Second coming of Jesus- When will Jesus come back?
Second coming of Jesus- When will Jesus come back?
Posted on June 28, 2012 Updated on June 27, 2012
John 14:1-3;
God’s Word teaches: That the Rapture (commonly referred to as the first phase or stage of the SECOND COMING OF CHRIST) is the catching away from the earth, of all living saints and all who died in the Lord. The Rapture will take place before the Great Tribulation and can happen any time from now. “In a twinkling of an eye” Without a moment’s warning, “the trumpet shall sound” “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 airs and so shall we ever be with the Lord” – Luke 21:34-36; I Corinthians 15:51-58; lThessalonians 4:13-18 5:4-9; 2Thessalonians 2:5-7; Philippians 3;11,20,21;IJohn3:1-3.
The rapture is the greatest event of all ages that the Church is waiting for. It is the catching away of all true believers in Christ to meet the Lord in the air (I Thessalonian 4:16): Christ, at the end of His first advent, was in like manner taken up in the air to go and prepare a place for His own. The parting promise from God was that Jesus will return in like manner to receive His ‘Bride’ to be with Him forever (Acts 1:9-11; John 14:1-3).
The rapture is not the same as the Second Coming of Christ. At the Rapture, Christ will appear in the air. He will not be visible to the inhabitants of the earth. His mission then will be to resurrect all dead saints, who along with the living believers will put on immortality and shall be caught up to be with the Lord. In the twinkling of an ‘eye’ before the great and terrible day of the Lord, when the wrath of God will be poured down from His cup of indignation without mixture – an event fitly called the Great Tribulation (I Corinthians 15:52). The Second Advent will not take place until after the great tribulation.
The time of the Rapture is unknown, even by the Angels (Matthew 24:36; 2 Thessalonians 2:1-5). The Rapture will be heralded by the voice of the archangel and the blowing of trumpets signalling the end of the Church age (IThessalonians 4:13-15). The Rapture was a mystery, unknown to the Old Testament saints and prophets. God had underlined this great event in two different ways in the Scripture to assure us of its certainty. First, it was illustrated in Enoch and Elijah, the two living saints who did not taste death but were translated in a moment of time and caught up in th air (Genesis 5:24, 2 Kings 2:11,12).
Second, it was illustrated in Christ in the New Testament. He died, was buried and resurrected. While He talked with His disciples on Mount Olivet, He was taken up, and a Cloud received Him out of their sight (Acts 1:9-11). The rapture which was a mystery to the Old Testament prophets marks the end of the Church Age, also referred to as the time of the Gentiles (Luke 21:24). This truth was veiled to the saints of old.
However, known unto God are all His works from the foundation of the earth. In His mercy, He interrupted His programme for Israel with the Church Age. Christ the Messiah came for His people but they rejected Him (John 1:11), and God turned to the Gentiles to take people for Himself The rapture will mark the end of this special period of grace. Does this mean that God has forsaken his people Israel forever? Far from it, God will resume His programme with Israel immediately after the rapture, thus ushering in the beginning of the Seventieth week in Daniel’s Prophecy (Daniel 9:24-27).
Any moment from now, the trumpet shall sound and He that shall come will come and will not tarry. It is very certain that Christ is coming back again. He assured the Church of the certainty of His coming (John 14:1-3). Angels proclaimed it, apostles and saints throughout the ages preached it. All the signs of His coming are daily being fulifiled.
Christ, answering a pertinent question asked by His disciples on “. . .What shall be the sign of thy coming…” (Matthew 24:3), gave in details what would be happening on earth shortly before His coming (Matthew 24:5-12,30-39).
He highlighted the following as what to expect:
(i) Many false Christ’s will arise deceiving many unsuspecting believers.
(ii) There will be wars and rumours of war.
(iii) There will be international wars.
(iv)Famines(Globaleconomic recession)
(v)Pestilences
(vi)Earthquakesin divers places
(vii) There will be persecution of Christ’s followers and some cases of martyrdom.
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