More Evidence The End Is Near

[rwb]

Nonsense. Jesus was talking to (and about) the generation that lived when he was on earth, not some generation 2000 years into the future. He wasn't talking to us. He was talking to his disciples. That message was for them, not for us.

I agree Christ was speaking to His disciples living in the first century AD. But rather than limit "this generation" to only these first disciples of Christ, I would argue Christ is speaking to His disciples from the first century to the last, because "this generation" is the chosen generation, not an ethnic people, but all people of faith.

Edit: Please forgive me for replying twice to the same post. Should probably limit my discussions to one or two at a time

 

[ewq1938]

That's a cop out, and is often used to explain away things that are contradictory to presumptions.

The fact is, that the vision was given to a human, and he wrote it down for other humans to read. This was not written for God to read. It was written for humans to read. So to say that "soon" means several thousand years later, is simply absurd. That's not soon by anybody's definition.

In other words, God is not going to tell John that these visions concern events in the near future, if they are not in John's near future. Just as He was would not tell Daniel that his vision concerned the distant future, if it was not in Daniel's distant future.

Let me remind you that most of the prophecy in Rev has not yet happened so your argument that it all would happen soon in John's life is incorrect. You are therefore misinterpreting what is written and wrongly applying it too early. God can certainty speak fo things happening soon and be speaking of how He (and those in heaven with God) perceive time.

Second, the first lines in Rev are from John not God. Even Paul spoke of things he wrote himself that did not come from God and as I mentioned, he spoke as if the second coming might happen in his life. He didn't know when it would happen. It didn't happen in his life, but no one was told when it would happen. Even Christ said he didn't know.

Rev 1:19 Write the things which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter;

This is speaking of things already seen, things John will be seeing right then, and things that shall take place in the future. So, the idea of some prophecies taking place far into the future is not odd, and is normal in most prophetic writings in the bible.

Clearly Revelation was written to a very distant generation since most of the things written in Revelation have not happened like the death of 1/3 of the human population by the 6th trumpet massive army, the rise of the ten kingdoms beast empire with the AC as it's leader, the public death and resurrection of the two prophets in Revelation 11, the largest earthquake in human history in Revelation 16, and of course no sounding of the 7th trumpet and battle between Christ and his army and the beast and it's armies at Armageddon. None of that happened in the first century so the events were well into the future and to this day have not happened yet.

 

[Randy Kluth]

I'm an expert in understanding how to get in the spirit of Christ. But I don't know much about this second coming and I will tell you why. Most people are in Daniel and Revelation talking about a second coming and there may be a couple of those. One for the saints and another for Israel. And there may be a thousand years in between the two. And all kinds of stuff could be happening in between that time period. Most Christians if not just about all of them confuse those two different comings and preach all kinds of crazy ideas.

Yes, I'm not 100% against Darby's ideas, who is the one who launched Dispensationalism, which contained the Pretribulational Coming of Christ belief. He was Premillennial, as I am. And he believed God will send Christ back to save Israel--something I also believe in. (At least, this is what I think Darby taught, because I haven't really read him.)

I'm not a believer in the imminent Coming of Christ theory, that Christ can come at any moment, that no prophecy remains to be fulfilled before he can return. And I don't believe that Christ can come before the rise and fall of Antichrist. Just sayin'...

 

[Freedm]

I think at least part of our misunderstanding comes because some don't understand that what was soon, near, even at the doors when Christ spoke these words was not Him coming again at the end of this age. Rather Christ was telling His disciples throughout this Gospel age that the Kingdom of God has come with power through His Spirit and the time now, or from the first century AD to the last is that the Kingdom of God is not a physical Kingdom that can be seen with physical sight, and is not of this world but that it is a spiritual Kingdom that is within whosoever is of faith in Christ.

When we read the Olivet Discourse we must understand that what is spoken then applies to all of Christ's disciples to the end of days.

I think we can be even a little more specific than "the kingdom of God has come with power". I would say it is Jesus' power specifically that came in 70 AD in judgment upon Israel, and there are three identical prophecies in three different books of the Bible that talk about it.

