Looking for The Blessed Hope
(The Coming of the Lord Jesus
For His Church)
John McTernan
John 14:2
In my Father's house are
many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told
you. I go to prepare a place for you. (3) And if I
go and prepare a place for you,
I will come again, and receive you unto myself;
that where I am, there ye may be also.
The first mention of the Lord’s
Second Coming is found in John 14. This caught His
disciples by surprise as He just told them He was
going away. He assured them of His return, or as it
is now known as His Second Coming. Since the Lord
rose from the dead, His coming for the church and
believers being with Him for eternity has been the
hope of the believers:
The hope of the Lord’s return is
not just mere hope, but the Bible calls it the
Blessed Hope. It is a special hope that energizes
believers and helps them through this life. Living
without the Blessed Hope, a believer can grow cold
and worldly. Living with the Blessed Hope keeps
believers focused on the Lord and spiritually
vibrant:
Titus 2:13 Looking for that
blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the
great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;
The Two
Comings of the Lord in the Old Testament
Studying the Old Testament, with
an understanding of the New Testament, one can
clearly see the two comings of the Messiah. The Old
Testament does not implicitly say that the Messiah
is coming twice, nor
does it say how long the gap between His First and
Second Comings is. Because the Old Testament does
not say there are two advents that
does not mean there
cannot be two since the New Testament clearly proves
there are. It takes spiritual discernment to
understand the two comings, and sometimes it even
requires dividing a verse to understand the two
comings.
The Lord Jesus was preaching in a
synagogue at Nazareth when He quoted from Isaiah 61:1,2.
This is recorded in Luke 4:18,19.
He quoted part of the verse and then sat down. He
then told the people, “This day is this scripture
fulfilled in your ears.”
When comparing Luke with Isaiah, the section
that the Lord left out is clear. He ended with “To
preach the acceptable year of the Lord,” while
Isaiah continues with “and the day of vengeance of
our God.” The reason the Lord stopped when He did is
that the rest of the verse pertains to His Second
Coming. His First and Second Comings were both
contained in Isaiah 61: 1,2,
and the Lord showed this divide when He preached.
Luke 4:18,19 and Isaiah
61:1,2 follow:
Luke 4:18 The Spirit of the Lord
is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach
the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the
brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the
captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to
set at liberty them that are bruised, (19)
To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.
Isaiah 61:1 The spirit of the
Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed
me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath
sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim
liberty to the captives, and the opening of the
prison to them that are bound; (2) To proclaim the
acceptable year of the LORD,
and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all
that mourn;
This concept of the two comings
is found in the Old Testament, and yet not
specifically stating there were two comings, carries
over into the New Testament and the Second Coming of
the Lord Jesus. The New Testament teaches that the
Lord’s Second Coming is in two phases. With the
first, He returns
for His
church. With the second, He returns
with His
church to defend Israel
at the battle of Armageddon.
In the first phase, He meets His
church in the air.
1 Thessalonians 4:16 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: (17)
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.
This event takes place in the
moment the Bible calls the “last trump”. This phase
is limited to the believers in the Lord Jesus.
1 Corinthians 15:52
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 shall be changed.
In the second phase, He returns
to defend
Israel
and destroy the armies of the world gathered at the battle
of Armageddon. The unbelievers will be in terror
when the Lord returns to judge the nations.
Revelation 6:15-17 And the kings
of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men,
and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and
every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in
the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; And said
to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us
from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and
from the wrath of the Lamb: For the great day of his
wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?
During the second phase, the Lord
returns with His church. This event takes place
after the church is in heaven with the Lord Jesus at
the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. At the end of the
Marriage Supper, He leaves heaven to judge the
earth, and His church returns with Him being
described as the armies of heaven:
Revelation 19:14
And the armies which
were in heaven followed him upon white horses,
clothed in fine linen, white and clean.
The First
Phase of the Second Coming
The Book of Revelation precisely
lays out the events showing both phases of the
Lord’s Second Coming. The key to understanding the
Book of Revelation is found in chapter 1, verse 19.
