Sermon Transcript

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Well, today I want to tell you about the most climactic event in human history. And, no, I'm not talking about the day that Neil Armstrong set foot on the moon for the first time in human history. That was an epic event and one that we often look back to. Even the thought of going to Mars today, what an incredible idea. I'm not talking about the end of World War I or the end of the World War II- Victory Day as they called it. I'm not talking about the end of the Vietnam War or even the Civil War. Some may point to the end of the Civil War and the end of slavery and the time when Abraham Lincoln, our president then, gave a speech called the Emancipation Proclamation. It was an epic time in history, an important time in history, but not the most climactic time in human history. I'm not talking about the day Elvis left the building or the Beatles showed up in America or when Kanye drops a new album. He'd like to think it's the most climactic time in human history, but it's not. I'm not even talking about "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." That was a big day, wasn't it? A big six days there and the seventh day He rested. That was a beginning, not an ending.

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No, what I'm suggesting today is the most climactic event in human history will be…notice the future tense…the second coming of Jesus Christ. Now, I know some people right now who are saying, "You've got to be kidding me, Preacher. Another one of these preachers talking about the second coming of Jesus Christ." Some are sighing. Some are glazing over in their eyes. Some might be rolling their eyes into the back of their head thinking that some preacher is going to sensationalize this and get dates and charts and all that kind of garbage. No, I'm not here to do that. But I am here to tell you that the second coming of Jesus Christ is the most talked about prophetic event in the Bible and the most climactic event in human history.

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The apostle Peter in his New Testament letters warned about those who would scoff and mock at the idea of the coming of Jesus. 2 Peter 3:3-4 he says, "Knowing this first of all that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires. They will say, 'Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation.'" He goes on to say, "But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years is as one day. The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance." Sure for 2000 years we've been talking about the second coming of Jesus Christ, and some are saying, "You know, come on, He isn't coming. He's slow. We shouldn't believe all that nonsense anymore." Peter reminds us, every day He chooses not to return, every day the Father chooses not to turn to the Son and say, "Son, go," is another opportunity for you, for me, for anybody else who has yet to come to faith in Christ to place their faith in Him. He's not slow because He's not here to fulfill His promise. It's patience on His part, wishing that every person would come to faith and repentance.

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Maybe that describes you today. Maybe today is your day of salvation. Jesus said the Father is always working, and He is. Working to bring men and women and boys and girls and young people to the cross of Christ. And if He didn't come right now at this house, this is your opportunity to come to faith and to repentance. I trust that you will receive it as such.

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But the doctrine of the second coming of Jesus Christ for believers in Jesus Christ and for the church is known as the blessed hope. Think about that. The blessed hope of the church. Our hope…yes, we look backwards in faith at the cross of Christ and the resurrection of Jesus Christ and His ascension to heaven, but we wait in faith and in hope for His return. So, Paul in his letter to Titus described the second coming of Christ as the blessed hope of the church.

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By the way, did you know that the second coming of Jesus Christ is mentioned 1,845 times in the Bible? That's a lot of editorial space. You can't ignore that many references. Now, one of my former professors, Dr. John Walvoord, who is with the Lord today, he in his time during the mid to late 20^th century was one of the most renown Bible prophecy experts and theologians on the planet. He was the guy that the network news went to when there was some dramatic world event and they wanted a theologian's view on it. They would go to Dr. John Walvoord on ABC or NBC or CBS to offer his perspective on world event and Bible prophecy. Dr. Walvoord readily admits that many of the prophecies in the Old Testament concerning the second coming of Jesus Christ…it's a little bit difficult to discern between the first and the second coming of Christ. And maybe that's why our Jewish friends missed it. They missed their savior, Jesus. Their Messiah. And they don't accept Him as that, at least not now. We see Him as the once-prophesied Messiah, the long-awaited Messiah who came and died on the cross for our sins. He came as the suffering servant the first time. He'll come as the reigning and victorious and glorious King of Kings and Lord of Lords at His second coming.

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But 1,845 references. Who is talking about the second coming? Where did all those references come from? Let me break it down a little bit. First, from the prophets. Here is one example…and we could go to many…but Zechariah 14:3-4. "Then the Lord will go out and fight against those nations as when He fights on a day of battle," most likely a reference to the Battle of Armageddon, which closes out the seven years of the Tribulation right prior to the second coming of Christ. Verse 4, "On that day his feet shall stand on the Mount of Olives that lies before Jerusalem on the east. And the Mount of Olives shall be split in two from east to west by a very wide valley so that one half of the mount shall move northward and the other half southward." What a dramatic picture here with geographic movements in the earth.

