The whole of the Bible centres on the coming of Jesus Christ as Saviour and King.

• The Bible reveals the central importance of God becoming flesh at the first coming of Jesus Christ.
• The Bible also reveals that Jesus is coming now, in the lives of believers.
• And the Bible most certainly states that Jesus will come again, visibly and in power.

The Word of God promised:
the FIRST COMING of Jesus, the Messiah,
was to bring Salvation

In the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve, by sinning, fractured their relationship with God. But God foretold the coming of a Redeemer who would repair that spiritual break. To the serpent who tempted Adam and Eve to sin, God said:

Genesis 3:15
“I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”

This is the Bible's earliest prophecy of a Saviour who would smash the power that sin and death hold over humans ("he will crush your head").
How? By the sacrificial death of the Saviour ("you will strike his heel"). In these words there is more depth to the prophecy.. a blow to the head is fatal; but a blow on someone's heel is a minor injury.

Jesus accomplished this at his first coming, when He is "the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!" (John 1:29).

John 12:47

“As for the person who hears my words but does not keep them, I do not judge him. For I did not come to judge the world, but to save it.”

The Word of God promises:
The Lord Jesus is ALWAYS coming

Jesus is continually with those who surrender their lives and receive Him as Lord and Saviour. This happens today. Jesus comes, He is always coming and he STAYS within us. Through the Holy Spirit he helps, encourages, guides and strengthens those who follow Him:

John 14:23
Jesus replied, “If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.”

1 John 3:24
Those who obey his commands live in him, and he in them. And this is how we know that he lives in us: We know it by the Spirit he gave us.

1 John 4:13
We know that we live in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit.

The Word of God promises:
The SECOND Coming of the Lord Jesus

Acts 1:10-12
They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. "Men of Galilee," they said, "why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven."

The Lord will return to judge the world

When Jesus returns, it will be to Judge the world and make final justice - it will be for all to see.
He will then raise the dead, and he will confirm his verdict of eternal life for his people and eternal punishment for all who have rejected him.

John 12:48
There is a judge for the one who rejects me and does not accept my words; that very word which I spoke will condemn him at the last day.

2 Thessalonians 1:6-8
God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels. He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus.

Revelation 19:12-13
His eyes were bright like flames of fire, and on his head were many crowns. A name was written on him, and only he knew what it meant. He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and his title was the Word of God.

The Lord will finally defeat the forces of evil

Revelation 12:10
Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say: “Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ. For the accuser of our brothers, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down.”

The Lord will confirm the final destiny of all people

Then the Lord will sit on his throne and separate those destined for glory from those who are destined for hell (Matthew 25:31-46)

The Lord will take with Him those who are ready

Jesus explained that the Kingdom of Heaven is like ten virgins preparing for a wedding. When the bridegroom appeared only five were ready. Only these were included in the wedding. The others were left behind. (Matthew 25:1-13)

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How can we be certain of His coming?

We have God's word for Christ's second coming. God always keeps his promises. This is seen in the many prophecies from the Bible that have already been fulfilled. For example:

• Christ's first coming was predicted hundreds of years before it took place.

• A thousand years before, Samuel declared that Christ would come through the lineage of David, and he did.

• Around 700 BC Micah wrote that Christ would be born in Bethlehem, and he was.

• About the same time Isaiah predicted that Christ would be born of a virgin, and he was, and 600 years before Christ came, Daniel accurately stated the time of Christ's birth.

• David and Isaiah both specifically foretold the sufferings of Christ and the manner of his death hundreds of years before they happened. "They pierced my hands and feet,"

• David wrote in the Psalms in a vivid picture of Christ's crucifixion - a torturous death unheard of in David's day.

• And Isaiah prophesied that Christ would be "pierced for our transgressions" which was also fulfilled when Roman soldiers thrust a spear into Christ's side when he was on the Cross.

Christ's first coming, (His birth, death, resurrection, and ascension) were predicted hundreds of years in advance and fulfilled in amazing detail.

History gives complete evidence of these facts. We can therefore be just as certain that every prophecy about Christ's second coming will also be fulfilled.

