Dates for Jesus Christ's return
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The Numbers Game - Knowing the day and the hour
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One logical question every Christian should ask themselves, when is
Jesus Christ going to return? When I read my Bible, I run across words
like, "For ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man
cometh." (Mat 25:13) I also read, "Watch therefore: for ye know not
what hour your Lord doth come." (Mat 24:42) I understood Him as
meaning, you're not going to know until I come for you.
Other people throughout history have read the same words of Jesus and
came up with different interpretations of what He intended. They've
somehow managed to get around all restrictions against precise date
setting. On a number of occasions, by doing so, they created pure
havoc. The following is a list of some past failed dates and some
dates yet to come.
- 53 AD
Even before all the books of the Bible were written, there was
talk that Christ's return had already taken place. The
Thessalonians panicked on Paul, when they heard a rumor that the
day of the Lord was at hand, and they had missed the rapture.
- 1000
This year goes down as one the most pronounced state of hysteria
over the return of Christ. All members of society seemed affected
by the prediction that Jesus was coming back on Jan 1, 1000 AD.
There really weren't any of the events required by the Bible
transpiring at that time. The magical number 1000 was primarily
the sole reason for the expectation. During Dec 999 AD, everyone
was on their best behavior; worldly goods were sold and given to
the poor, swarms of pilgrims headed east to meet the Lord at
Jerusalem, buildings went unrepaired, crops were left unplanted,
and criminals were set free from jails. The year 999 AD turned
into 1000 AD and nothing happened.
- 1033
This year was sighted as the beginning of the millennium because
it marked 1000 years since Christ's crucifixion.
- 1186
The "Letter of Toledo" warned everyone to hide in the caves and
mountains. The world would be destroyed and only a few would be
spared.
- 1420
The Taborites of Czechoslovakia predicted every city would be
annihilated by fire. Only five mountain strongholds would be
saved.
- 1524-1526
Muntzer, a leader of German peasants, announced that the return of
Christ was near. After he and his men destroyed the high and
mighty, the Lord would return. This belief lead to an uneven
battle with government troops where he was strategically out
numbered. Muntzer claimed to have a vision from God where the Lord
promised that He would catch the cannon balls, of the enemy, in
the sleeves of His cloak. The vision turned out to be false when
Muntzer and his followers were mowed down by cannon fire.
- 1534
A repeat of the Muntzer affair occurred a few years late. This
time Jan Matthys took over the city of Munster. The City was to be
the only one spared destruction. The inhabitants of Munster,
chased out by Matthys an his men, regrouped and lay siege to the
city. Within a year everyone in the city was dead.
- 1650-1660
The Fifth Monarchy Men looked for Jesus to establish a theocracy.
They took up arms and tried to seize England by force. The
movement died when the British monarchy was restored in 1660.
- 1666
To the citizens of London, 1666 was not a banner year. A bubonic
plague outbreak killed 100,000 and the Great Fire of London struck
the same year. The world seemed at an end to most Londoners. The
fact that the year ended with the Beast's number (666), didn't
help matters as well.
- 1809
Mary Bateman, who specialized in fortune telling, had a magic
chicken that laid eggs with end time messages on them. One message
said that Christ is coming. The uproar she created ended when she
was caught forcing an egg into the hens oviduct by an unannounced
visitor. Mary later was hanged for poisoning a wealthy client.
- 1814
Spiritualist Joanna Southcott made the startling claim that she by
virgin birth would produce the second Jesus Christ. Her abdomen
began to swell and so did the crowds of people around her. The
time for the birth came and passed - she died soon after. An
autopsy revealed it had been a false pregnancy.
- 1843-1844
William Miller was the founder of an end times movement that was
so prominent it received its own name-- Millerism. From his
studies of the Bible, Miller determined that the second coming
would happen sometime between 1843-1844. A spectacular meteor
shower in 1833 gave the movement a good push forward. The build up
of anticipation continued until March 21 1844, when Miller's one
year time table ran out. Some followers set another date of Oct 22
1884. This too failed collapsing the movement. One follower
described the days after the failed predictions, "The world made
merry over the old Prophet's predicament. The taunts and jeers of
the 'scoffers' were well-nigh unbearable."
