What if the second coming really were in AD 70?
by Steve Atkerson
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What if the actual second coming of Jesus happened back in AD 70 when the Jewish temple was destroyed by the Roman armies? The implications of this would be staggering, and would truly affect everything. Among other things, it would mean that:
Just as the Jews missed the first coming of Jesus, the church missed His second coming. It would demand the conclusion that the church at large has failed to recognize the single most trumpeted and important event prophesied in the entire Bible: the second coming. The implications are that the church has been wrong about the second coming of Christ for some 2,000 years, and that the crushing majority of all true and sincere Christians who have ever studied the Bible were in error regarding the second coming. Evidently, no known person throughout all history realized this truth about the second coming until James Stuart Russell, who subsequently announced it with the 1878 publication of his book, The Parousia: A Critical Inquiry into the New Testament Doctrine of Our Lords Second Coming. In contrast, Augustine, Athanasius, Thomas Aquinus, John Huss, Martin Luther, John Calvin, William Tyndale, Isaac Newton, John Wycliffe, Jacob Arminius, Philip Melancthon, Ulrich Zwingly, Jonathan Edwards, John Knox, John Wesley, George Whitefield, Charles Spurgeon, et al failed to comprehend it. Further, even those alleged to have been trained by the original apostles failed to understand the truth about the second coming. None of the early church fathers recognized the AD 70 event as the actual second coming (though they did see it as a judgment coming). Further, the earliest post-AD 70 Christian writings, no matter who the authors were, all inexplicably still express belief in a future return of Jesus. It also means that all the creeds and confessions ever written (whether by Eastern Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Protestant, Anabaptist or Charismatic) are all in error regarding a future, bodily second coming of Jesus. This naturally leads one to wonder what else the church has been wrong about: the Trinity? The Deity of Christ? The number of books that are supposed to be in the Bible? Justification by faith? The virgin birth? The authority of the Bible? Creationism? Inerrancy?
The second coming of Jesus was almost certainly not a bodily coming, but rather was invisible. No one actually saw Jesus at His coming, nor ever will again see Him on this earth. Such Biblical statements to the effect that Jesus would appear a second time or that He would return in just the way he left, or that the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout are purely metaphysical.
The Last Supper is no longer Jesus' last supper! Rather, Jesus has already come back and eaten again the Lord's Supper with His church. The marriage supper of the lamb has taken place, and was not a literal banquet. Further, since the church was only to eat of it "until He comes," there may no longer be any need to celebrate the Lord's Supper in our present dispensation.
The general resurrection of the dead is an already past event, and it, too, was invisible. The reason that ancient physical corpses are still in their tombs, and always will remain there, is because the dead were not technically resurrected at the second coming, but instead re-embodied and given glorified bodies like Jesus'.
Satan and his demons are presently and permanently in the lake of fire (hell). Thus, there is no more need for spiritual warfare, no more worries over the devil roaming about like roaring lion seeking someone to devour, no more fear of Satanic deception. Ephesians 6:10ff is now out of date and we can safely take off the full armor of God. There is no need to stand against the devil's schemes. We no longer struggle against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. The evil one no longer has flaming arrows so there is no need for the shield of faith. Satan no longer masquerades as an angel of light, 2Co 11:13. Those put out of the church for unrepented of sin are no longer dealt with by the devil, 1Co 5:5, 1Ti 1:20. Any reported cases of demon possession from the mission field are to be rejected out of hand as false. All of the evil that has pervaded our world over the centuries (the war, the murder, the rape, the theft, communism, Islam, the Inquisition, etc.) is purely the result of human sin, with no added influence from Satan
The physical curses of Genesis 3 will never be reversed: sickness and physical death will always be with us, women will always have pain in childbearing, wives will always be tempted to usurp authority over their husbands, and thorns will always infest the ground. The physical creation will never be released from its bondage to decay. The paradise of Eden will forever remain a wistful memory, relegated to ancient history.
The Great White Throne Judgement is a past event. All the dead from past ages have been assembled before Him and judged. The nations have already been gathered together and sorted, sheep from goats. This all was an out of this world experience, with no visible effect here on earth. Whatever the impact of the second coming and the white throne judgment, sin will never be eradicated from here on the planet, but things will go on in fashion similar to the way they do now, until the sun finally burns out and the earth freezes over.
The church age is already over, having ended in AD 70 with the second coming. We are now in the new heaven and the new earth as described in Revelation 21-22. Such Biblical prophecies as lions lying down with lambs, swords being beaten into plough shares, or the peace of Christ reigning over the whole earth, are all figurative statements that will never literally be fulfilled.. (Perhaps the baptism of new believers is now unnecessary also, the watery sign being relegated to the former church age, as obsolete now as circumcision.)
