In Luke 21:31 – 33, Jesus says to his disciples: “So likewise ye, when ye see these things come to pass, know ye that the kingdom of God is nigh at hand. Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass away, till all be fulfilled.” Please note that Jesus Christ is not addressing the reader, but is specifically addressing his disciples. If Jesus is talking to his disciples in these verses, then he is communicating to <em>them</em> that the end of the world will happen within <em>their</em> lifetime. Jesus is not talking about any future generations. Therefore, how can Christians today believe that the prophecies of Jesus apply to them? Jesus and his disciples were alleged to have existed more than 2000 years ago. Since Jesus only addressed his disciples, that means the events of "Luke 21:31-33" only applied within the lifetime of his disciples . Jesus said, “Verily I say unto you, THIS generation shall not pass away, till all be fulfilled.” He was referencing the generation of the prophets, not the reader's generation. Next, Mark 1:14-15 says: “Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, And saying, 'The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.'” Remember, in Luke 21, Jesus told his disciples the time is nigh or near. In Mark 1:14-15, Jesus tells his prophets that the kingdom is "at hand" or here. Once again, the reference is to the apostle’s generation (only). So why are Bible readers taught to apply the verses to their lives, generation after generation? Refer to the story of John the Baptist. Jesus claimed John the Baptist was Elijah. Malachi 4:5-6, it says: “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord: And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse." Please note that during this time, Elijah has been dead for years. Matthew 17:10-13 says: "And his disciples asked him, saying, Why then say the scribes that Elias must first come? And Jesus answered and said unto them, Elias truly shall first come, and restore all things. But I say unto you, That Elias is come already, and they knew him not, but have done unto him whatsoever they listed. Likewise shall also the Son of man suffer of them. Then the disciples understood that he spake unto them of John the Baptist." Please remember that John the Baptist was beheaded already. IF Elijah came already, then why did Jesus tell the disciples that Elijah must come in order for the end of the world to come and prophecies to be fulfilled? If Elijah had come already, then so did the end of the world? Meaning no one should exist today if these words are true—and yet life continues. Reason number two is: CONTEXT. In Matthew 11:11-15 it says: “Verily I say unto you, Among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist: notwithstanding he that is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force. For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John. And if ye will receive it, this is Elias, which was for to come. He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.” In context, this means that “Elijah” was a sign that the end of the world was at hand [2000 years ago]. However, Elijah came and went. Mark 9:1 says: “And he said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That there be some of them that stand here, which shall not taste of death, till they have seen the kingdom of God come with power.” Again, Jesus is not talking to the reader, but to the crowd immediately surrounding him—informing them that "they" will not die until "they" have seen the world end. Again, that was over 2000 years ago. Matthew 10:23 says: “But when they persecute you in this city, flee ye into another: for verily I say unto you, Ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel, till the Son of man be come.” In this verse, Jesus informs the crowd that they will not finish preaching in the streets of Israel before the end of the world happens – meaning they would still be preaching when the son of man returned. Essentially, the passage makes plain to the reader that the end has already happened. However, generation after generation the church teaches that the prophecies apply to readers of that generation. Remember, Revelation 22:18 – 19 said not to change anything in the Bible, and yet certain Christians continue to change story to fit their generation. In sum, In the story of Jesus, Jesus is not talking to the reader, but to his disciples, and no one else. Christian churches misapply the legend each generation to gain congregants and Christian loyalists. Events which have occurred for hundreds of years are deemed a sign of the end to validate the idea that the prophecies are relevant to members. Thus, when people witness events occur in the present, the assumption becomes validation of biblical prophecies coming to pass. Therefore, biblical prophecies are irrelevant to predicting current (and future) events.
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