{"id":6758,"date":"2019-02-05T07:00:03","date_gmt":"2019-02-05T13:00:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/?page_id=6758"},"modified":"2024-06-02T16:59:19","modified_gmt":"2024-06-02T21:59:19","slug":"second-coming-of-christ","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/time-hours-days-weeks-and-ages\/second-coming-of-christ","title":{"rendered":"Second Coming of Christ"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>COMING AGAIN OR NEVER LEFT?\u00a0<\/strong><br \/>\nThe imagery of Jesus coming down to earth riding on a cloud is indelibly strong for most Christians. It is so strong that it compels followers of Jesus to set aside everything they otherwise believe about the laws of physics that govern their lives. Setting aside the laws of physics and biology is something that most Christians are willing to do because they find evidence for such beliefs in the literal words of the bible with stories about talking snakes, boats large enough to hold all the animals of the world, seas parting, virgin birth and going to heaven in a cloud. Anyone other than a Christian would call these stories myths or fantasies. Christians call them evidence of faith. See\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/the-law\/two-covenantspart1\/faith-grace-mercy-peace-love-heart-glory-blessing-spirit-and-truth\/oil-water-face-hands\/belief-and-trust\">Belief, Trust and Faith\u00a0<\/a>for God&#8217;s views about these beliefs.<\/p>\n<p>Justification for the belief that Jesus will come back to earth riding on a cloud is found in Mark 13:24-26:<\/p>\n<p class=\"reg\" style=\"padding-left: 40px;\"><span class=\"reftext\">24<\/span><span class=\"red\">\u201cBut in those days, following that distress, <\/span>\u201c \u2018the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; <span class=\"reftext\">25 <\/span><span class=\"red\">the stars will fall from the sky, <\/span><span class=\"red\">and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.\u2019 <\/span><span class=\"reftext\">26 <\/span><span class=\"red\">\u201cAt that time people will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory.<\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"reftext\">27 <\/span><span class=\"red\">And he will send his angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the heavens.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>These verses exist in the context of the so-called &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/time-hours-days-weeks-and-ages\/end-times-rapture-and-tribulation\">end times&#8221; which is also called the end of the world\u00a0 and the end of days<\/a>. Beliefs about Jesus riding on clouds are able to survive and thrive in Christian theology because Christians do not understand the symbolism of &#8220;the world,&#8221;\u00a0biblical references to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/time-hours-days-weeks-and-ages\">time, and days, <\/a>or the &#8220;<a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/people\/true-prophets\/jesus\/3\">son of man.<\/a>&#8221; When these beliefs are wrong, it is predictable that Christians would also believe in a literal &#8220;second coming&#8221; of a human person called Jesus riding on a cloud.<\/p>\n<p>There are four bible interpretation issues that must be resolved before understanding the second coming.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Who Jesus was: This is a very complex issue. The short answer is that he was a human person who was <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/people\/true-prophets\/messiah\">anointed<\/a> by God to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/people\/true-prophets\/jesus\/5\">speak for God.<\/a> See\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/people\/true-prophets\/jesus\">Jesus<\/a> for understanding.<\/li>\n<li>Clouds: <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/the-law\/two-covenants-part-2\/7#godspeaksfromcloud\">Clouds symbolically represent people<\/a> &#8212; specifically<span style=\"font-size: 16px;\"> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/the-law\/two-covenantspart1\/2#newcovenant\">New Covenant<\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/the-law\/two-covenantspart1\/#disciple\">disciples <\/a>who are clouds of witnesses who speak (i.e. testify) for God. Witnesses include <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/people\/true-prophets\">true prophets<\/a><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/people\/true-prophets\">,<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/people\/angels\">angels<\/a>,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/people\/true-prophets\/messiah\">messiahs<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/people\/true-prophets\/the-high-priest\">high priests<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/the-law\/two-covenants-part-2\/7#godspeaksfromcloud\">witnesses<\/a> and <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/people\/true-prophets\/model-warriors\/2\">warriors.<\/a> Jesus symbolically represented all of these characters.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/time-hours-days-weeks-and-ages\/end-times-rapture-and-tribulation\">End times, end of the world, end of days, day of the Lord<\/a>. The end times symbolically refer to the end of the period\/season in which someone practices religion. Basically the end times refers to the end of a particular religious person&#8217;s religious life. The end times is not a unique point in time when everyone stops being religious.<\/li>\n<li>The world: The end of the world symbolically refers to the end of the world of religion. This is not a unique, one time event. The world of religion ends little by little every time\u00a0 an <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/the-law\/two-covenantspart1\/2#oldcovenant\">Old\/First Covenant<\/a> religionist comes out of religion and becomes a <span style=\"font-size: 16px;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/the-law\/two-covenantspart1\/2#newcovenant\">New Covenant<\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/the-law\/two-covenantspart1\/#disciple\">disciples.<\/a><\/span><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/people\/true-prophets\/jesus\/3\">Son of man<\/a>: Jesus was a son of man and a son of God. This dual status applies to all <span style=\"font-size: 16px;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/the-law\/two-covenantspart1\/2#newcovenant\">New Covenant<\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/the-law\/two-covenantspart1\/#disciple\">disciples.<\/a><\/span><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/the-law\/two-covenantspart1\/2#oldcovenant\">Old\/First Covenant<\/a> religionists are only sons of man because they have not been <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/people\/true-prophets\/messiah\">anointed to speak for God.<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>***The first thing to understand is the symbolism of clouds:<span style=\"font-size: 16px;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/the-law\/two-covenantspart1\/#disciple\">.<\/a> Scripture says that J<a href=\"https:\/\/www.blueletterbible.org\/tools\/MultiVerse.cfm?s=00Dr5j\">esus was taken up and hidden in a cloud. <\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 40px;\">Acts 1:9\u00a0 After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.<\/p>\n<p>In another verse he is reported to go up into heaven.<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 40px;\">Mark 16:19 After the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, he was taken up into heaven and he sat at the right hand of God.<\/p>\n<p>The second thing to understand is what it means to be &#8220;taken up&#8221; or &#8220;lifted up.&#8221; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.blueletterbible.org\/tools\/MultiVerse.cfm?s=00DsXv\">Many scriptures refer to the idea of being lifted up or taken up<\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0Taken up is the language that is typically interpreted &#8220;rapture.&#8221;\u00a0 See <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/time-hours-days-weeks-and-ages\/end-times-rapture-and-tribulation\/2\">this link for understanding of the rapture.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>In another verse, someone assumed to be Jesus, reportedly returns to earth in clouds.<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 40px;\">Mark 13:26\u00a0<span class=\"red\">\u201cAt that time people will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>The common term in these scriptures of Jesus going to heaven and returning to earth is &#8220;clouds.&#8221; To understand the idea of the second coming, therefore, we must first understand the symbolism of clouds.