Daniel 7:13
In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence".

Notice that in Daniel's book, Jesus comes "with the clouds of heaven" when he approaches God the Father in heaven, so we know that this phrase does not refer to literal clouds that we see in the sky, but something else, and that something else is power and glory. The phrase "clouds of heaven" is symbolic for power and glory.

Matthew 24:30
Then will appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven. And then all the peoples of the earth will mourn when they see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory"

Revelation 1:7
Look, he is coming with the clouds,” and “every eye will see him, even those who pierced him”; and all peoples on earth “will mourn because of him.” So shall it be! Amen

All three of these prophecies speak of Jesus coming with, or on the clouds of heaven, and the reference in Revelation specifically says that even those who pierced him, will see him which further proves that whatever this "coming" looks like, it happens when those who pierced him are still alive, so it had to have happened in the first century AD.

I believe these are prophecies of Jesus' power being used in judgment on the people of Jerusalem in 70 AD, and not of Jesus himself walking on earth again, because there are too many clues that it had to have happened in the first century to ignore, and as far as we know Jesus did not walk on earth again after his ascension, so the only logical explanation is a different understanding of his coming.

 

[Freedm]

Let me remind you that most of the prophecy in Rev has not yet happened so your argument that it all would happen soon in John's life is incorrect.

I disagree. Your reasoning is based on your understanding of the book of Revelation, but you have to allow that your understanding could be wrong. The way I understand the book, all of the prophecies in it have already come to pass.

We can disagree on that, but because we can disagree, you can not use "the prophecies have not been fulfilled yet" as your reason for assuming they are future. That's not a reason, that's just two different ways of making the same claim. If you believe the prophecies have not been fulfilled yet, you have to have a reason for that. For example, if you believe that "heaven and earth" refers to the literal heaven and earth, then that would be your reason for what you believe, but what if I could show you that it does not actually refer to the literal heaven and earth? Then your reason would be washed away, and you would need a new reason.

 

[Randy Kluth]

Paul doesn't contradict himself.

No, but we can misinterpret Paul and contradict ourselves.

He proves that Israel in unbelief has never belonged to Israel of God.

This is a case in point. I don't believe Paul was teaching that unfaithful Jews were never Jews. By referring to "true Jews" or to "true Israel" Paul was not redefining "Israel" as not applicable to unfaithful Jews. Rather, he was stating that some Jews are not "true," or "faithful," to their calling. It is a characterization--not a re-definition.

Rom 2.29 No, a person is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a person’s praise is not from other people, but from God.

Paul is not here re-defining a "Jew" as exclusive of unbelieving Jews, which would be essentially a re-definition of what a "Jew" is. Rather, he is describing what a faithful Jew should be, suggesting that those who are unfaithful to God's standards should be *cut off* from Israel just as apostates and idolators were cut off from the nation and exiled in the OT Scriptures.

Obviously, an unfaithful Jew would not stop being "Jewish." That is, by definition, his ethnicity. And Paul recognized that when he referred to backslidden, rebellious Jews.

So what he is doing is creating the criteria by which God considers a Jew worthy of attaining to membership in the congregation of faithful Jews. Nothing more than this.

 

[Randy Kluth]

Paul said: This promise is to you and your children, to all who are far away, to everyone whom the Lord may call. Acts 2:39

Ancient Israel did not do as the Lord had commanded them. They worshipped idols and rebelled against His Laws. Ezekiel 12:1 So the Lord sent them into exile – Ezekiel 12:3, for a decreed time period; Ezekiel 4:4-6 Before this happened, the Israelites had split into two kingdoms; then the House of Israel, was taken into exile by Assyria, and the House of Judah, deported by Babylon. Deuteronomy 4:27

As you know we disagree on this. Determining who Israel is requires reference to a Dictionary. It is the Jewish State. Paul set up criteria for determining what a faithful Jew is, but he did not remove "Jewishness" from Jewish unbelievers. He just determined that they were unworthy of being part of Israel's faithful.