This verse divides the book into three sections:
what John has seen, the things which are, and the
things which shall be hereafter:
Revelation 1:19 Write the things
which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and
the things which shall be hereafter;
The things which John has seen
are found in chapter one, and it is the vision of
the Lord Jesus. The things which are can be found in
chapters two and three. These are the letters to the
seven churches. There is no doubt that the church is
“the things which are” because at the end of each
letter the Bible states:
Revelation 3:22 He that hath an
ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the
churches.
After the seven letters to the
churches, the scene moves to heaven and this is
where “the things which shall be hereafter” takes
place. All reference to the church in the “which
shall be hereafter” are now portrayed in heaven and
not on the earth.
Revelation 4:1 After this I
looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven:
and the first voice which I heard was as it were of
a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up
hither, and I will show thee
things which
must be hereafter. (2) And
immediately I was in the spirit; and, behold, a
throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne.
The very first thing that John
heard pertaining to the “hereafter” was a voice like
a trumpet calling him to heaven. The book of
Revelation tells us that the voice of the Lord Jesus
is just like a trumpet:
Revelation 1:10,11 I was in the
Spirit on the Lord's day, and heard behind me a
great voice, as of a trumpet, Saying, I am Alpha and
Omega, the first and the last …
The Bible associates the coming
of the Lord Jesus for His church with a trumpet
sound. This is what John heard when he was called to
heaven, as the voice of the Lord Jesus is just like
a trumpet. In times past, the trumpet was used
during a battle to give signals to the army. It was
also used to announce the presence of royalty. The
trumpet blast connected with the rapture of the
church comes from the Lord Jesus and not an angel.
At the last trumpet sound for the
church, the Lord Jesus is going to descend from
heaven with a shout, the trumpet of God. This is a
trumpet sound by the Lord Himself and not an angel
to call His church to heaven, and this call is not
for judgment. When studying the Book of Revelation,
it is important to understand the trumpet sound to
call the church is made by the Lord and not an
angel. There are angels blowing trumpets, but it is
for judgment.
The only trumpet sound connected
with the Lord Jesus is found in Revelation 4:1. It
is very possible from this verse that the trumpet
command He will use to call His church to heaven is
“Come up hither”. He will call His church just like
He called John to heaven:
1 Corinthians 15:52
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 shall be
changed.
1 Thessalonians 4:16 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:
When John was called to heaven,
immediately he was in the spirit and before the
throne of God. This is the same language found in 1
Corinthians 15:52, that believers are changed in the
“twinkling of an eye”.
Revelation 4:2
And immediately I was in
the spirit; and, behold, a throne was set in heaven,
and one sat on the throne.
Revelation chapters four and five
are about the throne of God and events surrounding
the throne. The fifth chapter is very important in
understanding the conclusion of the first phase of
the Lord’s coming. In this chapter, the church is
before the throne of God. Their location before the
throne is extremely important. It is the raptured
believers who have been redeemed by the blood of the
Lord Jesus and not angels:
Revelation 5:9
And they sung a new
song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and
to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and
hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every
kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;
This concept of the church being
before the throne is reinforced in Revelation 7:
Revelation 7:9,10
After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude,
which no man could number, of all nations, and
kindreds, and people, and tongues,
stood before
the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with
white robes, and palms in their hands; And cried
with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God
which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb
(14) … These are they which came
out of great tribulation, and have washed their
robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.
Revelation 7 is a very
interesting chapter. At first reading, it is easy to
think it is part of the seven seal judgments but it
is not. It is like a parenthesis between seals six
and seven. This chapter refers back to the time
before the
judgments began. The previous chapter describes
awesome judgments on the earth and ends with the
Second Coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. This chapter
begins before there are judgments on the earth!
Revelation 7:1
And after these things I
saw four angels standing on the four corners of the
earth, (3)
Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the
trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God
in their foreheads.
Chapter seven is directly
connected to chapter 5 as they both show the church
before the throne and not on earth. This chapter
offers another view of the church in heaven. Being a
“parenthesis,” it is showing that while all the
horrible events are taking place on earth, the
church is in heaven with the Savior. Remember, the
key to this chapter is that it takes place before
any of the seals are broken. The great
multitude of this chapter were
not killed by the seal judgments because it takes
place before the judgments began.