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Jesus' coming will be VISIBLE and with great POWER

• Everyone on earth will see Him
• Jesus will come in great power
• It will NOT be in secret.

Jesus warned us about being persuaded by false prophets to look for Him in "inner rooms" or specific places. He says that any such invitations must not be believed, because when He returns EVERYONE will see him. It will be completely obvious that he is coming from everywhere in the globe, there will be no need to look for Him.

Matthew 24:23-27
“At that time if anyone says to you, 'Look, here is the Christ!' or, 'There he is!' do not believe it. For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect—if that were possible.
See, I have told you ahead of time.
So if anyone tells you, 'There he is, out in the desert,' do not go out; or, 'Here he is, in the inner rooms,' do not believe it. For as lightning that comes from the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.”

Mark 13:26
“At that time men will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory.”

Matthew 24:30
“At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory.”

Revelation 19:14-15
The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean. Out of his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. "He will rule them with an iron sceptre." He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty.

It will be LOUD

1 Thessalonians 4:16a
For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God...

2 Peter 3:10
But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare.

It will be OVERWHELMING

Sometimes theologians disagree over whether humanity will be getting better or worse when Jesus returns. The answer is «both». The bad will keep getting worse; the good will keep becoming better. God’s enemies will be at their cruellest, but God’s friends will be at their bravest.

Revelation 22:10-12
Then he told me, “Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, because the time is near. Let him who does wrong continue to do wrong; let him who is vile continue to be vile; let him who does right continue to do right; and let him who is holy continue to be holy.”
“Behold, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done.”

The world will have horrors such as it has never seen before. But for the sake of those who believe, those days will be shortened:

Mark 13:19-20
“...because those will be days of distress unequalled from the beginning, when God created the world, until now and never to be equalled again. If the Lord had not cut short those days, no one would survive. But for the sake of the elect, whom he has chosen, he has shortened them.”

Matthew 24:21-22
“For then there will be great distress, unequalled from the beginning of the world until now—and never to be equalled again. If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened.”

But just when the horror becomes unbearable, the King of kings will appear. The Antichrist and his evil forces will be utterly overwhelmed.

Matthew 24:29-30
“Immediately after the distress of those days
'the sun will be darkened,
and the moon will not give its light;
the stars will fall from the sky,
and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.'
At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory.”

Those who died BELIEVING in Christ will first rise up resurrected, to meet the Lord. After that the believers who are still living will be transformed and glorified. One moment they may be in great danger, hunted, surrounded, on the verge of being wiped out, but the next moment they will be liberated not only from the power of Antichrist but from the fire which will fall into the earth. They will rise up to meet the Lord in the air, as he comes down to save them. It will all happen very fast.

1 Corinthians 15:52
...in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.

1 Thessalonians 4:16-17
For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.

Will everyone be included in this group? ... The Scriptures speaks of those IN CHRIST, therefore not everyone will be with the Lord forever, there will be people who will have a different end.

2 Peter 2:12
But these men blaspheme in matters they do not understand. They are like brute beasts, creatures of instinct, born only to be caught and destroyed, and like beasts they too will perish.

John 3:36
“Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God's wrath remains on him.”

1 Thessalonians 5:1-3
Now, brothers, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, "Peace and safety," destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.

2 Peter 2:4-10
For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell, putting them into gloomy dungeons to be held for judgment; if he did not spare the ancient world when he brought the flood on its ungodly people, but protected Noah, a preacher of righteousness, and seven others; if he condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah by burning them to ashes, and made them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly; and if he rescued Lot, a righteous man, who was distressed by the filthy lives of lawless men (for that righteous man, living among them day after day, was tormented in his righteous soul by the lawless deeds he saw and heard) if this is so, then the Lord knows how to rescue godly men from trials and to hold the unrighteous for the day of judgment, while continuing their punishment. This is especially true of those who follow the corrupt desire of the sinful nature and despise authority.

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The earliest Christians expected Jesus to return almost immediately. Daily they looked for His coming.

