The second coming of Jesus Christ is not a strange doctrine to the Bible, nor should it be to Christians. Mr Moody is cited as saying that the second coming of Christ is mentioned, either directly or indirectly, on an average of every 25th verse in the New Testament. Both Old and New Testaments glow with the glorious triumph of God through His anointed Christ Jesus. Certainly an event mentioned as frequently as is our Lord’s second advent, to which so much importance is attached in the Bible, ought to receive some attention from His children. They ought to understand what it means; they ought to know its importance to the world; they ought to know its place in the great scheme of salvation; and they ought to know why it was that the faithful of all ages looked forward to that “blessed hope;” and this page, in part, tells some of the great reasons why God has made the doctrine as prominent as He has. At His first advent Christ came in the “fulness of time.” Gal. 4:4. Through all the long and weary ages, from the time that it was stated in the lost Garden of Eden that the Seed of the woman should bruise the serpent’s head, the children of faith had looked forward to the time when that Seed should be manifest. The whole book of Genesis ought to be read in the light of that one thought of the Seed. To His manifestation, and fuller manifestations which those of earlier ages did not understand as it has been revealed to those of later times, the eye of faith gazed with an intensity which in this material age is but faintly discerned. But Infinite Patience must endure the sore travail of the world’s ages before the time came for His first revelation. Then “when the fulness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law.” Just as truly the world is still groaning and travailing in pain, longing for the second manifestation in glory. He came first in humility; He will come again in glory supernal. When God’s fulness of time is come, then will be revealed the second time Christ Jesus the Lord, as King of Kings, and the great work for the redemption of man will be completed. A Literal Coming. Acts. 1:9-11
The first advent of our Lord was literal. He was born a babe in a manger. He grew to childhood, to manhood. Men saw Him, talked with Him, walked by His side, ate, drank, and slept with Him. They listened to His teaching. They saw Him place holy hands on the infirm, the sick, the afflicted, and heal them. They saw Him crucified upon the cross. They saw Him laid in Joseph’s tomb. Men saw Him after He was risen from the dead. They beheld Him ascend into heaven. “This same Jesus” is coming again; not in humility, not with “marred” form, not with pierced side and wounded hands, but in glorious, everlasting triumph. All the marks of His humiliation and suffering in this world will be marks of everlasting glory when He shall come the second time. But it will be the “same Jesus” nevertheless, possessing the same loving character, bringing joy to every trusting disciple. Counterfeits of His Coming
These are many. They will multiply as the days go by and His coming draws near. For instance, there is Mormonism which declares to the world that Christ is coming in the desert; there will be movements like Spiritualism and Christian Science which will declare that Christ is in this movement or in that movement. Some will tell us that He comes by His representative, the Holy Spirit; and the deceiver will have other forms and deceptions to counterfeit and counterwork the great, the glorious climax of the ages in the hearts of the children of men. Of all these God has forewarned us. Doubtless with the deceptions of Mormonism and Spiritism in mind Jesus admonished: “If they shall say unto you, Behold, He is in the desert; go not forth; behold, He is in the secret chambers; believe it not. For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of Man be.” Matt. 24:26, 27. That His coming is not at death is shown by the fact that He is ever the Life-giver. Truly the sister of Lazarus said to Him, “Lord, if Thou hadst been here, my brother had not died.” His coming meant life to Lazarus. His coming means life forevermore to His children. Death is an enemy, “the last enemy” that shall be destroyed; and the coming of Christ Jesus will forever break the power which it has held over His children during earth’s mournful ages. This question has often been asked by the skeptical, the caviler, the one who would ridicule the second coming of our Lord. They say, How can every eye see Him when this earth is round? But this round earth revolves; and when our Lord shall descend from the blue empyrean with all the holy angels, His feet do not rest upon this earth. Upon this the Word is very clear. His people are caught up to meet Him in the air. He is suspended, in His infinite power over every attraction, above this earth, and as the world rolls round to greet the glorious Sun of Righteousness, from hamlet and cottage, from mountain fastness, from dusty graves and deep sea, God’s people shall rise immortal, incorruptible, in one living stream, to meet Him in the air. “So [in eternal existence] shall we ever be with the Lord.” There will be one glorious outburst of glory upon the world, and that wonderful appearing will be one day, or the space of the world’s revolution. Then “every eye shall see Him.” One of the means by which the enemy has sought to hide from God’s children the glory of His second coming, is by a perversion of some of the terms which are used to refer to His coming. One of these is the parousia, which means “presence,” “personal presence.” We are told that that personal presence will be in secret, quiet, still. Only those who are caught away will know of that coming of the Lord. Then sometime afterward He will come again with those who were thus caught away. But the Word of God does not so express it. For it is thus that that parousia is announced: “For this we say to you by the Word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming [presence] of the Lord shall not prevent [precede] them which are asleep. For the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with A SHOUT, with the VOICE OF THE ARCHANGEL, and with the TRUMP OF GOD.” Tremendous sound will accompany His parousia, His personal presence. The words parousia, epiphaneia, apocalupsis6 (726)are three words expressive of different phases of the one event. The first, showing His personal presence; the second, the glory, the forthshining of that presence; and the third, the revelation, the disclosure, the true manifestation of the Son of God. Long centuries have veiled His glory. Now when He comes to His own, with all the effulgence of that supernal glory, He reveals Himself as He is, a King of Kings and Lord of Lords.