The Return of Christ: Part 1

When and How? When and how will Christ return? Could he come back at any hour?
EXPLANATION AND SCRIPTURAL BASIS
As we begin the final unit of this book, we turn to consider events that will happen in the future.
The study of future events is often called “eschatology,”
from the Greek word eschatos, which means “last.” The study of eschatology, then, is the study
of “the last things.” Unbelievers can make reasonable predictions about future events based on
patterns of past occurrences, but in the nature of human experience it is clear that human beings
of themselves cannot know the future. Therefore, unbelievers can have no certain knowledge of
any future event. But Christians who believe the Bible are in a different situation. Although we
cannot know everything about the future, God knows everything about the future and he has in
Scripture told us about the major events yet to come in the history of the universe. About these
events occurring we can have absolute confidence because God is never wrong and never lies.
Regarding our own personal future as individuals, we have already discussed the teaching of
Scripture in chapter 41 (on death and the intermediate state) and chapter 42 (on glorification).
The study of these future events that will happen to individuals is sometimes called “personal
eschatology.” But the Bible also talks about certain major events that will affect the entire
universe. Specifically, it tells us about the second coming of Christ, the millennium, the final
judgment, eternal punishment for unbelievers and eternal reward for believers, and life with God
in the new heaven and new earth. The study of these events is sometimes called “general
eschatology.” In this chapter we will study the question of the return of Christ, or his “second
coming.” Subsequent chapters will deal with the remaining topics in a study of the last things.
There have been many debates often heated ones in the history of the church over questions
regarding the future. In this chapter we will begin with aspects of Christ’s second coming with
which all evangelicals agree, and then at the end move to one matter of disagreement: whether
Christ could return at any time. Then in the following chapter we will discuss the question of the
millennium, a topic that has long been a source of disagreement among Christians.

A. There Will Be a Sudden, Personal, Visible, Bodily Return of Christ Jesus often spoke
about his return. “You also must be ready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not
expect” (Matt. 24:44). He said, “I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am
you may be also” (John 14:3). Immediately after Jesus had ascended into heaven, two angels said
to the disciples,
“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). Paul taught, “The Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry
of command, with the archangel’s call, and with the sound of the trumpet of God” (1 Thess.
4:16). The author of Hebrews wrote that Christ “will appear a second time, not to deal with sin
but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him” (Heb. 9:28). James wrote, “the coming1 of
the Lord is at hand” (James 5:8). Peter said,
“The day of the Lord will come like a thief” (2 Peter 3:10). John wrote, “when he appears we
shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is” (1 John 3:2). And the book of Revelation has
frequent references to Christ’s return, ending with Jesus’ promise, “Surely I am coming soon,”
and John’s response, “Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!” (Rev. 22:20). This theme, then, is frequently
mentioned throughout the New Testament. It is the dominant hope of the New Testament church.
These verses predict a sudden return of Christ that will be dramatic and visible (“He is coming
with the clouds, and every eye will see him,” Rev. 1:7). The passages are far too explicit to allow
the idea (once popular in liberal Protestant circles) that Christ himself will not return, but simply
that the spirit of Christ, meaning an acceptance of his teaching and an imitation of his lifestyle of
love, would increasingly return to the earth. It is not his teachings or his style of conduct, but
“the Lord himself” who will descend from heaven (1Thess. 4:16). It is Jesus himself “who was
taken up from you into heaven” who “will come in the same way as you saw him go into
heaven” (Acts 1:11). His appearing will not be a mere spiritual coming to dwell within people’s
hearts, but will be a personal and bodily return “in the same way as you saw him go into
heaven.”
B. We Should Eagerly Long for Christ’s Return John’s response at the end of Revelation
should characterize Christians’ hearts in all ages:
“Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!” (Rev. 22:20). True Christianity trains us “to live sober, upright, and
godly lives in this world, awaiting our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God
and Savior Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:12–13).2 Paul says, “our commonwealth is in heaven, and from
it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ” (Phil. 3:20). The term “Maranatha” in 1 Corinthians
16:22 (NASB) similarly means, “Our Lord, come!” (1 Cor. 16:22 RSV).
