Posted by His return-How? [Bibleman] on November 14, 1999 at 22:06:32 {fiuUEQ5dxUMRXA6xmpscslyACFuF8c}:
The witnesses believe that Jesus will not return in the flesh at the second coming, but in fact, he must in order to rule on the earth with the 144,000 during the millennium.
So sometimes it is just nice to step back and look at the big picture. Here it is:
Jesus was to come twice during a 2000-year period. The first time he was to come in order to sacrifice his perfect human life for the sins of mankind, once and for all time. He gave up that body when he went to Heaven.
But he also needed to return in the flesh in order to rule on the earth during the millennium and so in order to do that, an arrangement was made for him to adopt the physical body of one of his faithful anointed ones when he returned in the flesh at the second coming. This would also afford Jesus the knowledge and experience of what it was like to be an imperfect human with sinful tendencies.
So the first time he experiences how to be faithful as a perfect man, proving Adam could have done so and thus deserved his sentence of death. But it is easier for a perfect person not to sin since they don't have sinful tendencies. So to be a better judge, it was deemed appropriate that he experience imperfection and sin. But how? There was no other way but to adopt the identity of one of his anointed followers. Thus their experiences after having sinned and then repented, would be part of Jesus' experiences, but without him actually having sinned himself. Kind of neat actually.
But interestingly, while they were at this rather unusual solution, they decided to pick the worst possible example. Someone with many sins and many gross sins who took a life of struggling to overcome his problems and then return to God's house. Thus the person whose identity and physical body Jesus would manifest himself in upon his Second Coming was the person who lived the life of the "prodigal son."
The theme therefore, of the second coming, is highlighted three times in three parables about the lost sheep, the lost drachma coin and the lost son, each of which were lost for a while, but then found. And such great joy after having been found, friends were called over to celebrate.
These were symbolic of the Messiah being lost and then being found and then given the kingship and a wedding feast where he gathers his anointed ones in secret just before the millennium. This was all done very privately and not known since if it had been understood by many that the Messiah would return in this fashion, it would have tainted the test and the results. Or possibly Satan and his organizations, secret and otherwise, might have interrupted the process though obviously he tried.
So in the end, Jesus, as mankind's chief Judge and Savior himself would be able to understand compassion and pity and FOREGIVENESS in a very special way, having known how to experience those things himself upon assuming the body and identity of the prodigal son.
But there is one key in understanding all this at this higher spiritual level which must be attained. And that is, one must recognize the witness organization as the "temple class" organization. That's because "God's house" must be associated with a specific religion.
So this entire setting happens within the setting of Jehovah's witnesses and many of the parables Jesus gives deals with this organization specifically, the anoited ones associated with this organization, and in particular the Governing Body of this organization, who are like the priests in charge of the nation of Israel.
Thus the "Rich man", the Lamb-Dragon beast, the ten virgins, and Dragnet, all apply to this organization and it's leaders and what would happen to them during the last generation from 1914 to 1994. But without understanding that and accepting that, so many other prophetic parables will not be understood or fulfilled.
So this spiritual level cannot be attained without first understanding the special role of Jehovah's witnesses as "God's chosen spiritual nation" during this last generation. Witnesses understand their role, however. But many do not.
So if you can't access that fact. You can't access the Messiah or many other realities which were prophesied and which are occurring just as prophesied during our day. But though you can't access it, it doesn't mean it is not true.
The Messiah was scheduled to appear in the flesh in 1992, 45 years after the Jews would return to Palestine to fulfill the 1335 days. That event did occur and the "sign of the Son of man" was seen in the clouds in testimony to that event which took place on December 26, 1992. The ingathering of anointed ones has been in progress since that time, but is soon to end.
Cheers,
Bibleman