The believers before the throne
are witnessing the events leading up to God’s
judgments on the earth. They are in heaven with the
Lord Jesus before even one judgment is loosed on the
earth. This is the most important concept that the
church is in heaven with the Jesus before one
judgment begins. Obviously, the Lord Jesus came for
His church before He begins the judgments upon the
earth.
In Revelation chapter five, God
the Father is on the throne with the book that is
sealed with the seven seals of judgment. This is the
book that contains all the judgments. He gives this
book to Jesus Christ who then opens the seals and
the judgments begin:
Revelation 5:1 And I saw in the
right hand of him that sat on the throne a book
written within and on the backside, sealed with
seven seals. (7) And he came and took the book out
of the right hand of him that sat upon
the throne
The entire church is before the
throne witnessing these events. The believers are
with the Lord Jesus before any of the judgments
begin, and no verse in Revelation indicates that
during the judgments people are added to those
before the throne. The church is complete in
Revelation chapter five. The first phase of the
Lord’s Second Coming is nearly complete. The church
is in heaven with Him.
In Revelation chapter six, the
seals are opened and the judgments begin. When the
fifth seal is opened John sees a group of people
under the altar. These people are distinct from
those before the throne. These are the people who
died after the church was called to heaven, and they
are not placed with the church before the throne,
but under the altar.
They are dying in huge numbers
because they did not submit the antichrist and His
forces on earth. These people are given white robes
and told to rest until events are fulfilled:
Revelation 6:9,10
And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw
under the
altar the souls of them that were slain for the
word of God, and for the testimony which they held:
And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long,
O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and
avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?
(11) And white robes were given
unto every one of them; and it was said unto them,
that they should rest yet for a little season, until
their fellowservants also and their brethren, that
should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled
The completion of the fifth seal
takes place in Revelation 20. The people who were
placed under the altar will be resurrected after the
Marriage Supper of the Lamb,
and even after the Lord returned with His church to
defeat the antichrist.
Revelation 20 states that these
people were killed because they would not worship
the antichrist and his image. Their resurrection is
called the “first resurrection”. In contrast, the
second resurrection takes place after the Lord’s
1000 year reign on the earth. This second
resurrection is for the wicked and eternal
damnation:
Revelation 20:4 And I saw
thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was
given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that
were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the
word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast,
neither his image, neither had received his mark
upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they
lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.
(5) But the rest of the dead
lived not again until the thousand years were
finished. This is the first resurrection.
A close
examination of Revelation 20:4 reveals the two
distinct groups in heaven. The church that was
before the throne and the fifth seal saints
that were under the
altar. This verse mentions thrones and then the
plural “they” and “them” who sat on the thrones. The
verse adds that judgment was given to these people
on their thrones. This verse shows that it is not
the Lord Jesus who judges, but He has turned the
judgment over to another group of people. The verse
then continues with the resurrection of the saints
of the fifth seal judgment. It is the people sitting
on the thrones who judge this resurrected group and
not Jesus Christ.
The Lord
Jesus promised the believers who overcame the
Laodicean church that He would grant them to sit
with Him on His throne! This is truly an amazing
verse that the Lord would share His authority with
His church:
Revelation 3:21 To him that overcometh will I grant
to sit with me in my throne, even as I also
overcame, and am set down with my Father in his
throne.
This
sharing of authority then can be seen in Revelation
20:4, when He turns judgment over to His bride the
church! It is the church that judges the saints that
were placed under the altar. It is amazing to see
the trust that the Lord has in His bride.
In
review, there are two separate and distinct groups
of believers in the Lord Jesus in heaven. The first
is the church, which is before the throne of God
prior to any of the judgments beginning on earth.
The second group is formed after the judgments
begin. They are listed under the fifth seal judgment
and are found under the altar. These people arrive
in heaven because they were slain and so are told to
be patient until events are fulfilled.
Revelation 13 details the
circumstances of how the people found under the
altar are going to die. The Bible details how the
beast/antichrist is going to be given power over all
nations. Then the Bible warns, “If any
man have an ear, let him
hear.”
