What’s up T-folk. Like a lot of you I’m sure, I was brought up in a kind of “casual Christian” household (e.g. Sunday school till 11 or 12, but only said grace before Xmas dinner, that kind of thing.) And as life (and training) got busier, the church kind of fell by the wayside.
Anyway, it seems that whenever something really catastrophic occurs, a handful of religious zealots out there start saying that the second coming of Jesus Christ is upon us. The past few weeks has been no exception. However, when I really look at all that’s happening today (WTC bombing, Israel under constant siege, half the nations of the world at war), I can’t help but think that maybe, just maybe, it’s starting to happen after all. For a delinquent Christian like yours truly, it’s downright scary.
Here’s your charge, T-Men- especially you guys out there who have such a powerful
grasp of what the heck the bible is trying to say- give me your opinion. Is it really starting to happen? What signs have already been realized? Which ones should we be looking for? And most importantly, if the secong coming is happening, what the heck should a Bible newbie like me do!
Please hit me with your thoughts, bros. Love this forum…
They say this shit everytime something happens. Persian Gulf? Second coming! Your team loses the Superbowl? Second coming! Frankly, I’m tired of hearing of all this nonsense. It’s like many Christians can’t wait to get life over with. Fact: Every major (and tons of minor) events in history have been dubbed signs of the second coming. It’s silly. And let’s not forget that most of the world does not even believe in Jesus. I think many Christians forget they are a minority religion and get really confused when the world doesn’t bow down to their belief system. More people need to step outside their little microcosms.
There was no first coming, and there will be no second coming, because your god is a fanciful product of human imagination, and your holy book, a fiction of human design. Get over it and live your life the way you want to – don’t waste a second more trying to appease ‘Santa Claus-for-grownups’. Because the only thing worse than sucking up to someone…is sucking up to someone who doesn’t exist.
ok, you guys are total assholes. that shit was totally uncalled for. Grow up. You sound like damn 2 year olds. Respect must be given to be recieved. And from what you have shown, you earned NO RESPECT. I will not get into a religous debate here, because most morons like yourselves are very steadfast in their beliefs, and frankly I dont give a crap what you believe.
That being said, I will now address the topic in a mature manor, as it should have been from the start. This is indeed a bad situation. The Second Coming? I dont know. I wont until it happens, either. If you are truly scared, dont be. You cannot avoid the inevitable. If you are a good person. A caring, giving, worthy person, then there is nothing to fear. It doesnt matter if you have made mistakes, everyone does, even saints. The important thing is that you believe in Jesus, that you realize the sacrifice that God made for his children. That is all God asks, that you believe, and accept Jesus for who he is, the Savior of man. As long as this is true, in your heart of hearts, you will be delivered to the kingdom of Heaven. In which case, why would you fear death? You only lose worldly pain, and you gain serenity, eternal happiness. I dont wish to sound like a religous Bible beater here. Hell, I dont even claim a "religion’ per se. I am just a plain old Christian. No denomination, no nothin.
Now, as far as the Second Coming. I havent a clue. I hope not, because I am just gettin into the swing of things with my life. Gonna graduate in 2 years with my degree in Mechanical Engineering, make good money, and hopefully have a peachy life. But, if now is indeed the End Times, then I will accept what God has planned for me with open arms. I dont claim to be a Bible expert of any kind, I just hope a battle doesnt break out on a mountain top(revalation says the final battle of the Apocalypse begins on mount Armegeddon- or the other way around- I always get the A words mixed up). Anyway, I dont know how much I buy into that, since the Bible itself has been “interpreted” about a dozen times, and none of the versions seem to say the same thing. But, that is neither here nor there.
