronounced par-oo-see'-ah. It has the thought of “with my pair of eyes I see you.” In a Greek speaking classroom when roll call is made, the student will say “Parousia” signifying that he is here, present in the class. In English it can, and should be, directly translated presence. When you look for that word in the Bible, every place that it is found you will realize that it makes much more sense in the context if you translate it consistently as “presence.” An interesting one is found in 2Peter 3:3-4, “Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts [preaching for money] 4And saying, Where is the promise of his coming [i.e., presence meaning his return] for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.” Most Christian Churches apply this to the unbelieving world who have no idea what the promise of his return even is. But if you translate it correctly as Young’s Literal Translation does, you will see that it applies to those who call themselves Christian but have other ideas as to what the Lord’s return is supposed to bring. They see everything continuing as it always has, even though the world today is changing radically right in front of them. It is practically a willful ignorance, similar to the Jewish people’s willful ignorance regarding Jesus being their Messiah.

Just like our English words presence and absence are closely connected, it is the same in Greek. Presence in Greek is phonetically spelled par-oo-see’-ah παρουσία. Whereas the English word for absence in Greek is phonetically spelled ap-oo-see'-ah ἀπουσία. The close connection is striking. The two Greek words are used together in Philippians 2:12 “Therefore, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not only in my presence, but now even more in my absence, continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling.”

The message that the Lord gave to the 7th Church in Revelation chapter 3 is a scathing rebuke. In fact, it is basically the same thing that the Lord told the nation of Israel for rejecting him at his first advent. It is no coincidence that the Lord said that those things that happened to Israel are examples for us; obviously, not too many take it to heart… 1Corinthians 10:11-12, “Now these things happened unto them by way of example; and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages are come. 12Wherefore let him that thinks he stands take heed lest he fall.” Matthew 23:37-39 “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kills the prophets, and stones them which are sent to you, how often would I have gathered your children together, even as a hen gathers her chickens under her wings, but you would not! 38Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. 39For I say unto you, You shall not see me henceforth, till you shall say, Blessed is he that comes in the name of the Lord.” The signs of the Lord’s return today are considerably more clear and far more evident than those given to the Jewish people of Jesus’ day and being the Messiah at the first advent. So, if he cast off the Jewish people at that time, what will happen today to those who, after having such plain evidence of his return, reject it without checking it out?

Now most studied Christians today believe that those seven Churches in Revelation depict Christianity down through the Gospel age and also believe that we are living in what is described as the seventh stage of the Gospel Church. If this is true, and I believe it is, then again, we have another witness to the fact of his return. Notice that to the first six churches the Lord says, “I come,” but to the 7th stage he says, “Behold I stand at the door and knock.” Now if you believe he has not arrived but is “coming”, you will not answer the door! But if you believe that his having come is a possibility, then you will consider what you hear and open your heart to the eating of a great meal that at present you cannot even comprehend because he is knocking, and you aren’t doing anything about it. You have probably been lulled to sleep, and are paying your fire insurance premiums to your local Church to keep you out of that dreadful place called Hell. That’s what the Jewish people did in Jesus’ day, and as a result, they were all their days subject to the bondage of the Law.

This brings me to another point about what the scriptures say to look for at his second advent. Today most Christianity has been taught to believe that they really don’t have to “watch,” since they are all going to be raptured up to heaven at the instant of his return and, all they must do is be ready—keep your life pure like the Pharisees of Jesus’ day tried to do. Of course, you know what happened to them. They were rejected because they didn’t watch. Institutional Christianity teaches the same “you really don’t need to watch! …we will watch for you…” But the Bible says in Matthew 25:13, “Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man comes.” The point here is that you cannot know in advance the day or the hour! Why, because it is tied into world events that you must be looking for, the significant one being Israel’s return to its own land as stated in the parable of the "fig tree”. It is interesting that the Hassidic Jews (the most religious of the Jewish people) were against Israel’s becoming a nation again on the grounds that the Messiah must first come! I guess they were smarter than today’s Christians! Of course, they are now even more willfully ignorant, are they not! How about you? Most will continue to be ignorant of the Lord’s return until the last battle, described in Ezekiel 38, occurs and Isaiah 25:7, is fulfilled, “And he will destroy in this mountain the face of the covering cast over all people, and the veil that is spread over all nations.” Note what is stated in Romans 11:15, “For if the casting away of them be the reconciling of the world, what shall the receiving of them be, but life from the dead?” Israel has been received! They are being rebuilt as a nation! The Lord has returned, he has raised those who were found faithful, and we who are alive and remain, no longer have to sleep waiting for his return.

