What will happen when Christ comes back? (part 4)

He will destroy the old creation

We learned in First Corinthians that the dead are resurrected “at his coming” (15: 23). The very next sentence says, “Then cometh the end” (15: 24). The end of what? After all God’s enemies are defeated, and all the dead are resurrected and judged, then what comes to an end?

To find out, we don’t need to consult prophecy “experts.” We only need to consult Scripture.

Peter sheds more light on this “end.” He tells us that the entire universe has a rendezvous with fire: “…the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men” (2 Peter 3: 7). So in a great conflagration the universe will end. And when does this happen? At “the day of judgment,” which is a day of perdition (spiritual ruin) for ungodly men. In case the message was lost on anyone, Peter goes on to state it more explicitly: “…the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up” (2 Peter 3: 10). This passage leaves no room for figurative interpretations. The stars and planets will literally pass away. The elements—the very foundational units of all matter—will dissolve. The earth and everything on it will be incinerated. This is the end of the old creation and it happens right after the resurrection and judgment. As Christ told his disciples, the judgment of the just and the unjust will occur “at the end of the world” (Matthew 13: 49).

God promised us He would create “a new heaven and a new earth.” But before He can do so He must do away with the old. “For, behold,” he told Isaiah, “I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind” (Isaiah 65: 17). John recorded a vision of this promise being fulfilled in the next to last chapter of the Bible: “And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea” (Revelation 21: 1). In John’s account, just as in Paul’s and Peter’s, this occurs immediately after the resurrection and judgment. And, as we have seen stated clearly in Scripture, the resurrection and judgment occur at Christ’s second coming.

This presents an insurmountable problem for those who claim that Christ is going to return to be a political leader on our present sin-cursed earth for many centuries to come. If the universe is burned up and passes away on Judgment Day, and if Judgment Day occurs at His coming, there will be no Earth left to govern.

#3: In what manner will Christ come back?

Some people teach that Christ will next return secretly and silently, invisible to the vast majority of mankind. But what does the Bible say?

We already read in Acts that He will come back "in like manner" as He ascended. So how did He ascend? As the apostles looked on "he was taken up and a cloud received him out of their sight" (Acts 1: 9). So His return will be a reverse of that: He will come down visibly in a cloud. This can't be stated more simply than when John tells us, "Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him" (Revelation 1: 7).

The apostle Paul, writing to the church at Thessalonica, gives a more expansive account of this event: "The Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air" (1 Thessalonians 4: 16, 17). Christ comes down; His chosen join Him in the clouds.

So the first thing we can say with certainty about the manner of Christ's return is that it will be a descent in the clouds that is visible to all.

In a separate letter, writing about the same event, Paul tells us, "we shall all be changed, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed" (1 Corinthians 15: 51, 52).

So not only does Christ descend visibly in the clouds, He also comes with great fanfare. The above verse in First Thessalonians makes the same exact point. The sound of His coming will be unmistakably loud: "the trumpet shall sound"; "the last trump"; "the trumpet of God"; "a shout"; "the voice of an archangel." Does anyone doubt that "the trumpet of God" and "the voice of an archangel" will be thunderous and deafening? When God's Son returns from heaven with "a shout" will it be barely audible? Not likely. When God delivered the Law to Moses on Mount Sinai, the Israelites heard "the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud; so that all the people that was in the camp trembled" (Exodus 19: 16). How much louder will be "the last trump" of His second coming?

When it comes to the manner of Christ's return, then, Scripture leaves little room for debate: it will be a descent in the clouds, visible and exceedingly loud. There are no verses that suggest He is going to slip back unnoticed.

But won't He come "as a thief in the night"?

This is an oft-quoted phrase used to teach a clandestine return of the Messiah: Christ as cat burglar. But that is not the meaning of the phrase when read in context. The phrase "thief in the night" is used twice in the New Testament in association with Christ's personal return.

Paul writes to the church at Thessalonica that "the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night." He then speaks of the "sudden destruction" of the wicked and adds, "But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief." He explains, "they that be drunken are drunken in the night. But let us who are of the day be sober." (1 Thessalonians 5: 2-8).