Revelation 13:9
If any man have an ear,
let him hear. (10) He that leadeth into captivity
shall go into captivity: he that killeth with the
sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the
patience and the faith of the saints.
What is so telling about this
particular warning is that it is NOT given to the
church. In Revelation 2
and 3, on seven occasions the Lord specifically
warned the churches. The reason the church is not
warned in Revelation 13 is that it is before the
throne and complete. This specific warning is for
those who, when they die, are found under the altar
since they are not considered part of the church.
In the gospels on several
occasions, the Lord also used a phrase about having
ears and hearing. On these occasions, He did not say
“unto the churches”. He did this because the church
was not yet in existence at this time. So, both
before the church and after the church age, the Lord
did not use the phrase “unto the churches”. The
verses showing this follow:
Before the church:
Matthew 11:15 He that hath ears
to hear, let him hear.
The church age:
Revelation 3:22 He that hath an
ear, let him hear
what the
Spirit saith unto the churches.
After the church age:
Revelation 13:9
If any man have an ear,
let him hear.
The fact that Revelation 13:9
leaves out “what the Spirit saith unto the churches”
is strong evidence that the entire church is with
the Lord Jesus in heaven and before the throne. It
is not on earth.
Revelation continues to document
the judgments and then comes to the final one which
is the destruction of
Babylon
. This is the world’s religious, political and economic system. After
all this destruction, the Bible once more focuses on
the church in heaven. In chapter 19, the church is
referred to as “the bride”. This is the third time
in Revelation the entire church is recorded to be in
heaven. It is found in chapters 5, 7, and now 19.
A great multitude of believers
are rejoicing in heaven because the Marriage Supper
of the Lamb is about to take place. Blessed are all
they which are called to the marriage supper. The
bride, which is the church, is dressed in clean and
white linen:
Revelation 19:6 And I heard as it
were the voice of a great multitude, and as the
voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty
thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God
omnipotent
reigneth.
(7) Let us be glad and rejoice,
and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb
is come, and his wife
hath made herself ready.
(8) And to her was granted that
she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and
white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of
saints.
(9) And he saith unto me, Write,
Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage
supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me,
These are the true
sayings of God.
The end of the Marriage Supper
completes the first phase of the Lord’s coming, and
now events quickly shift into the second phase. This
is the Lord Jesus returning with this bride/church
to defend
Israel
at the battle of Armageddon.
The Second
Phase of Christ’s Second Coming
Immediately after the Marriage
Supper, the Lord Jesus prepares for war. He is going
to leave heaven and return to
Jerusalem and destroy the
beast, the antichrist, along with their armies at
the battle of Armageddon. The Lord’s church follows
Him and is referred to as the “armies of heaven”.
His army is dressed white linen.
Revelation 19:11 And I saw heaven
opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat
upon him was called Faithful and True, and in
righteousness he doth judge and make war. (14) And
the armies which were in heaven followed him upon
white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and
clean.
The battle does not last long as
the Lord destroys the antichrist and his armies that
are gathered around
Jerusalem .
Revelation 19:15
And out of his mouth
goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite
the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of
iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the
fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.
(19) And I saw the beast, and the
kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered
together to make war against him that sat on the
horse, and against his army.
The Old Testament also concurs
that the Lord Jesus is returning with His church to
defend Israel .
Revelation 19 and Zechariah 14 are both reporting on
the same incident. John reports that the Lord is
returning with His church called the armies of
heaven while Zechariah sees the Lord returning with
all His saints.
Zechariah describes the Lord
Jesus standing in Jerusalem
on the Mount of Olives
. At His presence, there is a tremendous earthquake,
which shakes the entire world:
Zechariah” 14:1-4 Behold, the day
of the LORD cometh… (2) For I will gather all
nations against
Jerusalem
to battle… (3) Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those
nations, as when he fought in the day of battle. (4)
And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount
of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east,
and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst
thereof…
As reported in Revelation 19, the
Lord Jesus then destroys the forces of evil gathered
around Jerusalem .
Zechariah 14:12 And this shall be
the plague wherewith the LORD will smite all the
people that have fought against Jerusalem; Their
flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their
feet, and their eyes shall consume away in their
holes, and their tongue shall consume away in their
mouth.
