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If we wish to take this subject even further, then it is my belief that the harvest of souls which is mentioned in the fourteenth chapter of the Book of Revelation, is directly related to the following verses as well, all of which must have occurred at the end of that Prophetic Age between 70 and 73 AD when Jesus returned, as promised.

As you read the verses below, bear in mind that I no longer believe that the tribulation mentioned here is some future event as Futurists believe. The tribulation, in my view, is the previously-discussed, horrendous, seven-year-long First Jewish-Roman War, which resulted in the destruction of the city of Jerusalem, as well as the Temple. This great war is discussed by Daniel, Zechariah, and other Prophets of the Old Testament era. These verses describe both the harvest of souls, as well as the harvest of wrath, just like the Book of Revelation. John the Baptist was really in tune to the Spirit:

"I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire: Whose fan is in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire."


"Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field: But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way. But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also. So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares? He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up? But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn."


"He answered and said unto them, He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man; The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one; The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels. As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world. The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear."


"Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken: And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other."


"And then shall they see the Son of man coming in the clouds with great power and glory. And then shall he send his angels, and shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from the uttermost part of the earth to the uttermost part of heaven."


"John answered, saying unto them all, I indeed baptize you with water; but one mightier than I cometh, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to unloose: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire: Whose fan is in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and will gather the wheat into his garner; but the chaff he will burn with fire unquenchable."


Notice that "immediately after the tribulation of those days" -- meaning the seven-year First Jewish-Roman War -- the Lord very specifically says "they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory". This is exactly what He meant when He told His followers that some of them would not die but would still be alive at His Return. Here again are excerpts from the verses that I shared with you in part two:

". . . till the Son of man be come."


". . . till they see the Son of man coming in his kingdom."


". . . till they have seen the kingdom of God come with power."


". . . till they see the kingdom of God."


Following are some more verses which likewise speak of Jesus returning with power and great glory, and which are directly related to what Jesus says in Matthew chapter twenty-four, as well as in the other two end-of-the-age sermons in the Gospels of Mark and Luke:

"When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory:"


"Jesus saith unto him, Thou hast said: nevertheless I say unto you, Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven."


"Whosoever therefore shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation; of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he cometh in the glory of his Father with the holy angels."


"And Jesus said, I am: and ye shall see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven."


"For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he shall come in his own glory, and in his Father’s, and of the holy angels."


"And then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh."


"Hereafter shall the Son of man sit on the right hand of the power of God."


Let me point out that in Matthew 26:64 and Mark 14:62 above, Jesus is actually responding to Caiaphas the high priest. In other words, the Lord is telling him very directly that just like some of the Disciples, Caiaphas would still be alive when Jesus returned. That is yet more proof that Jesus came back during the late First Century. We have seen three cases now where Jesus says that some of His followers would still be alive when He returned; some of the Romans who pierced Him would still be alive when He returned, and even Caiaphas would still be alive when He returned. What more proof do we need to pinpoint Jesus' Return following the First Jewish- Roman War, or tribulation period? Are you convinced yet? Are you beginning to understand why there is no way that I could possibly ignore all of this information when the Lord began to reveal it to me a few years ago?

For those of you who may be a little confused regarding the specific dates we are using here, let me clarify for you. As we learned earlier, according to the historical record, the First Jewish-Roman War began in 66 AD. Being as it endured for seven years, that means it must have ended in 73 AD. But as we also learned previously, Jerusalem and the Temple were actually destroyed in the year 70 AD. We must assume then that this is when all Jewish sacrifices and offerings ended. This would have occurred right in the middle of the Prophet Daniel's 70th week, or the last seven-year period. This is a perfect match, and it is why Daniel wrote the following:

"And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and IN THE MIDST OF THE WEEK he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate."


So that is how we arrive at the conclusion that the Rapture of the Saints and Jesus' Return occurred somewhere between 70 and 73 AD. Based on my current understanding, I am more inclined to believe that it was in 73 AD, since Jesus did say "immediately AFTER the tribulation of those days".

Before concluding this series, allow me to reiterate a point we discussed earlier. As I said, given the preponderance of Scriptural evidence I have presented herein, I am persuaded that the First Century Apostles and Disciples were totally convinced that it was the end of the age, and Jesus' Return was imminent. They longed for it, and they patiently waited for it. It was a certainty to them. As I shared with you a moment ago, when describing His Return, one of the things which Jesus said to His followers was "And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh." -- Luke 21:28.

Today -- September 29, 2019 -- more than three years after I wrote this series, I came across several verses which tie in directly with what Jesus said in that verse regarding their redemption drawing nigh. Keeping in mind that the Lord told His followers to patiently wait for His Return, and the fact that, exactly as He had warned him, they were now suffering from persecution, consider what the Apostle James wrote in his Epistle:

"BE PATIENT THEREFORE, BRETHREN, UNTO THE COMING OF THE LORD. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain. Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: FOR THE COMING OF THE LORD DRAWETH NIGH. Grudge not one against another, brethren, lest ye be condemned: BEHOLD, THE JUDGE STANDETH BEFORE THE DOOR. Take, my brethren, the prophets, who have spoken in the name of the Lord, for an example of suffering affliction, and of patience. Behold, we count them happy which endure. Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy."


