SEPTEMBER 2000 NOVEMBER 2000 THE READING ROOM HOME .
OCTOBER 2000
Will Christ Set Foot On Earth Again?
(Kent Heaton)
We established last week that when Christ returns, He will come back for salvation. Hebrews 9:28 proves this point:
"So Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many. To those who eagerly wait for Him He will appear a second time, apart from sin, for salvation." In this verse, we see that Christ will return a second time and no place in the Bible mentions a third or fourth time Christ will return. Mr. Hays proves this point by his own argument on point 3 when he writes: "At the time that the Lord catches some up (rapture), will He come to earth? No. 1 Thess. 4:17. Those raptured meet the Lord in the air." Mr. Hays teaches correctly that 1 Thessalonians 4 shows that Christ will return but will not set foot on the earth.His teaching of the rapture from 1 Thessalonians 4 is a gross misuse of scripture as no rapture is mentioned. Read again the context of verses 13-18. What Paul writes is exactly what will happen when the Lord returns. This passage is the understanding of Hebrews 9:28 for the second coming of Christ. Jesus teaches that all will hear His voice in the last day -
"Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come forth -- those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation." (John 5:28,29)The next point Mr. Hays makes (#4) is asking: "Will the Lord come back to earth? Yes. Zech. 14:4: His feet shall stand ... upon the mount of Olives. Job 19:25: He shall stand upon the earth. Joel 3:12: He shall sit." He agreed that when Christ comes back (second time) that He will not set foot on the earth and now he says that Christ will set foot on the earth. This will have to be a third or fourth time for the return of Christ. Again Mr. Hays fails to find any passage that shows Christ returning more than the second time.
He quotes Zechariah 14:4 as proof that Christ will
"stand" upon the earth. Zechariah is not writing about some apocalyptic event in the year 2000 or 2001 or sometime in our future. Zechariah is writing about the destruction of Jerusalem. The "day of the Lord" is the day God brings judgment upon the Jewish nation. Similar passages are used in Isaiah when the Lord declares judgments upon Babylon (Isaiah 13), Damascus (Isaiah 17), Ethiopia (Isaiah 18), Egypt (Isaiah 19) and then Jerusalem in Zechariah 14.Zechariah 14:4 does not refer to the second (or third, fourth) coming of Christ but the siege of Jerusalem that was fulfilled in 70 AD when General Titus came against Jerusalem. Jesus did stand on the mount of Olives in Matthew 24 when he uttered the same fulfilling words for the doom of Jerusalem.
Mr. Hays use of Job 19:25 is an example of grasping at weak straws to find anything that would prove his assertion of Christ standing on the earth. Job 19 has nothing to do when Jesus Christ nor the second coming. If he wants to use scripture to prove his teaching, he should at least try to make some effort to use passages that have some bearing upon the subject. He failed miserably with Job 19.
The third passage he uses is Joel 3:12. Again, if a proper examination of the context would be put forth, the reader would find that Joel is not talking about the second (third, fourth) coming of Christ. This we can be assured of - not from my view or your view - but the view of the apostle Peter. To understand Joel 3 we only have to see what Peter said in Acts 2. The apostles obeyed the commands of Christ to tarry in Jerusalem and it was on the day of Pentecost they received the baptism of the Holy Spirit.
Peter proves in Acts 2:16-21 that what Joel was writing about happened on the day of Pentecost. He said,
"But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel," and then quotes Joel 2:28-32. (Acts 2:16) Peter said, "THIS" signifying what the people saw and heard is what Joel wrote about in his book. The context of Joel 3 as quoted by Mr. Hays is found in this same fulfillment in the first century. Next week - the battle of Armageddon.Will Jesus Fight When He Returns?
(Kent Heaton)
One of the most sensational aspects of premillennialism is the expectation of the battle of Armageddon. No one part of the teaching of the rapture, the tribulation, the reign of Christ or final days of the world has as much interest as what will happen in the great battle waged by the Lord against the anti-Christ. Mr. Hays believes that when Jesus came to earth the first time, he did not fight but that when he comes back to earth, He will fight. The most interesting part of Mr. Hays response is that he again proves the doctrine of premillennialism to be false by his own arguments.
