Objection 65: One of the best proofs that no one can tell whether Christ will come tomorrow or a thousand years from now is the fact that the apostles thought He would come in their day. They were all mistaken, and so are Seventh-day Adventists.
It is true that the apostles looked forward to the Second Advent of Christ as the one momentous event of the future. He was the center and circumference of their preaching. Looking back, they saw Christ crucified, but raised from the dead (1 Cor. 2:2; 1 Cor. 1:23; Gal. 6:14). Looking upward, they saw Christ ministering for them as their great High Priest in the heavenly sanctuary (Heb. 2:17; 3:1; 4:14) Looking forward, they saw Christ coming in the clouds of heaven.
Earthly concerns did not enter into their reckoning. All was in terms of the relation of Christ to them—what He had done for them, what He was doing for them, and how He would finally come to receive them unto Himself. The very fact that they fixed their thoughts so completely on this one future event might cause the superficial reader of the Bible to conclude that the apostles believed and taught that Christ would return in their day. But this would be unwarranted.
There are a few passages that, considered alone, might lead to that conclusion. The one most frequently cited is where Paul, in his first epistle to the Thessalonians, speaks of the dead who are raised and of “we who are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord.” 1 Thess. 4:15. Some conclude from this that Paul expected that he would be alive at the coming of the Lord. And, indeed, apparently some of the Thessalonians interpreted Paul’s statement as meaning that the Day of Christ was already on them.
But Paul, in his second epistle, cleared up this misunderstanding, declaring, “Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you, not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come.” 2 Thess. 2:2. Then he proceeds to assure them that the Second Coming would not take place until after a general apostasy, in which “the man of lawlessness” would be revealed. Verse 3.
In his exhortation to the elders of Ephesus, Paul indicated that he knew that the worst of that apostasy—“savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. . . . from among yourselves men will rise up, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after themselves”—would happen only after he had “departed”, that is, died. (Acts 20:29-30)
To his spiritual son, Timothy, he wrote from his death cell at Rome: “The things that thou has heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also.” 2 Tim. 2:2. Evidently, Paul understood that he would die soon, and was telling Timothy to commit his teachings to others, who would carry on his ministry after his death.
If we remember that the inspired writings of the Bible were not simply for those who first read them but also for us, Paul's statement in 1 Thessalonians 4:15, and similar statements by other apostles, will not prove perplexing.
All teachers of the gospel of Jesus Christ have emphasized the need to always be in a state of readiness for Christ’s return. This should not be misinterpreted as their belief that the literal, physical Second Coming of Christ was happening immediately. Rather, all believers must be in a state of readiness because when we die, probation closes for us and, as we experience it, Christ returns that minute. None of us can know when we will die, so believers must always be in a state of readiness for Christ's return.
As Peter explained to the New Testament church, just because Jesus hasn’t returned on our time-table does not mean He is not coming back just as He said (John 14:2-4). People who say Jesus is not returning, literally and physically, are scoffers who also scoff at the most plainly narrated facts of Scripture, such as the recent creation and the world-altering flood. (2 Peter 3:1-12)
No one urged vigilance for the Second Coming more than Peter: “Looking for and hastening unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat . . . Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless.” (2 Peter 3:12,14)
But Peter knew he was going to be martyred before the Second Coming, because Christ had told him he would (John 21:18-19): “Knowing that shortly I must put off this my tabernacle [his body], even as our Lord Jesus Christ hath showed me. Moreover I will endeavor that ye may be able, after my death, to have these things always in remembrance.” (2 Peter 1:14-15)
Peter also reminded the early Christians, “We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto you do well that you take heed, as unto a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawn.” 2 Peter 1:19. The prophecies are the key. Although frequently not understood by the prophets themselves, they are intended to be understood by those of us who, by the study of them, understand that we live in the last days. The apostle John himself may have understood little contained in the Revelation, yet by inspiration he declared, "Blessed is he that reads, and they that bear the words of this prophecy." Rev. 1:3.
We, looking back to the first century of the Christian Era, wonder why all the Jews were not ready to receive Christ, so plain were the prophecies concerning the manner and time of His advent. There were a few back there who did study the prophecies, and when the time drew near, God graciously revealed more fully their meaning to these searchers for truth. If we today are in an attitude of searching the prophecies rather than of scoffing at them, is it not possible that God may open their meaning to us more fully? And thus we may learn something very definite regarding the Second Advent.
We agree that no mere mortal who is not inspired by God can tell whether Christ will come tomorrow or a thousand years from now. But the prophets, acting as God’s messengers, can tell us much about the nearness of Christ’s Second Coming. We would ask the objector: Have you studied these inspired writings? Have you obeyed the injunction of Christ Himself to read and to understand the prophecies of Daniel? (Mat. 24:15) Have you studied Christ's own statements about the events leading up to His return? (Mat. 24 and Luke 21) Are you one of those who can claim the blessing because you have read, prayerfully and diligently, the book of Revelation? (Rev. 1:3) Until you have done all of these things, how can you declare that nothing can be known about the Second Advent?
The Bible reveals plainly that in all past ages God has always told men when a great event was near at hand. “Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he reveals his secret unto his servants the prophets.” Amos 3:7. Has God now changed His plan, and will give His prophets no real knowledge regarding an event that surpasses in grandeur all events that have ever occurred?
The Bible contains whole books devoted to a prophetic discussion of the Second Advent of Christ in relation to great prophetic periods and historical events. Shall we ignore these portions of Holy Writ? Shall we say they are meaningless? If not, then should we not study them, and will they not give us light on this great subject of the nearness of the Second Advent?