WHEN DOES CHRIST RETURN?
Part 1
Part 2
WHEN ARE THE “LAST DAYS”?
In previous parts of these essays, we
have discussed phrases such as “the end of all things” and “the time of the
end.” Many Christians believe that such phrases pertain to what the scriptures
call the last days. A reading of Acts 2:14-21, 1 Peter 1:20, and Hebrews 1:1-2,
show that the apostles Peter and Paul were teaching that the last days were
upon those they were speaking to at the time. Some who
teach that the last days are our days, contend that the last days have been
going on for the past two-thousand years and will continue to go on right up to
a yet future return of Christ. Is this a scripturally supportable position?
Let’s set the stage for this discussion by first looking at what Peter and Paul
said about the last days.
Acts 2:14-20: Then Peter stood up with
the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: ‘Fellow Jews and all of
you who live in
1 Peter 1:20: He was chosen before the
creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake.
Hebrews 1:1-2: In the past God spoke to
our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in
these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all
things, and through whom he made the universe.
Let’s continue by reviewing Paul’s first
letter to Timothy. In this letter, He warns Timothy about false teachers
bringing in false doctrines to the Christians at
While the problems that Paul speaks of
are still problems in the church today, to conclude that the “later times” is
also a present and a continuing phenomenon does not logically follow. In Paul’s
second letter to Timothy, he begins by encouraging Timothy to be faithful and
again warns against false teachers.
2 Timothy 3:1-5: But mark this: There
will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves,
lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents,
ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without
self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God,
having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them.
Paul is addressing Timothy and saying
that in the “last days” all these things will be going on and Paul admonishes
Timothy to have nothing to do with those who behave in this way. Again we find
Paul addressing a situation current to him and he is advising Timothy how best
to handle the situation. As always, context is the overriding dynamic that must
be considered when examining an issue in Scripture.
The last days are shown in the context of
Paul’s letter to be a time frame that Timothy was living in. Paul is not
addressing us; he is addressing the man Timothy who lived 2,000 years ago. To
stretch these “last days” thousands of years beyond the life of Timothy is
totally without justification.
As I have mentioned several times, the
last days spoken of in the New Testament are the last days of the Old Covenant
system, not the last days of time or planet earth. It is these
Old Covenant last days that Paul is dealing with in his letter to Timothy. Both
scriptural and secular histories attest to the spiritual corruption of those
living in
Paul is dealing with a specific time
frame of behavior referred to throughout the New Testament as the last time or
the last days. Paul is saying that during this time frame these spiritual
conditions will be extant. Paul is simply identifying what conditions would
exist in this specific time frame called the last days. This time frame is
associated with the transition from the Old Covenant system to the New Covenant
system. It encompasses the spiritual and sometimes physical battle that was
being waged between the adherents to the old system and the proponents of the
new system. While the behavior described for this time frame has continued to
one degree or another for the past 2,000 years, it is a real stretch to
postulate that the last days time frame itself has
been ongoing for 2,000 years. The apostle James speaks of the last days:
James 5:1-8: Now listen, you rich
people, weep and wail because of the misery that is coming upon you. Your
wealth has rotted, and moths have eaten your clothes. Your gold and silver are
corroded. Their corrosion will testify against you and eat your flesh like
fire. You have hoarded wealth in the last days. Look! The wages you failed to
pay the workmen who mowed your fields are crying out against you. The cries of
the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord Almighty. You have lived on
earth in luxury and self-indulgence. You have fattened yourselves in the day of
slaughter. You have condemned and murdered innocent men, who were not opposing
you. Be patient, then, brothers, until the Lord's
coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop and
how patient he is for the autumn and spring rains. You too, be patient and
stand firm, because the Lord's coming is near.
Notice how James ties in the last days
to the fact that the coming of the Lord is near. Here we have the time frame of
the last days tied into the time statement of when the return of Christ was to
take place. The brothers that James was addressing are not still alive exercising
patience and standing firm waiting for the Lord’s coming. The scriptural use of
the word near in the New Testament is discussed elsewhere in this book. Peter
addressed the issue of last things as well.
1 Peter 1:3-5: Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his
great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the
resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can
never perish, spoil or fade-kept in heaven for you, who through faith are
shielded by God's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be
revealed in the last time.” Peter goes on to say in verse 13, “Therefore,
prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the
grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed.
Peter is showing how salvation was not
yet fully available at his writing of this letter but that it would be revealed
in the last time and that grace would be given when Jesus Christ is revealed.
Think about this! If the last time is still future and Christ has not yet been
revealed, then grace and salvation have not yet been revealed and we are still
waiting for them to be revealed. This, however, is not the case.
Hebrews 9:24-28: For Christ did not enter
a man-made sanctuary that was only a copy of the true one; he entered heaven
itself, now to appear for us in God's presence. Nor did he enter heaven to
offer himself again and again, the way the high priest enters the Most Holy
Place every year with blood that is not his own. Then Christ would have had to
suffer many times since the creation of the world. But now he has appeared once
for all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself. Just as man is destined to die once, and after that
to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many
people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring
salvation to those who are waiting for him.
We see here that Christ was sacrificed once
to take away sins and would appear a second time to bring salvation. As this
passage shows, this was a fulfillment of what the High Priest did yearly to
facilitate atonement for the sins of the people. Like the passage in 1 Peter,
the writer is saying that Christ will appear to bring salvation to those
waiting for Him. This statement is directed to first-century Christians. These
Christians are not still waiting for Christ to bring salvation. Neither are present day Christians waiting for Christ to bring
salvation.