The willingly ignorant Jewish people will eventually come to know Christ, but it will be too late to receive the prize of the high calling as stated in Romans 11. So also, in like fashion, Christians today that are willingly ignorant will come to know the truth in the future, but at the cost of losing the prize of the heavenly reward to which they were called. Hebrews 12:1-3, “Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, 2Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest you be wearied and faint in your minds.”

2 Timothy 2:15, “Study to show yourself approved unto God, a workman that needs not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” Acts 17:11, “The Bereans were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.”

Objections relative to His Return

Most Christians today are taught that they have nothing to worry about because they are to be raptured, to meet the Lord in the air the instant the Lord returns, and after that there will be 144,000 natural Jews converted to Christianity… So let's take a closer look at the scriptures they refer to and clear the matter up with a few scriptures they choose to ignore.

Matthew 24:30-32 “And then shall appear the sign of the Son of Man in the heaven; and then shall all the tribes of the earth smite the breast, and they [must refer to Christians as they are the only ones knowing to even look or what to look for] shall see [Greek Transliteration: Optanomai - Definition: 1. to look at, behold 2. to allow oneself to be seen, to appear - Part(s) of speech: Verb] the Son of Man coming upon the clouds of the heaven, with power and much glory; 31and he shall send his messengers with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his chosen from the four winds, from the ends of the heavens unto the ends thereof.” For one to suggest that the world is going to see Jesus’ physical return with their literal eyes goes against what the apostle Paul stated in 2Corinthians 5:16, “Wherefore we henceforth know no man after the flesh: even though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now we know him so no more.” As to people seeing the “sign of the Son of Man” most Christians in any way familiar with the signs of the times knows that the increase of knowledge and many running to and fro are signs of his having come as stated in Daniel 12:4, “But you, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.” And again, most see the return of the state of Israel as one of these signs. A government being re-established after 1800 years of being non-existent is quite unheard of. This in and of itself demonstrates that he is exorcising his “great power”.

1Thessalonians 4:16-17, “For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: 17Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so, shall we ever be with the Lord.” The critical part of this scripture that is most generally ignored is the part about “alive and remain.” There is nothing here that states how long those that are alive will have to remain before they also meet the Lord in the air. But there are an interesting number of scriptures that I believe give us the clue. The first one I would like to deal with is found in 2Corinthians 4:11 “For we who live are always delivered unto death for Jesus' sake, that the life also of Jesus may be manifested in our mortal flesh.” The second one is found in 1Corinthians 15:51-52 “Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 52In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.” —from physical to spiritual instantly upon our death.

When you put these scriptures together one begins to understand what Paul was trying to tell us in Thessalonians about remaining… 17 "Then we who are alive and remain [until we die] shall be caught up together with them in the clouds [beginning in 1874] to meet the Lord in the air.” When do we meet the Lord? After he returns and after we die. We cannot ignore the fact that we “are always delivered unto death” 2Corinthians 4:11, but after the Lord’s return something changes. What changes? At his return we will no longer have to “sleep” as we will be instantly changed upon our death. Another scriptural witness along this line is found in:

Psalm 82:6-7, “I have said, you are gods; and all of you are children of the most High. 7But you shall die like men and fall like one of the princes.” “One of the princes” of which there are two, that is, Adam and Jesus. Again, the point is you must die… again 1Corinthians 15:35-36, “But some man will say, How are the dead raised up? And with what body do they come? 36You fool that which you sow is not quickened, except it die.” Need another? John 12:23-24, “And Jesus answered them, saying, "The hour has come, that the Son of man should be glorified. 24Verily, verily, I say unto you, "Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abides alone: but if it dies, it brings forth much fruit.” Jesus here was referring to his own death and implying that it must happen to us also. As stated again in 2Corinthians 4:11, “For we who live are always delivered unto death for Jesus' sake, that the life also of Jesus may be manifested in our mortal flesh.”