In point number five, he writes: "When the Lord came to earth the first time, did He fight? No (John 18:36)" If an honest person read John 18:36, they would find that Jesus answers the question of whether He will return to earth and fight. Jesus is standing before Pilate and Pilate said to Him,
"Are You the King of the Jews? Jesus answered him, 'Are you speaking for yourself about this, or did others tell you this about Me? Pilate answered, Am I a Jew? Your own nation and the chief priests have delivered You to me. What have You done?' Jesus answered, 'My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would fight, so that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now My kingdom is not from here.' Pilate therefore said to Him, 'Are You a king then?' Jesus answered, 'You say rightly that I am a king. For this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.''" (John 18:33-37)According to Jesus, He was born to be a King and by virtue of his rule, He would be King over a kingdom. Mr. Hays believes that when Jesus came to earth, He failed to set up His kingdom and instead created the church as a substitute for what He failed to establish. The reason Jesus must return to earth to fight is to set up the kingdom He failed to establish the first time He came. Why then did Jesus tell Pilate that if it was the will of God for Him to be a King on earth that His disciples would fight? Is there anything that God has not purposed and He has not brought about? The God that Mr. Hays believes in failed. The God I believe in did not fail! The God you must believe in is the God that did not fail!
John 6:15 shows that during the ministry of Christ, the people did want to make Him a King -
"Therefore when Jesus perceived that they were about to come and take Him by force to make Him king, He departed again to the mountain by Himself alone." Jesus did not come to establish an earthly kingdom. The disciples asked Jesus in Acts 1:6 if He was going to restore the kingdom of Israel. Jesus told them this was not the will of the Father but rather the kingdom was established on the day of Pentecost as seen in Acts 2. Paul said he was part of that kingdom in Colossians 1:13.When the Lord comes back to earth will He fight? Zechariah 14 and Revelation 19 do not speak of any war that Christ will fight when He returns the second time,
"without sin unto salvation." (Hebrews 9:28) Where does this leave the battle of Armageddon? The battle of Armageddon is not mentioned in Revelation 16. Armageddon is described as a gathering place but the great battle of the Lord is not mentioned until Revelation 19. This battle describes the judgment of Christ and His victory over sin and the world. This all takes place at the second (not a third, fourth or fifth) coming of Christ. (Matthew 25:31-46; John 5:28; Romans 2:5-13; 2 Corinthians 5:10,11; 2 Thessalonians 1:7-10; Revelation 20:11-5)Final Answers To Mr. Hays Response
(Kent Heaton)
Over the past few weeks, we have examined a number of the answers given by Mr. Hays regarding the rapture and the events surrounding the final days of mankind. We will conclude our response to his answers with a final examination of the passages he offers as proof of the rapture.
We have shown that the Bible never speaks of the coming of Christ more than two times. (Hebrews 9:28) We have shown that Christ will never set foot on the earth again and that when Christ returns, He will not fight to set up His Kingdom.
Mr. Hays writes that Christ did not set up a kingdom on Pentecost and no church was started on Pentecost. Mr. Hays has never read Acts 2. In Peter's sermon of Acts 2, Peter proves that Jesus is the Christ and that the promise was made to David of old to
"raise up the Christ to sit on his (David's) throne." (Acts 2:30) Peter proves that God fulfilled this promise in Acts 2:31-36. Further, Luke records these words in Acts 2:47, "praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the CHURCH daily those who were being saved." Mr. Hays said that Acts 2 does not show the beginning of the church but God was adding to the church those who were being saved on this day.Mr. Hays said that the Lord will build again the tabernacle of David and use the very ruins of the old tabernacle of David to rebuild. This is one of the most flagrant misuse of scripture in Mr. Hays' response. If one reads Acts 15, it will be clearly shown that James explains the prophetic passage of Amos 9:11,12 as the fulfillment of the Gentiles receiving the gospel of Christ. Notice especially the text of Acts 15:6-12 before James speaks. Then notice the conclusion following James declaration of the fulfillment of Amos 9 in Acts 15:22ff.
