THE SECOND COMING OF JESUS -
Part 1
The churches of Christ Greet You (Romans
Jesus is coming again! Just
as sure as He came the first time, He will return.
But the speculations and erroneous doctrines concerning this
grand event are so
numerous and so far removed from truth, it is essential to notice some
of
them. Therefore, for a few moments we will study what the Bible teaches
about
the second coming of Christ.
Jesus knew He would be crucified.
He knew the impact this would have on His disciples whom He
would leave behind. To comfort them and
give assurance to all disciples of all ages, He said, "Let not your
heart be troubled: believe in God, believe also in me.
In my Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I
would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you.
And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and
will receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye
may be also" (John 14:1-3). It may have
been somewhat difficult for those simple men to fully grasp what He
said. It is still difficult for some to
believe He told the truth. But, as surely
as He came once, He promises a return.
In the book of Hebrews, two grand facts are affirmed. Hebrews 9:27-28 reads, "And inasmuch as it is appointed unto men once to die, and after this cometh judgment; so Christ also, having been once offered to bear the sins of many, shall appear a second time, apart from sin, to them that wait for him unto salvation." Friends, we all are appointed a day to die. After death comes the judgment. The next time Jesus appears to mortals will be the second time He has come from His holy habitation in the eternal heavens.
There is no interim appearance, nor anything beyond the second appearance of Christ. We say this because there are those who blatantly affirm that Jesus has returned at least once since His first coming. From a book called, Millions Now Living Will Never Die, pages 41-42, we read, "For more than forty years Pastor Russell (Charles Taze Russell, founder of the Jehovah's Witness Religion), a faithful consecrated Christian, proclaimed to the people by word of mouth, through the public press and through his books, that 1914 would mark the end of the Gentile times; that the world would begin to end at that time, and that Messiah's kingdom would shortly follow."
Follow along with us a little further, friends. "Pastor Russell" also gave an actual date as to when the Messianic Kingdom would come into being. He set the year at 1925. Millions Now Living Will Never Die was published in 1920, following the cessation of World War I. Listen again: "Based upon the argument heretofore set forth then, that the old order of things, the old world, is ending and is therefore passing away, and that the new order is coming in, and that 1925 shall mark the resurrection of the faithful worthies of old and the beginning of reconstruction, it is reasonable to conclude that millions of people now on the earth will be still on the earth in 1925. Then, based upon the promises set forth in the divine Word, we must reach the positive and indisputable conclusion that millions now living will never die." (Ibid. page 97).
Friends, no one had to dispute with Pastor Russell
and the Jehovah's Witnesses. Time took
care of that. 1914, 1918, and 1925 came
and went and Jesus did not return, nor did He establish a Messianic
reign here on the earth. But this is only
a small sample of the many outlandish views being held by those who
fall into the general category of dispensationalists, or millennialists.
Probably the most widely read millennialist is Hal Lindsey. In his book, The Late Great Planet Earth, he sets forth the millennial view of Christ's coming. We quote, "The Latin word for '1000' is 'millennium' and down through history and teaching concerning this earthly kingdom came to be known as the 'millennial kingdom.' Those who reject that Christ will establish a 1000 year kingdom after His return are known theologically as 'amillennialists,' meaning 'no millennium.' Those who believe that Christ will return and set up a 1000 year kingdom are called 'premillennialists,' meaning Christ returns first, and then establishes the kingdom on earth." (Page 164).
One thing Mr. Lindsey overlooked in his
description of
"amillennialists" is that they can abundantly show from the Bible that
the
kingdom is neither millennial nor future, that the kingdom that Christ
is
king of is in existence right now and has been ever since He set it up
in
He said, "Verily I say unto
you there are some of them that stand here, who shall in no wise taste
of death, till they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom" (Matthew
16:28). That simply means that the Lord
would set His kingdom up
during the life span of some of those who lived at the same time He
spoke these words. If the millennialists
are correct in their teaching that the kingdom has not yet come, there
are some people still on earth who could be two thousand + years old! Who can believe such absurdities?
Jesus told Peter that He would give him the keys
of the
kingdom (Matthew
Pentecost was the one time in all of history that
the great promises relative to the
that those who first entered it are said to have
been ADDED to the church fits well into the whole picture of the
kingdom (Matt. 16:18-19). Paul wrote to
the Colossians, that he gave thanks "unto the Father, who made us meet
to be partakers of inheritance
of the saints in light; who delivered us out of the power of darkness,
and
translated us into the kingdom of the Son of His love" (Colossians
1:12-13). Surely no one can dispute the
fact that the church in
Colossae constituted the kingdom of the Son of God's love.
But why do millennialists argue that Jesus will
yet establish
the kingdom? They obviously do not
understand simple
New
Testament teaching that the kingdom HAS been
established. They probably suffer from the
delusion that the kingdom is to be an earthly kingdom.
Listen very carefully to Christ Jesus as He
responded to Pontius Pilate: "My
kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then
would
my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews, but now
is
my kingdom not from hence" (John 18:36). Jesus
never
intended to set up anything even remotely similar to the millennial
concept
of an earthly kingdom. He came to
establish a spiritual
relationship in which He would reign over and dwell in the hearts of
subjects
who willingly surrender their wills to His royalty (cf. Luke 17:20-21;
Eph.
3:17). How sad it is to ignore this. It is simply a case of denying this
fundamental fact that Jesus has a kingdom, is a king, and now reigns.
The next time Jesus returns will NOT be to
establish anything on earth, but to raise the dead and sit on His seat
of judgment. Remember Hebrews 9:27-28? That proves
beyond dispute that the next role Jesus fulfills is that of Judge. In fact the very same book of Hebrews affirms,
"Wherefore, receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us have
grace, whereby we may
offer service well-pleasing to God with reverence and awe: for our God
is
a consuming fire" (Hebrews
The kingdom is being received by those who express
their full faith in Christ in obedience to His word.
Jesus said, "Verily I say unto thee, Except one be born of water
and the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of heaven" (John 3:5). If we have to wait for this imaginary
millennial kingdom, no one either has, or can be born again of water
and Spirit in the kingdom. But,
dear friends, that theory is simply false. You
can
be, and you must be, born of water and the Spirit now.
When
you are, you will become a member of Christ's kingdom, His church (Acts
2:47). Peter told those people on
Pentecost the very same thing
Jesus said in John 3:5. Repentance and
baptism equal
being born of water and the Spirit (Acts 2:38). We
hope and pray that you will search your heart and your Bible and come
to
the conclusion today that you must be in His kingdom, and that you will
enter
it through the same process by which the thousands on honest people did
on
the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2:41).