- 1859
Rev Thomas Parker, a Massachusetts Minister, looked for the
millennium to start about 1859.
- 1881
Someone called Mother Shipton 400 years early claimed the world
would end in 1881. A controversy hangs over the Shipton writings,
as whether or not publishers doctored the text. If the date was
wrong, should it matter anyway.
- 1910
The revisit of Haley's comet was, for many, an indication of the
Lord's second coming. The earth actually passed through the
gaseous tail of the comet. One enterprising man sold comet pills
to people for protection against the effects of the toxic gases.
- 1914
Charles Russell, after being exposed to the teachings of William
Miller, he founded his own organization - the Jehovah's Witnesses.
In 1914 Russell predicted the return of Jesus Christ.
- 1918
In 1918, new math didn't help the Jehovah's Witnesses from
striking out again.
- 1925
The Witnesses had no better luck in 1925. They already possessed
the title of most wrong predictions. They would expand upon it in
the years to come.
- 1967
When the city of Jerusalem was reclaimed by the Jews in 1967,
prophecy watchers declared that the "Time of the Gentiles" had
come to an end.
- 1970
The True Light Church of Christ made its claim to fame by
incorrectly forecasting the return of Jesus. A number of church
members had quit their livelihoods ahead of the promised advent.
- 1973
A comet that turned out to be a visual disappointment,
nonetheless, compelled one preacher to announce that it would be a
sign of the Lord's return.
- 1975
The Jehovah's Witnesses were back at it in 1975. The failure of
the forecast did not effect the growth of the movement. The
Watchtower magazine, a major Witness periodical, has over 13
million subscribers.
- 1977
We all remember the killer bee scare of the late 70's. One
prophecy prognosticator linked the bees to Rev 9:3-12. After
twenty years of progression and the bees are still in Texas, I'm
beginning to think of them as the killer snails.
- 1982
It was all going to end in 1982, when the planets lined up and
created magnetic forces that would bring Armageddon to the earth.
- 1984
The Jehovah's Witnesses made sure in 1984 that no one else would
be able to top their record of most wrong doomsday predictions.
The Witnesses record is currently holding at nine. The years are:
1874, 1878, 1881, 1910, 1914, 1918, 1925, 1975, and 1984. Lately,
the JW's are claiming they're out of the prediction business, but
it's hard to teach an old dog new tricks. They'll be back.
- 1987
The Harmonic Convergence planned for Aug. 16-17, 1987, and several
New Age events were to occur at that time. The second coming of
the serpent god of peace and the Hopi dance awakening were two
examples.
- 1988
The book "88 Reasons Why the Rapture is in 1988" came out only a
few months before the event was to take place. What little time
the book had it used effectively. By the time Sept 11-13 rolled
around, whole churches were caught up in the excitement the book
generated. I personally had friends who were measuring themselves
for wings. In the dorm where we lived, my friends were also openly
confronting all of the unsaved. It became my job to defuse to
situations. In one case, an accosted sinner was contemplating
dispensary action against my now distant friends. Finally, the
days of destiny dawned and then set. No Jesus. The environment was
not the same as Miller's 1844 failure. To my surprise, the
taunting by the unsaved was very brief. I took it that people have
very little understanding of the Bible, so they had nothing to
taunt my friends with. I made one other interesting observation.
The time for the rapture was a 3 day window from Sept 11 to the 13
- my friends had given up hope on the morning of 12. I pointed out
that they still had 2 days left, but they had been spooked
nonetheless.
- 1989
After the passing of the deadline in 88 Reason's, the author,
Edgar Whisenaunt, came out with a new book called "89 Reasons why
the Rapture is in 1989." This book sold only a faction of his
prior release.
- 1991
A local group in Australia predicted Jesus would return through
the Sydney Harbor at 9:00am on 31st March, 1991.
- 1991
Menachem Schneerson, a Russian born rabbi, called for the Messiah
to come by Sept 9, 1991, the start of the Jewish New Year.
- 1992
A Korean group called Mission For The Coming Days had the Korea
Church a buzz in the fall of 1992. They foresaw Oct 28, 1992 as
the time for the Rapture. Numerology was the basis for the date.
Several camera shots that left ghostly images on pictures was
thought to be a supernatural confirmation of the date.