\u00a0To arrive at the correct understanding of clouds, we must remember what God said about speaking to people:<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 40px;\">Exodus 19:9: The LORD said to Moses, &#8220;I am going to come to you in a dense cloud, so that the people will hear me speaking with you and will always put their trust in you.&#8221; Then Moses told the LORD what the people had said.<\/p>\n<p>This verse has application for everyone &#8212; not just Moses and the Israelites. It is a general statement of how God makes himself known to people: In a dense cloud. The symbolism of clouds is people &#8212; specifically<span style=\"font-size: 16px;\"> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/the-law\/two-covenantspart1\/2#newcovenant\">New Covenant<\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/the-law\/two-covenantspart1\/#disciple\">disciples<\/a>. <\/span>See <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/the-law\/two-covenants-part-2\/7#godspeaksfromcloud\">this link for understanding of the symbolism of clouds. <\/a><\/p>\n<p>With the understanding that clouds represent<a href=\"https:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/people\/true-prophets\"> true prophets<\/a> who speak for God, scriptures about going and returning in clouds takes on important spiritual meaning. No longer do we think of a super-human person such as Jesus defying the principles of gravity. No longer do we see Jesus floating in the air on clouds. What we see is a normal human <a href=\"https:\/\/www.blueletterbible.org\/tools\/MultiVerse.cfm?s=00BnnU\">(Jesus) whose words are the spirit of prophecy<\/a> expressed through people (i.e. <span style=\"font-size: 16px;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/the-law\/two-covenantspart1\/2#newcovenant\">New Covenant<\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/the-law\/two-covenantspart1\/#disciple\">disciples) <\/a>who carry on <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/people\/true-prophets\/jesus\/12\">Jesus&#8217; ministry<\/a> in his absence.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Christians\u00a0 wrongly equate being hidden in a cloud and taken up into heaven with physical ascension of a human into the physical sky. Because logic, science and reason say that this is not possible, and because God always speaks in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\">Symbols, Signs, Types, Parables and Allegories,<\/a> we must look for the symbolic meaning of these events. We know that being <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/time-hours-days-weeks-and-ages\/end-times-rapture-and-tribulation\/2\">taken up means to have your heart lifted up when you hear God&#8217;s spoken voice<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 16px;\">Acts 1:9 should not be interpreted as a unique, one time event. The experience of your heart being lifted up is what happens every time someone hears and understands Jesus&#8217; message.\u00a0 Furthermore, Acts 1:9 should not be interpreted to mean that a human person (e.g. Jesus) was magically lifted up into the sky where he was hidden by a physical cloud. It means that the spirit of Jesus was<a href=\"https:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/nas\/passage\/?q=matthew+11:23;+matthew+23:12;+luke+1:52;+luke+10:15;+luke+14:11;+luke+18:14;+isaiah+52:13;+daniel+11:36;+acts+2:33;+acts+5:31;+2-corinthians+11:7;+james+4:10;+hosea+11:7;+joshua+3:7;+philippians+2:9;+psalm+37:34;+exodus+9:17;+numbers+16:3;+1-chronicles+29:11;+job+17:4;+psalm+66:7;+psalm+99:5;+ezekiel+17:24;+ezekiel+21:26\"> exalted <\/a>in the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/the-law\/two-covenantspart1\/2#newcovenant\">New Covenant<\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/the-law\/two-covenantspart1\/#disciple\">disciples <\/a>who heard Jesus&#8217; message. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 16px;\">A term religious people like to substitute for &#8220;exalted&#8221; and &#8220;lifted up&#8221; is rapture. What happened may be summarized like this:<\/span><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/people\/true-prophets\/jesus\/5\">Jesus spoke for God<\/a>.<\/li>\n<li>People <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/#rewards\">heard and understood Jesus&#8217; message and were filled with new, spiritual life.<\/a> Their hearts were <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/time-hours-days-weeks-and-ages\/end-times-rapture-and-tribulation\/4\">raptured<\/a> with joy.<\/li>\n<li>From that point on the human Jesus who spoke for God was hidden from public view by the cloud of witnesses\u00a0 who were sharing his message.<\/li>\n<li>From that point on, the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/the-law\/two-covenants-part-2\/7#godspeaksfromcloud\">cloud of human witnesses &#8212; not Jesus &#8212;\u00a0 spoke for God.\u00a0<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<div data-verse-id=\"3\">Since these verses reference the way Jesus was taken up, it is critical to associate the way he returns to that event. When we look carefully, we see that Jesus was actually taken up many times &#8212; not just once. Whenever he &#8220;went up&#8221; to the mountain, he was actually taken up. We know this because the Greek words were used interchangeably to describe these events.<\/div>\n<div data-verse-id=\"3\"><\/div>\n<div data-verse-id=\"3\">The significance of this observation is this: Jesus&#8217; return was not a one-time event. Just as being taken up was not a one-time event, his return was not a one-time event.<\/div>\n<p>This imagery totally ignores, or rejects, the symbolism of <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/people\/true-prophets\/jesus\">Jesus<\/a>,\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/the-law\/two-covenants-part-2\/7#godspeaksfromcloud\">clouds,<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/nations\/kingdom-of-heaven\"> heaven\u00a0<\/a> and <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/time-hours-days-weeks-and-ages\/end-times-rapture-and-tribulation\">end times<\/a>. And there are several other serious problems with this literal imagery and theology:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Emphasis on the physical presence of the human Jesus exalts the human person while ignoring his spiritual authority to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/passage\/?q=john+14:24;+john+5:24;+john+5:47;+john+7:16;+john+12:49-50;+john+14:10;+john+10:25;+john+8:46;+john+10:37;+john+8:45;+john+17:6-10;+matthew+13:20;+matthew+13:1-46;+matthew+16:16-17\">speak for God.<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Because Jesus&#8217; words are already accessible, there is no reason to\u00a0 anticipate Jesus&#8217; presence upon his return.<\/li>\n<li>Emphasis on the return of the physical Jesus elevates a human person above God&#8217;s spoken word. That constitutes idolatry.<\/li>\n<li>Eager anticipation of the human Jesus coming again implies that God&#8217;s spoken word absent the human person of Jesus is not life-giving for those who wait for him.<\/li>\n<li>Belief in a unique future event that we may or may not personally experience is not a theology that is<a href=\"https:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/nas\/2-timothy\/passage\/?q=2-timothy+3:16-17\"> useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness<\/a> that can be <a href=\"https:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/nas\/passage\/?q=2+corinthians+6:1-2;luke+19:9;exodus+14:13;1+samuel+11:13;judges+10:15;genesis+50:20;isaiah+49:8;isaiah+61:1-2;ezra+9:15\">applied to our lives today<\/a>.<\/li>\n<li>God&#8217;s expectation is that we should learn and <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/time-hours-days-weeks-and-ages\/2\">apply his word to our lives today<\/a>. Anticipating the coming of a human person does nothing to enhance our daily lives.<\/li>\n<li>Anticipation of Jesus coming to earth physically is contrary to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/passage\/?q=hebrews+11:1;2+corinthians+4:18;2+corinthians+5:7;romans+8:24\">God&#8217;s idea of faith being the assurance of things not seen.<\/a><\/li>\n<li>The concept of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/nas\/john\/passage\/?q=john+14:2-3\">Jesus coming again<\/a> at some unknown time wrongly implies that people who died before he came or were born after he came will not have access to God&#8217;s words spoken by Jesus.<\/li>\n<li>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/nas\/revelation\/19-10.html\">testimony (i.e. word of God) spoken by Jesus is the spirit of prophecy (i.e. God&#8217;s word)<\/a> which has no beginning and no end. That means God&#8217;s words spoken by Jesus and recorded in the bible are always available to all people regardless of when they live and regardless of the presence of the human Jesus.