Arguments Against a Future Return of Jesus Christ
Arguments against a future return of Jesus Christ have appeared in various forms throughout Christian history, often challenging core tenets of Christian eschatology. One significant category of such arguments relates to the denial of Christ's physical return, which is often linked to a denial of his incarnation. The Apostle John addresses this directly, stating that "many deceivers have gone out into the world, refusing to confess the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh. Any such person is the deceiver and the antichrist" [1]. Similarly, 1 John 4:3 states, "And euery spirit that confesseth not that Iesus Christ is come in the flesh, is not of God: but this is the spirit of Antichrist" [3]. This perspective suggests that denying the historical, physical incarnation of Jesus logically extends to denying any future physical return, as both hinge on the reality of Christ's bodily presence [4].
Another line of argument against a future return of Christ stems from a denial of the general resurrection of the dead. In 1 Corinthians, Paul confronts those who claimed, "if the good news says that Christ came back from the dead, how do some of you say that there is no coming back from the dead?" [2]. The apostle argues that if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ himself could not have been raised [6]. This denial of a future resurrection was sometimes influenced by Greek philosophical notions of the immortality of the soul, which contrasted with the Jewish concept of a bodily resurrection [5]. John Gill notes that some individuals within the Corinthian church, perhaps "weak believer[s]" or even "inf[idels]," questioned the resurrection, which would naturally undermine the expectation of Christ's return, as his return is often associated with the resurrection of believers [7].
Historically, some interpretations have also conflated the destruction of Jerusalem with the end of the world, leading to a misunderstanding of Christ's second coming. Matthew Henry notes that the disciples initially "confounded the destruction of Jerusalem and the end of the world," a mistake Christ rectified by showing that "the day of Christ's coming, and the day of judgment, shall be after that tribulation, and not coincident with it" [9]. This suggests that a misinterpretation of prophetic timelines could lead to the belief that Christ's return had already occurred in a spiritual or symbolic sense with the fall of Jerusalem, thus negating a future physical return. The concept of "the last time" and the presence of "many Antichrists" have been understood as ongoing signs throughout history, keeping the Church in a state of waiting for the Lord, rather than indicating a completed event [8].
Sources
- II John “II John 1:7 (BSB) — For many deceivers have gone out into the world, refusing to confess the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh. Any such person is the deceiver and the antichrist.”
- I Corinthians “I Corinthians 15:12 (BBE) — Now if the good news says that Christ came back from the dead, how do some of you say that there is no coming back from the dead?”
- I John “I John 4:3 (Geneva1599) — And euery spirit that confesseth not that Iesus Christ is come in the flesh, is not of God: but this is the spirit of Antichrist, of whome ye haue heard, how that he should come, and nowe already he is in this world.”
- 2 John (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on 2 John 1:7: As love and truth go hand in hand (Jo2 1:3-4), he feels it needful to give warning against teachers of untruth. For--giving the reason why he dwelt on truth and on love, which manifests itself in keeping God's commandments (Jo2 1:6). many-- (Jo1 2:18; Jo1 4:1). are entered--The oldest manuscripts read, "have gone forth," namely, from us. confess not . . . Jesus . . . in the flesh--the token of Antichrist. is come--Greek, "coming." He who denies Christ's coming in the flesh, denies the possibility of the incarnation; he who denies that he has c”
- 1 Corinthians (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on 1 Corinthians 15:12: 15:12-34 Paul now makes the case for a future resurrection. 15:12-20 Christ’s resurrection confirms the reality of the future resurrection. 15:12 Some believers in Corinth apparently had a difficult time accepting the Jewish notion of a bodily resurrection of the dead, preferring instead the Greek notion of the immortality of the soul (cp. Acts 17:18, 32).”
- 1 Corinthians (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on 1 Corinthians 15:13: But if there be no resurrection of the dead,.... If there is no such thing as a resurrection of any, if the thing is not possible, if it never has been, is, or will be true in fact: then is Christ not risen. The apostle argues from a general, to a particular; from the general resurrection of the dead, to the particular resurrection of Christ; and from a negation of the one, to a negation of the other; for what does not agree with the whole, does not agree with the part; and what is true of the whole, is true of the part; but if the resurrection of Christ is ”
- 1 Corinthians (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on 1 Corinthians 15:32: But some man will say,.... Or "some one of you", as the Syriac and Arabic versions read; for there were some among them members of this church, that denied the resurrection of the dead, Co1 15:12 a weak believer indeed may be designed, one of the babes in Christ in this church, that could not digest such strong meat, but had some doubt and difficulties in his mind about this point, though he did not absolutely deny it: but by the manner in which the objections and queries are put, and the sharpness in which the apostle answers them, it looks rather that an inf”
- 1 John (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on 1 John 2:18: Little children--same Greek as Jo1 2:13; children in age. After the fathers and young men were gone, "the last time" with its "many Antichrists" was about to come suddenly on the children. "In this last hour we all even still live" [BENGEL]. Each successive age has had in it some of the signs of "the last time" which precedes Christ's coming, in order to keep the Church in continual waiting for the Lord. The connection with Jo1 2:15-17 is: There are coming those seducers who are of the world (Jo1 4:5), and would tempt you to go out from us (Jo1 2:19) a”
- Mark (Nonconformist/Puritan) “Matthew Henry on Mark 13:24: These verses seem to point at Christ's second coming, to judge the world; the disciples, in their question, had confounded the destruction of Jerusalem and the end of the world (Mat 24:3), which was built upon a mistake, as if the temple must needs stand as long as the world stands; this mistake Christ rectifies, and shows that the end of the world in those days, those other days you enquire about, the day of Christ's coming, and the day of judgment, shall be after that tribulation, and not coincident with it. Let those who live to see the Jewish nation destroyed, ”