WHEN WILL JESUS' "SECOND COMING" WILL TAKE PLACE?

THE FUNDAMENTALIST POSITION

One of the five “fundamentals” affirmed in the twelve—volume work entitled “The Fundamentals” published in 1909 is the belief in the imminent second coming of Jesus Christ. The second coming of Christ will signal the end of the world. That is why the imminent end of the world is one of the prominent themes in the preaching of fundamentalists. They base their belief in what is called the “eschatological” discourse of Jesus (Mk ch.13, Mt ch.24, Lk ch.21).

 

THE CATHOLIC POSITION

The Catholic position concerning the time of the “second coming” of Jesus and of the end of the world may be expressed in 3 statements.

 

I. JESUS WILL COME AGAIN

That Jesus will “come again to judge the living and dead” is one of the primary truths of the Catholic Faith. Catholics confess this truth every time they profess the Nicene—Constantinople Creed or the shorter Apostles’ Creed during the eucharistic celebration.

 

2. BUT WE DO NOT KNOW WHEN JESUS WILL COME

2.1. No precise date is given by Jesus in the Gospels

Fundamentalists claim that Jesus’ coming is imminent, that it is close at hand, round the corner; it will take place soon. They claim that this doctrine is taught in the New Testament, especially in the eschatological discourse (discourse on the end) of Jesus. Let us, therefore, turn to the eschatological discourse and see whether in this discourse Jesus really did teach that the end of the world is imminent.

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Let us study the discourse as in the Gospel according to Mark.

(1) The discourse is a very complex one written in the apocalyptic literary form. To unravel its message, we must recognize that in the discourse Jesus alternates between r speaking of the end of the world and the end of Jerusalem.

(a) 13:1—4: Introduction; (b) 13:5—13: end of the world.

(c) 13:14—23: end of Jerusalem; (d) 13:24—27: end of the world; (e) 13:28—31: end of Jerusalem; (f) 13:32—36: end of the world; (g) 13:37: Conclusion.

 

(2) In the passages on the end of the world, Jesus states that no one knows when the end will take place, not even he himself; this is something known only to the Father. “But of that day or that hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father” (Mk 13:32), same saying is found in Mt 24:36. Since Jesus says that he himself does not know the date, it is reasonable to conclude that he leaves no room for further useless questions from his disciples.

 

(3) But Mk 13:30 says, “Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away before all these things take place.” Does this verse not speak of an imminent end? No.

(a) The verse appears in the passage on the end of Jerusalem and not on the end of the world. Truly, some of those who were listening to Jesus would be present when Jerusalem was destroyed in A.D.70.

(b) The verse cannot refer to the end of the world, be cause if it did then Jesus’ words would be proved false, For the end of the world has not taken place till now, and that generation is long dead.

 

2.2 The “signs of the end” 

Fundamentalists consistently refer to certain “signs” that they find in the New Testament which they claim will announce or precede the end of the world. They find these “signs” not only in the eschatological discourse of Jesus but also in other texts of the New Testament,

 

(1) What are the signs of the end?

(a) In the eschatological discourse:

* Wars and rumors of wars (Mk 13:7; Mt 24:6—7).

* Earthquakes and famines (Mk 13:8).

* Social disintegration (Mt 13:12; Mt 24:10).

* Persecution of Christians (Mk 13:9—13; Mt 24:9—13).

* Cosmic upheavals (Mk 13:24—25; Mt 24:29).

(b) In other texts of the New Testament:

* The preaching of the Gospel in the whole world (Mk 13:10; Mt 24:14).

* The conversion of the nations and of the Jewish people (Rom 11:25—26).

* The coming of the Antichrist and the departing from the true Faith (2 Thes 2:1—12).

 

(2) Are the signs reliable indicators of the end of the world? Obviously not.

(a) The signs mentioned in the eschatological discourse have been present in every century since the time of Jesus: wars, social disintegration, cosmic upheavals, resistance to the Gospel (anti-Christ), defections from the Faith.