The millennium only lasted 40 years, from AD 30 to AD 70. Not only are those mistaken who teach a literal 1,000 year millennium, but so too is everyone who understands it to refer to an indefinite long period of time. In reality, it was a very short time span (only 40 years)! Thus, while those time statements regarding the near return of Christ were literal, this time statement regarding the duration of His reign was completely misleading.
No one who actually lived through the second coming wrote anything about it. The attacking Romans made no chronicle of it. The besieged Jews in Jerusalem wrote nothing of it. Even first-century Christians failed to record it. Or, if something was written, it has not survived. Plenty was written about the Roman siege of Jerusalem, but no one who wrote about it recognized it as the Second coming of Jesus.
God gave the Hebrew Scriptures to guide His people during the time the law of Moses was in effect, and the Greek Scriptures to guide them during the church age. However, He evidently has given us nothing to guide us now that the Perfect has come, now that we no longer see in a glass darkly, now that the church age and millenniums have ended. Perhaps the New Testament is as obsolete to us now as the Old Testament was once the New Covenant was made?
There is no longer any place for hope, for the second coming has been realized: "And not only this, but also we ourselves, having the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body For in hope we have been saved, but hope that is seen is not hope; for why does one also hope for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we wait eagerly for it" (Ro 8:23-25). Further, our adoption as sons is evidently complete and our bodies already redeemed. Whatever the groaning within was that Paul wrote about, so we how have no reason to groan about the same thing, since our bodies have been redeemed?
Paul wrote, "I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us" (Ro 8:18). If the second coming was in AD 70, this would mean that the terrible pre-AD 70 sufferings of the early church are not worth comparing to the glory that is now, presently, at this very moment, revealed in the church.
Jesus has already returned from heaven and has restored everything there was to be restored: "Repent therefore and return, that your sins may be wiped away, in order that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord; and that He may send Jesus, the Christ appointed for you, whom heaven must receive until the period of restoration of all things about which God spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets from ancient time" (Ac 3:19-21). We are now living in a world that is as restored as it is going to get.
The creation itself has been liberated from its bondage to decay: "For the creation was subjected to futility, not of its own will, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now" (Ro 8:21-22). Since there is still death, blight, and destruction in nature and since the animal world is still ruled by the savage law of tooth and claw, the promise of Romans 8:21-22 must either have been metaphorical or else not referring to the natural creation at all. Perhaps it is some sort of reference to spiritual Israel?
oAll things hidden in darkness are now illuminated and the motives of men's hearts have been revealed: "Therefore do not go on passing judgment before the time, but wait until the Lord comes who will both bring to light the things hidden in the darkness and disclose the motives of men's hearts; and then each man's praise will come to him from God" (1Co 4:5). Exactly how this is a present reality is unclear, and especially how it should apply to the church discipline process.
oMany spiritual gifts have ceased since the perfect has come: "Love never fails; but if there are gifts of prophecy, they will be done away; if there are tongues, they will cease; if there is knowledge, it will be done away. For we know in part, and we prophesy in part; but when the perfect comes, the partial will be done away" (1Co 13:8-10). This would almost certainly lead to the conclusion that any alleged charismatically gifted persons are in actuality self-deceived.
We no longer see in a dim mirror, but now face to face: "For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I shall know fully just as I also have been fully known" (1Co 13:12). Since we no longer know in part, but know fully, it is a mystery why some in the church still have a faulty understanding of Jesus and of spiritual things. It is also enigmatic how the church failed to know fully about the true nature of the second coming in AD 70.
All living believers have somehow been "changed" and have put on immortality (even though pre-AD 70 people were not visibly different from post-AD 70 people). Death is already swallowed up in victory (even though people still die physically): "Behold, I tell you a mystery; we shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. For this perishable must put on the imperishable, and this mortal must put on immortality. But when this perishable will have put on the imperishable, and this mortal will have put on immortality, then will come about the saying that is written, "Death is swallowed up in victory. 'O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?'" (1Co 15:51-55).
The end has apparently come and Christ has handed the kingdom over to the Father and is no longer ruling: "then comes the end, when He delivers up the kingdom to the God and Father, when He has abolished all rule and all authority and power" (1Co 15:24).
It is possible that believers are no longer indwelt by the Holy Spirit since He was given as a deposit until the second coming: "In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation-- having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God's own possession, to the praise of His glory" (Ep 1:13-14). The deposit of the Holy Spirit may now be gone now since the redemption of God has occurred.
The good work began in us has been completed: "For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus" (Phlp 1:6). Evidently, our present state can be summed up by the old beer advertisement showing a small group of contented men relaxing, each with a beer, as the announcer sonorously declared, "It doesn't get any better than this."
There is no reason to pray the prayer of Philippians 1:9-10 any longer since the day of Christ Jesus has already come: "And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in real knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve the things that are excellent, in order to be sincere and blameless until the day of Christ." We now are fully able to discern and are now pure and blameless. Given that this is the case, one wonders why the church, for nearly 2,000 years, was unable to fully discern that the second coming had already occurred.