You can quote all day long how evil Israel was at times in their history--it is the story of all nations, and not just Israel. They demonstrated the mercy of God because God has looked beyond their national failure to send His Son to die on the cross for them.

I don't believe God just saves individuals. I believe He also saves nations, by instituting a majority of faithful who determine a righteous course for the population. God loves both the individual and the society in which we live. How can He not?

 

[Freedm]

I agree Christ was speaking to His disciples living in the first century AD. But rather than limit "this generation" to only these first disciples of Christ, I would argue Christ is speaking to His disciples from the first century to the last, because "this generation" is the chosen generation, not an ethnic people, but all people of faith.

Edit: Please forgive me for replying twice to the same post. Should probably limit my discussions to one or two at a time

But he didn't say it would happen during the existence of the people of faith. He said it would happen during "this generation". If he meant to say something else, he would've said something else. A generation refers to a group of people living during a certain time period. He can not have been talking about you and I, because we are not of that generation.

I realize that this goes against what you (and most Christians) believe, but we have to stop ignoring the plain as day statements because they don't fit our beliefs. We have to instead let those statements form our beliefs. Some of the most obvious statements are ignored by the vast majority of Christians because they believe all those prophecies pertain to our future, even though those statements clearly show that they do not.

• This generation will not pass away...
• Things which must soon take place...
• Even those who pierced him will see him...
• Let those in Judea not go into the city...
• Those standing here will not see death before...
• When you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies...

These are all clear as day indications that the warnings of the Olivet discourse and the book of Revelation were pertaining to the people of Judea in the first century AD. Why do we try so hard to explain them away?

 

[ewq1938]

I disagree. Your reasoning is based on your understanding of the book of Revelation, but you have to allow that your understanding could be wrong.

You speak yet avoid addressing the facts presented. Comment on this, addressing it specifically or don't bother replying.

Clearly Revelation was written to a very distant generation since most of the things written in Revelation have not happened like the death of 1/3 of the human population by the 6th trumpet massive army, the rise of the ten kingdoms beast empire with the AC as it's leader, the public death and resurrection of the two prophets in Revelation 11, the largest earthquake in human history in Revelation 16, and of course no sounding of the 7th trumpet and battle between Christ and his army and the beast and it's armies at Armageddon. None of that happened in the first century so the events were well into the future and to this day have not happened yet.

 

[Freedm]

You speak yet avoid addressing the facts presented. Comment on this, addressing it specifically or don't bother replying.

Clearly Revelation was written to a very distant generation since most of the things written in Revelation have not happened like the death of 1/3 of the human population by the 6th trumpet massive army, the rise of the ten kingdoms beast empire with the AC as it's leader, the public death and resurrection of the two prophets in Revelation 11, the largest earthquake in human history in Revelation 16, and of course no sounding of the 7th trumpet and battle between Christ and his army and the beast and it's armies at Armageddon. None of that happened in the first century so the events were well into the future and to this day have not happened yet.

But it did happen, except not the way you imagine it. That's what's keeping you from seeing it. You have preconceived ideas about what these things would look like, so you can say "This has never happened!" but you're imagining it wrong.

Keep in mind that everything written was regarding the known world, or specifically Israel or Jerusalem, not the actual world. A third of the inhabitants of Jerusalem did die of starvation or disease during the siege of 70 AD. Another third did fall by the sword, and another third was taken captive to be paraded around Rome. Armageddon is a waste heap outside the city of Jerusalem. That's where the battle too place. The beast was Rome. The 7th trumpet was one of the many allegories that proclaimed the divorce proceedings between God and national Israel. The Harlot was Jerusalem which is why God divorced her, and introduced his new bride, the New Jerusalem (Christianity). "Heaven and earth" is what the Jews called their temple, as it was their connection from earth to heaven, and it was burned to ashes. It's all there. It all happened.

