Rev. David Holwick
First Baptist Church
West Lafayette, Ohio
June 5, 1983
Why I Believe in the Second Coming
2 Peter 3:3-14 (NIV)
According to the Apostle Peter, one of the signs that the return of Christ is near is that most people will reject it. This would certainly describe the attitude today. The Second Coming is a belief of the past that has no place in today's world. Even many Christians are embarrassed by it.
When I was growing up I never heard about it - not once. I thought Christians believed in God and went to heaven when they died. When I found out the Bible says Jesus will return to earth I was amazed.
People reject the Second Coming of Jesus Christ for the same reasons Peter gives. They say, "Where is this 'coming' he promised?" It's not that they can't locate the prophecies in the Bible. They mean it has taken so long to happen it must be a farce. Two thousand years have gone by and nothing has happened.
Their second argument in verse 4 goes: "Ever since our fathers died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation." They are arguing that the universe is stable and therefore rude upheavals like the Second Coming cannot happen. This attitude is the foundation of modern science. Scientists say that things will happen tomorrow just like they happened yesterday. God does not interfere.
Even though the Second Coming of Christ is not accepted by most people, the idea behind it still has a powerful attraction. People long for a day when justice and peace will rule the earth. Two prominent philosophies promise to bring this about. One is known as humanism. Humanism teaches that people have the power in themselves to make life perfect. Institutions like the United Nations will bring it about. They put a lot of faith in education and big government. The nuclear arms freeze is mostly motivated by humanism. It has a notable goal - to reduce and eventually eliminate nuclear weapons. I heard Helen Caldecott, the founder of the movement, say that the result of a nuclear freeze would be like a millennium. Russians would love Americans, war would cease and humanity would live happily ever after.
Another philosophy that promises utopia is communism. Communist guerillas in El Salvador and Nicaragua are not just trying to seize control of governments. They think that the revolution they are fighting for will bring paradise to earth. They promise to establish perfect peace, good jobs and freedom for everyone, even if they have to murder fifty percent of the people to do it.
Humans have always wanted to bring heaven down to earth. Philosophies and government have tried and failed. As a matter of fact, things are more desperate now than they have ever been. Never before has mankind possessed the power to wipe themselves from the face of the earth. The future of civilization is very much in doubt. Billy Graham has met government leaders all over the world and he discovered that most of them did not think we would last another generation.
In the face of this fear the Bible clearly states that God will do something about it. He will send his Son back to earth to set things right. The Second Coming is a fact as inescapable as death, according to the Bible. Turn to Hebrews 9:27-28. It reads:
"Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him."
The salvation that Jesus will bring is very similar to what modern philosophies aim for. One of the most picturesque passages on the peace Jesus brings is found in Isaiah 11:6 and following:
"The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them. ... They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea."
The Second Coming is not a minor issue for Christians. Large numbers of the Old Testament prophecies point to it. Jesus himself devoted whole sermons to it, as we find in Matthew, chapter 24. And most people know that the last book of the Bible, Revelation, deals almost entirely with the return of Christ.
These prophecies are not just found in the Bible. Many of them are being fulfilled today. Perhaps the most significant fulfillment concerns the land of Israel. Turn with me to Ezekiel 37. When the prophet Ezekiel wrote this the Jews were being scattered all over the world. Very few were left in Palestine and even they were divided into different kingdoms. But in chapter 37, verse 21, the prophet says:
"And say to them, 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I will take the Israelites out of the nations where they have gone. I will gather them from all around and bring them back into their own land. I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel. There will be one king over all of them and they will never again be two nations or be divided into two kingdoms. They will no longer defile themselves with their idols and vile images or with any of their offenses.... My servant David will be king over them...."
Even in Jesus' day Israel was dominated by foreigners. It was not until the last hundred years that Jews began to move back to Israel in significant numbers. This fulfilled verse 21. Once they moved back they set up a united nation of Israel, which had not happened for twenty-five hundred years. This fulfilled verse 22. They no longer worship idols like they did for centuries so verse 23 has been fulfilled. This leaves verse 24 - "And David my servant shall be king over them." "David my servant" is a code word for the Messiah. Menachem Begin is not the Messiah. This fulfillment is still in the future because it will not be complete until Jesus returns as King.
Now turn back to 2 Peter 3. We have already looked at the objections of the scoffers. They say it has taken too long, that God doesn't interfere with things. In verses 8 and 9 Peter answers these objections. He says:
"But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance."
There are three great truths in this passage. The first is that time is not the same to God as it is to us. Psalm 90 says:
"For a thousand years in your sight are like a day that has just gone by...."
When we think of the hundreds of thousands of years the earth has existed it is easy to feel totally insignificant. When we think of how slow human progress is, it is easy to become discouraged and pessimistic. There is comfort in the thought of a God who has all eternity to work in. It is only against the background of eternity that things appear in their true proportions and assume their real value.
A second thing we can learn from this passage is that time must always be regarded as an opportunity. As Peter sees it, the years God has given the world are a further opportunity for people to repent and turn to him. Every day which comes to us is a gift of mercy. It is an opportunity to develop ourselves, to render some service to other people, to take one step nearer to God.
Finally, in this passage Peter says that God does not want anyone to perish. This is an important theme throughout the Bible. Ezekiel 18:23 says:
"Do I take any pleasure in the death of the wicked? declares the Sovereign LORD. Rather, am I not pleased when they turn from their ways and live?"
Paul says in 1 Timothy 2:4:
"[God] wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth."
God may be delaying the Second Coming one more day, just so you can be saved.
Jesus Christ will return - but how? Rev. Sung Yung Moon claims to be the returned Christ. There is quite a similarity. Jesus was born in the East. So was Rev. Moon. Jesus was a lowly carpenter. Rev. Moon was a lowly engineer. After that, similarities cease.
The Bible tells us very clearly how Jesus will return. Turn to Acts 1:9-11. It reads:
"After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight. They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. 'Men of Galilee,' they said, 'why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.' "
Jesus will return just as he left - from the clouds, visibly and personally. His coming will also be sudden and violent. Back in 2 Peter 3:10 it says:
"But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare."
No one knows when Christ will return - he doesn't even know himself, according to the Bible. Many people have come up with elaborate schemes to predict the date. Jesus said no one will know the day or the hour, so they try to predict the week and the month. All of this is really foolishness.
Jesus will return when he returns. The real question is - will you be ready for him? Many Christians will not be ready, according to Jesus. Turn to the great prophecy chapter, Matthew 24. In verses 44 and following Jesus says:
"So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him. Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of the servants in his household to give them their food at the proper time? It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns. I tell you the truth, he will put him in charge of all his possessions.
"But suppose that servant is wicked and says to himself, 'My master is staying away a long time,' and he then begins to beat his fellow servants and to eat and drink with drunkards. The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth."
Both men are apparently believers - even the evil one calls Jesus "lord." But he lives a loose life and is caught unawares. His punishment is severe.
The Second Coming is not meant to frighten us, so much as it is supposed to motivate us to live holy, God-centered lives. If we do, we will have no reason to be afraid because in 1 Thessalonians 5, the Apostle Paul says the Second Coming won't surprise us like a thief - as long as we are close to God.
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Typed on May 9, 2006, by Sharon Lesko of Ledgewood Baptist Church, New Jersey
Copyright © 2024 by Rev. David Holwick
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