The meaning of the phrase, then, is clear: only to those who dwell in darkness--those who are spiritually asleep--will Christ's return be completely unexpected and unwelcomed.

In a similar passage Peter states that "the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night." This follows a long discussion about the destruction of the wicked, who "willingly are ignorant" and scoff about "the promise of his coming" (2 Peter 3: 4, 5, 10). Like the wicked in Paul's description, they are figuratively "drunken in the night." To them Christ's return will be a moment of complete shock and anguish, akin to an invader kicking down the door at 3 a.m.

Christ uses the same metaphor for the same purpose when He says, "...if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up" (Matthew 24: 43). The "thief" analogy, therefore, is used to suggest not stealth, but sudden calamity for those whose eyes are closed.

So the cumulative picture painted by all these verses comes into focus: Christ will descend in the clouds, heralded by "the last trumpet," visible to all, and completely unexpected by the wicked.

#2: How many times will Christ come back?

Short answer: one.

To many Christians this might seem an odd question. Everyone's heard of the Second Coming--and everyone understands that to mean Christ is physically coming back once more. No one ever talks about a Third Coming, do they? But it's important to establish that He's only coming back one more time because there's a popular doctrine today that teaches otherwise.

Let's look at some sample verses that clearly speak of Christ's physical return:

"...those who are Christ's at His coming" (I Corinthians 15: 23).

"...blameless until our Lord Jesus Christ's appearing" (I Timothy 6: 14).

"...be patient brethren, until the coming of the Lord" (James 5: 7).

"...who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing" (2 Timothy 4: 1).

"...I will come again and receive you to myself" (John 14: 3).

"...that He may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before God our Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ" (I Thessalonians 3: 13).

Notice all these verses speak of His "coming" or His "appearing"--never His "comings" or His "appearings." It is always a singular event. His return is never referred to in the plural. Christ Himself never suggests multiple physical returns, nor do any of the New Testament writers. They never hint at a Second Coming followed by a Third Coming. In fact, there is not a single verse in Scripture that refers to two or more personal returns. If two returns were planned we would expect to find at least one mention of this concept in Scripture. Yet there are none. We would expect to find at least one passage that plainly mentions both returns in the same discourse. Yet there are none. We only hear of one physical return: His second coming, when He leaves His Father's right hand in heaven to return visibly to earth.

4 Prophecy Questions

After listening to all the convoluted predictions on "End Times Radio" each morning as I drive to work, I decided I wanted to do a study on the Second Coming. The premise is this: what does the Bible clearly teach about the future? So I came up with 4 big questions and will do a separate post on each. I want the answers to the questions to come from Scripture only: not from seminary theses, bestsellers or news stories. If you have anything to add I'd be glad to hear it.

Here are the questions in advance:
#1--Is Christ coming back?
#2--How many times will He come back?
#3--In what manner will He come back?
#4--What will happen when He comes back?

That's not a comprehensive study of prophecy but it covers the Second Coming pretty well. I may add a fifth question, having to do with timing. But we'll see.

#1--Is Christ coming back?

This is probably the easiest prophecy question to answer. Hardly anyone who claims to be a Christian would deny that Christ is coming back. But we don't want to rely on the consensus of men; we want to rely on Scripture. So let's see what the Word of God has to say about this fundamental question.

At the Last Supper, Jesus made a clear promise to His disciples. "I go to prepare a place for you," He told them. "And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself" (John 14:2). This verse alone clearly answers our question. But since Scripture always repeats important doctrines let's look at another passage.

When Christ ascended into heaven after His resurrection, two angels suddenly appeared to the disciples and said to them, "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). So here we have another clear statement that leaves no room for misinterpretation. Just as He left, He will return.

The promise and certainty of Christ's return is reiterated throughout the entire New Testament, just as the promise of His first advent was reiterated throughout the Old Testament. If we needed any more proof of this promise, we would find it in almost every book in the New Testament.

Jesus promised that "the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels and then he shall reward every man according to his works" (Matthew 16: 27).

Paul spoke of "waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ" (1 Corinthians 1: 7), and urged Christians to "fight the good fight of faith...until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ" (1 Timothy 6: 12, 14).

