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Some Thoughts on the Second Coming of Jesus – Week 40 / September 29th
“Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened,
and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the heaven,
and the powers of the heaven will be shaken. Then the sign of the Son of
Man will appear in heaven, and the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they
will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and
great glory. And He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet,
and they will gather together His elect from the four winds from one end
of heaven to the other.”
Matthew 24:29-31
A casual reading of Matthew 24/25 reveals some very interesting information about the Second Coming of Jesus. Jesus, responding to a question from His disciples about the destruction of the Temple and the signs of His coming, impresses upon His hearers to be ready. (Matthew 24:44) This readiness is not based on imminence in the sense that He could come at anytime but actually on signs that herald His soon coming. When these signs begin to manifest the believer must recognize that he or she is in the season of His return. I believe that this season is now upon us and that this is verified by a number of unique “sign fulfillments.” Even so my experience is that believers get distracted and “drift”, as the writer of the book of Hebrews puts it (Hebrews 2:1), and thereby corrupt their readiness. Our carnal natures are like counter weights constantly seeking to draw us away from Christ. Every believe has this challenge and must meet it with determination and faith. (Galatians 5:16-17)
So then, in reading these “second coming passages” we learn the following:
1. That Jesus nowhere speaks about a secret rapture.
He does of course speak about a rapture but not one that is “triggered” by a silent and secret coming. Jesus’ coming is dramatic, glorious, and full of light and majesty. The whole world will see Him coming on the clouds of heaven with great glory and power. (Matthew 24:29-31) He then commissions His mighty angels, with a trumpet blast, to gather His elect from the four corners of the earth. If there is a secret rapture seven years before, He does not so much as even hint at it even though He is speaking to His disciples who are the very founders of the Church. So then, if such a secret rapture did exist Jesus fails to inform His followers of it and, in reality, does not answer their initial question about the signs of His coming.
2. That Jesus calls upon us to be ready
As we have noted this readiness is not linked to anytime imminence but to definite signs which include war, rumors of war, huge earthquakes, famines, diseases, persecution and apostasy. This apostasy or falling away will no doubt be provoked by persecution. The western church is weak spiritually because it says, “I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing.” (Revelation 3:17) Jesus says, “You are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked.” The great signs heralding Jesus’ soon coming are the restoration of Israel, the world-wide proclamation of the Gospel and the rise of Antichrist. Jesus speaking to His church says, “When you see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place (whoever reads, let him understand…………..” (Matthew 24:15) The warning in this regard, in terms of Antichrist, is clearly related to the events of A.D 70 but the passage itself goes beyond this to the end of the age in that in the same passage and context Jesus says, “…..there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be” (Matthew 24:21) and then He says, “For as the lightning comes from the east to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.” (Matthew 24:27) Paul also linked the abomination of desolation or coming of Antichrist to the visible second coming of Jesus. (2Thessalonians 2:1-5) Christians clearly know the season of Jesus’ return but they do not know the day or hour. (1 Thessalonians 5:1-2)(Matthew 24:36) Knowing the season, because we discern the “signs of the times” (Matthew 16:1-3), requires that we live spiritual lives that are alert and waiting for our Lord; even more so because “for the elect sake those days will be shortened.” (Matthew 24:22) Once again, my experience is that knowing these things does not necessarily induce a spiritual awakening in God’s people! Jesus knew this as well and that’s why He linked the parable of the wise and foolish virgins to His great Olivet Discourse. (Matthew 25:1-13) We have been warned!
3. That Jesus wants us to be feeding His sheep
In this remarkable passage about His second coming He says, “Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his master made ruler over his household, to give them food in due season?” (Matthew 24:45) We should watch and pray but we should also throw ourselves into the work of God by caring for those who belong to His household. Being ready for His coming does not mean that we become inactive and neglect the well being of God’s household; the local church. This type of interest in the second coming of Jesus is distorted and evil (Jesus’ own words) Matthew 24:48) Indeed those who dedicate themselves to feeding His household are called blessed and will receive a great reward when He comes. (Matthew 24:47) We should think on these things!
Malcolm Hedding
©Malcolm Hedding Ministries
2014Devotional