Last week in our study we saw that Jesus in His grace and mercy not only has forgiven us of our sins, but He has bestowed on all of us the majesty of a prince and the ministry of a priest. We are important to God. Jesus has given us power with men and power with God. What more could we want? This is grace that accrues to us in our relationship with Jesus.
This has been a week of great mourning for the world. First the tragic death of Diana, Princess of Wales. Then the sudden, though expected death of Mother Theresa. The contrasting lifestyles of these two famous individuals bring and incredible truth home to us. This truth has been emphasized over and over again as Elton John has sung the words of one of his greatest hits, “Candle in the Wind”.
This is the truth. No matter what your status is in life. Whether you are young or old. Whether you have lived a life of splendor or simplicity. Whether you are royal or rascal, Prince or peasant. Life is like a candle in the wind. And when that candle is snuffed out, every option is reduced to one simple equation. You are either lost, or saved. No other status matters anymore. It matter to those left behind, but to the person in the coffin it is irrelevant.
But for those who are in Christ, the glory does not end there. The Bible says that there will come a day when we shall see Him face to face, and we shall be like Him! And that glory will never be snuffed out.
His is the glory that will outshine the sun. The glory of Jesus\’ right to rule and reign forever.
His coming is immanent. Every prophecy has been fulfilled. Every event that was to precede His coming has already taken place. The Bible tells us that when this has happened He could return at any moment.
1 Thes. 4:16-5:3 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. [17]After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. [18] Therefore encourage each other with these words.
[5:1] Now, brothers, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, [2] for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. [3] While people are saying, \”Peace and safety,\” destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.
This old world will grind on as before. The plans that men have set in motion to cure all the ills of mankind will continue. Nations will continue to fight against nation, as ambassadors for peace present their solution around the conference table of the United Nations. Politicians will continue to campaign. Business men will continue to build their empires. The orbit will continue to spin. Students will still burn the midnight oil. When all of a sudden. With a unified shout by Jesus and the Archangel and a blast from Gabriel’s trumpet, the heavens will open and it will all be over as we know it.
One of the greatest hopes of the believer is the second coming of Christ. As awful as it will be for the unbeliever, so it will be a blessed event for the Christian.
Titus 2:11-14
For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. [12] It teaches us to say \”No\” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, [13] while we wait for the blessed hope–the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, [14] who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.
This will be the beginning of Christ’s future glory.
As we continue our study in Revelation we will look at this aspect of His reign as the King of Kings. The moment in history when He will return and every eye shall see Him.
Rev. 1:7-8 Look, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him; and all the peoples of the earth will mourn because of him. So shall it be! Amen. [8] \”I am the Alpha and the Omega,\” says the Lord God, \”who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.\”
Several things that we notice in these few short verses.
Firstly we see that:
- I. His Coming Is Personal
“…Look, He is coming with the clouds
I am reminded of the words of the angel when they appeared to the followers of Jesus at His ascension. They were amazed as they gazed after Him ascending into the clouds, when two angels appeared. Acts 1:10-11 They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. [11] \”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 be visible. He will come in His personal, physical form. In ancient times, God wrapped himself in a cloud, when Israel pitched the tabernacle in the wilderness, he came in a cloud, when Jesus comes back He will not be shrouded. Every eye will be able to see exactly who He is and everyone will know.
He will be no different to the way He was when He left in the physical form. I am troubled by some who say that have personally seen Him and as a result they have some special message or prophesy to give to the church. I think particularly of Oral Roberts a while back who said he saw a 900 foot Jesus. The problem I have with that is that the Bible tells us that the next time anyone sees Him it will be when He comes back. He will be just as He was when He left, every eye shall see Him, and we shall be like Him. That is the litmus test church. Any time anyone says they have seen a personal physical image of Jesus, this is the test. Was He like He was when He left. Did every eye see Him, and was that person transformed into His image.
This is the first observation concerning this great and blessed hope. He Himself is going to come back. He is not going to send a regal representative. He is coming, exactly as He left. It will be a personal return.
