Doctrine Talk: 2nd Coming of Christ (Revelation 19)

 Of the 260 chapters in the entire New Testament, there are 318 references to the Second Coming, or one out of 30 verses. Twenty-three of the 27 New Testament books refer to this great event. For every prophecy on the First Coming of Christ, there are 8 on Christ’s Second Coming.

Christ promised to return and save and reunite his people and to establish God’s kingdom.

As heavenly worshippers celebrate Babylon’s fall, heaven opens and Jesus

returns, riding a white horse, wearing a robe dipped in blood, and accompanied by heaven’s army.

He comes ready to wage war against the evil armies gathered against God. Jesus, the Lamb of God,

returns from heaven to avenge evil and take His people to their eternal home.

Revelation 19:11-21

● Jesus first came to earth to offer Himself as a sacrifice for sin. He will return to reign and rule

on earth and judge humanity and all God’s enemies.

● Jesus will come in the clouds and with great glory. Every eye will see Him. Only God knows

when this will happen.

● Scripture consistently calls God’s people to await Jesus’s return with readiness and expectant

hope. Our Savior will return to fulfill every promise in His Word.

● When I do not believe that God’s Son will return to earth, human history seems to proceed

without any identifiable direction or purpose. The resolution I long for escapes me as I witness

the chaos, trouble, and uncertainty that dominates the world. I fail to recognize that I am

personally accountable to Jesus, who will judge the world righteously.

● When I believe that Jesus will return to earth as the righteous judge of all humanity, I live my

life with His priorities in view. Though this world’s evil bothers me, I know that God has a date

on His calendar when He will end sin’s grip on planet Earth. I find hope and comfort in knowing

that the Savior who died for me will return to take me into His presence forever.

Possible Applications for Leaders:

● Jesus carried out God’s plan of redemption and will return to complete God’s promised judgment.

– How does Jesus’s return and His coming just judgment bring you joy or comfort?

– No one can stop God’s plan to bring justice to the earth. His enemies cannot threaten His

eternal purposes.

– How does this truth help you as you live in a world that seems dominated by evil?

● Believers can anticipate Christ’s return with joyful worship, urgent evangelism, and

constant readiness.

– How can you balance the joy associated with Christ’s return and the sobering reality of

judgment awaiting people you know?

– In love and compassion, believers risk ridicule and rejection to proclaim Jesus as the only

way of salvation.

– The time to testify about Jesus’s salvation and return is now. Are you ready?

● When Jesus returns, He will defeat His enemies and deliver His people.

– How acutely do you long for God’s justice to prevail? What makes you eagerly anticipate

Jesus’s return?

– In what way does the truth about Jesus’s second coming help you make sense of this world?

– This is the believer’s confidence: Jesus and His Word will have the final say. God will bring

the victory we desire.