Summer is "nigh"
I've been pondering the phrase in Matthew 24:32:
Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh...
Okay, here goes.
This phrase "summer is nigh" has been nagging at the back of my brain (that must be why I'm having headaches!)
Anyways...
When we talk about a birthday or Christmas or any other specific event, does it always mean BEFORE that specific event occurred, or could it mean AROUND that time?
For example, let's say my birthday is May 29th. On June 1st, for instance, someone gets married or has a baby, or some other big event happens.
When later on down the road I was referring to that event, would I refer to that event as "just before my birthday" or "right around the time of my birthday?"
You see, Jesus spoke to the disciples in the vernacular language of that day.
No doubt, when he was speaking this message in the Olivet Discourse, he was sitting on the Mount of Olives. It was probably spring time when he was telling this story. So the blossoms of the fig tree were probably getting ready to bloom.
So...
He used this analogy to help the disciples understand what he was talking about. Perhaps the "summer is nigh" has absolutely nothing to do with the timing of the Rapture. Perhaps this phrase was just a phrase He used to help the disciples understand the analogy, like when he told parables so they could relate to what He was talking about.
Maybe, just maybe, we've been trying to read way too much into this verse. And if Chris' interpretation from the Lord is correct, the perhaps summer will already have started when the Rapture happens, but it will still be "nigh" or "near" as this word really means.
Here's a visual that helps me:
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
<--------------------.--------------------->
In the above illustration, let "0" represent a specific event (i.e., the Rapture). Now, on the time line, you can see that the numbers "1" on either side of the time line are still "near" the 0, whether it's on the left or the right of the time line.
Let's let the left side of the 0 on the time line represent AFTER June 20th and let the right side of the 0 on the time line represent BEFORE June 20th.
The numbers 1 on either side of the time line are still "nigh" to the 0.
I'm still trying to piece these thoughts together, as they have been roaming around in my head for some time now. Maybe someone smarter than I who is good at numbers could state this better.
Still praying for this Rapture to happen soon, though, brothers and sisters. The spiritual battles are raging and I am war weary!
ysiC, Rhonda