Advent: The Return of Christ

“Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven” (Ac 1:11).
 
Review
Today is the third Sunday of Advent, which refers to the period of four Sundays before Christmas. Advent basically means ‘coming.’ So during this season, we celebrate the event of Jesus’ coming by reminding ourselves of how and why He came to the world in human form and thinking more deeply about the meaning of His coming.
 
Last Sunday, we talked about Jesus’ first coming around 2,000 years ago. John said that the Word who was with God, who was God, and through whom all things were made became flesh and made His dwelling among us. The Word refers to Jesus, and we call the amazing event in which the word became human flesh ‘incarnation.’
 
So, why did the Word, the Son of God, have to be born in the world in human form? We talked about 5 purposes of the incarnation of Jesus through Hebrews 2.
 
The first purpose was to taste death for everyone. The Son of God, who was without beginning or end and much higher than angels, was made lower than them for a little while by taking the form of a human so that He could taste death for everyone. Through His suffering and death on the cross, we could be healed and justified.
 
However, Jesus’ life on earth didn’t end with His death. Rather, Jesus only tasted death because He overcame death when God raised Him from the dead. By doing so, Jesus broke the power of death and thus Satan’s authority over us, for death was Satan’s biggest weapon. That was the second purpose of the incarnation of Christ.
 
And by breaking the power of sin, death, and Satan, Jesus freed us from them. We were held in slavery by Satan in our sin and fear of death, but Jesus set us free from all these things when He was resurrected. That was the third purpose of the incarnation.
 
The fourth reason for Jesus’ incarnation is related to our sin. Jesus took on the form of a human so that He can bleed and experience death on our behalf and so that He could pay the ransom for our sins. We call this ‘atonement.’ Jesus became human so that He could make atonement for the sins of all people throughout all generations. The effect of His atonement is perfect and eternal because He was the Son of God.
 
The last purpose of the incarnation of Jesus is to help us. If shedding blood and dying had been the only purposes of His coming, He wouldn’t have had to be born as a baby. But we know how He was born in a manger as a baby who was so weak that he needed his parents’ care.
 
And Jesus experienced everything as a perfect human. He was tempted by the devil in the wilderness for forty days. He didn’t have to be, but He still did it so that He could understand us and help us in our times of need.
 
Jesus is our eternal High Priest who is more than able to empathize with our weaknesses. We can and should trust in Him and rely on Him.
 
The Promises of the Return of Christ
All right. Now let’s continue to think about the coming of Jesus Christ. During Advent season, Christians not only remember and celebrate the first coming of Jesus but also remind themselves of the truth of His second coming so that they can prepare for it.
 
That’s the future meaning of the coming of Jesus that I want us to talk about today. Before being arrested by soldiers, Jesus told His disciples,
 
“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am” (Jn 14:1-3)
 
Here, Jesus clearly stated that His going to heaven wouldn’t be the end because He would come back after preparing places for us there. Jesus also said that He would take us to be with Him so that we could live with Him forever in the kingdom of God.
 
This promise is reaffirmed by angels. When Jesus was ascending to heaven, His disciples were looking intently up into the sky. Then, suddenly two men dressed in white appeared to them and told them,
 
“Men of Galilee, why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.” (Ac 1:11)
 
Besides these two passages, a lot of verses in the New Testament consistently testify that there will come a day when Jesus returns to the world and judges and restores everything. That’s the hope we have in Christ. That’s the day we’re looking forward to as Christians. Those who really believe this will live a different life compared to those who belong to the world.
 
Those who belong to Christ and put their hope in Him live their lives on earth preparing for the last day because to us, the last day will actually be the beginning of eternal and perfect life in the kingdom of God. So we don’t really care about storing up treasures on earth because we’re more focused on storing up treasures in heaven while living on earth.
 
But those who belong to this world don’t have such a perspective. Because they don’t believe in the existence of an afterlife, all their attention is focused on worldly things.
 
So, I think it’s very important for us to know about the second coming of Jesus Christ because that’s what really characterizes our lives here on earth.
 
The New Testament is filled with promises about the return of Christ. Jesus Himself promised many times that He would come back again. Then, what will happen on the day of the second coming of Jesus? Why should we put our hope in it? That’s what I want us to think about today.
 
1. Resurrection of the body
First, the Bible says that when Jesus comes back, we will be resurrected with Him and transformed into His glorious image.
 
In 1 Co 15:51-54, Paul said, “Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality. When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: “Death has been swallowed up in victory” (1Co 15:51-54).
 
The apostle John also said, “Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. All who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure.” (1 Jn 3:2-3)
 
That’s what will happen to us. When Jesus comes back, we’ll see Him face to face and we will all be changed like Him in the twinkling of an eye. We will put off our perishable clothes and Jesus will clothe us with His imperishable, everlasting clothes of righteousness instead. There won’t be death anymore because its authority will collapse by the victory of resurrection that Christ will give us.
 