Peter encouraged his readers to remain faithful, "that the trial of your faith...might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ" (1 Peter 1: 7).

So the first fundamental point we can establish from Scripture is that Christ is coming back.

Who controls this world?

I heard a pastor recently say that Satan is in charge of this world. This is a topic I’m continuing to study, but at this point I’d have to say I disagree with him. Of course, if you disagree with me feel free to say so.

Believing Satan is king of earth is a key com-ponent of dispen-sational theology, and it’s a good example of how dispensationalism can infect your entire worldview. In dispen-sational theology Satan is destined to gradually overtake the entire world and God’s kingdom can’t be inaugurated until after that happens.

Those who claim this is Satan’s world rely on verses like Ephesians 2: 2 which refers to him as “the prince of the power of the air”; or 1 Peter 5: 8 which says, “the devil, like a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.” But they miss the bigger narrative.

Satan did have relatively unchecked power over the nations of this world…up until Christ came. In the ancient world, only a small enclave called Israel was even exposed to the redemptive promise of the Messiah. The rest of the nations had no choice but to follow Satan because that’s all they knew. At that time Satan was effectively the prince of this world.

But when Christ came everything changed. The kingdom was inaugurated and Satan’s power was significantly diminished. John the Baptist announced, “the kingdom of God is at hand” (Mark 1: 15), and Jesus proclaimed, “now shall the prince of this world be cast out” (John 12: 31).

Remember when the Pharisees accused Christ of using the power of Satan to cast out demons? “And if I by Beelzebub cast out devils,” He said, “by whom do your children cast them out?...But if I cast out devils by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God is come unto you. Or else how can one enter into a strong man's house, and spoil his goods, except he first bind the strong man? And then he will spoil his house” (Matt. 12: 27-29). So Christ’s first advent signaled not just the inauguration of the kingdom, but the binding of the “strong men” (Satan and his demons).

How could this be? We know that “the earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof” (Psalms 24: 1). Prior to Christ coming, Satan was a temporary usurper. But God gave His Son the authority to reclaim His creation: “All power is given unto me in heaven and earth” (Matt 28: 18). “He that cometh from above is above all…The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand” (John 3: 31, 35).

By dying for the sins of all, Christ “…blott[ed] out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us…nailing it to his cross; and having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it” (Col. 2: 14, 15). The principalities and powers he spoiled were Satan’s.

It is an ongoing conquest. The kingdom grows gradually (Matthew 13: 31-33), consuming all earthly kingdoms (Daniel 2: 34-44); it does not appear suddenly and full-blown on day one. Satan still has power, but he is not in control. He no longer owns entire nations. He is reduced to prowling at night, picking off individuals. With each passing century his dominion is decreased, even as his tactics become more desperate and blatant.

Since Christ’s resurrection, God has set Him “at his own right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come: and hath put all things under his feet” (Eph 1: 20-22). God the Father has told Christ “sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool” (Psalm 110: 1).

In the “fullness of times” God will “gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth” (Ephesian 1: 10).

First Corinthians 15 tells us that when Christ returns to resurrect the dead, “then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power. For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet.”

When Christ comes back He is not going to start His kingdom; it’s already started. He’s going to deliver His kingdom up to His Father and the kingdom will continue for eternity in Heaven. Until that time, I believe, He has given His followers authority to reclaim the earth—not by force, but by spreading "the gospel of the kingdom" and the promise of spiritual regeneration. The meek "shall inherit the earth”—not be raptured out of it while Satan expands his empire.

“These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace,” Christ said. “In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world” (John 16:33).

Christian Doctrines

Some excerpts from a refreshing old book called Christian Doctrines by Baptist scholar James Madison Pendleton.

On church:

“In answer to the question, What is a church? It may be said, A church is a congregation of Christ’s baptized disciples, acknowledging him as their Head, relying on his atoning sacrifice for justification before God, depending on the Holy Spirit for sanctification, united in the belief of the gospel, agreeing to maintain its ordinances and obey its precepts, meeting together for worship, and co-operating for the extension of Christ’s kingdom in the world. If any prefer an abridgment of this definition, it may be given thus: A church is a congregation of Christ’s baptized disciples, united in the belief of what he has said, and covenanting to do what he has commanded.”