Do Christians in fact eagerly long for Christ’s return? The more Christians are caught up in
enjoying the good things of this life, and the more they neglect genuine Christian fellowship and
their personal relationship with Christ, the less they will long for his return. On the other hand,
many Christians who are experiencing suffering or persecution, or who are more elderly and
infirm, and those whose daily walk with Christ is vital and deep, will have a more intense
longing for his return. To some extent, then, the degree to which we actually long for Christ’s
return is a measure of the spiritual condition of our own lives at the moment. It also gives some
measure of the degree to which we see the world as it really is, as God sees it, in bondage to sin
and rebellion against God, and in the power of the evil one (1 John 5:19). But does this mean that
we should not undertake long-term projects? If a scientist who is a Christian eagerly longs for
Christ’s return, then should he or she begin a ten-year research project? Or should a Christian
begin a three-year course in a theological seminary or a Bible college? What if Christ were to
return the day before graduation from that institution, before there was any chance to give a
significant amount of one’s time to actual ministry? Certainly, we should commit ourselves to
long-term activities. It is precisely for this reason that Jesus does not allow us to know the actual
time of his return (see below): he wants us to be engaged in obedience to him, no matter what
our walk of
life, up until the very moment of his return. To “be ready” for Christ’s return (Matt. 24:44) is to
be faithfully obeying him in the present, actively engaged in whatever work he has called us to.
In the nature of the situation, since we do not know when he will return, on that day there will no
doubt be some missionaries just departing for the mission field, who will never reach their
destination. There will be some men in their last year of seminary education who will never use
their training to pastor a church.
There will be some researchers handing in their doctoral dissertations on that day, the fruit of
years of research that will never be published and never have an influence on the world. But to
all of those people who are Christians, Jesus will say, “Well done, good and faithful servant; you
have been faithful over a little, I will set you over much; enter into the joy of your master” (Matt.
25:21).
C. We Do Not Know When Christ Will Return Several passages indicate that
we do not, and cannot, know the time when Christ will return. “The Son of man is coming at an
hour you do not expect” (Matt. 24:44). “Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the
hour” (Matt. 25:13). Moreover, Jesus said, “But of that day or that hour no one knows, not even
the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Take heed, watch; for you do not know
when the time will come” (Mark 13:32–33). It is simply an evasion of the force of those passages
to say that we cannot know the day or
the hour, but that we can know the month or the year. The fact remains that Jesus is coming “at
an hour you do not expect” (Matt. 24:44), and “at an unexpected hour” (Luke 12:40). (In these
verses the word “hour” [hōra] is best understood in a more general sense, to refer to the time
when something will take place, not necessarily a sixty-minute period of time.) The point of
these passages is that Jesus is telling us that we cannot know when he is coming back. Since he
will come at an unexpected time, we should be
ready at all times for him to return. The practical result of this is that anyone who claims to know
specifically when Jesus is coming back is automatically to be considered wrong. The Jehovah’s
Witnesses have made many predictions of specific dates for Christ’s return, and all of them have
turned out to be wrong. But others in the history of the church have made such predictions as
well, sometimes claiming new insight into biblical prophecies, and
sometimes claiming to have received personal revelations from Jesus himself indicating the time
of his return. It is unfortunate that many people have been deceived by these claims, because if
people are convinced that Christ will return (for example) within a month, they will begin to
withdraw from all long-term commitments. They will take their children out of school, sell their
houses, quit their jobs, and give up work on any long-term projects whether in the church or
elsewhere. They may initially have an increased zeal for evangelism and prayer, but the
unreasonable nature of their behavior will offset any evangelistic impact they may have.
Moreover, they are simply disobeying the teaching of Scripture that the date of Christ’s return
cannot be known, which means that even their prayer and fellowship with God will be hindered
as well. Anyone who claims to know the date on which Christ will return —from whatever
source— should be rejected as incorrect.
D. All Evangelicals Agree on the Final Results of Christ’s Return No matter what their
differences on the details, all Christians who take the Bible as their final authority agree that the
final and ultimate result of Christ’s return will be the judgment of unbelievers and the final
reward of believers, and that believers will live with Christ in a new heaven and a new earth for
all eternity. God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit will reign and will be worshiped in a never-
ending kingdom with no more sin or sorrow or suffering. We will discuss these details more
fully in the following chapters.
E. There Is Disagreement Over the Details of Future Events Nevertheless, Christians differ
over specific details leading up to and immediately following Christ’s return. Specifically,
they differ over the nature of the millennium and the relationship of Christ’s return to the
millennium, the sequence of Christ’s return and the great tribulation period that will come to the
earth, and the question of the salvation of the Jewish people (and the relationship between Jews
who are saved and the church).
Before we examine some of those questions in more detail, it is important to affirm the genuine
evangelical standing of those who have differing positions on these questions. Evangelicals who
hold to these various positions all agree that Scripture is inerrant, and they have a commitment to
believe whatever is taught by Scripture. Their differences concern the interpretation of various
passages relating to these events, but their differences on these matters should be seen as matters
of secondary importance, not as differences over primary doctrinal matters. Nevertheless, it is
worth our time to study these questions in more detail, both because we may gain further insight
into the nature of the events that God has planned and promised for us, and because there is still
hope that greater unity will come about in the church when we agree to examine these issues
again in more detail and to engage in discussion about them.