That’s the eternal hope that we, Christians, should keep in mind. We believe that there is another life after death. Jesus will come again with the last trumpet sound and the dead will be raised and transformed in his likeness.
 
Even though we don’t know what exactly the imperishable clothes of resurrection will look like, we at least know that we will be transformed to be like Jesus on that day.
 
And if we really accept this as truth and put our hope in it, we will prepare for the day here and now. We’ll try to make ourselves pure and clean by washing ourselves through the precious blood of Jesus Christ and abandoning every idol and impure thing in our lives. That’s how we prepare for the glorious resurrection that we’ll join in on the day of Christ’s return.
 
2. A New Heaven and Earth
Second, when Jesus comes back, He will bring a new heaven and a new earth with Him. Rv 21:1-5 says,
 
“Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,” for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” (Rv 21:1-5).
 
It’s a very beautiful description of the Kingdom of God. With the second coming of Jesus, a new heaven and earth will come to be. The new Jerusalem where God is present will come down from heaven and God will dwell with us. We will be His people, and He will be our God.
 
He will wipe our tears and make us whole. There will be no more death, no more mourning, crying, or pain. God will renew everything and we will be with him, praising him forever.
 
This shows what Christians’ hope is. As Christians, our hope is not based on what is seen now in this world. Our hope is in the eternal Kingdom of God that will come when Jesus returns.
 
That’s the eternal perspective we’re to have as Christians. Our hope is not in this world, but beyond it. In our lives here on earth, we have trouble and face difficulties, especially when we follow Jesus. In fact, all those who want to live a godly life in Christ will be persecuted. All those who want to follow Christ as His disciples will join in His sacrifice and suffering. All those who proclaim the gospel of Jesus will face insult and mockery. So, those who put their hope in this world can’t follow Christ.
 
But, if we put our hope not in this world, but in the eternal Kingdom of God to come, we can keep following Jesus no matter how hard the situations are because we know that there will come a time when all suffering, hardships, persecution, tears, and pain cease and we’ll rejoice forever in Christ.
 
Paul said in Romans 8 that that’s the day all creation is waiting for.
 
“The creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed… the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God. We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time.” (Rm 8:19, 21-22)
 
When God created human beings in His image, He gave them authority to rule over all the creatures that He had created. But that didn’t mean they could do whatever they wanted to them for their own benefit.
 
Here, the standard of ‘ruling over’ is God’s character, the image of God, which means that human beings are called to rule over God’s creation the way He loves, takes good care of, and preserves it. We’re created to have that kind of relationship with God’s creation.
 
But this relationship was severed when we were separated from God because of our sin. Human selfishness replaced God’s character of love and care, and human beings started to exploit and destroy nature.
 
Now we see all kinds of serious environmental problems all around the world as a result. God’s creation is groaning in severe pain. So, it eagerly waits for the true children of God to be revealed because that will be the day when all God’s creation will experience true freedom and liberation when Jesus comes back and renews everything with the new heaven and earth.
 
So, how should we prepare for that day? We should try to live a life that’s worthy of the calling we received from God by taking good care of God’s other creations and trying to make them clean and pure. That’s how we should treat our relationship with nature as Christians who eagerly await our Lord to return.
 
3. The Kingdom of God
The last important characteristic of Jesus’ return is that on that day, that the kingdom of God will come true on earth.
 
Acts 1:6-11 describes how Jesus ascended to heaven as His disciples watched. Acts 1:6-11 says,
 
“Then they gathered around him and asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?” He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight. They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.” (Ac 1:6-11)
 
Jesus was crucified but was resurrected from the dead on the third day. Then, he appeared to many people including his disciples. Acts 1:3 says,  “After his suffering, he presented himself to them and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God.” (Acts 1:3)
 
So, we know that the last subject of Jesus’ preaching and teaching was the kingdom of God. And the most fundamental principles of the kingdom of God is that God is present and He reigns.
 
The kingdom of God is not just the place we will go after death, because it can be experienced in our daily lives even now when we’re under God’s sovereignty.
 
Jesus said, “The coming of the kingdom of God is not something that can be observed, nor will people say, ‘Here it is,’ or ‘There it is,’ because the kingdom of God is in your midst” (Lk 17:20).
 
Jesus didn’t teach us to pray to go to heaven. Rather, He taught us to pray, “Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” (Mt 6:10)
 
This prayer is the best summary of the concept of the kingdom of God. The kingdom of God is where God’s will is done as it is in heaven. However, the kingdom of God hasn’t perfectly come yet. It already started with the first coming of Jesus, but it hasn’t yet been accomplished on earth.
 
