The Future Work of Christ: He is Coming Back

People promise to return all the time. When I left for college, I told my parents, “Don’t worry. I’ll come back to visit in a few weeks.” Turned out to be Thanksgiving weekend, but I did return.

When General MacArthur escaped from the Philippines in 1942, he famously said, “I shall return.” He lived up to that promise. 

Even Arnold Schwarzenegger said, “I’ll be back.”

Jesus also said that he’ll be back. Jesus promised multiple times that he would return to earth. This is one of the foundational truths of Christianity. There will be a day when Jesus comes back the same way he left.

We’ve looked at the work of Christ in the past and the work he’s doing now. As we look at what Christ will do in the future, we’re teetering close to studying the End Times. We’re in that gray area between the study of Jesus and the study of future events. I’ll do my best to focus on what Jesus will do and leave the End Times for another day. At least I’ll try.

One thing Jesus will do in the future is this — he will return. Jesus was talking about himself when he said this:

“Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.” (Matthew 24:30)

He also had this to say: 

“And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.” (John 14:3)

God had other Bible writers tell us as well:

“Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.” (Acts 1:11)

…so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him. (Hebrews 9:28)

Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. (1 John 3:2)

Jesus is coming back one day. But what kind of return will it be? While there are many details we don’t have, there are some things God wants us to know about that day. 

First, the return of Jesus will be a physical, bodily return. It isn’t that Jesus is somehow sending his spirit to earth to live in the hearts of believers. There’s no need for that. The Holy Spirit is already here, indwelling believers. No, Jesus will come to us physically. Remember, he’s in heaven now as the eternal God-man in an eternal, glorified body. He’s going to return in that same eternal, glorified body. The angels, at the Ascension, told the disciples that he “will come in the same way as you saw him go” (Acts 1:11). In 1 Thessalonians 4:16, Paul says, “The Lord himself will descend.” Jesus is coming back in his eternal, glorified body.

Second, his return will be visible. The whole world will know what’s happening. Jesus said of himself, “When he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels” (Mark 8:38). Read the Bible about the appearances of God’s glory, and you’ll see that this is always a visible, incredible event. Matthew, in the verse we looked at above, stated that the whole world “will see the Son of Man coming” and that his return would be “with power and great glory.”

In John’s vision, he writes, “Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him, and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of him. Even so. Amen” (Revelation 1:7). 

When Jesus returns to earth for the final time, it won’t be some secret event that only a few know about. The whole world will know it. All of creation will be shaken. Beware of any group or person who tells you that Jesus has already returned and we didn’t notice.

Beware also of anyone who claims to have figured out the date of the Second Coming. Repeatedly, the Bible says we won’t know when this will happen. Jesus said, “Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour” (Matthew 25:13). Mark records Jesus saying, “But concerning that day or that hour, no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father” (Mark 13:32). 

Those are some basic facts about the return of Jesus. It will happen, he will return physically, and it will be visible. But anytime we study doctrine there’s a sense of, “What does this have to do with me?” “What difference should this make in my life?”

Let’s see if we can answer those questions. Sit back and think about this for a moment: Jesus didn’t just ascend to heaven and leave the world alone. He’s reigning right now as king over the universe. He’s with you every day. And there will be a day when Jesus, our Savior and Lord, will leave heaven and come back to earth. 

When he returns, the curse of sin on all of creation will be over. When he returns, as believers, we’ll receive our final reward and be given glorified bodies built for eternity. When he returns, all that is wrong and unfair will be made right. When he returns, there will be an end to sickness and suffering and tears. And when he returns to this sinful, evil world, there will be judgment on that evil.

This is why, no matter how dark things get in this world, the believer can go through life with confidence. Regardless of how much evil permeates our culture, no matter how many people turn from God and toward evil, the Christian can smile, because we know that one day Jesus will return and make all things right. 

We should long to see that day. We should echo the words of Revelation 22:20, “Come, Lord Jesus!”

Since we don’t know when this will happen, we should be ready. We ought to be living in obedience. We must be fully surrendered to God, being all he calls us to be and doing all he calls us to do. We should spend every day with one eye here and one eye on heaven, knowing that Jesus could return at any time. 

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