<\/li>\n<li>To say that the second coming of a human person called Jesus ushers in God&#8217;s Kingdom on earth implies that God&#8217;s Kingdom has not yet been established in the hearts of any <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/the-law\/two-covenantspart1\/2#newcovenant\">New Covenant<\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/the-law\/two-covenantspart1\/#disciple\">disciples<\/a>. This disagrees with scriptures that say that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/nas\/passage\/?q=2+samuel+7:13;2+samuel+7:16;psalms+145:13;isaiah+9:7;daniel+2:44;luke+1:33;daniel+7:14;daniel+4:3;daniel+7:27;luke+1:33\">God&#8217;s kingdom has already been established and never ends.<\/a><\/li>\n<li>To say that the second coming of a human person called Jesus ushers in God&#8217;s Kingdom on earth implies that God is not independent or<a href=\"https:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/passage\/?q=ezekiel+13:8;ezekiel+6:3;amos+7:4;acts+4:24;ezekiel+37:3;amos+3:7;ezekiel+12:28\"> sovereign<\/a> and that nothing good happens without the presence of the human Jesus.<\/li>\n<li>The idea of Jesus coming down from the physical heavens implies that the human Jesus has been living somewhere in the universe for two thousand years.<\/li>\n<li>The imagery of Jesus coming down from the physical heavens ignores the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/nas\/passage\/?q=john+14:23;+2-corinthians+6:16;+ephesians+3:14-19;+1-john+2:24;+revelation+3:20;+revelation+21:3;+numbers+35:34;+numbers+5:3;+1-kings+8:30-49;+psalm+40:8;+psalm+37:31;+jeremiah+31:33;+2-corinthians+3:3\">biblical symbolism of heaven as God&#8217;s home in the hearts<\/a> of <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/the-law\/two-covenantspart1\/2#newcovenant\">New Covenant<\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/the-law\/two-covenantspart1\/#disciple\">disciples<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Since it is religious people who anticipate the second coming of Christ, it must be said that they are relatively comfortable with their present <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/religion\/religion-is-not-faith\/religion-is-deception\/3#hangingontolife\">religious life<\/a> and with the present <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/religion\/religion-is-not-faith\/religion-is-deception\/3#hangingontolife\">condition of their heart<\/a>. They don&#8217;t know for sure what Jesus will do when he comes, but they still talk about his coming as an event which will be special in some kind of romantic way, and they have a sense that the spiritual significance of his coming will be more for people who do not currently know Jesus than it will be for them.<\/p>\n<p>Religious people do not know that the second coming of Jesus is for their benefit. They do not know that the spirit of Jesus is already present, and they do not know that they do not embody that spirit. If they did know, they would not look for it to be coming in the future.\u00a0What this means is that religious people, Jews, Christians, and others, do not have <a href=\"https:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/nas\/revelation\/19-10.html\">Jesus&#8217; spirit<\/a> (i.e. <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/the-law\/6#spirituallaws\">God&#8217;s spiritual laws<\/a>) in their hearts today. Some may think that they have Jesus in their hearts, but what they really have is only religion that includes a nostalgic, sentimental image of Jesus. For Christians, their religion includes religious rules overlaid with a fine-sounding veneer they call Jesus. Sadly, this image does not include the realities of Jesus (i.e. his <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/people\/true-prophets\/jesus\/13\">personal qualities<\/a> and <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/people\/true-prophets\/model-warriors\/2#jesusministryfunctions\">his ministry functions<\/a>).<\/p>\n<p>In their hearts they have the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/the-law\/6#religiouslaws\">teachings of man on which their religions are based<\/a>, but they do not have the<a href=\"https:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/search\/?s=bibles&amp;q=jesus+prophecy&amp;t=nas\"> testimony of of Jesus (i.e. spirit of prophecy)<\/a> in their hearts.\u00a0For Jews and all other religious, their religion includes obedience to <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/the-law\/6#religiouslaws\">religious laws<\/a> &#8212; but not God&#8217;s <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/the-law\/6#religiouslaws\">spiritual laws.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>New Covenant disciples do not anticipate a unique second coming because they already have God&#8217;s spiritual laws written on their hearts. But they do eagerly expect to<a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/study\/study-tips\/12\"> hear his voice every time they read the bible. <\/a>Even when they are not reading they might hear his voice. This means they recognize God&#8217;s spoken voice when they heart it. For them, this is the ultimate spiritual experience. There is nothing greater for them to imagine or anticipate. For them, the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/time-hours-days-weeks-and-ages\/end-times-rapture-and-tribulation\">rapture<\/a> is an everyday experience in which they hear God&#8217;s spoken voice.<\/p>\n<p>Until that day when they hear God&#8217;s spoken voice, Old\/First Covenant religious people will continue to believe that the following scriptures anticipate the unique second coming of a human, physical Jesus.<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/2-peter\/passage\/?q=2-peter+3:1-18\">2 Peter 3:1-18<\/a>: Dear friends, this is now my second letter to you. I have written both of them as reminders to stimulate you to wholesome thinking. 2 I want you to recall the words spoken in the past by the holy prophets and the command given by our Lord and Savior through your apostles. 3 First of all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. 4 They will say, &#8220;Where is this &#8216;coming&#8217; he promised? Ever since our fathers died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.&#8221; 5 But they deliberately forget that long ago by God&#8217;s word the heavens existed and the earth was formed out of water and by water. 6 By these waters also the world of that time was deluged and destroyed.<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 80px;\">COMMENTARY:<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\">7 By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men. 8 But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. 9 The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 80px;\">COMMENTARY:<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\">10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare. 11 Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives 12 as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat.<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 80px;\">COMMENTARY:<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\">13 But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness. 14 So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him. 15 Bear in mind that our Lord&#8217;s patience means salvation, just as our dear brother Paul also wrote you with the wisdom that God gave him. 16 He writes the same way in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters. His letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures, to their own destruction. 17 Therefore, dear friends, since you already know this, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of lawless men and fall from your secure position. 18 But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen.<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 80px;\">COMMENTARY:<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/1-thessalonians\/passage\/?q=1-thessalonians+5:1-9\">1 Thessalonians 5:1-9<\/a>: Now, brothers, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, 2 for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. 3 While people are saying, &#8220;Peace and safety,&#8221; destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. 4 But you, brothers, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief. 5 You are all sons of the light and sons of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness. 6 So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be alert and self-controlled. 7 For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, get drunk at night. 