“Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will
see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn
because of Him. Even so,
Amen”
(Revelation 1:7).
The Lord Jesus promised that He will come again for us (John 14:2-3).
The first time that the Lord came, He was born as a child in Bethlehem (Matthew2:1).
After He died the death we deserved on a cross, He was raised from the dead and
returned to the Father (1 Corinthians 15:3-4; John 14:28). Christ’s first coming
was as a servant to die for mankind (Isaiah 52:13-15; 53:1-12; Philippians 2:5-8; Romans 5:8). When He comes again, it will be as King and Judge (Jeremiah 23:5-6; Daniel
7:13-14; Revelation 19:11-16).
Sometimes, people call this return (as King and Judge) the second coming of Christ. However, there
is some confusion about what that term means. Some people use second coming to refer to the promised
coming of Christ when He gathers the Church (i.e., the Rapture). However,
others use second coming to refer to
the time when the Lord begins to reign on earth from Jerusalem during the
Millennium. Apparently, they reason that this is when He actually comes to
earth while the passages referring to the Rapture do not show Christ coming all
the way to the earth. (This is a questionable conclusion since the Lord comes
to earth to wage war with the Beast and his armies during the Wrath of God at
least seven months before He begins His millennial reign, see The Forty-five day Restoration Period.)
Some definitions of the second coming are obviously inaccurate. For
example, according to The Random House
College Dictionary (Revised Edition, 1980, p. 1188), Second Coming is defined as, “the coming of Christ on Judgment Day.
Also called Second Advent”. The Judgment Day
is defined as, “the day of the Last Judgment; doomsday”. From these definitions,
the second coming of Christ would take place at the Great White Throne
Judgment . That would place Christ’s second coming after the Millennium. This is not an acceptable definition since the Bible clearly shows that Jesus
comes back long before the Great White Throne Judgment.
Since the term second coming
is not used in the Bible, there is no authoritative definition to clarify what
this term means. However, since the Bible does say Jesus will come at the Rapture of the Church and
this will technically be the second time He comes, it is probably more accurate
to use the term second coming when
referring to the coming of Christ for His people. This will also be the time
when He comes in judgment against the Beast and his followers (2 Thessalonians 1:6-10).
However, to avoid potential confusion, we will refrain from using second coming in this book when
referring to end-time events.
Scripturally, the coming of Christ precipitates several events. First,
non-Christians will see Him and will mourn because of the coming punishment (Matthew 24:29-30;
Revelation 6:12-17). Next, He will gather His people from all the earth (Matthew24:31;
1 Thessalonians 4:13-17). Finally, He will bring an end to the reign of the
Beast and a beginning of punishment upon the Beast and those who worship him (2
Thessalonians 1:6-10; 2:8; Revelation 14:9-11; 14:14-20). This punishment is
called The Wrath of God in the Bible.
The coming of Christ takes place immediately after the Great Tribulation (Matthew 24:21,29-30). This means that
the Rapture will also take place immediately after the Great Tribulation (Matthew 24:31). The coming of Christ
also takes place before the Wrath of
God (Revelation 14:14-20).
When the Lord comes, He will bring God’s judgment (i.e., wrath) on the
people as in the days of Noah (Matthew 24:36-39). When the flood waters came,
all who were outside Noah’s ark died (Genesis 7:21-23). Once the ark door was
closed, all opportunity for salvation was lost to those outside. When the Lord Jesus
comes, all opportunity for the salvation of those who do not belong to Him will
be lost (Revelation 9:20-21; 16:9, 11).
SUMMARY
Term Definition:
The Coming of Christ refers to
the time when He comes to gather His people and begin the Wrath of God (Matthew 24:30-31;
Revelation 14:14-20; 1 Thessalonians 4:15-17, 2 Thessalonians 1:6-10).
Significance of the Coming of Christ:
The coming of Christ is very significant in that it marks the end of
suffering for Christians during the Great Tribulation (Matthew 24:29-31; 2
Thessalonians 1:6-10). It also marks the end of mortal life for all Christians (1
Corinthians 15:50-52). For the Beast and non-Christians, the coming of Christ
marks the end of their reign on earth and the beginning of the judgment poured
out on them during the Wrath of God (2 Thessalonians 2:8; Revelation 14:17-20).
