It was clearly set forth in our last issue that the second advent of Christ is a literal, personal, visible coming. "This same Jesus will come again;" He will come as He went away. A cloud of angels received Him as He ascended. When He returns, He will come in a cloud, with all the holy angels. At His first advent He came in the lowliness and weakness of humanity, to suffer and die. When He comes again, He will come in all the transcendent glory of the Godhead, increased by the myriads of angels who reflect and refract and augment that glory. The covering which in mercy has veiled the glory of God and the presence of His angels, so that men might not perish in the insufferable splendor, will be removed, Christ will come as a conqueror, and men shall "see Him as He is."
"There is a King of glory,
Ere long on earth to rise,
Sung in prophetic story,
Descending from the skies;
The Babe of Bethlehem, 'tis He;
It is the Man of Calvary,—
Not crowned with thorns and gory,
But crowned with glory now;
Not crowned with thorns to-day,
Not mocked and led away,
But crowned with everlasting glory
now."
That coming has been the hope of the church from dying Adam and translated Enoch to John on Patmos and the waiting church who keep the sayings of John. Why should they thus look to that event. Why should it be called "the blessed hope and appearing of the glory of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ"? Titus 2: 13. Why should Jesus assure them so positively, "I will come again"? John 14: 1-3.
Because at Christ's coming all the hopes of the Christian shall meet their fruition. They are blessed here by the presence and power of His Spirit. The earnest of the future, God's pledge of future inheritance, His sealing of sonship, are ours here. But the pain, the sin, the sorrow, the tribulation, the utter sadness of life, the separation of death, are here also. The better world lies beyond. The "reward" is at the end of earth's probation when the harvest is reaped. For not till then do God's children of all ages, with few exceptions, find the joy of His glorified presence. But then, when Christ comes, the righteous dead will be brought back from the sleep of the grave; the righteous living, who have thru grace formed an incorruptible character, will receive from the glorified Master an incorruptible, immortal body. And therefore it is written:
“Through the open scroll of heaven that shall fold and roll aside, We shall see the Man of Sorrows, who for love was crucified, 'Mid the untold hosts of heaven, King of Kings, and glorified.”
"For the Son of Man shall come in the glory of His Father with His angels; and THEN HE SHALL REWARD EVERY MAN according to his works." Matt. 16: 27.
"But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. . . . For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent [precede, go before] 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; 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 air, and SO SHALL WE EVER BE WITH THE LORD. Wherefore comfort one another with these words." 1 Thess. 4: 13-18.
"Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood can not inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption. Behold, I show you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, AT THE LAST TRUMP; for the trumpet shall sound, and THE DEAD SHALL BE RAISED INCORRUPTIBLE, and WE [the living] shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, THEN shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?" 1 Cor. 15: 50-55.
How clearly do these Scriptures tell the story! When the Son of Man comes, the rewards will be given. When the heavens shall be aflame with His glory, and His mighty voice and trumpet shall resound thruout the earth, those who sleep in Him shall arise to immortality, and those who live in Him shall be immediately changed to the same glorious condition, and together they will rise to meet Him in the air, physically triumphant over the power of earth's attraction as they have triumphed over the sins of the world. Then will be seen more of the fulness of the victory of Jesus Christ ringing forth in the triumphant shout, "O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?"
To that glorious event looked the patient Idumean patriarch. His longing that His words of faith might be recorded, God has answered. In his deepest affliction he cried:
"O that my words were now written! O that they were printed in a book! That they were graven with an iron pen and lead in the rock forever! For I know that my REDEEMER LIVETH, and that HE SHALL STAND AT THE LATTER DAY UPON THE4EARTH; and tho after my skin, worms destroy this body, YET IN MY FLESH shall I see God; whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another [a stranger]." Job 19: 23-27.
No, not to one child of His will Christ be a "stranger." We may never have seen Him as He walked the earth, healed the sick, unstopped deaf ears, cleansed the leper, comforted sin-sick souls. But we shall know Him. Men have tried to paint Him; and beautiful conceptions have been given. We have as a consequence beautiful Jewish, Italian, German, Dutch, Russian, Flemish, and English faces. Probably not one looks as the Master did, but He was a Saviour to every race and nation. And divine grace will write upon the heart of him who will yield to Christ the Master's image. We may not outline it or limn it upon canvas; but when we see Him, if we are faithful, we shall know Him as our great, infinite best Friend.
With prospective kingdom and God's constant blessing even amid trials, the world brought no satisfaction to David; for only Christ's coming could:
"As for me, I will behold Thy face in righteousness; I shall be satisfied, WHEN I AWAKE, WITH THY LIKENESS." Ps. 17: 15.
Isaiah, the great evangelical prophet, sings of the hope of Israel:
"Thy dead men shall live, together with my dead body shall they arise. Awake and sing, ye that dwell in dust; for thy dew is as the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast out the dead." Isa. 26: 19.
Paul writes to the children of God:
"For our citizenship is in heaven; whence also we WAIT FOR A SAVIOUR, the Lord Jesus Christ; WHO SHALL FASHION ANEW THE BODY OF OUR HUMILIATION, that it may be conformed to THE BODY OF HIS GLORY, according to the working whereby He is able even to subject all things unto Himself." Phil. 3: 20, 21.
And this is the assuring testimony of the "beloved disciple:"
"Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be; but WE KNOW THAT, WHEN HE SHALL APPEAR, we shall be LIKE HIM; for WE SHALL SEE HIM AS HE IS. And every man that hath this hope in Him purifieth himself, even as He is pure." 1 John 3: 2, 3.
That is what Biblical hope in Christ's second coming will do. It will not lead to time-setting or fanaticism. It will not lead to worldliness, or dishonesty, or insincerity, or impurity, or sin in any form. It will not make good politicians, but it will make better men and women, better boys and girls, better citizens, better neighbors. It will give calmness and peace amid all earth's trials and turmoils. It is an anchor to the soul both sure and steadfast.