8 But since we belong to the day, let us be self-controlled, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet. 9 For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/matthew\/passage\/?q=matthew+24:3-51\">Matthew 24:3-51<\/a> <span id=\"mt24-3\" class=\"versetext\" style=\"display: inline;\"> As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives,<a name=\"1\"><\/a> the disciples came to him privately. &#8220;Tell us,&#8221; they said, &#8220;when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming<a name=\"2\"><\/a> and of the end of the age?&#8221;<a name=\"3\"><\/a> <\/span> <span id=\"mt24-4\" class=\"versetext\" style=\"display: inline;\"><span class=\"versenum\">4<\/span> Jesus answered: <span class=\"WordsOfChrist\">&#8220;Watch out that no one deceives you.<a name=\"4\"><\/a><\/span> <\/span> <span id=\"mt24-5\" class=\"versetext\" style=\"display: inline;\"><span class=\"versenum\">5<\/span> <span class=\"WordsOfChrist\">For many will come in my name, claiming, &#8216;I am the Christ,<a name=\"a\"><\/a> &#8216; and will deceive many.<a name=\"5\"><\/a><\/span> <\/span> <span id=\"mt24-6\" class=\"versetext\" style=\"display: inline;\"><span class=\"versenum\">6<\/span> <span class=\"WordsOfChrist\">You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come.<\/span> <\/span> <span id=\"mt24-7\" class=\"versetext\" style=\"display: inline;\"><span class=\"versenum\">7<\/span> <span class=\"WordsOfChrist\">Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.<a name=\"6\"><\/a> There will be famines<a name=\"7\"><\/a> and earthquakes in various places.<\/span> <\/span> <span id=\"mt24-8\" class=\"versetext\" style=\"display: inline;\"><span class=\"versenum\">8<\/span> <span class=\"WordsOfChrist\">All these are the beginning of birth pains.<\/span> <\/span> <span id=\"mt24-9\" class=\"versetext\" style=\"display: inline;\"><span class=\"versenum\">9<\/span> <span class=\"WordsOfChrist\">&#8220;Then you will be handed over to be persecuted<a name=\"8\"><\/a> and put to death,<a name=\"9\"><\/a> and you will be hated by all nations because of me.<a name=\"10\"><\/a><\/span> <\/span> <span id=\"mt24-10\" class=\"versetext\" style=\"display: inline;\"><span class=\"versenum\">10<\/span> <span class=\"WordsOfChrist\">At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other,<\/span> <\/span> <span id=\"mt24-11\" class=\"versetext\" style=\"display: inline;\"><span class=\"versenum\">11<\/span> <span class=\"WordsOfChrist\">and many false prophets<a name=\"11\"><\/a> will appear and deceive many people.<a name=\"12\"><\/a><\/span> <\/span> <span id=\"mt24-12\" class=\"versetext\" style=\"display: inline;\"><span class=\"versenum\">12<\/span> <span class=\"WordsOfChrist\">Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold,<\/span> <\/span> <span id=\"mt24-13\" class=\"versetext\" style=\"display: inline;\"><span class=\"versenum\">13<\/span> <span class=\"WordsOfChrist\">but he who stands firm to the end will be saved.<a name=\"13\"><\/a><\/span> <\/span> <span id=\"mt24-14\" class=\"versetext\" style=\"display: inline;\"><span class=\"versenum\">14<\/span> <span class=\"WordsOfChrist\">And this gospel of the kingdom<a name=\"14\"><\/a> will be preached in the whole world<a name=\"15\"><\/a> as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.<\/span> <\/span> <span id=\"mt24-15\" class=\"versetext\" style=\"display: inline;\"><span class=\"versenum\">15<\/span> <span class=\"WordsOfChrist\">&#8220;So when you see standing in the holy place<a name=\"16\"><\/a> &#8216;the abomination that causes desolation,&#8217;<a name=\"b\"><\/a><a name=\"17\"><\/a> spoken of through the prophet Daniel&#8211;let the reader understand&#8211;<\/span> <\/span> <span id=\"mt24-16\" class=\"versetext\" style=\"display: inline;\"><span class=\"versenum\">16<\/span> <span class=\"WordsOfChrist\">then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.<\/span> <\/span> <span id=\"mt24-17\" class=\"versetext\" style=\"display: inline;\"><span class=\"versenum\">17<\/span> <span class=\"WordsOfChrist\">Let no one on the roof of his house<a name=\"18\"><\/a> go down to take anything out of the house.<\/span> <\/span> <span id=\"mt24-18\" class=\"versetext\" style=\"display: inline;\"><span class=\"versenum\">18<\/span> <span class=\"WordsOfChrist\">Let no one in the field go back to get his cloak.<\/span> <\/span> <span id=\"mt24-19\" class=\"versetext\" style=\"display: inline;\"><span class=\"versenum\">19<\/span> <span class=\"WordsOfChrist\">How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers!<a name=\"19\"><\/a><\/span> <\/span> <span id=\"mt24-20\" class=\"versetext\" style=\"display: inline;\"><span class=\"versenum\">20<\/span> <span class=\"WordsOfChrist\">Pray that your flight will not take place in winter or on the Sabbath.<\/span> <\/span> <span id=\"mt24-21\" class=\"versetext\" style=\"display: inline;\"><span class=\"versenum\">21<\/span> <span class=\"WordsOfChrist\">For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now&#8211;and never to be equaled again.<a name=\"20\"><\/a><\/span> <\/span> <span id=\"mt24-22\" class=\"versetext\" style=\"display: inline;\"><span class=\"versenum\">22<\/span> <span class=\"WordsOfChrist\">If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect<a name=\"21\"><\/a> those days will be shortened.<\/span> <\/span> <span id=\"mt24-23\" class=\"versetext\" style=\"display: inline;\"><span class=\"versenum\">23<\/span> <span class=\"WordsOfChrist\">At that time if anyone says to you, &#8216;Look, here is the Christ!&#8217; or, &#8216;There he is!&#8217; do not believe it.<a name=\"22\"><\/a><\/span> <\/span> <span id=\"mt24-24\" class=\"versetext\" style=\"display: inline;\"><span class=\"versenum\">24<\/span> <span class=\"WordsOfChrist\">For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles<a name=\"23\"><\/a> to deceive even the elect&#8211;if that were possible.<\/span> <\/span> <span id=\"mt24-25\" class=\"versetext\" style=\"display: inline;\"><span class=\"versenum\">25<\/span> <span class=\"WordsOfChrist\">See, I have told you ahead of time.<\/span> <\/span> <span id=\"mt24-26\" class=\"versetext\" style=\"display: inline;\"><span class=\"versenum\">26<\/span> <span class=\"WordsOfChrist\">&#8220;So if anyone tells you, &#8216;There he is, out in the desert,&#8217; do not go out; or, &#8216;Here he is, in the inner rooms,&#8217; do not believe it.<\/span> <\/span> <span id=\"mt24-27\" class=\"versetext\" style=\"display: inline;\"><span class=\"versenum\">27<\/span> <span class=\"WordsOfChrist\">For as lightning<a name=\"24\"><\/a> that comes from the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming<a name=\"25\"><\/a> of the Son of Man.<a name=\"26\"><\/a><\/span> <\/span> <span id=\"mt24-28\" class=\"versetext\" style=\"display: inline;\"><span class=\"versenum\">28<\/span> <span class=\"WordsOfChrist\">Wherever there is a carcass, there the vultures will gather.<a name=\"27\"><\/a><\/span> <\/span> <span id=\"mt24-29\" class=\"versetext\" style=\"display: inline;\"><span class=\"versenum\">29<\/span> <span class=\"WordsOfChrist\">&#8220;Immediately after the distress of those days &#8221; &#8216;the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.&#8217;<a name=\"c\"><\/a><a name=\"28\"><\/a><\/span> <\/span> <span id=\"mt24-30\" class=\"versetext\" style=\"display: inline;\"><span class=\"versenum\">30<\/span> <span class=\"WordsOfChrist\">&#8220;At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and <\/span><\/span><span id=\"mt24-30\"><\/span><span id=\"mt24-30\">all the nations of the earth will mourn.<\/span><span id=\"mt24-30\"> They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory. <\/span> <span id=\"mt24-31\">31 And he will send his angels<a name=\"31\"><\/a> with a loud trumpet call,<a name=\"32\"><\/a> and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other. <\/span> <span id=\"mt24-32\" class=\"versetext\" style=\"display: inline;\"><span class=\"versenum\">32<\/span> <span class=\"WordsOfChrist\">&#8220;Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near.<\/span> <\/span> <span id=\"mt24-33\" class=\"versetext\" style=\"display: inline;\"><span class=\"versenum\">33<\/span> <span class=\"WordsOfChrist\">Even so, when you see all these things, you know that it<a name=\"d\"><\/a> is near, right at the door.<a name=\"33\"><\/a><\/span> <\/span> <span id=\"mt24-34\" class=\"versetext\" style=\"display: inline;\"><span class=\"versenum\">34<\/span> <span class=\"WordsOfChrist\">I tell you the truth, this generation<a name=\"e\"><\/a> will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened.<a name=\"34\"><\/a><\/span> <\/span> <span id=\"mt24-35\" class=\"versetext\" style=\"display: inline;\"><span class=\"versenum\">35<\/span> <span class=\"WordsOfChrist\">Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/luke\/passage\/?q=luke+21:5-36\">Luke 21:5-36<\/a>:\u00a0\u00a0<span class=\"verse-5\">Some of his disciples were remarking about how the temple was adorned with beautiful stones and with gifts dedicated to God. But Jesus said,\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"verse-number\"><strong>6<\/strong><\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"verse-6\"><span class=\"red-letter no-red\">\u201cAs for what you see here, the time will come when not one stone will be left on another; every one of them will be thrown down.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 150px;\">COMMENTARY: This physically beautiful temple was created by man &#8212; not God. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/nas\/passage\/?q=1-kings+8:27-30;+isaiah+66:1-2;+psalm+11:4;+matthew+5:34-35;+matthew+23:22\">God&#8217;s temple is in the hearts of New Covenant disciples.<\/a> Because stones are people, the stones that will be thrown down are the religious leaders who control the temple institution.<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 150px;\">Read more about destruction of religious institutions in\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/religion\/religion-is-not-faith\/religion-is-commerce\/jesus-and-the-money-changers-in-the-temple-2\">Jesus and the Money-Changers in the Temple<\/a> and\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/religion\/religion-is-sin\/religion-is-idolatry\/4\">TEARING DOWN IDOLS, ALTARS AND HIGH PLACES.<\/a> These all describe the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/time-hours-days-weeks-and-ages\/end-times-rapture-and-tribulation\">end times of religion.<\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span class=\"verse-number\"><strong>7<\/strong><\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"verse-7\">\u201cTeacher,\u201d they asked, \u201cwhen will these things happen? And what will be the sign that they are about to take place?\u201d\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"verse-number\"><strong>8<\/strong><\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"verse-8\">He replied:\u00a0<span class=\"red-letter no-red\">\u201cWatch out that you are not deceived. For many will come in my name, claiming, \u2018I am he,\u2019 and, \u2018The time is near.\u2019 Do not follow them.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 150px;\">COMMENTARY: The disciples wrongly think that these events will come at a unique point in time that will be observable with natural senses (i.e., eyes and ears.) They do not understand that these conditions are always present whenever religion is present. This means that then end times of religion are evident <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/time-hours-days-weeks-and-ages\/2\">every day.<\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 150px;\">Jesus warns against being deceived by\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/people\/religion-is-the-kingdom-of-false-prophets\">false prophets<\/a> who will come in Jesus&#8217; name (i.e. they will call themselves Christians) and represent that they know the way to avoid going to hell. They will use fear of going to hell as the motivation to follow <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/the-law\/6#religiouslaws\">religious laws<\/a> that will be their salvation.<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span class=\"verse-number\">9<\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"verse-9\"><span class=\"red-letter no-red\">When you hear of wars and uprisings, do not be frightened. These things must happen first, but the end will not come right away.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"verse-number\">10<\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"verse-10\">Then he said to them:\u00a0<span class=\"red-letter no-red\">\u201cNation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"verse-number\">11<\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"verse-11\"><span class=\"red-letter no-red\">There will be great earthquakes, famines and pestilences in various places, and fearful events and great signs from heaven.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 150px;\">COMMENTARY: The signs mentioned here are evidence that God is always at work destroying religion. The signs symbolize internal, religious conflict &#8212; not geographical, geological or weather events.<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 150px;\">Evidence of these signs is found in constant competition for followers between and within religious nations. See <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/religion\/religion-is-the-enemy\" aria-haspopup=\"true\">Religion is the Enemy,\u00a0<\/a><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/religion\/religion-is-the-enemy\/gods-at-war\">Gods at War<\/a> and\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/religion\/religion-is-the-enemy\/sibling-warfare\">Sibling Conflict <\/a>for discussion of conflict between <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/nations\">religious nations. <\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 150px;\">These events will unfold slowly as religion self-destructs from within. While people struggle to find meaning and safety in their religions, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/religion\/god-is-calling-people-out-of-religion\">God calls them out of religion<\/a> one person at a time.<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 150px;\">The signs from heaven are rumblings in the hearts of religious people who are beginning to <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/how-to-hear-gods-spoken-voice#spiritconvicts\">hear God&#8217;s voice <\/a><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/how-to-hear-gods-spoken-voice#spiritconvicts\">convicting them about the evil condition of their hearts <\/a>and the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/religion\/religion-is-not-faith\/religion-is-deception\">Deception, <\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/religion\/religion-is-not-faith\/religion-is-injustice-and-slavery\">Injustice, Slavery, Oppression and Affliction that religions<\/a> perpetrate on religious people.<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span class=\"verse-number\">12<\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"verse-12\"><span class=\"red-letter no-red\">\u201cBut before all this, they will seize you and persecute you. They will hand you over to synagogues and put you in prison, and you will be brought before kings and governors, and all on account of my name.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"verse-number\">13<\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"verse-13\"><span class=\"red-letter no-red\">And so you will bear testimony to me.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"verse-number\">14<\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"verse-14\"><span class=\"red-letter no-red\">But make up your mind not to worry beforehand how you will defend yourselves.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"verse-number\">15<\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"verse-15\"><span class=\"red-letter no-red\">For I will give you words and wisdom that none of your adversaries will be able to resist or contradict.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"verse-number\">16<\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"verse-16\"><span class=\"red-letter no-red\">You will be betrayed even by parents, brothers and sisters, relatives and friends, and they will put some of you to death.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"verse-number\">17<\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"verse-17\"><span class=\"red-letter no-red\">Everyone will hate you because of me.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"verse-number\">18<\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"verse-18\"><span class=\"red-letter no-red\">But not a hair of your head will perish.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"verse-number\">19<\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"verse-19\"><span class=\"red-letter no-red\">Stand firm, and you will win life.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 150px;\">COMMENTARY: Jesus is addressing these comments to his followers as <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/the-law\/two-covenantspart1\/2#newcovenant\">New Covenant<\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/the-law\/two-covenantspart1\/#disciple\">disciples.<\/a>\u00a0These events are summarized in the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/death-resurrection-life\/two-deaths\/2\">Second Death<\/a> and <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/time-hours-days-weeks-and-ages\/end-times-rapture-and-tribulation\/4\">Post-rapture Tribulation<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span class=\"verse-number\">20<\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"verse-20\"><span class=\"red-letter no-red\">\u201cWhen you see Jerusalem being surrounded by armies, you will know that its desolation is near.