Revealing the three scripturally-progressive phases of Jesus’ return
Christianity waits for the return of Jesus. Depending on your doctrinal beliefs, you may be looking for his return to bring incredible drama and life changing moments – things like earthquakes , destruction, anarchy and a rapture. While we can see scriptural evidence to support SOME of these things, we want to be careful about just viewing his return through dramatic and traumatic events. The Bible gives us several prophesies that indicate many details about the method of Jesus' return. These details point to his return being revealed in a much more subtle and unnoticeable way. How can he return in a covert manner and yet “every eye shall see him”? Isn’t this a blatant contradiction? Let’s look at the Scriptures and see how the harmony of these things shines through!
A mysterious return
There are many scriptures that show us Jesus’ return would be a mystery. Forty days after his resurrection, on the day of his ascension, he told his disciples the timing of the restoration of Israel was beyond their knowledge. It would remain a mystery to them. We know that Israel’s restoration would be as a result of Jesus’ return, as he told us that in the Parable of the Fig Tree in Matthew 24:32-33. A few verses later in verse 36, Jesus said no one would know when he was coming. The Apostle Paul confirmed this by describing Jesus’ returning in the same covert manner as how a thief in the night arrives. All of this adds up to no one knowing he had returned until he was already present.
So will all see him or not?
How do these conclusions square with the drama of other scriptures surrounding his return? What about “descending from heaven with a shout”? And seeing him “coming in the clouds”? What about “every eye shall see him”? Are we saying that the sensational events the Christian world wait for are not real? NO. We are saying there is much more to the return of Jesus than most of us take the time to consider.
It is inspiring to know all of these things can and do harmonize. To unlock this scriptural harmony, we need to view the return of Jesus as a process - not just a series of breathtaking events on a single day. Interestingly, Jesus himself specifically described his return as a process. The problem is that his explanation is a bit veiled due to the questionable translation of a few key words.
Check out our September 6, 2021 podcast, “Could Jesus Return Without You Knowing?” for more. We carefully examine the translation issues that veil the clarity of some key scriptures. We sort out the several manifestations of and events relating to Jesus’ return. Then we put things in a logical scriptural order to see how his return sequentially unfolds. All of this adds up to a deep and inspiring look at how much the Bible reveals about Jesus coming back. Join us and see if this all makes sense to you. It could change your life!
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