Acts 1:6-7
So when they met together, they asked him, "Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?"

He said to them: "It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority."

2 Peter 3:8-9
But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.

There will be signs:

Matthew 24:32-33
“Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near. Even so, when you see all these things, you know that it is near, right at the door.”

Godlessness in the Last Days

2 Timothy 3:1-5
But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them.

People will be evil and will doubt that Jesus' return is true

2 Peter 3:3-7
First of all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. They will say, "Where is this 'coming' he promised? Ever since our fathers died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation." But they deliberately forget that long ago by God's word the heavens existed and the earth was formed out of water and by water. By these waters also the world of that time was deluged and destroyed. By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.

Physical signs

Matthew 24:29
"Immediately after the distress of those days 'the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.' ....

Mark 13:24
"But in those days, following that distress, " 'the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light;

Luke 21:25
"There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars. On the earth, nations will be in anguish and perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the sea.

Acts 2:20
The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord.

God will pour out His Spirit

Acts 2:17
" 'In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams.

No one knows the time ... but it will be SUDDEN and UNEXPECTED

Jesus says we must be watchful and prepared at all times:

Matthew 24:36
“ No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.”

Matthew 24:42-44
“Therefore, keep watch”, says Jesus, “because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.”

In Matthew 24, Jesus compares the time between his ascension and return to a master leaving for a considerable time and putting one of his servants in charge. When the master comes back, if the servant has been doing a good job, he will be rewarded and be promoted. But if not....

Matthew 24:45-51
"Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of the servants in his household to give them their food at the proper time? It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns.
I tell you the truth, he will put him in charge of all his possessions. But suppose that servant is wicked and says to himself, 'My master is staying away a long time,' and he then begins to beat his fellow servants and to eat and drink with drunkards.
The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

There are plenty of warnings about how suddenly the final day will come:

1 Thessalonians 5:1-3
Now, brothers, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, "Peace and safety," destruction will come on them suddenly, as labour pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.

2 Peter 3:10
But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare

It will be FINAL

Jesus says that no one knows when he will return, except the Father. But He compares the event to the times of Noah. God gave the people years and years to repent in response to Noah's preaching, but then one day, Noah entered the ark, and God shut the door. After that it was too late for anyone to change their minds.

Matthew 24:37-41
“As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man.
For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left.”

2 Peter 3:12-13
That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness

Matthew 13:40
“As the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age.”

Hebrews 10:26-27
If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God.

'Now' is not too late

If we are alive at the time of the Lord's coming, the door will close the moment he appears. If we die before Jesus comes again, the door closes at the moment of death.

Hebrews 9:27
"man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment"

The Second Coming of Jesus is not to be speculated.

• It is the ultimate horror for all who are not right with God, because they will be left out for ever, paying themselves for their sin after being judged and condemned.
  
• It is the ultimate hope who for all who know and trust the Lord because the blood of Jesus has already paid for their sin, therefore they cannot be condemned.

For Christians, this event means:

Titus 2:13
«the blessed hope, the glorious appearing of our great God and Saviour, Jesus Christ»

Romans 8:1
Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus,

Jesus tells us that He is coming again, and gives us some guidelines about how this will happen. Most of all He is warning us to be ready.

Are you ready?

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We follow the words of warning and instruction given by the Lord Jesus:

See the signs:

Just as we can know that the summer is near by seeing that the leaves of trees start to come out, we will be able to see signs of the season of the coming of the Lord in the stars, the moon, the sun, the sea...

Luke 21:25-31
“There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars. On the earth, nations will be in anguish and perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the sea. Men will faint from terror, apprehensive of what is coming on the world, for the heavenly bodies will be shaken. At that time they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”

He told them this parable: “Look at the fig tree and all the trees. When they sprout leaves, you can see for yourselves and know that summer is near. Even so, when you see these things happening, you know that the kingdom of God is near.”