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Why do I say that this section of scripture found in Matthew 24-25, the Olivet Discourse, is so fascinating, at least for me? Because here is Jesus on the Mount of Olives having a conversation with Peter, James, John, and Andrew just days before His crucifixion. They are talking about the signs of the end of the age. And He is talking about it while He is seated on the place to which Zechariah says He will return, His feet landing upon the Mount of Olives and splitting the mountain in half. That is just one example from the prophets.

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Secondly, the angels are talking about the second coming of Christ. Now I take you to Acts 1:9-11, this just prior to the Day of Pentecost recorded in Acts 2. You know the scene. The early church is gathered in Jerusalem. They're in the upper room. They're praying, waiting for the coming of the Holy Spirit as Jesus told them. Jesus is having a conversation on the Mount of Olives with some of His disciples, and the ascension takes place. We have His crucifixion, His resurrection three days later. Forty days later He ascends to the Father. He just starts floating up into the clouds. Verse 9 of Acts 1 says, "Behold, two men stood by them in white robes," probably two angels, "and said, 'Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up into heaven?'" Can you just picture the disciples with their jaws dropped down to their belt? "'This Jesus who was taken up from you into heaven will come in the same way as you saw Him go into heaven.'" Just as He ascended into the clouds, He will come on the clouds at His second coming with the angels and the trumpet call of God and all of that. And just as He ascended from the Mount of Olives, He will land upon the Mount of Olives at His second coming.

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So, the prophets are talking about the second coming. The angels mention the second coming. We could stay in the New Testament and discover that the apostles mention the second coming as well. Again, time just only permits maybe one reference here. Hebrews 9:27-28, the writer of Hebrews says, "And just as it is appointed for man to die once and after that comes judgement…" I always like to stop there and just remind all of us- we die once. Christianity is a resurrection faith, not a reincarnation faith. "Just as it is appointed for man to die once and after that comes judgement, so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many…" When did that happen? 2000 years ago on the cross, right? That's when He bore our sins upon the cross and paid the penalty for our sins. It says, "He will appear a second time, not to deal with sin, but to save those who are eagerly waiting for Him." What a great verse of scripture. He will appear a second time. And He has a different reason for coming. He is coming to save those who eagerly are waiting for Him.

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You know, the Bible tells us in Paul's letter to Timothy. It mentions one of the five crowns or rewards of the New Testament. One of them is called the crown of righteousness. Paul says, "A crown of righteousness has been laid up for me from the Lord Himself who is the righteous judge. And not only for me, but for all those,"—listen to this—"who love his appearing." Do you love the appearing of Jesus? Are you eagerly waiting for His appearing? Or have you not given it a second though this week? I'm trying to bring it to the frontal lobe of your thinking. This is the most climactic event that will take place in human history. And for those who love His appearing, who eagerly await His appearing, there is a special reward in heaven.

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I've got to move on. The prophets, the angels, the apostles, and, you guessed it, even Jesus Christ is talking about His second coming. I read these verses a few minutes ago. Let's read them again. Matthew 24 beginning in verse 29 Jesus says, " Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 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. And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other."

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This is just one time that Jesus mentions and predicts His second coming. A careful study of the four Gospels—Matthew, Mark, Luke and John—identifies 21 different times that Jesus motioned His second coming. So, who is talking about the second coming? Maybe you and I should have a conversation about it this week, because the prophets have been talking about it, the angels have been talking about it, the apostles have been talking about it, Jesus has been talking about it. And in the one time that I just referenced in Matthew 24:29-31, I see seven descriptions of how Christ will return.

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Let me just share these with you really quickly. Number one, His return will happen suddenly. Look at verse 29. "Immediately after the tribulation of those days." Now, if you've been with us in this study, you know that last week and the week before that we were talking about a period of time on planet earth known as the Tribulation, the Great Tribulation, also known in scripture as Jacob's Trouble, Daniel's 70^th week of Bible prophecy. It's a future time of seven years of what I call the worst of times on planet earth, that terrible, horrible, no good, very bad time of tribulation. I believe from a careful study of the scriptures that that time will be preceded by the next event on God's prophetic calendar known as the rapture of the church, kind of phase one of His second coming. But in Bible prophecy we often talk about these as two separate events, His rapture of the church at the front end of the Tribulation, and then the second coming of Christ at the back end. Some people blur those and blur the distinction between the two events. But again, a careful reading of scripture identifies that the language used in the Bible to describe the second coming is different than the language used, for instance, in Paul's letter to the Thessalonians where we have the largest description and revelation of the rapture of the church.

