Christ’s Return
And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars;
and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the
waves roaring; Men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after
those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven
shall be shaken. And then shall they see the Son of man coming in
a cloud with power and great glory.
Luke 21:25-27
Read Luke 21
Before the Lord returns, amazing things will happen to the sun, moon and
stars. Besides the raging of the sea, great forces will become active in the
heavens; mankind will realize that these things are beyond the ordinary.
Humanity will be terribly frightened.
What will these signs actually consist of? Matthew 24 speaks of great darkness
and stars falling down from the heavens. We do not understand exactly
how all this will take place, but mankind will experience something supernatural.
The image given in Matthew 24 is that first the sun will be darkened
after which a great Light will appear indicating the Lord Jesus’ return
as the Son of Man in glory. He will come with great power, majesty and glory
as the supreme ruler of this world. He will return with majesty to judge the
living and the dead. Luke tells us that every inhabitant of the earth shall see
His return. This is amazing in light of the fact that the earth is spherical.
This is only possible because of who God is.
However, there will be a great difference in the way people view Him. Those
who do not know the Lord will be terrified because they will be lost forever.
But those who know Him will be joyful; they will recognize their Lord
and Saviour who has come to bring them to the marriage feast of the Lamb.
What a stark difference between these two receptions! The Lord comes either
as your Deliverer or your Judge!
Thought: Does meditating on these signs of Christ’s return give you reason
to think that His return is far away?
Psalter 265:1 (based on Psalm 99)
Jehovah reigns in majesty; Let all the nations quake.
He dwells between the cherubim; Let earth’s foundations shake.
Supreme in Zion is the Lord, Exalted gloriously;
Ye nations praise His name with awe, The Holy One is He.