If you would like to talk more about it, cool. I will check back on the forum to see. Have a good one.
i am not a biblical scholar, nor do i play one on TV. i am christian though, not a ‘fundamentalist’ but i still believe in God. if you are looking for somewhere to ‘start’ try picking up a ‘student Bible’ (it has great notations and explainations on every page, and is written in ‘modern english’ - the New International Version) and start with Revelation, which is about the second coming. if you read the references that are in the margin of each page you will be sent all over the book, and it will give you a much better understanding of what you are reading. as for the second coming actually being here, it can’t arrive until the holiest mosque in the Muslim world is destroyed because that mosque is built where the temple was, and the missing temple is were a lot of Revelation takes place. and NOW before the flame-war starts, i have NO INTEREST in debating religion, i am not going to insult those who do not believe what i believe, and i am going to COMPLETELY IGNORE those who feel the need to pick a fight. i answered this question because i have the knowledge to do so. Concerned - you need to spend some time doing research to learn and decide if you believe what is being said. the fact that you had the balls to even ask this question here (knowing the flames you would get) says you are interested in learning more. good luck, ignore the people who make fun just because they don’t agree with you, and please post if have other questions…i’m sure T-rev is around somewhere…
Yep, righto. One thing EVERY prophecy of the end times has in common is that they were all WRONG. It’s interesting reading Revelations and trying to interpret it to modern times. Think of it this way – if you wnet back 400 years with a book of matches, you’d be thought of as a magician (or possibly a devil). This book was written before anything we know of as technology even existed. Imagine trying to describe a computer to some one who didn’t even know what electricity is. That’s why you see so much symbolism in Revelations. DO NOT WORRY. 99% of what you worry about never happens, and the other 1% you can’t control. During his trials, Martin Luther (not that I think he was the be all- end all of religious experts) said when asked what he would do if he knew Jesus were returning tomorrow, “I’d plant a tree.” Kind of long term thinking in a short term situation, don’t you think? The idea is that we don’t know when it’s going to happen, so we need to be ready. From the sounds of your post, you have some doubts. That is the devil’s best weapon. Da Man already told you how. If you haven’t done that, why gamble? You won’t necessarily have a 5 minute warning when your time is up. When the heart stops beating, eternity is determined by what you did before that time. Accept Jesus now, and be at peace. If you need resources (and if the moderator will allow) go to gospelcom.net.
I somewhat agree with TEK, in the first part of his message. I am Christian but I do not ever believe in saying that I think the second coming is near because this event or that even happened. Of course, the only thing you can really say is that it is closer now than it was 1000 years ago, and it is closer now than it was yesterday, but the certainly doesnt mean it is imminent. The Bible says no man knows the day or the hour. People have been saying that the second coming would be within their lifetime for thousands of year, and they have all ben wrong so far. Im not about to start saying that it will be within my lifetime. As far as what to do?
Well I wouldnt say that you should be doing anything different just because you believe that the second coming is about to happen. Being a Christian is living a life for God always, not just when the second coming is near. For starters are you saved? Do you believe that the only way you can get to heaven is because Jesus died for you? It doesnt matter how ‘good’ you are or how bad you are. The point is that no body is perfect and the only way to heaven is to accept Jesus as savior. Now if you are saved there are some other things that would be good to do. Do you have a church that you go to regularly? Not that going to church makes you more religious but it does give you a great opportunity to learn about God and to worship him with other believers. Also, read your Bible daily, study it and live by what it says.(it would be great if I took my own advice) Also find a mature Christian in your church who would be willing to teach/counsel/help you out with living a life for God. But if you do all of this, dont do it just because a lot of crazy Christians are screaming “second coming”.
-Jason
when your number’s up, your number’s up don’t stress it…besides everyone has something called free will, to suggest that this is divine retribution for our actions is misguided…
Michelle, brider, jason- its good to know there are stil good people in this world that care. You all gave good advice and opinions, and did not flame. I did, and I apologize for the flames. I do not wish to be looked upon as “one of those a-holes.” thanks for the website, too. good luck and great gains!
To “Concerned” - I personally think you should burn that particular book! All it consists of are metaphorical stories that serves as a set of morals for a particular types of people. Since its been written, (and RE-written, and re-written, etc.) people have lost its metaphorical values by taking it so literally. (Which even the literal words have been CHANGED!) I really hate that book myself and the way most people react to it as well. Besides its way to outdated and kinda funny the way the people of old tried to explain science they didn’t understand by saying, “Uhhhhh, God must’ve done it!” There’s just not enough time or space here to explain all that though. Just hope you’ll one day be able to “see” for yourself. - Final thought: Ever notice how many “Christians”, the ones who are supposedly the ones who are to lead such “better” lives, are the ones that are the most stressed out and worried all the time about things such as the Second Coming or the end of the world, etc. You’d be better off studying and finding an understanding of the workings of the universe around you and drawing a conclusion from that. But as I said before, if the Bible does nothing but cause one grief and worry, BURN IT!!!