 

[Peterlag]

Yes, I'm not 100% against Darby's ideas, who is the one who launched Dispensationalism, which contained the Pretribulational Coming of Christ belief. He was Premillennial, as I am. And he believed God will send Christ back to save Israel--something I also believe in. (At least, this is what I think Darby taught, because I haven't really read him.)

I'm not a believer in the imminent Coming of Christ theory, that Christ can come at any moment, that no prophecy remains to be fulfilled before he can return. And I don't believe that Christ can come before the rise and fall of Antichrist. Just sayin'...

Yeah again, this is not my field. But I do have a question for you. Can you tell me more about this Darby and Dispensationalism? What did Darby come up with?

 

[Keraz]

I don't believe God just saves individuals.

But that is how our Salvation works. Individual people are converted to Christianity and are Baptized.
Nations are just a construct, a group of people governed by political parties, in a designated area of the world.

The time will come when there will be a nation of faithful Christians in the Holy Land, Isaiah 62:1-5 Prophesies it.
In fact, we Christians are that 'nation'; now, as Jesus said in Matthew 21:43 we produce the proper fruit. We just await the Day when we can go there and be the People God always wanted there. Read Psalms 107 for the story of how the great Second Exodus will happen.

 

[Timtofly]

But it did happen, except not the way you imagine it. That's what's keeping you from seeing it. You have preconceived ideas about what these things would look like, so you can say "This has never happened!" but you're imagining it wrong.

Keep in mind that everything written was regarding the known world, or specifically Israel or Jerusalem, not the actual world. A third of the inhabitants of Jerusalem did die of starvation or disease during the siege of 70 AD. Another third did fall by the sword, and another third was taken captive to be paraded around Rome. Armageddon is a waste heap outside the city of Jerusalem. That's where the battle too place. The beast was Rome. The 7th trumpet was one of the many allegories that proclaimed the divorce proceedings between God and national Israel. The Harlot was Jerusalem which is why God divorced her, and introduced his new bride, the New Jerusalem (Christianity). "Heaven and earth" is what the Jews called their temple, as it was their connection from earth to heaven, and it was burned to ashes. It's all there. It all happened.

Revelation was not written to Israel.

Revelation was written to 7 churches spread across Asia. Revelation was to the entire church that is still ongoing. Revelation will be fulfilled at the Second Coming.

 

[Randy Kluth]

But that is how our Salvation works. Individual people are converted to Christianity and are Baptized.
Nations are just a construct, a group of people governed by political parties, in a designated area of the world.

Yes, God saves individuals, families, and societies, as well as nations. Maybe you want to live on an island in solitary confinement, but I, for one, do not.

 

[Randy Kluth]

Yeah again, this is not my field. But I do have a question for you. Can you tell me more about this Darby and Dispensationalism? What did Darby come up with?

The history is as follows. The earliest Christian eschatology was, I believe, Premillennial. That is, the followers of the Apostle John in Asia Minor and elsewhere believed the Apostle John had written of a literal thousand years to follow the Return of Christ. The Apostles apparently believed Christ would return to save Israel, but over time this belief was lost in the Church.

Due to the failure of Israel to get saved as a nation, Christians stopped believing in a future Millennial Kingdom in which Israel would be restored to God. This "Replacement Theology" began in Premillennialism, but ended in Amillennialism, because the literal promises of God, having failed, were reinterpreted in a symbolic way. A literal Millennium was now a "symbolic Millennium," representing the current Church Age. And the International Church was now "Israel."

Leaders like Origen and Augustine led in this symbolic interpretation, and Augustine's great influence led the Church into a long age of Amillennial eschatology. The Church was the new "Kingdom of God," and the new "Israel." The Jews were lost, being carnal representations of what God intended to become a spiritual people. Most biblical prophecies were viewed as either previously fulfilled or being realized in the present.

However, just as Israel had fallen into idolatry and corruption, the Church in the Middle Ages began to fall into similar corruption. This brought forward the Reformation, whose leadership began to view the Papacy as the Antichrist.