Zechariah also sees the Lord
returning with His church. He refers to the church
as “all the saints.” At this time, the Lord is not
returning to Jerusalem for His church, but He is returning
with His church. Both the Old and New Testament are
clear about this.
Zechariah 14:5 … and the LORD my
God shall come, and all the saints with thee.
The Clouds
of Heaven
The Bible also describes a
massive number of believers returning with the Lord
Jesus Christ. The usual phrase describing this
throng is the “Clouds of Heaven.” The New Testament
uses the phrase "The Clouds of Heaven" several
times, but it actually originated in the Old
Testament.
The prophet Daniel first uses
this phrase, and he identifies what exactly are the
Clouds of Heaven. Daniel gives a rare glimpse of
heaven in the Old Testament. The prophet actually
sees events taking place before the very throne of
God. He refers to the Holy God of Israel as the
Ancient of Days. The prophet sees God on His throne,
and the prophet uses fire to describe everything
about God and surrounding His throne.
Daniel witnessed something else
around the throne and that was a countless number of
believers. The prophet recorded the number of
believers as thousand times thousands and ten
thousand times ten thousand. This huge number is
beyond calculation.
The Clouds of Heaven then are the
innumerable number of believers who are in heaven
with the Lord Jesus and return with Him. These are
the saints that Zechariah stated are coming with
Jesus Christ. The following verses show God’s throne
and this huge number of believers. Remember,
Revelation shows that it is the church before the
throne:
Daniel 7:9 ...the Ancient of days
did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the
hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne was
like the fiery flame,
and his wheels as burning fire. (10) A fiery stream
issued and came forth from before him: thousand
thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand
times ten thousand stood before him…
The Clouds of Heaven then are
this enormous number of believers who surround the
throne of God. It appears the Bible uses the term
“Clouds of Heaven” because this huge throng of
believers from a distance appears as a massive
cloud. From
other Scriptures, the Bible reveals that the
believers are dressed in pure white.
The Lord leads this massive white
cloud, the Clouds of Heaven. They return with Him
and are present when He establishes His kingdom on
earth. The following verses from Daniel 7 show the
Son of Man, the Lord Jesus, returning with the
Clouds of Heaven to set up His kingdom on earth:
Daniel 7:13 I saw in the night
visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came
with the Clouds of Heaven, and came to the Ancient
of days, and they brought him near before him.”
(14) And there was given him
dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people,
nations, and languages, should serve him: his
dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not
pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be
destroyed.
Just prior to His crucifixion,
the Lord Jesus was questioned by the high priest
about being the Son of God, He answered by joining
two Scriptures together which were Daniel 7:13 and
Psalm 110:1. He then related them to His Second
Coming. The
Lord stated He was returning with the Clouds of
Heaven. The high priest fully understood Jesus was
quoting the prophet Daniel and the meaning of this
verse. He used this statement to condemn Jesus to
death for blasphemy, because this phrase was related
to the coming of
Israel
’s King Messiah.
Matthew 26:64 Jesus saith unto
him, Thou hast said: nevertheless I say unto you,
Hereafter shall ye see
the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power,
and coming
in the Clouds of Heaven.
Thus the “Clouds of Heaven”
obviously becomes a very important term because the
prophet Daniel used it regarding the coming of the
Messiah, and the Lord Jesus quoted it to the high
priest.
The Coming
of Jesus Christ
With The
Clouds of Heaven
With this foundation, let’s now
look at the New Testament and the coming of the Lord
Jesus with the Clouds of Heaven. When Jesus’
disciples asked what the sign of His coming was, He
listed several events.
These events include both awesome wars and
natural disasters. Then, when all was fulfilled, the
people of earth would see Him coming with power and
great glory. And, when He returns to earth in great
glory, the Clouds of Heaven are with Him.
Jesus directly linked His Second Coming with
the Clouds of Heaven.
All the gospel writers link the
Second Coming with the Clouds of Heaven.