On the resurrection:

“As to the period of the resurrection, the whole tenor of Scripture indicates that it will take place at the end of the world, at the second coming of Christ, and as preparatory to the general judgment.”

On baptism:

"The commission of Christ, as understood and exemplified in the apostolic age, requires the baptism of believers, disciples; and the baptism of all others, whether unbelievers or unconscious infants, is utterly unwarranted. There is, as Paul has written in the Epistle to the Ephesians, 'one Lord, one faith, one baptism.' The one Lord is the object of the one faith, the one faith embraces the one Lord, and the one baptism is a profession of the one faith in the one Lord."

On Abraham’s seed:

“As to the seed of Abraham we may learn much from Paul, who says, ‘Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ.’ The apostle under inspiration seized hold of the important fact that the seed of Abraham is Christ, in whom all nations are blessed. Thus the promised Saviour was known to Abraham, of whom Jesus said to the Jews, ‘Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day; and he saw it, and was glad.’"

The Postmillennial Vision

All right, I’m almost through with my anti-dispensationalism kick…after I get a word in for the alternative. Actually, there’s more than one alternative. But the one I feel is most compatible with the plain teaching of Scripture is postmillennialism. John Jefferson Davis, in his book The Victory of Christ’s Kingdom, sums up postmillennialism this way:

1. Through the preaching of the gospel and dramatic outpourings of the Holy Spirit, Christian missions and evangelism will attain remarkable success, and the church will enjoy an unprecedented period of numerical expansion and spiritual vitality.
2. This period of spiritual prosperity, the millennium, understood as a long period of time, is to be characterized by conditions of increasing peace and economic well-being in the world as a result of the growing influence of Christian truth.
3. The millennium will also be characterized by the conversion of large numbers of ethnic Jews to the Christian faith (Rom. 11:25-26).
4. At the end of the millennial period there will be a brief period of apostasy and sharp conflict between Christian and evil forces (Rev. 20:7-10).
5. Finally and simultaneously there will occur the visible return of Christ, the resurrection of the righteous and the wicked, the final judgment, and the revelation of the new heavens and the new earth.

This was the prevailing worldview of Bible-believing Christians for centuries, before the new teaching of dispensationalism came into fashion. Postmillennialism fueled the great revivals and missionary efforts of the 18th and 19th centuries. Prominent postmillennialists (past and present) include: Jonathan Edwards, Matthew Henry, George Whitefield, William Carey, David Livingstone, R. L. Dabney, A. H. Strong, B. B. Warfield, Charles Hodge, B. H. Carroll, R. C. Sproul, R. J. Rushdoony, Doug Wilson, Gary Demar, Hank Hanegraaf, Ken Gentry, and Rick Warren. There are several postmillennial-leaning organizations worth checking out, including Vision Forum, The Chalcedon Foundation, and American Vision. A good cheap introduction to postmillennialism is Davis’s The Victory of Christ’s Kingdom. I’d also recommend these books: The Messiah’s Second Advent, Zion’s Glad Morning, and The Puritan Hope.

Christ said, “All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.” All power. And what’s the very next thing He says? He commissions His followers to take the field: “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them…teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world.” How do we know His gospel will prevail? Because one day “the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea” (Isa. 11: 9). Jesus promised, “And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me” (John 12: 32).

Many Christians are rightly abandoning the hokey template of dispensationalism. Many are rediscovering postmillennialism. The more they do so, the more potential there is for real (rather than pre-fabricated) revival.

Postmillennial Baptists

You might be a homeschooler if…you think the man on the left is Michael Pearl. It’s not. Nor is it anyone affiliated with ZZ Top. It’s B. H. Carroll, a giant of the faith and founder of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Texas. He was a postmillennial Baptist. So were the great missionaries William Carey and Adoniram Judson. So were many outstanding Baptist scholars and preachers like J. M. Pendleton, A. H. Strong, Calvin Goodspeed and J. A. Broadus.

So are we.

There’s been a noticeable resurgence in the postmillennial viewpoint in the last few years. It’s even cropping up again in some Baptist churches, most of which have been floundering in the fog of dispensationalism for over a century (more on that in another post perhaps).

