When Jesus ascended to heaven, two angels told the disciples, "Men of Galilee, why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven." See Acts 1:11.
In Acts 7 Deacon Stephen saw heaven open and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. This seems to have been a brief glimpse from one realm into another. Later, on the road to Damascus Jesus appeared to Saul as a light and spoke audibly to him. See Acts 9. Finally, the apostle John also saw the glorified Christ, but by his own admission he was "in the spirit", Revelation 1:10. In other words he was praying and had some type of spiritual vision or out of body experience. And in that experience Jesus appeared to him in several different forms.
Other scriptures talk about seeing Jesus again. Matthew 24:27 says, "For as lightning that comes from the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man." I Thessalonians 4:13-18 says that when Jesus comes back all the dead Christians' bodies will rise.
Now here's the what do you think part. Do you think that it is possible for Jesus-in bodily form-to visit people here on earth in these days? Would such an occurence contradict scripture? And for those of you who want to think even deeper, if you accept that Jesus can, in fact, visit people bodily-does that lend credence to the preterist view of prophecy?
4 comments:
Can you explain the preterist view for me...I don't remember anything about it.
As for Jesus showing Himself bodily now...I'm all for it! To me, it wouldn't have anything to do with what the angels said in Acts 1 b/c that will happen someday, for the whole world to see.
Until then, I think He is willing to show Himself in whatever way will best connect with His creation. Maybe even as an African-American woman named Papa. :)
Of course, I don't really know this preterist view so all this may change after further dialogue.
Just some thoughts...good question!
I don't know the preterist view in great detail. Essentially, it is the belief that prophecies about Christ's return were fulfilled by 70 AD and that the Kingdom of God is right now, not some future millenial Kingdom.
The question I'm really interested in is what you said about Christ coming for the whole world to see. You don't think that was an exclusive statement? In other words, you think that Jesus can come back whenever he wants but there will eventually be a time when everyone will see him come back? You don't think that contradicts what the angels said in Acts 1?
If that is what you think, why did Jesus have to go away for the Father to send the Holy Spirit? Why do we need the Holy Spirit if Jesus can come back to us at any time?
Oh, I remember hearing about His return in 70 AD or somewhere around that time.
As for the Kingdom of God, Jesus talked about it being "at hand" when He was walking around. I'm thinking that believers are living in the Kingdom of God at salvation, it's a spiritual kingdom, where our true citizenship lies, and therefore our realest reality.
I guess Acts 1 could have been an exclusive statement. However, it seems like we (by "we" I mean humans) have been thinking that each generation was in the end times. We've so easily attached physical circumstances to what we think is supposed to happen in the future.
Didn't the early Christians believe He was coming back sooner than later, and thus lived in that urgency?
What would be wrong in stating that He could come back for all the world to see?
A thought just ran across my mind here. What if what the dudes in white were talking about already happened...it was just not what they were thinking?
What if this "same way" thing was revealing how the Spirit would come, as the Spirit is the Spirit of Christ in us.
The Spirit came from Heaven in a wind, Jesus ascended in the sky and a disappeared through the clouds. Maybe we've been looking around for a cloud to bring Jesus back down, when all along the message has been for us to see that the Kingdom of God already is, in each of us who believes and He desires to share that with the world through us?
This may be all WAY off base as I wrote down the thoughts as soon as they entered my mind. I'd love to hear your thoughts.
I'll have to think more about your last two questions and get back with you on those.
Okay, let's set aside the preterist idea for now. I agree with you that Christians are living in the Kingdom of God.
I have never thought that the angels might have been referring to pentecost. I really feel like they were talking about Jesus, the Son, coming back to end time and judge the world. So, your idea is totally new to me. I'll have to think about it a little.
Thanks for the ideas. Be back later.
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