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><span class=\"verse-number\">21<\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"verse-21\"><span class=\"red-letter no-red\">Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, let those in the city get out, and let those in the country not enter the city.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"verse-number\">22<\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"verse-22\"><span class=\"red-letter no-red\">For this is the time of punishment in fulfillment of all that has been written.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"verse-number\">23<\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"verse-23\"><span class=\"red-letter no-red\">How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! There will be great distress in the land and wrath against this people.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"verse-number\">24<\/span><span class=\"verse-24\"><span class=\"red-letter no-red\">They will fall by the sword and will be taken as prisoners to all the nations. Jerusalem will be trampled on by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"verse-number\">25<\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"verse-25\"><span class=\"red-letter no-red\">\u201cThere will be signs in the sun, moon and stars. On the earth, nations will be in anguish and perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the sea.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"verse-number\">26<\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"verse-26\"><span class=\"red-letter no-red\">People will faint from terror, apprehensive of what is coming on the world, for the heavenly bodies will be shaken.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"verse-number\">27<\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"verse-27\"><span class=\"red-letter no-red\">At that time they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 150px;\">COMMENTARY: This is a prophecy about the destruction of Old Jerusalem which symbolizes a community of <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/the-law\/two-covenantspart1\/2#oldcovenant\">Old\/First Covenant<\/a> religionists. Since Jerusalem has always been a religious community, this prophecy has already been fulfilled. Old Jerusalem is under attack.<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 150px;\">The imagery is of internal religious conflict like the conflict described in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/religion\/religion-is-the-enemy\">Religion is the Enemy, <\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/religion\/religion-is-the-enemy\/gods-at-war\">Gods at War,\u00a0 <\/a>and\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/religion\/religion-is-the-enemy\/sibling-warfare\">Sibling Conflict. <\/a>These conditions describe the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/time-hours-days-weeks-and-ages\/end-times-rapture-and-tribulation#endtimes\">end times<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/time-hours-days-weeks-and-ages\/end-times-rapture-and-tribulation\/3\">pre-rapture tribulation<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 150px;\">These conditions are ripe times for distressed people to listen to a prophet (i.e. son of man) who will tell them to escape the conflict by <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/people\/true-prophets\/jesus\/3\">getting out of religion.<\/a> Religious people do not tend to listen to true prophets during seasons of relative peace. When times are difficult, however, they are more inclined to look for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/study\/study-tips\/4\">alternatives to religion<\/a> taught <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/people\/true-prophets\">true prophets.<\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span class=\"verse-number\">28<\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"verse-28\"><span class=\"red-letter no-red\">When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"verse-number\">29<\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"verse-29\">He told them this parable:\u00a0<span class=\"red-letter no-red\">\u201cLook at the fig tree and all the trees.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"verse-number\">30<\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"verse-30\"><span class=\"red-letter no-red\">When they sprout leaves, you can see for yourselves and know that summer is near.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"verse-number\">31<\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"verse-31\"><span class=\"red-letter no-red\">Even so, when you see these things happening, you know that the kingdom of God is near.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"verse-number\">32<\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"verse-32\"><span class=\"red-letter no-red\">\u201cTruly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"verse-number\">33\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"verse-33\"><span class=\"red-letter no-red\">Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"verse-number\">34<\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"verse-34\"><span class=\"red-letter no-red\">\u201cBe careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and that day will close on you suddenly like a trap.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"verse-number\">35<\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"verse-35\"><span class=\"red-letter no-red\">For it will come on all those who live on the face of the whole earth.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"verse-number\">36<\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"verse-36\"><span class=\"red-letter no-red\">Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 150px;\">COMMENTARY: The son of man is commonly interpreted to refer to the person Jesus. This happens because bible publishers wrongly capitalized son and man as though the label applied exclusively to Jesus. The correct interpretation is that the term &#8220;son of man&#8221; applies to any and all <a href=\"https:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/ezekiel\/1-28.html\">New Covenant disciples<\/a> who function as\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/people\/true-prophets\">True Prophets<\/a> who <a href=\"https:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/nas\/passage\/?q=hebrews+1:1-2;+john+3:34;+jeremiah+26:1-5;+ezekiel+2:1-7;+ezekiel+3:4-11;+2-chronicles+36:15;+acts+3:26;+revelation+1:1;+deuteronomy+18:18;+isaiah+51:15-16;+john+17:1-8;+isaiah+59:21;+deuteronomy+32:1;+job+22:22;+psalm+19:14;+proverbs+12:6;+jeremiah+1:9;+jeremiah+5:14;+hosea+6:5;+daniel+9:9-11;+2-peter+1:19-21;+mark+13:27;+matthew+24:31;+revelation+22:6\">speak for God<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 200px;\">STUDY TIP: See <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/people\/true-prophets\/jesus\/3\">this link<\/a> for more about son of man and son of God.<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 150px;\">Verse 36 is the key verse here regarding the second coming. Literal interpretations assume that it refers to the second coming of Jesus as the son of man. Actually, it refers to all\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/people\/true-prophets\">true prophets<\/a>,<a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/people\/angels\"> angels<\/a>,\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/people\/true-prophets\/messiah\">messiahs<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/people\/true-prophets\/the-high-priest\">high priests<\/a>, and\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/people\/true-prophets\/model-warriors\">warriors <\/a>who teach about the righteous alternative to religion at any time. Their messages should always be welcomed by religious people because, whether they understand it or not, they always live in conflict with religion.<\/p>\n<div class=\"NavBar PassageNavBar\" style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><a id=\"\" title=\"Go to Isaiah 13:11 (Standard View)\" href=\"http:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/rsv\/isaiah\/13-11.html\">Isaiah 13:11\u00a0<\/a><span class=\"versetext\">I will punish the world for its evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; I will put an end to the pride of the arrogant, and lay low the haughtiness of the ruthless.