You are right that many have made similar claims throughout history. Are you aware that many of those claims took place when there wasn't even a nation called Israel on the planet? The fact that Israel even exists is in fact a part of the end day prophesies fulfillment.
But if your crowd are right about this, shouldn't something have happened by 1988? What was all the "this generation" stuff about? Of course it's hard to believe the end-times crowd takes Matthew 24 all that seriously anyway, since it seems clear to me that Jesus was talking about the generation to whom he was speaking, i.e. his disciples and the crowd around him.
I'm evidently not a part of the crowd you think. I still believe we don't know the day or the hour or even the year decade or century. I do believe certain things are taking place now that were talked about thousands of years ago. So I do think we are in end times. And I do agree that it's easy to place too much significance on that, as if the second coming is imminent. Still, ignoring this isn't prudent either.
I can't predict when the end will come, but I can point to the fact that certain conditions need to align according to prophecy.
"Fact?" No. Show me one such "fact" that doesn't depend on granting your prophetic framework as a foundational assumption.
I believe that Israel has to exist in the end days. So to my way of thinking the official re-establishment of Israel in 1948, was crucial.
"Every eye shall seem him come in the clouds of Glory." Paraphrased. Was this possible even twenty years ago, even ten?
You think God depends on modern technology for this? Besides, what did He mean by "every eye?" How would his immediate listeners have understood what he said?
I suppose all things are possible for God, but I don't believe he would be opposed to people seeing Him on the television to fulfill this prophesy. It would be pretty hard for a person on the exact opposit of the planet from His arrival to see Him in the clouds with glory.
And yet, a people who should have been ready, denied him. Are you so sure you aren't doing the same thing right now?
You'll see the humor in that question once you know what I believe. Are you so sure that you aren't doing what you're asking about? Because I think you are, and I think most Christians have been doing exactly that for hundreds of years, just like the most of the Jews in the first century did to His face. His first "coming" was not what the Jews of that time expected, and His second coming was not what you think it was to be.
Well, that's interesting, but I'll be honest with you and state I have no idea what the basis is for that claim. My Bible says Jesus will not set foot on this earth when He returns the second time to take the rightious away with him.
Because the prophecies addressing Gog and Megog are total hogwash?
Not at all - it's because I think they're true, and have been fulfilled.
Do you think they were fulfilled in ancient times?
I would be the last one to ask you to take what I say as the Gospel, but I do think you need to ask yourself what the Gospel is, and consider these matters for yourself. And what does it harm folks, to discuss these matters at times like this? Is our salvation and what we believe something we shouldn't discuss on this forum in time of global upheavel?
I've spent a great deal of time considering these matters over the last couple of decades. I don't have a problem with discussing it; I just think putting it in Breaking News was a little silly. Apparently the mods eventually agreed.
Okay, but I'm still not quite sure why folks prevailed upon the mods to get them to agree. I'm not convinced this needed to be in Breaking News, so I don't really have a ax to grind on that issue, still what was the catastrophe of this being listed in Breaking News? I don't monitor Breaking News and get worked up if something slips in that shouldn't be there, yet that's not particularly my argument, but relegating it to a certain section of FR seems a bit much to me as well.
I say this as a person who finds the prayer threads here almost intolerable, as I find prayer to be an individual or physically present group participation endeavor.
I'm with you on that one, though I don't begrudge them to people who find it meaningful, I guess.
And I don't either. It's somewhat alien to me, but as you say, I don't begrudge it I guess.
So I'm not exactly the run out and go rah rah rah, ree ree ree, every time folks turn to God on this forum. I still believe in Him, the God of Abraham. I try to listen when things pertaining to Him come up.
That's mostly the approach I try to take, although obviously you and I have some different theological perspectives.
I'd be surprised if we didn't. I'll have to admit to being somewhat intrigued by your beliefs in light of your comments.
NONSENSE.
1. RUSSIA HAS NEVER YET DESCENDED ON ISRAEL AS DESCRIBED--MUCH LESS WITH THE COALITION DESCRIBED BUT NOW BUILDING IN THE DAILY NEWS HEADLINES.
2. ISRAEL WAS NOT BROUGHT BACK FROM THE DISPERSAL AFTER CHRIST'S CRUCIFIXION IN 70 AD.
3. SOME ASSERT THAT THE GENERATION BEGAN WITH
B) OTHERS WITH ISRAEL REGAINING ALL JERUSALEM IN 1967.
Either way works, for me. I believe it is also, technically, legally, like the bloke who saw Baby Jesus going into the Temple for dedication just before the old man graduated from this life. As long as one person is alive to see the bulk of the prophecies fulfilled who was also alive when Israel became a nation again in 1948 or Jerusalem recaptured in 1967, then that Scripture will be accurately fulfilled. Given folks living beyond 100, 2067-2077 could easily be the upper boundary on that time.
This business of irrationally shoehorning everything into 70AD is one of the most absurd things I've encountered in my entire 63 years of life.
There's not a shred of Scriptural support for it.
There's not a shred of rational, logical support for it.
There's not a shred of UNRUBBERIZED HISTORICAL support for it.
There's not a shred of dictionary support for it.
There's not a shred of linguistic support for it from any of the historical records.
As far as I can tell, the nicest thing I can say about it is that it's a delusional doctrine from hell.