When one begins to comprehend this, then the scripture in Revelation 14:13-14 comes to life with meaning: “And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, blessed are the dead [dead in Adam whose lives are hid in Christ Colossians 3:3] which die [physically or literally] in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, says the Spirit, that they may rest from their labors; and their works do follow them. [as they are from that point forward meeting the Lord in the Air. This is the rapture, but the natural eye cannot see it.] 14And I looked, and behold a white cloud, and upon the cloud one sat like unto the Son of man, having on his head a golden crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle.” This graphically depicts the time of our Lord’s return and the beginning of the harvest. Those who die in the Lord no longer sleep waiting for his return to begin their heavenly works. But it does again assure us that we are on the right track as it again states that we still must first die. Remember what we spoke of earlier about the time of the harvest, how can we know when it began? Hosea 6:11 states; “Also, O Judah, he has set a harvest for you, when I return the captivity of my people.” You should be able to plainly see how all of these things appear to be dovetailing together! Therefore, we believe that the harvest began in 1878.

Now notice that both the Thessalonians and the Corinthians scriptures refer to a “trumpet.” In Corinthians it is the “last trumpet.” Revelation again brings to light what is happening here. Revelation 11:15-19, “And the seventh angel sounded [the last of seven trumpets in Revelation] and there were great voices in heaven [from those wise ones who recognize his return] saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever [not that many listen as in the beginning he comes quietly]. 16And the four and twenty elders, which sat before God on their seats, fell upon their faces, and worshipped God, 17Saying, We give you thanks, O Lord God Almighty, which art, and was, because you hast taken to yourself your great power, and has begun to reign. 18And the nations were angry, and your wrath is come [1914 WW1] and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that you should give reward unto your servants the prophets, and to the saints, [beginning in 1874] and them that fear your name, small and great; and should destroy them which destroy the earth. 19And the temple of God was opened in heaven,[again indicating the Church is Complete] and there was seen [a clearer understanding of God’s covenant was beginning to be opened up by the 7th messenger to the Church that is, Charles Russell] in his temple the ark of his covenant: and there were lightnings [brilliant news flashes of understanding] and voices [people talking about the news flashes] and thunderings [people trembling about the things that are coming as a result of the news flashes that people are talking about] and an earthquake [earth moving-changing events beginning to take place as a result of all the people talking about the news flashes and doing something about it] and great hail.” Isaiah 28:17, “Judgment also will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet: and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding place.” Hail is solid water. Water in the scriptures represents the truth. Therefore, hail represents solid truth that overcomes the errors taught in the past. But the meaning of all of this is not yet to be understood by the ignorant masses as stated in Daniel 12:10, “Many will be purified, made spotless, and refined, but the wicked will continue to act wickedly. None of the wicked will understand, but the wise will understand.” All of this is being done in fulfillment of the scriptures while the world is still held in the grip of the “god of this world” which is Satan. Therefore, these things will not be understood by the masses until Israel is converted to Christianity as foretold in Ezekiel 39:6-7, “And I will send a fire on Magog, and among them that dwell carelessly in the isles: and they shall know that I am the LORD. 7So will I make my holy name known in the midst of my people Israel; and I will not let them pollute my holy name anymore: and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD, the Holy One in Israel.” Only then will come to pass Isaiah 25:7-8, “And he will destroy in this mountain [Israel] the face of the covering [that has caused the world’s blindness] cast over all people, and the vail that is spread over all nations. 8He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from off all faces; and the rebuke of his people (the Jew’s) shall he take away from off all the earth: for the LORD has spoken it.” As is also stated in Romans 11:26-27. “And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written: “The Deliverer [Christ and his Church] will come from Zion; He will remove godlessness from Jacob. 27For this is My covenant with them when I take away their sins.”