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The rapture of the church is described as happening in the twinkling of an eye. As fast as you can blink your eye it'll happen. The second coming of Jesus Christ, though, is just as sudden, but it happens like a thief in the night, the Bible says. Sudden, surprising to many in the world, catching many off guard like a thief in the night.

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For example, Revelation 16:15. Jesus says, "Behold, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who stays awake, keeping his garments on, that he may not go about naked and be seen exposed." In 1 Thessalonians 5:2 the apostle Paul writes, "For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord,"—another way to reference the second coming of Christ—"the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night," he says. 1 Thessalonians 5:4, "But you are not in darkness, brothers, for that day to surprise you like a thief." And one more. 2 Peter 3:10, "But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed." When Jesus Christ returns at the end of the age and at the end of the seven years of tribulation, He will come suddenly. He will come surprisingly. The question is, are you ready for it? Will you be surprised by it? The disciples didn't want to be surprised. They said, "Jesus, what are the signs of Your coming?" And He talked about some of those signs.

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Secondly, Christ will return dramatically. Let's read on there in verse 1. It says, "Immediately after the tribulation of those days,"—listen to this—"the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heaven will be shaken." Now, that is the description of a dramatic scene. Earlier in the verses just above that, Jesus says His coming will be like a lightning strike in the sky. And as best as I understand this picture here, this will happen again at the end of the Tribulation during the Battle of Armageddon. And imagine for a moment the battle waging midday. You expect the sun to be out, but the sky darkens. And as the sky darkens, the moon doesn't shine. And the stars of heaven begin to fall. I don't know, meteors, whatever they are, but something is happening in the heavens. And then He says, "The powers of the heavens will be shaken." This is such a dramatic event. God is trying to get the world's attention because Jesus Christ is on His way.

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You know, God has a flare for the dramatic. I think back to the Old Testament book of Exodus where Moses went up Mount Sinai. There were flashes of lightning and peals of thunders, and it was all about the Ten Commandments and the law and Moses. More than a Hollywood director, God has this flair for the dramatic. And when it comes to the most climactic event in human history, there is drama all around.

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We're living in a time when we get most of our news from some digital source- your digital news feeds on your phone or some other place. But back when they printed newspapers…and I think they still do…but the newspapers had a print and a font that they used for some of the most dramatic and sensational world events. I'm thinking like Pearl Harbor or (0:19:00.1) the assassination of President John Kennedy, 9/11. When an event like that would take place, the newspaper editor would say, "Use the second coming font." They actually call it that. The second coming font. It's that big, bold, sensational, dramatic…why do they call it the second coming font? Because it is the most dramatic, if not the most climactic event in human history. 

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It's sudden. It's dramatic. Third, Jesus Christ will come visibly. Visibly. Look at it in the beginning of verse 30. "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." Circle the word "appear." Circle the word (0:20:00.1) "see." Jesus's second coming is not hidden to anybody. The language to describe the rapture of the church that happens in the twinkling of an eye appears to be something that only the church sees and participates in. And the world is left behind going, "What just happened?" But at the end of the Tribulation at the second coming of Christ, this is a dramatic event meant for the entire world on planet earth to see Jesus Christ. Nobody will miss this event. Again, the sky will darken. The moon will not shine. There will be such a dramatic release of the powers in heaven that all of the attention on planet earth will look upward. Then the lightning strike in the sky, and Jesus Christ comes riding in a white horse with His angels and the elect from the four corners of the world. We'll get onto that in a moment. But this is a visible, visible event.

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I remember years ago we were in Israel, and we were on the Mount of Olives. We go there to visit. And I always love that time because there are some small amphitheaters that are carved out of stone, and tour groups can sit there. And then their pastor or Bible teacher can open up the pages of scripture. I always go to this Olivet Discourse here. I mean, you're on the Mount of Olives. You've got to talk about these kinds of things. And to my back is the Kidron Valley, and those who are sitting there just get this incredible epic view of the city of Jerusalem sparkling in the midday sun. I remember doing my best to wax eloquently about Jesus's predictions about the end of the age from the Mount of Olives. And when we were done, I was walking back to our tour bus with our Jewish tour guide, a wonderful lady from South Africa named Bernice. We've been with Bernice many, many times, and she has this great accent. And she says to me, "Pastor…" And she's not a messianic Jew. She doesn't believe Jesus as her Messiah. But she says, "You know, you Christians talk about the second coming. We are looking forward to His first coming. I think we're talking about the same event." And I kind of let it roll for a little bit. She is always respectful of our Christian faith, and we're respectful of her Jewish faith. But I said to her, "You know, that may be true, but are we talking about the same person?" She thought about that for a minute, and then we got on to something else.