Isn't that amazing? Jesus gave them the signs so that they would know when their redemption was drawing nigh, and here we see James telling the Disciples to be patient, because "the coming of the Lord draweth nigh", and that Jesus even "standeth before the door." Why would James even write that unless he was convinced that it was true? That is how close the Lord was to returning and redeeming them. He was already at the door! It is like driving to the beach, and before you even arrive there, you can already smell the algae and the salty air, and the level of your anticipation dramatically rises, doesn't it? If we turn to the Epistle to the Hebrews, we see the very same kind of expectant attitude that the Lord will not tarry, or delay His coming. He was almost there, and they knew it:

"Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompence of reward. For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise. FOR YET A LITTLE WHILE, AND HE THAT SHALL COME WILL COME, AND WILL NOT TARRY."


As we learned in part four of this series, that is precisely why Jesus said in the Book of Revelation "I come quickly." Do you recall what else the Lord said a few verses later in that very same chapter, as well as in later chapters? If you have forgotten, then consider the following two verses:

"BEHOLD, I COME QUICKLY: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown . . . BEHOLD, I STAND AT THE DOOR, AND KNOCK: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me."


So it is the same message of urgency we see in the Gospels and in the Epistles. It is the very same door, and it opened two thousand years ago, if you believe and accept all of the Scriptural evidence I have presented in this series. Before continuing, let me remind you again that as with all of the other verses I have shared with you in this series, these things were written to Believers of the First Century. Copies of the Epistles were made, and they were personally delivered and read to the various Churches of that time. They were the recipients of these words. These words were not written for us today, contrary to the way these verses have been twisted by so many modern preachers and Bible teachers. Sad to say, the Second Coming may possibly be the greatest deception of our modern Christian era. As I said, I used to believe it myself, until, in His mercy, the Lord showed me the truth.

So, it really brings us all to a choice. We can either accept the words and records of the men who lived two thousand years ago; who actually sat and learned at Jesus' feet for several years; who preached the Gospel of the Kingdom with Him; who watched Him die and be resurrected; who were filled with the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost; and who both suffered persecution and died for the sake of the Gospel, or else we can believe all of those modern preachers who interpret the Scriptures to fit their particular pet doctrines. That is, their misguided traditions of men.

My friends, that is really what it comes down to. Now, if you embrace the modern preachers' Futurist perspective and don't believe that Jesus has returned yet, then in so many words, what you are basically saying is that the Apostles and the Disciples of the First Century got it wrong. You're indirectly saying that they were in fact deceived, despite the fact that they were filled with the Holy Spirit. Well, personally, I do not accept that. I believe that they were right, and that they properly understood the Lord's words. I believe that Jesus returned for them exactly as He promised to do in John 14 and elsewhere, and that He took the Remnant to be with Him in His Kingdom.

Well, we have definitely covered a lot of territory in this series; even more than I personally expected. At this point, some of you may be wondering exactly how much I am convinced of these things. Am I 100% certain of everything I have said in this series? I think it would be foolish for me, or for anyone, to adopt such a staunch position. In fact, it could be outright dangerous, because doing so could easily stump our spiritual growth, and result in our not being willing to accept any further truths which God may wish to reveal to us.

The truth is that we all understand so very little when it comes to the Scriptures. Only our pride leads us to believe otherwise. Sadly, there are so many teachers and preachers in the world today who employ a technique which makes their audience feel like there must be something wrong with them if they don't agree with what the preacher is saying. Such men of God -- if that is truly what they are -- leave no room for doubt when it comes to their teachings. They seem to have the attitude "This is the way it is, and you better believe it." They make you feel foolish if you don't agree with them. They expect you to just hop on their doctrinal bandwagon without question because they speak in some kind of authoritative manner, or because they possess a long string of seminary credentials. But look where that has led us. Mass doctrinal deception everywhere. That's where.

Personally, I prefer to not be like that. In my articles, I carefully explain via the Scriptures why I believe as I do, and then I leave it up to my readers to arrive at their own conclusions. As I have often said, the more that I learn in God's Word, the more I realize how little I actually do know and understand. In fact, to be honest, there have been a lot of times when I have felt very discouraged, and I have asked myself what right I have to be teaching the Bible to anyone, when I understand so very little myself. That is why I wrote articles such as "Humility in Our Understanding of God's Word". I am reminded of the following verse:

"And if any man think that he knoweth any thing, he knoweth nothing yet as he ought to know."