The granting of salvation was tied to
the transition of the Old Covenant system of death to the New Covenant system
of life. This transition was not complete until Christ returned in A.D. 70 to
wipe out the old system by facilitating the destruction of the temple and its
sacrificial system. The transition to the New Covenant system was a gradual
process that began with the ministry, death, resurrection and ascension of
Christ. This transition was completed through development of the New Testament
Church, and the return of Christ to rescue that Church from the Jewish/Roman
persecution. The return of Christ also brought salvation to the saints. The
physically living saints were resurrected from spiritual death unto spiritual
life. The dead saints were given spiritual residence and eternal life in the
heavenly realm. The whole focus of the New Testament narrative is on this
transition and the dynamics that surrounded it.
In addition to what Peter writes about
salvation being revealed at a yet future to them coming of Christ, other New
Testament writers speak in the same manner. In Romans 13:11, Paul says this:
“The hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation
is nearer now than when we first believed.” Paul is looking at salvation as a
yet-to-arrive event, but an event more near than when they first believed.
In his letter to the Philippian
Church, Paul says the following: “Therefore, my dear friends, as you have
always obeyed-not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence-continue
to work out your salvation with fear and trembling” (Philippians 2:12). Here
Paul is saying salvation is something they need to continue to work out, which
would indicate it was not yet there for the taking. As shown above, the writer
of the letter to the Hebrews makes this profound statement: “So Christ was
sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a
second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for
him” (Hebrews 9:28). Are the Jewish Christians that the writer is addressing
still waiting for this to happen? Here we see a very direct statement about
Christ bringing salvation with him at His second appearing. This appearing was
eagerly being anticipated by first-century Christians as other scriptures
clearly show.
If Christ’s second coming is still
future, then we are still waiting for salvation to be revealed. I don’t think
any Christian would accept that idea. Yet most Christians believe Christ’s
second appearing is future. The New Testament writers show clearly that the
full availability of salvation was tied to the full implementation of the New
Covenant, and the New Covenant was not fully established until the fall of
Ephesians
1:13-14: And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth,
the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a
seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance
until the redemption of those who are God's possession.
At the return of Christ in A.D. 70 this
down payment became full payment as eternal life now became resident within
them. This is when the full redemption of those who were God’s possession took
place. For those who had died in Christ, this was the time when they received
their eternal residence with Christ. For those that remained alive, they now
knew, because of the events of A.D. 70, that Christ had appeared and they had
received full salvation, which translates to resurrection from death unto life.
Those who remained alive also knew that when they died, they would continue
living in the heavenly realm with Christ.
Anticipating the coming of salvation
and the coming of the resurrection amounted to the same thing. It involved a
spiritual change. It involved the physically dead in Christ receiving salvation
and consequent resurrection to eternal life. For the Christians alive at the
return of Christ, it involved a spiritual change, a change in status before
God. A passing from death unto life. A change from mortality to immortality. A
spiritual entrance into the
For the first-century pre- A.D. 70
Christian, the hope of eternal life was just that, a hope. This hope did not
materialize until the return of Christ. These Christians did not completely
enter the Kingdom until the return of Christ. Paul clearly said flesh and blood
cannot inherit the
Therefore, our present day paradigm
should be different from that of the pre- A.D. 70 Christian. We don’t have to
hope for eternal life. The blessed hope that Paul speaks of is already a
reality for us. We don’t have to experience the same kind of struggles and
uncertainties about entering eternal life as we find the pre- A.D. 70
Christians dealing with. Our focus has to be on pleasing the one who has given
us eternal life, by responding to His grace and helping to grow the Kingdom
that He has given us. Our focus needs to be on living the law of love and
reflecting the love of Christ in our behavior toward others.
The conclusion to this matter is that
the last days are past. The New Testament last days were a specific time frame
relating to the transition from the Old to the New Covenant. This transition
facilitated the movement from death unto life. This transition facilitated the
establishment of the spiritual Kingdom and our ability to be reconciled to God
and to be given eternal life. As Paul said, “Death has been swallowed up in
victory” (1 Corinthians 15:54). Paul said that the sting of death is sin and
the power of sin is the law. The death and resurrection of Christ provide for
the forgiveness of sin and thus facilitate the removal of death. The victory
over death has been accomplished through the death, resurrection and return of
Christ. The return of Christ is as critical to this process as His death and
resurrection. The scriptures clearly show that the victory over death was not
complete until the complete removal of the Old Covenant system. This didn’t
happen until the destruction of the temple and the judgment upon
In Acts the third chapter, we see Peter
telling the Jews to repent and turn to God, so that their sins could be wiped
out when “times of refreshing” would come from the Lord at His return. Peter
speaks of God sending “the Christ who had been appointed for you.” Peter goes
on to say that Christ “must remain in heaven until the time comes for God to
restore everything, as He promised long ago through His holy prophets.” Peter then
explains that Christ is the prophet that Moses prophesied would come and it is
He that they are to listen to or be cut off (Acts 3:17-23). Here again we see
Christ being shown as the replacement for Moses. Once again we see the old
system being replaced by the new system. Are these Jew’s who Peter was
addressing still waiting for “times of refreshing” to come? Are they still
waiting for their sins to be wiped out? Peter said that Christ “must remain in
heaven until the time comes for God to restore everything.” Are these
first-century Jews still waiting for God to send the Christ that had been
appointed for them? It should be obvious that the return of Christ was an
anticipated event to occur in the lifetime of those being addressed by the
apostle Peter. As Peter had shown in his sermon recorded in the second chapter
of Acts, these were truly the last days when all that had been spoken by the
prophets would come to fulfillment.