That’s why we still experience the kingdom of God and the power of the devil at the same time in the world.
 
But the hope we have as Christians is that there will come a day when the kingdom of God will be completed on earth. When Jesus comes back and restores and renews everything, He will bring His kingdom with Him so that we can live in it with Him forever.
 
So, we, Christians, live between already and not yet. We live in the kingdom of God which was already initiated with the first coming of Jesus, and look forward to the day when the kingdom of God will perfectly come true with the second coming of Jesus. But, until that day comes, there are things that we need to do.
 
While Jesus was ascending to heaven, His disciples kept looking at the sky. At that moment, two men dressed in white appeared to them and said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven” (Ac 1:11).
 
The angels were saying, “Why are you still standing here, looking up at the sky? You have a lot to do before He returns. You should make straight paths for Him to come. Go and do what you can!”
 
I think that’s the divine calling from God that’s given to every Christian who is waiting for Jesus’ return. All true Christians are called to prepare the way of the Lord Jesus as His disciples like John the Baptist did. He prepared the way of the Lord by preaching the message of repentance and baptizing people.
 
Likewise, we should make the way of Jesus’ return straight by proclaiming His gospel all around the world and making disciples of all nations.
 
What we should proclaim is the truth that our enemies, Satan, sin, and death, were already conquered and lost their power when Jesus was resurrected from the dead. But this gospel, the greatest and most surprising and transformative news, hasn’t yet been delivered to all people on earth. And, when the gospel of the kingdom of God reaches all nations, Jesus will come back. In fact, that’s the clearest sign of His return, for Jesus said,
 
“And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.” (Mt 24:14)
 
That’s what we should be interested in. We’re living in the world, but we’re not living for the world. We’re living for the world to come, the kingdom of God.
 
When we think about all these things, we’ll realize that we have a lot to do for it. There are many areas in this world where the gospel of Jesus Christ should be known and God’s will should be done. God calls us and sends us to those areas for us to expand His kingdom.
 
And it won’t be easy at all. We may go through many hardships on earth just as Jesus did. So, it’s very important for us to continue to remind ourselves of the truth revealed and promised in the Bible about the return of Christ.
 
When we put our hope in this world, we’ll end up failing to keep and live out our faith. But, if we put our hope in the world to come, we’ll stand strong in all circumstances because we know the One who promised it and that He never breaks His covenant but keeps it with great faithfulness.
 
Peter wrote about the ultimate hope we have as Christians, let’s read it together before we wrap up, “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you” (1Pt 1:3-4)
 
The glorious future that was promised but hasn’t yet happened is real. There will surely come a time when Christ returns with His glory, judges everyone, and makes everything new with His almighty power and heavenly authority.
 
On that day, we’ll be resurrected like Him and we’ll be with Him eternally in the kingdom of God. This hope is truly blessed because it shall never perish, spoil, or fade.
 
So today, we talked about the return of Christ and the ultimate living hope we have in it. Today is the third Sunday of Advent and next Sunday is Christmas Eve. How should we spend this season? We should be reminded of who Jesus is, what He has done, and what He will do for us. Every promise of the Messiah in the Old Testament was perfectly fulfilled when Jesus first came to the world. This allows us to have confidence of the hope we have in Christ.
 
The God who faithfully fulfilled His promises about the first coming of Jesus will also continuously work for the promises that haven’t been fulfilled yet. And we’ll all see all His promises come true when Jesus comes back.
 
I hope every one of us here today will be filled with the living hope we find in Christ Jesus so that our lives here on earth can be aligned with God’s will, plan, and calling for us. Let’s pray.
 
 [Closing prayer]
Heavenly Father, thank You for giving us this great opportunity to think about the return of Christ. We thank You for all the promises regarding Jesus’ second coming.
 
Please open our eyes so that we can see what is unseen and eternal so that we can put our hope not in this world but only in You. Let us long for the day when Jesus comes back so that we can joyfully prepare for His return by proclaiming His gospel to all nations and showing His love and goodness through our lives.
 
We want to have an eternal perspective in You. Fill us with the Holy Spirit so that we can live as kingdom makers here on earth until Jesus returns.
 
Thank You for the promises of the resurrection of the body, eternal life, and Your eternal kingdom. Thank You for giving us living hope in Christ. Help us continue to remain in You.
 
We pray all this in the precious name of Jesus, who was, who is, and who is to come. Amen.
 
[Reflection Questions]
1. How closely related do you think the doctrine of the return of Christ is to Christian faith and life? Why do you think it is important for Christians to know about the promises of His return?
 
2. John the Baptist prepared for the first coming of Jesus by proclaiming the message of repentance and baptizing people in the Jordan River. And we’re called to prepare for the way for His second coming. What do we need to do now? What are some things you can do in your life to prepare for His return?