To fight this association of the Papacy with the Antichrist, two Catholics, Ribera and Lacunza, began to push for a more "futurist" view of biblical prophecy, viewing the Antichrist as not the Papacy but something more akin to how Dan 7 described it, and as Rev 13 described it, as a Beast with 10 horns and 7 heads. And Lacunza began to promote a future Millennium as well.

Belief in Premillennialism is associated with belief that Israel will be restored as a nation to God. So historic Amillennialism began to be questioned with these two Catholic priests.

In Great Britain, Irving picked up on Lacunza's work to promote Premillennial Futurism. And Darby borrowed this information to formulate Dispensationalism, which is Premillennial Futurism with a twist of Pretribulationism. From this point out, Premillennialism, together with belief in a future restoration of Israel, competed successfully with the historic Amillennial position, which seems to be a restoration of the original eschatology of the Church.

Pretribulationism is the belief that Christ's Coming can take place at any time to remove the Church from the earth. This will be a 1st secret Coming of Christ, just prior to a 7 year reign of Antichrist, which is called "the Great Tribulation." It is supposed that this "70th Week of Daniel," which is interpreted from Dan 9 in a "Futurist" way, is a time when Israel embraces the Antichrist, but eventually turns to Christ at his Coming.

This "Tribulation Period" is supposedly a combination of Antichrist's cruel abuse of remaining Christians and divine punishments upon the earth. This is what helps to turn Israel back to God. Then Christ comes a 2nd time to defeat the Antichrist, save Israel, and establish a thousand year reign of God's Kingdom.

I am a Futurist personally, believing in a literal future coming of the Antichrist. A corrupt Pope may be his partner--don't know.

I'm also a believer in the salvation of Israel at Christ's 2nd Coming, which will be at the end of the age. I do not believe in a Pretribulation Rapture of the Church, and feel that the Bible teaches only a 3.5 year reign of Antichrist. Nor do I hold to a "Futurist" view of the 70th Week of Dan 9.

The Reign of Antichrist will not be the final wrath God pours down upon Antichrist, but only preliminary indications of the same, which will be poured out primarily on the last day, in the Battle of Armageddon.

This will be a lot for you to take in, since this isn't your thing. But you asked for a quick summary, and this is it.

 

[ewq1938]

But it did happen, except not the way you imagine it. That's what's keeping you from seeing it. You have preconceived ideas about what these things would look like, so you can say "This has never happened!" but you're imagining it wrong.

Keep in mind that everything written was regarding the known world, or specifically Israel or Jerusalem, not the actual world. A third of the inhabitants of Jerusalem did die of starvation or disease during the siege of 70 AD. Another third did fall by the sword, and another third was taken captive to be paraded around Rome. Armageddon is a waste heap outside the city of Jerusalem. That's where the battle too place. The beast was Rome. The 7th trumpet was one of the many allegories that proclaimed the divorce proceedings between God and national Israel. The Harlot was Jerusalem which is why God divorced her, and introduced his new bride, the New Jerusalem (Christianity). "Heaven and earth" is what the Jews called their temple, as it was their connection from earth to heaven, and it was burned to ashes. It's all there. It all happened.

No, none of it happened and nothing you listed matches the actual prophecies.

Rev 9:18 By these three was the third part of men killed, by the fire, and by the smoke, and by the brimstone, which issued out of their mouths.

This is a 3rd part of men, not the 3rd of a city (which is debatable regarding 70Ad anyways). There has not been a time a third of humanity died in one event of fire and smoke. (starvation isn't the cause of death here)

Armageddon is a waste heap outside the city of Jerusalem.

No, it isn't. The Valley of Megiddo is 66 miles from Jerusalem. You are confusing Armageddon with Gehenna which was the garbage pit next to Jerusalem where they burned garbage and is symbolic of the lake of fire.

 

[Keraz]

Yes, God saves individuals, families, and societies, as well as nations

Your belief is that God intends to redeem and forgive the Jewish people. Who are now citizens of a small part of the Holy Land. Plus about the same number still in dispersion.
The problem with this, is that their ethnic purity is practically non-existent. I have lived in Israel and can vouch for the fact that the citizens of the Jewish State of Israel are a mixed peoples, from many different ethnicities.

