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.