We no longer eagerly await a Savior from heaven. And, somehow (mystically?), Jesus already has transformed our lowly bodies to be like his glorious body: "For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ; who will transform the body of our humble state into conformity with the body of His glory, by the exertion of the power that He has even to subject all things to Himself" (Phlp 3:21-21).
Those living in AD 70 were caught up together with the resurrected dead in the clouds, meeting the Lord in the air, and went to be with him forever. Since this did not seem to literally happen in AD 70, such promises were evidently spiritual, invisible, and other-worldly: "For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive, and remain until the coming of the Lord, shall not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet of God; and the dead in Christ shall rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and thus we shall always be with the Lord" (1Th 4:15-17)
"Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ" (1Th 5:23). How any blame was made manifest or what the consequences of it were, are not evident. Some sort of judgment of believers occurred in AD 70 when Jesus came (the judgment seat of Christ?). Paul hoped the Thessalonians would be found blameless; whether the passed the test or not was not made public.
2 Thessalonians 1:6-10 seems to promise that at the 2nd coming, there will be universal relief from persecution: "For after all it is only just for God to repay with affliction those who afflict you, and to give relief to you who are afflicted and to us as well when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with His mighty angels in flaming fire, dealing out retribution to those who do not know God and to those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. And these will pay the penalty of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power, when He comes to be glorified in His saints on that day, and to be marveled at among all who have believed- for our testimony to you was believed." Also compare 1 Peter 1:3-9. It is true that the main persecutors of the early church were the unbelieving Jews, and that this persecution effectively ceased with the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70. However, the church was next persecuted by the Romans themselves, and of course since then by countless other evil men, such as the Muslims and the Communists. It is odd that the second coming did not put an end to all persecution, which is what is implied in 2 Thessalonians 1:6-10. In fact, persecutions since the second coming have been much more prolonged and intense than that which happened prior to AD 70.
Many important charges made to Timothy and Titus had the second coming in view as impetus for fervency. What is the order of the day now that the second coming has taken place? For instance: "keep the commandment without stain or reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ" (1Ti 6:14), "I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction" (2Ti 4:1-2), "For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus" (Tit 2:13).
James 5:7 encouraged, "Be patient, therefore, brethren, until the coming of the Lord." Now that the Lord has come, why are some still tempted to be impatient?
Based on Peter's writings, there is no longer any need to pay attention to prophetic words: "And so we have the prophetic word made more sure, to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts" (2Pe 1:19).
Like nearly everything else related to the second coming, 2 Peter 3:10-13 is not to be taken literally: "But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up. Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, on account of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning, and the elements will melt with intense heat! But according to His promise we are looking for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells."
We are now like Jesus, and are able to see Him just as He is: "Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we shall be. We know that, when He appears, we shall be like Him, because we shall see Him just as He is" (1Jn 3:2).
As can be sensed from the above, if the second coming consisted of the AD 70 destruction of Jerusalem, then virtually nothing in the Bible is as it appears to be regarding the return of Jesus. Nearly every statement regarding the second coming must be spiritualized. Frankly, the situation would be much the same as with the Jehovah's Witnesses who boldly set a date for the second coming and, after Jesus failed to materialize on that date, proclaimed that He really did come but that it was a spiritual coming or that He came down only part way and it was thus invisible.
In essence, if the second coming really was in AD 70, then virtually nothing in the Bible regarding the second coming is to be taken literally.
Did Jesus return personally, in bodily form? No.
Did the Lord Himself actually descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of archangel and trumpet blast? No.
Was the second coming actually as visible as lightning flashing from the east to the west? No.
Did the dead physically come out of their graves? No.
Was there a literal marriage banquet of the Lamb? No.
Was the curse on the created order reversed? No.
Will the lion ever lay down with the lamb and swords be beaten into plough shares? No.
Will there ever be a final judgment on evil and an end to sin on earth? No.
Did the living saints rapture off the face of the earth and obtain glorified bodies at the second coming? No.
Has the historic church of the past centuries, indwelt by the Holy Spirit, correctly taught about and understood the second coming as future, bodily event? No.
So-called full preterism represents a radical departure from the historic Christian faith. It clearly is outside the bounds of orthodox belief (as established by every creed or confession that has been written over the past two thousand years). Thus, some have termed it unorthodox preterism or even heretical preterism. Paul left Timothy behind in Ephesus so that he could "instruct certain men not to teach strange doctrines" (1Ti 1:3). This would seem to qualify as just that. One of the strange doctrines Paul went on to catalog for Timothy was the false teaching that the resurrection of the dead had already taken place (2Ti 2:18). This is exactly what full preterism teaches.
12/10/04