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But it's visible. That moment. Everybody in the world will see Jesus, and there will be one of two responses. Some will rejoice. Those who come to faith in Christ during the Tribulation Period…and as I understand the scriptures, specifically the book of Revelation, there will be tens of thousands, maybe hundreds of thousands, if not millions of people who come to faith in Christ through the 144,000 Jewish evangelists that roam the world during the Tribulation Period and recognize Jesus as their Messiah and share the gospel with others in the world. They will rejoice at His coming. Others, Jesus says, will mourn. This heavy sense of regret will come, because in that moment when they see Jesus appearing, not as the suffering servant they crucified, but as the King of Kings, glorious and victorious, the One to whom every knee will bow and every tongue will confess, they will mourn and grieve the fact that they have rejected Him.

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He comes suddenly. He comes dramatically. He comes visibly. I've alluded to this, but He comes victoriously. Look at it in the middle of verse 30. It says, "He comes on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory." You ever been close to human power, somebody who really has power? Years ago, when we moved to Washington, D.C., somebody scheduled for us a West Wing tour. Any average citizen can get an East Wing tour of the White House, but a West Wing tour has to be scheduled for you by somebody who…and somebody was kind enough to do that for the Jones family. And they don't let you inside the Oval Office, but you get to duck your head in there. It's a lot smaller in person than it looks like on TV, by the way. And the president can't be in the West Wing at that time. He is someplace else. But you get a little glimpse inside that seat of power known as the Oval Office. It ain't nothing compared to the power and the glory of Jesus Christ when He returns. It will pale in comparison to that.

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He will come with power, with great glory. He will come like the victorious and reigning King of Kings and Lord of Lords. This is what they missed, kind of, in those blurred lines of prophecy in the Old Testament, that He would come first as a suffering servant and second as a glorious and victorious and reigning king.

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Number five, He will come loudly. Verse 31, "And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call." I mean, think about it. They will not only see Him; it'll be so dramatic nobody will miss the second coming of Christ. Everybody on planet earth, their attention will be riveted to the sky, which has grown dark. The moon doesn't shine. The powers of the heaven being shaken. The lightning strike across the sky. Jesus Christ is returning. But it will also be accompanied by a loud piercing sound of a trumpet, the trumpet call of God.

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You know, sometimes that beautiful instrument called a trumpet plays something soft and somber like military "Taps," right? We've all heard that. It makes a very somber moment. But oftentimes the trump is used in a piercing kind of way to announce the arrival of the king and the monarch. Maybe there is something to that. The angels will grab that trumpet, and it is the trumpet call of God.

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Interestingly enough, in the book of Revelation describing the Tribulation Period from Revelation 6-19, there is the unfolding and the cascading effects of God's judgements upon planet earth in what are called the seven seal judgements, at the end the bowl judgements, and in the middle the seven trumpet judgements. And John the apostle, while he is receiving the vision of the apocalypse on the island of Patmos and writing this down for us in the book of we call the book of Revelation, he hears the trumpets in heaven announcing the judgement of God as it is poured out on planet earth during the Tribulation. The last trumpet that is heard is the trumpet announcing the return of Jesus Christ.

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So, He comes suddenly and dramatically and visibly and victoriously and loudly. Number six…and I had to stretch with this one. I was looking for an adverb here. I think this works. I discussed this with my wife this week. I said, "How does this work?" But He comes with His family. Look at it in verse 30. It says, "And they will gather his elect…" Who are "they?" The angels that are coming with Him. "Gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other." Who are the elect? Those who have placed their faith in trust in the Lord Jesus Christ. As I understand Bible prophecy, as the church is raptured out of the earth there will still be many who come to faith in Christ during the Tribulation Period. We in the church come back with Him at the second coming and with the angels to fight the enemies of God at the Battle of Armageddon. And Jesus wins hands down. But there will be others that are gathered into that great heavenly battle, the elect of God who come to faith in Christ during the Tribulation. It's a family event, right? You know, if you're going to do something dramatic and sudden and visible and victorious and loud, you want your family with you. And the second coming of Jesus Christ involved the family of God.

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And finally, the second coming of Christ, He will return surely. Go back to verse 30 where it says, "Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man." The New Testament talks about…I believe it's Peter who says this, that we have "a sure word of prophecy" in the Bible. This isn't some horoscope, may or may not happen, just kind of some general prediction about the future. This isn't the prophecies of Nostradamus where he's got about a 50/50 record. No, this is the sure word of prophecy. This is the ultimate sign as Jesus answers the questions of the disciples, "What is the sign of Your coming?" A sign is meant to get our attention and to point us, in this case, to none other than the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords who is the Lord Jesus Christ. Don't miss the sign. And don't miss the sure word of prophecy that comes from the lips of Jesus.