The verses from the gospels follow:
Matthew 24:30
And then shall appear
the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall
all the tribes of the earth mourn,
and they
shall see the Son of man coming in the Clouds of
Heaven with power and great glory.
Mark 13:26 And then shall they
see the Son of man coming
in the
clouds with great power and glory.
Luke 21:27
And then shall they see the Son of man coming
in a cloud
with power and great glory.
The Apostle John also makes this
link between the Second Coming and the Lord
returning with the Clouds of Heaven.
John, in the Book of Revelation, sees the
Lord’s return with the clouds, and all the people of
the earth mourning.
Revelation 1:7 Behold,
he cometh
with clouds;
and every eye shall see him, and they also which
pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall
wail because of him. Even so,
Amen.
When studying Matthew 24 and the
Lord’s return to Israel , the two advents come into
focus. In this chapter, the Bible describes horrible
events coming upon the earth with huge numbers of
people dying. These are the people who will be
placed under the altar when they die believing in
the Lord Jesus. To those that make it through,
without being martyred and still having never taken
the mark of the beast, they will be saved at the
Second Coming of Jesus Christ:
Matthew 24:13 But he that shall
endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.
This message is not directed at
the church, because the church is in heaven with the
Lord Jesus, and it returns with Him as the Clouds of
Heaven. To those that endure to the end, they shall
see the “Clouds of Heaven” coming with Jesus Christ:
Matthew 24:30
And then shall appear
the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall
all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall
see the Son of man coming in
the clouds
of heaven with power and great glory.
When the Lord Jesus returns, His
feet are going to stand on the
Mount of Olives
. He then
destroys the armies surrounding
Jerusalem
as the prophet Zechariah stated. Jesus’ return in Revelation 19, and
His feet standing on the Mount
of Olives in Zechariah 14 tie directly
together. The
Old Testament clearly maps this out, and the events
of Revelation directly tie in.
John sees more than just the Lord
Jesus returning. He sees the Church returning with
Him. He
refers to the Church not as the Clouds of Heaven,
but “the armies in heaven.”
This army returns with Him clothed in pure
white linen.
This “army in heaven” that John writes about are the
Clouds of Heaven which Daniel saw in his vision.
This is the Clouds of Heaven which the Lord
Jesus told the high priest He was returning with. He
is coming back with His bride, the Church.
The Clouds of Heaven is the
glorious Church returning with the Savior. The
Church was in heaven and then returned with the Lord
Jesus to defend Jerusalem .
What a sight to witness, the Son of God
returning in His power and glory with the Clouds of
Heaven.
Revelation 19:14
And the armies which
were in heaven followed him upon white horses,
clothed in fine linen, white and clean.
God is setting an awesome
backdrop to the Second Coming of Jesus Christ.
Either through natural events or manmade
actions, the sky is totally darkened. It is so dark
that even the sun’s light is blocked. There is total
darkness. With this background, suddenly there is an
explosion of light as the glory of Jesus Christ
lights the sky. Directly behind Him are the Clouds
of Heaven dressed in pure white!
Imagine being on earth and seeing
this happening. The entire sky filled from one end
to the other with this massive white cloud, and at
the head is the Lord Jesus in flaming fire,
manifesting His glory! What Daniel actually
witnessed was the Church returning with King
Messiah, the Lord Jesus! The verses to show this
follow:
Matthew 24:29, 30
Immediately after the
tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened,
and the moon shall not give her light… (30)…And then
shall appear the sign of the Son of man in
heaven…and they shall see the Son of man coming in
the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.
The idea of the Lord’s coming for
the Church is so powerful that the Bible tells us to
comfort one another with this hope in a time of
sorrow when experiencing the loss of a loved one.
The loss is only temporary as there will be a
uniting when the Lord comes for the believers.
This is the blessed hope, the coming of the
Lord for the Church and being with Him forever:
Titus 2:13 Looking for that
blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the
great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ.
Looking for the coming of the
Lord is the blessed hope.
It is not just a hope, but it is a blessed
hope. Following the Church's gathering with the Lord
is the marriage supper of the Lamb. And, it is a
blessing to be called to the marriage supper of the
Lamb.
There is a double blessing for
those who are waiting for the Lord’s return.