I go, I come, I am with you always

The thoughts in the title to this section can be confusing as is evident from the following scriptures. John 14:2-3, “In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going to prepare a place for you. 3And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there you may be also.” Compare with: Matthew 28:20, “lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.” The question then becomes how he can be both “with us” and gone “preparing a place for us” at the same time. Another one like this is found in Matthew 18:20. “For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” How can he be in multiple places at the same time?

To make it even more confusing it seems from some scriptures that when he returns “every eye shall see him” and this despite the angels that were present when Jesus left in the cloud stating they should not stand there gazing into the sky… saying that he would come in like manner as you saw him leave Acts 1:11. Understand then, that only a few saw him leave, and that therefore only a few would see him return, as also implied by the thought that he would return “like a thief in the night” meaning quietly unobserved by the masses yet known to the watchers.

The point of these scriptures that talk about his coming, talk about the purpose of his coming, that is, he comes to set up his kingdom during which, when people see great changes taking place, they will eventually recognize that it is Jesus who has been changing the world. The world will not see him with their physical eyes the instant of his return: for if that were true, what would we do with the scripture in John 14:19, “Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me.” This scripture is a really big help to our understanding, because it states, “but you will see me.” We don’t see him with our physical eyes; we see him with the eyes of our understanding. When we look for him, we see him working in our lives, overruling so that we realize, Romans 8:28, “all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to his purpose.” Eventually “every eye will see him” again, not with their physical eyes, but with the eyes of their understanding as they learn of him.

Both physically and spiritually Jesus is in heaven, and he will still be there after his return, just like he is always at the right hand of the Father… Think more of his return as when he begins to do a different work than when he was “away.” The different work is well stated in Acts 15:14-16, “Simon has declared how God at the first did visit the Gentiles, to take out of them a people for his name. 15And to this agree the words of the prophets; as it is written, 16After this I will return, and will build again the tabernacle of David, which has fallen down; and I will build again the ruins thereof, and I will set it up.” This makes it clear then that he has returned (whatever that may mean to you), because we see the ruins of Israel being set up. This is a citation from Amos 9:11-15.

When Jesus said, “I go” and “I will come again” and “I am with you always”. The question becomes where he went and how is it that he is with us always… I believe the parable of the ten pounds helps us, Jesus states “A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom, and to return.” Again, the question becomes where did he go to receive that kingdom? I would suggest that it is the land of the gentiles. The nation of Israel rejected him therefore he went to the gentiles to do as he wanted to do while in Israel. This is also stated in Acts 15:14 “Simon has told us how God first visited the Gentiles to take from them a people to be His own.” Those Gentiles he selected from the Gentile lands became the kingdom he went to receive. And again, in the context of Acts 15 it even tells us who he returns to. He returns to the Jewish people in order to return them to their land and to reestablish them as a nation in preparation for not only their conversion but for the rest of the gentiles themselves to be fully converted and to accept the kingdom which he had taken from among them.

The Parable of the Fig Tree Matthew 24:32

When Jesus gave us the parable of the fig tree some feel that when it states, “So also, when you see all these things, you will know that He is near, right at the door.” They say, “see he is near”, not here. They say the same for the 7th stage of the church “Jesus stands at the door and knocks” and again in Luke 12:35-38 “Then you will be like servants waiting for their master to return from the wedding banquet, so that when he comes and knocks, they can open the door for him at once.” In all these cases all that is required is for the person to acknowledge the knock and to let him in for his arrival to take place. And what does he do on arrival in these cases? He provides a great meal. The meal is that of the wedding banquet being extended to those on this side of the veil that hides heaven itself. It is Jesus telling us that he is personally going to give you the understanding that he has arrived if you can receive it. Hebrews 5:14 “Strong meat belongs to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.”

2 Thessalonians 2:8 “and then shall be revealed the Lawless One, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the manifestation [manifestation Epiphania] of his presence [Parousia],”

Blessings to all of you who have eyes to see and ears to hear.

Jim Schucker

Email

Call: 808-754-8978

JimSchucker@revelation17.com

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