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Reading on in Matthew 24:32, Jesus says, "From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near. So also, when you see all these things, you know that he is near, at the very gates." He says, "Listen, you know, those of you who are agronomists. You're farmers or you're gardeners. You know. You see the signs when summer is near because the fig leaf is turning. Why can you not recognize when My return is near when you see these signs?"

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In Luke's gospel, chapter 12, Jesus chided and rebuked those who were great at forecasting the weather. Long before Doppler radar came along, even back in Jesus's time, they would look up into the sky and see that the sky is red, or the clouds were forming. And they would say, "Oh, it's going to be a sunny day tomorrow," or, "Oh, it's going to be rain tomorrow." He says, "You can forecast the weather just by looking at the sky. But you can't look at the signs of My coming and forecast that I am near?" He rebuked them for that. He called them hypocrites for being able to forecast the weather, but not forecast His second coming.

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Jesus goes on to say in verse 34, "Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place." What things is He talking about? Well, those general signs that we talked about, like birth pangs that increase in frequency and intensity as we get closer and closer to the age. The one sign, that specific sign, the abomination that causes desolation happening at the midpoint of the Tribulation. We talked about that last week. And the ultimate sign, the sign that nobody will miss, the second coming of Jesus Christ. He goes on to say in verse 35, "Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away." This is a sure word of prophecy.

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Be careful where you're investing in this world. If all your investments are earthly, it's going to go up in smoke one day and fire. "Heaven and earth will pass away," Jesus says, "but My words will not pass away." And it's a reminder to us, friends, that there are only two things that last for all of eternity- Souls…invest in souls, because we are created for eternity to live forever in a place called heaven or a place called hell. And the other thing that will last forever is the Word of God. You can trust it. You can take it to the bank. It is a sure word of prophecy.

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Two questions, and then I'll close. Here is the first question. I'm just going to guess what's on your mind as we talk about the most climactic event in human history. Pastor, when will Christ return? Wouldn't you like to know? I'm going to tell you next week, so you have to come back, all right? Seriously, I've got to put a period somewhere in the text, and this is a good place to say…but I'm not a date-setter. I'm not going to sensationalize this. You know where I'm going. Jesus says nobody knows the day or the hour. The angels don't know. The Son of Man doesn’t know. Only the Father knows. We're going to talk about what angels wish they knew next week. So, come back.

0:34:21.0

But here is the second question. Are you ready? Are you ready for the most climactic event in human history, the second coming of Jesus Christ? If you're a believer in Jesus Christ, in one sense you're ready. But are you loving His appearing? Are you eagerly awaiting His coming? Some in the 1st century believed that He would come in their generation, and you know what they did? They quit their jobs. They sold their homes. They climbed up to the top of a mountain, and they waited. And the apostle Paul writes to them in the New Testament…and I'm paraphrasing here, but it basically says, "Don’t be foolish. Come down on off that mountain. Get back to work." He says occupy until He comes. We've got a lot of people occupying today. You know, you hear these protestors occupy this, occupy that. I always smile at that, because it's really the devil taking something in scripture and twisting it. Believers in Jesus Christ are to occupy this earth until He comes, and to occupy in a way that we are busy about the Father's business. Not passively waiting, but busy about the Father's business to where the second coming of Jesus Christ is never far from our thoughts, never far from our hearts. We're praying, "Even so, come, Lord Jesus. And if You don't come today, it's another opportunity for me to share Christ with my family, with my friends, with my workers, with some stranger I might meet today who is going through life just completely unaware of the most climactic event in human history that could happen tomorrow," at least the start of it with the rapture of the church.

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So, are you ready? And if you're not a believer in Jesus Christ, maybe this is the first time you've ever heard something like this. Here is how you get ready. You run to the cross of Christ where He died on the cross for your sins, paid the penalty for your sins, and offers the free gift of eternal life to anyone who comes to Him by faith. He put an exclamation point by all that He did and all that He said and that death upon the cross when He rose three days later from the grave. And then He ascended to the Father. And before He left, 21 times during His life He said, "I'll be back. I'll be back."

0:37:00.4

So, get ready. As we go further into the Olivet Discourse in Matthew 25, Jesus tells two stories, parables. We love Jesus's storytelling. He was a master storyteller. The first one simply asks this question- are you ready? And that's where I want to leave it today, encouraging you to put this on the front lobe of your thinking, believer in Jesus, with a sense of expectation, loving His appearing, eagerly awaiting, busy about the Father's business, fulfilling the mission that He gave us as a church to make disciples of all nations, and reaching as many people for Christ as we can.

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