There is the blessed hope and then the
blessing of anticipating the marriage supper of the
Lamb. All
believers should be living with the blessed hope,
and the excitement of the marriage supper.
If these two hopes are not
motivating a believer, there is something radically
wrong with that person’s faith. Living with the
blessed hope is one of the true signs of a believer.
Jesus is only returning for those that are
looking for Him:
Hebrews 9:28 So Christ was once
offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that
look for him shall he appear the Second time without
sin unto salvation.
The Second Coming is not just a
doctrine, but it is to be a living reality in a
believer’s life.
If this reality is not in a person’s heart,
it is a sign something is radically wrong.
Sin and the love of the world kill the
blessed hope. Wrong doctrine about the blessed hope
also deadens the reality of the Lord’s coming for
the Church and the subsequent marriage supper of the
Lamb.
The Coming of the Lord Draweth Nigh
“And every man that hath this
hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.”
1 John 3:3.
The reality of the blessed hope
has an awesome effect on the believer. It is not
just the doctrine of the blessed hope, but it is the
living reality that affects lives.
This reality causes tremendous spiritual
growth.
In the letter to Titus, the Bible
lists eight effects the blessed hope has on a
believer’s heart. When a person lives with the
anticipation of the Second Coming, the results
include: victory over ungodliness and worldly lusts;
sober mindedness; righteousness; godly living;
victory over iniquity; purifying; a purifying
process; and a zealousness for good works. Maybe the
weakness of many Christians is because they lack the
blessed hope in their heart. The Bibles verses to
show the effects of the blessed hope follow:
Titus 2:11
For the grace of God that bringeth salvation
hath appeared to all men, (12) Teaching us that,
denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should
live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this
present world;
(13) Looking for that blessed
hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God
and our Saviour Jesus Christ;
(14) Who gave himself for us,
that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and
purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of
good works.”
The blessed hope is spiritual
life to a believer, and without it, worldliness sets
in and chokes the word of God in a person’s life.
Notice in Titus 2:11-14 the blessed hope is in the
very middle of this admonition to live godly. This
verse was placed there to show how important the
blessed hope is to our spiritual life. False
doctrines that do not teach the reality of the
blessed hope rob spiritual power from believers.
These types of teachings create weak believers
because of the false teaching about the Lord’s
Second Coming.
The Bible tells us what to do
about waiting for the return of the Lord Jesus.
We are to wait with patience for His return.
Just as a farmer plants his crops and patiently
waits until the crops mature, so we are to wait for
the coming of the Lord.
The Bible also tells us to
establish our hearts about His coming. When a person
establishes the blessed hope in his heart, holiness
naturally flows. The Bible leaves no doubt that we
are to focus on the blessed hope and live every day
as the Lord could return for His Church. We are to
live with patience looking for His Second Coming.
The Scriptures to show this follow:
James 5:7 Be
patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the
Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the
precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience
for it, until he receive the early and latter rain.
(8) Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for
the coming of the Lord draweth nigh.
1 Thessalonians 3:13
To the end he may
stablish your hearts unblameable in holiness before
God, even our Father, at the coming of our Lord
Jesus Christ with all his saints.
The blessed hope is an anchor for
our soul. This is the hope which God has set before
us. He
requires that we keep the blessed hope with full
assurance until He returns or we pass away. This
hope steadies us during the storms of life. We are
to lay hold of this hope and let no one or anything
take it away from us. The Bible verses to show this
follow:
Hebrews 6:11
And we desire that every one of you do show
the same diligence to the full assurance of hope
unto the end:
(18) That by two immutable
things, in which it was impossible for God to lie,
we might have a strong consolation, who have fled
for refuge to lay hold upon
the hope
set before us:
(19) Which
hope we
have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and
stedfast, and which entereth into that within the
veil”
The Bible places nothing in the
way deterring the Lord’s coming for His Church.
There is no event which is required to take place
before He descends from heaven with a shout for His
bride. We are to be aware of world events in light
of Bible prophecy, but our anticipation should be
for the blessed hope.
