Dr Paul Allen

English: Jesus Christ - detail from Deesis mosaic, Hagia Sophia, Istanbul (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) If the apostles believed that the end times—the last days—began with Jesus’ first coming, it seems difficult to understand that two thousand years later we are still waiting for Jesus’ promised second coming. If “the end times” began in the first century A.D., why are we still waiting for the end? Can “the last days” really last for so long? The delay of Jesus’ second coming was already perceived as a problem by some whom Peter calls “scoffers”—people who gleefully provoked the faithful Christians with the words, “Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since our ancestors died, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation!” ( 2 Peter 3:4).  Peter answers that these people ignore three facts. First, they forget that God , who created the world and then sent the great flood, will one day bring about the day of judgment when the present heavens and earth wi

Cover for a NIV Bible (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) In Romans 13:11–12, Paul appeals to the Christians in the city of Rome to understand “the present time” and explains that “the hour has already come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light” ( NIV ). The “night” is the present evil age (see Gal. 1:4); “the day” is the day of the Lord . Paul’s assertion that “the day is almost here” (Rom. 13:12 NIV) means that the day when God will bring to an end human history as we know it is fast approaching.  Paul is convinced that Jesus might return within a very short period of time. Paul does not seek to narrow down the time frame within which Jesus will return, nor does he base his exhortation on the assumption that Jesus’ return would take place very soon. But he clearly believes that Jesus’ return is t