God intends to destroy them for their 2000 year rejection of Jesus. Ezekiel 21:1-7, Zephaniah 1:14-18, Matthew 8:11-12

 

[quietthinker]

More Evidence The End Is Near​

by my estimation, about two and a half feet!

 

[Peterlag]

The history is as follows. The earliest Christian eschatology was, I believe, Premillennial. That is, the followers of the Apostle John in Asia Minor and elsewhere believed the Apostle John had written of a literal thousand years to follow the Return of Christ. The Apostles apparently believed Christ would return to save Israel, but over time this belief was lost in the Church.

Due to the failure of Israel to get saved as a nation, Christians stopped believing in a future Millennial Kingdom in which Israel would be restored to God. This "Replacement Theology" began in Premillennialism, but ended in Amillennialism, because the literal promises of God, having failed, were reinterpreted in a symbolic way. A literal Millennium was now a "symbolic Millennium," representing the current Church Age. And the International Church was now "Israel."

Leaders like Origen and Augustine led in this symbolic interpretation, and Augustine's great influence led the Church into a long age of Amillennial eschatology. The Church was the new "Kingdom of God," and the new "Israel." The Jews were lost, being carnal representations of what God intended to become a spiritual people. Most biblical prophecies were viewed as either previously fulfilled or being realized in the present.

However, just as Israel had fallen into idolatry and corruption, the Church in the Middle Ages began to fall into similar corruption. This brought forward the Reformation, whose leadership began to view the Papacy as the Antichrist.

To fight this association of the Papacy with the Antichrist, two Catholics, Ribera and Lacunza, began to push for a more "futurist" view of biblical prophecy, viewing the Antichrist as not the Papacy but something more akin to how Dan 7 described it, and as Rev 13 described it, as a Beast with 10 horns and 7 heads. And Lacunza began to promote a future Millennium as well.

Belief in Premillennialism is associated with belief that Israel will be restored as a nation to God. So historic Amillennialism began to be questioned with these two Catholic priests.

In Great Britain, Irving picked up on Lacunza's work to promote Premillennial Futurism. And Darby borrowed this information to formulate Dispensationalism, which is Premillennial Futurism with a twist of Pretribulationism. From this point out, Premillennialism, together with belief in a future restoration of Israel, competed successfully with the historic Amillennial position, which seems to be a restoration of the original eschatology of the Church.

Pretribulationism is the belief that Christ's Coming can take place at any time to remove the Church from the earth. This will be a 1st secret Coming of Christ, just prior to a 7 year reign of Antichrist, which is called "the Great Tribulation." It is supposed that this "70th Week of Daniel," which is interpreted from Dan 9 in a "Futurist" way, is a time when Israel embraces the Antichrist, but eventually turns to Christ at his Coming.

This "Tribulation Period" is supposedly a combination of Antichrist's cruel abuse of remaining Christians and divine punishments upon the earth. This is what helps to turn Israel back to God. Then Christ comes a 2nd time to defeat the Antichrist, save Israel, and establish a thousand year reign of God's Kingdom.

I am a Futurist personally, believing in a literal future coming of the Antichrist. A corrupt Pope may be his partner--don't know.

I'm also a believer in the salvation of Israel at Christ's 2nd Coming, which will be at the end of the age. I do not believe in a Pretribulation Rapture of the Church, and feel that the Bible teaches only a 3.5 year reign of Antichrist. Nor do I hold to a "Futurist" view of the 70th Week of Dan 9.

The Reign of Antichrist will not be the final wrath God pours down upon Antichrist, but only preliminary indications of the same, which will be poured out primarily on the last day, in the Battle of Armageddon.

This will be a lot for you to take in, since this isn't your thing. But you asked for a quick summary, and this is it.

I have something new to add. Way to many Christians if not most think God is going to settle up with Israel in this administration. He is not. God gets back to Israel after the return of Christ.

