Posted on 07/12/2006 5:00:55 AM PDT by ohhhh
There is a difference between the way we deal with people on matters of indifference (adiphora), as in the verses from Paul you cited, and people who propagate error.
I'm talking about people who propagate error because of the poor way they interpret the Bible, especially the prophetic passages. They largely ignore the context and the original audience in favor of some fanciful, futurist view.
This is the one I wonder about... Jerusalem
Again, most of the OT verses about Jerusalem were fulfilled long ago when biblical Jerusalem actually existed. The entity today in the Middle East is not biblical Jerusalem. It has neither the cultus, nor the government, nor the ethical code, or biblical Jerusalem.
For example we have the prophecy of Jesus where He predicted the armies surrounding Jerusalem. This was all fulfilled in AD70 when the armies of Rome sacked Jerusalem and destroyed the Temple. There is no biblical reason to look for some future fulfillment.
The attention of the NT is entirely on the New Jerusalem. Cf. Hebrews 12:22; Rev. 21:2.
The kingdom of God has finally passed from the mere physical to the spiritual (Matthew 21:43).
People who read all those OT prophecies about Jerusalem and apply them to the modern city that happens to go by the name Jerusalem are missing the mark entirely.
there prophecy yet to be fulfilled in the OT like in
Zechariah 12
In the final great war, all nations shall be engaged at Jerusalem but the Lord shall defend his people—Then the Jews shall look upon Jesus whom they crucified, and there shall be great mourning.
Zechariah 13
The Jews shall gain forgiveness at the Second Coming—They shall ask Jesus: What are these wounds in thine hands?—The remnant, tried and refined, shall be his people.
Zechariah 14
At his Second Coming the Lord shall fight for Israel—His feet shall stand upon the Mount of Olives—He shall be King over all the earth—Plagues shall destroy the wicked.
That's your opinion. The fact is that concepts like "second coming" are not explicitly in any of those chapters. Some folks have interpreted them that way, but that is only one option and not very conclusive.
In fact there is some fine exegetical work done by scholars over the years to suggest just the opposite; that they really refer to Christ's first coming when the prophetic language is correctly understood.
There's ample scripture in the new testament that shows that Christ will indeed return, a second coming. Why would you discount the fact that old testament prophets foresaw it?
I don't discount it, but neither do I accept it based on faulty interpretation.
You would need to demonstrate 1) that there is such a distinction clearly taught in the OT, and then 2) on a case by case basis, show how a prophecy is consigned to one or the other (or both).
My point is that such a notion is not as obvious as some folks make it out to be. They think it's enough to just quote a verse or two and say, "See, there it is." They usually do this while ignoring things like context, audience, historical background, and the NT interpretation of the OT.
It would be a good study to see if it could be proven. I'm suspecting it could be based on something I remember reading about the timeframe of one of Daniels prophecies. Do you believe that the NT teaches that Christ will return?
Absolutely. At Christ's return, the living and the death will be judged. This means that all the dead, both righteous and unrighteous, will be resurrected (Acts 24:15). And all the living, both righteous and unrighteous, will be "translated" (1 Cor 15:51ff).
Everyone will stand before the judgment seat of Christ, aka the great white throne judgment. Matt. 25:31ff and Rev. 20:11ff describe this event.
After the judgment, the righteous will enter the eternal state of the kingdom, aka, the new Jerusalem (1 Cor. 15:24; Rev. 21).
The unrigheous will be consigned to the lake of fire forever.
Do you believe that by Jesus that some have already been resurrected?
There has been a spiritual resurrection of many ongoing throughout the ages. These are the righteous ones. Jesus said, "Most assuredly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God; and those who hear will live." (John 5:25)
There will be a physical resurrection of all men at the end when Jesus returns. "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)
Let me also add that Jesus did raise people from the dead in His day (Lazarus being one example). However, there seems to be a difference between these resurrections (really resuscitations), and the physical resurrection of the last day. As far as we can tell the body of Lazarus was not physically changed from mortal to immortality, and he later died. Jesus' own resurrection was a preview of our resurrection at the last day (cf. 1 Cor. 15).
Amen
I'm still trying to figure out the "Twelfth of Never".
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