So, to answer the question, no, I am not one hundred per cent certain about every single thing which I have stated in this series. Am I strongly leaning towards the belief that Christ returned to the Earth during the late First Century? Indeed I am. All of the verses I shared seem very clear in that regard. In my view, there is simply too much evidence in the New Testament to believe otherwise. However, beyond that point, I am less certain about some things. There is a degree of fuzziness; particularly regarding the time frames of certain events which are described in the later chapters of the Book of Revelation. As I said earlier, it is going to take me quite a while to sort it all out.

Whatever the case may be, as a result of my accepting this new understanding regarding Christ's Return, I am now forced to go back and edit a major portion of my articles which deal with what is commonly referred to as Endtime Prophecy. Some of these articles were written as long as twenty-two years ago; so they're going to require some serious updates. This represents a major amount of work on my part. No doubt I will be working on it for a few years to come, besides doing everything else that I do with this online ministry, such as create graphics, write poetry, compile KJV Bible verse lists, run my blog, etc.

During this time of writing, rewriting and editing, please be very patient with me, because I don't have nearly as much energy as I did when I began this online ministry over two decades ago. My vision isn't the greatest, and my health is in a slow state of decline as well. As some of you know, I have been hospitalized twice in recent years, and I am now on certain medications for the remainder of my life. But, it is just a natural part of growing old, and by His Grace, I will continue on, because I love feeding God's sheep with the truth of His Word. As the Apostle Paul wrote:

"And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong."


Having said that, my advice to you is that if you decide to read any of my prophecy-related articles which were written or updated before this current date -- that is, before July 27, 2016 -- you should read them with a grain of salt. Some of them will contain information which is no longer in line with my current understanding regarding the Return of Jesus Christ, and other related prophetic events. Hopefully, by God's Grace, and with time, I will eventually make the necessary changes in each one of them.

Before concluding this series, I would like to mention one other thing. As I have stated a few times now, due to the contents of this series, I fully realize that it may stir up a hornets' nest in the Futurist camp. A lot of people, which may include some of my online friends, will not like what I have written here. They will resist it for some of the very reasons I have already stated. Some of them may even become very angry with me. They may even make accusations of liar and false prophet against me. If that is what they want to do, that is entirely up to them. I don't allow such things to affect me.

However, please understand that it is not my practice to support or participate in doctrinal debates. As I explain in the article entitled "Should Christians Engage in Doctrinal Debates?", I consider them a waste of time. Thus, if for whatever your reasons you do not agree with how I personally understand the many Scriptures which I have shared in this series, even though you may be tempted to do so, please do not send me heated emails in which you try to force me to debate with you. If you do, your message will simply go to the trash and be forgotten. Likewise, please do not attempt to start a doctrinal argument on any of the social networks where I participate, such as on Facebook. Not only will your comments be ignored, they will in fact be deleted. I hope that you will respect my wish as a fellow Christian.

With these thoughts I will bring this series to a close. I trust that you have enjoyed it, learned something from it, and I pray that it has been a blessing in your life. Most of all, I hope that you have an open heart and mind to receive the Scriptural truths which I have shared in this series. I hope that you are liberated by the truth which I have shared here. I hope you are not an old bottle who is unwilling to forsake any misguided doctrines which you may currently embrace. I know it is not easy, but it must be done.

If you have an account with Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr or with any other social network, I would really appreciate if you would take the time to click on the corresponding link that is found on this page. Thank you so very much! May God bless you abundantly!

With these thoughts, I will bring this article to a close. It is my hope that you have found it informative, enlightening, and I pray that it has been a blessing in your life as well. If you have an account with Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr or with any other social network, I would really appreciate if you'd take the time to click or tap on the corresponding link that is found on this page. Thanks so much, and may God bless you abundantly!

For additional information and further study, you may want to refer to the list of reading resources below which were either mentioned in this article, or which contain topics which are related to this article. All of these articles are likewise located on the Bill's Bible Basics web server. To read these articles, simply click or tap on any link you see below.

Abomination of Desolation: Explained!
Age of Deception, Age of Delusion
Elijah: Where Are the True Prophets of God?
Greater Works Than These Shall He Do . . . and Satan Too
Humility in Our Understanding of God's Word
In the Ages to Come
Is the KJV Bible the Inerrant Word of God?
Leviathan: An Ancient Dragon of the Sea?
Modern False Prophets and Worldly Ecumenism
Remember Lot's Wife: What Was Her Fate?
Satan: His Origin, Purpose And Future
Satan: King of Tyrus, King of Empires
Should Christians Engage in Doctrinal Debates?
Sorry . . . Jesus is Not Coming at Any Moment
The Fruits of Disobedience
The Great Tribulation and the Rapture
The Misguided End of the World Predictions of Harold Camping
The Office of Prophets and Teachers
The Seven Heads
Tradition or Truth? Old Wine or New Wine?
When Was Satan Cast Out of Heaven?
Who Hindered the Antichrist?
Who is Babylon the Great?
Who is Who?: Defining Important Prophecy Terms

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Please avail yourself of other areas of the Bill's Bible Basics website. There are many treasures for you to discover.