 

[rwb]

I think we can be even a little more specific than "the kingdom of God has come with power". I would say it is Jesus' power specifically that came in 70 AD in judgment upon Israel, and there are three identical prophecies in three different books of the Bible that talk about it.

Daniel 7:13
In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence".

Notice that in Daniel's book, Jesus comes "with the clouds of heaven" when he approaches God the Father in heaven, so we know that this phrase does not refer to literal clouds that we see in the sky, but something else, and that something else is power and glory. The phrase "clouds of heaven" is symbolic for power and glory.

Matthew 24:30
Then will appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven. And then all the peoples of the earth will mourn when they see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory"

Revelation 1:7
Look, he is coming with the clouds,” and “every eye will see him, even those who pierced him”; and all peoples on earth “will mourn because of him.” So shall it be! Amen

All three of these prophecies speak of Jesus coming with, or on the clouds of heaven, and the reference in Revelation specifically says that even those who pierced him, will see him which further proves that whatever this "coming" looks like, it happens when those who pierced him are still alive, so it had to have happened in the first century AD.

I believe these are prophecies of Jesus' power being used in judgment on the people of Jerusalem in 70 AD, and not of Jesus himself walking on earth again, because there are too many clues that it had to have happened in the first century to ignore, and as far as we know Jesus did not walk on earth again after his ascension, so the only logical explanation is a different understanding of his coming.

Daniel 7:13-14 (KJV) I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.

I have a different understanding of Daniel's prophecy. I believe this is depicting Christ' ascension to heaven after His resurrection. By making atonement for sin and defeating death, His work on earth was finished, so He returned to the Father just as He said He would. His disciples were witnesses of His ascension to heaven with the clouds, and the two men (angels) in white said to them that Christ would come again in like manner that He ascended up into heaven. His ascension into heaven to receive dominion, glory, and a Kingdom came, and the time of Him ruling and reigning over His people from the Kingdom of Heaven began.

John 14:2-4 (KJV) In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know.

Acts 1:2-3 (KJV) Until the day in which he was taken up, after that he through the Holy Ghost had given commandments unto the apostles whom he had chosen: To whom also he shewed himself alive after his passion by many infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God:

Acts 1:9-11 (KJV) And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight. And while they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel; Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.

I believe Christ shall come again when time given this earth expires, when the spiritual Kingdom of God in heaven is complete, and the last trumpet sounds. Not only will Christ be visibly seen returning in the clouds, it will also be the end when His elect are caught up to meet the Lord in the air.

Matthew 24:30-31 (KJV) And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

John writes every eye shall see Him, even them which pierced Him, and all kindreds of the earth shall wail. It's hard to fit this into Christ coming in 70 AD since the destruction then didn't cause all kindreds of the earth to wail because of Him. I believe Christ will be visibly seen coming again by all who are still alive on the earth when He returns. And that every eye shall see Him, also those who crucified Him when they are resurrected from the graves to stand before the judgment throne and give account of their lives according to what is written in the books and the book of life.

Revelation 1:7 (KJV) Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.

John 5:28-29 (KJV) Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation.

Revelation 20:11-15 (KJV) And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.

I believe when Christ told His disciples not to be enamored by the beautiful temple and buildings in Jerusalem because they would all be destroyed, He was speaking of what came to pass in 70 AD. And His words did indeed have a direct impact on the nation of Israel, Christ having said because of their abomination and spiritual adultery committed against God they would be utterly destroyed. God sent the Roman Army to dispense His wrath against a nation and people that had utterly forsaken Him, and rejected His Son, their Messiah.

Though Christ warns His disciples living in every age He spoke particularly to the first century Jewish disciples about His Kingdom that had come because they were the beginning of the Church Christ came to build from every nation of the world. And beginning with them His disciples in every age would proclaim the Gospel to all nations through the power of the Holy Spirit. I don't limit the words Christ spoke then to only them, because I believe His words apply to all disciples to come after them. IMO that is the only way the Olivet Discourse can be understood in a way that doesn't cause contradiction and confusion.