In point number 18 of Mr. Hays' response, he makes the following statement: "Can Christ be a priest on earth: Yes. Psalm 110:4. The Lord hath sworn, and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek. (Reassured in Heb. 7:17).." I wonder if Mr. Hays has ever read Hebrews 8:4 -
"FOR IF HE WERE ON EARTH, HE WOULD NOT BE A PRIEST, since there are priests who offer the gifts according to the law." Christ cannot be a priest on earth nor can He prosper on the literal throne of David. Please read Jeremiah 22:28-30 and then note the lineage of Jesus in Matthew 1:11.The Lord is coming back but it is for salvation. There will be no rapture, no millennial reign of Christ, no battle of Armageddon, no literal kingdom of Israel in Jerusalem, no tribulation, no tabernacle rebuilt and no one to question the scriptures of God. All the false doctrines of the rapture and premillenialism will be washed away in the coming of the Lord.
What Paul wrote in 1 Thessalonians 4 still stands as a warning of the last days. This will happen when the Lord comes back a second and FINAL time:
"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 will by no means precede those who are asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will 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." (1 Thessalonians 4:15-17)Are you ready for that day? Deny men and follow Christ. Deny the false teachers of the rapture and premillennialism and follow the blessed hope of the coming of the Lord. (2 Peter 3)
Prayer Cannot Be Taken Out Of School
(Kent Heaton)
The U. S. Supreme Court ruled this year that public schools cannot allow prayer before high school football games. The concern over the impact that civil government and the legal bodies that determine laws under which we must live is growing more and more each day. In a country that was founded upon the national motto, "In God We Trust," we find more and more the hearts and minds of its citizens destroying the trust that made this country great. Unless the tide is turned, these trends will continue until we - like the empires before us - we be destroyed from the inside.
How serious is this mandate from the U. S. Supreme Court? It chips away at the freedoms that we have embraced for nearly two hundred years but we must realize that the U. S. Supreme Court cannot take away our right to pray. People have worried about the government taking away prayer in school. When did the government or anyone have the power to take prayer out of school? Prayer is a relationship shared by God's children with their Father. It is not a public act that is to be understood only as an action of the outward man. Jesus describes the relationship of prayer in Matthew 6:5-6,
"And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly."How can the Supreme Court take away what the Supreme Being has given to His children? Jesus tells us that we must
"Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's." (Matthew 22:21) "Caesar" is represented as civil government which is ordained by God. (Romans 13:1-7) Civil government can curb or even prohibit public prayer but they can never take away the spiritual relationship of prayer between a child and the Father.Prayer is in every school when Christian young men and young women talk to their Father. Prayer is in every work place when workers spend time communing with God. If a young person wants to pray before a football game, basketball game, volleyball game or before taking a test, no government or body of law can take that away. When an employee wants to thank God during the day for his job and various blessings given to him by God, no employer can take that away.
Daniel faced the greatest trial of his faith because of his prayer life. (Daniel 6) We would pray that this type of thing would not happen in our country but it most likely will one day. It will take men and women of faith to be able to stand - or kneel - for the Truth that is found in a proper relationship with God. What do we find Steven doing as they were stoning him to death?
"And they stoned Stephen as he was calling on God and saying, 'Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.' Then he knelt down and cried out with a loud voice, 'Lord, do not charge them with this sin.' And when he had said this, he fell asleep." (Acts 7:59,60) Even dying did not stop Steven from praying.Psalm 33:12 tells us,
"Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD." We have lost that in many ways in our country but every individual still has that power and that relationship to call upon the Father and seek His blessings. This - they can never take away. "Pray without ceasing." (1 Thessalonians 5:17) Pray in school young people! Christians - pray - whereever you want!