<\/span><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div style=\"padding-left: 150px;\">COMMENTARY: The weapons that God uses to punish are his <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/blood\">words<\/a>. Here <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/how-to-hear-gods-spoken-voice#spiritconvicts\">conviction of sin<\/a> is equated with punishment but the expected outcome of this kind of punishment is <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/religion\/god-is-calling-people-out-of-religion\">coming out of religion<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/rsv\/passage\/?q=exodus+15:22-26;exodus+23:20-25;exodus+19:1-5;jeremiah+7:23-26;jeremiah+11:1-4;matthew+4:1-4;deuteronomy+8:1-3;job+22:21-23;psalms+119:9-13;psalms+138:4;isaiah+28:23;jeremiah+11:1-7;jeremiah+22:21;psalms+106:25;nehemiah+9:29;jeremiah+11:10;jeremiah+13:11;zechariah+7:11;isaiah+46:12;matthew+13:15;genesis+22:18;exodus+23:21-22;numbers+7:89;numbers+14:22;deuteronomy+4:12;deuteronomy+4:30;deuteronomy+4:36;deuteronomy+5:22-26;deuteronomy+8:20;deuteronomy+9:23;deuteronomy+13:4;deuteronomy+13:18;deuteronomy+15:5;deuteronomy+26:14;deuteronomy+26:17;deuteronomy+30:20;joshua+5:6;joshua+10:14;joshua+22:2;joshua+24:24;psalms+81:11;psalms+95:7;psalms+106:25;jeremiah+3:13;jeremiah+3:25;jeremiah+7:23;jeremiah+7:28;jeremiah+9:13;jeremiah+11:4;jeremiah+11:7;jeremiah+18:10;jeremiah+22:20-21;jeremiah+26:13;jeremiah+32:23;jeremiah+40:3;jeremiah+42:6;jeremiah+42:13-14;jeremiah+43:1-7;jeremiah+44:23;isaiah+28:23;isaiah+32:9;isaiah+55:1-3;daniel+9:9-11\">listening to God&#8217;s spoken voice<\/a>. When God&#8217;s words of truth land on religious people, their <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/religion\/religion-is-not-faith\/pride\">pride and arrogance is replaced with humility.<\/a><\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>These scriptures describe conditions that will always exist in the context of religion. Therefore, the prophecies are not about the future. Since the prophecies that anticipate the second coming of the son of man, describe conditions that exist today, the prophecies are fulfilled today &#8212; not in the future.<\/p>\n<p><!--nextpage--><\/p>\n<p><strong>COMPLETE LIST OF SCRIPTURES ABOUT THE SECOND COMING<\/strong><br \/>\nReligious people wrongly believe in the second coming of Jesus in terms of a unique, future time\/day. This is wrong because everything in the bible actually points to today &#8212; not the future. It is with understanding that the following scriptures should be interpreted.\u00a0 See <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/time-hours-days-weeks-and-ages\/2\">IT&#8217;S ALL ABOUT TODAY <\/a>for understanding.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Acts 3:19-21 &#8220;Therefore repent and return, so that your sins may be wiped away, in order that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord ;<\/li>\n<li class=\"text-xl\">\n<div class=\"bible-verses\">\n<div class=\"leading-8 transition-colors rounded my-1\"><a class=\"text-blue-600 font-bold\" href=\"https:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/nas\/acts\/3-20.html\">20\u00a0<\/a>and that He may send Jesus, the Christ appointed for you,<\/div>\n<div class=\"leading-8 transition-colors rounded my-1\"><a class=\"text-blue-600 font-bold\" href=\"https:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/nas\/acts\/3-21.html\">21\u00a0<\/a>whom heaven must receive until the period of restoration of all things about which God spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets from ancient time.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-bold text-xl\">1 Corinthians 1:7 so that you are not lacking in any gift, awaiting eagerly the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ,<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-bold text-xl\">1 Corinthians 4:5 <span class=\"font-bold\">\u00a0<\/span>Therefore do not go on passing judgment before the time, but wait until the Lord comes who will both bring to light the things hidden in the darkness and disclose the motives of men&#8217;s hearts; and then each man&#8217;s praise will come to him from God.<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-bold text-xl\">1 Corinthians 11:26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord&#8217;s death until He comes.<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-bold text-xl\">Philippians 1:10\u00a0 so that you may approve the things that are excellent, in order to be sincere and blameless until the day of Christ;<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-bold text-xl\">Philippians 3:20\u00a0 For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ;<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-bold text-xl\">Colossians 3:4\u00a0 When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory.<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-bold text-xl\">1 Thessalonians 1:9-10 For they themselves report about us what kind of a reception we had with you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve a living and true God,<\/li>\n<li class=\"text-xl\">\n<div class=\"bible-verses\">\n<div class=\"leading-8 transition-colors rounded my-1\"><a class=\"text-blue-600 font-bold\" href=\"https:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/nas\/1-thessalonians\/1-10.html\">10\u00a0<\/a>and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, that is Jesus, who rescues us from the wrath to come.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-bold text-xl\">1 Thessalonians 2:19-20 For who is our hope or joy or crown of exultation? Is it not even you, in the presence of our Lord Jesus at His coming?<\/li>\n<li class=\"text-xl\">\n<div class=\"bible-verses\">\n<div class=\"leading-8 transition-colors rounded my-1\"><a class=\"text-blue-600 font-bold\" href=\"https:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/nas\/1-thessalonians\/2-20.html\">20\u00a0<\/a>For you are our glory and joy.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-bold text-xl\">1 Thessalonians 3:13 so that He may establish your hearts without blame in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all His saints.<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-bold text-xl\">1 Thessalonians 4:13-17 But we do not want you to be uninformed, brethren, about those who are asleep, so that you will not grieve as do the rest who have no hope.<\/li>\n<li class=\"text-xl\">\n<div class=\"bible-verses\">\n<div class=\"leading-8 transition-colors rounded my-1\"><a class=\"text-blue-600 font-bold\" href=\"https:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/nas\/1-thessalonians\/4-14.html\">14\u00a0<\/a>For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep in Jesus.<\/div>\n<div class=\"leading-8 transition-colors rounded my-1\"><a class=\"text-blue-600 font-bold\" href=\"https:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/nas\/1-thessalonians\/4-15.html\">15\u00a0<\/a>For this we say to you by the word of the Lord , that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord , will not precede those who have fallen asleep.<\/div>\n<div class=\"leading-8 transition-colors rounded my-1\"><a class=\"text-blue-600 font-bold\" href=\"https:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/nas\/1-thessalonians\/4-16.html\">16\u00a0<\/a>For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.<\/div>\n<div class=\"leading-8 transition-colors rounded my-1\"><a class=\"text-blue-600 font-bold\" href=\"https:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/nas\/1-thessalonians\/4-17.html\">17\u00a0<\/a>Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord .<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-bold text-xl\">1 Thessalonians 5:23 <span class=\"font-bold\">\u00a0<\/span>Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-bold text-xl\">2 Thessalonians 1:6-7 For after all it is only just for God to repay with affliction those who afflict you, and to give relief to you who are afflicted and to us as well when the Lord Jesus will be revealed from heaven with His mighty angels in flaming fire,<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-bold text-xl\">2 Thessalonians 2:1-2 Now we request you, brethren, with regard to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him,<\/li>\n<li class=\"text-xl\">\n<div class=\"bible-verses\">\n<div class=\"leading-8 transition-colors rounded my-1\"><a class=\"text-blue-600 font-bold\" href=\"https:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/nas\/2-thessalonians\/2-2.html\">2\u00a0<\/a>that you not be quickly shaken from your composure or be disturbed either by a spirit or a message or a letter as if from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-bold text-xl\">1 Timothy 6:13-16\u00a0 I charge you in the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and of Christ Jesus, who testified the good confession before Pontius Pilate,<\/li>\n<li class=\"text-xl\">\n<div class=\"bible-verses\">\n<div class=\"leading-8 transition-colors rounded my-1\"><a class=\"text-blue-600 font-bold\" href=\"https:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/nas\/1-timothy\/6-14.html\">14\u00a0<\/a>that you keep the commandment without stain or reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ,<\/div>\n<div class=\"leading-8 transition-colors rounded my-1\"><a class=\"text-blue-600 font-bold\" href=\"https:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/nas\/1-timothy\/6-15.html\">15\u00a0<\/a>which He will bring about at the proper time -He who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords,<\/div>\n<div class=\"leading-8 transition-colors rounded my-1\"><a class=\"text-blue-600 font-bold\" href=\"https:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/nas\/1-timothy\/6-16.html\">16\u00a0<\/a>who alone possesses immortality and dwells in unapproachable light, whom no man has seen or can see. To Him be honor and eternal dominion! Amen.