F. Could Christ Come Back at Any Time? One of the significant areas of disagreement is
over the question of whether Christ could return at any time. On the one hand, there are
many passages encouraging us to be ready because Christ will return at an hour we do not
expect. On the other hand, there are several passages that speak of certain events that will happen
before Christ returns. There have been different ways of resolving the apparent tension between
these two sets of passages, with some
Christians concluding that Christ could still return at any time, and others concluding that he
could not return for at least a generation, since it would take that long to fulfill some of the
predicted events that must occur before his return.
1. Verses Predicting a Sudden and Unexpected Coming of Christ. In order to feel the
cumulative force of the passages that predict that Christ could come very soon, it is helpful
simply to list them here in order: Watch therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord is
coming. But know this, that if the householder had known in what part of the night the thief was
coming, he would have watched and would not have let his house be broken into. Therefore, you
also must be ready; for the Son of man is coming at an hour you do not expect. (Matt. 24:42–44;
cf. vv. 36–39) The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at
an hour he does not know. (Matt. 24:50) Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the
hour. (Matt.25:13) But of that day or that hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor
the Son, but only the Father. Take heed, watch; for you do not know when the time will come.
(Mark 13:32–22) It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his servants
in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to be on the watch. Watch
therefore—for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at
midnight, or at cockcrow, or in the morning lest he come suddenly and find you asleep. And
what I say to you I say to all: Watch. (Mark 13:34–37) You also must be ready; for the Son of
man is coming at an unexpected hour. (Luke 12:40) Our Lord, come! (1 Cor. 16:22) For our
citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.
(Phil. 3:20 NASB) For you yourselves know well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief
in the night. (1 Thess. 5:2) Training us to live sober, upright, and godly lives in this world,
awaiting our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ.
(Titus 2:12–13) Encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.
(Heb. 10:25) Be patient, therefore, brethren, until the coming of the Lord Establish your hearts,
for the coming of the Lord is at hand Behold, the Judge is standing at the doors. (James 5:7–9)
The end of all things is at hand. (1 Peter 4:7) But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and
then the heavens will pass away with a loud noise, and the elements will be dissolved with fire,
and the earth and all the works that are upon it will be burned up. (2 Peter 3:10) The time is near.
(Rev. 1:3) Behold, I am coming soon. (Rev. 22:7)
Behold, I am coming soon, bringing my recompense, to repay everyone for what he has done.
(Rev. 22:12) He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming soon.” Amen. Come,
Lord Jesus! (Rev. 22:20) What shall we say to these passages? If there were no passages in the
New Testament about signs that would precede Christ’s return, we would probably conclude
from the passages just quoted that Jesus could come at any moment. In this sense, we can say
that Christ’s return is imminent.It would seem to blunt the force of the commands to be ready
and to watch if there was a reason to think that Christ would not come soon. Before we look at
passages on signs that precede Christ’s coming, another problem must be considered at this
point. Were Jesus and the New Testament authors wrong in their expectation that he would
return soon? Did they not think and even teach that the second coming of Christ would be in just
a few years? In fact, a very prominent view among liberal New Testament scholars has been that
Jesus mistakenly taught that he would return soon. But none of the texts just quoted require this
interpretation. The texts that say to be ready do not say how long we will have to wait, nor do the
texts that say that Jesus is coming at a time we do not expect. As for the texts that say Jesus is
coming “soon,” we must realize that biblical prophets often speak in terms of “prophetic
foreshortening,” which sees future events but does not see the intervening time before those
events occur. George Ladd says: The prophets were little interested in chronology, and the future
was always viewed as imminent the Old Testament prophets blended the near and the distant
perspectives so as to form a single canvas. Biblical prophecy is not primarily three dimensional
but two; it has height and breadth but is little concerned about depth, i.e., the chronology of
future events the distant is viewed through the transparency of the immediate. It is true that the
early church lived in expectancy of the return of the Lord, and it is the nature of biblical
prophecy to make it possible for every generation to live in expectancy of the end Peter also
reminds us that the Lord has a different perspective on time than we do, so that “soon” with him
may not be what we expect: “But do not ignore this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day
is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slow about his promise
as some count slowness” (2 Peter 3:8–9).
2. Signs That Precede Christ’s Return. The other set of texts to be considered tells of several
signs that Scripture says will precede the time of Christ’s return. In fact, Berkhof says,
“According to Scripture several important events must occur before the return of the Lord, and
therefore it cannot be called imminent.