- 1993
If the year 2000 is the end of the 6000 year cycle, then the
rapture must take place in 1993, because you would need 7 years of
the tribulation. This was the thinking of a number of prophecy
writers.
- 1994
In the book "1994 the Year of Destiny" F. M. Riley foretold of
God's plan to rapture His people. The name of his ministry is The
Last Call and he operates out of Missouri.
- 1994
Harold Camping in his book "Are You Ready?" predicted the Lord's
return in Sept 1994. The book was full of numerology that added up
to 1994 as the date of Christ's return.
- 1994
After promising themselves they would not make any more end time
prediction, the Jehovah's Witnesses fell off the wagon and
proclaimed 1994 as the conclusion of an 80 year generation - the
year 1914 was the starting point.
- 1996
This had a special month, according to one author. He foresaw the
month of Sept as the time for our Lord's return. The Church Age
will last 2000 years from the time of Christ's birth in 4 BC.
- 1997
In regard to 1997, I've received several e-mail messages that
point to a date when Jesus will return for his church. Two of the
more widely known time frames are Monte Judah's FEB/MAR
tribulation start and a May 14 rapture which is based on
numerology and the Psalms.
- 1998
M.J. Agee in her book "The End of the Age" has her sights set on
May 31, 1998. This date will conclude the 6000 year cycle from the
time of Adam. Agee looks for the Rapture to take place on
Pentecost also known as the feast of weeks. Another indicator is
the fact that the Holy Spirit did not descend upon the until 50
days from Christ's resurrection before descending on the Church.
Israel was born in 1948, add the 50 days and you come up with
1998. If this prophecy fails, numerology will mark itself as one
of the most unreliable method of foretelling and yet the most
repeated.
- 2000
The names of the people and organizations that have called for the
return of Christ, at the turn of the century, is too long to be
listed here. I would say that if there is day that Christ can not
come back on, it must be Jan 1, 2000. To come at an unknown time
means an unknown time. I think Jan 2, 2000 would be a more likely
day for Him to call His Church home - right after the big let
down.
- 2000-2001
Dr. Dale SumburŠru looks for March 22, 1997 to be "the date when
all the dramatic events leading through the tribulation to the
return of Christ should begin" The actual date of Christ's return
could be somewhere between July 2000 and Mar 2001. Dr. SumburŠru
is more general about the time of the Christ's second coming than
most writers. He states, "The day the Lord returns is currently
unknown because He said [Jesus] these days are cut short and it is
not yet clear by how much and in what manner they are cut short.
If the above assumptions are not correct, my margin of error would
be in weeks, or perhaps months." SumburŠru has his own web site:
The Greatest Deception
- 2001
Because there was no year 0, the true millennium will not start
until Jan 1, 2001. Most prophetic watchers still have their sights
set on 2000. If the date passes uneventful, I'm sure they'll
realize their error and refocus on this year.
- 2004
This date for Jesus' return is based upon Psalmology, numerlology,
the biblical 360 days per year, Jewish holidays, and "Biblical
astronomy." To figure out this date you'll need a calculator, a
slide rule, and plenty of scratch paper.
- 2012
New Age writes sight Mayan and Aztec calendars which predicts the
end of the age on Dec 21, 2012.
I Believe we will never know the exact day of Christ's return for His
Church. Not only because the Bible spells it out plainly, but because
it's God's nature to act independently from man's thinking. If He
returned on a date that someone figured out, that person would deprive
God of His triumph. When it comes to His glory, God doesn't share the
spotlight with anyone.
The return of Jesus Christ for His Church is the most important event
in history for believing Christians. The glory of heaven contrasted
with our life on earth, is like comparing the job of running a hotdog
stand with the job of President of the United States.
Finally, when it comes to knowing the general time frame of Christ's
return for His church, the word of God is more generous. Jesus
informed us of a number of events that will take place. When we see
the predicted events coming together, we can conclude that time is
short. Most of the prophecies will take place during the tribulation.
Any forewarning of their arrival would make the rapture all the more
likely, because it occurs at the start of the 7 year tribulation
period.
Email todd@oasis.novia.net
If you know of any other dates, that were set for the time of our
Lord's return, feel free to E-mail that information to the above
address.
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