Source of the Coming of Christ:
The Lord Jesus is the One who comes.
Length of the Coming of Christ:
The exact length of the coming of Christ is not given in Scripture.
However, it appears to occur in a very short time, possibly less than a second
(1 Corinthians 15:51-52). The results of His coming will last for eternity.
Events Prior to the Coming of Christ:
The coming of Christ (and the Rapture) will not occur until after there
is a major falling away of believers (see Matthew 24:12; 1 Timothy 4:1-3) and the
Beast is revealed (2 Thessalonians 2:1-4). The Beast is revealed for who he is
when he establishes the Abomination of Desolation. Therefore, the Coming
of Christ will not occur until sometime after the Abomination of Desolation is
established. Scriptures demonstrate that the coming of Christ occurs after the
3½ year Great Tribulation and before the Wrath of God (see beginning of this
chapter, the Appendix A, and How long is the Great Tribulation).
Events of the Coming of Christ:
Christians will be raptured
and the Wrath of God will begin when Christ comes (Matthew 24:30-31; Revelation
14:14-20; 2 Thessalonians 1:6-10).
God During the Coming of Christ:
The Lord Jesus will be very active as He returns to gather His Church
and punish the Beast and those who followed the Beast (Matthew 24:29-31; Revelation
14:14-20; 19:11-21).
Christians During the Coming of Christ:
Christians are removed from the earth and taken to Heaven (i.e., before
the throne, Revelation 7:9-17; Matthew 24:29-31). There will be 144,000 people
sealed to protect them from the plagues of God’s Wrath (Revelation 7:1-8).
Satan During the Coming of Christ:
Scripture does not indicate what Satan is doing during the coming of
Christ.
Beast During the Coming of Christ:
Scripture does not indicate what the Beast is doing during the coming of
Christ. The coming of Christ marks the beginning of God’s judgment on the Beast
(2 Thessalonians 1:6-9; 2:8; Revelation 14:7-11; Revelation 19:11-21).
Non-Christians During the Coming of Christ:
When Christ comes back to gather the Christians, His return will be as
visible as the lightning that lights up the entire sky (Matthew 24:27). The
non-Christians will see the Lord and great fear will come upon them. They will
seek to hide from the anger of the Lord (Matthew 24: 30; Revelation 6:15-17).
Events Following the Coming of Christ:
When Christ comes, 144,000 israelites are sealed to protect them from
the Wrath of God (Revelation 7:1-8). Christians are removed from the earth and
appear before Gods throne in Heaven (Matthew 24:30-31; Revelation 7:9-17). After
these events, the plagues of the Wrath of God are poured out on the Beast and
those people who were not removed from the earth (i.e., the non-Christians) (Revelation
8:1 through 11:19).
Scripture references for Coming of Christ:
Matthew 24:12, 23-31; Matthew 13:36-43; Matthew 13:47-50; Matthew 16:27; Matthew 24:36-51;
Matthew 25:13, 31; Matthew 26:64; Mark 13:21-27; Mark 13:32-33; Mark 14:62; Luke
9:25; Luke 17:22-37; Luke 21:25-28; Luke 21:34-35; John 14:2-3, 18, 28; Acts
1:9-11; Romans 8:11, 23; 1 Corinthians 1:7; 1 Corinthians 15:23, 50-56; Colossians 3:4; 1
Thessalonians 1:9-10; 1 Thessalonians 3:13; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17; 1
Thessalonians 5:1-9, 23; 2 Thessalonians 1:6-10; 2 Thessalonians 2:1-4, 8; 1
Timothy 4:1-3; Hebrews 9:28; James 5:4; 1 Peter 5:4; 2 Peter 1:16; 2 Peter 3:4, 7,
10-13; 1 John 2:28; Jude 14-15; Revelation 1:7; Revelation 3:3, 11; Revelation
6:12-17; Revelation 14:9-11, 14-20; Revelation 16:15; Revelation 19:11-21; Revelation
22:12, 20; Job 19:25; Isaiah 27:12-13; Daniel 12:1-3; Joel 3:13-16; Zechariah 14:4-5.
