I grew up in the church when movies like Left Behind or the Thief in the Night were shown regularly. These movies depicted Jesus’s Second Coming rapturing up followers of Jesus. The majority of these films devoted their time to the chaos on earth, and the message I received was, “Get right with Jesus before His Second Coming.”
When you read 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, the Apostle Paul has a vastly different tone. The Thessalonian believers had deep concern for those in their church family who passed away. Will Jesus pick them up for His Second Coming? Did they miss the boat? And in the midst of those worries, Paul says one of the most powerful verses on grief in the Bible, “…so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope.” (1 Thessalonians 4:13).
The Second Coming of Jesus brings us hope!
Now the Old Testament from Genesis to Malachi point to Jesus’s first coming. And scholars think that between the last book of the Old Testament, Malachi, and the first book of the New Testament, Matthew, is 400 to 500 years. Again, we’re reminded of waiting. And in Advent we prepare our hearts for Jesus’s coming.
Just like His first coming, the Lord’s Second Coming doesn’t have to scare us. On the contrary, we wait in eager anticipation for Jesus to make the world right. Said another way – going back to the Garden of Eden of Genesis.
The Good News of the Gospel reminds us of the hope of Jesus’s death and resurrection. During Advent, we wait for Christmas reminding us of the anticipation of Jesus’s first coming to earth and pointing us to His Second Coming. In a world filled with darkness and chaos, that’s Good News.
When we invite people to know Jesus we proclaim the Good News to them. That’s the power of the Advent season – Jesus has come and will come again.
PRAYER
Lord, we live in a world that grieves and experiences darkness. Help me to live with the hope of the Gospel that You will come again.
PRACTICE
What would change in your life if you saw Jesus’ Second Coming in hope? Write down the ways that your life might change. Pick one way to practice today.
Photo by Kristopher Roller on Unsplash