What is postmillennialism? It’s the belief that Christ will come back only one more time, at the end of the world, to resurrect the dead and judge all people. (Sounds radically simple, huh? Plus it’s actually in the Bible). It’s the belief that prior to that “last day,” the church is supposed to fulfill the Great Commission. It’s the belief that Christ—not Satan—has dominion on earth, that He reigns now from heaven, and that He expects his kingdom to grow one soul at a time.

We certainly don’t consider it a matter of fellowship if someone isn’t a postmillennialist. But if you’ve ever been confused or bothered by dispensational teachings (the “Left Behind” narrative), or can’t seem to find what they’re saying in Scripture, we hope you take a look at postmillennialism. It’s kind of a relief to shed the pessimism and fear instilled by dispensationalism and return to a more optimistic and Biblical view of God’s plan.

Trivia: these hymns are postmillennial--“Joy to the World,” “Lead On O King Eternal,” “We’ve a Story to Tell to the Nations,” “Battle Hymn of the Republic,” “Hail to the Brightness,” probably countless others. Oh, and most of Handel’s “Messiah.” If anyone can think of any others, leave them in the comments.

Welcome to the waters

The title of this blog is a metaphor for the ever-expanding kingdom of God. The passage in Ezekiel 47 from which it is taken describes a small stream flowing from the house of God toward the desert. The stream becomes gradually deeper--first to the ankles, then to the knees, then to the waist--until eventually it is deep enough to swim in. Everywhere it flows new vegetation sprouts up and the desert becomes a garden.

Jesus used the same idea of gradual fulfillment when He preached "the gospel of the kingdom." "Whereunto shall we liken the kingdom of God?" He asked. "It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when it is sown in the earth, is less than all the seeds that be in the earth: but when it is sown, it groweth up, and becometh greater than all herbs, and shooteth out great branches; so that the fowls of the air may lodge under the shadow of it" (Mark 4: 30-32).

Elsewhere we read that the kingdom is a small stone that broke apart the ancient empires and will grow into a great mountain that fills the whole earth (Daniel 2). Or that the kingdom is like yeast that eventually permeates the whole loaf of bread (Matthew 13). Isaiah tells us that one day "the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea" (11: 9).

These are not speculations or wishes. They are promises from God. The kingdom will gradually grow. The kingdom will be preeminent on earth. The whole world will be blessed by the kingdom.

We realize this is a different perspective than many well-meaning, Bible-believing churches are teaching today. But we hope we can do our part to encourage others to study the promises of Scripture, renew their optimism, and help advance the kingdom.

So what is the kingdom? Is it, as many teach, a literal earthly dicatorship? No. "My kingdom is not of this world," Jesus said (John 18: 36). "The kingdom of God cometh not with observation: neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you" (Luke 17: 20, 21). The kingdom is spiritual.

Is it something in the distant future, or is it already here? "The time is fulfilled," Jesus announced, "and the kingdom of God is at hand" (Mark 1: 15). "If I cast out devils by the Spirit of God," He explained, "then the kingdom of God is come unto you" (Matt. 12: 28). The kingdom is now.

Who is in the kingdom, and what are they supposed to do? "Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God" (John 3:3). "But when they believed Philip preaching the things concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized" (Acts 8: 12). "I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven" (Matt. 16: 18, 19). "And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations" (Matt. 24: 14). "Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost" (Matt. 28: 19). The kingdom is the fulfillment of God's redemptive plan. Its citizens are the redeemed.

The kingdom is growing today. There are more citizens of the kingdom now than there were a hundred years ago, and more a hundred years ago than there were 1,000 years ago. It will continue to grow--with or without us. Sadly, many churches are sitting on the sidelines, waiting for the world to deteriorate: waiting--like many of the Jews in Christ's day--for a physical kingdom; waiting for "the church" to fizzle out and fade away. They miss the promises. They miss the point. The desert sands don't bury God's house. The waters flowing from the house of God flood the desert and transform it.

If Christ said, "All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth," and, "lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world" (Matt. 28: 18, 20), then Christians should boldly advance the kingdom in their lives, in their families, in their communities, and throughout the entire world.