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-bold text-xl\">2 Timothy 4:8\u00a0 in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord , the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-bold text-xl\">Hebrews 9:28 so Christ also, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time for salvation without reference to sin, to those who eagerly await Him.<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-bold text-xl\">Hebrews 10:25 <span class=\"font-bold\">\u00a0<\/span>not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-bold text-xl\">Hebrews 10:37 <span class=\"font-bold\">\u00a0<\/span>FOR YET IN A VERY LITTLE WHILE, HE WHO IS COMING WILL COME, AND WILL NOT DELAY.<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-bold text-xl\">James 5:7-9 Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord . The farmer waits for the precious produce of the soil, being patient about it, until it gets the early and late rains.\u00a0<span class=\"reftext\"><a href=\"https:\/\/biblehub.com\/james\/5-8.htm\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"noopener\"><b>8<\/b><\/a><\/span>You too be patient; strengthen your hearts for the coming of the Lord is near. <a class=\"text-blue-600 font-bold\" href=\"https:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/nas\/james\/5-9.html\">9\u00a0<\/a>Do not complain, brethren, against one another, so that you yourselves may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing right at the door.<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-bold text-xl\">1 Peter 1:3-5 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you,\n<div class=\"leading-8 transition-colors rounded my-1\"><a class=\"text-blue-600 font-bold\" href=\"https:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/nas\/1-peter\/1-5.html\">5\u00a0<\/a>who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-bold text-xl\">1 Peter 1:13 <span class=\"font-bold\">\u00a0<\/span>Therefore, prepare your minds for action, keep sober in spirit, fix your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-bold text-xl\">1 Peter 4:13 but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing, so that also at the revelation of His glory you may rejoice with exultation.<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-bold text-xl\">1 Peter 5:4 nd when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory.<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-bold text-xl\">2 Peter 1:16\u00a0 For we did not follow cleverly devised tales when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of His majesty.<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-bold text-xl\">2 Peter 3:3\u00a0 Know this first of all, that in the last days mockers will come with their mocking, following after their own lusts,<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-bold text-xl\">2 Peter 3:8-10 But do not let this one fact escape your notice, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day.<\/li>\n<li class=\"text-xl\">\n<div class=\"bible-verses\">\n<div class=\"leading-8 transition-colors rounded my-1\"><a class=\"text-blue-600 font-bold\" href=\"https:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/nas\/2-peter\/3-9.html\">9\u00a0<\/a>The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.<\/div>\n<div class=\"leading-8 transition-colors rounded my-1\"><a class=\"text-blue-600 font-bold\" href=\"https:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/nas\/2-peter\/3-10.html\">10\u00a0<\/a>But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-bold text-xl\">1 John 2:28\u00a0 Now, little children, abide in Him, so that when He appears, we may have confidence and not shrink away from Him in shame at His coming.<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-bold text-xl\">1 John 3:2-3\u00a0 Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is. And everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-bold text-xl\">Jude 1:14-15 It was also about these men that Enoch, in the seventh generation from Adam, prophesied, saying, &#8220;Behold, the Lord came with many thousands of His holy ones, to execute judgment upon all, and to convict all the ungodly of all their ungodly deeds which they have done in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.&#8221;<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-bold text-xl\">Revelation 1:4\u00a0 John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace, from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne,<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-bold text-xl\">Revelation 1:7-8 BEHOLD, HE IS COMING WITH THE CLOUDS, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him. So it is to be. Amen.\u00a0 &#8220;I am the Alpha and the Omega,&#8221; says the Lord God, &#8220;who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.&#8221;<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-bold text-xl\">Revelation 3:11 &#8216;I am coming quickly; hold fast what you have, so that no one will take your crown.<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-bold text-xl\">Revelation 16:15 (&#8220;Behold, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who stays awake and keeps his clothes, so that he will not walk about naked and men will not see his shame.&#8221;)<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-bold text-xl\">Revelation 22:12-13 &#8220;Behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to render to every man according to what he has done . &#8220;I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.&#8221;<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-bold text-xl\">Revelation 22:20-21 He who testifies to these things says, &#8220;Yes, I am coming quickly.&#8221; Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.<a class=\"text-blue-600 font-bold\" href=\"https:\/\/www.biblestudytools.com\/nas\/revelation\/22-21.html\">21\u00a0<\/a>The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all. Amen.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>New Covenant disciples will read these scriptures and relate to them as <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice#whatgodsvoiceislike\">experiences in which they heard God&#8217;s spoken voice in their hearts.<\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/the-law\/two-covenantspart1\/2#oldcovenant\">Old\/First Covenant<\/a> religious people who do not relate to these scriptures would do well to learn<a href=\"https:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/gods-written-word-and-gods-spoken-voice\/how-to-hear-gods-spoken-voice\"> how to hear God&#8217;s spoken voice<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>COMING AGAIN OR NEVER LEFT?\u00a0 The imagery of Jesus coming down to earth riding on a cloud is indelibly strong for most Christians. It is so strong that it compels followers of Jesus to set aside everything they otherwise believe <span class=\"excerpt-dots\">&hellip;<\/span> <a class=\"more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns\/time-hours-days-weeks-and-ages\/second-coming-of-christ\"><span class=\"more-msg\">Continue reading &rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":2821,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-6758","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/6758","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6758"}],"version-history":[{"count":28,"href":"https:\/\/thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/6758\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12955,"href":"https:\/\/thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/6758\/revisions\/12955"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2821"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6758"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}