Focusing on world events rather than the
blessed hope can hinder one’s faith and often create
fear. No
matter what happens in the world, we are to stay
focused on the Lord Jesus’ Second Coming. This is
the anchor for your soul in the time of trouble.
Not
Appointed to Wrath
1 Thessalonians chapters 4 and 5
give a very nice picture of the phases of the Lord’s
Second Coming. In 1 Thessalonians 4, Paul deals with
the first phase. He explains how the Lord is going
to return with all who died in Christ, and then they
which are alive at this time will be instantly
resurrected. The entire church will meet in the air
and will then be taken before God’s throne in
heaven:
1 Thess 4:16,17
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.
This is the Blessed Hope, the
Lord Jesus returning for His church. The following
verse explains that believers should comfort one
another with the Blessed Hope:
1 Thess 4:18
Wherefore comfort one another with these
words.
After finishing the first phase
with an encouragement, Paul then turns to chapter 5
for the second phase of the Lord’s coming. He
addresses the Day of the LORD. During the Day of the
LORD, Jesus Christ is returning with His church to Jerusalem .
He ties together the expression
“times and the seasons” which is the restoration of
the kingdom to
Israel
with the Day of the LORD. This is most important as the
context of the 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11 is the Day of
the LORD.
After the Lord Jesus returns,
during the Day of the Lord, He will restore the
kingdom to
Israel
with Him reigning as King:
Acts 1:6 … Lord, wilt thou at
this time restore again the kingdom to
Israel
? (7) And he said unto them, It
is not for you to know
the times or
the seasons, which the Father hath put in his
own power.
1 Thessalonians 5:1 But of the
times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need
that I write unto you.
(2) For yourselves know perfectly
that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the
night.
Paul warns that the Day of the
LORD is going to come suddenly upon the world with
great travail. The Day will overtake the world and
none shall escape it:
(3) For when they shall say,
Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh
upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and
they shall not escape.
He then states that believers
were not in darkness but were children of the light.
The Day would not overtake the believers, and they
should not sleep but watch and be sober. Believers
are called children of the day meaning they can see,
while unbelievers are called of the night. The use
of “day” in verses 4 through 6 is not to be confused
with the Day of the LORD:
(4) But ye, brethren, are not in
darkness, that that day should overtake you as a
thief. (5) Ye are all the children of light, and the
children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of
darkness. (6) Therefore let us not sleep, as do
others; but let us watch and be sober.
Because believers are of the
light, they are to walk in faith, love and hope. The
hope is the “hope of salvation which is the coming
of the Lord Jesus for His church:
(8) But let us, who are of the
day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith
and love; and for an
helmet, the hope of salvation.
Paul then states what
is the “hope of salvation”.
It is obtaining salvation by the Lord Jesus Christ
who will deliver the church from the wrath that is
to be poured out during the Day of the LORD. The
church is not appointed to this wrath.
Remember, the Day of the LORD is
the context of 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11; therefore,
the Bible clearly states that the church is not
appointed to God’s wrath which is poured out during
that Day:
(9) For God hath not appointed us
to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus
Christ,
The Lord Jesus comes for His
church before God’s wrath is poured out on the
world. The church is in heaven, before the throne,
with the Lord Jesus and then experiences the
Marriage Supper of the Lamb. The church is not
appointed to God’s wrath.
Is it possible that God wants His
church to watch for the coming Day of the LORD
because just prior to it, the Lord Jesus returns for
His church? I believe when chapter 4 and 5 are read
together that this is the message.
This section of scriptures
concludes with a reference back to chapter 4 and the
coming of the Lord for the church. It states whether
we wake or sleep we should live together with Him,
and then adds that believers should comfort and
edify one another. This is how chapter 4 ends!
(10) Who died for us, that,
whether we wake or sleep, we should live together
with him. (11) Wherefore comfort yourselves
together, and edify one another, even as also ye do.
Our focus now is to live with the
Blessed Hope, the coming of the Lord Jesus for His
church who delivered us from the wrath to come. We
are to wait for Him:
1 Thessalonians 1:10
And to wait for his Son
from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even
Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come.
By
John McTernan
Defend and Proclaim the Faith
Blog:
John McTernan’s Insights at
www.johnmcternan.name