Thursday, March 24, 2011

Prophesy for Today - The Second Coming; Issue 1

Many today do not know what Scripture teaches about Jesus and His coming back to earth, so I will attempt to give some basic review: 


1st) Jesus, the Messiah, came to earth some 2000 years ago, fulfilling many Old Testament prophesies. The first time He came as the "suffering servant". Isaiah prophesied of Him "Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he [was] wounded for our transgressions, [he was] bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace [was] upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth. He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken." - Isaiah 53:4-8. 


2nd) At His first coming, He destroyed the devil's hold on all sinners and paid the blood debt to God, the Father, for Scripture declares "the wages of sin is death". Death could not hold Him in the grave and He resurrected after three days. He spent 40 days teaching His disciples and then He rose into the heavens. As they watched Him rise out of sight, two angels stood by them asking why they were gazing into the heavens - "Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.: - Acts 1:11. Hebrews 9:28 also declares the same truth - "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."


Many Messianic prophesies describe Him as a conquering avenger rescuing His people and meeting out judgment to His enemies as well as those, like Isaiah, who describe Him as a suffering servant. This is why many Jews did not receive Jesus as Messiah during His first coming, they were expecting Him to avenge them on their Roman conquerers. They did not understand that His first coming was meant to cleanse their hearts from sin. However, His second coming will not be as a lowly, suffering servant but as a conquering judge. David writes in Psalm 2 about the Son judging the nations and breaking them in pieces like a potters vessel,  "Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish [from] the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed [are] all they that put their trust in him." In the Book of Revelation He is shown as a conquering general at the head of His armies - 


"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. His eyes [were] as a flame of fire, and on his head [were] many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. And he [was] clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God. And the armies [which were] in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. 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. And he hath on [his] vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS." - Revelation 19:11-16.
It is at this second coming  that "every knee shall bow and confess to God" that Jesus is the Christ. While there is much more that could be said, this is enough for this basic teaching on the second coming of Jesus Christ.

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