Secondly, notice that :
II. His Coming is Public
“…and every eye shall see Him…”
I think the latest statistic on the number of people who watched the funeral of Diana is …..people. This is quite incredible! That so many people at once could observe such an event. Well, if you think that is something, can you imagine the technological genius it is going to take for every eye top see the coming of Jesus. But God is not limited by technology. He is omnipotent. He can cause things to be as He chooses. I feel sorry for those who’s view of God is so limited that they have to confine His methods to Television, or those who say that it will have to be spiritual sighting. The Bible says that He will come as He went, and that was physical, and that every eye shall see Him. This same Jesus is coming back and we will all see Him as He is!
So when he comes he will be visible to all. Paul calls this event, \”the splendor of his coming\” (2 Thess. 2:8), literally, \”the outshining of his parousia.\” Then, even the Jews will recognize him.
John tell us: even those who pierced him; This is a reference to a prophecy in Zechariah the 12th chapter where we are told that when he appears those who pierced him shall look upon him and shall mourn for him with a great mourning. They shall ask him \”What are these wounds in your hands,\” and he will say, \”Those which I received in the house of my friends.\”
One of the puzzles of history has been why the Jewish people have so resolutely turned their backs on the evidence that Jesus is their promised Messiah. It is the \”blinding in part\” that Paul says will happen to the nation because of long standing unbelief. But it will not be forever. The day will come when Israel will recognize their Messiah. Prophecy predicts it and Jesus here confirms it; \”even those who pierced him,\” shall see him in that day.
But it is not only the Jew who pierced Him. The unbelieving Gentile may also be included in this category. They too will see Him and will instantly recognize Him and have to bow before Him because of the awesomeness of His coming.
Throughout the ages, men and women have made excuses that they cannot believe in a God they cannot see. Uri Gagarin proclaimed to the world that there could be no God because he could not be seen in the heavens. On that day, the Uri Gagrin’s of this world will be among those who will bow before Him.
His coming will be public, and oh what a glorious day that will be for some. But for others it will be a day of terror.
His coming will be personal. We will see Him personally. It will be public, every eye shall behold Him, and thirdly,
III. His Coming Will Be Powerful
“…and all the peoples of the earth will mourn because of Him.”
Jesus himself tells us this. Matthew 24:30 \”At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory.
So when he comes he will come in great power. Paul calls this event, \”the splendor of his coming\” (2 Thess. 2:8), literally, \”the outshining of his parousia.\”
“…and all the peoples of the earth will mourn because of him.
I believe this is a reference to that great event that is described in Philippians the 2nd chapter. There we are told that, \” at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow, in heaven and on the earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.\” At last men will realize, in the appearance of the Lord himself, where they have stood in relationship to him. They will mourn because they will see how terribly they have treated him and his work for them upon the Cross.
Now we get in verse 8 a most impressive thing. It is as though God takes a pen, and with his own hand, signs this book with his own name. And in doing so He underscores again the power and majesty of His coming.
I am the Alpha and the Omega, says the Lord God, [Alpha and Omega are the first and last characters of the Greek alphabet] who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty One.
First of all He come as the Omniscient one. The Alpha and Omega. The first and last characters of the Greek alphabet. Speaking of His sovereignty over all knowledge. The as the one who was and is and is to come, speaking of the power of His presence everywhere, at every place in history, all the time. His omnipresence. And then finally His infinite power is emphasized as He personally proclaims the fact that He is the Almighty one.
Church, this is going to be the most powerful moment in history. This verse is a prelude to the events of Revelation chapter 19 when He who is all powerful will watch the greatest battle of all time as Satan wages one final onslaught against God, and Jesus will appear on the scene and by the mere opening of His mouth and speaking a word, it will all be over. It will be as simple, yet profound as that. He comes, He watches, and He wins. And at that moment, all the records will be set straight. Every injustice will be balanced. Every oppression will cease, every wrong will be made right. It will be the most terrible scene of all time, or the most victorious scene of all time. The birds of the air will come and eat the flesh of every one who opposed Christ and sought to bring Him down. Immediately after that the first of the judgments begins.
The question today for each of us who hear the words of warning in this prophecy is, “Which group will you be in? The group that mourns, or the group that rejoices in His coming?”
Chapter 22:7 says in the words of Jesus, ”Behold I am coming soon! Blessed is he who keeps the words and the prophecy of this book.” And Jesus is not speaking of keeping them up here in your head. He is speaking of keeping them in your heart.
Rev3:20, His words to us this morning. “Behold I stand at the door and knock…