THE GENERAL NATURE OF THE SECOND COMING

THE GENERAL NATURE OF THE SECOND COMING

 

 

• Here we view it as one great event. Details and distinctions will be discussed later 

Christ will come in PERSON.

1 Thess. 4:16 "The Lord Himself." - not death, not destruction of Jerusalem.

 

 Christ will come LITERALLY and VISIBLY.

 Acts 1:11 cf. the Greek "Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven."

 hos kai epo . aner . galilaia tis histemi . emblepo . eis ouranos houtos houtos iesous ho . analambano . . . eis ouranos . houto erchomai . houto tropos . . . theaomai . poreuomai eis ouranos
Acts 1:9 ( 100 times in N.T. and means sight) "And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight."

1 John 3:2-3 "See Him as He is.....And every man"  "See" takes it out of the realm of the Spiritual. "Every" makes it universal.

 

Christ will come in GLORY.

Matt. 16:27 "In the glory of the Father" 

Matt. 25:31 "In his glory" 

Matt. 24:30 "With great glory."

 What is this "Glory"?

Matt. 17:2, Mark 9:3, Luke 9:29 with 32 The external and visible glory of God.

Matt. 17:5 "While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him."

1. At all world's fair old buildings are transformed by light.

2. Light affects on stages. 

3. Adam and Eve lost clothes of light.

4. Stephen's face. 

Cannot be a moral or spiritual glory, for he could not lay that aside. 

Cf. Psalm 104:2 - His garments will be the blazing glory of God-‑

John 1:14 Saw his glory (Moral) "Clothed with light." 

Isa. 53:2 "There is no beauty" -- i.e. kingly glory. He was a fine physical specimen.

  

Christ will come in POWER. 

Matt. 24:30 At First Coming, He gave up the independent exercise of His attributes, God can't cease to be God.

He never used His power apart from Holy Spirit;

He never used power for Himself. Today Christ it pictured as a dying, defeated despairing man. Second Coming will change the picture. 

Antichrist will worship a God of forces. God will give an exhibi­tion of real power.

 

Christ will come ATTENDED BY ANGELS. 

Matt. 25:31 cf. Rev. 5:11 (No. of angels)Why so many angels? 

Matt. 13:41-43

 King Albert a fugitive from Brussells went back of the evacuation of Germans with a royal escort, like a king.

 

Christ will come "QUICKLY". 

This does not refer to the time interval before the event, but to the suddenness with which it will take place.

Rev. 22:7, 12, 20 Greek - "Tachu"

 Illus. - Matt. 28:7, 8 "And go quickly, and tell his disciples that he is risen from the dead; and, behold, he goeth before you into Galilee; there shall ye see him: lo, I have told you. And they departed quickly from the sepulchre with fear and great joy; and did run to bring his disciples word."

 

  

Christ will come UNEXPECTEDLY. Refers to the attitude of men when he comes.

Matt. 24:50 "When he looketh not for Him." a godless society

Luke 21:34-35 "As a snare"

 

To whom will His coming be unexpected?

 Luke 2l:35 "to all that dwell upon the earth;" i.e. earth dwellers, not the saved.

 Matt, 24:48 "Evil servant" - perhaps the apostate church. 

Mark 13:35 Not so much what they say as what they do that makes them evil. Not here a mere eschatological miscalculation, but a dreadful course of sin.

 1 Thess. 5:1-5 - it will not be as a thief and a snare to the true believer. In this passage the rapture is set forth as a thief is neither expected nor wanted. All true believers,

 

•  The Second Coming will be a highly complex event, having two main covering a period of time, and including a whole series of related events. (Very important)

 

Its complexity: Many things are associated with. 

Its Two Main Phases:

 

(1) 1 Thess. 4:15-18  Rapture - Coming for His Church - The Secret Phase  "For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words."

  

(2) 1 Thess. 3:13; 2 Thess. 1:7-10 Revelation - Coming with His Church - Public Phase "To the end he may stablish your hearts unblameable in holiness before God, even our Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all his saints." "And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power; When he shall come to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired in all them that believe (because our testimony among you was believed) in that day."

 

(Both) 2 Thess. 2:1, 8 (Both) (1) Rapture - "Outgathering together unto him;" (2) "Brightness of His Coming."

 Titus 2:13 (Both) (1) Blessed hope (2) Appearing of the glory. "Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ;"