(b) The rest of the signs refer to a future that seems a long, long way off:

* The preaching of the Gospel in the whole world: if we go by this sign, the end of the world is certainly not imminent, for if look at the present situation, a large portion of humans have not heard the Gospel.

* The conversion of the nations and of the Jewish people: if this is a sign, then the end will certainly not take place in our lifetime, for there is no evidence of a world-wide turning to Jesus Christ.

* The coming of the Antichrist and the departing from the true Faith: this sign is not special of our times, those who have opposed Christ and have abandoned the true Faith have, existed in all generations, as even a cursory reading of Church history will reveal.

 

2.3. Predictions of the end so far have proven false

After the ascension of Jesus Christ, Christians in every generation and century have expected in vain the imminent second coming of Jesus Christ and the end of the world,

 

(1) In the first century

Christians, like Paul, believed that the second coming of Christ and the end of the world would take place during their lifetime. The letters of Paul to the Thessalonians clearly bears witness to this belief. In 1 Thessalonians written in A.D.52, Paul shared this apparently common belief (1 Thes 4:15). But his later letters reveal that he became reconciled to the fact that the second coming of Christ and the end of the world was not as imminent as he had previously thought! (1 Cor 15:23—24; Phil 3:20).

 

(2) Since the first century till today

Again and again in the history of the Church, there have arisen preachers/teachers who have announced the end of the world based on the “signs” which they found in the New Testament. And again and again, every one of such predictions has proved false.

 

(a) Such predictions are the common themes of Christian fundamentalists in their preaching and in their writing.

(b) Such predictions are the common themes of non— Christian fundamentalists, such as the Jehovah’s Witnesses. The most significant failed predictions of the Jehovah’s Witnesses have been for the years 1914 and 1975.

 

3. THEREFORE WE ARE TO BE ALWAYS READY FOR THE END OF THE WORLD

(1) Seeing that we do not know when the world will come to an end, much less than that end is imminent, what is to be our attitude and behaviour between now and then?

 

For an answer we must turn to the conclusion of the eschatological discourse. Let us consider Mk 13:33—37. The passage begins with, “Take heed, watch and pray” and concludes with “And what I say to you I say to all: Watch.” Four times does the word “watch” appear in the passage. What is this from the part of Jesus but a call that we are to be continually ready for the end. Readiness today — and every day becomes a today — means readiness for the end whenever that will be. “O that today you would hear his voice! Harden not your hearts…”(Ps 95:7b—8a).

 

(2) Even though Paul and the first Christians believed that Jesus would come again during their lifetime, Paul’s teaching on the second coming and the end of the world does not go beyond the teaching of Jesus. In 1 Thes 5:1—11 the Apostle states that the day of Jesus’ second coming is uncertain, and therefore “let us keep awake and be sober.”

 

CONCLUSION

What must be our attitude and behaviour between now and then?

(1) Do not be taken in by preachers, teachers, and writers who by clever but deceptive words lead naive people to believe that the “signs” spoken of in the New Testament are taking place

today, and therefore the end of the world will occur any day now. Such evangelists are simply confidence-tricksters for they play upon the gullibility and the fears of people and, like all con-men, end up by relieving people of their money; they amass a fortune by the sale of their literature. Such doomsday prophets are clearly deceivers, because they claim to know when the end will be, something that Jesus himself admitted he did not know.

(2) Hear the words of Jesus and not the words of these religious deceivers. Do not speculate a]out “signs”, and when the end of the world will occur. Rather, be ready for the end of the world today. Put your life in order today: your relationship to God and your relationship to others! If full world ends today, you will be ready! This is be to be free, indeed!

(3) Practically and more importantly, the end of a person’s life - the moment of death — is the end of the world as far as that person is concerned. To be ready for the end of the world s to be ready for the end of one’s life at death!