There have been a lot of good things said here. The Bible says that man will not know the day or time, so why even try to guess. Anyone who says they know - they are wrong. If you are new to the Bible, I suggest finding a good edition (the Student Bible is excellent) and reading the book of John. Something that no one has mentioned yet is a series of fiction books called Left Behind. While fictional, they present an easy to follow, basically biblically accurate, rendition of what could happen. These might be easier to understand than the book of Revelations.
Everyone - I think the main point is to come to terms with where you are going to spend eternity.
For those that would make fun - grow up and show some respect. I will respect you as a person, and I will respect your opinions, and I think you should do the same for others.
Well, I don’t know if the second coming is near. But, as a Christian there is no reason to fear because “to live is Christ and to die is gain”. Christ is our life now, and to die is to be “absent from the body and present with the Lord”. As far as what to do as a Bible newbie, you should read to get to know all the wonderful things He has done for you. If the moderator will permit there is a site http://www.realanswers.net for Bob George, author of Classic Christianity. This book helped me like you can’t know—kinda like how T-mag has made an unimaginable difference, but much more so spiritually. To know the simple truth of God’s love and grace is heaven on earth.
oh wolfgrave… How do you think I came about believing? By learning the science and the physics, and the theories. And then testing them, and realizing many are total kaka. I am not an uneducated, unintelligent person, quite the contrary. I know the laws of physics, the laws of chemistry, and the laws of biology. The problem lies in their theories. In many cases, you can use one theory to disprove another, or use an accepted law to totally wipe out another theory. I dont wish to get into a religion vs science, or creation vs evolution or a me vs you debate here. this post was not started for that reason. It was started to ask fellow believers what they thought, not to claim religion as the shelter for the ignorant.
You said that it is always the Christians who worry about the second coming. This is not entirely true. Concerned was only worried because he felt he may have fallen by the wayside, much like Dante in "The Divine Comedy." But, once Concerned reads the replies that myself and others have posted, he will realize that there is nothing to worry about.
Some see it as WWIII coming, some see it as the Second Coming. Is there a difference? It seems that only the Christians are calm in the ordeal, because if it is indeed the Second Coming, then we will be delivered to Heaven. Whereas for you, if it is WWIII, it will simply be the end. I would, and do, feel a lot more comfortable with the former as opposed to the latter. But, thats just me.
I don’t want to seem like I’m flaming anyone or starting any fights, but I agree with Mike the Libertarian. The whole notion of God and Christ and organized religion is ludicrous. If you have faith in yourself, there is no need to place an imaginary “being” at the center of existance. For those that are religious, I don’t blame you. Its much easier to think that the mess of a world that we live in now, will some how be miraculously saved. Unfortunately it’s up to humans, as a society, to attempt to right our wrongs, and do good for the rest of humanity. Thanks.
Concerned, don’t let the secular humanist types (TEK, Mike, etc.)get to you. What they don’t know is that Jesus warned about their type in the end times. I’ll bet they would change their to tune if they knew that. Despite what people on this thread have been saying, the Bible’s prophesy can be taken literally, and it has been proven correct time and time again. If you want proof, look at Psalm 22. Everyone is familiar with psalm 23, but psalm 22 is a prophesy about Jesus on the cross.It is 100% true! Now, that was written by King David, HUNDREDS of years before Jesus. Also, Isahiah 53 is a prophesy of Christ, and there are over 400 in the old testament referring to Jesus’s first coming alone, and they all came true! SO prophesy about the second coming should definitely be payed attention to, just based on that track record. If I could suggest a few scriptures for you to start with in regards to second coming prophesy; start with Matthew 22 and 23. Revelation ( NOT RevelationS) is filled with symbols and meanings and could be very confusing for the first time reader. So begin with Matthew 22 and 23 and go on from there to Mark, and Daniel before you go to Revelation. It will clear things up considerably!
Can’t remember where off hand but the bible says, “the second comming of Christ will be as a thief in the night”, in other words nobody will be expecting it. That’s why you must act the part all of the time, not just when you think the world is comming to an end.