Avoid 3 things which can dull the mind:

Jesus warns His disciples and followers that even they may be caught off-guard, on the day of His return. Jesus identifies three specific dangers for the believers to avoid, which may cause heaviness in their hearts, failing to see the signs of His return:

• avoid dissipation (vice)
• avoid drunkenness
• avoid worry (anxiety)

Luke 21:34-35
“Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with dissipation, drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and that day will close on you unexpectedly like a trap. For it will come upon all those who live on the face of the whole earth.”

Be watchful and prayerful

With the warnings, Jesus also gives the activities which will help us avoid the dangers and aid our preparation.

Luke 21:36
“Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man.”

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The Last Day may be the end of choice for mankind, the time when the door is closed separating those destined to heaven and those destined to hell, but it is not the end of the battle between good and evil. There is more to come and we can have a glimpse in the book of Revelation, at the peak of the great victory of Christ:

Revelation 21
The New Jerusalem

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."

He who was seated on the throne said, "I am making everything new!" Then he said, "Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true."

He said to me: “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To him who is thirsty I will give to drink without cost from the spring of the water of life. He who overcomes will inherit all this, and I will be his God and he will be my son. But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulphur. This is the second death.”

One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.” And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God. It shone with the glory of God, and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal. It had a great, high wall with twelve gates, and with twelve angels at the gates. On the gates were written the names of the twelve tribes of Israel. There were three gates on the east, three on the north, three on the south and three on the west. The wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.

The angel who talked with me had a measuring rod of gold to measure the city, its gates and its walls. The city was laid out like a square, as long as it was wide. He measured the city with the rod and found it to be 12,000 stadia in length, and as wide and high as it is long. He measured its wall and it was 144 cubits thick, by man's measurement, which the angel was using. The wall was made of jasper, and the city of pure gold, as pure as glass. The foundations of the city walls were decorated with every kind of precious stone. The first foundation was jasper, the second sapphire, the third chalcedony, the fourth emerald, the fifth sardonyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst. The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate made of a single pearl. The great street of the city was of pure gold, like transparent glass.

I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendour into it. On no day will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no night there. The glory and honour of the nations will be brought into it. Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb's book of life.

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Many 'prognosticators' have misread prophecy about the Second Coming of the Lord Jesus:

• During the great plague of Europe (1348-1352), prophets said the end was at hand and that Christ would appear within 10 years.

• In 1806, at Leeds, a hen laid eggs bearing the words, "Christ is coming." Many visited the spot and "got religion." Then someone discovered that the ink-inscribed eggs had been forced up into the chicken's body.

• Based on the text of Daniel 8:14, a New England farmer named William Miller expected the world to end in 1843 or 1844. His followers pinpointed Oct. 22, 1844. When Oct. 22 passed without Christ's return, some explained that Christ began to cleanse the "heavenly sanctuary" on that date. They thus gave birth to the modern Adventist movement.

• Charles Taze Russell, whose public Bible studies formed the foundation of the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society, said Christ had returned to earth in 1874 and would begin his visible reign in 1914.

• A man called Edgar C. Whisenant, in 1988 listed 88 Reasons Why the Rapture Will Be in 1988 (when Christ failed to return, he predicted the rapture for 1989);

• a book produced in Georgia that placed the rapture on Oct. 8, 1992, at 12:55 p.m. ET; and a Korean prophet's assertion that the rapture was set for midnight, Oct. 20 or 28, 1992. (In South Korea, 20,000 Christians left school or quit jobs to await the end.)

• Harold Camping, head of the Family Radio network of stations, wrote a book titled 1994 and said that Jesus would almost certainly come in October of 1994. When October of 1994 came and went, Harold Camping did not admit he had made a gross error and did not apologize for his bad prediction.. he simply adjusted his views to say that we had arrived not at the end of the world but the end of the church.

The important thing to realise is that these errors in the human predictions about Christ's second coming do not make it untrue. The Bible is the only source of prophecy which is completely reliable - and it states the true facts:

Jesus CAME as a man to save the world!
Jesus is ALWAYS COMING through the Holy Spirit!
Jesus WILL COME again in majesty, glory and power!

Come, Lord Jesus, come!

 

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