By Sean Sullivan

“But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only” (Matthew 24:36). From the moment of that statement, faithful followers have endeavored to prepare. There are, like most Bible subjects, lots of ideas about the second coming of Christ. Some say that He already came and left again. Some say that He will come to establish another new way. Some believe that He will come back, to bring an end to this world and to gather the souls of mankind to Judgment.

What can we know about the second coming of Christ? All that we can know, we will know from the Scriptures. Assumptions, theoretical calculations, and imaginations provide no further understanding. We need to sort through the clutter and establish a proper understanding of this very important subject.

We Know Christ is in Heaven Now

There is no mistaking the present location of our Savior Jesus Christ. There are so many clear indications within the Scriptures that there can be no other plausible conclusion. After His earthly life, death, burial, and resurrection, Jesus ascended into Heaven to take His place of Divine Authority over the kingdom, the church (Ephesians 1:20-23).

There are many references to His ascension into Heaven: His prayer before going to the cross he said, “I have glorified you on earth…and now, oh Father, glorify Me with Yourself” (John 17:4-5). After His resurrection, when Mary tried to prevent His leaving, Jesus said, “Do not cling to Me, for I have not yet ascended to My Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, ‘I am ascending to My Father and your Father, and to My God and your God.'” (John 20:17). After instructing the Apostles to wait in Jerusalem for sign from Heaven, Jesus was taken up at Bethany, “Now it came to pass, while He blessed them, that He was parted from them and carried up into heaven” (Luke 24:51). As words of comfort, Jesus said He was going to His Father’s dwelling to prepare us a place, by saying “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” (John 14:1-6).

To this day Jesus resides in Heaven, at the right hand of the Father, awaiting the time, to be revealed by only the Father, for His return (Matthew 24:36).

We Know Christ Will Return.

It is vitally important that we know Christ will come again. He personally promised He would return in John 14:3 saying, “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.” The angels, who appeared to the disciples as Jesus ascended, promised He would return, “Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, who also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven” (Acts 1:9-11). John declared the same in Revelation 1:7. Paul promised it in 1 Corinthians 15:23-24. The words of Hebrews 9:27-28 also declare that Jesus will return, saying, “And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment, so Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many. To those who eagerly wait for Him He will appear a second time, apart from sin, for salvation.”

The Scriptures tell us that His coming will: 1) Be without further warning—“Like a thief in the night” (1 Thessalonians 5:2, 4; 2 Peter 3:10). 2) Be with sounds we have never heard before, “For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God” (1 Thessalonians 4:16). 3) Not to live on this earth again, but rather to gather us to the cloud—we will rise and meet the Lord in the sky (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17).

We must be actively prepared for this time to come.

We All Need to Know: Am I Prepared?

The first-century disciples looked for the Lord’s return daily (1 Corinthians 1:7-8). The same promise of His return stands today, are you looking for Him every day? If we grow weary in our watch and set our heart to think, “Jesus won’t come today”, we will not be prepared in that moment (Matthew 24:45-51).

We know Jesus is going to come again. We must be found “watching” (1 Thessalonians 5:1-10). We must be found faithful (Colossians 1:23). This means that we are continuing in the faith: Growing (John 15:1-8). Increasing (2 Peter 3:18). Never ceasing (Hebrews 10:35-39). Grounded and unwilling to compromise the truth (Matthew 7:21; James 1:17-25). Not moved from the hope of gospel: Not willing to depart for even a moment (Romans 12:1-2; Galatians 5:19-21; Hebrews 2:1-3). We cannot continue to make excuses for sin—we need to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless (2 Peter 3:14).

There is no reason for this day to be dreadful in your mind. For the prepared, this day will be the realization of our faithful labor. 

In God’s eternal plan His desire is that those who, by their own choice, love and serve Him, can be with Him in His eternal dwelling (1 Thessalonians 4:17). The hope of this was realized in our creation (Genesis 1:26; Acts 17:24-27). This created world is suited for God’s purpose in seeking such who were willing to worship Him (John 4:24). Are you using your time in this life to prepare (1 Peter 1:13-21)? Some people must believe God will let them know before He sends Jesus (signs of the times). The Scriptures are the last warning that we will receive. All things will be normal and the last words of warning have already been given, we looked at them in this lesson.

Today is the day; now is the time. If you are not yet obedient to the Lord, heed the warnings. If you are a Christian, are you remaining steadfast? Today, the promise of Christ’s return is still true and His hope of salvation is too. Obey the gospel today, become prepared.